were you."

"I'll only take her in for a minute."

Timmy felt just a little sorry Radmore had refused to bring Puff along,
for he was well aware that a cat is never so fierce as when she imagines
she is defending her young.

They went off together, Radmore in front, Timmy, hugging Josephine,
behind. Just outside the drawing-room door the boy stopped for a moment,
and shifted the cat's weight from one arm to the other. There had come
over him a rather uncomfortable premonition of evil, but he now felt
strung up to go through with his experiment.

From within the drawing-room there came the sound of laughter and
talking. It was evident that the party was going well, and that everyone
in there was merry and at their ease.

"Would you mind opening the door, Godfrey?" There was a slight quiver of
apprehension in Timmy's voice.

Radmore opened the door, and for a fleeting moment he saw an attractive,
placid scene spread out before him.

The two girls, in their pretty light dresses, were standing by the wood
fire. On the sofa, to their left, with the light from one of the lamps
focussed full on her, sat Mrs. Crofton, her bare left arm hanging over
the side of the low couch. Jack, perched on the arm of a big chair, was
looking at her, all his soul in his eyes. Mr. Tosswill sat some way off
under a shaded reading lamp; his wife, knitting, not far from him. Tom
was surreptitiously reading a book in a corner behind the sofa.

And then, all at once, Radmore found himself whirled into an unutterable
scene of confusion and terror.

As Timmy walked through the open door Josephine had leapt out of his arms
on to the floor. For a flashing second the cat stood on the carpet, her
white fur all abristle, her back arched, and her tail lashing furiously
in the air. Then, uttering a hoarse cry of rage and fear, she sprang
towards Mrs. Crofton, and dug first her claws, and then her teeth, into
the white arm that hung over the side of the couch.... Josephine's
terrified victim gave a fearful cry, everyone in the room got up and
rushed forward, and at that exact instant Betty came into the
drawing-room. Sweeping a piece of embroidery off the piano, she threw it
over the cat's head, took up the now struggling, helpless bundle, and
rushed out of the room with it.

Then followed a scene of appalling confusion. Enid, completely losing
control of herself, screamed and screamed and screamed.

Few people, fortunately for themselves, have