nd was fully in
sympathy, pulled up so suddenly that the old gentleman flew over into
the opposite seat.

"Where?"

But when they got up to it Joel saw that it was only a bit of pink
calico flapping on a clothes-line; so he climbed back and away they
rumbled again.

The others were having the same luck. No trace could be found of the
child. To Ben, who took the Hingham road, the minutes seemed like hours.

"I won't go back," he muttered, "until I take her. I can't see mother's
face!"

But the ten miles were nearly traversed; almost the last hope was gone.
Into every thicket and lurking place by the road-side had he peered--but
no Phronsie! Deacon Brown's horse began to lag.

"Go on!" said Ben hoarsely; "oh, dear Lord, make me find her!"

The hot sun poured down on the boy's face, and he had no cap. What cared
he for that? On and on he went. Suddenly the horse stopped. Ben doubled
up the reins to give him a cut, when "WHOA!" he roared so loud that the
horse in very astonishment gave a lurch that nearly flung him headlong.
But he was over the wheel in a twinkling, and up with a bound to a small
thicket of scrubby bushes on a high hill by the road-side. Here lay a
little bundle on the ground, and close by it a big, black dog; and over
the whole, standing guard, was a boy a little bigger than Ben, with
honest gray eyes. And the bundle was Phronsie!

"Don't wake her up," said the boy, warningly, as Ben, with a hungry look
in his eyes, leaped up the hill, "she's tired to death!"

"She's my sister!" cried Ben, "our Phronsie!"

"I know it," said the boy kindly; "but I wouldn't wake her up yet if I
were you. I'll tell you all about it," and he took Ben's hand which was
as cold as ice.

SAFE

"It's all right, Prince," the boy added, encouragingly to the big dog
who, lifting his noble head, had turned two big eyes steadily on Ben.
"He's all right! lie down again!"

Then, flinging himself down on the grass, he told Ben how he came to
rescue Phronsie.

"Prince and I were out for a stroll," said he. "I live over in Hingham,"
pointing to the pretty little town just a short distance before them in
the hollow; "that is," laughing, "I do this summer. Well, we were out
strolling along about a mile below here on the cross-road; and all of a
sudden, just as if they sprung right up out of the ground, I saw a man
with an organ, and a monkey, and a little girl, coming along the road.
She was crying, and as soon as Pr