had he only been told that his
thoughtfulness would provoke the Court's ingratitude. "Why couldn't they
say aforehand they didn't want no slide?" said he. "I could just as easy
have left it alone." It was rather difficult to be quite even with
Michael Ragstroar.

However, the ground was all steady underfoot when Dave, in charge of
Sister Nora, reappeared, looking quite rosy again, and only limping very
slightly. He had deserted Ariadne altogether by now, and Dionysos may
have done so, too, for anything the story knows. Anyhow, the instability
of the planet that had resulted from local frost did not affect Dave at
all, now that Michael had spilt them hashes over the ground. Dave was
bubbling over with valuable information about the provinces, which had
never reached the Metropolis before, and he was in such a hurry to tell
about a recent family of kittens, that he scamped his greetings to his
own family in order to get on to the description of it.

But neither this, nor public indignation against the turpitude of
slide-makers generally and that young Micky in particular, could avert
his relatives' acknowledgments of their gratitude--what a plague thanks
are!--from a benefactress who was merely consulting a personal
dilettantism in her attitude towards her species, and who regarded Dave
as her most remunerative investment for some time past.

"We shall never know how to be grateful enough, ma'am, for your kindness
to Dave," said Aunt M'riar. "No--never!"

"Not if we was to live for ever," said Uncle Mo. And he seemed to mean
it, for he went on:--"It's a poor way of thanks to be redooced to at the
best, just to be grateful and stop it off at that. But 'tis in the right
of it as far as it goes. You take me, missis? I'm a bad hand to speak my
mind; but you'll count it up for hearty thanks, anyhow."

"Of course I will, Mr. Wardle," said Sister Nora. "But, oh dear!--what a
fuss one does make about nothing! Why, he's such a ducky little chap,
anybody would be glad to."

Dave struck into the conversation perceiving an opportunity to say
something appropriate: "There was sisk duskses in the pong in the field,
and one of the duskses was a droyk with green like ribbings, and Mrs.
Thrale she said a little boy stumbled in the pong and was took out
green, and some day I should show Dolly the droyk and I should show
Uncle Mo the droyk and I should show Aunt M'riar the droyk. And there
was a bool." At which point the speaker sudd