.

"And all of us go home together, instead of my being sent to England
alone to school?" I continued.

"That was what your father thought of," said my mother in answer to this
question of mine; "but your illness has made him alter his mind
somewhat, as you will learn when you are able to get up and move about.
You must now, dear, remain quiet, and not excite yourself; otherwise,
your recovery will be retarded and that will worry your father more."

"All right, mother, I promise to be good," I said resolutely, nestling
down amongst the pillows which had been comfortably fixed around me, and
trying to be as still as a mouse. "I will do all that you and the
doctor tells me, if you'll only make me well again."

"That's my brave boy," she murmured softly, smoothing my poor hairless
head with her gentle hand in such a caressing way that it made me feel
drowsy, and in another minute I had dropped off into a sound sleep. I
did not wake again until some hours afterwards, when I was so refreshed
and hungry that I was able to demolish a large basin of jelly-like
chicken broth with some thin toast, which did me much good.

From that time I gradually got better; but my recovery was very slow, on
account of the thorough shaking I had received from my fall, and it was
quite another fortnight before I was able to be moved downstairs and
allowed to sit in the verandah, where the fresh breezes from the sea and
the scent of the flowers on the terrace completed my cure.

For some days even after this, however, I had to keep perfectly quiet,
in accordance with the orders of Doctor Martin, who feared that I had
sustained some injury to my spine in addition to my other contusions.
This suspicion of his turned out, fortunately for me, to be groundless;
but the rest he enjoined was very much out of keeping with my buoyant
and excitable nature, which was fidgety in the extreme.

Still, this period of convalescence was by no means irksome to me on the
whole, for I had plenty wherewith to occupy my attention and my sisters
for companions, little Totty, the youngest, never being so happy as when
with me.

In order the better to amuse me, and make me remain in a recumbent
position, dad rigged up an Indian grass hammock for me beneath the shade
of one of the large silk-cotton trees by the side of the house; and here
I used to swing at my ease for hour after hour, looking at the bright-
coloured humming-birds flitting about and watching th