ster's side with the keenest delight, saying
nothing, but turning her eyes hither and thither as though afraid of
losing the least detail of the scene.

Presently two young girls approached, each with a basket in her hand.
They moved slowly over the grass, stopping constantly to pick the
violets under their feet. They were so engrossed in their task and in
their conversation that they failed to notice the two sisters half
hidden by the shrubbery.

"Nay--nay!" the taller of the two was saying, "I tell thee he made oath
to't, Cicely. Knew ye ever Master Stephen to be forsworn?"

"A lover's oaths--truly!" laughed the other. "Why, they be made for
breaking. I doubt not he hath made a like vow to a score of silly
wenches ere this, coz!"

"Thou dost him wrong, Cicely. An he keep not the tryst, 'twill only
be----"

"'Twill only be thy first misprision, eh?"

"Marry, then----"

Here their words were lost as they continued to move farther away, still
disputing together.

"Well!" exclaimed Rebecca, turning to Phoebe. "Now I know where we've
ben carried to. This is the Holy Land--Jerusalem or Bethlehem or Canaan
or some sech place. Thou--thee--thy! Did ye hear those girls talkin'
Bible language, Phoebe?"

Phoebe shook her head and was about to reply when there was a loud
clamour of many tongues from the road near by.

"The May-pole! The May-pole!" and someone started a roaring song in
which hundreds soon joined. The sisters could not distinguish the words,
but the volume of sound was tremendous.

There was the tramp of many rushing feet and a Babel of cries behind
them. They turned to see a party of twenty gayly clad young men bearing
down upon them, carrying a mighty May-pole crowned with flowers and
streaming with colored ribbons.

Around these and following after were three or four score merry lads and
lasses, all running and capering, shouting and dancing, singly or in
groups, hand in hand.

In a trice Rebecca found herself clinging to Phoebe with whom she was
borne onward helpless by the mad throng.

The new-comers were clad in all sorts of fantastic garbs, and many of
them were masked. Phoebe and her sister were therefore not conspicuous
in their long scant black skirts and cloth jackets with balloon sleeves.
Their costumes were taken for disguises, and as they were swallowed up
in the mad throng they were looked on as fellow revellers.

Had Rebecca been alone, she would probably have succeeded in time in