they had
to "dodge" once or twice, but in the end they got safely there without
meeting anyone more formidable than a tradesman's cart driving away from
the stables, or an under-gardener laden with a basketful of vegetables.

Nurse looked grave, as she well might do, when she saw Leigh's plight.
But Freda had a very pleasant bright manner, and Nurse was quite
satisfied with her explanations.

And as the run home had brought back the colour to the little boy's
cheeks, nothing much was said as to the fear of his having caught cold.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

_Part 4_

SOME half an hour or so afterwards, all the party, the children
included, assembled on the lawn for tea.

Nurse had seized the opportunity of Helena's running in with Leigh, to
"tidy her up a bit," and Freda too had not objected to a little setting
to rights, so that both the girls looked quite in order.

And Willie and Hugh had also removed all traces of their adventures;
only Maggie was still rather rumpled and crumpled, but as she was
counted a tom-boy at all times, it did not so much matter.

"What became of you all, this afternoon?" asked Mrs. Frere. "We walked
down to the bridge to look for you, as one of the men said he had seen
you going that way. And I am _sure_ I heard one of you 'cooeying'--did I
not? Yet when I called, no one replied."

The children looked at each other. Mrs. Frere felt surprised.

"What is the mystery?" she said, though with a smile.

"Oh," began Freda, "there wasn't any mystery--we were only----" She
stopped, for she felt that Helena's eyes were fixed on her, and Freda
was not by nature an untruthful child. It was through her heedlessness
and wildness that she often got into what she would have called
"scrapes," from which there seemed often no escape but by telling
falsehoods, or at least allowing what was not the case to be believed.

She grew red, and Mrs. Frere, feeling that it was not very kind to
cross-question a guest, finished her sentence for her.

"Hiding?" she said. "Were you hiding?" though she wondered why Freda
should blush and hesitate about so simple a thing.

"Yes," said Helena quickly, replying instead of Freda, "yes, Mamma, we
_were_ hiding--under the bridge."

At the moment she only felt glad to be able to say what _in words_ was
true.

For hiding they certainly had been. And Mrs. Frere, thoroughly trusting
Helena, turned away and thought no more about it, only adding that