Neale grinned broadly. He had been used to horses all his life and he knew a few tricks of the Gypsies and the horse-traders.
“I just told him something,” the boy said.
“Oo-ee!” cried Tess. “Did you really whisper to him?”
Neale nodded.
“What did you whisper to the pony?” asked Dot, wide-eyed.
Agnes snapped, thinking Neale was fooling her: “I don’t believe it!”
“Yes, I whispered to him,” said the boy, seriously.
“Oh, Neale!” remonstrated Ruth.
“Well! For all I ever heard!” exclaimed Mrs. Heard. “What did you whisper to that vexatious brute of a pony?”
“If I told what it was, that would spoil the charm,” said Neale, gravely.