The old man was seated in a carved oak chair by the fire.
"I never said the dogs were to come in," he said.
"But we can't do without them, please," said Robin, boldly. "You see, there are eight people in 'The Peace Egg,' and there are only five of us; and so Darkie has to be the Black Prince, and Pax has to be the Fool, and so we have to have them."
"Five and two make seven," said the old man, with a grim smile; "what do you do for the eighth?"
"Oh, that's the little one at the end," said Robin, confidentially. "Mamma said we weren't to mention him, but I think that's because we're children. You're grown up, you know, so I'll show you the book, and you can see for yourself," he went on, drawing "The Peace Egg" from his pocket. "There, that's the picture of him on the last page; black, with horns and a tail."
The old man's stern face relaxed into a broad smile as he examined the grotesque wood-cut; but, when he turned to the first page, the smile vanished in a deep frown, and his eyes shone like hot coals, with anger. He had seen Robin's name.
"Who sent you here?" he asked, in a hoarse voice. "Speak, and speak the truth! Did your mother send you here?"
Robin thought the old man was angry with them for playing truant. He said slowly, "N—no. She didn't exactly send us; but I don't think she'll mind our having come if we get back in time for supper. Mamma never forbid our going mumming, you know."
"I don't suppose she ever thought of it," Nicholas said, candidly, wagging his curly head from side to side.
"She knows we're mummers," said Robin, "for she helped us. When we were abroad, you know, she used to tell us about the mummers acting at Christmas when she was a little girl. And so we acted to papa and mamma, and so we thought we'd act to the maids, but they were cleaning the passages, and so we thought we'd really go mumming; and we've got several other houses to go to before supper-time. We'd better begin, I think," said Robin, and without more ado he began to march round and round, raising his sword and shouting,—