though he was,
the tears rushed to his eyes, and he felt as if he could never forgive
himself.

He told his mother all about it that evening. He could not feel happy
till he did so, and even before he had said anything she knew that the
little tug to her sleeve and the whispered "Mother, I want to speak to
you," was coming. And even when he had told her all about the quarrel
and reconciliation, he hung on, looking as if there were something more
to tell.

"What is it, my boy?" said his mother; "have you anything more to say?"

Ted's face flushed.

"Yes, mother," he said. "I wanted to ask you this. When Rex and I had
settled it all right again, we still felt rather unhappy. It did seem so
horrid to have hit each other like that, it seemed to leave a mark. So,
mother, we wanted to take it quite away, and we _kissed_ each other. And
we felt quite happy, only--was it a very babyish thing to do? Was it
_unmanly_, mother?"

His mother drew him towards her and looked lovingly into his anxious
face.

"Unmanly, my boy? No indeed," she said, "it was kind and good, and
kindness and goodness can never be unmanly."

And Ted, quite at rest now, went off to bed.

CHAPTER X.

SOME RAINY ADVENTURES.

"Wildly the winds of heaven began to blow,
. . . . . .
Whilst from the jealous, unrelenting skies
The inevitable July down-pour came."

Another winter came and went. Ted had another birthday, which made
him eleven years old. Another happy Christmas time--this year of the
old-fashioned snowy kind, for even in November there was skating, and
Ted skated like a Dutchman; and the child-life in the pleasant home went
on its peaceful way, with much of sunshine and but few clouds. Narcissa,
too, was growing a big girl. She could say all her words clearly now,
without lisping or funny mistakes, though, as she was the youngest bird
in the nest, I am not sure but that some of the big people thought this
rather a pity! And then when the frost and the snow were done with,
the ever new spring time came round again, gradually growing into the
brilliant summer; and this year the children's hearts rejoiced even
more than usual, for a great pleasure was before them. This year they
were to spend the holidays with their parents in a quite, _quite_
country place, and many were the delightful fancies and dreams that
they made about it, even while it was some distance off.

"I do love summer," said Ci