GEMINI.

Otago Witness, Issue 2436, 21 November 1900, Page 65

GEMINI.

It' was Sunday afternoon.Nora, the little nursegirl, had given the twins their dinner, and tidied the nursery, and now she and the twins were sitting on the ' hearthrug, going through the Sunday lesson. The twins, aged five, were rather young to attend Sunday school, so Nora tised to read to them out of "The Peep of Hay.' , They" had nearly finished "The Peep of Day," and. then "they would be promoted to "Streaks of Light." The twins were seated, one on each" side of Nora, Thomas Giles (as his father called'ihim when he was going to spank him), commonly called Giles, on the right side, and Winifred Margaret, otherwise Twinkie, on 'the other side. " ■" Nora" was* a" stolid country giri, ' with pale ' round eyes and wispy red hair tied in a bob air the back of her neck; but the twins thought her beautiful, she used to buy t]iem such nice sticky liquorice ladders and sugar elephants and pigs, on her night cut, and once she brought them a penny packet each. Twinkie' s * packet, when opened, revealed a beautiful brass ring, w,ith a shiny stone In the middle, which Twinkie is suspected of having swallowed. Thomas Giles's packet contained four pink lollies, 10 white ones, one yellow one, with "Sweets to the sweet" in smudgy pink letters *on it, and a silvery pin tray, which he promptly chewed up, and then bestowed on Twinkie, '"Cos Twink was on'y a baby, an' she liked it." But to return to our muttons. Nora^opened ths little red book with the gold letters on it, and began to search for the place. "What was the last bit I read?" she asked. "Jesus had 12 'ciples; did he love them?" answered Twinkie glibly. • Twinkle's way of remembering the chapter was to notice the first sentence or two, and then repeat it to simple Nora, when she (Nora) asked about the last lesson. Nora promised her a pink elephant with black eyes for knowing the chapter. so well. "What was the bad man's name?" was the next question. "Jiidas," the twins both answered promptly, "and he dot 30 silver pennies, ' added Giles as he glanced triumphantly at his- sister. "He's looking glad at me," wailed Twinkie as she saw her brother smile furtively. "I was not. true as — as death. Twinkie' s telling li fibs," protested Giles with, an air of injured innocence. "Oh, you bad children, fighting on Sunday. I'll telLyour mother, and I'll never buy you ' any more elephants or pigs," said Nora, as she distributed sundry harmless smacks with both hands on the pair. ''Now, be quiet and gcod, and I'll tell you about Judas, the thief." "J want to hear about when Jesus wanted all the little girls and boys to come to Him, an' He'd always love them an' not send them away," said Twinkie breathlessly, her blue eyes shining at the recollection of the" beautiful story. Every Sunday the twins had the choice, turn about, as to what the lesson was to be, and " Twinkie invariably chose the lesson of the children. Giles, on the other hand, preferred to hear of the Judgment Day, when Satan would be bound in chains and be cast into hell fire with all the wicked angels. As Giles feelingly remarked tc his mother as she put him to bed one night, "It would be so nice to see the bad angels getting fiizzled up, and Joey Parnell too, 'cos he had a t ear in school, an' lie ate it all hisself, dreedy .pig." The Sunday lesson went on smoothly enough for an hour, when another interruption occurred; there was a'strange sound in the pas- ' sage outside, and Nora sent Giles to see what caused it. He opened the door very carefully, and then a ripple of laughter disturbed the calm air as he cried, "00, the cat's doing it again — she's dot a. fit, an' her tail's going." A door opened somewhere down the passage, and a masculine voice called "Giles!" Giles, prancing around the struggling cat, evidently did not hear the paternal cry, but continued laughing and calling out to Nora to "Turn an' see the cat spin round. 1 ' His antics suddenly ceased as he heard a hasty step and •was swung round and liited off his feet. "Look here, young man, what do you mean I>y making this infernal noise when I'm trying to get a sleep. Just come to the surgery." Then he saw the cat. "Phew! the cat's got a fit again. I'll have to drown her — she's a perfect nuisance." "Oo! don't drown her. daddy — she tan't help it, an' wo won't let her do it again, true as death," interposed Twinkie tearfully, as she clung to her nurse's skirls. ,Dr Eosslyn seized the cat rather gingerly and rarrieel her to tb.e surgery, where he ga-v*

her a dose of something out of a dark bluebottle, and put her out Ihe window on "to the verandah to recover. The doctor seated himself in the big armchair by the fire and picked up a book, quite oblivious of the presence of the redoubtable Giles. The child stood on one foot, holding the other in his hand. Then ho said, ''Father." that you, Giles?" "Ye-es; you're not going to drown Fanny, are you, father?" "Hang Fanny! I'm not going to drown her, if that will ease your mind. Now run away and leave your poor old -ather in peace." The boy slipped out of ihe loom and sped down the passage and into the nursery, where Nora was setting tea. He crept past her and sat down on the hearthrug beside Twinkie. "The cat's havin' a fit on th' v'randa, Twink. Turn an' we'll see her." "I won't," said Twink virtuously, " 'cos mum'll be angry wif us." "No she won't,' 1 coaxed the tempter. "She's in the sitting room wif Aunty Kit.' Twink could not resist. With o'ae eye on Nora she nodded to Giles, and the two sidled out hand in -hand, as usual. Once out of Nora's sight they trotted down the passage and out the side door at the end, which led on- to the verandah. The cat, 'a beautiful Persian, was still squirming there; they did not dare approach, nearer, «s they would inevitably be seen from the surgery windows. But Fortune favoured them. ;- a Loy caijie running up to the surgery door, the bell of which he lang violently. There-was &orne commotion, aiid the doctors voice was heard ordering his gig. Presently it came whirring round the corner, and the doctor stepped in, and was driven hastily off. The twins had been interested watchers' of 1 . this scene, but as soon as the gig disappeared '-; round the corner their attention was once ' | more attracted tc the cat, which lay with its 1 paws moving feebly. "It looks very bad," said the boy. "Did dad give it rned'eine?" questioned the other. , "Yes, out of the blue bottle." Then, witha mischievous inflexion in his voice: "Twink, wo'll div it a li'le more, to make it betterquicker?" "Ess," said Twink, her eyes sparkling with mischief. The two trotted in the open French window, and stood looking up at the rows of labelled bottles. "Dats the one dad had,'' said the boy, as he pointed to a big blue 1 ottle labelled "Poison," ''No, it isn't; it's that one," as he caught sight of a smaller bottle standing on - a low shelf. "Take th' big one, d'ere ajl the same," urged Twinkie. • "Yes, they're all the same," repeated the boy ■ as he pushed the steps to the shelf and laboriously climbed up. The bottle was reached and carefully lifted down oil to the floor. Then the twins sat down, and niter many vigorous twists and turns, suceeded m pulling' the heavy glass stopper out, and then a consultation was held as to whether the cat would prefer it in a saucer or just out of the bottle. "The saucer'd be nicest/ 'aid Giles thoughtfully. "No, the bottle," said the other. „ "You're on'y a baby, an' you don't know, Twink, 'cos she must have the saucer, 'cos she couldn't det her mouf down to the med'cine," decided, the young van. "Go an' det a saucer," he commanded. Twink. demuired. ''Nora might see me," she said. "Baby!" replied her brother, with volumes of contempt in his voice, as his eyes roved around in search of a substitute. Then his eye alighted on an ash-tray standing on his father's writing table, and he promptly seized it, emptied the ashes out on to ihe carpet, and poured about half a teacupful of the "med'eine" into it. By this time the cat had quite recovered, ' and lay sunning herself on the gravel, but j the twins evidently thought her health was not quite up to the mark, for Gile,s seized and i held her while his sister pushed hex; nose into the clear, harmless-looking liquid. Fanny smelt it, and then began to drink greedily. Evidently it was agreeable to her palate, for she lapp.ed away until not a drop was left in the saucer. The effect was almost immediate. ; Poor Fanny's limbs began to twitch again, and she gave vent to 1 the mosx piteous mews. "She don't look werry much better," observed Twinkie, looking rather, scared. "She did dat when father gave her some, an' we dave her a whole lot more, so she'll do it more." "Oo! we gived her too much, 'cos look how she's squealing, ' wailed Twink, as her little nose puckered up and two big tears rolled down her cheeks and splashed into the empty ashtray. "Try baby," said Giles, as he calmly watched poor Fanny. "We gived her a lot, 'cos then it'll do for the next time she dets a fit, and then she won't need any more, sea? Dad'll be glad, 'cos he said he was sick of giving her med'eine." "She's detting well now," cried Twink, as her tears suddenly dried. The cat's struggling had ceased now, and she lay passive, without a sign of life, her body stretched stiffly out. "I b'lieve she's dead," said Twink, as she surveyed the cat. '"Dead?" echoed the boy. "She's not, she's on'y gone to sleep." Suddenly a voice was heard calling, "Giles and Twink, where are you?" "It's Nora calling us," whispered Twinkie guiltily. "Turn an' we'll put pussy in dad's desk till she wakes up." It was no sooner said than done, and presently the two children were in the nursery looking painfully and unnaturally good. "Where have you been?'' questioned Nora. "There's some ladies in with your mother, and your aunty says you've to in and see them, 1 ' she continued as she straightened Twinkle's white frock and smoothed Giles's fair curls. The door opened, and Aunty Kitty came in. Aunty Kitty was about 18, and very pretty. The twins hailed her with shcut-3 of delight. She kissed and hugged them, curls and frock suffering somewhat in the process, and then seized their hands and. marched them out, down the passage, into the hall, and up the staircase into the drawing room, a large sunny room. The children entered hand in hand, as usual. Twinkie, as son ?s she caught sight of her mother dragged her hand away from Giles and made a dive across the room, and then,^safe on her lap, surveyed the visitors — Mrs Grey, Miss Grey, and Miss Nance Grey. Mrs Grey was large, and brimming over with good nature; Miss Grey was thin, tall, and short-sighted, age — uncertain; and Miss Nance was very young, and the bosom friend of Aunty Kit. She had just put her hair up, but the twins thought that this should not make any difference in their manner of addressing her, so she remained "Nance" to th em. Giles accepted a seat by Nance, and soon had her intensely interested in his graphic account of how the cat took a fit. "Did it get better?" asked Nance, as the child reached the part where Fanny had been put out on the verandah. "We went an' looked at her, an' she_ was werry ill yet, an' we gived heT some more, a, whole lot more, to do for nex' time too, an' she dot better, an' went right asleep." The child paused for a moment as the front door opened. Dr Eosslyn went into the surgery and closed the door. I "Den we put her in other's desk, go's no one 'd tramp on heiy he continued,

"Put her in father's desk?" gasped Miss Nance. ' Mrs Eosslyn looked over from where she was talking to Mamma Grey. "What is that little monkey telling you now?" &he laughingly asked. "He says that he- and Twinkie gave the cat some medicine, and she vent to sleep, and then he put her in Dr Eosslyn 3 desk," repeated the girl. "Oh, you i aughty boy! How dare you go into tha surgery at all! And if you've poisoned " A door downstairs opened quickly. "Thomas Giles!" A voice, calm, but fraught with terrible meaning, rang thiough the house. "'Thomas Giles" turned rather white, and cowered up close to Miss Nance. "It's daddy," he whimpered. "Go to yoar father," commanded his mother. On ordinary .occasions Mrs Eosslyn would say, "Go, to father, 'or "Go to daddy/ but the words "'Go *to your father" had a truly awful significance. , Thomas Giles crept closer to Nance, but she gently pushed him on io his feet. '"Go, dear, ' she whispered, "Turn on," said Twink, as he seized his hand and made for the door. Poor little innocent! To her that voice had no particular meaning. Giles hesitated a moment, and then loosened his hand from hers, piished her back, "and walked steadily oiit of the door, carefully closirg it behind him. They heard, him walk unfalteringly down the stairs, and then there was silence. "Bravo little man," murmured Miss Nance. "Little monkey," remarked Miss Grey severely. "I did it too,' sobbed Twinkie, as she hid her face in her mother's lap, but she had not the courage to follow her brother. No one knew what transpired downstairs, but 'soon there was a sound of footsteps, and Dr Ecsslyn entered, "carrying Giles, his face grave, but a humourous twinkle in his eyes. He put the boy down, and shook hands with the visitors. Giles walked up to his mother, stood squarely in front of her, and said, "Mother, it was me did it, it wasn't Twink; m' I'm werry sorry, an' I~won't do it again. We fought it would it would make her betterer, but it didn't, an' she's dead. ©h, mummy," and the poor little man threw himself on her sympathetic breast and wept out his grief, while faithless little Twink informed Nance that "Giles was a werry bad li'le boy sometimes." Giles, however, consoled hipiself by confiding to Twinkie that "they would have a werry nice fun'ral, and put the grave just in the place where mum put in some ; it would be so nice an' soft for poor dead Fanny. An' we'll dig its grave with daddy's spade, 'cos mine's loosy" (loose). ISOBEL M. D. MAHONEY.