He did not climb up on the high chair as usual, but sat down on a cracker-box and was so silent for a few moments that Mr. Hobbs finally looked up inquiringly[22] over the top of his newspaper.

“Hello!” he said again.

Cedric gathered all his strength of mind together.

“Mr. Hobbs,” he said, “do you remember what we were talking about yesterday morning?”

“Well,” replied Mr. Hobbs, – “it seems to me it was England.”

“Yes,” said Cedric; “but just when Mary came for me, you know?”

“You said,” he continued, “that you wouldn’t let lords and marquises to come to your shop and sit around on your cracker-barrels.”

“So I did!” returned Mr. Hobbs, stoutly. “And I meant it. Let them try it-that’s all!”

“Mr. Hobbs,” said Cedric, “one is sitting on this box now!”

Mr. Hobbs almost jumped out of his chair.

“What!” he exclaimed.

“Yes,” Cedric announced, with due modesty[23]; “I am one-or I am going to be. I won’t lie to you. Mr. Havisham came all the way from England to tell us about it. My grandpapa sent him.”

Mr. Hobbs stared wildly at the innocent, serious little face before him.

“Who is your grandfather?” he asked.

Cedric put his hand in his pocket and carefully took out a piece of paper.

“I couldn’t easily remember it, so I wrote it down on this,” he said. And he read aloud slowly: “‘John Arthur Molyneux Errol, Earl of Dorincourt.’ That is his name, and he lives in a castle-in two or three castles, I think. And my papa, who died, was his youngest son; and I shouldn’t have been a lord or an earl if my papa hadn’t died; and my papa wouldn’t have been an earl if his two brothers hadn’t died. But they all died, and there is no one but me, and so I have to be one; and my grandpapa has sent for me to come to England.”

“Wha-what did you say your name was?” Mr. Hobbs asked.

“It’s Cedric Errol, Lord Fauntleroy,” answered Cedric. “That was what Mr. Havisham called me. He said when I went into the room: ‘And so this is little Lord Fauntleroy!’”

“Well,” said Mr. Hobbs, “I’ll be-jiggered![24]”

This was an exclamation he always used when he was very much astonished or excited. He could think of nothing else to say just at that puzzling moment.

“You think,” said Mr. Hobbs, “there’s no getting out of it?”

“I’m afraid not,” answered Cedric. “My mamma says that my papa would wish me to do it. But if I have to be an earl, there’s one thing I can do: I can try to be a good one. I’m not going to be a tyrant. And if there is ever to be another war with America, I will try to stop it.”

His conversation with Mr. Hobbs was a long and serious one. Once having got over the first shock, Mr. Hobbs was not as angry as might have been expected; he had asked a great many questions. As Cedric could answer but few of them, he tried to answer them himself, and explained many things in a way which would probably have astonished Mr. Havisham, if he could have heard it.

When Mr. Havisham first told Mrs. Errol what he had come for, she turned very pale.

“Oh!” she said; “will he have to be taken away from me? We love each other so much! He is such a happiness to me! He is all I have. I have tried to be a good mother to him.” And her sweet young voice trembled, and the tears rushed into her eyes.

The lawyer cleared his throat.

“I am obliged to tell you,” he said, “that the Earl of Dorincourt is not-is not very friendly toward you. He is an old man, and his prejudices[25] are very strong. His plan is that Lord Fauntleroy will be educated under his own supervision; that he will live with him. The Earl is attached to Dorincourt Castle, and spends a great deal of time there. He is a victim to