“Well, you had better choose your referee now—that will save the necessity of seeing you again about it,” added Jessie.
“I’ll choose you,” said Henry.
“Very well, I’ll accept,” replied Jessie. “Ronald shall choose another, and we two shall elect a third; then both parties shall have a hearing, and you agree to abide by the decision we make, without any question or grumbling, do you?”
“Why—but—”
“No whys or buts now, bub,” interrupted Jessie, “the award of the referees is final—there’s no appeal from it.”
“Well, but suppose you referees should decide that Ronald should give me a thrashing; do you suppose I’d stand still and take it?” inquired Henry.
“That is not a supposable case,” replied Jessie. “All I can say to it, is, that if the referees think the breach cannot be healed, and justice done to all, without some kind of reparation, or punishment, we shall expect the guilty one to submit to it, whatever it is. But I must be going, now—you will probably hear from us to-morrow.”
Jessie had a private interview with Ronald, on her return home, and found that he was really much offended with Henry. He gave his version of the difficulty, dwelling particularly upon Henry’s ungenerous fling at his parents, and the spite he exhibited in destroying the snow-house.
“But,” Jessie suggested, after patiently hearing his statement, “isn’t it possible that you were the aggressor, after all? Were you not a little arbitrary, and self-willed, about that time? And didn’t you provoke Henry by telling him you could order him out of the yard, if you chose, and by daring him to touch the snow-house, after you left it? You know Henry is older than you, and that made it harder to submit to such treatment. He feels that he did wrong, and I think he is sorry for it; but he says you began the quarrel, and are more to blame than he is. If you should go to him, and apologize for what you said, I am confident he would be melted into penitence in an instant, and make all the reparation possible for the wrong he has done you.”
Ronald was ready to admit that some of the blame should be placed to his account, but he did not think he was called upon to take the first step towards a reconciliation. Jessie then told him of the referee plan, and he cheerfully assented to it, and chose Marcus as his arbitrator.