CHAPTER VIII.

HUGH AND HARRY FOUND OUT.

ERY early the next morning Hugh stood near Harry's bed.

'Get up; get up,' he said in a low voice, pushing at his brother to wake him.

'What is it?' said Harry, sitting up. 'What's the row? What makes you dressed so soon? What do you want?'

'Come into the garden with me, Hal.'

'No, I won't,' Harry answered, 'I won't pick any more cherries. Those last were not half ripe, and they gave me a horrid stomach-ache; and I am sure you ate twice as many as I did, and you said we should not be found out; and now we shall be, I

am sure, and I shall get a flogging from Uncle Tom; but I'll say it was you did it; see if I don't.'

'And if you do, I'll tell about your breaking Aunt Sophy's cup,' answered Hugh; 'so you had best hold your tongue. Listen to me, and I'll tell you what we must do. Of course, when Uncle Tom measures the footprints he will find that we did it, for our boots are different from Guy's and Walter's; and we shall both get a flogging if you don't do as I say. Come into the garden before the rest are up, and rub out the foot-marks, and then nobody can measure.'

'All right!' said Harry, jumping out of bed. 'You can dress yourself properly afterwards,' said Hugh; 'put on anything now so as to be quick.'

So Harry dragged on his trousers and his jacket without waiting for any waistcoat; and put his boots on to his bare feet without any socks; and with his face unwashed and his hair looking as if he had been crawling

under the bed, he crept down-stairs.

He

and Hugh went very slowly and softly lest they should be seen or heard; and every time one of the stairs creaked they stopped, and their wicked little hearts beat fast, for they were afraid Uncle Tom would hear, and come out and catch them.

When they got to the garden, everything seemed safe; there was no one in sight. Hugh and Harry went at once to the cherry-tree, and began to scrape over the marks which they had made in the soft mould. They were both stooping, busy at doing this, when they were startled by hearing a loud voice shouting out to them—

'Hallo! you there! so you are at it again, you young rascals!'

Harry was so frightened that he lost his balance, and fell over on his back with his heels in the air. It was the gardener, Stumps.

He came up close to the boys and said,'You are nice young gentlemen, ain't you now? So you thought you would rub out

the foot-marks, did you? as if anybody couldn't see by your faces as you had took they cherries. I'm ashamed of you, I am; call yourselves gentlemen! I didn't know as gentlemen thieved. Go along with you!'

Don't tell Uncle Tom, please, Mr. Stumps,' said Hugh, as soon as he began to feel less frightened. 'Don't tell him that you found us here. If you will not tell Uncle Tom, I will give you a shilling; I will, indeed.'

Stumps looked at Hugh for, I think, about five minutes without answering. He looked so long that Hugh felt very uncomfortable. After all this time, when the gardener did speak, he said

'You'll give me a shilling! will you? "Mr. Stumps" indeed! Get along with your "Mr. Stumps!" I'm ashamed on you! Get along with your shilling! I'm ashamed on you! you a young gentleman! I never! Get along with you! Won't I tell Uncle Tom, that's all!'

And Stumps turned his back and walked away, every now and then progging the

ground with a spade he held in his hand; and each time he progged a hole, muttering, 'Get along with you!"

Hugh and Harry sneaked out of the garden. They did not dare return to the house, so they wandered away through the field which led into the lane, and there they sat down by the hedgeside and began to abuse each other.

'It was all your fault,' said Harry. 'I should never have thought of taking the cherries if you had not asked me.'

'Well, I suppose you are not such a baby. that you couldn't have said "No," if you liked,' said Hugh. You were ready enough, and you have told quite as many stories about it as I have, so you had better hold your tongue, or I'll make you.'

At this Harry began to whimper. Just then a very dirty, shabby man passed—a tramp. The man sat down by the roadside, just opposite the boys, and taking his hat off his head, it was a very greasy, dirty hat, -he took out of it a red cotton pocket-hand

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