And the procession was brought up by Jack, with his tail between his legs, also dripping and shivering violently.
Directly Chris saw me the defiant expression instantly vanished, and running to me, he buried his face in my dress and wept at the top of his voice.
"What is the matter, Chris?" I asked. "What has happened? What have you been doing?"
"What hasn't happened, and what hasn't he been doing?" said Briggs, coming up and speaking very angrily. "And what will happen next? That's what I ask."
"What has happened now?" I repeated.
"One of Master Chris's tricks again, that's all," she said, still angrily, as we all walked on to the house.
"I was—teach-teach—teaching J-J-Jack to—to swim—like Ro-Ro—Rover," the little beggar said between violent sobs, and bringing out the last word with a great gasp.
"Teaching Jack to swim like Rover!" I repeated.
"Yes," exclaimed Briggs, with much sarcasm; "and it was a mighty clever thing for Master Chris to do, seeing as how he can't swim himself.
"It was just like this, mum," she explained, as she hastened her steps, "(I think we had better hurry a bit if Master Chris isn't to take his death of cold. He'll be in bed to-morrow unless I'm much mistaken!) I was just speaking to one of the gardeners about a pot of musk we wanted in the nursery. I hadn't turned my back two minutes before I hear a splash and Master Chris crying out at the top of his voice, and when I look around there he is struggling nearly up to his neck in water, and Jacky struggling along by his side. Well, here we are back; we'll see what my mistress thinks of it all. I'll be bound she won't be over and above pleased. As for me, I can only say I am more than thankful it was at the shallow part of the pond; if it had been at the deep end, there's no saying if he wouldn't have been lying there now stiff and stark."