ust as hearty and happy as it seemed
a girl could be. Their independent, busy life on Green Knoll was doing
them all a world of good.

As the little squadron of canoes drew near to the easterly end of the
Island the girls were suddenly excited by a great disturbance in the
bushes on the hill above them. This end of the island was exceedingly
steep and rocky.

"Oh, what's that?" cried Mina, as some object flashed into view for a
moment and then disappeared.

"It's one of the goats," squealed Frankie.

Gannet Island was grazed by a good-sized herd of goats, but they
remained mostly at this end and kept away from the boys' camp at the
other. The girls had seldom seen any of the herd, although they had
heard the kids bleating now and then, and the boys had described the old
rams and how ugly they were.

Here, right above them, was going on a striking domestic wrangle, for in
a moment they saw that two of the rams were having a set-to among the
bushes on the side-hill, while several mild-eyed Nannies and their
progeny looked on.

The rams would back away a little in the brush and then charge each
other. When their hard horns collided, they rang like steel, and several
times the antagonists were both overborne by the shock and rolled upon
the ground.

"What a place for a fight!" exclaimed Frank. "What do you know about
_that_, girls?"

"It's a shame," quavered Mina. "Somebody ought to separate them."

"Sure! I vote that you go right up and do so, Miss Everett," said Grace,
briskly.

However, Frank's criticism of the judgment of the combating goats was
correct. It was no place for a fair fight. One of the animals happened
to get "up hill" and at the next charge the lower goat was lifted
completely off its feet and came tumbling down the steep descent with
the speed of an avalanche.

The girls screamed, the other goats bleated--while the conquering Billie
took a commanding position on a rock and gazed down upon his falling
enemy. The latter could not stop. Twice he tried to scramble to his
sharp little hoofs, but could not accomplish the feat. So, then, quite
helpless, he fell the entire distance and came finally, with a mighty
splash, into the deep water under the bank.

"Oh! the poor creature will be drowned!" cried Wyn, in great distress at
this catastrophe, although some of the other girls were inclined to
laugh, for the goat _did_ look more than a little comical.

He had been battered a good deal and had