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are. This, at least, was the experience of Cyril and Robert, and even, if the truth must be told, of Anthea
and Jane. So in almost no time all four were in the narrow gravelled passage that runs between that house
and the next.
Then Robert made a back, and Cyril hoisted himself up and got his knicker-bockered knee on the
concrete window-sill. He dived into the pantry head first, as one dives into water, and his legs waved in
the air as he went, just as your legs do when you are first beginning to learn to dive. The soles of his
boots-squarish muddy patches-disappeared.
'Give me a leg up, said Robert to his sisters.
'No, you don't, said Jane firmly.  I'm not going to be left outside here with just Anthea, and have
something creep up behind us out of the dark. Squirrel can go and open the back door.'
A light had sprung awake in the pantry. Cyril always said the Phoenix turned the gas on with its beak,
and lighted it with a waft of its wing; but he was excited at the time, and perhaps he really did it himself
with matches, and then forgot all about it. He let the others in by the back door. And when it had been
bolted again the children went all over the house and lighted every single gas-jet they could find. For they
couldn't help feeling that this was just the dark dreary winter's evening when an armed burglar might
easily be expected to appear at any moment. There is nothing like light when you are afraid of burglars-or
of anything else, for that matter.
And when all the gas-jets were lighted it was quite clear that the Phoenix had made no mistake, and that
Eliza and cook were really out, and that there was no one in the house except the four children, and the
Phoenix, and the carpet, and the blackbeetles who lived in the cupboards on each side of the nursery
fire-place. These last were very pleased that the children had come home again, especially when Anthea
had lighted the nursery fire. But, as usual, the children treated the loving little blackbeetles with coldness
and disdain.
I wonder whether you know how to light a fire? I don't mean how to strike a match and set fire to the
corners of the paper in a fire someone has laid ready, but how to lay and light a fire all by yourself. I will
tell you how Anthea did it, and if ever you have to light one yourself you may remember how it is done.
First, she raked out the ashes of the fire that had burned there a week ago-for Eliza had actually never
done this, though she had had plenty of time. In doing this Anthea knocked her knuckle and made it
bleed. Then she laid the largest and handsomest cinders in the bottom of the grate. Then she took a sheet
of old newspaper (you ought never to light a fire with to-day's newspaper-it will not burn well, and there
are other reasons against it), and tore it into four quarters, and screwed each of these into a loose ball,
and put them on the cinders; then she got a bundle of wood and broke the string, and stuck the sticks in
so that their front ends rested on the bars, and the back ends on the back of the paper balls. In doing this
she cut her finger slightly with the string, and when she broke it, two of the sticks jumped up and hit her
on the cheek. Then she put more cinders and some bits of coal-no dust. She put most of that on her
hands, but there seemed to be enough left for her face. Then she lighted the edges of the paper balls, and
waited till she heard the fizz-crack-crack-fizz of the wood as it began to burn. Then she went and
washed her hands and face under the tap in the back kitchen.
Of course, you need not bark your knuckles, or cut your finger, or bruise your cheek with wood, or
black yourself all over; but otherwise, this is a very good way to light a fire in London. In the real country
fires are lighted in a different and prettier way.
But it is always good to wash your hands and face afterwards, wherever you are.
While Anthea was delighting the poor little blackbeetles with the cheerful blaze, Jane had set the table
for-I was going to say tea, but the meal of which I am speaking was not exactly tea. Let us call it a
tea-ish meal. There was tea, certainly, for Anthea's fire blazed and crackled so kindly that it really
seemed to be affectionately inviting the kettle to come and sit upon its lap. So the kettle was brought and
tea made. But no milk could be found-so every one had six lumps of sugar to each cup instead. The
things to eat, on the other hand, were nicer than usual. The boys looked about very carefully, and found
in the pantry some cold tongue, bread, butter, cheese, and part of a cold pudding-very much nicer than
cook ever made when they were at home. And in the kitchen cupboard was half a Christmassy cake, a
pot of strawberry jam, and about a pound of mixed candied fruit, with soft crumbly slabs of delicious
sugar in each cup of lemon, orange, or citron.
It was indeed, as Jane said,  a banquet fit for an Arabian Knight.'
The Phoenix perched on Robert's chair, and listened kindly and politely to all they had to tell it about their
visit to Lyndhurst, and underneath the table, by just stretching a toe down rather far, the faithful carpet
could be felt by all-even by Jane, whose legs were very short. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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