"  Then,  mamma,  it  was  not  Mrs.  and
Miss  Hanbury  ? "  said  Lucy ;  "  how  very
provoking.  I  am  sorry,  mamma,  we  have
missed  hearing  entertaining  things.  Who
were  the  people  ? "

"  Sir  Rupert  and  Lady  Digby,  friends
of  your  father's."


112

"  I  never  heard  of  them  before/'  said
Lucy.
"  Very  likely,  my  dear."

"  Mamma,  what  sort  of  entertaining
things  did  they  tell  ?"  said  Lucy.
"  They  gave  us  an  account  of  a  ship-
wreck, which  happened  lately  on  part  of
the  sea  shore,  near  the  place  where  they
live."

"  Oh,  mamma !  tell  it  me,"  cried
Harry.
"  Yes,  pray,  mamma/'  said  Lucy.
"  First  tell  me,  did  not  you  see  me
beckoning  and  making  signals  to  you  to
come  in,  my  dears  ? "  said  their  mother.
"  Yes,  mamma,  we  saw  you,"  said
Harry  ;  "  but  we  thought  that  it  would
be  tiresome,  and  we  did  not  like  to  go
in ;  I  liked  better  to  go  on  with  what  I
was  about."

His  mother  told  Harry,  that  she  would
not  have  beckoned  to  him  unless  she  had
thought  it  was  worth  his  while  to  come
in  ;  "  And,"  added  she,  smiling,  "  you
must  now  abide  by  your  own  choice,


113

for    I   will   never   tell   you  of  the   ship
wreck."

"  Pray,  at  least,  mamma,  tell  it  to
Harry,"  said  Lucy ;  "  because  it  was  all
my  fault  that  we  did  not  come  in.  I
did  not  like  to  come,  because  —  look  at
my  frock,  mamma."

"  It  is  very  much  soiled,  indeed,"  said
her  mother.
