"'Ah!' said his mother, 'I am afraid, then, that this morning he was indulging in ill temper.'
"Arthur hung his head, and was silent: his conscience was busy whispering to him, and the rest of the morning passed painfully; but after luncheon, he prepared for a walk with joy, for the day was lovely, and the air exhilarating.
"But all at once the sky became overcast, and very soon after the rain fell in torrents.
"'Oh, dear me, how tiresome!' cried Arthur, 'just when I am going to take a walk; it is perfectly hateful.'
"'God sends the rain,' said his mother, gently.
"Arthur hung his head again without answering. What could he say, indeed? But with his new resolution strong in his mind, he determined to bear this disappointment with patience; and he called Jumbo to play with him.
"But the cat, usually so quick to come purring to his knee, remained just where he was, as if he had been suddenly struck deaf, and dumb, and blind. Arthur went to him, and tried to take him in his arms; but he hissed at his playmate, and scampered away with his back and tail high in the air, and hid under the sofa.
"'Ah me!' sighed Arthur, 'I suppose Jumbo is like the rest; he is indulging in ill temper, too.'
"'Not quite that,' observed his mother; 'but animals have memories.'
"'I think you had better say that they are spiteful, mamma.'