verse
animal, after having never been known from his youth to do more than
walk or jog-trot under any treatment whatever, had at this unlucky time
taken it into his long-eared head to run away full gallop with his
owner, a deaf old woman, hanging on to the front of the little cart,
with all her market produce jumbled together as it had never been
before. Down he came thundering upon us, and before poor Teddy could
catch me up, while he had but scant time to get into the hedge himself,
I got entangled in the wretched little brute's rough legs, and down we
all came, old woman, donkey, cart, and all, with a perfect set of
fireworks of onions, cabbages and potatoes, flying in the air all round
us. The first thing I noticed after the general crash was Teddy, who sat
in the hedge shrieking with laughter, and a funny appearance I daresay
we all presented. The cart, with one wheel off, was dragged and knocked
about by the wretched little donkey's struggles to regain his legs. But
the old woman had been shot down on the top of him, and as she was very
fat and heavy she lay there like a sack of beans, only uttering fearful
moans and shouts, with her face covered with bruised strawberries, and a
shower of green peas all over her.

"Teddy scrambled out of the hedge and very kindly helped up the old
woman and her donkey, and collected all her stray vegetables as well as
he could, for he was a very good-hearted boy, in spite of his
carelessness. But the crabbed old woman laid all the blame on him, and
following him slily home, beset the house, and made such a fuss, that
Teddy got in the wars again worse than ever. His mother believed his
account of the mischief, because, with all his faults, he was very
truthful; but his father was very angry, and though he only paid the old
woman half her outrageous demand, he punished Teddy severely, and wound
up by depriving him of me altogether.

"'Well Ma!' said poor Teddy, almost tearfully, 'if I must not have my
hoop myself, I know no one I'd sooner give it to than Frank Spenser, my
old schoolfellow. Pa's so angry with me about it, I don't like to ask
him; but if _you_ would, I daresay he'd let Frank have it.'

"His mother, who was really sorry for him, did so very readily, and
Teddy had the only satisfaction left him, in giving me to his friend.
Frank was almost too old to care for a hoop, but he did not like to hurt
the poor boy by refusing, so he took me with a very good grace, and
promi