n, which some previous hunter
had tacked on their cabin wall and twisted it around her head so that the
tail hung down to one side. Then she slipped on her own leather coat,
which she gave a more dilapidated appearance, by wearing it wrong side
out.

Both girls got behind chairs to hide their skirts.

"Good gracious, Ruth!" giggled Bab, in spite of her excitement. "You look
like Daniel Boone."

During their preparation not a word was heard from Miss Sallie, who was
closeted in her own room.

"Ceally, open the door!" cried Ruth, raising her rifle and leveling it in
front of her.

Bab put her elbow on the back of her chair to steady her shotgun.

"Girls!" cried Miss Stuart, unexpectedly. "Don't dare to open that door!"

But she spoke too late. Ceally had already drawn the heavy bolt back and
the door swung aside.

There rushed into the room two men--or to be strictly truthful, two boys.

They looked first at Mollie and Grace, then at Ruth and Bab. Without a
word they dropped into two chairs.

"Oh, oh, oh!" they shouted. "Did you ever see anything in the world so
funny? Ralph, look at Ruth!" cried Hugh.

"Ralph Ewing and Hugh Post, where did you come from?" demanded four
girls' voices together. "We took you for highwaymen."

Bab set down her shotgun and Ruth her rifle. Both girls began pulling off
their masculine disguises.

"Don't take off those terrifying garments, Bab!" cried Ralph Ewing. "You,
Ruth, should have your picture taken in that hat."

By this time, Miss Stuart, fully dressed, with her pompadour neatly
arranged appeared at the door. Highwaymen or no highwaymen, Miss Sallie
had no intention of appearing before strange men without being properly
dressed. Now she was mistress of herself and of the situation.

Both Huge Post and Ralph Ewing stopped laughing when they saw Miss
Sallie's face. She did not appear overpleased to see her two young
friends, whose doings were fully described in the preceding volume. "The
Automobile Girls at Newport."

"Where did you come from?" she asked politely, but without enthusiasm.
"And why did you knock on our door at this time of the evening, without
informing us who you were?"

"Ruth," continued Miss Sallie severely, "what are you and Barbara doing
in those clothes? Take them off at once."

"Please, ma'am," responded Bab meekly, but with a twinkle in her eye, "we
dressed up as men to frighten the highwaymen."

"You are enough to frighten them, I am sure,"