count?" asked Rebecca, cheerfully. Ah, how
different it all seemed now! Every dry detail was of interest.

Phoebe looked up at Droop, who now resumed his seat, somewhat sobered.

"Don't have to keep count," he replied. "See that indicator?" he
continued, pointing to a dial in the ceiling which had not been noticed
before. "That reads May 3, 1898, now, don't it? Well, it's fixed to keep
always tellin' the right date. It counts the whirls we make an' keeps
tabs on every day we go backward. Any time all ye hev to do is to read
that thing an' it'll tell ye jest what day 'tis."

"Then what do you want to calculate how often to whirl round?" asked
Phoebe, in disgusted tones.

"Well, ye see I want to plan out how long it'll take," Droop replied. "I
want to go slow so as to avoid side weight--but I don't want to go too
slow."

"I see," said Phoebe. "Well, then, how many times a minute did the
future man take you when you whirled back five weeks?"

"'Bout two times a minute."

"That's one hundred and twenty times every hour. Did you feel much side
weight then?"

"Scarcely any."

"Well, let's see. Divide eight thousand and thirty-five whirls by one
hundred and twenty, an' you get sixty-seven hours. So that, ef we go at
that rate it'll be two days and nineteen hours 'fore we get back to
1876."

"Don't talk about days," Droop objected. "It's sixty-seven hours by the
clock--but it's twenty-two years less than no time in days, ye know."

"Sixty-seven hours," said Phoebe. "Well, that ain't so bad, is it? Why
not go round twice a minute?"

"We can't air our beds fer three days, Phoebe," said Rebecca.

"But if we go much faster, we'll all be sick with this side weight
trouble that Mr. Droop tells about."

"I vote fer twice a minute," said Droop. And so twice a minute was
adopted.

"Air ye goin' to start to-night, Mr. Droop?" asked Rebecca.

"Well, no," he replied. "I think it's best to wait till to-morrow. Ye
see, the power that runs the Panchronicon is got out o' the sunlight
that falls on it. Of course, we're not all run out o' power by a good
lot, but we've used considerable, an' I think it's a little mite safer
to lie still fer a few hours here an' take in power from the sun. Ye
see, it'll shine steady on us all night, an' we'll store up enough power
to be sure o' reachin' 1876 in one clip."

"Well," said Rebecca, "ef thet's the plan, I'm goin' to bed right now.
It's after eight o'clock, an' I didn't get to sle