They were at the foot of Barrack Hill now, and Pat told them they must get out and walk the rest of the way up, or he would never get the dogcart finished to take back that evening.

Pip tumbled out and took the General, all in a bunched-up heap, and Judy alighted carefully after him, the precious coat parcel in her arms.  And they walked up the asphalt hill to the gate leading to the officers’ quarters in utter silence.

“Well?” Pip said querulously, as they reached the top.  “Be quick; haven’t you thought of anything?”

That levelling of brows, and pursing of lips, always meant deep and intricate calculation on his sister’s part, as he knew full well.

“Yes,” Judy said quietly.  “I’ve got a plan that will do, I think.”  Then a sudden fire entered her manner.

“Who is the General’s father?  Tell me that,” she said, in a rapid, eager way; “and isn’t it right and proper fathers should look after their sons?  And doesn’t he deserve we should get even with him for doing us out of the pantomime?  And isn’t the Aquarium too lovely to miss?”

“Well?” Pip said; his slower brain did not follow such rapid reasoning.

“Only I’m going to leave the General here at the Barracks for a couple of hours till we come back, his father being the proper person to watch over him.”  Judy grasped the General’s small. fat hand in a determined way, and opened the gate.

“Oh, I say,” remarked Pip, “we’ll get in an awful row, you know, Fizz.  I don’t think we’d better—­I don’t really, old girl.”

“Not a bit,” said Judy, stoutly—­“at least, only a bit, and the Aquarium’s worth that.  Look how it’s raining; the child will get croup, or rheumatism, or something if we take him; there’s Father standing over on the green near the tennis-court talking to a man.  I’ll slip quietly along the veranda and into his own room, and put the coat and the General on the bed; then I’ll tell a soldier to go and tell Father his parcels have come; and while he’s gone I’ll fly back to you, and we’ll catch the tram and go to the Aquarium.”

Pip whistled again softly.  He was used to bold proposals from this sister of his, but this was beyond everything.  “B—­b—­but,” he said uneasily, “but, Judy, whatever would he do with that kid for two mortal hours?”

“Mind him,” Judy returned promptly.  “It’s a pretty thing if a father can’t mind his own child for two hours.  Afterwards, you see, when we’ve been to the Aquarium, we will come back and fetch him, and we can explain to Father how it was raining, and that we thought we’d better not take him with us for fear of rheumatism, and that we were in a hurry to catch the tram, and as he wasn’t in his room we just put him on the bed till he came.  Why, Pip, it’s beautifully simple!”

Pip still looked uncomfortable.  “I don’t like it, Fizz,” he said again; “he’ll be in a fearful wax.”

Judy gave him one exasperated look.  “Go and see if that’s the Bondi tram coming,” she said; and glad of a moment’s respite, he went down the path again to the pavement and looked down the hill.  When he turned round again she had gone.