28 CAROLINE.

 

 

The excursion-box. The winding path. Mr. Keep’s letters.

remained safe on the desk where he had left it. He did
not know that Malleville had put it in another place.

When they were all ready, Caroline went into the par-
jour to tell her mother that she was going to take a walk
with Phonny and Malleville, and that she should be back
again at supper time. Then bidding her mother good-
bye, she came out again into the yard, where Phonny and
Malleville were waiting for her. Malleville had her ex-
cursion-box hanging about her neck by its ribbon.

Caroline led the way back into the garden again, and
through the garden to the lower end of it, where there
was a small gate. She opened the gate and let Phonny
and Malleville pass through, and then entered with them
upon a winding path which led down into a wood. What
happened during their walk will be made the subject of
the next chapter.

In the mean time, about an hour after the children
had set out on their walk, Mr. Keep came home. He
hung up his hat in its usual place in the passage-way,
and then went into his office. He found upon the table
several letters which Mr. Short had brought that day
from the post-office. He opened and read them, and then
went to his desk to answer them. He wrote four answers
to his letters,—on four separate sheets of paper. When
these letters were all written, Mr. Keep folded and sealed
them, and put stamps upon them, and then went to put
them on the safe to be ready for Mr. Short to carry to the
post-office.

As he laid his letters on the safe, he observed the one
which Malleville had put there, and taking it up he
looked at the superscription.

“ Ah,” said he, “this looks like Phonny’s work. He