e same moment Fred gave utterance to a most doleful
"Oh-h-h!" Poll had made a snap at his finger, and hooked a piece of
flesh out sufficient to make it bleed pretty freely.

"What a beast!" said Fred, angrily, and binding his handkerchief round
the place; "I'd kill it if I had my way."

"But it was your fault," said Harry, quietly, "for trying to touch it;
wasn't it?"

"Ah! but he didn't know it would bite," said Philip, "or he would not
have done so: but never mind, come along, and let's go down the garden."

The abundance of the fruit made Fred forget his pain; and, having seen
the boys' gardens, the next thing was to have a look at the little pond
with the rock-work fountain, which they had made, and which played by
means of a barrel of water hid in the shrubbery behind, the stream being
conveyed through a piece of small piping. Here it was that Harry and
Philip kept all the finny treasures they captured, and the little pond
was rich in carp, roach, dace, and perch; while, amongst other
valuables, Fred was informed of the existence of an eel a foot long,
which had been put in two months before, and never seen since, but was
no doubt fattening in the mud at the bottom.

Neddy had been seen, but round in the stable-yard there was Dick, the
terrier, who could catch rats, rabbits, or anything, so Harry said; and
then there was Tib, the one-eyed, one-winged raven, which hopped about
with his head on one side, and barked at the visitors, and then began to
dig his beak into Fred's leg, and could only be kept at a distance by
Philip poking at him with the handle of the stable broom, when he hopped
off, and sat upon the dog-kennel, every now and then giving a short
angry bark; but nothing like such a bark as Dick the terrier gave when
he found that, in spite of all his leaping, whining, and howling, he was
not to be let out that afternoon, but left straining at the end of his
chain, with his eyes starting out of his head, while the boys went to
see Harry's pigeons and Philip's rabbits.

Just then Harry went to a box in the stable, and pulled out a long,
lithe, scratching and twisting thing, that looked more like a short
snake than a quadruped, and offered it to Philip to hold.

"No; I won't hold it," said Philip; "I'm afraid of it. Perhaps Fred
will."

"No, that I won't," said Fred, shrinking back; "I never saw such a
nasty-looking thing in my life. What do you keep it for?"

"Keep it for? you cowards," said Har