ore difficulties arose in town which
necessitated my father's stay, and as my mother was rather delicate, it
was decided that she should not be brought up into the cold north till
the springtime came again.

"All work and no play makes--you know the rest," said Uncle Jack one
morning at breakfast. "I won't say it, because it sounds egotistic.
Cob, what do you say? Let's ask for a holiday."

"Why not all four go?" I said eagerly; for though the works were very
interesting and I enjoyed seeing the work go oil, I was ready enough to
get away, and so sure as the sun shone brightly I felt a great longing
to be off from the soot and noise to where the great hills were a-bloom
with heather and gorse, and tramp where I pleased.

Uncle Dick shook his head.

"No," he said; "two of us stay--two go. You fellows have a run to-day,
and we'll take our turn another time."

We were too busy to waste time, and in high glee away we went, with no
special aim in view, only to get out of the town as soon as possible,
and off to the hills.

Uncle Jack was a stern, hard man in the works, but as soon as he went
out for a holiday he used to take off twenty years, as he said, and
leave them at home, so that I seemed to have a big lad of my own age for
companion.

It was a glorious morning, and our way lay by the works and then on past
a series of "wheels" up the valley, in fact the same route I had taken
that day when I was hunted by the boys.

But I had Uncle Jack by my side, and in addition it was past breakfast
time, and the boys were at work.

We had nearly reached the dam into which I had so narrowly escaped a
ducking, and I was wondering whether Uncle Jack would mind my just
running to speak to the big honest woman in the row of houses we were
about to pass, when he stood still.

"What is it?" I said.

"Cob, my lad," he cried, "I want a new head or a new set of brains, or
something. I've totally forgotten to ask your Uncle Dick to write to
the engineer about the boiler."

"Let me run back," I said.

"Won't do, my boy; must see him myself. There, you keep steadily on
along the road as if we were bound for Leadshire, and I'll overtake you
in less than half an hour."

"But," I said, "I was going this way to meet Uncle Dick that day when he
went to buy the stones, and what a holiday that turned out!"

"I don't think history will repeat itself this time, Cob," he replied.

"But will you be able to find me again?"

"