ount,' Cousin Louis said."

"I should think it might," Maurice agreed.

"Aunt Patricia could have belonged," said Rosalind, her eyes still in the
tree top. "I wonder if she knew about the Forest?"

Maurice felt stirred by the picture her words called up of a great company
of people all bearing hard things bravely. "There is Morgan," he
suggested. "It must be hard to be deaf, yet he is always cheerful."

"Yes, indeed, he could belong. He knows the secret of the Forest. And
Maurice, you have a beautiful chance to be brave."

Maurice's face grew red, he pushed his crutch impatiently from him. "I
haven't been brave," he said.

"No, you haven't," Rosalind acknowledged frankly; "but then you did not
know about the Forest. Maurice, let's start a society, you and I, and
perhaps some of the others will join. The magician will, I know."

A shrill whistle was heard at this moment.

"It is Jack," said Maurice; and sure enough that individual presently
appeared and dropped down beside them, breathless from his run up the
hill.

"What are you two doing?" he puffed.

"Talking. How warm you are!" and Rosalind offered her broad-brimmed hat
for a fan. "Have you seen anything of Katharine?"

"She and Belle are on the way. Say, what were you talking about? It seemed
to be interesting." Jack rolled over on his back and blinked at the sky.

Rosalind looked at Maurice. "Would you tell him?"

"No," was the prompt reply, "he wouldn't care for it." He felt certain
harum-scarum Jack would only be bored by the Forest, perhaps would make
fun.

Jack turned his face to Rosalind, "Tell me," he urged; "Maurice doesn't
know what I like."

"I will, then, as soon as the girls come."

It was not long before Belle was heard calling, and she and Katherine came
running across the grass and joined the group under the tree.

"We are waiting for you; Jack wants to hear about the Forest," said
Rosalind.

"Yes, you promised to tell us what you meant, and how Morgan came to know
about it." Belle cast her hat on the grass and shook back her hair.

Maurice looked discontented. Jack and Belle would think it silly, and
Katherine wouldn't understand.

"Maurice knows about it, and perhaps some of the rest of you have read the
story of the Forest of Arden," began Rosalind.

Belle had, but Katherine and Jack had not so much as heard of it, so
Rosalind told the story of the banished Duke and his followers who lived
in the Forest, and were happy bec