right," announced
Shirley complacently.

"Shirley Willis! And you know Mother positively never allows us to
charge a thing unless she orders it," cried Rosemary. "What do you
suppose Hugh would say? Did you eat a whole pound?"

No, Shirley confessed, she had had crackers to give away. She had
given some to a strange dog and some to a little boy and girl she
met.

"What little boy and girl?" demanded Rosemary, beginning to feel
that this youngest sister was too much for her. "Where did you
meet them?"

"At the dump lot," said Shirley sweetly.

Rosemary stared at her. The "dump lot" was on the other side of the
town and furnished an annual topic of discussion for the Eastshore
Woman's Club. To it the town refuse and garbage was carted and it
was regularly hauled over and searched by bands of men, women and
children intent on salvage.

"What shall I do with you?" groaned poor Rosemary. "After this,
you'll have to stay in the yard, Shirley. You know Hugh would scold
if he heard you were playing in the dump lot. Promise Sister you
won't go away from the house to-morrow morning."

Shirley, looking more than ever like an adorable cherub in freshly
ironed pink chambray, shook her head naughtily.

"I might want to go," she argued.

"But you mustn't!" Rosemary's voice was earnest. "You can't run all
over town like this, darling. You'll be run over by an automobile,
or something dreadful will happen to you. Promise to stay in your
own yard like a good girl."

Shirley would not promise. The worried Rosemary went to Winnie.

"I don't want to tell Hugh," she explained, "he's busy and when he's
home Shirley is so cunning and funny I don't believe he thinks she
can be naughty. Besides Mother told me to look after the
children--what can I do, Winnie?" and Rosemary, a child herself
waited Winnie's reply anxiously.

"Running away is something most children go through," pronounced
Winnie. "You never had the trick, Rosemary, but Hugh did and so did
Sarah. Your father spanked Hugh and cured him and your mother and I
together cured Sarah. We tied her to a tree with a rope and she was
so ashamed to have the other children see her that she promised not
to leave the yard without permission."

"But Shirley won't promise," said Rosemary. "She keeps saying she
might want to go. Aunt Trudy thinks we should tell Hugh about her."

"Well I think myself he might be able to break her of the trick,"
admitted Winnie. "Shirley thinks a h