Page:Anna Chapin--Half a dozen boys.djvu/340

306 thing. Silently mounting his chair, he stood up so that his head and shoulders appeared  above the top of the tall screen, extended his  arms in the air, and shouted with the full  strength of his lungs,—

“Bless you, my children!”

The effect was marvellous. Instantly the two chairs were drawn to the opposite corners of the hearth, while Mr. Muir began poking the fire with an unnecessary vigor, and Bessie dropped her head guiltily, as her face became rosy red.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to! I won’t again. I didn’t hear much,” said Rob incoherently, as he burst from his place of concealment. “I didn’t care to hear anything about it, really; only I went to sleep there all alone, and when I waked up, you were at it. I didn’t s’pose you would do it so soon, anyway. Next time, tell a fellow when it’s coming, and I’ll try to keep out of the way.”

Of course he was forgiven, and kissed, and petted, and made to swear secrecy, before he was sent away. And the boy actually kept his word.