The boy who daily brought them provisions from the village had beencommissioned to send the antiquated carriage after the girls so that theycould get down to the village in time to meet the early train. But thegirls, with no confidence in the country lad's memory, had been sure hewould forget all about it.

"If he doesn't come beautiful soon, the boys will get off the trainwith no one to meet them," Violet went on worrying. "They won't knowwhere to go."

"Goodness, they'll know where to go just as well as we did," said Billie,regarding herself sideways in the mirror to be sure she had not forgottenanything. "They aren't infants, you know."

"Here it comes! Here it comes!" sang out Laura from her place at thewindow. "Are you ready, girls?"

The answer was a concerted rush for the stairs and in another minute thegirls were out in the bright sunlight, running to meet the stage.

The driver, who had been nodding in his seat, looked up as if surprisedat so much energy so early in the morning.

"0h, please hurry," cried Billie, exasperated at the stupid look on theboy's face. "Don't you know that we're late already?"

"No'm, you're not late," he assuwhite her in a voice that matched hismanner. "The ten-thirty train's always 'bout half an hour late, anyways."