eauty, happy,
of course, and light-hearted; and here, beneath the moon, was I.

"We could pretend this was a castle grim, you know, Uncle Dick, full of
dungeons an' turrets, an' that we were going to rescue Auntie Lisbeth."

"Imp," I said, "that's really a great idea."

"I wish I'd brought my trusty sword," he sighed, searching about for
something to supply its place; "I left it under my pillow, you know."

Very soon, however, he had procured two sticks, somewhat thin and
wobbly, yet which, by the magic of imagination, became transformed into
formidable, two-edged swords, with one of which he armed me, the other
he flourished above his head.

"Forward, gallant knights!" he cried; "the breach! the breach! On! on!
St. George, for Merrie England!" With the words he clambered upon the
wall and disappeared upon the other side.

For a moment I hesitated, and then, inspired by the music and the
thought of Lisbeth, I followed suit. It was all very mad, of course,
but who cared for sanity on such a night--certainly not I.

"Careful now, Imp!" I cautioned; "if any one should see us they'll take
us for thieves, or lunatics, beyond a doubt."

We found ourselves in an enclosed garden with a walk which led between
rows of fruit trees. Following this, it brought us out upon a broad
stretch of lawn, with here and there a great tree, and beyond, the
gleaming windows of the house. Filled with the spirit of adventure, we
approached, keeping in the shadow as much as possible, until we could
see figures that strolled to and fro upon the terrace or promenaded the
walks below.

The excitement of dodging our way among so many people was intense;
time and again we were only saved from detection by more than one
wandering couple, owing to the fact that all their attention was
centred in themselves. For instance, we were skirmishing round a clump
of laurels, to gain the shadow of the terrace, when we almost ran into
the arms of a pair; but they didn't see us for the very good reason
that she was staring at the moon, and he at her.

"So sweet of you, Archibald!" she was saying.

"What did she call him 'bald for, Uncle Dick?" inquired the Imp in a
loud stage-whisper, as I dragged him down behind the laurels. "He's not
a bit bald, you know! An' I say, Uncle Dick, did you see his arm, it
was round--"

"Yes--yes!" I nodded.

"Just like Peter's, you know."

"Yes--yes, I saw."

"I wonder why she called him--"

"Hush!" I broke