about nine or ten minutes.

The pains and passions, as well as the pleasures of childhood are very
fleeting, after all, and Eddie Rivers, in spite of his fifteen years,
was a very child, so that he recovered himself quickly, and looked round
with an expression of shameful defiance; but on Bertie's puzzled and
Agnes' sorrowful face he saw neither contempt nor amusement, and he
stammered out a sort of apology.

"I'm very sorry, Bertie, but I could not help it."

"Poor Eddie!" Agnes whispered sympathetically.

"I'm glad you are all right, Ted," Bertie cried, with an uncomfortable
feeling in his throat. "I thought you were going to be really bad."

"So I was, 'really bad,' Bert," Eddie answered, with a very unusual
accession of gentleness and humility. "I didn't like anybody or anything
a moment ago; I thought you were very selfish. I quite disliked those
unkind Gregory boys; I thought Mr. Murray came to see us just to make
fun of us. I was as wicked and miserable as ever I could be, and I do
wish we had our dear ponies, and could ride every day like other boys,
instead of moping down here on the beach."

"I thought you liked it, Eddie. I do, over anything," Bertie replied,
looking quite serious; "and I'm sure if Uncle Clair knew you wanted a
pony badly, he would let you have one. Why didn't you tell him?"

Eddie flushed angrily, and turned aside a little impatiently. "Uncle
Clair is far too good to me already. You don't understand me a bit,
Bertie: you never did; or you either, Agnes--no, you don't. You are both
quite happy and contented, but I'm not."

"Why?" Bertie asked. "Do, tell us, Eddie! Oh, I know! it's because you
have an enemy, and I believe he makes you think all kinds of absurd
things. Just tell me who he is, Ted, and I'll thrash him," Bertie
whispered eagerly.

"Thrash whom? I don't understand you, Bert." Eddie looked up with a
sudden appearance of interest, and Agnes drew a little away: she did not
quite understand the turn matters were taking; but Bertie meant to talk
the "enemy" question over thoroughly, and pulled Agnes back to add her
persuasions to his.

But Eddie looked so thoroughly amazed, that Bertie was quite at a loss
how to go on. If his brother had an enemy, he did not seem to know
anything about it; still, there were Uncle Clair's words: they must mean
something; and at last he repeated them, and said he was determined not
to have poor Eddie worried by any one in the world.

"Do you