, "that we
all got nervous over those uncanny stories, and so we're ready to
imagine--Oh!"

Something had swooped by her, almost brushing her cheek, and stirring
her hair with the breeze made by its passing. Peggy's muffled shriek had
two echoes.

"What is it?" demanded Amy, a hysterical catch in her voice. "Oh, Peggy,
what has happened?" And Peggy's only reply was a stern demand for the
matches.

The little candle, flaring up at last, showed nothing unusual, unless
three girls wide awake at half-past two in the morning could be included
under that head. Peggy stared incredulously about the empty room, and
then faced her friends.

"Girls, I don't know what ails us all," said Peggy honestly, "but I'm
pretty sure none of us will go to sleep till daylight. So, if you've no
objection, I'm going to sit here and talk till the sun's up."

Nobody had any objection. In fact, with the little candle flickering on
the table, and Peggy sitting at the foot of the bed, discussing
commonplace things, Amy and Ruth felt an immediate accession of courage.
Luckily their time of waiting was not long. Daybreak comes early on a
summer morning, and by the time the candle was burned to the socket, the
pale daylight had stolen into the room and all three watchers were
certain that they could go to sleep.

It seemed to Peggy that she had barely dozed off, before Dorothy awoke
her. Dorothy was standing by the window with one stocking on. When
Dorothy's toilet had progressed to the point of putting on one stocking,
she generally thought of something else more interesting.

"Oh, Dorothy dear," implored poor Peggy, turning on her pillow, "it
can't be time to get up yet."

Dorothy crossed the room, and stood beside the bed. "Aunt Peggy," she
inquired gravely, "did you ever see a mousie with an umbrella?"

"A mouse--with an umbrella!" repeated Peggy stupidly, wondering if she
were too sleepy to understand, or if Dorothy were only talking nonsense.
"Of course not."

"Well, I did. There's one hanging to our screen."

Peggy arose with alacrity. Suspended head downward from the screen, was
indeed a mouse-like shape, with the folded wings of a gnome, which
Dorothy had not unnaturally mistaken for an umbrella. Apparently the
little creature had passed an active night, and was now enjoying his
well-earned repose. Peggy took one look and crossed the hall with a
bound. Amy and Ruth were sound asleep, but Peggy was too excited to be
merciful.

"