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"But there are many who care for you as much as if they were relations," said Bob, taking his friend's arm as they approached the house. "Come along, come along, youngsters," shouted Mr Merryboy from the window, "the dinner's gettin' cold, and granny's gettin' in a passion. Look sharp. If you knew what news I have for you you'd look sharper."
"He's either unusually jolly or unusually savage a little more tea, mother," said Tim Lumpy, pushing in his cup. Tim, being father-and-motherless, called Mr Merryboy father and the wife mother. So did Martha, but Bobby Frog, remembering those whom he had left at home, loyally declined, though he did not object to call the elder Mrs Merryboy granny.
Mr Merryboy has received a letter from Sir Richard, saying that he wants to gather as many people as possible round him, and offering him one of his farms on good terms, so Mr Merryboy is to sell this place as soon as he can, and Tim and I have been offered a smaller farm on still easier terms close to his, and not far from the big farm that Sir Richard has given to his son-in-law Mr Welland "
"As I had already," continued Bob, reading, "taken our passages in the Amazon steamer, Sir Richard thought it best that we should come on before, along with his agent, who goes to see after the land, so that we might have a good long stay with you, and dear Mr and Mrs Merryboy, who have been so kind to you, before going on to Brandon which, I believe, is the name of the place in the backwoods where Sir Richard means us all to go to.
Bob accepted more, gratefully. So did Tim, with alacrity. "What sort of a home had you in London, Tim?" asked Mrs Merryboy. "Well, ma'am, I hadn't no home at all." "No home at all, boy; what do you mean? You must have lived somewhere." "Oh yes, ma'am, I always lived somewheres, but it wasn't nowheres in partikler.
"My poor lads," said Mr Merryboy, laying a hand on the shoulder of each, "come along with me. Home is only six miles off, and I've got a pair of spanking horses that will trundle us over in no time." The tone of voice, to say nothing of "home" and "spanking horses," improved matters greatly. Both boys thought, as they entered the wagon, that they did not hate him quite so much as at first.
Bob dashed off at full speed after Mrs Merryboy, senior, who had an inveterate tendency, when attempting to reach Mrs Frog's bower, to take a wrong turn, and pursue a path which led from the garden to a pretty extensive piece of forest-land behind. The blithe old lady was posting along this track in a tremulo-tottering way when captured by Bob.
This also was true, for old Mrs Merryboy, seeing that something unusual was occurring, had all this time been watching the various speakers with her coal-black eyes, changing aspect with their varied expressions, and wrinkling her visage up into such inexpressible contortions of sympathetic good-will, that she really could not have been more sociable if she had been in full possession and use of her five senses.
But will Mr Merryboy let ye go, Bobby?" "Of course he will. He lets me do whatever I please, for he's as fond o' me as if he were my father." "No; he ain't that," returned Mrs Frog, with a shake of the head; "your father was rough, Bobby, specially w'en in liquor, but he 'ad a kind 'art at bottom, and he was very fond o' you, Bobby almost as fond as he once was o' me.
"Harness up, my boy, and off you go not a moment to lose!" cried Mr Merryboy, as Bob dashed out of the room. "Take the bays, Bob," he added in a stentorian voice, thrusting his head out of the window, "and the biggest wagon. Don't forget the rugs!" Ten minutes later, and Bob Frog, with Tim Lumpy beside him, was driving the spanking pair of bays to the railway station.
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