The Golden Calf

loration of the surrounding neighbourhood. Loud whoops of triumph and sundry breakdown dances were heard in the top story soon

oak panelling, but painted stone colour by generations of Goths a

d cakes, and eggs and bacon, fish, honey, fresh fruit from the garden, a picturesque confusion of form

iss Palliser?' asked the Colonel

in the jaunting-car,' said Reginald, talking of the lady as if

now in possession of Brian Wendover, only son of

'I suppose you don't much mind being spilt off an outside car, Miss Pal

id,' said Reginald;

in a ditch before the day is over,' retorted Bessie.

,' said Ida, good-naturedly. '

ity he is not at home for you to see him too! Do you think

esn't care much about the sport, he tells me; indeed, he was never a very enthusiastic angler; but he likes the country and the peop

lever?'

e good of a man being a fine Greek scholar if he knows nothing about the land he owns, or the cattle that graze upon it, and has not en

, looking up from his eggs and bacon. 'He lets us do what we like a

es

ave you

think I am going to tell you what you are to

to hint that I hope she hasn't forgotten the chutnee, Tirhoot, and plenty of it. What's the good of having

ept for Miss Rylance, who was to be invited to join the exploration party, much to the disgust of the Winchester lads, who denounced her as a stuck-up minx, and distinguished her with various other epithets of an abusive character sele

ad become almost human in his intelligence, and a match for his youthful masters in cunning and mischief. This impish animal had been christened Robin Good

the chubby Eva scrambled into her seat, with a liberal display of Oxford blue stocking, under the shortest of striped petticoats; and off they drove to the cottage, Dr

yawning over a book of travels - trying to improve a mind which was not naturally fertile - and she was not sorry to be interrupted by an irruption o

for her father to oscillate between Cavendish Square and Kingthorpe, avoiding the expense and trouble of autumn touring, and taking his rest and his pleasure in this rustic retreat. But her summer holidays for

oming round to Aunt Betsy's to tea on our way home,' said Bessie, as if she were

who fought all the surrounding tribes, and always welcomed the confiding stranger with a shower of poisoned

Abbey so well,' she said, determine

it. We are going to show her everyt

e are some lemon cheesecakes that I made myself yesterday

irst,' said Horatio. 'I'd soone

I should-hope that in a general way my hands are cleaner

e, Ranie?'

really w

et out of doors on such a lovely morning. Houses were never intended for such weather a

wasn't born full-dressed, like the b

The younger children having rushed in and left their mark

?' asked Bess. 'It looks so neat

half so much like

ry; or, at least, so Dr. Rylance says. How do you like the blue china? Dr. Rylance is an amateur of blue china. He will have

pongee sunshade, mousquetaire gloves. The Wendovers all wore their gloves in their pockets, and cultivated blisters on the

a shake, cracked his whip, and Robin, who always knew where his young friends wanted to go, twisted

crack his whip - vain even stinging switches on Robin's fat sides. Out of that crawl nothing could move him. The sun was gaining power with every moment, and blazing down upon the occupants of

the Abbey,' said Bessie. 'Don't you think if we were all to get

has blown a bit,' said Reg. 'C

were not being ba

wished herself in Cavendish Square; even though western

ep-walks, fair hills on which the yew-trees cast their dark shadows, a broad st

and Robin was going down

,' said Bessie. 'Never mind. It's only a dry bed of doc

en, between tall stone pillars supporting the sculptured escutcheon of the Wendovers. There was a stone lodge on each side of the gate, past which the car drove

one, the newest part of which was as old as the days of the last Tudor. Nor had much money been spent on the restoration or decorative repair of that fine old house. It had been kept wind and weather

a wide lawn, where four mighty cedars of Lebanon spread their dense shadows - grave old trees - which were in somewise impostors, as they looked o

an's wife will be still more

Vereish kind of person, and pine amo

ould revel in the advantages of her position as M

y being rich and great,' said Bessie. 'It killed her, poor thing. And yet s

le fool,' said Ida; 'I ha

rushed,' remarked Miss Rylance; 'they

idea of life

yours. I heard you say you

ersation in which you had no concern,' Ida a

ying in unpleasantness, the arrival of the pedestrians made an agreeable diversion. Blanche and her two brothers had come by a short cut, across fields and common, had given chase to butterflies, experimented with tadpoles, and looked for hed

o had imbibed certain conventional ideas of decency at M

e of transmutation, Miss Palliser, and it has almost converted me to Darwinism. Given a singl

how Ida the Abbey. How do you like the outside, darling?' asked the too-affectionate gi

like a page out o

ltered a bit since it was an actual abbey, except that half a dozen cells have been knocked into one comfortable bedroom. The long dark passage

said H

of smell is of such inferior quality that

we all go and sit under that prime old cedar and discuss th

half-past eleve

arly for lunch. We should have nothing left

Horry. 'I gave her to understand we were to have something goo

and pound-cake

,' said Blanche, a young person who at the seaside wanted two

he beds of dwarf roses and geraniums, with a ladylike stateliness which did cr

roke of one we will sit down to lunch under the biggest of the cedars - the tree which according t

e and Urania followed at a more sober pace; but Ida had given herself over to the child

premises, where he had been seeing Robin eat his corn, having a fixed id

-legged tables and inlaid cabinets of the Chippendale period, which had an air of newness where all else was so old. The upper rooms were low and somewhat dark, the heavily mullioned windows being

g, and old oak furniture. There were some fine pictures, from Holbein downwards, and the usua

alier, with strongly-marked brow and bronzed visage. 'He was middle-aged when that pictu

' said Horatio -'

was wounded seven times; and he was true to his master through every trial; and he had all the Wendover plate melted down; and he followed Charles the Second into exile; he mortgaged his e

e spared the old housekeeper,' said U

family, if you do,' protested

ll new and interest

nterested if Mr. Wendover had been here to

ting,' admitted Ida, with a frankness which

ook at the interior of ghostly closets, where the ladies of old had stored their house linen or hung their mantuas and farthingales; they had made her look out of numerous windows to admire the prospect; they had introduced her to the state bedroom in which the heads of the Wendover race made a poi

all as they came down. They co

ther,' c

y father in a stove-pipe hat on a wee

it's B

is in N

eeted them all with a comprehe

nd you, young peopl

ress unmitigated pleasure, 'this is a surprise. You t

Tuesday, so I put myself into the eight o'clock train, and arrived at The Cottage just an hour after yo

ly the kind of company you are accustomed to; but if you will

n-ups will find us under Evelyn's tree when you're hungry,

rovisions,' interjected Reg. '

ce standing in the hall, listlessly contemplative of Sir Tristram