se. Don't let me
find you here again during recreation time."

This was a blow, as it brought the great scheme temporarily to a
standstill. The girls could not venture to disobey openly, and judged it
wiser to let things rest for the present, until the mistress should have
forgotten the matter, and they might once more quietly begin to renew
their investigations.

"We'll play cricket hard, and put our names down for the tennis
handicap," said Lindsay. "We mustn't on any account let Miss Russell
think we'd a special motive in what we were doing."

"Rather not! We'll 'lie low and say nuffin'', like Brer Rabbit," agreed
Cicely.

There was no lack of liveliness or occupation at the Manor to justify
anybody in idling about the passages, and there were certainly many
small excitements, apart from mysterious chambers or hidden treasures.
All kinds of funny events kept occurring which had never disturbed the
prim atmosphere of Winterburn Lodge.

Nora Proctor and Marjorie Butler awoke half the school one night by loud
and repeated screams, and when Miss Frazer rushed into their room,
imagining fire or burglars, she found them cowering behind the bed
curtains, in mortal terror of a large bat that had made its way through
the open casement. Earwigs were a constant nuisance, and everyone grew
almost accustomed to catching green caterpillars, which crept in from
the roses that surrounded the windows, and would turn up in the most
undesirable spots.

Naturally so old a house was infested with rats and mice. They scuttled
inside the walls, and squeaked behind the wainscots, and seemed to hold
carnival at the back of the oak panelling, often disturbing the girls at
night with the noise. This was particularly noticeable in the room where
Lindsay and Cicely slept. They were sometimes awakened by sounds like
the rolling of barrels overhead, as if heavy objects were being clanked
about up in the ceiling.

"You've no need to be afraid of them," said Mrs. Wilson, who made light
of all complaints, "they never venture out of the walls, to my
knowledge."

The fear, however, that a rat might possibly gnaw its way into her
bedroom afflicted Cicely continually.

"If it ran across my pillow I should die of fright, I know I should!"
she wailed. "I wish Mrs. Wilson would let us have the cat to sleep with
us. I should feel far safer."

"I wish we could send for the Pied Piper, and get rid of them all. They
woke me twice last night," said