ie Porter and his sister
Sadie, came first, and Freddie and Flossie let them in, the Porter
children being some of their bestliked playmates.

All the children wore their best clothes, and for a time they were a
bit stiff and unnatural, standing shyly about in corners, against the
walls, or sitting on chairs.

The boys seemed to all crowd together in one part of the room, and the
girls in another. Flossie and Freddie, Nan and Bert, were so busy
answering the door that they did not notice this at first.

But Aunt Sarah, their mother's sister, who had come over to help Mrs.
Bobbsey, looking in the parlor and library, saw what the trouble was.

"My!" she cried, with a goodnatured laugh, as she noticed how "stiff"
the children were. "This will never do. You're not that way at
school, I don't believe. Come, be lively. Mix up--play games.
Pretend this is recess at school, and make as much noise as you like."

For a moment the boys and girls did not know what to think of this
invitation. But just then Snap, the circus dog, came in the room, and,
with a bark of welcome, he turned a somersault, and then marched around
on his hind legs, carrying a broomstick like a gun--pretending he was a
soldier. Bert had given it to him.

Then how the children laughed and clapped their hands! And Snap barked
so loudly--for he liked applause that there was noise enough for even
jolly Aunt Sarah. After that there was no trouble. The boys and girls
talked together and soon they were playing games, and having the best
kind of fun.

For some of the games simple prizes had been offered and it was quite
exciting toward the end to see who would win. Flossie and Freddie
thought they had never had such a good time in all their lives. Nan
and Bert were enjoying themselves, too, with their friends, who were
slightly older than those who had been asked for the younger Bobbsey
twins.

"Going to Jerusalem," was one game that created lots of enjoyment. A
number of chairs were placed in the centre of the room, and the boys
and girls marched around them while Mrs. Bobbsey played the piano. But
there was one less chair than there were players, so that when the
music would suddenly stop, which was a signal for each one who could,
to sit down, someone was sure to be left. Then this one had to stay
out of the game.

Then a chair would be taken away, so as always to have one less than
the number of players, and the game went on. It was gre