ipping leaves, the beaten down flowers, the sandbanks by the walks,
and the great drops of water that formed upon the edge of the verandah
and porch, and then came down plash upon the stone pavement.

"Oh! come along," said Harry at last; "I know what we'll do."

"What?" said Philip and Fred together.

"Oh! come along, you'll see," said the other.

Mrs Inglis was busy over some needlework, and the Squire deep in a
book, so the boys slipped out of the room without any notice being
taken, and perhaps half an hour passed away, when all of a sudden Mrs
Inglis dropped her work and jumped out of her chair, while the Squire,
leaping up, overturned his little reading-table, and with it the
screened candle-lamp, breaking the glass and setting fire to the green
crimped shade.

"Whatever is the matter?" said the Squire, when he had extinguished the
burning paper; "whatever is the matter?" he continued, as they heard
another scream similar to one that had caused the first start.

Mrs Inglis ran out of the room, and through the passage into the
kitchen, from whence the sound seemed to have proceeded; and, on
entering, there stood cook upon the dresser, while Mary, having knocked
off the brass kitchen candlestick on to the floor, was balancing herself
upon the top of the little round table, which creaked and groaned and
threatened to break with the weight that had been put upon it.

"What's the matter?" said Mrs Inglis.

"Oh! do look, mem," said cook, "do look; there it goes again!"

And Mrs Inglis herself started, for a gritting, grinding, scraping
noise was heard, and then by the light of the fire she saw one of the
large tin dish covers go creeping along the kitchen floor, till it
reached the wall underneath the place where it generally hung.

Mrs Inglis could not help feeling a little startled, but, knowing well
that some trick must have been played, she told Mary to get down and
pick up the cover and hang it in its place.

"Oh! please 'm, I dussn't," said Mary.

"Then I must," said Mrs Inglis, and stepping across the kitchen, she
lifted up the cover, when out popped the great black tom cat, that was
generally toasting his back before the fire, but who now seemed
dreadfully put out with being shut up so long under such an unpleasant
prison-house.

Just then an uncontrollable burst of merriment came ringing out of the
passage, where it was all dark; which gave Mrs Inglis a very good clue
as to who were the authors o