oped down and quickly
stood up again, with a shout of triumph, for the rescued prize was in
his hands.

"And it really doesn't seem much the worse," said he and Humphrey to
each other, as they made their way home.

Lilly was not in her first sleep--she was too unhappy to fall asleep as
quietly as usual--when a tap at the door made her jump up. There stood
her brothers, and behind them Mamma, smiling with pleasure, and for a
minute or two Lilly's delight almost stupefied her. She could scarcely
believe it was her own dear watch that Bill held out, and when she did
believe it, she could not kiss and thank him and Humphrey enough.

The watch had to go to a watch-doctor, of course, and it cost several
shillings to put it right, but that is now many years ago, and it still
keeps time as well as ever.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: THE BLACKBERRY ELF

By

MRS MOLESWORTH.]

Nora and Hilary were staying in the country with their cousins. It was a
new part of the world to them, for their own home, though not actually
in a town, was not far from one, and therefore far less rich in wild
flowers and mushrooms and blackberries, and all such delightful things
than the _real_ country place where these fortunate cousins lived.

[Illustration: THE ELF]

Had it not been for the newness and the freedom of it all, they might
have found it a little dull, for there was only one child in the family
at all near their ages--Nora was eight and Hilary six--and this was a
boy of seven called Cecil. Cecil was very much younger than his brothers
and sisters, and seemed even younger than his age, for he was small and
delicate, and very quiet. Hilary, a great big strong fellow, seemed much
older; indeed if you had seen the two together you would certainly have
guessed that Cecil and not his cousin was the, so to say, town-bred boy.
Cecil had never been so happy in his life as since the two little
visitors had come to stay with him. They seemed to find out all sorts of
new things that had never struck him before; pleasures and interests
springing all about and close at hand which he had never thought of.

They found everything delightful; as the summer gradually faded into
autumn, and the bright flowers grew scarcer and less tempting to gather,
the wild fruit in its turn began to ripen. Day by day the children
watched the blackberries with the greatest eagerness, as the small red
heads steadily got rounder and deeper in colour, t