oint towards the garden gate; but Rollo knew
very well that the garden gate was not north from the platform. He
remembered that the North Star was over the barn, for he and Jonas had
noticed it particularly when they had made the dial. The needle,
therefore, ought to have pointed towards the barn, according to his
father's lecture; but it would not. Rollo took up a straw, and pushed
the point of the needle round, and said, "Point there! point there, I
tell you!" But all in vain. The needle would not heed either his pushing
or his commands; but, as soon as he let it go, it would immediately
swing back into its old position, where it pointed towards the garden
gate.

Rollo was just about giving up in despair, when he saw his sister Mary
coming in from the garden gate, with a book under her arm.

"O Mary," said he, "what shall I do? My needle won't point right."

"Why, what is the matter with it?" said Mary.

"It will point over towards the garden," said Rollo; "look."

So Mary came up, and looked at his needle. She saw that it was pointing
towards the garden gate.

"Now I'll push it away," said Rollo, "and you will see that it comes
directly back again."

So he took up his straw, and pushed the point of the needle away. The
cork moved, turning round rapidly, until at length it swung away
towards one side of the basin, and then suddenly drifted up against the
side, and stuck there.

"That's another plague," said Rollo. "It will run up to the side of the
basin, and stick there."

"What makes it?" said Mary.

"I don't know," said Rollo.

Mary sat down upon the platform, and examined the needle and the surface
of the water very carefully. She observed that the water was heaped up a
little against the side of the basin, all around. She asked Rollo to
observe it.

"Yes," said he, "and the needle and cork run right up that ridge of
water."

"And the bubbles too," said Mary.

Mary pointed, when she said this, to several little bubbles which were
adhering closely to the side of the basin, in another place.

She took up a little straw, and pushed away some of the bubbles from the
side of the basin, and then gently moved them back again until they were
pretty near, and observed that they would immediately rush up against
the side again. She did not understand this phenomenon, especially as
the water was raised a little along the edge by the side of the basin,
so that the bubbles and the needle actually appeared t