movements,
although she herself had hurried down with the nurse to the river bank
in company with the others immediately Jupp had rushed to Teddy's
rescue.

"Well, I never!" ejaculated Mary, laughing again as she turned to Jupp.
"Who would have thought the little puss would have been so thoughtful?
But she has always been a funny child, older than her years, and almost
like an old woman in her ways."

"Bless you, she ain't none the worse for that!" observed Jupp in answer.
"She's a real good un, to think her little brother 'ud want dry things
arter his souse in the water, and to go and fetch 'em too without being
told."

"I expect you'd be none the worse either for going back and changing
your clothes," said Mary, eyeing his wet garments.

"Lor', it don't matter a bit about me," he replied, giving himself a
good shake like a Newfoundland dog, and scattering the drops about,
which pleased the children mightily, as he did it in such a funny way.
"I rayther likes it nor not."

"But you might catch cold," suggested Mary kindly.

"Catch your grandmother!" he retorted. "Sailors ain't mollycoddles."

"Wat's dat?" asked Teddy inquiringly, looking up at him.

"Why, sir," said Jupp, scratching his head reflectively--he had left his
cap under the elm-tree on top of the hill, where he had taken it off
when he set about building the fire for the kettle--"a mollycoddle is a
sort of chap as always wraps hisself up keerfully for fear the wind
should blow upon him and hurt his complexion."

"Oh!" said Teddy; but he did not seem any the wiser, and was about to
ask another question which might have puzzled Jupp, when Liz interrupted
the conversation, and changed the subject.

"There's Conny coming now, and Pa with her," she called out, pointing to
the top of the glade, where her father and elder sister could be seen
hurrying swiftly towards them, followed closely by Joe the gardener
bearing a big bundle of blankets and other things which the vicar
thought might be useful.

"My! Master must have been scared!" cried Mary, noticing in the
distance the anxious father's face. "Master Teddy do cause him trouble
enough, he's that fond of the boy!"

But, before Jupp could say anything in reply, the new arrivals had
approached the scene of action, Conny springing forward first of all and
hugging Teddy and Cissy and Liz all round. In the exuberance of her
delight, too, at their being safe and sound, when in her nervous dread
sh