little dog Frisky.




CHAPTER VI


MERRYLEGS

Mr. Blomefield, the vicar, had a large family of boys and girls;
sometimes they used to come and play with Miss Jessie and Flora. One of
the girls was as old as Miss Jessie; two of the boys were older, and
there were several little ones. When they came, there was plenty of work
for Merrylegs, for nothing pleased them so much as getting on him by
turns and riding him all about the orchard and the home paddock, and
this they would do by the hour together.

One afternoon he had been sent out with them a long time, and when James
brought him in and put on his halter, he said: "There, you rogue, mind
how you behave yourself, or we shall get into trouble."

"What have you been doing, Merrylegs?" I asked.

"Oh!" said he, tossing his little head, "I have only been giving those
young people a lesson; they did not know when they had enough, so I just
pitched them off backwards; that was the only thing they could
understand."

"What?" said I, "you threw the children off? I thought you did know