Erebus was somewhat vexed with him for rejecting it: she
pointed out that even a mangy cat was a beginning.

Slowly they grew annoyed that the home on which they had lavished such
strenuous labor remained empty; and at last the Terror said: "Look
here: I'm going to begin with kittens."

"How will you get kittens, if you can't get cats? Everybody likes
kittens. It's only when they grow up and stop playing that they don't
want them," said Erebus with her coldest scorn.

"I'm going to buy them," said the Terror firmly. "I'm going to give
threepence each for kittens that can just lap. We don't want kittens
that can't lap. They'd be too much trouble."

"That's a good idea," said Erebus, brightening.

"It'll stop them drowning kittens all right. The only thing I'm not
sure about is the accounts."

"You're always bothering about those silly old accounts!" said Erebus
sharply.

She resented having had to enter in their penny ledger the items of
their expenditure with conspicuous neatness under his critical eye.

"Well, I don't think the kittens ought to go down in the accounts.
Aunt Amelia is so used to cats' homes that are given their cats. She's
told me all about it: how people write and ask for their cats to be
taken in."

"_I_ don't want them to go down. It makes all the less accounts to
keep," said Erebus readily.

"Well, that's settled," said the Terror cheerfully.

Once more the Twins rode round the countryside, spreading abroad the
tidings of their munificent offer of threepence a head for kittens who
could just lap.

But kittens did not immediately flow in; and the complaints of the
impatient Erebus grew louder and louder. There was no doubt that she
loved a grievance; and even more she loved making no secret of that
grievance to those about her. Since she could only discuss this
grievance with the Terror and Wiggins, they heard enough about it.
Indeed, her complaints were at last no small factor in her patient
brother's resolve to take action; and he called her and Wiggins to a
council.

He opened the discussion by saying: "We've got to have kittens, or
cats. We can't have any pocket-money for 'overseering' till there's
something to overseer."

"And that splendid cats' home we've made stopping empty all the time,"
said Erebus in her most bitterly aggrieved tone.

"I don't mind that. I'm sick of hearing about it," said the Terror
coldly. "But I do want pocket-money; and besides, Aunt A