“No!” replied she in great alarm; “what are they?”
“In the first place, you are positively not to tear and destroy above three frocks a-day; secondly, you and Harry must never get into a passion, unless you are angry; thirdly, when either of you take medicine, you are not to make wry faces, except when the taste is bad; fourthly, you must never speak ill of Mrs. Crabtree herself, until she is out of the room; fifthly, you are not to jump out of the windows, as long as you can get out at the door”——
“Yes!” interrupted Laura, laughing, “and sixthly, when uncle David is joking, we are not to be frightened by anything he says!”
“Seventhly, when next you spill grandmama’s bottle of ink, Harry must drink up every drop.”
“Very well! he may swallow a sheet of blotting paper afterwards, to put away the taste.”
“I wish every body who writes a book, was obliged to swallow it,” said Harry. “It is such a waste of time reading, when we might be amusing ourselves. Frank sat mooning over a book for two hours yesterday when we wanted him to play. I am sure, some day his head will burst with knowledge.”
“That can never happen to you, Master Harry,” answered Major Graham; “you have a head, and so has a pin, but there is not much furniture in either of them.”
[20]
]CHAPTER II.
THE GRAND FEAST.
She gave them some tea without any bread,
She whipp’d them all soundly, and sent them to bed.