The Crofton Boys | Page 4

saunter
out of the room. He did not choose to go near his sisters, to be told how
stupidly he had stood in the gentleman's way; so, when he saw that they
were placing their stools on the leads, he went up into the attic, and
then down into the kitchen, to see where little Harry was, to play at
school-boys in the back yard.
The maid Susan was not sorry that Harry was taken off her hands; for
she wished to rub up her spoons, and fill her castors afresh, for the sake
of the visitor who had come in. The thoughtful Jane soon came down
with the keys to get out a clean table-cloth, and order a dish of cutlets,
in addition to the dinner, and consult with Susan about some dessert; so
that, as the little boys looked up from their play, they saw Agnes sitting
alone at work upon the leads.
They had played some time, Hugh acting a naughty boy who could not
say his Latin lesson to the usher, and little Harry punishing him with far
more words than a real usher uses on such an occasion, when they
heard Agnes calling them from above their heads. She was leaning over
from the leads, begging Hugh to come up to her,--that very moment.
Harry must be left below, as the leads were a forbidden place for him.
So Harry went to Jane, to see her dish up greengage plums which he
must not touch: and Hugh ran up the stairs. As he passed through the
passage, his mother called him. Full of some kind of hope (he did not
himself know what), he entered the parlour, and saw Mr. Tooke's eyes
fixed on him. But his mother only wanted him to shut the door as he

passed; that was all. It had stood open, as it usually did on warm days.
Could his mother wish it shut on account of anything she was saying?
It was possible.
"O Hugh!" exclaimed Agnes, as soon as he set foot on the leads. "What
do you think?--But is the parlour door shut? Who shut it?"
"Mother bade me shut it, as I passed."
"O dear!" said Agnes, in a tone of disappointment; "then she did not
mean us to hear what they were talking about."
"What was it? Anything about the Crofton boys? Anything about Phil?"
"I cannot tell you a word about it. Mamma did not know I heard them.
How plain one can hear what they say in that parlour, Hugh, when the
door is open! What do you think I heard mamma tell Mrs. Bicknor, last
week, when I was jumping Harry off the third stair?"
"Never mind that. Tell me what they are talking about now. Do,
Agnes."
Agnes shook her head.
"Now do, dear."
It was hard for Agnes to refuse Hugh anything, at any time; more still
when he called her "dear," which he seldom did; and most of all when
he put his arm round her neck, as he did now. But she answered,--
"I should like to tell you every word; but I cannot now. Mamma has
made you shut the door. She does not wish you to hear it."
"Me! Then will you tell Jane?"
"Yes. I shall tell Jane, when we are with mamma at work."
"That is too bad!" exclaimed Hugh, flinging himself down on the leads
so vehemently that his sister was afraid he would roll over into the yard.

"What does Jane care about Crofton and the boys to what I do?"
"There is one boy there that Jane cares about more than you do, or I, or
anybody, except papa and mamma. Jane loves Phil."
"O, then, what they are saying in the parlour is about Phil."
"I did not say that."
"You pretend you love me as Jane loves Phil! and now you are going to
tell her what you wont tell me! Agnes, I will tell you everything I know
all my whole life, if you will just whisper this now. Only just
whisper--Or, I will tell you what. I will guess and guess; and you can
nod or shake your head. That wont be telling."
"For shame, Hugh! Phil would laugh at you for being a girl, if you are
so curious. What mamma told Mrs. Bicknor was that Jane was her right
hand. What do you think that meant exactly?"
"That Jane might give you a good slap when you are so provoking,"
said Hugh, rolling over and over, till his clothes were covered with dust,
and Agnes really thought once that he was fairly going over the edge
into the yard.
"There is something that I can tell you, Hugh; something that I want to
tell you, and nobody else,"