"The crorse-me-throat secret I told you."
"Am I going to help?" she said in delight.
He nodded.
"Jus' wait a minute," he added, and crept from the dining-room to the
hall and upstairs.
He returned with a bundle of clothing which he proceeded to arrange in
the garden. He first donned his own red dressing gown and then wound a
white scarf round his head, tying it under his chin so that the ends
hung down.
"I'm makin' believe I'm Father Christmas," he deigned to explain. "An'
I'm makin' believe this white stuff is hair an' beard. An' this is for
you to wear so's you won't get cold."
He held out a little white satin cloak edged with swansdown.
"Oh, how _lovely_, William! But it's not my cloak! It's Sadie
Murford's!"
"Never mind! you can wear it," said William generously.
Then, taking the handles of the cart, he set off down the drive. From
the drawing-room came the sound of a chorus of delight as the conjurer
produced a goldfish in a glass bowl from his head. From the kitchen
came the sound of the hilarious laughter of the maids. Only in the
dining-room, with its horrible expanse of empty table, was silence.
They walked down the road without speaking till Joan gave a little
excited laugh.
"This is _fun_, William! I do wonder what we're going to do."
"You'll see," said William. "I'd better not tell you yet. I promised a
crorse-me-throat promise I wouldn't tell anyone."
"All right, William," she said sweetly.
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