Page 71 - An Australian Lassie

Mrs. Bruce sighed and smiled. As no immediate danger seemed to threaten Betty, there appeared no reason
for instant action. They could still take life leisurely, as they had done all their married days. Tt was only
madcap Betty who ever tried to hurry their pace or upset the calm of their domestic sky--Betty with her ways
and plans and pranks.

So Mrs. Bruce leaned back on the verandah post.

"Where one has only one child," she said, "life must be a simple matter. Tt is when there are several of several
ages that the difficulty comes in. Now we, for instance, need to be--just a year old--and six years old--and
twelve and seventeen--all in addition to our own weight of years."

Her husband smiled. "You do very well," he said. "T saw you playing with Baby this morning, and T've heard
you and Dot talk, and could have imagined she had a school-friend here."

"Dot--yes! But Betty--no!"

"Betty is at an awkward age," said Mr. Bruce. "T confess I know very little of her. What is her singing voice
like? T think, dear, you'd better give me a list of the clothing she has on, and T'll go down the road and make a
few inquiries."

The only dress they could discover "missing," to Mrs. Bruce's horror, was the tattered Saturday frock. And
Mary found the boots and stockings under the dressing-table, so the conviction that she had gone barefoot was
forced upon them.

At twelve o'clock Cyril was startled to see his father enter the schoolroom, and he observed that Mr. Sharman
shook hands with him in a very affable manner, which was, of course, very condescending of Mr. Sharman. Tn
fact, it led Cyril to hope for leniency from him in the looming arithmetic lesson.

A low voiced conversation took place, and then Cyril was called down to the desk and questioned closely
about his truant sister.

But of course Cyril knew nothing.

Then another very strange thing happened.

While Mr. Bruce and Mr. Sharman and Cyril were standing in the middle of the floor--Cyril feeling covered
with glory from his father's and Mr. Sharman's intimacy in the eyes of the whole school--another shadow
darkened the doorway. And the other shadow belonged to no smaller a person than Captain Carew, of Dene
Hall, Willoughby, N.S. Wales.

Miss Sharman went out to meet him before the little trio knew he was there, and his hearty "Good morning,
ma'am! T've come for news of that young scapegrace, my grandson, John Brown," filled the room.

Whereat Mr. Bruce turned round, and he and the captain faced each other, and Cyril, in great fear, looked up
to see if Arthur Smedley, the dread bully, had heard how the great captain of Dene Hall had absolutely, and in
the hearing of the whole school acknowledged John Brown to be his grandson, and had not so much as
glanced at Cyril, who stood there quite close to him.

Tt was the first time for more than seventeen years that Captain Carew and Mr. Bruce had been so close
together, despite the fact that the fences of their respective properties were within sight of each other.

To-day Captain Carew grew a deep dark-red from his neck to the top of his forehead, and Mr. Bruce went