eir launch steamed the next
morning toward a barren island off the east coast of Sweden, "do you see
a child on those rocks below the lighthouse?"

Gerda looked eagerly where her father pointed. "Yes, I think I see her
now," she said, after a moment.

Birger ran to the bow of the boat. "Come up here," he called. "I can see
her quite plainly. She has on a rainbow skirt."

"Oh, Birger!" cried Gerda, "can it be the little girl who received our
box? If it is, her name is Karen. Don't you remember the letter of thanks
she wrote us?"

As she spoke, the child began clambering carefully over the rocks and
made her way to the landing-place. The twins saw now that she wore the
rainbow skirt and the dark bodice over a white waist, which forms the
costume of the Raettvik girls and women; but they saw, also, that she
walked with a crutch.

"Oh, Father, she is lame!" Gerda exclaimed. Then she stood quietly on the
deck, waving her hand and smiling in friendly greeting until the launch
was made fast to the wharf.

"Are you Gerda?" asked the little lame girl eagerly, as Lieutenant Ekman
swung his daughter ashore; and Gerda asked just as eagerly, "Are you
Karen?" Then both children laughed and answered "Yes," together.

"Come up to the house, Gerda, I want to show you my birds," said Karen at
once; and she climbed up over the rocks toward the tiny cottage.

Gerda followed more slowly, looking pityingly at the crutch and the poor,
crooked back; but Karen turned and called to her to hurry.

"I have ever so many things to show you, Gerda," she said. "There are no
children for me to play with, so I have to make friends with the birds. I
have four now, and I am trying to teach them to eat from my hand."

As Karen spoke, she led the way around the corner of the house, and
there, sheltered from the wind, was a collection of cages, mounted on a
rough wooden bench. In each one was a bird which had been injured in some
way.

The largest cage held a snowy owl, and when Karen spoke to him he ruffled
up his feathers and rolled his head from side to side, his great golden
eyes staring at her without blinking.

"He can't see when the sun shines," Karen explained; "but he seems to
know my voice."

"What a good time he must have in the long winter nights, when he can see
all the time," said Gerda. "Where did you get him?"

"Father found him in the woods with a broken wing; but he is nearly well
now, and I shall soon set him free," Karen