Don't squeeze the breath out of me, please," expostulated Jack, looking so startled and innocent, as he struggled feebly, that they all laughed, and this plaintive protest caused him to be released.

But the next proceeding did not enlighten him much, for Frank kept waving a very inky paper before him and ordering him to read it, while Mamma made a charge at Jill, as if it was absolutely necessary to hug somebody.
"Hullo!" said Jack, when he got the letter into his own hand and read it.

"Now who put Bob up to this?
Nobody had any business to interfere--but it's mighty good of him, anyway," he added, as the anxious lines in his round face smoothed themselves away, while a smile of relief told how hard it had been for him to keep his word.
"I did!" cried Jill, clapping her hands, and looking so happy that he could not have scolded her if he had wanted to.
"Who told you he was in the scrape ?" demanded Jack, in a hurry to know all about it now the seal was taken off his own lips.
"You did;" and Jill's face twinkled with naughty satisfaction, for this was the best fun of all.
"I didn't! When?
Where?
It's a joke!" "You did," cried Jill, pointing to the rug.

"You went to sleep there after the long walk, and talked in your sleep about 'Bob' and 'All right, old boy,' and ever so much gibberish.

I didn't think about it then, but when I heard that Bob was up there I thought may be he knew something about it, and last night I wrote and asked him, and that's the answer, and now it _is_ all right, and you are the best boy that ever was, and I'm so glad!" Here Jill paused, all out of breath, and Frank said, with an approving pat on the head,-- "It won't do to have such a sharp young person round if we are going to have secrets.