MRS. MODESTY AND THE MAGNIFYING GLASS. 37

The day was not quite so hot as yesterday, and the children made
up their minds that they would walk a long way, and try to get as
close as possible to the Mountains by night.

But one queer thing about these wonderful Mountains is that,
as you come near them, they seem to go a little bit away from
you.

The children had very few adventures that day. They came to an
inn about noon, and Clover, looking at it with his little magnifying
glass, saw that it bore a red cross just over the door. He looked in
his map too, and saw the same red cross. He was quite sure, there-
fore, that this was really one of the King’s Inns. The children went
into the house, some dinner was given them, and they went on their
way again feeling quite happy.

Cowslip got into such good spirits that she thought all the
troubles and dangers of the journey must be over. She talked a
great deal to Clover about the delightful moment when they should
see their father and mother, and wondered much if Primrose and
Buttercup had yet started on their journey.

“There is no chance now of their overtaking us,” she said, ‘“ unless
indeed they did so during the day we spent at the palace.”

“T don’t think that is likely,” said Clover, “ for Charity told me
that they always kept a man on the towers to watch for each child as
they passed, and if they look tired, or the least bit as if they wanted
a good meal, Charity runs out herself and brings them in. As that is
the case, and as I am quite sure that nothing would make Buttercup
take a long walk without looking very, very tired, they cannot have
passed us on the journey.”

“Oh,” said Cowslip, “I do hope they did not go near that awful
little girl with the blue forget-me-nots.”

She looked very sad and anxious as she spoke, and Clover seeing
that she turned quite pale, made her smell the wonderful bunch of
flowers. It had an immediate effect upon her. She forgot to be
anxious, and her eyes grew full of hope.

* After all,” she said, with a smile and a tear, “ the King will take
care of them, and Charity told me that they were quite certain to get