said Marjorie. "It's too early for lunch, and too
late for breakfast."

"It's the rest of the nut game," said Mr. Maynard. "I am Professor
Nuttall, or Know-it-all; and I'm going to teach you children what I hope
will be a valuable accomplishment. Do any of you like candy?"

Replies of "We do," and "Yes, sir," came so emphatically that Mr.
Maynard seemed satisfied with the answers.

"Well, then, we'll make some candy that shall be just the best ever!
How's that?"

"Fine!" "Glorious!" "Goody, goody!" "Great!" "Oh, Father!" and "Ah!"
came loudly from six young throats, and Mrs. Maynard and Rosy Posy came
to join the game.

Sarah came, too, bringing white aprons for everybody, boys and all, and
then Nurse Nannie appeared, and marched them off, two by two, to wash
their hands for the candy-making process.

CHAPTER V

A NOVEL PICNIC

But at last they were all ready to begin.

Mr. Maynard, in his position of teacher, insisted on absolute system and
method, and everything was arranged with care and regularity.

"The first thing to learn in candy-making," he said, "is neatness; and
the second, accuracy."

"Why, Father," cried Dorothy, "I didn't know you knew how to make
candy!"

"I know more than you'd believe, to look at me. And now, if you four
girls will each squeeze the juice of an orange into a cup, we'll begin."

Marjorie and Kitty and Gladys and Dorothy obeyed instructions exactly,
and soon each was carefully breaking an egg, and still more carefully
separating the white from the yolk.

Mrs. Maynard seemed to find plenty to do just waiting on the workers,
and it was largely owing to her thoughtfulness that oranges and eggs
and cups and spoons appeared when needed, almost as if by magic.

Meantime the two boys were working rapidly and carefully, too. They
grated cocoanut and chocolate; they cut up figs and seeded dates; they
chopped nuts and raisins; and they received admiring compliments from
Mrs. Maynard for the satisfactory results of their work.

"Oh, isn't it fun!" exclaimed Marjorie, as she and Gladys were taught to
mould the creamy, white _fondant_ they had made, into tiny balls. Some
of these white balls the smaller girls pressed between two nut kernels,
or into a split date; and others were to be made into chocolate creams.
This last was a thrilling process, for it was not easy at first to drop
the white ball into the hot black chocolate, and remove it daintily with
a silver fork, bein