The fear in Toddie’s countenance gave place to expostulation, as he exclaimed:
“I was only dzust——”
“Go into the house this instant!” repeated Mrs. Burton.
“Ah—h—h—h!” said Toddie, beginning to cry, and rolling out his under lip as freely as if there were yards of it yet to come. “I was only studyin’ how the horsie was made togevver, so’s everybody’d espec’s an’ love me. Can’t go to where dem Injuns is, so I fought a gushaway’s [grocery] man’ horsie would be dzust as good. Ah—h—h!”
“There was no necessity for your lying on the ground, in your clean piqué dress, to do it,” said Mrs. Burton.
“Ah—h—h!” said Toddie again. “I studied all de west of him fyst, an’ I couldn’t hold him up so as to look under him. I tried to, an’ he looked at me dweadful cwosh, an’ so I didn’t.”
“Go into the house and have another dress put on,” said Mrs. Burton. “You know very well that nothing excuses little boys for dirtying their clothes when they can help it. When your Uncle Harry comes home we shall have to devise some way of punishing you so that you may remember to take better care of your clothing in the future.”
“Ah—h—h—h—! I hope de Lord won’t make any more horsesh, den, nor any little boys to be told to find out about ’em, an’ be punnissed dzust for gettin’ deir c’oshes a little dyty!” screamed Toddie, disappearing through the doorway and filling the house with angry screams.
Mrs. Burton lingered for a moment upon the piazza steps, and bravely endured a spasm of sense. There forced itself upon her mind the idea that it might be possible that the soiling of garments was not the sin of all sins, and that Toddie had really been affected by her information about the noble origin and nature of the animal physique. Certainly nothing but a sincere passion for investigation could have led Toddie between the feet of a horse, and a person so absorbed in scientific pursuits might possibly be excused for being regardless of personal appearance. But clean clothing ranked next to clean hearts in the Mayton family, and such acquirements as Mrs. Burton possessed she determined to lovingly transmit to her nephews, so far as was in her power. Toddie seemed in earnest in his indignation, and she respected mistaken impressions which were honestly made, so she determined to try to console the weeping child. Going into his room, she found her nephew lying on his back, kicking, screaming, and otherwise giving vent to his rage.
“Toddie,” said Mrs. Burton, “it is too bad that you should have so much trouble just after you have been to see your mamma and little sister.”