m firmly convinced, for the children. They are to stay
on in the house and this winter I and my wife will come out and make
our headquarters there. Alec can lend me a hand with the animals and
Mother will see that that plucky girl gets her schooling. I'll stable
most of the circus horses out here and as nearly as I can tell it's
just the kind of a place we need."

He told them a great deal more about Alec's surprise and Louisa's
delight and something of the plans for the winter which should include
the attendance at school of the five Gays old enough to go.

The boys walked back with Rosemary and Shirley and Sarah, and Warren
told them further details.

"Mr. Robinson is a brick!" he declared heartily. "He's renting the
farm because he discovered in what desperate straits the Gays are; if
he tried to buy it, it would take months to get their affairs
untangled--there would be miles of red tape and court hearings and dear
knows what all. Instead he has paid them cash down for a quarter and I
understand from Alec he is paying a generous rental, besides offering
Alec employment this winter. He's put out because the town hasn't done
anything--and now, he says, he and his wife will look after them and
Bennington can save its legal snail tracks."

"But Alec and Louisa didn't want the town to know anything about them,"
protested Rosemary.

"Well, they're too young to manage their own affairs," said Warren
curtly. "Somebody should have been responsible long before this."

It was odd, but Jack, Warren and Richard separately, each took Sarah
aside and asked her if she had wanted to sell her pig. Each offered to
return the money to the circus agent for her and get Bony back.

"I wanted to sell him," said Sarah stolidly, three times.

In the morning she kissed Bony good by and watched him drive away with
Richard and Mr. Robinson. Then she went out to the barn, refusing
Rosemary's invitation to go over to the Gays'. Shirley went in her
stead and they were greeted by a radiant Louisa who declared that her
troubles were at an end and that now she had hopes of being able to
keep the family together and even educate them.

"Of course we have to be careful," she said, smiling as though that
would be comparatively easy. "The quarter's rent Mr. Robinson paid
won't quite meet the interest, but Alec thinks he can scrape the rest
together somehow. And of course we will have to pay for the potato
fertilizer and the store bi