leful of books which I had brought to read, and had not
looked at for a week. Even now my remorse did not move me to open
them--I found myself instead attracted toward Tom's library, and
conning the titles of novels and volumes of poems. My eye was caught by
"Initial,"--a love-story which I had always avoided because I had heard
impressible young ladies rave about it; but now I picked it up and
dropped into an easy chair. Suddenly I heard Mike the coachman
shouting:--

"Go away from there, will ye? Ah, ye little spalpeen, it's good for ye
that yer fahder don't see ye perched up dhere. Go way from dhat, or
I'll be tellin' yer uncle."

"Don't care for nasty old uncle," piped Toddie's voice.

I laid down my book with a sigh, and went into the garden. Mike saw me
and shouted:--

"Misther Burthon, will ye look dhere? Did ye's ever see the loike av
dhat bye?"

Looking up at the play-room window, a long, narrow sort of loop-hole in
a Gothic gable, I beheld my youngest nephew standing upright on the
sill.

"Toddie, go in--quick!" I shouted, hurrying under the window to catch
him in case he fell outward.

"I tan't," squealed Toddie.

"Mike, run up-stairs and snatch him in; Toddie, go on, I tell you!"

"Tell you I TAN'T doe in," repeated Toddie. "ZE bit bots ish ze
whay-al, an' I'ez Djonah, an' ze whay-al's froed me up, an' I'ze dot to
'tay up here else ze whay-al 'ill fwallow me aden."

"I won't LET him swallow you. Get in now--hurry," said I.

"Will you give him a penny not to fwallow me no more?" queried Toddie.

"Yes--a whole lot of pennies."

"Aw wight. Whay-al, don't you fwallow me no more, an' zen my Ocken
Hawwy div you whole lots of pennies. You must be weal dood whay-al now,
an' then I buys you some tandy wif your pennies, an'--"

Just then two great hands seized Toddie's frock in front, and he
disappeared with a howl, while I, with the first feeling of faintness I
had ever experienced, went in search of hammer, nails, and some strips
of board, to nail on the outside of the window-frame. But boards could
not be found, so I went up to the play-room and began to knock a piece
or two off the box which had done duty as whale. A pitiful scream from
Toddie caused me to stop.

"You're hurtin' my dee old whay-al; you's brakin' his 'tomach all
open--you's a baddy man--'TOP hurtin' my whay-al, ee--ee--ee," cried my
nephew.

"I'm not hurting him, Toddie," said I; "I'm making his mouth bigger, so
he can swallow