. and
Noel would not believe it, and Oswald owns that no horse he has ever
seen had a head at all that shape.

But Oswald did not stop to argue, because he saw a keeper who showed me
how to set snares going by, and he wanted to talk to him about ferrets,
so he went off, and Dicky and Denny and Alice with him. Also Daisy and
Dora went off to finish reading _Ministering Children_. So H. O. and
Noel were left with the bony head. They took it away.

The incident had quite faded from the mind of Oswald next day. But just
before breakfast Noel and H. O. came in, looking hot and anxious. They
had got up early and had not washed at all--not even their hands and
faces. Noel made Oswald a secret signal. All the others saw it, and with
proper delicate feeling pretended not to have.

When Oswald had gone out with Noel and H. O., in obedience to the secret
signal, Noel said:

"You know that dragon's head yesterday?"

"Well?" Oswald said, quickly, but not crossly--the two things are quite
different.

"Well, you know what happened in Greek history when some chap sowed
dragon's teeth?"

"They came up armed men," said H. O.; but Noel sternly bade him shut up,
and Oswald said "Well," again. If he spoke impatiently it was because he
smelled the bacon being taken in to breakfast.

"Well," Noel went on, "what do you suppose would have come up if we'd
sowed those dragon's teeth we found yesterday?"

"Why, nothing, you young duffer," said Oswald, who could now smell the
coffee. "All that isn't History--it's Humbug. Come on in to brekker."

"It's _not_ humbug," H. O. cried, "it _is_ history. We _did_ sow--"

"Shut up," said Noel again. "Look here, Oswald. We did sow those
dragon's teeth in Randall's ten-acre meadow, and what do you think has
come up?"

"Toadstools, I should think," was Oswald's contemptible rejoinder.

"They have come up a camp of soldiers," said Noel--"_armed men_. So you
see it _was_ history. We have sowed army-seed, just like Cadmus, and it
has come up. It was a very wet night. I dare say that helped it along."

Oswald could not decide which to disbelieve--his brother or his ears. So
disguising his doubtful emotions without a word, he led the way to the
bacon and the banqueting hall.

He said nothing about the army-seed then, neither did Noel and H. O.
But after the bacon we went into the garden, and then the good elder
brother said:

"Why don't you tell the others your cock-and-bull story?"

So they d