he picnickers needn't do the
cleaning away, as that couldn't be done by merely throwing away things
as they did in the woods.

So Sarah came in to tidy up the room, and Mr. Maynard seated his whole
party on the big logs and stones, while he told them stories.

The stories were well worth listening to, and though Rosy Posy fell
asleep, the others listened breathlessly to the tales which were told in
a truly dramatic fashion. But after an hour or so of this, Mr. Maynard
suddenly declared that the picnic was becoming too quiet.

"I wanted you all to sit still for a while after your hearty luncheon,"
he said, "but now you need exercise. Shall we play 'Still Pond'?"

A howl of glee greeted this suggestion, for Still Pond in the house was
usually a forbidden game.

As you probably know, it is like Blindman's Buff, only the ones who are
not blinded may not move.

Marjorie was "It" first, and after being carefully blindfolded by her
father, she stood still in the middle of the floor and counted ten very
slowly. While she did this, the others placed themselves behind tables
or chairs, or wherever they felt safe from the blindfolded pursuer.

"Ten!" cried Marjorie, at last. "Still Pond! No moving!"

This was a signal for perfect quiet; any one moving after that had to be
"It" in turn.

No sound was heard, so Marjorie felt her way cautiously about until she
should catch some one. It was hard for the others not to laugh as she
narrowly escaped touching Kingdon's head above the back of the sofa, and
almost caught Kitty's foot as it swung from a table. But at last she
caught her father, who was on the floor covered up with an afghan, and
so Mr. Maynard was "It" in his turn.

It was a rollicking game, and a very exciting one, and, as often was the
case, it soon merged into Blindman's Buff. This was even more romping
and noisy, and soon the picnic sounded like Pandemonium let loose.

"Good!" cried Mr. Maynard, as he looked at the red, laughing faces, and
moist, tumbled curls. "You look just like a lot of healthy, happy boys
and girls should look, but that's enough of that. Now, we'll sit down in
a circle, and play quiet games."

Again the group occupied the logs and stones, ottomans and sofa cushions
if they preferred, and they played guessing games selected by each in
turn.

When it was Mr. Maynard's turn, he said he would teach them the game of
the Popular Picnic. He began by telling them they must each in turn
repeat