some time now, and has evidently made up her mind to
stop. I don't give them much trouble, except with my fads."

"And do you still go on with--with those--those--"

"Crazes?" said Uncle Richard smilingly. "To be sure I do. Ah, here's
James. Well, old fellow, is it all right again?"

"Right again?" said Mr Brandon, who had just entered the room; "no, it
is not. But there, I'm sorry there should be all this disturbance when
you are here. It all comes of being charitable in the course of duty.
But there, I'll say no more."

"That's right," said Uncle Richard, just as Mary entered the room with--

"If you please, ma'am, dinner is served."

"Hah!" cried Uncle Richard, rising to offer his arm to his
sister-in-law. "But the boys are not down."

"No; and they are not coming," said Mr Brandon angrily.

"Oh, James dear!" protested Mrs Brandon.

"My dear Jem!" said Uncle Richard, smiling, "I put in my petition. The
fight is over, so now let's have peace and--dinner."

"Oh, very well," said Mr Brandon. "Mary, go and tell Mr Samuel that
we are waiting dinner for him."

"And, Mary, you will convey the same message to Mr Thomas," said Uncle
Richard.

"Yes, sir," said the girl, with a smile; and before her master could
protest she was gone.

Five minutes elapsed, during which Uncle Richard seemed to have
forgotten his dinner in eager explanation of some piece of mechanism
that he was making, and about which he had come up to town. At the end
of that time Tom entered nervously, looking as if he had had his share
of cuts and bruises; but to his great satisfaction no one said a word;
and then Sam came in, looking very puffy about the eyes, and with one
side of his mouth drawn down into a peculiar swollen smile.

"Oh!" exclaimed his mother, and she rose to fly to his side; but Uncle
Richard was prepared for her, and took her hand to draw through his arm.

"That's right," he cried. "I am awfully hungry;" and he led her out of
the room, followed by Mr Brandon, while Tom and Sam followed in silence
down the stairs, each intent upon the plans he had in his breast, and
fully determined to carry them out.

CHAPTER SIX.

It was a capital dinner, but Sam felt that he could not eat a bit for
mental troubles, while his cousin felt the same from bodily reasons
connected with a terrible stiffness at one angle of his lower jaw.

Consequently Sam made a very poor dinner, to his mother's grief; but Tom
ate heartily