them alive first.

When Lady Harriet returned home some days afterwards, she heard an
account of Harry and Laura's misconduct from Mrs. Crabtree, and the
whole story was such a terrible case against them, that their poor
grandmama became perfectly astonished and shocked, while even uncle
David was preparing to be very angry; but before the culprits appeared,
Frank most kindly stepped forward, and begged that they might be
pardoned for this once, adding all in his power to excuse Harry and
Laura, by describing how very penitent they had become, and how very
severely they had already been punished.

Frank then mentioned all that Harry had told him about the starving
party, which he related with so much humour and drollery, that Lady
Harriet could not help laughing; so then he saw that a victory had been
gained, and ran to the nursery for the two little prisoners.

Uncle David shook his walking-stick at them, and made a terrible face,
when they entered; but Harry jumped upon his knee with joy at seeing him
again, while Laura forgot all her distress, and rushed up to Lady
Harriet, who folded her in her arms, and kissed her most affectionately.

Not a word was said that day about the tea-party, but next morning,
Major Graham asked Harry, very gravely, "if he had read in the
newspapers the melancholy accounts about several of his little
companions, who were ill and confined to bed from having ate too much at
a certain tea-party on Saturday last. Poor Peter Grey has been given
over, and Charles Forrester, it is feared, may not be able to eat
another loaf of bread for a fortnight!"

"Oh! uncle David! it makes me ill whenever I think of that party!" said
Harry, colouring perfectly scarlet; "that was the most miserable evening
of my life!"

"I must say it was not quite fair in Mrs. Crabtree to starve all the
strange little boys and girls, who came as visitors to my house, without
knowing who had invited them," observed Lady Harriet. "Probably those
unlucky children will never forget, as long as they live, that scanty
supper in our dining-room."

And it turned out exactly as Lady Harriet had predicted; for though they
were all asked to tea, in proper time, the very next Saturday, when
Major Graham showered torrents of sugar-plums on the table, while the
children scrambled to pick them up, and the side-board almost broke down
afterwards under the weight of buns, cakes, cheesecakes, biscuits,
fruit, and preserves, which wer