"Do not think about it, Augustus;—Mrs. Millard, will you and Merle and Alice leave us alone for a little while? There, boy; rest. Keep perfectly quiet. You shall not be frightened so again."
William lifted the child, and seating himself in a chair, held him closely to him. The boy's head drooped upon his shoulder and everything was quiet. After a long pause, Augustus spoke, but without lifting his head.
"Father, are you very much ashamed of me?"
"Not a bit, boy. I only regret I caused you to suffer so. You are a brave little fellow to stand so much without a word. I am proud of you. Try to calm yourself; then we will do whatever you wish."
With a sigh of relief, Augustus relapsed into silence, and William communed with himself. By the expression upon his face it was evident that his thoughts were not altogether to his liking. He had many questions to ask himself that could not be answered satisfactorily. Where now was his boasted calmness? Even now, it was only by the exercise of all his force of will that he kept from trembling, and all because a boy had swooned.
That it was his boy was no reasonable excuse, for love should have made him stronger instead of weaker. Why was it that he could not mesmerize Augustus, who ought to be an unusually good subject? Why did Clarissa draw away from him and Augustus at the time of all others when she should be most dependent upon them for love and care?
If, before his family returned to him, another man had come to him with similar difficulties, he would, without hesitation, have explained the cause and offered to adjust the condition. He had tried all the methods he knew upon his wife and child, and instead of bringing about the desired results, Clarissa shrank more and more from him. He knew that it was not because she did not love him. There was no other way to account for it than by her physical condition.
He felt an almost irresistible impulse to give vent to a sarcastic laugh. "Science baffled by a pregnant woman's whim and a child's fear. Wonderful exponent of it I am!" As he thought this, William threw his head back quickly and scornfully. Augustus said:
"What is it, father?"