Emilie Vaughan-Smith

“ Brown?’ called out Kitty, bristling up directly. ‘Punch has been as good as gold—haven’t you, darling?’ and she kissed one of his tan cheeks.
Mr. Brown was striding towards them with a wrathful face. ‘Good as gold, have he?’ he echoed, indignantly. ‘I’ll teach him to be as good as gold! Trolloping over the flower-beds, and breaking my best chrysanth’ums! A good-as-gold beating’s what he deserves.’
‘No, he doesn’t! You shan’t touch him, Mr. Brown, you cruel, wicked man!’ screamed Kitty, while Punch raised his shrill, exasperating alarm-bark, and Emmeline bent over him protectingly. ”

“ I should like you to have the pleasure, but I don’t yet know whether it will be possible.’
‘Oh, Aunt Grace!’ cried Kitty, pouting a little, ‘you can’t not let us go to the Fair. There are such darling baby elephants!’
‘Yes,’ added Micky, ‘and there are boats which go up and down, and up and down, and round and round, till you get as lovely and seasick as if you were on the real sea!’ Micky spoke without any thought of sarcasm. ”

“ It cancelled out to one-third, and with a sigh of relief Emmeline gave her mind to Kitty’s question. ‘What made you think of it, Kitty?’ she asked.
‘Because of what Mary said this morning about the wonderful things guileless children can do. Is that why we are adopting Diamond Jubilee?’
‘We are adopting Diamond Jubilee so as to save him from becoming a thief and burglar,’ said Emmeline. ‘We are going to train him into a good, noble man. I wonder if you two understand what a great, beautiful work it is we have begun to-day!’ Emmeline’s eyes shone with enthusiasm. ”

“ A few minutes later Aunt Grace went away, and for the rest of the morning Emmeline was left alone except for a short visit from the Doctor. She did not feel at all dull or lonely, however, for there seemed so much to think and wonder over.
‘It’s very odd how different people are from what you expect them to be,’ was the upshot of her reflections. ‘Mary was dear and kind, as she always is, but she didn’t understand a bit. It was Aunt Grace who understood that adopting Diamond Jubilee wasn’t all naughtiness. ”

“ Emmeline came up to the schoolroom that evening, when the twins were drinking their supper-milk, and began fidgeting with the blind-tassel. ‘After all,’ she remarked abruptly, ‘I suppose when you’ve once adopted a person you’re rather bound to go on with it if you can, even if it doesn’t turn out quite as beautiful and romantic as you thought it would be.’
‘And dogs are awfully good judges of character,’ remarked Kitty thoughtfully. ”

“ Her own French exercise had been so very stupid that Miss Miller had sentenced her to stay in after lessons and write it over again; and now Emmeline had announced her intention of going into the village to buy Diamond Jubilee’s food-supply. It was really too hard, Kitty felt, to be kept in to-day of all days.
‘Leave the old thing,’ suggested Micky; ‘very likely she’ll forget to ask for it to-morrow as she did for my declension.’
‘I can’t—she put me on my honour,’ said Kitty, kicking the table-leg angrily.
‘Putting people on their honour is a horridly mean dodge,’ growled Micky. ”

“ When Emmeline went to her room she found Kitty already in bed. Her eyes were shining with excitement. ‘Has Micky got back safe, and did Diamond Jubilee like his supper?’ she asked eagerly.
‘I don’t know—I don’t think he said,’ answered Emmeline, absently.
‘Do you know,’ continued Kitty, ‘I feel as if I’d had ten birthdays all in a lump to-day, and was a big grown-up woman of eighteen; for adopting somebody is an awfully grown-up thing to do, isn’t it, Emmeline?’
‘Yes,’ assented Emmeline, with a brightening face.
There was one person, at all events, who could never forsake her for Aunt Grace ”

“ So it came about that Micky presently found himself once more in the midst of all that delightful noise and bustle which made up Eastwich Fair. He would turn his very best coach-wheels, he decided, and earn quantities of pennies for motor-rides and ice-cream (last time Emmeline wouldn’t let them have any because people had to lick it out of glasses, as there were no spoons) and cocoanut-shies, and visits to the elephants. He wasn’t going to give all his money to that old Mother Grimes, whatever Diamond Jubilee might do. ”

“ I shouldn’t a bit wonder if she didn’t let us bring him to Woodsleigh, or even if she does, she’ll keep him chained up all day, poor darling! People who think much about clothes never do like dogs, except just silly little toy things.’
Micky and Kitty broke out together in a chorus of indignation and horror.
‘If they are so horrid as to chain Punch up in the kennel all day I shall jolly well stay out with him and keep him company!’ shouted Micky.
‘Oh, Emmeline, you don’t really think there’s any danger of Aunt Grace not letting darling Punch come?’ said Kitty, almost in tears. ”

“ If only he were settling down to live happily in the Feudal Castle, everything would be more simple!
‘I can’t think what can have happened to Micky,’ remarked Aunt Grace, as they were beginning breakfast that morning without his having made an appearance; ‘it’s not often he oversleeps himself. I’m afraid the Fair has been too much for you young people,’ she added, in a playfully teasing voice, as Kitty gave a great yawn. ”

“ Micky hung his head for a moment, then his face suddenly grew bright with a pleasant idea. ‘I know!’ he cried. ‘We’ll pour some of the milk into my tooth-glass, and it can be saved for Diamond Jubilee’s breakfast. We can hide the tooth-glass somewhere for the night. I wouldn’t mind not brushing my teeth, not just for once,’ he added hastily, as Emmeline’s face began to assume its most elder-sisterly expression. ”

“ No other policeman came in sight, and she began to feel worried as to what she should do. She had always been warned against speaking to strangers except those in uniform; and yet she dared not go any further without asking her way, for fear of losing herself.
Great was her relief when she saw a lady coming towards her who looked as though she might be a clergyman’s wife or a district visitor. Her appearance was so severely respectable that the rule of not speaking to strangers could not apply in this case; so Emmeline went up to the lady and asked timidly the way to Green Ginger Land. ”

“ At that moment Emmeline entered, in hat and gloves. ‘I’ve taken the extra money-box money,’ she told them, breathlessly; ‘it’s two shillings and ninepence. That ought to last him nearly three weeks. About a shilling a week is all we can reckon on, I’m afraid, though it doesn’t seem much even for Omnibus Nuts. To be sure, there’s birthday money, but that won’t be yet, and even when we get it, it will be wanted for bedclothes and things. If only we could earn some more, somehow!’
‘Diamond Jubilee shall have all my egg-money,’ said Kitty eagerly. ”

“ Just at that moment the dinner-bell rang.
‘Well, I must run and get ready,’ said Aunt Grace. ‘Can I lend anybody anything?’
‘Thank you; we should be very grateful for a sponge,’ said Emmeline, ‘and, Aunt Grace, Micky must wash, mustn’t he? Just look at his hands!’
Micky made a face at her, and Aunt Grace said calmly: ‘I expect he will wash: gentlemen usually do. ”

“ What silly ideas you have!’ said Emmeline impatiently. ‘You must remember that Diamond Jubilee isn’t like us. I expect he’s often been used to going days and days without the least little scrap of food; so he ought to be only too thankful to have plenty of nice, nourishing monkey-nuts.’
They had got well outside the village, and were just passing a farm famous for its apple-orchard, when Emmeline was startled, and Micky interested, by sounds of wrath and battle. ”

“ As the two boys and the policeman walked along more and more people kept rushing out from side streets to see what was happening, until it seemed to poor Micky that all Eastwich must be there to witness his disgrace. Well, as soon as ever he was free again, he should flee the country, he resolved fiercely. It would be unbearable to live any longer in a land where such thousands of people—Micky felt sure there must be thousands at least—where such thousands of people came to stare at you being taken to prison. ”

“ Poor Emmeline! She had heard of those crowded beds before, always with a shudder of horror, and now here was her thankless protégé actually regretting them! ‘Look here, Diamond Jubilee,’ she said, ‘if you’ll only be patient we’ll buy you bedclothes, and so on, as soon as ever we get any extra money for birthdays or anything; as it is, you have only to get a little bracken from the wood, and you can make yourself quite a nice Feudal Castle bed. ”

“ Micky bounded into the air. ‘I’m jolly glad we settled on having him instead of the donkey!’ he announced.
‘I do wish we were going to see him all the year round instead of only just at the summer holidays,’ remarked Kitty. ‘I’m sure Punch will miss him dreadfully. He always hates it when people go away.’
‘Well, it’s a great castle in the air of mine that some day things will work out so that you do see him all the year round,’ said Mr. Faulkner, glancing at Aunt Grace, who had turned rather rosier than usual. ”

“ What if Diamond Jubilee should go on refusing to live alone in the Feudal Castle? For one evening he might be fairly safe from discovery in the summer-house; for one night Micky might go out and sleep in the wood without anyone becoming aware of his absence; but Emmeline had sense enough to see that such arrangements could not possibly be lasting. Even for once they were very risky. Suppose Micky should fail to come back before Jane went to call him? ”

“ Toffee’s a wonderful comfort sometimes.’
‘Oh, Miss Kitty, George wouldn’t think of taking your toffee, bless your heart!’ said Mary, kissing the child, as she helped her on with her hat; ‘but I’ll tell him you wanted to give it him, and that will comfort him.’
‘I should have thought myself it would only have disappointed him more,’ said Kitty; ‘but you know best, of course.’
‘Well, we must really be starting,’ said Emmeline, in a nervous fever. She was terribly afraid that Diamond Jubilee might have grown tired of waiting outside, and have run away. ”

“ Why do you ask?’
‘Because you seem so grave, somehow—like when we’ve been naughty.
‘I was thinking, I suppose,’ said Aunt Grace, laughing, and for the rest of the walk she chatted merrily about all kinds of things.
‘It’s easy to see she doesn’t care much about the poor children,’ thought Emmeline, feeling well satisfied with herself; ‘if she did, she wouldn’t make so many jokes.’
All the way home, and while they were having supper afterwards, Emmeline went on thinking of the little girl who had spent her pocket-money and her playtime on the poor. ”

“ Brown was doing something to one of the flower-beds at one end of the lawn, and Cook’s face kept appearing at the scullery window, but Emmeline settled herself down to wait very contentedly. ‘The Wide Wide World’ was a book of which she never grew tired, and a quiet, peaceful time for reading it was far more to her taste than an afternoon with Diamond Jubilee. ”

“ Three eager heads were craned out of the carriage window, when on the following Monday morning the Woodsleigh train slowly steamed into Eastwich Station. Everyone wanted to be the first to catch sight of Mary. ‘There she is!’ screamed Micky, and ‘I see her!’ shrieked Kitty, as they fixed on two different ladies, neither of whom proved on closer view to resemble Mary in the least. ”

“ Grace; whereupon Kitty gave such a bound of delight that she nearly upset her tea, and Micky graciously expressed his opinion that the Meeting wouldn’t be half bad.
‘Work among children is always particularly interesting,’ said Emmeline; ‘their characters are still so plastic that they can be moulded into whatever shape you want.’ She had once heard a visitor make the remark, and had treasured it up for future use.
‘I didn’t know you had had such a wide experience in bringing up young people, Emmeline,’ said Aunt Grace, with a twinkle in her eye; and Emmeline grew rather red. ”

“ She never gives you poetry-books.’ This last was a sore point with Micky just then, for his godmother had recently presented him with a gilt-edged volume of ‘The Poetical Works of William Wordsworth,’ for which he had been expected to write a laborious round-hand letter of thanks.
‘Presents are all very well, but they don’t prove that a person loves you,’ said Emmeline; ‘and as to her being jolly when she comes here, she never stays more than a day or two at a time, and always seems in a great hurry to get back to London again. ”

“ Poor dear Mary! She little thought that Emmeline had all along been quite aware of those misgivings of hers, which she had been too loyal and good a woman ever to express in words, or [227] that it is far easier to suggest doubts than to put trust and confidence in their place. Emmeline said nothing, but she none the less looked forward with dread to the possible visit from Aunt Grace. ”

“ Just as they reached the door into the kitchen, she paused to say to Alice: ‘You’d better hang them blankets upon the line. I’ll not have them in the house again till they have been well washed, after being stuffed up with that dirty dog.’
‘There’s many a Christian been a longer time without a bath than Punch,’ remarked Cook; whereupon Micky turned his head and gave Emmeline as deliberate a wink as Jane allowed him time for. ”

“ Why, even the Prince of Wales has “I serve” for his motto. That’s one of the things I’ll have to teach you, Diamond Jubilee, that you can’t be a real gentleman unless you work for other people.’
‘My father were a gentleman more often than not,’ remarked Diamond Jubilee, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
It struck Emmeline that she must certainly buy him one or two pocket-handkerchiefs. To be sure, he needed an entire new outfit, for what he had on was only fit for a bonfire, but her present means would, alas! only run to absolute necessities, such as food and pocket-handkerchiefs. ”

“ Do you see?’
‘Oh yes!’ said Emmeline in a tone of great relief; ‘you are a good boy, Micky, to have thought of that. But make haste now and take Diamond Jubilee his supper; someone may come in any moment. I’m sorry I was cross, Kitty,’ she added, as Micky flitted across the lawn at a speed which was risky considering that he was carrying two tumblers of milk, and disappeared among the dark bushes round the summer-house, ‘but it was silly of you to think of jumping down. ”

“ I saw a policeman take him there yesterday afternoon.’
‘Oh no, dear,’ Mary hastened to explain, ‘not to prison, only to the police-station. People can’t be sent to prison till they have been tried in court, you know. Micky didn’t stay long even at the police-station, for as soon as he gave his name and address they knew he must be the boy who was missing, and sent for me to take him away.’
‘And is that really all that will happen,’ cried Emmeline. ”

“ It had fallen a little from the tumbled heap in which Micky had pushed it, so that it now took up a good deal more room than it had done in the morning.
If Punch had been in a sleepier or lazier mood he might have managed to make it into a cosy nest for himself. As it was, he chose to pretend that it was a giant white rat, and to treat it accordingly. It was really an ideal game for a bored fox-terrier—from the bored fox-terrier’s own point of view, that is. ”