ed, this one being furnished with
wood-lice, pill millipedes, and other luxuries dear to a toad.

The striking of a clock roused Dexter from his communings with his pets,
and hastily restoring them to their various habitations, he resumed his
jacket, and after a quick glance round descended the steps.

"I couldn't take them with me," he said sadly, as he stood for a few
minutes in the old dark stable; "and if I left them without setting them
at liberty they would all die."

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX.

THE GROWING CLOUD.

"Dexter, I want to talk to you," said Helen, a few weeks later. The boy
sighed.

"Ah! you are afraid I am going to scold you," she said.

"I don't mind you scolding me," he replied; "but I don't think I have
done anything this time, except--"

"Except what?" said Helen, for the boy paused.

"Except talk to Bob Dimsted."

"Have you been out to meet him?"

"No, that I haven't," cried Dexter. "He came to the bottom of the river
to fish, and he spoke to me; and if I had not answered, it would have
seemed so proud."

Helen was silent for a few moments, not knowing what to say.

"It was not about that," she said, at last, "but about your lessons.
Mr Limpney has again been complaining very bitterly to papa about your
want of progress."

"Yes," said Dexter, "and he is always scolding me."

"Then why don't you try harder?"

"I do, but I am so stupid."

"You are not, Dexter. You always learn easily enough with me."

"Yes, with you," said the boy quickly, "but you don't want me to say
angle _ABC_ is equal to the angle _CBA_, and all such stuff as that."

"Don't call it stuff," said Helen, smiling in spite of herself; "it is
Geometry."

"But it is rum stuff all the same. What's the use of my learning about
straight lines and squares and angles?"

"But you are behind with your Algebra too."

"Yes," sighed Dexter, "I'm just as stupid over that."

"Now, Dexter!"

"But I am, quite. Why can't I go on finding out things by Arithmetic,
as we used at the schools? It was bother enough to learn that. Oh,
what a lot of caning I had over nine times!"

"Over nine times!" said Helen.

"Over a hundred, I should say," cried Dexter. "I mean with strokes on
the hand, and taps on the head, and over the shoulders--counting 'em
altogether; and wasn't I glad when I knew it all, and twelve times too,
and somebody else used to get it instead of me."

"Dexter, papa wishes you to learn these things."