The Crofton Boys | Page 5

said Agnes, glad to see him stop rolling
about, and raise himself on his dusty elbow to look at her.
"Well, come, what is it?"
"You must promise beforehand not to be angry."
"Angry! when am I angry, pray? Come, tell me."
"You must--you really must--I have a particular reason for saying
so--you must learn how much four times seven is. Now, remember, you
promised not to be angry."
Hugh carried off his anger by balancing himself on his head, as if he

meant to send his heels over, but that there was no room. From upside
down, his voice was heard saying that he knew that as well as Agnes.
"Well, then, how much is it?"
"Twenty-eight, to be sure. Who does not know that?"
"Then pray do not call it fifty-six any more. Miss Harold----"
"There's the thing," said Hugh. "When Miss Harold is here, I can think
of nothing but fifty-six. It seems to sound in my ears, as if somebody
spoke it, 'four times seven is fifty-six.'"
"You will make me get it by heart, too, if you say it so often," said
Agnes. "You had better say 'twenty-eight' over to yourself all day long.
You may say it to me as often as you like. I shall not get tired. Come,
begin now--'four times seven----'"
"I have had enough of that for to-day--tiresome stuff! Now, I shall go
and play with Harry again."
"But wait--just say that line once over, Hugh. I have a reason for
wishing it. I have, indeed."
"Mother has been telling Mr. Tooke that I cannot say my
multiplication-table! Now, that is too bad!" exclaimed Hugh. "And they
will make me say it after dinner! What a shame!"
"Why, Hugh! you know mamma does not like--you know mamma
would not--you know mamma never does anything unkind. You should
not say such things, Hugh."
"Ay, there! you cannot say that she has not told Mr. Tooke that I say
my tables wrong."
"Well--you know you always do say it wrong to her."
"I will go somewhere. I will hide myself. I will run to the market while
the cloth is laying. I will get away, and not come back till Mr. Tooke is

gone. I will never say my multiplication-table to him!"
"Never?" said Agnes, with an odd smile and a sigh. "However, do not
talk of running away, or hiding yourself. You will not have to say
anything to Mr. Tooke to-day."
"How do you know?"
"I feel sure you will not. I do not believe Mr. Tooke will talk to you, or
to any of us. There you go! You will be in the water-butt in a minute, if
you tumble so."
"I don't care if I am. Mr. Tooke will not come there to hear me say my
tables. Let me go!" he cried, struggling, for now Agnes had caught him
by the ankle. "If I do tumble in, the water is not up to my chin, and it
will be a cool hiding-place this hot day."
"But there is Susan gone to lay the cloth; and you must be brushed; for
you are all over dust. Come up, and I will brush you."
Hugh was determined to have a little more dust first. He rolled once
more the whole length of the leads, turned over Jane's stool, and upset
her work-basket, so that her thimble bounded off to a far corner, and
the shirt-collar she was stitching fell over into the water-butt.
"There! what will Jane say?" cried Agnes, picking up the basket, and
peeping over into the small part of the top of the water-butt which was
not covered.
"There never was anything like boys for mischief," said the maid Susan,
who now appeared to pull Hugh in, and make him neat. Susan always
found time, between laying the cloth and bringing up dinner, to smooth
Hugh's hair, and give a particular lock a particular turn on his forehead
with a wet comb.
"Let that alone," said Hugh, as Agnes peeped into the butt after the
drowning collar. "I will have the top off this afternoon, and it will make
good fishing for Harry and me."

Agnes had to let the matter alone; for Hugh was so dusty that she had
to brush one side of him while Susan did the other. Susan gave him
some hard knocks while she assured him that he was not going to have
Harry up on the leads to learn his tricks, or to be drowned. She hardly
knew which of the two would be the worst for Harry. It was lucky for
Hugh that Susan was wanted below directly, for she scolded him the
whole time she was parting and smoothing his hair. When it was done,
however, and the wet lock on