ou two boys it will be all right for us girls. You go three times,
then Vi and I will take three turns."

"All right--that's what we will," said Russ. "Come on, Laddie."

Some boxes had been piled back of the one on which the ironing-board
rested in a slanting position, and these boxes made a level place on
which to get a start. Russ and Laddie lifted the scooter up there, and
got up themselves. Then they carefully sat down on the board to which
were fastened the roller-skate wheels.

"All ready?" asked Russ, who was in front, holding to a rope, like a
sled rope, by which he hoped to guide the scooter. "All ready, Laddie?"

"All ready," was the answer.

"Here we go!" cried Russ.

He gave a little shove with his feet, and down the ironing-board hill
ran the scooter, carrying Russ and Laddie with it. The first time it ran
beautifully.

"This is great!" cried Laddie.

"Fine!" exclaimed his brother.

And then, all of a sudden, something happened. The scooter ran off the
hill sideways, and started over the attic floor toward Rose, Vi, Mun Bun
and Margy. They squealed and screamed and tried to get out of the way.
But Mun Bun fell down, and Margy fell over him, and Vi fell over Margy,
and Rose fell over Violet. So there the four little Bunkers were, all in
a heap, and the scooter, with Russ and Laddie on it, running toward the
brother and sisters.

"Stop! Stop it!" cried Laddie.

"I can't!" shouted Russ, pulling on the guide rope. But that did no
good.

"Oh, we're going to knock into 'em!" yelled Laddie.

And right into the other children ran the scooter. Russ and Laddie were
thrown off, and, for a moment, there was a bumping, thumping, yelling,
crying and screaming noise.

Mun Bun, trying to roll out of the way, knocked a box down off a trunk,
and the box had some croquet balls in it, which rumbled over the attic
floor almost like thunder.

In the midst of all this noise and confusion some one came running up
the stairs. A man entered the attic, and took one look at the mass of
struggling children on the floor.

"My good land!" he cried. "I wonder if I can save any of 'em! Oh, what a
mix-up!"

Then the stranger started in to rescue the six little Bunkers, for they
were all tangled up.

CHAPTER II

UNCLE FRED

"Are you hurt? Are any of you hurt? What happened, anyhow? Did part of
the house fall on you?"

The man who had run up the attic stairs went on picking up first one and
then another