d settled himself comfortably to listen,
so Mrs. Orban went on:--

"One summer we gave a large party for young people. It happens that
several of us have birthdays in the summer, and this was a sort of
combined birthday treat. So we invited friends varying in age from
five, suitable for Dorothy, to seventeen or eighteen, and a very
merry party it promised to be. The day began gloriously, but father
prophesied it was going to be too hot to be perfect; and he was
right. About the middle of the afternoon thunder-clouds gathered
quickly, and by tea-time there was a raging storm; but it was as
short as it was sharp, and all over in an hour. There was no
question as to going out again, the ground was too sopping wet
after the rain to dream of such a thing, so it was proposed that we
should have a good game of hide-and-seek all over the house. I wish
I could tell you what a lovely place home is for hide-and-seek.
There are so many rooms with doors between that you can almost go
the round of the house on any landing without coming out into the
passage more than twice or three times. Then there are several
staircases, and lastly the turret, which was always used for
'home,' because it was a regular trap for hiding in. Once found,
you could never get away from there."

"O mummie," breathed Eustace softly, "how it does make me want to
go and see it all."

"I am glad it does, sonny," Mrs. Orban said. "I want you to want to
go--I always pray some day you will. It is a home to be proud of."

"Go on, please," said Eustace in the little pause that followed.

"I don't think people ever get tired of hide-and-seek," Mrs. Orban
continued. "It is the one game that seems to suit all ages--I mean
among young people. We played on and on till dusk, and then the
game was only stopped by people coming for or sending to fetch
their children home. Just in the middle of the first 'good-byes,'
mother, who had been entertaining grown-ups most of the afternoon,
came and asked for Dorothy. No one knew where she was. 'Who had
seen her last?' It was impossible to find out, but apparently she
had not been seen by any one for a long time. Dorothy at five years
old was a very independent little person, and resented being
obviously looked after. She always liked to hide by herself, for
instance. Well, then, there began a game of hide-and-seek in real
earnest, and it became more and more serious every minute, when
white-faced groups met in the hall decl