ch spirit to show it by
keeping away from a picnic!'

'Pooh!' said Rhody Mills, 'what nonsense! like enough Race is hard at
work for his mother or somebody else. He's always ready to help anyone
that asks him.'

Well, the afternoon passed away, and when the sun began to get low, the
boys said it was time to be going home. While Ned was harnessing his
horses, something got tangled in the harness, and it took him a little
while to fix it, so that the others that were riding started first. I
saw Joe look back to see if we were coming, and that made me think of
father again; I had never deceived him in my life, and I couldn't bear
to think of it then; I wondered how Ned would manage, and whether our
boys would tell father about the horses, and I was glad we were behind
the rest, so that Ned would have to drive slowly, for the road was not
wide enough for teams to pass each other. Now the picnic was over I felt
very uncomfortable, and blamed myself more and more. However, we started
directly, and soon overtook the rest. As we drew up behind the wagon
that Abby Matilda was in, Ned said, 'What makes you so still, Dimpey;
haven't we had a real good time?'

'Yes,' said I; 'but I was thinking what father will say when he hears
you took the fast horses, after all!'

'What will he say? why, nothing, when he sees you safe and sound;
besides, what's the use of telling him anything about it; he won't ask
any questions when I take you home with the brown mare, and I'm sure Joe
and Biel won't be mean enough to speak of the sorrels.'

I tried to feel satisfied, though I knew it was wrong; but I thought to
myself, 'There's no help for it _now_.'

So we jogged along slowly till we came to a place where a thick clump of
elders divides the road into two paths; it is just at the steepest part
of the mountain, and the path on the left is very narrow, and right on
the edge of the precipice. At that minute Abby Matilda looked around,
and called out, in her spiteful way, 'It must be dreadful hard for
Thunder and Lightning to keep in the rear; what a pity we can't let you
pass us, _Mr._ Hassel!'

I suppose she vexed Ned, for he answered, 'Perhaps we _can_ do it if we
try, _Miss Stevens_,' and before I could speak he turned his horses into
the narrow part of the road! I looked down the side of the mountain, and
it made me feel so sick and giddy that I put out my hands and caught the
lines; this gave them a sudden jerk, the near horse starte