“Now, Amy, dearest,” said he, “I am going to find Eddy and bring him home, and—­you say Marie has gone to hunt for him?”

“Yes, she went in one direction, and Ina and Charlotte in others,” said Anna Carroll.

“Well,” said Carroll, “I will send Marie home at once, and I wish you would see that she prepares an early dinner, and then we can go for a drive afterwards.”

“Eddy can go, too,” said Mrs. Carroll, quite joyously.

“No, Amy,” said Carroll, “he will most certainly not go to drive with us.  There are times when you girls must leave the boy to me, and this is one of them.”  He stopped and kissed his wife’s appealing face, and went out.  Then the carriage rolled swiftly round the curve of drive.

“He will whip him,” said Anna to Mrs. Carroll, who looked at her with a certain defiance.

“Well,” said she, “if he does, I suppose it will be for his good.  A man, of course, knows how to manage a boy better than a woman, because he has been a boy himself.  You know you and I never were boys, Anna.”

“I know that, Amy,” said Anna, quite seriously, “and I am willing to admit that a man may know better how to deal with a boy than a woman does, but I must confess that when I think of Arthur punishing Eddy for the faults he may have—­”

“May have what?” demanded Mrs. Carroll, quite sharply for her.

“May have inherited from Arthur,” declared Anna, boldly, with soft eyes of challenge upon her sister-in-law.

“Eddy has no faults worth mentioning,” responded Mrs. Carroll, seeming to enlarge with a sort of fluffy fury like an angry bird; “and the idea of your saying he inherits them from his father.  You know as well as I do, Anna, what Arthur is.”

“I knew Arthur before you ever did,” said Anna, apologetically.  “Don’t get excited, dear.”

“I am not excited, but I do wonder at your speaking after such a fashion when we don’t know what may have happened to the dear boy.  Of course Arthur will not punish him if he is shot or anything.”

“Of course not.”

“And if he is not shot, and Arthur should punish him, of course it will be all right.”

“Yes, I suppose it will, Amy,” said Anna Carroll.

“Arthur feels so sure that nothing has happened to him that I begin to think so myself,” said Mrs. Carroll, beginning to ascend the stairs with a languid grace.

“Yes, he has encouraged me,” assented Anna.  “I suppose we had better dress now.”

“Yes, if we are going to drive directly after dinner.  I’ll put on my cream foulard, it is so warm.  I suppose we have, perhaps, worried a little more than was necessary.”

“I dare say,” said Anna, trailing her white frills and laces before her sister the length of the upper hall.  “I think I’ll wear my blue embroidered linen.”

“You said the bill for that came yesterday?”

“No, six weeks ago; certainly six weeks ago.  You know I had it made very early.  Oh yes, the second or third bill did come yesterday.  I have had so many, I get mixed over those bills.”