saying us must
tell."

"Oh don't, don't, Pamela," cried poor Duke; "you mustn't say that. For I
can't--I am sure I can't--tell Grandmamma. And you won't tell without me
knowing, will you, sister?"

"For sure not," replied Pamela indignantly. "Us must do it togevver like
always. But there's Miss Mitten coming--I hear her. Wait till after
she's gone, bruvver, and then I'll tell you what I've been finking."

With this Duke was obliged to content himself. But he and Pamela took
care to put away in a shelf of the toy cupboard, where they would not be
seen, the remains of the broken bowl.

Miss Mitten had two very quiet and subdued little pupils that morning.
She noticed Duke's red eyes, but, not being on very intimate terms with
the children, for she was rather a formal young person, she said nothing
about them. Only when lessons were quite finished she told her pupils
they might tell their Grandmamma that they had been very good and
attentive.

"Your good Grandmamma will be pleased to hear this," she said, "for she
must be troubled about poor Nurse's being ill. I hope you will do your
best to give her no trouble you can possibly avoid," and with these
words Miss Mitten took her leave.

She had scarcely left when Biddy came to take the children out a walk,
and after that it was their dinner-time, so that it was not till the
afternoon that they found themselves quite alone and able to talk over
their troubles. They had not seen Grandmamma since the morning, for she
had gone out in the pony-carriage with Grandpapa to pay some visits,
which in those days were _really_ "morning calls"! and she had left word
that after their dinner Duke and Pamela might play in the garden till
she and Grandpapa came home.

"And when us sees them coming us'll ask Grandpapa to tell Walters to
drive us round to the stable in the pony-carriage," said Duke, jumping
up and down in great excitement, quite forgetting his troubles for the
moment. But his forgetfulness did not last long. Biddy began looking
about the room as if in search of something; she seemed vexed and
uneasy.

"What's the matter, Biddy?" said Duke, stopping in the midst of his
gymnastics.

"Have you seen one of the china bowls anywhere about, you or Miss
Pamela, Master Duke?" asked the girl. "Cook is so angry with me, and she
will have it I've broken it and won't tell," and poor Biddy looked ready
to cry.

"Didn't you miss it when you took the tray down?" said Pamela, an