Having disposed of the education question thus conclusively, it occurred to Austin that it must be about time for tea; so he struggled to his legs and turned his footsteps homeward.  Just as he arrived at the house he met Lubin outside the gate with a wheelbarrow.

“Off already?” he asked.

“Ay,” said Lubin.  “I say, Master Austin, there’s something I want to tell you.  I see a magpie not an hour ago!”

“A magpie?  I don’t think I ever saw one in my life.  What was it like?” enquired Austin.

“Don’t matter what it was like,” replied Lubin, sententiously.  “But it was just outside your bedroom window.  You’d better be on the look-out.”

“What for?” asked Austin.  “Did it say it was coming back?”

“’Tain’t nothing to laugh at,” said Lubin, nodding his head.  “A magpie bodes ill-luck.  That’s well known, that is.  So you just keep your eye open, that’s all I’ve got to say.  It’s a warning, you see.  Did ye never hear that before?”

Austin’s first impulse was to laugh; then he remembered the dancing goose, and the rain which followed in due course.  “All right, Lubin,” he said cheerfully.  “I’m not afraid of magpies; I don’t think they’re very dangerous.  But I have heard that they’ve a fancy for silver spoons, so I’ll tell Aunt Charlotte to lock the plate up safely before she goes to bed.”

As he had expected, Aunt Charlotte was much pleased at hearing of his encounter with Mr Buskin, who, she thought, must be a most delightful person.  It would be so good, too, for Austin to see something of the gay world instead of always mooning about alone; and then he would be sure to meet other young people at the performance, friends from the neighbouring town, with whom he could talk and be sociable.  Austin, on his side, was quite willing to go and be amused, though he felt, perhaps, more interested in what promised to be an entirely new experience than excited at the prospect of a treat.  He wanted to see and to study, and then he would be able to judge.

“By the way, Austin,” said his aunt, as they were separating for the night a few hours later, “I want you to go into the town to-morrow and tell Snewin to send a man up at once to look at the roof.  I’m afraid it’s been in rather a bad state for some time past, and those heavy rains we had last week seem to have damaged it still more.  Be sure you don’t forget.  It won’t do to have a leaky roof over our heads; it might come tumbling down, and cost a mint of money to put right again.”

Austin gave the required promise, and thought no more about it.  He also forgot entirely to tell his aunt she had better lock up the spoons with particular care that night because Lubin had seen a magpie in suspicious proximity to his window.  He went straight up to his room, feeling rather sleepy, and bent on getting between the sheets as soon as possible.  But just as he was putting on his nightgown, a light pattering sound attracted his attention, and he immediately became all ears.