as twelve o'clock, and Harry, having learned to tell the
time, and having taken a great fancy to the seat at the end of the
long, low table, always took his place at least five minutes before
twelve, to ensure its possession, and such is the force of example and
the love of the best available seat, that on Mondays there was no need
for the matron to say, "Come to dinner, children," for a row of little
eager faces lined the table, and a row of little hands were folded
reverently upon it, waiting for her to ask a blessing.

And after dinner came the only drawback which Harry found in the
Nursery life.

He and all the other children had to take a good long nap.

On one side of the room was a sort of pen, with mattresses and
blankets, and into this the children were tucked, the room was
darkened, talking was forbidden and in a very few minutes they were
all asleep, and silence and peace reigned.

"It keeps them good-tempered, and it rests the nurses," the smiling
matron used to say.

Eight o'clock seemed to come much earlier on Monday night than on
any other, and with the hour came Aunt Jane for the baby, and Harry's
bliss was over till Saturday should dawn again, but after all it
was not long from Monday night to Saturday morning, only Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday!

These pleasant summer days were bringing to Jim, too, a smooth and
easy-going existence--just the existence that suited his easy-going
temperament. And then, partly through the very smoothness of these
days, partly on account of his great satisfaction in his own strength
in keeping a resolve, there arose in Jim's life a little cloud, no
bigger than a man's hand.

He had been a total abstainer such a long time now. He had so often
resisted Jane's repeated invitations to share the supper beer, that
she had ceased to offer it. The old liking for strong drink did not
assail him now. He even mentioned with a superior little laugh to his
mates, that there had been a time when he had liked his glass a trifle
overmuch, but now he had given it up for good and all.

And the very next day they played a trick on him.

He was extremely fond of cold coffee, and generally brought a can of
it with him for his dinner, and one very hot morning he set it down on
a great stone in a shady corner of the workshop to keep it cool.

And when dinner-time came, being thirsty, the first thing he did was
to take a long pull at his can. He had swallowed half its conte