. He flushed a little as he
joined with the others in promising to remember this.

"Now, then," said the vicar coming out of his study, "are we ready?
Where's Dickie?"

Dickie came steadily down-stairs just then, step by step, rather
encumbered in her movements by a large Noah's ark, which she clutched to
her breast. She was calmly triumphant. Nurse followed her, still
suggesting all manner of other toys as more convenient to carry--"a
pretty doll now"--but Dickie was firm. The Noah's ark was her last
birthday present; she must and would take it to Nearminster, and
moreover she would carry it down-stairs herself. So it had to go; but
the moment she was lifted with it into the waggonette she pulled out the
sliding lid in the roof to find the _efilant_, as she called it, and
most of the animals tumbled out. This made it necessary for all the
children to throw themselves into the carriage to pick them up, so that
there was a good deal of delay in starting. At last, however, all was
really settled, and they drove off, Ambrose and David rushing on in
front, as usual, to open the gate and scream out the last good-byes.

"Remember to be good boys," said their mother, leaning towards them as
she passed; and again Ambrose felt as though she were speaking specially
to him. He was not going to be a good boy. That he knew, but he would
not think about it. It was pleasanter to fix his thoughts on all the
advantages to be gained if David would only agree to his proposal, and
make no awkward objections. He would tell him that very evening after
tea, when they were going to fix a new shelf in the museum. Both the
boys had been taught the use of saw and plane by the village carpenter,
and were quite used to doing odd jobs for themselves. David in
particular excelled in anything requiring neatness of finish, and took
great pride in the fittings of the museum, which he was continually
adding to and altering. The shelves were made of any bits of wood the
boys had been able to get, so that at present they were all of different
colours, and did not please him. He had it in his mind to ask Andrew
for some white paint, with which he could produce a very superior
effect, and indeed he was far more engrossed just now with the fittings
of the museum than with objects to be put into it.

Armed with a large hammer, which he wielded with great skill and
determination for so small a boy, he set to work in the museum directly
after