THE ELOPEMENT OF FLIP.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 179, 23 November 1900, Page 6

THE ELOPEMENT OF FLIP.

By MABEL COLLINS. (Author of "The Mystery of Blythe waite Hall," etc.)

Concluded./ "If only," said Flip_, "we had a chair or something' to sit daown on. This is awful bare! Why, there isn't anything! We, could her done without bundles and things in the fields, but —here! And—and nothing to eat! Let's —shout!" "You shout!" said Mimi. It seemed a boy's duty. "Ow!" yelled Flip. But the yell was only mocked by evil things hidden amongst the beams and rafters, and far away sounded the lifting refrain of a waltz song. "That's my big sister Alice singing," said Mimi. "We might die up here, and nobody cores! Oh, Ido feel mis' able! Don't you, Flip?" "If I had a chair, I wouldn't," said Flip. "But this is awful bare!"

"Shoiit again!" said Mimi. answer, save from beam and rafter, Then Mimi broke suddenly into tears

"Don't cry, Mimi!" said Flip, growing a little white in the face. See, roll up your frock raound your waist and sit down, and yon won't feel so tired. It'll comfort you a little, not to feel tired, and I'll make a nice little pillow with my jacket, so's you can sleep if you want to. And I'll tell you a lovely fairy tale. And I hey my pistol, you knaow." Mimi sat down and sobbed. She knew there were mice and hobgoblins and ghosts in this room when nighttime euine. Else where did hobgoblins live, if not in places like this, that nobody else wanted?

"Well!" remarked Flip after a long silence, "we hey got the haouse, anyhaovv!" But his small underlip quivered, and there was a shine of tears in his eyes as he made his brave little joke. "We hey got the haouse!" And now began commotion next door. For the ring had come for Miini, and Mimi was nowhere to be found! — nor Master Philip! After an excited search through the whole house and grounds, Sophia, very pale and agitated, volunteered the information that they had —eloped! "Eloped, Sophia!" cried Flip's mother. "Yes," said Sophia. "Run away! I heard Flip say they were going to. But I thought it was just —baby talk." "You should know by this time," said Flip's mother, severely, "that Philip never talks just baby talk! There is always some kind of plan behind it. You had better put on your hat and see if you can find them. Mary can go, too, in some other direction. The idea!" But, of course, they did not find them. Mary, instead, found an interesting young policeman, to whom she enlarged tearfully—he was a nice pink and white policeman —upon the awful state they were in. "The young imp!" said the policeman, rather fascinated by the idea of Flip's elopement. Sophia, meanwhile, had interviewed greengrocers and butchers' boys, but had ' gathered no information. What she did gather was a small crowd outside the front door. There was a murmur of "Have they found them?" "Get away! Them two little kids eloped! What are you giving us?" "Poor bairns!" and "There's gipsies tin Friars' Green!" By the time Flip's father and Uncle Bob came home, the crowd had killed Flip and Mimi with a cab, given them over to the gipsies, sent the mothers raving mad, and, in fact, disposed of the. whole of both families, save and except the astonished father and uncle who now appeared upon the scene;. The sight of the growing crowd had frightened Flip's mother into tears, and the sight of her tears had frightened Mimi's mother into hysterics — sister Alice was out on the hunt with Sophia and Mary—and the sight of two women, one in tears and the other in hysterics, and a crowd outside the door, completely bowled Flip's father over. He supposed Flip to be killed and mutilated beyond all recognition, and it was fully ten minutes before he could make head or tail of the broken and interrupted narrative. Uncle Bob, meanwhile, had gone out to fetch a policeman and get the crowd dispersed. (Granny, happily, was blissfully asleep.) From the policeman he learnt that the young nipper had bolted with the little Miss from next dpor,-and that both families were in on awful state about it. Then the policeman sauntered up leisurely, and waved a hand majestically to the crowd, while Uncle Bob rushed into the house to find out what Flip's father meant to do.' "This comes of talking before children!" said Flip's mother. "The idea of talking about Lucy and Captain Gregers before Philip!" "Why, it was you who asked me to tell you all about it there and then!" Uncle Bob could not help retorting in self-defence.

"Oh, be quiet," said Flip's mother, distractedly. "Look at poor Mrs Stainesby there! You've made her ill! Have you got that awful crowd away? Where's Sophia? Where's Mary? Oh, my poor head! Get Mrs Stainesby some wine or something, Tom—'somebody! Oh, dear! I'm sure I don't know what I'm tiding! Don't take on so, dear! We shall find them all right. Oh, my head! That Philip! He's his father all over. Granny—" At this point, Mimi's big sister Alice came in, looking very flushed and very ',*Ow! Ow!" yelled Flip. Still no anxious and very pretty. Now.Flip's Uncle Bob had only just come Sown from London, and from the first — which was precisely two days ago —had cast eyes of admiration on Mimi's big sister Alice, and for the life of him, he could not concentrate the whole of his attention on Flip, while if Mimi's sister Alice was only thinking about Mimi, why should she blush so' very shyly and prettily? . . . - •/; Depend on it, Fate, as well as Flip, meant to make a big thing out of this elopement! Meanwhile, up in the attic, the hobgoblins had o begun to creep out, for the twilight shadows were gathering fast, and from the lumber closet came the sounds of busy gnawing, . •■■■•• ■ ,

That's mice!" whispered Mimi

"Are they white mice, like Toinmie Patten's?" inquired Flip with some interest. He had now seated himself on the floor, after one last futile attempt to open the door with his small nails.

"I don't know. Listen! That's a— ghost!" whispered Mimi. "This place is full of ghosteses! Oh, I ish I hadn't run away!" "Why, 3'our'e in your own house!" said Flip.

"Well, I know! But. if everyone thinks I've run away!" whispered Mimi.

■ "Don't cry, there's a pet!" said Flip, getting up to put a comforting arm about her! "Let's think about bread and butter and strawberries. Or—or ice-cream. No, let's hay have—"

"I want my mother and sister Alice!" sobbed Mimi. "I shall never see them again. You're a nasty boy for —for making me —run away with yioul. Boohoo —bo ■ — oo — hoo! Go away! Leave me alone! Ah, ha, ha,

ha, ha!" It was a whole chromatic scale of whimpers, and Flip for some moments sat spellbound, looking at the small, screwed-up face. The distortion seemed quite a clever piece of work. "1 could slap you, I could! Boo — hoo —hoo!" said Mimi.

"Well, slap me then," said Flip, patiently. "I never locked us in!"

But relief was coming,

"Do you think they can have got. into your house, Miss Stainesby?" asked Uncle Bob, and his gruff voice had grown so mellow his own mother would not have known it.

"Oh, I thought of that," said Alice, "and I've looked all over. T've searched the whole house from the cellar to the—to the—"

A sudden click in her heart finished the sentence ifor her, with a note of interrogation aiter it, and to Uncle Bob's surprise and discomfiture, sister Alice vanished like a wiTP'o' the wisp. She went round to the back to escape the eyes of the crowd. "Somebody's coming' now, Mimi!" said Flip, ' patting her soothingly. "Don't cry, Mimi!" The key turned. The door opened. An angel rushed in and clapped each little mortal on a strong young shoulder.

"Oh, you naughty, wicked, darling little desperado!" cried the angel, smacking one kiss on Flip's cheek. "Oh, you shocking, muggy, frightened little baby lamb!" smacking another on Mimi's.

And she came rushing in with them so, and. a very sweet, merry sister Alice she looked.

"Rejoice with me for I have found the pieces of mischief that were lost!" she laughed, for Uncle Bob had, somehow, set her heart in the happiest glow. He was a fine, strapping young soldier, and there is such a thing as love at first sight, believe me. "I hey made -Mimi cry," said Flip, in a still, small voice. "I never meant to make her cry. Did Aunt Lucy cry. Uncle Bob, when the Ceplain ren away with her? But—but we only got'to—to the ettic! Preps that's why!" Everybody had now begun to laugh, and at this they laughed the more. Uncle Bob stole a glance at Mimi's big sister Alice, and Alice stole one at him. Then they both blushed, and Uncle Bob called down benedictions on the "Ceptain" for having- eloped with Lucy, and so brought about this very pleasant and exciting situation, which was suggestive of romantic thoughts, and likely to lead to—oh, many things! Sophia thought it was time to get the murmuring crowd away. That big baby policeman was no use, she informed Alary. She went out on the doorstep and looked at the gapers critically. "Well, I said I could fool any crowd to the door, if I liked!" she said. "And I've done it. The children have been safe in the house all the time. So there!" With that, Sophia shut the front door upon them, with something of a twinkle in her sharp, bright eyes. "Well!" said the crowd.