Lila and Doyle had found that
she was an exacting mistress, and often even Austin had been puzzled to
know how to curb and direct her authoritative inclinations. The coming of
the three little ones had not been so hard, for the natural mother-instinct
in her enjoyed caring for their helplessness. But Helen and her two
brothers was another proposition entirely. She felt from the first that it
was too much, and as her authority was completely set aside by her
mischievous young cousins, they kept her in a continual ferment. Austin
could not turn the children out of the house, nor could he prevail on his
uncle to find homes for them.
At last Austin saw that the burden was entirely too much for his sister and
that her health as well as her nerves and temper were breaking under it,
and he demanded action of his uncle.
"Something will have to be done, or my home will be broken up. I can not
keep house without Nell, and she will not stay with me much longer. Helen
and Lila can not get along, and the boys are a constant source of annoyance
to Nell. I can not be there and attend to my work also, and I never leave
the house but they get into some kind of a brawl. You will have to do
something, or I will." This brought his uncle to action; but a half dozen
children are not distributed in a day, if proper homes are found.
Austin could not even in his perplexity demand impossibilities of his
uncle, and must wait as patiently as he could till the six were properly
located.
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