nearly two years older than himself, he was not inclined to treat him as a baby.
And so in a wonderfully short time the three children became firm allies, and when the dinner-bell rang and Ruth came in search of her charges, she found them in hot pursuit of the black pigs; Gaston having greatly increased Hubert’s keenness for this sport by his accounts of the boar-hunts in France.
“What a pity that dinner has come so soon,” said the children.
CHAPTER VI.
“IN THE CUCKOO COPSE.”
THAT mid-day meal was a very merry one. Everybody had so much to tell, and each had had such delightful experiences in his or her own particular line.
True, Di had not found a pheasant’s nest, but she had practised her climbing to her satisfaction, if not to the benefit of her garments, which showed sundry tattered traces of the results of her morning’s occupation. The boys, according to their own account, had tried their hands at everything in turn—haymaking, boating, fishing; whilst Marygold and Hubert were so voluble and persistent in detailing their marvellous adventures, that even Andrew was forced to allow them a hearing, although he had tried hard to hold forth about some marvels in natural history with which he had meant to impress his companions.
“Shut up about your old crawlers and creepers,” said Phil, “let’s hear what the infants have to say.”
Jack actually dropped his spoon, laden as it was with cherry-tart, to call again for details of the boar-hunt.