"William!"
The voice came from the drawing-room.
William beat a hasty retreat into a clump of laurel and remained motionless.
"I'm sure I heard that boy ... William!"
He decided to take the bull by the horns.
"Yes, mother!" he called obediently.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm jus' sittin' in the garden an' thinkin', mother," said William, in a voice of honeyed wistfulness.
Mrs. Brown, deeply touched, sought out her husband.
"You know, dear," she said, "there's something awfully sweet about William sometimes."