e double-runner stirred.

It moved slowly for a moment across the level top of the street.
Then came the first slope of the hill--they plunged forward. She
heard Rosie's hysterical shriek, Dicky's vociferous cheers and
Billy's blood-curdling yells, but she herself was as silent as a
little image. They struck the second slope of the hill--then she
screamed, too. The houses on either side shot past like pictures in
the kinetoscope. She felt a rush of wind that must surely blow her
ears off. They reached the third slope of the hill--and now they had
left the earth and were sailing through the air. The next instant
the double-runner had come to rest on the bank of snow and Rosie and
she were hugging each other and saying, "Wasn't it GREAT?"

They climbed to the top of the hill again. All the way back, Maida
watched the sleds whizzing down the coast, boys alone on sleds,
girls alone on sleds, pairs of girls, pairs of boys, one seated in
front, the other steering with a foot that trailed behind on the
ice, timid little girls who did not dare the ice but contented
themselves with sliding on the snow at either side, daring little
boys who went down lying flat on their sleds.

At the top they were besieged with entreaties to go on the
double-runner and, as there was room enough for one more, they took a
little boy or girl with them each time. Rosie lent her sled to those
who had none. At first there were plenty of these, standing at the
top of the coast, wistfully watching the fun of more fortunate
children. But after a while it was discovered that the ice was so
smooth that almost anything could be used for coasting. The sledless
ones rushed home and reappeared with all kinds of things. One little
lad went down on a shovel and his intrepid little sister followed on
a broom. Boxes and shingles and even dish-pans began to appear. Most
reckless of all, one big fellow slid down on his two feet, landing
in a heap in the snow.

Maida enjoyed every moment of it--even the long walks back up the
hill. Once the double-runner struck into a riderless sled that had
drifted on to the course, and was overturned immediately. Nobody was
hurt. Rosie, Dicky and Arthur were cast safely to one side in the
soft snow. But Maida and Billy were thrown, whirling, on to the ice.
Billy kept his grip on Maida and they shot down the hill, turning
round and round and round. At first Maida was a little frightened.
But when she saw that they were perfectl