"Aren't you going to put the little 'un to bed before you go out, Jane?" he said, "we've had a good spell of play and he's half asleep now." But Jane deigned no answer, unless the slam of the door as she disappeared on to the stairs, was one. Jim shrugged his broad shoulders. "Harry and me, we do the bedding-down between us," he said rather sheepishly, "run and get your nightie, boy." Then as Harry trotted off, he added in a lower tone, "She won't do nothing for him, so I have to. It's no use arguing over everything and so----" Tom nodded. "So you have to be father and mother both," he said. "He's more of a little 'un than I expected, but he's a dear little 'un. I've right down enjoyed myself this evening." The two men between them undressed Harry and superintended his prayers, and tucked him into his bed, and then they sat by the open window and chatted in low tones till the sound of their voices had lulled Harry to sleep, and then at last Tom rose and said he must be going. He went over to the cot and stood looking down on the little sleeping face, with its regular features, its long lashes lying on the bright cheeks, and its crown of tumbled golden hair. "He's like the pictures of the angels," he said regretfully, "if Pattie and I had had our little home, we'd have loved to let him stay with us a bit, but I'll come in on Saturday and take him on the river, if you'll let me. It seems so long since I had anybody to go out with." "Poor old Tom," said Jim affectionately, "it's cut you very hard, but I always believe it will come all right, you know!" "Pooh!" said an unexpected voice behind them, "you would always believe anything silly, Jim Adams! Come right, indeed! Very likely! You just wait till I have seen Miss Pattie Paul again." "Have you seen her?" asked Tom in a curiously quiet tone. He had gone very pale, but his face was in shadow and Jane did not perceive it or anything peculiar in his voice. "Ha!" she cried vaingloriously, "I have! I let her know what I thought of her--mean little cat." "Jane!" said her husband warningly. "Oh, you needn't stand up for her," she said airily. "I'm not going to stand by and see my brother treated so. But what's a talking-to with a brazen hussy like that? Wait a bit, I haven't thought how to do it yet, but I'm going to pay her out. Trust me!" And then Jim did what he had never done in his life before,--he took his wife by the shoulders and forcibly marched her into the bedroom and shut the door upon her. "Come, Tom!" he said touching him gently on the shoulder, "we've had enough of this." They passed down the stairs together, but on the landing below Tom stopped, and covering his face with his hands, leaned against the wall. "Oh Pattie, Pattie," he moaned, "that's my last chance gone. And my own sister too."