So with some trouble, he emptied out the whole contents of three drawers upon the carpet, and when they were in one confused heap, he began to sort things out and put back as he thought they ought to be. It was a long business, and several accidents happened. A bottle of gum emptied itself upon the carpet. The cork was not secure. Some ink out of a small bottle marked "marking ink" also spilt itself amongst the papers. Then Noel was tempted to light a match and seal some of the empty envelopes. He had seen his mother do it, but it was a difficult business. The match burnt his fingers, he dropped it hurriedly, and it immediately set fire to some of the loose papers.
This frightened him: he rushed out of the room to the back lobby where the garden hose was kept. Unfortunately it had been left by the gardener attached to the water pipe there. Triumphantly Noel turned on the tap, seized the end of the hose and ran back to the boudoir, where he turned it full on the heap of rubbish on the carpet. The water did more harm than the fire, for that had fortunately died down, but the room was flooded with water, and Noel began to feel very uncomfortable. He put the hose back, leaving pools of water following in his wake; and then hearing Chris come in, he began to bundle things back into the drawers as fast as he could. Chris discovered him before his task was finished, and his wrath was great.
"You wicked little beast! You've ruined Mums' room! What have you been doing? You deserve a good thrashing, and I've a great mind to give it to you!"
He seized hold of Noel by the neck of his jersey and marched him upstairs. Noel shrieked and kicked.
"You're as bad as Inez!" said Chris. "There isn't much to choose between the two of you!"
Noel was subdued and silent at once.
When Mrs. Tubbs and Cassy and Diana surrounded them, Noel lapsed into injured tears:
"I was tidying Mums' drawers. I'm not a wicked boy," he sobbed.
"You just look at the room, Mrs. Tubbs! There are great black sticky pools on the carpet; and the chairs and sofa and all the ornaments are streaming wet! I don't know what he's been doing, but he ought to be jolly well punished. I don't know what Mums will say when she comes back!"
"I'll write and tell her all about it at once," said Diana in tones of satisfaction.