, and a nice cup to drink it out of."

"Is it far?" asked Marjorie, for she couldn't see any signs of
habitation, and did not wish to delay too long.

"No; 'tain't a dozen steps. Just behind that clump of trees yonder; you
can't miss it."

"A farmhouse, I suppose," said King.

"Well, not just exactly a farmhouse," said the man, "but you go on, you
youngsters, and whoever you see when you get there, tell 'em Jim sent
you."

"We will; and thank you, Jim," said Marjorie, suddenly remembering her
manners.

"You're welcome," said the man, and again his voice was gruff as at
first.

"Somehow I don't like it, Mops," said King, who had a troubled look on
his face as they walked swiftly along the path indicated.

"Don't like what?"

"His sending us over here. And I don't like him; he didn't look right."

"I thought he was very kind to tell us about the farmhouse, and if his
voice is sort of gruff, I s'pose he can't help that."

"It isn't that exactly; but I think he's a,--a--"

"A what?"

"Never mind; here we are at the place. Why, Mops, it isn't a house at
all! It's a tent,--a lot of tents."

"So it is! It must be an encampment. Do you think there are soldiers
here?"

"Soldiers? No! I only wish they _were_ soldiers."

As King was speaking, a young woman came walking toward them, smiling
in an ingratiating way. Like the man, Jim, she was dark-haired and
dark-skinned. Her black eyes flashed, and her smiling red lips showed
very white teeth as she spoke kindly to the children.

"Come in," she said, in a wheedling voice; "come in; I love little boys
and girls. What do you want?"

Marjorie began to say, "We want a drink of water," when King pinched her
elbow as a sign to be quiet, and he spoke to the woman himself. "We don't
want anything," he said, "we're just passing by on our way to Pelton.
Good-morning."

Grasping Marjorie's arm he turned to go away, but the woman stopped him,
saying, "Oh, don't go so quickly; come in and rest a moment, and I will
give you a drink of milk, and then you can go on to Pelton."

"Yes, let's do that, King," said Marjorie, looking at her brother, amazed
at his ungracious actions.

But King persisted in his determination. "No, thank you," he said to the
woman in a decided way; "you're very kind, but we don't care for any
milk, and we must go right on to Pelton."

"And I say you must stay right here," said the woman, in much sterner
tones than she had used before, and takin