And they've kept
everything--rabbits, goats, bull-terriers, white mice, a pony, and
guinea-pigs."
"And owned, and subsequently discarded, to my certain knowledge, a
music-box, doll's-house, puppet-show, printing-press, steam-engine,
aquarium, and camera."
"Yes, and over and above their school learning they've been taught to
swim, ride, dance, use tools, play on the piano, and speak fair to
middling French. Yet, as you say, Fred, the most difficult part is to
come, just as we fancied that we were through. And the terrible
reflection is that we're not so sure now what we ought to do for them
as we were when they were younger."
"Precisely, dear."
"And it seems sometimes very strange to me, Fred, that though they've
eaten out of the same dish, as it were, all their days, and had the
same opportunities, they should be so totally unlike one another
physically, mentally, and morally. It's impossible to lay down any
hard-and-fast rule for them now, as one could do when they were little."
It is indeed. I see them on the threshold of manhood and maidenhood
looking up to my wife and me for guidance and counsel, though they
pretend to be sufficient to themselves in matters of judgment. A word
of encouragement or of disapproval from us may be the turning-point in
their destinies, may set the seal on what they are to become.
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