ing-place
close to the weir, with a boat-house, a refreshment room, and rows of
benches and tables under the trees, where visitors could sit and drink
tea or lemonade. Miss Beasley had engaged boats beforehand, and these
were drawn up ready, with their boatmen, a rheumatic and elderly set,
waiting about smoking surreptitious pipes among the willows. There was
a great deal of arranging before everybody was settled, and many
injunctions to sit still, and not to change places, or to grab at
water-lilies, or lean too far over the side, or play any other foolish
or dangerous prank likely to upset the equilibrium of the boat and
endanger the lives of its occupants. At last, however, the whole party
was stowed safely away, and the little procession set off up the
river.

All agreed that it was quite delightful. The banks were covered with
trees, and tall reeds, and masses of purple willow herb, and agrimony,
and yellow ragwort, which were reflected in the dark waters of quiet
pools. In the centre the sunshine made little gleaming, glinting
ripples like leaping bars of gold, and here and there patches of
water-lilies spread their white chalices open to the sky. There was a
delicious breeze, most grateful after the hot walk across the
hayfields, and the smooth gliding motion was ideal. The girls trailed
their hands in the river, and dabbed their faces, and said it was
topping, and began to sing boat songs which they had learnt at
school, and which sounded very pretty and appropriate to an
accompaniment of oars and lapping water.

The great event of the afternoon was to be a picnic tea. Hampers of
provisions had been brought, and Miss Beasley proposed that they
should land at one of the numerous little islands, light a fire, and
boil their big kettles. The selection of the particular island was, of
course, in her discretion, and she had a conference with her old
boatman on the subject.

"Island? I knows of the very one to suit you. I've taken parties there
before, and there's a good spot to land, and a place to tie the boats
to, which there isn't on every one of them islands. It's just an
hour's row up from the weir, and less time to go back because of the
current."

After gliding onward for what seemed to the girls all too short a
space of time, but no doubt appeared considerably longer to their
rheumatic rowers, the island in question was at last reached. It
looked most attractive with the willows and bulrushes and tangly