The Terrible Twins

e promised faithfully to return at nine sharp. He left the house a proud and happy man

er to those social heights to which his ardent soul aspired to climb. She had but to return to the polite world from which the loss of her husband and her straightened circumstances had removed her, to find herself a popular woman with a host of fri

est gowns, a gown with which she had never been truly pleased. The troubled air did not leave her face during dinner; and it seemed to affect the Twins, for they, too, were gloomy. They wer

ht frock of her mother's days of prosperity, which had been cut down and fitted to her, was a sight to brighten any one's eyes; but th

distinguished appearance in the unstained evening dress of an English gentleman. After a long hunt for the mislaid keys, in which the harried staff of The Plough took part, he made up his mind that

boot; and it had faithfully retained all of the water its lining had not soaked up.

th the watered boot; and he begged her, with loud acerbity, never again to let any one-any one!!-enter his bedroom. Mrs. Pittaway objected that slops could not be emp

e lane so dark, was drawing a clothes-line tight. It ran through the hedge that hid him to the hedge on the other side of the lane. There it was fastened to a stout stake; a

ight-that very night he would crown Mrs. Dangerfield's devotion with his avowal of an answering passion. He pressed forward swiftly like a conqueror; and like a conqueror he whistled. Then he f

hudder; he was going

ed her that Captain Baster would propose that night; and she dreaded it. Two or three times she rose and walked up and down the room; and when she saw her deep, dark, troubled eyes i

an excellent stepfather and husband; that under his unfortunate manner were a good heart and sterling qualities. She assured herself that she had the power to draw them out; once

to her brother, rang for old Sarah, their trusty hard-working maid, and bade her tell the Terror, who had slipped quietly upstairs to bed at one minute to nine, to send it off in the morning. She did not wish to take the chance of not waking and despatching it as ea

d betook himself to his toilet. In the middle of it he missed his shaving-brush. He hunted for it furiously; he could have sworn that he had taken it out of

's shop with the air of one who has abandoned hope. Later he came out of it with his roving black eye full of tears of genuine feeling; his scraped chin was smarting cruelly and unattractive in patches-red patches. At the door the breathless, exc

weakened the essential thriftiness of his soul. Half an hour later, in changed tweeds but with unchanged chin, he took his way to Colet House, thinking with great unkindness of

ate for him, and with a kind smi

t thickly: "Look here, my lad, I don't want any more of your tricks! You play a

deepest pain: "Whatever's the matter?" he said in a tone of amazeme

again!" said

even greater amazement. "Was it the apple-pie bed, or the lost ke

g with a cat's swiftness: Captain Baste

se, in at the back door and

e's black in the face! I told

d not had a hand in Captain Baster's downfall the night before. The Terror had awak

you quite understand. You'll stick to them like a leech. You won't

do it," she said in a tone of extreme bitterne

rself beastly disagreeable, if

m going to have my proper share of the real fun. The first chan

ite the thing for a girl to do," s

" said

come to him, he was further annoyed by the fact that Erebus came too, and with a truculent air announced her intention of accompanying them. Mrs. Dangerfield was surprised;

s was not ungrounded. She was a nuisance; she would talk about wet boots; the subject seemed to fascinate her. Then, when at last he recovered his spirits, grew once more humorous, and even rose to the proposing point, there was no getting rid of h

d among those infernal brambles. Her howls of anguish were all humbug: he had not hurt her ankle (he could swear

one brought up one's children like that-well. Certainly s

d grown very serious indeed, when, as they drew near Colet House, a slim, tall young

tain Baster could hardly believe his eyes; he knew the young man by sight, by name and by repute. It was Sir Ma

ed this splendid fact before? Why had he been kept in the dark? He did not reflect that he had been so continuously busy making confidences a

name of Pallybaster. His friendliness was overwhelming. Before the end of lunch he had invited Sir Maurice to dine with him at his mess, to dine with him at t

The Twins were intolerable with their interruptions, their claims on their uncle's attention. They disgusted Captain Baster: when h

irations were the chief fact of his existence. Besides, there was no haste; he knew that Mrs. Dangerfield was awaiting his avowal with a passionat

ke opportunities for him to escape from them; Sir Maurice missed those opportunities; he did not seem to see them. In truth Captain Baster was a little disappointed in Sir Maurice: he did not

ce that he would be back at nine sharp, he was not sure that he had

austing toil: "I feel sticky-positively sticky," he said. "Oh, Erebus, you do have gummy friends! I thoug

Terror said in a tone of deep m

nd of mine!" cri

cher-because of his t

! You are young and possibl

go and get ready for dinn

hreshold Erebus turned and said: "It

, she fled th

ed at his sister

t." Then he laid his hand on her shoulder affectionately and add

eld in a tone in which disappointment

said Sir Maurice in a ton

do so much for the childre

e children are right in calling him the Cruncher. He would just crunch you up; and it is a thousand

derstand these things," said Mr

ers," said Sir Mauric

the light feet of a girl; a weight oppress

n a grave thoughtfulness clouded the spirits of Erebus. Once

on his eager way back to Colet House, he walked warily, feeling before him with his stick for clotheslines. He came out of the dark lane into

ugh for more serious matters, for a stone struck him on the thigh with considerable force. He had barely finished the jump of pai

time to stop a singularly hard stone with his marble brow. Then he found a gorse-bush (by tripping over a root) a gorse-bush which seemed

d to Colet House as hard as he could pelt. A stone struck the garden gate as he opened it. He did not pause to ring; he opened the front door, plun

unbelieving eyes and gasped: "I-I

a natural confusion; Mrs. Dangerfield, Sir Maurice and the Terror

tly sprang up from it with a howl as he chanced on s

rels on the common!" he cried; and he displayed

Maurice was cool, interested but cool; he did not bla

em were there?"

I should think there were a dozen," sa

or looke

with an illuminating flash of womanly intuition.

"But I'll teach the scoundrels a lesson! I'll put the police on them tomo

couldn't find your handkerchief anywhere, Mum. It to

he said in a tone of deep meaning: "Have you bee

impossible-a child in whose veins flowed some of the bluest blood in England. Besid

h slightly open. He muttered; something about finding his handkerchief, and stumbled out of the room. They heard a door bang up-stairs; then

n Baster's clothes. She had nearly finished when Sir Maurice returned. He carried a handkerchie

usly of the vengeance he would wreak on the scoundrelly villagers. But after a while he forgot his pricks and bruis

nd approval of Erebus' strenuous endeavor to instil into Captain Baster the perils and drawbacks of stepfatherhood, he brushed out her abundant

ping. But the nuisance is: he doesn't know it

t him know sometime to-mo

suppose he prosecutes you?"

don't think he'd do that; he'd look so silly

t to put him off marrying mother. And of course Uncl

he will," s

ir uncle's mind, for Erebus, coming softly on him from behind as he leaned over the gar

w

his colonel

so fair,

nose, and his squ

ng or Basing

himself, softly, twice with an air of deep satisfaction; a

she said: "Oh, un

"You tell any one, little pitcher, and I

nscrutable eyes; then nodding toward a figure stridin

nt door in two bounds, paused and cried: "I

lamming the do

bed. Mrs. Dangerfield, informed of her brother's shrinking, had to be very firm with his new friend to induce him

only to learn that Sir Maurice was very busy writing letters in his bedroom. Captain Baster hoped for an invitation to lunch (he hint

he would overtake them, and set out briskly to do so. He walked hard enough to compass that end; and it is probable that he would

within him to learn that Mrs. Dangerfield had invited some friends to meet him and

e vicar and his wife, the higher mathematician, father of Wiggins, Mrs. Blenkinsop and Mrs. Morton, and Wiggins himself, who had spent

the squire about the dulling effect of the country on the intelligence. He tried to be humorous with Mr. Carrington, the higher mathematician, whom he took to have retired from some profession or business. This was so signal a failur

lattering air of perfect equality, as "Maurice, old boy," or "Maurice, old chap," or plain "Maurice." He did shi

riendliness; and her guests went away pleased with themselves, her and one another. The Terror was keenly alive to the effect of Captain Baster; and a faint persistent frown troubled his sere

d of his panegyric on his possessions and accomplishments, and remembered his grievance. Forthwith he related at length the affair of the n

tic air, all of them except the higher mathematic

ost extraordinary. But I don't think it could have

aid the squire in the loud tone of a man trying to

ravel path; their eyes fixed in

ch rose above the right gable of the house, plumb in the middle; the second missed its tail by a couple of inches;

me," said Erebus with a little explanatory w

aster gazed earnestly at Erebus, his roving bla

lusions," said the higher mathematician in his clea

," said t

t on it," sa

ically Captain Baster rubbed t

; she said: "Has any one

d thoughtlessly, cried

ns!" cried the

t the situati

s horror-stricken heart. He ground his teeth softly and glared at the piquant and glowing fa

hen pushed forward by the eager Terror, to whom Erebus had chanted the song before

his colonel

so fair,

nose, and his squ

ng or Basing

er; as he finished everybody was looking at Captain

ot to look at his boots; he saw the faces melt into irrepressible smiles; he looked to Sir Mauri

y, and said loudly, but thickly, "I refuse! Yes, I refuse to mix in a

ode to the gate, and turne

the gate and strode vio

you?" cried Mrs. Dangerf

! I taught him. He didn't und

all me Freckles?" said Wiggins in a vengef