y's remembering how he had once
heard that an organ cost seven hundred pounds. Of course this was
the big church kind, but even the ones on three legs can't be got for
one-and-sevenpence, which was all we had when we first thought of it. So
we gave that up too.
It was a wet day, I remember, and mutton hash for dinner--very tough
with pale gravy with lumps in it. I think the others would have left a
good deal on the sides of their plates, although they know better, only
Oswald said it was a savoury stew made of the red deer that Edward shot.
So then we were the Children of the New Forest, and the mutton tasted
much better. No one in the New Forest minds venison being tough and the
gravy pale.
Then after dinner we let the girls have a dolls' tea-party, on condition
they didn't expect us boys to wash up; and it was when we were drinking
the last of the liquorice water out of the little cups that Dicky said--
'This reminds me.'
So we said, 'What of?'
Dicky answered us at once, though his mouth was full of bread with
liquorice stuck in it to look like cake. You should not speak with your
mouth full, even to your own relations, and you shouldn't wipe your
mouth on the back of your hand, but on your handkerchief, if you have
one. Dicky did not do this. He said--
'Why, you remember when we first began about treasure-seeking, I said
I had thought of something, only I could not tell you because I hadn't
finished thinking about it.'
We said 'Yes.'
'Well, this liquorice water--'
'Tea,' said Alice softly.
'Well, tea then--made me think.' He was going on to say what it made him
think, but Noel interrupted and cried out, 'I say; let's finish off this
old tea-party and have a council of war.'
So we got out the flags and the wooden sword and the drum, and Oswald
beat it while the girls washed up, till Eliza came up to say she had the
jumping toothache, and the noise went through her like a knife. So of
course Oswald left off at once. When you are polite to Oswald he never
refuses to grant your requests.
When we were all dressed up we sat down round the camp fire, and Dicky
began again.
'Every one in the world wants money. Some people get it. The people who
get it are the ones who see things. I have seen one thing.'
Dicky stopped and smoked the pipe of peace. It is the pipe we did
bubbles with in the summer, and somehow it has not got broken yet.
We put tea-leaves in it for the pipe of peace, but the girl
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