But Laura quietly took the lantern
from her, and held it till Mary called, "All right!"

"Is that you, Mary?" Olga's quiet voice questioned, as the girls entered
the tent.

"Yes--Elizabeth and I. The excitement is all over and the storm will be
soon. Let's all get to sleep as fast as we can."

"Elizabeth!" Olga repeated to herself. She had not known that Elizabeth
had left her cot. "Why did you go?" she asked in a low tone, as
Elizabeth crept under the blankets.

"Why--to help," the Poor Thing answered, squeezing the hand that touched
hers in the darkness.

The storm surely was lessening now. The lightning came at longer
intervals and the thunder lagged farther and farther behind it. The rain
still fell, but not so heavily, and the roar of the wind had died down
to a sullen growl. In ten minutes the other three girls were sound
asleep, but Olga lay long awake, her eyes searching the darkness, as her
thoughts searched her own soul, finding there some things that greatly
astonished her.

VI

A WATER CURE

There were some pale cheeks and heavy eyes the next morning, but no one
had taken cold from the exposure of the night, and most of the girls
were as fresh and full of life as ever. The camp, however, was strewn
with leaves and broken branches, and one tree was uprooted. Mrs.
Royall's face was grave as she thought of what might have been, had that
tree fallen across any of the tents. It was a heavy responsibility that
she carried with these forty girls under her charge, and never had she
felt it more deeply than now.

The baby bunny was evidently somebody's stray pet, for it submitted to
handling as if used to it, showed no desire to get away, and contentedly
nibbled the lettuce leaves and carrots which the girls begged of Katie.

"He fairly _purrs_ when I scratch his head," Louise Johnson declared
gaily. "Girls, we must keep him for the camp mascot."

"Looks as if we should have to keep him unless a claimant appears," Mary
Hastings said. "I've almost stepped on him twice already. I don't
believe we could drive him away with a club."

"Nobody wants to drive him away," retorted Louise, lifting him by his
long ears, "unless maybe Rose," she added, with a teasing glance over
her shoulder. "You know Rose doesn't care for _big_ furry things."

"Well, I guess," protested Rose, "if he had flopped into your face all
dripping wet, in the dark, as he did into mine last night, you wouldn't
have stopped to m