we know that, thank you,' she said, rather pertly perhaps,
but it sounded so funny that Pete and I burst out laughing again. I
suppose we were all really very excited, but the guard laughed too.

'How long will there be to wait for the Hill Horton train?' I had the
sense to ask.

'Ten minutes, at least,' he replied, glancing at his watch, the way
guards nearly always do.

I was glad he did not say longer, for the sooner Peterkin and I caught a
train home again, after seeing Margaret off, the better. And I knew
there were sure to be several in the course of the afternoon.

As soon as we stopped we got out--red bundle and all. I did not see our
guard again, he was somewhere at the other end; but I got hold of
another, not so good-natured, however, and rather in a hurry.

'Which is the train for Hill Horton? Is it in yet?' I asked.

He must have thought, so I explained it to myself afterwards, that we
had just come in to the station, and were at the beginning of our
journey.

'Hill Horton,' I _thought_ he said, but, as you will see, my ears must
have deceived me, 'all right. Any carriage to the front--further back
are for----.' I did not clearly hear--I think it must have been 'Charing
Cross,' but I did not care. All that concerned _us_ was 'Hill Horton.'

'Come along,' I called to the two others, who had got a little behind
me, lugging the bundle between them, and I led the way, as the man had
pointed out.

It seemed a very long train, and as he had said 'to the front,' I
thought it best to go pretty close up to the engine. There were two or
three first-class carriages next to the guard's van, but they were all
empty, and I had meant to look out for one with nice-looking people in
it for Margaret to travel with. Farther back there were some ladies and
children in some first-class, but I was afraid of putting her into a
wrong carriage.

'I expect you will be alone all the way,' I said to her. 'I suppose
there are not very many people going to Hill Horton.'

'Not first-class,' said Margaret. 'There are often lots of farmers and
village people, I daresay. Nursey said it was very crowded on market
days, but I don't know when it is market days. But it is rather funny,
Giles, to be getting into the same train again!'

'No,' I replied, 'these carriages will be going to split off from the
others that go on to London. The man said it would be all right for Hill
Horton at the front. They often separate trains like tha