"It was Harry's trick," said Flora indignantly, as she flew for the
scent-bottle, while her father bent over Margaret. "Harry dressed
himself up, and she was frightened."

"Oh, no--no--he did not mean it," gasped Margaret; "don't."

"Harry, I did not think you could be so cowardly and unfeeling!" and Dr.
May's look was even more reproachful than his words.

Harry was dismayed at his sister's condition, but the injustice of the
wholesale reproach chased away contrition. "I did nothing to frighten
any one," he said moodily.

"Now, Harry, you know how you kept on," said Flora, "and when you saw
she was frightened--"

"I can have no more of this," said Dr. May, seeing that the discussion
was injuring Margaret more and more. "Go away to my study, sir, and wait
till I come to you. All of you out of the room. Flora, fetch the sal
volatile."

"Let me tell you," whispered Margaret. "Don't be angry with Harry. It
was--"

"Not now, not now, my dear. Lie quite still." She obeyed, took the
sal volatile, and shut her eyes, while he sat leaning anxiously over,
watching her. Presently she opened them, and, looking up, said rather
faintly, and trying to smile, "I don't think I can be better till you
have heard the rights of it. He did not mean it."

"Boys never do mean it," was the doctor's answer. "I hoped better things
of Harry."

"He had no intention--" began Margaret, but she still was unfit to talk,
and her father silenced her, by promising to go and hear the boy's own
account.

In the hall, he was instantly beset by Ethel and Mary, the former
exclaiming, "Papa, you are quite mistaken! It was very foolish of
Margaret to be so frightened. He did nothing at all to frighten any
one."

Ethel's mode of pleading was unfortunate; the "very foolish of Margaret"
were the very words to displease.

"Do not interfere!" said her father sternly. "You only encourage him in
his wanton mischief, and no one takes any heed how he torments my poor
Margaret."

"Papa," cried Harry, passionately bursting open the study door,
"tormenting Margaret was the last thing I would do!"

"That is not the way to speak, Harry. What have you been doing?"

With rapid agitated utterance, Harry made his confession. At another
time the doctor would have treated the matter as a joke carried too far,
but which, while it called for censure, was very amusing; but now
the explanation that the disguise had been assumed to impose on the
Andersons, only a