"Who told you so, Robert?"

He looked puzzled, and said, "Sir, they all know it. Molly Owens,
that was his foster-mother, saw the fairies bear him off on a
broomstick up the chimney."

"Robert, no lying!"

The boy was only restrained from tears by fear of his father, and
just managed to say, "'Tis what they all say, and Perry knows."

"Knows!" muttered Major Oakshott in despair, but the uncle, drawing
Robin towards him, extracted that Perry had been seen flying out of
the loft window, when he had been locked up--Robin had never seen it
himself, but the maids had often done so. Moreover, there was proof
positive, in the mark on Oliver's head, where he had nearly killed
himself by tumbling downstairs, being lured by the fairies while
they stole away the babe.

The Major could not listen with patience. "A boy of that age to
repeat such blasphemous nonsense!" he exclaimed; and Robert,
restraining with difficulty his sobs of terror, was dismissed to
fetch the butler.

The old Ironside who now appeared would not avouch his own disbelief
in the identity of Master Peregrine, being, as he said, a man who
had studied his Bible, listened to godly preachers, and seen the
world; but he had no hesitation in declaring that almost every other
soul in the household believed in it as firmly as in the Gospel,