Lately , he had treated Rob 's hobbies respectfully , and had begun to appreciate the good qualities of this quiet brother whom he had always loved but rather undervalued , till his courage under fire won Ted 's admiration , and made it impossible to forget a fault , the consequences of which might have been so terrible . The leg was still lame , though doing well , and Ted was always offering an arm as support , gazing anxiously at his brother , and trying to guess his wants ; for regret was still keen in Ted 's soul , and Rob 's forgiveness only made it deeper . A fortunate slip on the stairs gave Rob an excuse for limping , and no one but Nan and Ted saw the wound ; so the secret was safe up to this time . ` We are talking about you , my lads . Come in and tell us what good fairy has been at work while we were gone . Or is it because absence sharpens our eyes , that we find such pleasant changes when we come back ? ' said Mrs Jo , patting the sofa on either side , while the Professor forgot his piles of letters to admire the pleasing prospect of his wife in a bower of arms , as the boys sat down beside her , smiling affectionately , but feeling a little guilty ; for till now ` Mum ' and ` Vater ' knew every event in their boyish lives . ` Oh , it 's only because Bobby and I have been alone so much ; we are sort of twins . I stir him up a bit , and he steadies me a great deal . You and father do the same , you know . Nice plan . I like it ' ; and Ted felt that he had settled the matter capitally . ` Mother wo n't thank you for comparing yourself to her , Ted . I 'm flattered at being like father in any way . I try to be , ' answered Rob , as they laughed at Ted 's compliment . ' I do thank him , for it 's true ; and if you , Robin , do half as much for your brother as Papa has for me , your life wo n't be a failure , ' said Mrs Jo heartily . ` I 'm very glad to see you helping one another . It 's the right way , and we ca n't begin too soon to try to understand the needs , virtues , and failings of those nearest us . Love should not make us blind to faults , nor familiarity make us too ready to blame the shortcomings we see . So work away , my sonnies , and give us more surprises of this sort as often as you like . '
` The liebe Mutter has XXXXX all .
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