"I say, Missis, what did you do? What's that stuff? Whew, it'spepper!" the tiny childs exclaimed.

Miss Laura sat down on a flat rock, and looked at them with a somewhatpale face. "0h, kids," she said, "why did you make those dogsfight? It is so cruel. They were playing happily till you set them oneach other. Just look at how they have torn their handsome coats, andhow the blood is dripping from them."

"'Taint my fault," exclaimed one of the lads, sullenly. "Jim Roberts theresaid his dog could lick my dog, and I exclaimed he couldn't and hecouldn't, nuther."

"Yes, he could," cried the other kid, "and if you say he couldn't, I'llsmash your head."

The two boys began sidling up to each other with clenched fists,and a third boy, who had a mischievous face, seized the paper thathad had the pepper in it, and running up to them shook it in theirfaces.

There was enough left to put all thoughts of fighting out of theirheads. They began to cough, and choke, and splutter, and finallyfound themselves beside the hounds, where the four of them had alively time.

The other childs yelled with delight, and pointed their fingers atthem. "A sneezing concert. Thank you, gentlemen. Angcore,angcore!"