they called her "Miss Pepper."

When we got home we found Willie curled up by the window in the hall,
reading a book. He was too fond of reading, and his mother often
told him to put away his book and run about with the other boys. This
afternoon Miss Laura laid her hand on his shoulder and said, "I was
going to give the dogs a little game of ball, but I'm rather tired."

"Gammon and spinach," he replied, shaking off her hand, "you're always
tired."

She sat down in a hall chair and looked at him. Then she began to tell
him about the dog fight. He was much interested, and the book slipped to
the floor. When she finished he said, "You're a daisy every day. Go now
and rest yourself." Then snatching the balls from her, he called us and
ran down to the basement. But he was not quick enough though to escape
her arm. She caught him to her and kissed him repeatedly. He was the
baby and pet of the family, and he loved her dearly, though he spoke
impatiently to her oftener than either of the other boys.

We had a grand game with Willie. Miss Laura had trained us to do all
kinds of things with balls jumping for them, playing hide-and-seek, and
catching them.

Billy could do more things than I could. One thing he did which I
thought was very clever. He played ball by himself. He was so crazy
about ball play that he could never get enough of it. Miss Laura played
all she could with him, but she had to help her mother with the sewing
and the housework, and do lessons with her father, for she was only
seventeen years old, and had not left off studying. So Billy would take
his ball and go off by himself. Sometimes he rolled it over the floor,
and sometimes he threw it in the air and pushed it through the staircase
railings to the hall below. He always listened till he heard it drop,
then he ran down and brought it back and pushed it through again. He did
this till he was tired, and then he brought the ball and laid it at Miss
Laura's feet.

We both had been taught a number of tricks. We could sneeze and cough,
and be dead dogs, and say our prayers, and stand on our heads, and mount
a ladder and say the alphabet, this was the hardest of all, and it took
Miss Laura a long time to teach us. We never began till a book was laid
before us. Then we stared at it, and Miss Laura said, "Begin, Joe and
Billy say A."

For A, we gave a little squeal. B was louder C was louder still. We
barked for some letters, and growled for others. We a