ter.

"I tell you I shouldn't."

"I tell you you would."

"Oh, children," said Mother's voice at the door. "Quarrelling again?
Already?"

"We aren't quarrelling--not really," said Peter. "I wish you wouldn't
think it's rows every time we don't agree!" When Mother had gone out
again, Bobbie broke out:--

"Peter, I AM sorry you're hurt. But you ARE a beast to say I'm a prig."

"Well," said Peter unexpectedly, "perhaps I am. You did say I wasn't a
coward, even when you were in such a wax. The only thing is--don't
you be a prig, that's all. You keep your eyes open and if you feel
priggishness coming on just stop in time. See?"

"Yes," said Bobbie, "I see."

"Then let's call it Pax," said Peter, magnanimously: "bury the hatchet
in the fathoms of the past. Shake hands on it. I say, Bobbie, old chap,
I am tired."

He was tired for many days after that, and the settle seemed hard and
uncomfortable in spite of all the pillows and bolsters and soft folded
rugs. It was terrible not to be able to go out. They moved the settle
to the window, and from there Peter could see the smoke of the trains
winding along the valley. But he could not see the trains.

At first Bobbie found it quite hard to be as nice to him as she wanted
to be, for fear he should think her priggish. But that soon wore off,
and both she and Phyllis were, as he observed, jolly good sorts. Mother
sat with him when his sisters were out. And the words, "he's not a
coward," made Peter determined not to make any fuss about the pain in
his foot, though it was rather bad, especially at night.

Praise helps people very much, sometimes.

There were visitors, too. Mrs. Perks came up to ask how he was, and so
did the Station Master, and several of the village people. But the time
went slowly, slowly.

"I do wish there was something to read," said Peter. "I've read all our
books fifty times over."

"I'll go to the Doctor's," said Phyllis; "he's sure to have some."

"Only about how to be ill, and about people's nasty insides, I expect,"
said Peter.

"Perks has a whole heap of Magazines that came out of trains when people
are tired of them," said Bobbie. "I'll run down and ask him."

So the girls went their two ways.

Bobbie found Perks busy cleaning lamps.

"And how's the young gent?" said he.

"Better, thanks," said Bobbie, "but he's most frightfully bored. I came
to ask if you'd got any Magazines you could lend him."

"There, now," said Perks, regr