“That’s a good idea,” said Erebus, brightening.
“It’ll stop them drowning kittens all right. The only thing I’m not sure about is the accounts.”
“You’re always bothering about those silly old accounts!” said Erebus sharply.
She resented having had to enter in their penny ledger the items of their expenditure with conspicuous neatness under his critical eye.
“Well, I don’t think the kittens ought to go down in the accounts. Aunt Amelia is so used to cats’ homes that are given their cats. She’s told me all about it: how people write and ask for their cats to be taken in.”
“I don’t want them to go down. It makes all the less accounts to keep,” said Erebus readily.
“Well, that’s settled,” said the Terror cheerfully.
Once more the Twins rode round the countryside, spreading abroad the tidings of their munificent offer of threepence a head for kittens who could just lap.
But kittens did not immediately flow in; and the complaints of the impatient Erebus grew louder and louder. There was no doubt that she loved a grievance; and even more she loved making no secret of that grievance to those about her. Since she could only discuss this grievance with the Terror and Wiggins, they heard enough about it. Indeed, her complaints were at last no small factor in her patient brother’s resolve to take action; and he called her and Wiggins to a council.
He opened the discussion by saying: “We’ve got to have kittens, or cats. We can’t have any pocket-money for ‘overseering’ till there’s something to overseer.”