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and very much misplaced。  Could you guess what a conflict it is every 

time I am helped up that mountain of a staircase; or the slope of my 

sofa is altered?  Last time Philip stayed here; every step cost an 

argument; till at last; through sheer exhaustion; I left myself a dead 

weight on his hands; to be carried up by main strength。  And after all; 

he is such a great; strong fellow; that I am afraid he did not mind it; 

so next time I _crutched_ myself down alone; and I hope that did 

provoke him。'



'Sir Guy is so kind that I am ashamed;' said Mrs。 Edmonstone。  'It 

seems as if we had brought him for the sole purpose of waiting on 

Charles。'



'Half his heart is in his horse;' said Charles。 'Never had man such 

delight in the 〃brute creation。〃'



'They have been his chief playfellows;' said Mrs。 Edmonstone。  'The 

chief of his time was spent in wandering in the woods or on the beach; 

watching them and their ways。'



'I fairly dreamt of that Elysium of his last night;' said Charles: 'a 

swamp half frozen on a winter's night; full of wild ducks。  Here; 

Charlotte; come and tell Mary the roll of Guy's pets。'



Charlotte began。  'There was the sea…gull; and the hedgehog; and the 

fox; and the badger; and the jay; and the monkey; that he bought 

because it was dying; and cured it; only it died the next winter; and a 

toad; and a raven; and a squirrel; and' 



'That will do; Charlotte。'



'Oh! but Mary has not heard the names of all his dogs。  And Mary; he 

has cured Bustle of hunting my Puss。 We held them up to each other; and 

Puss hissed horribly; but Bustle did not mind it a bit; and the other 

day; when Charles tried to set him at her; he would not take the least 

notice。'



'Now; Charlotte;' said Charles; waving his hand; with a provoking mock 

politeness; 'have the goodness to return to your friends。



Tea over; Laura proposed the game of definitions。  'You know it。 

Philip;' said she; 'you taught us。'



'Yes I learnt it of your sisters; Thorndale;' said Philip。



'0 pray let us have it。  It must be charming!' exclaimed Miss Harper; 

on this recommendation。



'Definitions!' said Charles; contemptuously。  'Dr。 Johnson must be the 

hand for them。'



'They are just the definitions not to be found in Johnson;' said Mr。 

Thorndale。 'Our standing specimen is adversity; which may be 

differently explained according to your taste; as 〃a toad with a 

precious jewel in its head;〃 or 〃the test of friendship。〃'



'The spirit of words;' said Guy; looking eager and interested。



'Well; we'll try;' said Charles; 'though I can't say it sounds to me 

promising。  Come; Maurice; define an Irishman。'



'No; no; don't let us be personal;' said Laura; 'I had thought of the 

word 〃happiness〃。  We are each to write a definition on a slip of 

paper; then compare them。'



The game was carried on with great spirit for more than an hour。  It 

was hard to say; which made most fun; Maurice; Charles; or Guy; the 

last no longer a spectator; but an active contributor to the sport。  

When the break…up came; Mary and Amabel were standing over the table 

together; collecting the scattered papers; and observing that it had 

been very good fun。  'Some so characteristic;' said Amy; 'such as 

Maurice's definition of happiness; … a row at Dublin。'



'Some were very deep; though;' said Mary; 'if it is not treason; I 

should like to make out whose that other was of happiness。'



'You mean this;' said Amy: '〃Gleams from a brighter world; too soon 

eclipsed or forfeited。〃  I thought it was Philip's; but it is Sir Guy's 

writing。  How very sad!  I should not like to think so。  And he was so 

merry all the time!  This is his; too; I see; this one about riches 

being the freight for which the traveller is responsible。'



'There is a great deal of character in them;' said Mary。  'I should not 

have wondered at any of us; penniless people; philosophizing in the fox 

and grapes style; but; for him; and at his age'



'He has been brought up so as to make the theory of wisdom come early;' 

said Philip; who was nearer than she thought。



'Is that intended for disparagement?' she asked quickly。



I think very highly of him; he has a great deal of sense and right 

feeling;' was Philip's sedate answer; and he turned away to say some 

last words to Mr。 Thorndale。



The Rosses were the last to depart; Mary in cloak and clogs; while Mr。 

Edmonstone lamented that it was in vain to offer the carriage; and Mary 

laughed; and thanked; and said the walk home with Papa was the greatest 

of treats in the frost and star…light。



'Don't I pity you; who always go out to dinner in a carriage!' were her 

last words to Laura。



'Well; Guy;' said Charlotte; 'how do you like it?'



'Very much; indeed。  It was very pleasant。'



'You are getting into the fairy ring;' said Laura; smiling。



'Ay' he said; smiling too; 'but it does not turn to tinsel。  Would it 

if I saw more of it?' and he looked at Mrs; Edmonstone。



'It would be no compliment to ourselves to say so;' she answered。



'I suppose tinsel or gold depends on the using;' said he; thoughtfully; 

'there are some lumps of solid gold among those papers; I am sure; one; 

in particular; about a trifle。 May I see that again?  I mean





                  'Little things

                   On little wings

                 Bear little souls to heaven。'





'Oh! that was only a quotation;' said Amy; turning over the definitions 

again with him; and laughing at some of the most amusing; while; in the 

mean time; Philip went to help Laura; who was putting some books away 

in the ante…room。



'Yes; Laura;' he said; 'he has thought; mind; and soul; he is no mere 

rattle。'



'No indeed。  Who could help seeing his superiority over Maurice?'



'If only he does not pervert his gifts; and if it is not all talk。  I 

don't like such excess of openness about his feelings; it is too like 

talking for talking's sake。'



'Mamma says it in the transparency of youthfulness。  You know he has 

never been at school; so his thoughts come out in security of sympathy; 

without fear of being laughed at。  But it is very late。  Good night。'





The frost turned to rain the next morning; and the torrents streamed 

against the window; seeming to have a kind of attraction for Philip and 

Guy; who stood watching them。



Guy wondered if the floods would be out at Redclyffe and his cousins 

were interested by his description of the sudden; angry rush of the 

mountain streams; eddying fiercely along; bearing with them tree and 

rock; while the valleys became lakes; and the little mounds islets; and 

the trees looked strangely out of proportion when only their branches 

were visible。  'Oh! a great flood is famous fun;' said he。



'Surely;' said Philip; 'I have heard a legend of your being nearly 

drowned in some flood。 



'Yes;' said Guy; 'I had a tolerable ducking。'



'Oh; tell us about it!' said Amy。



'Ay! I have a curiosity to hear a personal experience of drowning;' 

said Charles。  'Come; begin at the beginning。'



'I was standing watching the tremendous force of the stream; when I saw 

an unhappy old ram floating along; bleating so piteously; and making 

such absurd; helpless struggles; that I could not help pulling off my 

coat and jumping in after him。  It was very foolish; for the stream was 

too strongI was two years younger then。  Moreover; the beast was very 

heavy; and not at all grateful for any kind intentions; and I found 

myself sailing off to the sea; with the prospect of a good many rocks 

before long; but just then an old tree stretched out its friendly arms 

through the water; it stopped the sheep; and I caught hold of the 

branches; and managed to scramble up; while my friend got entangled in 

them with his wool'





                  'Omne quum Proteus pecus egit altos

                                      Visere montes;'



quoted Philip。





                  'Ovium et summa; genus haesit ulmo;'



added Guy。



'_Ovium_;' exclaimed Philip; with a face of horror。  'Don't you know 

that _0_ in _Ovis_ is short?  Do anything but take liberties with 

Horace!'



'Get out of the tree first; Guy;' said Charles; 'for at present your 

history seems likely to end with a long ohone!'



'Well; Tritonnot Proteuscame to the rescue at last;' said Guy; 

laughing; 'I could not stir; and the tree bent so frightfully with the 

current that I expected every minute we should all go together; so I 

had nothing for it but to halloo as loud as I could。  No one heard but 

Triton; the old Newfoundland dog; who presently came swimming up; so 

eager to help; poor fellow; that I thought he would have throttled me; 

or hurt himself in the branches。  I took off my handkerchief and threw 

it to him; telling him to take it to Arnaud; who I knew would 

understan

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