He was a very straightforward little fellow. No matter how much he differed from the others, he never saw any reason for concealing his opinions or denying his actions. He did not talk much, but seemed to do his share of thinking, and when he reached a conclusion was apt to cling to it rather tenaciously. He usually yielded to Marian’s authority with a pretty good grace, but as he grew older he was more and more apt to disregard the wishes of the others when they crossed his own. Jennie could, as a rule, manage him pretty well, for she was very diplomatic about it, and seemed to have a gift for knowing when to coax and pet him into doing what she wanted him to and when to twist him adroitly round her fingers in some other way.
Esther, too, though she was not so successful as Jennie, rarely clashed with her little brother, but Delbert, having perhaps less of the guile of the serpent in his make-up, often did clash in a small way. He thought that as he was older his wishes should have the preference as a matter of course. But Davie held other ideas. He did not propose to have Delbert bossing him just because he was bigger, and often he was stubborn just for the pleasure of plaguing his older brother. The trouble was never very deep-seated. Two minutes after an explosion of hot words on Delbert’s part had called Marian’s attention so that she could settle the matter, whatever it was, the little boy would be cuddled up beside the older one, sweet-tempered and smiling as you please.
Delbert never seemed to lay Davie’s naughtiness up against him after the immediate occasion had passed. But one day there were after effects which neither of them had counted upon.
Davie had gone with Delbert and Esther up into the pasture to see how a certain panal was growing, Marian and Jennie being detained at the wickiup. The panal was still too small to be molested, so they went back, skirting the high, rocky part of the Island that lay overlooking the shallow part of the harbor. They went down to the water once and then climbed up again, and Delbert suggested that they go back to the level pasture and follow the path home as the quickest way of getting there. Davie, for no reason save that Delbert wanted to go back to the path, decided that he wanted to continue climbing over the rocks; he said he was looking for panales.
Delbert did not want to go on and leave him behind, for they were a long way from the wickiup, and Davie was little. But he coaxed to no avail and issued positive orders with as little result. Esther, too, tried her hand, but it was useless. Davie continued wending his way along the roughest, rockiest part, “looking for panales.”
Delbert fretted and fumed, and presently they came to where Davie must come back to the level land or else crawl along where it was really dangerous for him to go.
Had it been Jennie, she would have looked the other way, started a conversation with Esther about something a long way off, and pretended to forget all about the little boy, and he, finding himself no longer in the lime-light, as it were, would have quietly come back and trailed along in the path behind her. But Delbert was pretty well worked up anyway, and he was truly alarmed for Davie’s safety in that spot.
“Now, Davie, you will have to come back,” he said.
“No, go along here,” returned Davie with true Indian brevity.
“Why, you can’t! Honest, Davie, it isn’t safe. Marian wouldn’t let you if she were here. Come on, now.”