automobile. As the children looked back, waving their hands to their
dear grandmother, who had made their visit such a pleasant one, Russ
said:

"Oh, dear!"

"What's the matter?" asked his father. "You seem sad."

"I wish we could take that nice lake with us," explained Russ. "We had
such fun there."

"And the boat, too," added Rose. "Can we have a boat at Aunt Jo's,
Daddy?"

"I hardly think so," answered Mr. Bunker with a smile. "Aunt Jo lives in
the city--in Boston, in the Back Bay section, and I hardly think there
is a place there where you can paddle a raft."

"Can we go wadin'?" asked Laddie.

"Not unless there is a little lake in some park near by," his father
answered.

"Couldn't we wait for it to rain and make a mud puddle?" asked Vi. "We
could wade in that! We do when we're home!"

"But Boston isn't home. And you can't do in a big city the things you
can do at home in Pineville," said Mrs. Bunker, as the automobile
chugged along through the woods.

"Can't we have _any_ fun?" asked Russ.

"Oh, yes, lots of fun," his father replied. "Aunt Jo wouldn't ask us to
spend two weeks or more at her house, if she didn't know you children
could have fun, even if she does live in a city. Don't worry about
that--you'll have fun."

"But we can't have a boat," sighed Rose. She and the other children
loved the water, and, living so near Rainbow River as they did, they
were used to paddling about, playing with make-believe boats and toys
like that.

"Well, if you can't have a boat at Aunt Jo's in Boston, you are going
to ride on one before you get to her house," said Mother Bunker with a
smile.

"Are we?" cried Russ and Rose together.

"Yes. Didn't I tell you about that?" asked Daddy Bunker. "We are going
to Boston by boat, instead of by train. That is, we are going most of
the way by boat."

"Where is there any water for a boat?" asked Vi, looking around in the
woods through which they were riding. "You can't make a boat go lessen
you have water."

"Oh, I know. Yes, you can! Yes, you can!" suddenly cried Laddie.

"How can you?" asked Russ. "You can't sail a boat without water."

"Yes, you can!" said Laddie again, and he was laughing now. "I just
thought of a riddle. This is it. What kind of a boat can you sail
without water? It's a riddle!"

"Huh! I should say it _was_! Nobody could answer a riddle like _that_!"
declared Russ.

"Yes, they can!" insisted Laddie. "It's a riddle! And I made it up all