against him. He hugged the most intimate ones to his little,
thin breast.

It was getting twilight in the great, beautiful room, and twilight
was trouble-time. Morry had found that out long ago. It's when it's
too dark to read and too light for Ellens to come and light the lamps
that you say "Come in!" to your troubles. They're always there
waiting.

If Dadsy hadn't gone away to do--that. If he'd just gone on reg'lar
business, or on a hurry-trip across the ocean, or something like
that. You could count the days and learn pieces to surprise him with
when he got back, and keep saying, "Won't it be splendid!" But this
time--well, this time it scared you to have Dadsy come home. And if
you learned a hundred pieces you knew you'd never say 'em to
him--now. And you kept saying, "Won't it be puffectly dreadful!"

"Won't you have the lamps lit, Master Morris?" It was Ellen's voice,
but the Troubles were all talking at once, and much as ever he could
hear it.

"I knew you weren't asleep because your chair creaked, so I says, 'I
guess we'll light up,'--it's enough sight cheerier in the light"; and
Ellen's thuddy steps came through the gloom and frightened away the
Troubles.

"Thank you," Morry said, politely. It's easy enough to remember to be
polite when you have so much time. "Now I'd like Jolly,--you guess
he's got home now, don't you?"

Ellen's steps sounded a little thuddier as they tramped back down the
hall. "It's a good thing there's going to be a Her here to send that
common boy kiting!" she was thinking. Yet his patches were all
Ellen--so far--had seen in Jolly to find fault with. Though, for that
matter, in a house beautiful like this patches were, goodness knew,
out of place _enough!_

"Hully Gee, ain't it nice an' light in here!" presently exclaimed a
boy's voice from the doorway.

"Oh, I'm so glad you've come, Jolly! Come right in and take a
chair,--take two chairs!" laughed Morry, in his excess of welcome. It
was always great when Jolly came! He and the Troubles were not
acquainted; they were never in the room at the same time.

Morry's admiration of this small bepatched, befreckled, besmiled
being had begun with his legs, which was not strange, they were such
puffectly straight, limber, splendid legs and could _go_--my! Legs
like that were great!

But it was noticeable that the legs were in some curious manner
telescoped up out of sight, once Jolly was seated. The phenomenon was
of common occurrence