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BUNTER, ROSE AND COMPANY. 187L IK; ''"*StTundr!r°r'''t '' *'' ''''■"'''"^"* "^^ ^--^«' - th« 5-e- one thousand THE CHILDREN OF MRS. r>0]M:iN^I03Sr; HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. ousand [inlster BS DOMINION was a buxom widow, with a family of five sons, who, having lost her husband and not feeling herself altogether able to under- take the charge of the boys (they being rather troublesome youths), had allowed them pretty much to take care of themselves for some time. This arrangement, however, did not please their grandmother (Mrs. Britannia), who found herself frequently very much annoyed by her precocious grand -children, and therefore she gave her daughter (Mi-s. Dominion) a quiet hint that she had better look after her offspring a little more closely. Old Mrs. Britannia was not quite consistent in this advice, which, to tell the truth, was given more in the light of a com- mand, for whenever Mrs. Dominion proposed any impor- tant changes in her household affairs, she had first to con- sult Grandma before they could be carried out ; and no 4 THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOSilNION ; matter how much the pei*plexed widow wished certain things, if lier mother decided against her having them, she could not get them. It must, therefore, be acknow- ledged that it was not quite fair on the part of the elder lady to place the responsibility of taking charge of a troublesome family on her daughter's shoulders, unless she intended to allow her free scope in the management thereof v o Mrs. Dominion was, however, an obedient daughter, and no doubt hoping that her mother would be more con- siderate towards her if slie gathered her boys around her, she sent words to each of those living at a distance to come home and for the future live under one roof. The names of the Dominion boys were Willie, Johnny, Bunsy, Sandy and Toby. The two former were twins and the eldest born of the fjimily ; the last mentioned one was so young at the time of which we are writing, that his mother finally concluded to allow him to remain with a friend who had been taking care of him, more especially as Mrs. Britannia professed to feel a. motherly interest in him. We will have a good deal to say regarding this Toby later in the day, as he proved for a time to be the most troublesome, although the youngest of Mrs. Domin- ion's children. Willie and Johnny had always remained more with their mother than any of the other children, and were consequently her favorites; they therefore hailed with satisfaction this assembling together of the members of the family, more particularly Willie, who, on account of his being the strongest and most vigorous of the boys, felt that he would be a sort of monitor over the rest. ^ HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WiiAT CAME OF IT. o Johniy, it is true, felt as strong a,s Willie, but in reality he was not; for, unlike his brother, he was fonder of. pleasure than work, and consequently his frame did not acquire that strength and power of endurance which is the invariable result of industrious habits ; and it was therefore clearly to be seen that he would have to give way eventually before his more spirited and enterprising brother. Mrs. Dominion found a good deal of difficulty in per- suading Bunsy and Sandy to come home ; and, had it not been for their Grandmother, it is ver}^ uncertain whether they would have come at all. The fact is, they felt very little interest in the family circle, and preferred being left to their own resources, the more so as they felt that at homf' they would be in the minority, on account of the great influence possessed by Willie and Johnny over their mother. Another reason for this strange want of affection on the part of Bunsy and Sandy, was the pernicious con- trol which an uncle of theirs named Samuel exercised over them. This uncle was a sly crafty old fellow, and he tried his utmost to persuade the two boys to come and live with him instead of going home, thereby hoping to gain the benefit of their labour on his ftirm ; and as both Bunsy and Sandy were experienced hands in the manage- ment of a boat, Uncle Samuel, who was passionately fond of sailing, felt that they w juld be of great service to him in assisting to take care of a favorite yacht in which he made a practice of sailing about. To tell the truth the minds of the two boys were very mr.ch divided between a sense of duty to their mother 6 I •t •m THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; and a desire to enjoy more of the society of Uncle Samuel, who was a very enticing, agreeable sort of an old man, so long as he was the gainer by being so. Uncle Samuel knew better than to try any of his tricks openly, and therefore used all sorts of underhand means to make the boys dissatisfied with the prospect of living under the immediate care of their mother, and to paint in the most glowing terms the freedom and happiness they would enjoy under his own bachelor roof. He pictured on every occasion the entire absence of all restraint in his domestic an*angements ; how they could go and come at their pleasure in his house, and that instead of being tied to their mother's apron strings, as they would be if they went home, they would feel themselves men at once under his care. It is hardly to be wondered at therefore if Bunsy and Sandy entertained a very high opinion of their uncle, especially as they came a good deal more in contact with him than any of their brothers. Mrs. Dominion conse- quently found a gi-eat unwillingness on the part of her two sons to place themselves under her maternal protec- tion, and in fact they absolutely refused to enter her door unless she promised to place them on an equal footing with their elder brothers, and it is needless to say Uncle Samuel patted them on the back when he heard of their resolution ; the sly old fellow doubtless thinking that their mother would not consent to their demand. The per- plexed widow now had to act as a mediator between her own children, and although her heart yearned towards her eldest born, yet she felt that in justice to her absent Samuel, man, so is tricks 1 means f living paint in ss they ,ured on t in his come at ling tied if they ie under msy and r uncle, act with 1 conse- t of her protec- her door footing y Uncle of their hat their rhe per- reen her towards T absent ] i HOW THEY QUARUELLED, AND WHAT C.VME OF IT. 7 l3oy8 sl^e ought to show no partiality to one over the other, and therefore she told Willie and Johnny that they would have to share and share alike with Bunsy and Sandy. The twins at first did not like this aiTangement ; because, as they said, they had stuck more closely to their mother, and were moreover the oldest and biggest of the family, and accordingly had a nght to the largest share of the family property. Bunsy and Sandy happened, however, to reveal to their mother their predilections in favour of their uncle, and she knowing by experience his sly and grasping ways, and being also aware that he was in the habit of con- stantly visiting them, at once concluded that he had something to do with this strange desire on the part of her boys to keep away from home. Now it may be well to mention here that Uncle Samuel and his sister Mrs. Britannia were not at the time on ttie best of terms, through some interference on her part in his private affairs. In fact the old lady had an unfortunate habit of frequently mixing herself up in other people's business, and she seldom received any credit for doing so. She was, however, a very powerful and influ- ential dame for her age ; and although folks used to call her "old womanish" in her ways, jw of them cared about exciting her to anger, as she was very apt to use her fists to some purpose, when there was any real cause for doing so. Uncle Samuel made a great ado about Mi*s. Britannia having hindered him in settling a difficult^' that had occurred in his household ; but at the same time he to<3k 8 THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; very good care to refrain from any open act of hostility towards her. He took ether «nd, it musu be said, meaner ways of annoying her, one of which was by presenting her with a large and rather visionary account which he declared she was in duty bound to pay. He also threw every obstacle in the waj" of her grand-children, Willie and Johnny, to harass and trouble them, anri prevent them from enjoying that freedom from care which boys are generally so accustomed to. He even had the impudence to propose taking the care of her grand-children off her hands, on the plea that the benefit he would derive from their labour on his farm, as well as the advantage of hav- ing the control of their propert}^, would serve as an off-set to th^ account which he held against her. Now Mrs. Britannia was a proud old dame in her way, and although she could now and again act somewhat un- justly towards her own children and her children's child- ren, she would on no account permit anyone else to inter- fere with them. She, therefore, told Samuel very dis- tinctly that if he could prove his account to be a correct one, she would settle it, but she never would listen to a proposition from liim to take charge of any of he children or grond-children. Uncle Samuel took this rebuff ver^ complacently, and in the meantime continuei' his scheming designs upon Bunsy and Sandy, until at last Mrs. Dominion almos!" gave up hope of seeing them under her roof Willie and Johnny about this time consented to receive their brothers on on equal footing in their mother's house, and at the same time Uncle Samuel recexv^ed a quiet hint HOW THEY Ql^ARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 9 mm from Mrs. Britannia to stop his tricks with Mrs. Domin- ion's children. This brought things to a crisis, and Bunsy and Sandy, being for a time left to their better judgment, at last consented to join hands with their brothers and pay propor respect to their mother, which all good boys ought to do. The first of July was therefore set apart for a grand family union, and when that day arrived Bunsy and Sandy put on their good clothes and set out for their mother's house, where Willie and Johnny were already waiting to receive them. It had been agreed that the two elder boys should give their younger brothers a certain portion of the good things which they had been in the habit of receiving from their mother, tis an equiva- lent for certain comforts wliich Bunsy and Sandy were bringing to the family circle. This arrangement appeared so satisfactory to all parties that there was every reason to believe that Mrs. Dominion's troubles were at an end, and that her boys would unite in making her home a comfortable and happy one in the future. The 1st of July was a great day for the now hnppy widow. She decked her house with garlands and flowers to make it pleasant for the reception of her boys, and as she sat at the head of her table and heard her sons pledg- ing all sorts of brotherly love towards each other,'her kind, good heart swelled with pride, and for the moment she forgot all the inconsiderate conduct of Mrs. Britannia to- wards her, and even went so far as to express a regret that Uncle Samuel w^as not there to join in their re- union. That wily old fellow was not far off, for he was actually I 10 THE CHILDRKN OF MRS. DOMINION ; looking in at the window upon the scene, and, in his own peculiar way, drawing his conclusions therefrom. " Oh! ho !" thought he, " Mrs. Dominion you think that you have got them all right, but you'll soon find to your cost that your troubles have only commenced, and befoie long, instead of finding the members of your household united, you will have them fighting like cats and dogs, the end of which will be your family compact knocked into a cocked hat. Haven't I some experience in such matters ? It is true I have no sons, but I have worked my farm on equal shares, which is better than on the principle of brotherly love, and look at the result ? Why only the other day one half of my partners kicked up a row with the others, and I thought at one time during their quarrel that my whole house would come tumbling down upon my head, and if Mrs. Britannia had carried out her inter- ference a little further, I certainly would have been half ruined. Perhaps it is just as well I did not induce Bunsy and Sandy to come over to me just now, for when they break with their mother (which they certainly will do) I will get them without any trouble. They're two fine boys are Bunsy and Sandy, and I do not mean to give them up so easily as Mrs. Britannia imagines. And then there is Toby, he has not yet joined the family circle. He is very young, but there is every prospect of his becoming a stout lad if properly cared for, and he will certainly be of great use to rae if I get him. Besides all this, there is Columby, a sort of protSgS of Mrs. Britannia's, whom she wishes Mrs. Dominion to adopt. Poor old lady ! she has so many children she doesn't know what to do, and there- I ! HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 11 fore wishes to get those of them off her hands who are of the least benefit to her. I wonder if she would let Indy go in this manner." Thus thought Uncle Samuel, as he peered in at the window pane, looking with envious eyes on the four happy boys who seemed to be perfectly con- tented under their mother's roof. " Now," he said to himself, " there is my account which Mrs. Britannia has not settled. She is very much mistaken if she thinks she can allow her great big ships to run down and destroy my little boats without having to pay for them. Til just keep that as a balance against her, and she may yet be very glad to let me have Toby and Colum- by as an offset against it. It is worth tiying for, espe- cially as I know Mrs. Dominion has set her heart upon bringing her youngest child home, and Mrs. Britannia is also determined that her daughter shall adopt Columby. I'll just leave this happy family for the present in their glory, and see what I can do about Toby and Columby, and in the meantime I'll send Mrs. Britannia another ' reminder ' that I expect her to settle my claim for dam- ages without any unnecessary delay." Mrs. Dominion now set about arranging her house, in doing which she called in the assistance of her four sons, giving to each of them a proportionate share in the work. She felt the greater necessity for doing this on account of her mother, Mrs. Britannia, withdrawing a great deal of that assistance which hitherto she had'rendered her daugh- ter. This was not quite fair on the part of the eld lady, but the truth must be told, she was beginning to be very penurious and selfish, and in fact people were saying that ^ 12 THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; she preferred making and hoarding up money to uphold- ing the dignity of her family relations; and preserving her own position as a just and respected dame, which she has enjoyed and deserved for so many years. It is true she had promised to assist Mrs. Dominion and her boys should they at any time be in need, but it WL^uld have been better had she kept up more friendly relations with her daughter, to show to the outside world that, al- though apparently sundered to a certain degree, they were in reality as closely united as ever. Mrs. Dominion felt this conduct on the part of her mother very much, as it seemingly confirmed a rumor which had come to her ears that Mrs. Britannia, in desir- ing a union of the Dominion family, only wished to be free from any further annoyance or trouble from the boys, and that she intended to allow them to paddle their own canoe for the future. Just as the widow was beginning to feel happy in the society of her boys, to be thus shunned as it were by her mother, it was very hard, very hard indeed. But the worst of it all was that the old lady would not even then allow hei daughter to have full control over her own house. Grandma still had to be consulted on all im- portant matters. The greatest blow of all, however, to poor unhappy Mrs. Dominion was when she found out to her cost that there did not exist amongst her boys that sincerity in their union which she had expected to see. Little bickerings began to creep in amongst them, jealousies sprang up when they were least expected, each 01 h f HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 13 one in fact seemed to dread that the others would get a head of him ; and thus they kept their poor mother in a constant stew. This latter feeling was more plainly to be noticed be- tween Willie and Johnny, who being twins, thought of course that one should not be allowed to over-reach the other. Willie, moreover, was a rank Protestant, and Johnny as rank a Catholic, and the two boys very foolish- ly allowed their religious prejudices to make their mother's home very miserable, by quarrelling and lighting over a subject the chief principle of which is " peace." Then again Johnny, knowing Willie to be a pushing sort of a fellow, used his utmost influence with his mother to pre- vent his twin brother from getting ahead of him. Bunsy and Sandy, seeing the example set them by the elder boys, took it into their heads now and again to grumble and kick up their heels, and on certain occasions offended their mother greatly by expressing a wish to leave home and return to their former mode of living. They even at times hinted very seriously at going over to Uncle Samuel. There were many other excuses for quarrelling made use of by the four boys, but they were too numerous to mention here. During all this time, notwithstanding the troubles in her family, Mrs. Dominion found her household affkirs prospering, and felt the benefit of having her sons around her ; indeed, if they had only agreed better together, she would have had nothing to complain about. Willie used to continually taunt his brother Johnny, (and it must be confessed not altogether without reason) u THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; i - J i v/ith being lazy and careless in the management of his por- tion of the work ; and it was as much as Mrs. Dominion could do sometimes to prevent an open rupture between the twins. She regretted this the more, as previous to the union they had quarrelled in the same way, and she had hoped that after they came to live together under one roof, they would cease their wrangling. It may be easily imagined, from what we have already seen of Uncle Samuel, that he chuckled heartily over these disputes in the Dominion household. " Ha !" thought he to himself, " this is but the beginning of the end, for if they go on much longer at this rate, I will have the whole family over — under my care ; and poor Mrs. Dominion will not look quite so happy as she did on that 1st of July, when I looked in at her window." Now Uncle Samuel somehow or another shewed a gieai deal of ill-will towards both Willie and Johnny, more particularly the former. He was afraid, however, from a dread of Mrs. Britannia, to use any open measures of hostility against either of the boys. But he managed, in an underhand way, to annoy them on several occasions by sending a number of ragged good-for-nothing boys to pelt stones at them, trample over their gardens, and rob their henhouses, &:c., &c. Both Willie and Johnny proved themselves more than a match for those '' raggedy" boys, and "wholloped" them so severely on every occasion, that they ran back blubbeiing to Uncle Samuel, who of course had to afford them protection. The sly old fellow, in order to " make believe " that he had nothing to do with it, pretended to punish some of them, and in one HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 15 instance locked one of the biggest of them up in a room, and at the same time read the whole of them a lesson, to refrain from annoying the Dominion family any more. This of course was all a farce on the part of Uncle Samuel, for while he was reading the lesson to the ragged urchins with one eye, he was winking slyly at them with the other, as much as to say " gammon." The old fellow did not show his usual shrewdness however in this little game of his towards the Dominion boys, for he forgot that Mrs. Britannia, notwithstanding her age, had a very penetrating, calculating eye, and that for every pane of glass broken, every flower and vegetable destroyed, and every egg stolen from the hen houses by the ragged cr^ 'd, he was debited on her books with the value of the sano. He therefore found out afterwards to his cost when he came to settle up accounts with the old lady, that the broken glass, &c., very nearly balanced his claim against her for the loss of his boats. Samuel, however, began at last to see that neither Mrs. Britannia nor the Dominion boys w^ould stand any more [of his pranks, so he wisely desisted from them. Strange to say, the crafty old fellow never troubled Junsy and Sandy in the same way as he did Willie and Tohnny ; indeed he seemed to tiy and keep on the best of [terms with them, no doubt hoping thereby to gain their jood will, and ultimately persuade them to come over to dm ; but, as it will be seen, his calculations were all as- tray. Uncle Samuel was very fond of the good things of this ife, especially apple-sauce, pumpkin-pie, peanuts, pop-corn, mm ^^p w IG THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; lemonade aud such like; but he had also a great partiality for fish, and it happened that he could not get a sufficient supply of that commodity without having to trespass on Mrs. Dominion's property. The old fellow used to think this very hard, and made a practice of slyly sending boats to the prohibited place; but whenever Mrs. Dominion caught these emissaries of Uncle Samuel at work, she, to use a vulgar phrase, " gobbled them up," fish, boats, and everything belonging to them. This fishery question was a sore point with Uncle Samuel, so in order to try and get permission from Mrs. Dominion to fish on her property, he determined upon seeing what he could do with her Grandmother, and hinted to the old lady that he might be induced to allow the fishery privilege to take the place of an offset against his claim upon her, if she would agree to it. Our readers will probably conclude that Uncle Samuel was making the most of his claim against Mrs. Britannia; but they must remember that the old fellow was noted for being pretty much of a sharper, and he was no doubt feeling his way to see how far he could go in the matter. The result was that Mrs. Britannia very foolishly allowed him to impress her with the idea that he was a much wronged man in the affair of the boats, and so worked upon her that actually, after a time, she began to think that she ought to really pay him something for his losses. At the same time, however, she did not forget the broken glass, stolen eggs, &c. About this time Mrs. Dominion began to think serious- ly of bringing her youngest child Toby home from the ci a( tl it tl m H li Pi hi bi se th an ev foi ha yc Id hi: inj the en partiality sufficient respass on d to think ding boats Dominion •rk, she, to boats, and ith Uncle from Mrs. lined upon lother, and id to allow 4et against -le Samuel Britannia; was noted s no doubt he matter, ly allowed US a much so worked to think ■ his losses, the broken ik serious- from the 1 HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 17 care of the person who had him in charge ; and, on this account, ^:he dvospatched a preceptor to look after him on the way. This preceptor was named Dugald, and had the name at one time of being a clever, competent person, although it is true that he had given Mrs. Dominion a good deal of trouble in his day, by a cranky, cross, satirical sort of manner which he was unfortunate enough to possess. He had moreover at one time in his life a very strong liking for Uncle Samuel, bat, through receiving a few presents and other considerations from Mrs. Dominion, he had turned round ond sworn unalterable allegiance to the buxom widow. It was unfortunate that Dugald was selected as the person to direct the footsteps of Toby, as that youngster was rather a troublesome boy for his age, and inclined to kick up his heels when he did not get everything quite his own way. Be that as it may, Dugald started on his mission, but found on arriving at his destination that young Toby would have nothing to do with him, for in fact the precocious youth shut the door altogether upon him, and would not let him enter the house. Dugald then, unfortunately for himself, quite lost his temper at this treatment, and, instead of taking matters coolly as he ought to have done, he raged and tore about like a demented person, threat- ening, at the same time, all sorts of vengeance against the youngster. Thi.s, however, did not frighten Toby in the east, for he told Dugald to go and be hanged; and further, hat he did not believe him to have any authority or right o act as his preceptor. B 18 THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; This was hitting the truth in earnest, for, although tlie boy only made a random assertion, the fact was that Dugald had really started from home without receiving full powers from Mrs. Dominion to take charge of her child. The preceptor, however, endeavoured to frighten ' Toby into obedience, by showing him a bogus letter, to *'* the effect that he was to come home with Dugald, whether he liked it or not. Now Toby was rather a smart boy for his age, and at once saw through this device on the part of Dugald, and from that moment determined that he would have nothing more to do with him. When, therefore, the preceptor tried again to open the door, Toby got quite mad and ; kicked up such pranks that he actually frightened the person he was living with, and, moreover, did some things which he had reason to regret afterwards. Dugald at ; last became utterly disgusted with the whole affair, and returned home angrj'- with himself, Mrs. Dominion and Toby, all at the same time. To tell the truth, Toby had some reason to kick up a fuss, for Mrs. Dominion, it seems, proposed keeping him rather too much under her thumb, which the youngster (having enjoyed a great deal of freedom from his birth) would not stand. The end of all this was that Dugald was dismissed, and Toby received a promise from his mother that he would be properly cared for if he would come home ; at the same time the anxious parent sent the excited youngster a bottle of soothing syrup to calm his overtaxed nerves. | This was all very good, but Mrs. Britannia now stepped :^*i: iit HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 19 brward, and, in consort with Mrs. Dominion, sent up nother preceptor, — this time with a. good sound rod to hastise the boy, if he would not take the medicine which ad been sent to him. But Toby was not a bad child at heart, for as soon as he found out that he was to receive that treatment from his mother which he had a right to expect, he swallowed the whole bottle of soothing syrup at one gulf), and imme- diately began preparations for going home. The preceptor with the rod, tlierefore, found the child quite calm on his arrival, and, consequently, had no chas- tising to do. This affair being all arranged, Mrs. Dominion had now five sons instead of four under her roof, and matters again appeared to be going on swimmingly with the widow. Uncle Samuel, during the fuss with Toby, did all in his power to encourage the youth in his rebellion; it was, therefore, a sore day for him when he saw another added to the table of Mrs. Dominion ; but he did not give up hope of yet securing not only Toby but also Bunsy and Sandy. About this time Mrs. Britannia determined to send a servant to Washington, the name of Uncle Samuel's principal residence, to arrange, if possible, about a settle- ment of their accounts ; and Mrs. Dominion, being also an interested party in the affair, on account of her prox- imity to the old bachelor, as well as the longing eyes which he was continually casting towards her fishing grounds, was invited to take part in the conference. The widow, therefore, sent a servant to Samuel at the same time that Mrs, Britannia sent hers. V 20 THE CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION ; T» iti At first Uncle Samuel rode tlic liip;h horse,— spoke of receiving Toby and Coluraby as an cquival(»nt for the losses ho had sustained, and made several other proposi- tions equally absurd ; but the whole matter was finally arranged by all parties agreeing to allow Samuel a share of the fishing grounds, and, at the same time, Mrs. Brit- annia gave the old rascal a certain sum of money which, in her honest heart, she believed she had a right to pay him. Uncle Samuel, on the other hand, agreed to live on more friendly terms with the Dominion boys, and to allow them certain privileges which came within his scope to grant them, ■ : One benefit arising from this settlement between Uncle Samuel and Mrs. Britannia, was his allowing Mrs. Dominion the use of a road through his farm to connect Toby's garden with his mother's property ; for it unfortu- nately happened that a great many rocks, swamps and rapid streams intervened between Mrs. Dominion's farm and her youngest child's garden, thus making it a hard road for him to travel when he wished to visit his mother's house. And, by having the use of a part of Uncle Samuel's iron road, it made the route more con- venient for both Mrs. Dominion and Toby, as well as being a benefit to Samuel, for the boy and his mother I were sure to drop a few flowers here and there as they J passed to and fro. Uncle Samuel now appeared more contented for a while and desisted from his tricks, and | Mrs. Dominion was beginning to flatter herself that her troubles were indeed over at last. But alas I for human expectations, no sooner had Uncle •N; •rsc," spoke of valciit for the otlier proposi- ter was finally imuel a share me, Mrs. Brit- money which, a right to pay igreed to live 1 boys, and to le within his lent between allowing Mrs. m to connect W it unfortu- swamps and minion's farm ng it a hard to visit his of a part of te more con- ', as well as d his mother there as they peared more is tricks, and jelf that her 3r had Uncle HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT. 21 • luel been quieted than the row commenced again at lome. It was Willie and Johnny at one time, and the lext Bunsy and Sandy, and frequently the four elder )oys pitched into their younger brother Toby, who, by ^his time, had grown to be quite a big boy and pretty ^ell able to take care of himself. Columby, who had )een adopted by Mrs. Dominion, notwithstanding Uncle Jamuel's schemes against it, generally took sides with ; and so it went on until at last Mrs. Dominion was it her wits' ends ; and Uncle Samuel slyly shook his old lead, and, putting his finger to the side of his nose, ex- [claimed : " Ah, I told you so." Things went on in this way until it began to look very jerious ; and there was every reason to fear a downright jplit amongst the Dominion boys. Mrs. Britannia even [having no power to control them. At this stage the bet- [tcr judgment of the boys prevailed, and one day they all net together to talk over matters and see what could be Idone towards an amicable arrangement. In was then liscovered that, although they professed to be governed )y their motner, they, in reality, were not. Each boy, as it were, governed himself, and, therefore, when the six net at the common table it was hard to get them to igree on subjects about which each held an entirely dif- ferent opinion from the others ; and it was also found Hiat this principle of each acting on his own hook, when )ut of the house, prevented him from working in consort ^ith his brothers at home. It was, therefore, decided that some plan must be adopted ly which the brothers could feel a common interest in 22 THE CHILDREN OF MRS DOMINION ; each other's welfare/and, as it were, become more united together. It was also felt by the boys that, as Mrs. Bri- tannia was doiiig very little, if anything, for them, it was high time that she should allow them to act more inde- penuontly in the management of their own affairs " We have a home, it is true," they said, "but how can we feel any just pride in it when that home has no position worth noticing in society? Whenever there is a party given we are looked upon if we go (o it as children, and have to give place even to our sly old Uncle Samuel, when, in fact^ we are as good as, and, indeed, much better than, many of the guests invited to assemblies now-a-days b}'" Mrs. Europe." Now it happened that a Mr. Kingdom had been casting loving glances at the buxom widow for some time, and as he was a great friend and near relative of Mrs. Britannia,; the boys decided that their mother ought to accept him?; as her husband, more especially as they all liked him very much and felt that they could be happy under his fatherly care. Mrs. Dominion blushed very much when her boys made this proposition to her, but as Mrs. Britannia seemed to dedre it, and promised to remain her firm friend and aliy^ after her marriage, and as her sons agreed to be guided, entirely by Mr. Kingdom if she would marry him, she at last consented, and the 1st July (the anniversary of her family union) was set apart (Mr. Kingdom being agree- able) for the marriage day. Wasn't Uncle Samuel raging at this, and wasn't he dumbfounderpd just. He swore and tore his hair and HOW THEY QUARRELLED, AND WHAT CAME OF IT, 23 I vowed that if Mr. Kingdom (for whom he had a great dislike) came to live next door he would "punch his head " on every opportunity that occurred. But the Dominion boys stepped forward, all six in a row, and told him that if he didn't " shut up " they would thrash him within an inch of his life. Mrs. Britannia also told the sly old fellow pretty plainly that if he did not mind his own busineis and cease med- dling with her grand-children's affairs, she would be obliged to destroy a few more of his boats, and this time she wouldn't pay for them. The marriage morning came in all its joyousness. Mrs. Dominion looked blooming, Mr. Kingdom fresh and hearty; and the six boys shook hands all round on that day, and forever afterwards threw p^ide their prejudices and self- counsellings and agreed to work all together hand and glove with their father. Mr. Kingdom. Uncle Samuel did not even look in at the window this tim„e, for he shut himself up in his own big house and snarled ; but he knew better than to try and bite, for the " Dominion boys " now transmogrified into " Kingdom "had grown so stout and strong, especially Toby, who, in fact, eventu- ally became larger than any of his brothers, that the crafty old fellow felt it wiser to keep " mum " and " mind his own business." Mrs. Britannia interfered, no more with the six boys, although she remained their firm friend, and they, feeling an honest pride in their father, worked uni- tedly in making his house happy and prosperous. Mr. Kingdom, through the assistance of his sons, became a very influential man in a short time ; so much so, that * 24 THS CHILDREN OF MRS. DOMINION, ETC. Willie, Johnny, Bunsy, Sandy, Toby and Columby all felt decidedly proud of being connected with him ; and, instead of sneers, Uncle Samuel learned to bestow praise and friendship on the now perfectly united family, ' *Mrs. Dominion's troubles, therefore, came to an end at last, and, when some time afterwards she died, the last words she uttered, a^s she smiled sweetly on her husband ■ and boys were, — A "PERFECT UNION, AND THAT IS WHAT CAME OF IT." ■m ^ ■nrn'^'^'-h ■^i:4i'Mf:"'\:^;'-ti'pJY: ■■■.,);!,■ ■'•Ui j.fU h V {'■: fs^: Hunter, Rosk & Co., Printers, Toronto.