PHONNY’S LETTER. 27
The feast. Conversation. Plan for a walk.

This address to Uncle Ben, on the part of Caroline,
was of the nature of an apostrophe, for Mr. Short was
not within hearing at the time. He had brought the
waiter, and put it down upon Caroline’s table, and he had
then gone back to his work. Caroline immediately
began to pour out the raspberries into the saucers, after
which, the children covered them over with sugar, and
then poured on the cream. Then they proceeded to eat
their fruit very happily together.

The raspberries which the children had gathered were
enough for two saucers full apiece for each of the party,
and when they were all eaten Caroline rose to go.

«“ And what are you going to do with these things P”
said Phonny.

¢ Leave them here,” said Caroline. “ Uncle Ben will
take care of them. And now I think we will go and take
a watk instead of a ride.”

The children did not-answer. They would both have
preferred to take a ride, but they did not suppose that it
would be polite for them to say so.

*“ You see,” said Caroline, “if we take a ride, we must
go along the same old road, where we have all been a
thousand. times,—-but there is a very pretty place to walk
through the trees on the bank of the river, where I have
never been but once, and I want to go again.”

“Well,” said Malleville, “I will go and get my excur-
sion-box.”

So Malleville returned to the house to get her box. She
had left it on the piazza. Phonny got his cap, too, and
Caroline her bonnet. They did not go into the office
again, and Phonny forgot all about his letter. Of course,
if he had thought of it, he would have supposed that it