foolishly over the medicine. If he had a weakness, it was for thinking
that all his life he had taken medicine boldly, and so now, when
Michael dodged the spoon in Nana s mouth, he had said reprovingly, Be
a man, Michael.
Won t; won t! Michael cried naughtily. Mrs. Darling left the room to
get a chocolate for him, and Mr. Darling thought this showed want of
firmness.
Mother, don t pamper him, he called after her. Michael, when I was
your age I took medicine without a murmur. I said, Thank you, kind
parents, for giving me bottles to make me well.
He really thought this was true, and Wendy, who was now in her
night-gown, believed it also, and she said, to encourage Michael, That
medicine you sometimes take, father, is much nastier, isn t it?
Ever so much nastier, Mr. Darling said bravely, and I would take it
now as an example to you, Michael, if I hadn t lost the bottle.
He had not exactly lost it; he had climbed in the dead of night to the
top of the wardrobe and hidden it there. What he did not know was that
the faithful Liza had found it, and put it back on his wash-stand.
I know where it is, father, Wendy cried, always glad to be of
service. I ll bring it, and she was off before he could stop her.
Immediately his spirits sank in the strangest way.
John, he said, shuddering, it s most beastly stuff. It s that nasty,
sticky, sweet kind.
It will soon be over, father, John said cheerily, and then in rushed
Wendy with the medicine in a glass.
I have been as quick as I could, she panted.
You have been wonderfully quick, her father retorted, with a
vindictive politeness that was quite thrown away upon her. Michael
first, he said doggedly.
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