"Philip Reist," she shouted crossly, "I am not! My legs are straighter'n yours! You dare, you just dare once, to come in the crick and say that and see what you get!" Although two years her junior he accepted the challenge and repeated the doggerel as he planted his bare feet in the water. She splashed him and he retaliated, but the boy, though smaller, was agile, and in an unguarded moment he caught the girl by the wrists and pushed her so she sat squarely in the shallow waters of the brook. "Hey, smarty," he exulted impishly as he held her there, "you will get fresh with me, you will, huh?" "Phil, let me up, leave me go, I'm all wet." "Now, how did that happen, I wonder. My goodness, what will Mamma say?" he teased. "Phil," the girl half coaxed, but he read a desire for revenge in her face. "Jiminy Christmas, don't cry." He puckered up his lips in imitation of a whimpering girl. "Got enough?" "Phil," the word rang crossly, "you let me be now." "All right, cry baby." He loosened his hold on her wrists. "But because you're such a fraid cat I'll not give you what I brought for you." "What is it?" The girl scrambled to her feet, curiosity helping her to forget momentarily the boy's tricks. "What did you bring me?" "Something that's little and almost round and blue and I got it in a tree. Now if you're not a blockhead mebbe you can guess what it is." He moved his hand about in his pocket. "Phil, let me see." The words were plain coaxing then. "Here." And he drew from his pocket a robin's egg. "Philip Reist! Where did you get that?" The girl's voice was stern and loud. "Ach, I found the dandiest nest out on one of the cherry trees and I know you like dinky birds and thought I'd get you an egg. There's three more in the nest; I guess that's enough for any robin. Anyhow, they had young ones in that nest early in the summer." "You bad boy! How dare you rob a bird's nest? God will punish you for that!" Her eyes blazed with wrath at the thoughtless deed of the lad. "Ach," he answered boldly, "what's the use fussin' 'bout a dinky bird's egg? You make me sick, Manda. Cry about it now! Oh, the poor little birdie lost its egg," he whined in falsetto voice. "You--you--I guess I won't wait for God to punish you, Philip Reist." With the words she grabbed and sat him in the water. "You need something _right now_ to make you remember not to take eggs from nests. And here it is! When you want to do it after this just think of the day I sat you down in the crick. I'm goin' to tell Mom on you, too, that's what I am." "Yea, tattle-tale, girls are all tattle-tales!" He struggled to escape but the hold of his sister was vise-like. "Will you leave nests alone?" she demanded. "Ah, who wants to steal eggs? I just brought you one 'cause I thought you'd like it." "Well, I don't. So let the eggs where they belong," she said as she relaxed her clasp and he rose. "Now look at us," he began, then the funny spectacle of wet clothes sent each laughing.