"If she'd hear me call the quail and the whip-poor-will, she'd like it," said Malcolm. "She wouldn't like it well enough to stay away from a party to go with you to hear it," said James. "She might!" persisted Malcolm. "She didn't know about this when she went to the parties. When she comes back I'm going to tell her; and I'm going to take her to hear me, and I'll show her the flowers and my fish-pond, and yours and father's. Wouldn't it be fun if she'd wear the boots again, and make a fish-pond too?" "Yes, she'd wear boots!" scoffed James. "Well she would if she wanted to," reiterated Malcolm. "She wore them when she wanted to hear the birds; if she did once, she would again, if she pleased." "Well she wouldn't please," laughed James. "Well she _might_," said Malcolm stubbornly. "Mightn't she, father?" "If she went once, I see no reason why she shouldn't again," said Mr. Minturn. "Course she'll go again!" triumphed Malcolm. "I'll make her, when she comes." "Yes 'when' she comes!" jeered James. "She won't ever live here! She wouldn't think this was good enough for Lucette and Gretchen! And she gave away our house for the sick children, and she hates it at grandmother's! Bet she doesn't ever come again!" "Bet she does!" said Malcolm instantly. "Would you like to have mother come here, Malcolm?" interrupted Mr. Minturn quietly. "Why----" he said and shifted his questioning gaze toward Aunt Margaret, "why--why--well, I'll tell you, father: if she would wear boots and go see the birds and the flowers--if she would do as we do----Sometimes in the night I wake up and think how pretty she is, and I just get hungry to see her--but of course it would only kick up a row for her to come here--of course she better stay away--but father, if she _would_ come, and if she _would_ wear the boots--and if she'd let old slapping Lucette go, and live as we do, father, _wouldn't that be great?_" "Yes I think it would," said James Minturn conclusively, as he excused himself and arose from the table. "James," said Malcolm, when they went to their schoolroom, "if Mr. Dovesky goes to shutting us up in the study and won't let us play while we learn, what will we do to him to make him sick of his job?" "Oh things would turn up!" replied James. "But Malcolm, wouldn't you kind o' hate to have him see you be mean?" "Well father saw us be mean," said Malcolm. "Yes, but what would you give if he _hadn't?_" "I'm not proud of it," replied Malcolm. "Yes and that's just it!" cried James. "That's just what comes of living here. All of them are so polite, and if you are halfway decent they are so good to you, and they help you to do things that will make you into a man who needn't be ashamed of himself--that's just it! How would you like to go back and be so rough and so mean nobody at all would care for us?" "Father wouldn't let us, would he?" asked Malcolm.