enough amply to excuse the passion. But I have reason to think that
people seldom exclaimed, "What grievances those poor children are
exasperated with!" but that they often said, "What terrible tempers
they all have!"

There are five of us: Philip and I are the eldest; we are twins. My
name is Isobel, and I never allow it to be shortened into the ugly
word _Bella_ nor into the still more hideous word _Izzy_, by either
the servants or the children. My aunt Isobel never would, and neither
will I.

"The children" are the other three. They are a good deal younger than
Philip and I, so we have always kept them in order. I do not mean that
we taught them to behave wonderfully well, but I mean that we made
them give way to us elder ones. Among themselves they squabbled
dreadfully.

We are a very ill-tempered family.




CHAPTER II.

ILL-TEMPERED PEOPLE AND THEIR FRIENDS--NARROW ESCAPES--THE
HATCHET-QUARREL.


I do not wish for a moment to defend ill-temper, but I do think that
people who suffer from ill-tempered people often talk as if they were