d to wait for Mrs. Thornycroft, she felt, more than once,
how much merrier they would have been with the elder than the younger
brother. Also--for Agatha was a conscientious girl--she thought,
seriously, what a pity it was that so pleasant and kind a man as Major
Harper had such an unfortunate habit of forgetting his promises.

Yet she regretted him--regretted his flow of witty sayings that
attracted the humorous half of her temperament, and his touches of
seriousness or sentiment which hovered like pleasant music
round the yet-closed portals of her girlish heart. Until
suddenly--conscientiousness again!--she began to be aware she was
thinking a deal too much of Major Harper; so, with a strong effort,
turned her attention to his brother and the bears.

She had leant on Mr. Harper's offered arm all the way to the Regent's
Park, yet he had scarcely spoken to her. No wonder, therefore, that
she had had time for meditation, or that her comparison between the two
brothers should be rather to Nathanael's disadvantage. The balance of
favour, however, began to right itself a little when she saw how kind
he was to Emma Thornycroft, who alternately screamed at the beasts, and
made foolish remarks concerning them; also, how carefully he watched
over little Missy and James, the latter of whom, with infantile
pertinacity, would poke his small self into every possible danger.

At the sunken den, where the big brown bear performs gymnastic exercises
on a centre tree, Master Jemmie was quite in his glory. He emulated
Bruin by climbing from his feet into nurse's arms--thence into mamma's,
and lastly, much to her discomfiture, into Miss Bowen's. The attraction
being that she happened to stand close to the railing and next to Mr.
Harper, who, with a bun stuck on the end of his long stick, had coaxed
Bruin up to the very top of the tree.

There the creature swayed awkwardly, his four unwieldy paws planted
together, and his great mouth silently snapping at the cakes. Agatha
could hardly help laughing; she, as well as the children, was so much
amused at the monster.

"Mr. Harper, give Missy your cane. Missy would like to feed bear," cried
the mamma, now very bold, going with her eldest pet to the other side of
the den, and attracting the animal thither.

At which little James, who could not yet speak, setting up a scream of
vexation, tried to stretch after the creature; and whether from his
own impetuosity or her careless hold, sprang-