g himself of the table-knife.
"Then I'll kill you now. You say things and do things and--and I
don't know how things happen, and you never leave me alone--and I
don't care what happens!"

He ran at the boy with the knife, and Harry fled upstairs to his room,
promising Black Sheep the finest thrashing in the world when Aunty
Rosa returned. Black Sheep sat at the bottom of the stairs, the
table-knife in his hand, and wept for that he had not killed Harry.
The servant-girl came up from the kitchen, took the knife away, and
consoled him. But Black Sheep was beyond consolation. He would be
badly beaten by Aunty Rosa; then there would be another beating at
Harry's hands; then Judy would not be allowed to speak to him; then
the tale would be told at school and then----

There was no one to help and no one to care, and the best way out of
the business was by death. A knife would hurt, but Aunty Rosa had told
him, a year ago, that if he sucked paint he would die. He went into
the nursery, unearthed the now-disused Noah's Ark, and sucked the
paint off as many animals as remained. It tasted abominable, but he
had licked Noah's Dove clean by the time Aunty Rosa and Judy returned.
He went upstairs and greeted them with: "Please, Aunty Rosa, I believe
I've nearly killed a boy at school, and I've tried to kill Harry, and
when you've done all about God and Hell, will you beat me and get it
over?"

The tale of the assault as told by Harry could only be explained on
the ground of possession by the Devil. Wherefore Black Sheep was not
only most excellently beaten, once by Aunty Rosa and once, when
thoroughly cowed down, by Harry, but he was further prayed for at
family prayers, together with Jane, who had stolen a cold rissole from
the pantry and snuffled audibly as her enormity was brought before the
Throne of Grace. Black Sheep was sore and stiff, but triumphant. He
would die that very night and be rid of them all. No, he would ask for
no forgiveness from Harry, and at bedtime would stand no questioning
at Harry's hands, even though addressed as "Young Cain."

"I've been beaten," said he, "and I've done other things. I don't care
what I do. If you speak to me to-night, Harry, I'll get out and try to
kill you. Now you can kill me if you like."

Harry took his bed into the spare-room, and Black Sheep lay down to
die.

It may be that the makers of Noah's Arks know that their animals are
likely to find their way into young mouths, a