In Honours Cause | Page 4

through, one of the last of the group turning to smile at Frank Gowan and kiss her hand.
The boy turned to his companion, looking flushed and proud as the door was closed after the retiring party.
"How handsome the Princess looked!" he said. "Hush!" said Forbes. "Pretty well. Not half so nice as your mother; you ought to be proud of her, Frank."
"I am," said the boy.
"But what a pity!"
"What's a pity?"
"That she should be in the Princess's train."
"A pity! Why the Princess makes her quite a friend."
"More pity still. Well, we shall be off duty soon, and then I'll get leave for us to go."
"I don't think I want to now."
"Well I do, and you'd better come and take care of me, or perhaps I shall get into a scrape."
"No, you will not. You only talk as you do to banter me."
"Think so?" said Andrew, with a peculiar smile. "Well, we shall see. But you'll come?"
"Yes," said Frank readily, "to keep you from getting into a scrape."
CHAPTER TWO.
SIGNS OF THE TIMES.
The water in the canal looked ruddy golden in the light glowing in the west, as the two pages passed through the courtyard along beneath the arches, where the soldiers on guard saluted them, and reached the long mall planted with trees.
"Halt! One can breathe here," said Frank, with his eyes brightening. "Come along; let's have a run."
"Quiet, quiet! What a wild young colt you are!--This isn't the country."
"No; but it looks like a good makeshift!" cried Frank.
"Who's disloyal now? Nice way to speak of his Majesty's Park! I say, you're short enough as it is."
"No, I'm not. I'm a very fair height for my age. It's you who are too long."
"Never mind that; but it's my turn to talk. Suppose you get cut shorter for saying disloyal things under the window of the Palace."
"Stuff! Rubbish!"
"Is it? They give it to the people they call rebels pretty hard for as trifling things," said Andrew, flushing a little. "They flogged three soldiers to death the other day for wearing oak apples in their caps."
"What? Why did they wear oak apples in their caps?"
"Because it was King Charles's day; and they've fined and imprisoned and hung people for all kinds of what they call rebellious practices."
"Then you'd better be careful, Master Drew," said Frank merrily. "I say, my legs feel as if they were full of pins and needles, with standing about so much doing nothing. It's glorious out here. Come along; I'll race you to the end of this row of trees."
"With the people who may be at the windows watching us! Where's your dignity?"
"Have none. They wouldn't know it was us. We're not dressed up now, and we look like any one else."
"I hope not," said Andrew, drawing himself up.
Frank laughed, and his companion looked nettled.
"It is nothing to laugh at. Do you suppose I want to be taken for one of the mob?"
"Of course I don't. But, I say, look. I saw a fish rise with a regular flop. That must be a carp. They are fond of leaping out of the water with a splash. I say, this isn't a lake, is it? Looks like a river."
"Oh, I don't know--yes, I do. Some one said it's part of a stream that comes down from out beyond Tyburn way, where they hang the people."
"Ugh! Horrid! But look here, the water seems beautifully clear. Let's get up to-morrow morning and have a bathe. I'll swim you across there and back."
"Tchah! I say, Frank, what a little savage you are!"
"Didn't know there was anything savage in being fond of swimming."
"Well, I did. A man isn't a fish."
"No," said Frank, laughing; "he's flesh."
"You know, now you belong to the Prince's household, and live in the King's Palace, you must forget all these boyish follies."
"Oh dear!" sighed Frank.
"We've got to support the dignity of the establishment as gentlemen in the Prince's train. It wants it badly enough, with all these sausage-eating Vans and Vons and Herrs. We must do it while things are in this state for the sake of old England."
"I wish I had never come here," said Frank dismally. "No, I don't," he added cheerfully. "I am close to my mother, and I see father sometimes. I say, didn't he look well at the head of his company yesterday?"
"Splendid!" cried Andrew warmly. "Here, cheer up, young one; you'll soon get to like it; and one of these days we'll both be marching at the heads of our companies."
"Think so?" cried Frank eagerly.
"I'm sure of it. Of course I like our uniform, and thousands of fellows would give their ears to be pages at the Palace; but you don't suppose I mean to keep on being a sort of lapdog in the anteroom. No. Wait a bit. There'll be grand times by-and-by.