Paul is in my car and it's running away with him! Oh, stop
him, some one!"

They all saw little Paul--a mite in the seat--holding bravely to the
steering wheel, and the car moving down the hill in front of the
Billette home.

CHAPTER VI

A TOUR PROPOSED

Betty was the first to rush from the house. She was closely followed by
Grace, who seemed to rise to the emergency in a manner not usual.

"Can we stop him? Can we stop him?" cried Mollie, over and over again,
as she clung to Amy and hurried on after Betty and Grace. "Oh, if mother
were to see him now!"

"Perhaps we can reach him in time," suggested Amy, consolingly. "Don't
worry, Mollie."

"Oh, whatever possessed him to do a thing like that? I have told him
time and again never to get into the car alone."

The four girls ran swiftly across the lawn--yes, swiftly, for no such
creations as "hobble skirts" hindered them. Fortunately Mrs. Billette,
whose French nature was easily excited had not seen the happening. Dodo
was out with the maid.

"Paul! Paul!" cried Mollie. "Put on the brake! Stop the car!"

"It doesn't seem to be going very fast," panted Betty, as she kept on
beside Grace.

"He hasn't thrown in the gear--that's one good thing," exclaimed Grace.
"He doesn't know how----"

She paused, for from the car came a laugh of childish delight, and a
change in the sound of the motor told that something new had occurred.

"He has the gear in now!" cried Betty.

She was running diagonally across the lawn, trying to intercept the car.
In her mind it was plain what had happened.

Paul had, with the impishness of childhood, climbed up in the auto. It
was a simple matter to even blunder on pushing the button that would set
the self-starter in operation. The car had been left standing on a level
bit of road, but, just ahead of it, was a rather steep slope. Mollie had
neglected to leave the emergency brake set, and when the motor started
there was vibration enough to send the car over the little space that
separated it from the slope. Then it simply rolled down. That was what
had happened first.

But now had entered a new complication.

It seemed that Paul had a tricycle, worked by foot pedals and hand
levers, and he was quite expert in its use. He had now put into
practice what had been told him about his toy, and had added his
observations of Mollie's operation of her car.

After starting the motor Paul had somehow managed to slip in the low
ge