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Show MARY GRAHAM -BONNER. COUGH WRETCHES 1'i'tcr Gnome was feeling very mid. II u wuB uugry, too. You know how much I'eter Gnome loves children uud I It lual.iu hllu both utiry und ud If children huve to have any trouble whatever. He Is ulways goln about, wearing an Invisible rolie so people cannot see him, trying to do all he cun to help children. He U happiest when children are happy. Ilu Is sad when miyihln goes wroi! with them. Uu hud been buy arguing with the Tonsil Twins, who had heeu bothering a Ulllu friend of lii, when he heard that the Whooping C'ouh Wretches had gone to visit some children iu u beautiful towu overlooking the sea. lie wus particularly fond of these children. In fact he didn't know uny children of whom he wa. more fond than these two children lu particular whose names were John and Gordon. Gordon was very little not little for his UKe, but little compared to his older brother, John. Gordon was not so very old. He had not been In the world very long, hut every minute and every day since he had been In the world he hud been growing more wonderful. won-derful. Peter fluotne thought, he was very underfill. He loved (he look of hli "You Wretches," He Said. straight little back and sturdy legs, He liked the way his bright golden hair curled up a little at the ends. He liked him when be was not looking look-ing at his back but when his face wai to be seen, for his face, thought I'eter Gnome, was just about as all right as a face could be. Gordon was not called Gordon very often though It was his real name. He was usuaHy called Honey or something some-thing very affectionate. It was even hard not to call him Iinhy, though he was a baby no longer, Hut he was lovable and sweet and appealing ap-pealing in much the same way that a baby Is lovable and sweet and appealing. appeal-ing. When he was fast asleep he looked so adorable. Oh, how adorable h looked then. And when he woke up and his gay voice could be heard all over the house he seemed even more adorable. He was always suddenly so wlde-awaUe and so bright. John was a splendid boy, fine and unselfish, manly and admirable In every wny, which meant, of course, that Peter Gnome admired him hugely. huge-ly. I'eter could never have told you whether he thought more of John than of Gordon, or more of Gordon than of John. Yet perhaps because John had boe,n In the world longer than Gordon be was a trifle fonder of John. He had bad more time In which to grow fond of John I And now those wretched wretches of Whooping Cough creatures had gone, without being Invited, to see John and Gordon. They took their n'hoops along with them. True, John and Gordon and their mother and daddy were always welcoming friends to the house, but when those wretches J came along no one wanted them at all. They played their same mean games. Every so often they made John give a whooping cough nnd they did the same thing with Gordon. I'eter Gnome rushed off to see them. "You wretches:" he said. "You mean, meuu wretches, to come and play your horrid games In the house where John and Gordon live, and even when they go out into their back gar- den you follow them along." The Whooping Cough Wretches nre such wretches that they like to be mean. That Just shows you what they are like. And they laughed at I'eter Gnome and made John whoop und then made Gordon whoop. "You should be ashamed of yourselves," your-selves," said I'eter Gnome. "Whoop, whoop, whoop," cackled the Whooping Cough Wretches. "Oh, you have been here long enough now, do. for pity's sake, leave my two friends. John and Gordon, stone now." Well, they didn't mind when they were called wretches, they were never ashamed of themselves, but when I'e ter Gnome suggested they had been around long enough they thought' to themselves that maybe they were tired of plavln- here, nnd thv began to j pad: up their things and leave. And as thev beenn to pack to leave Peter1 Gn-'r'e saht : Md ron never, never, nver need "OP , l-.M't,' , "...'- " |