een the surrounding trees.

"It's certainly worth while having a birthday on the ranch," Blue
Bonnet thought happily. All this bustle of preparation to celebrate
the birthday of a Texas Blue Bonnet!

Hark! Wasn't that the rattle of wheels? Yes,--there came the buckboard
at last. Blue Bonnet sprang up excitedly. Had Alec heard? She shot a
look in the direction of the croquet-ground.

Alec had heard; had glanced at the cloud of dust that marked the
approaching team, and then--had gone calmly on with his work. He was
looking for travellers on horseback, and the buckboard's arrival won
only slight notice from him. He would let the girls spring their
surprise on Blue Bonnet and have the hubbub over before he intruded.

"Alec!" called Blue Bonnet in a fever of excitement; but he merely
waved to her indulgently and went on fitting a candle into a socket
with exasperating slowness.

With her arms full of flaming poppies, Blue Bonnet flew to the house
and reached the veranda just as the other girls poured from the door,
and the buckboard came to a standstill. There was the General, and
beside him--Blue Bonnet gasped as she saw--was a boyish figure with
close-cropped hair.

The poppies fell to the ground in a brilliant heap, and the moment
that Susy and Ruth alighted Blue Bonnet gathered them both in an
ecstatic hug. But not for long was she permitted a monopoly. These
newly arrived two-sevenths were passed from hand to hand, or, more
literally, from arm to arm, and caressed and exclaimed over until Mrs.
Clyde came to the rescue of the tired girls.

The General's arrival had become of quite secondary importance. He
stood talking to the Senora until Blue Bonnet at last turned to him
apologetically.

"I'm very glad to see you!" she said.

General Trent took her outstretched hand and smiled down into the
eager flushed face. "You are very good to say so. A mere man is
decidedly _de trop_ on such an occasion!"

"No, you're not! Only I was expecting you and I wasn't expecting Susy
and Ruth,--so I rather lost my head. How did you happen to bring the
girls?"

"I didn't bring them, really. Dr. Clark wanted them to have a change
of air, and when Mrs. Doyle heard I was coming here she asked if I
would mind playing escort to her girls,--a change of air spelt only
Texas to them, it seems. My delight may better be imagined than
described, and--here we are. Ah, Miss Kitty, you see me at last!" He
paused to shake hands with the yo