y can find
their father. I must look for them."

She went back to the place where she had been sitting on the bench and
looked down the street where she had last seen Bunny and Sue. But the
children were not there. And the freight train was almost out of sight
now down the track.

"Perhaps they are in talking to the station agent," thought Mother
Brown. "Surely they wouldn't wander away without telling me."

But as this was between the time for trains the office of the station
agent was closed. He had gone home and would not be back until it was
time for the arrival of the train Mr. Brown intended taking, to go on to
Orange Beach.

The door of the office was locked and the glass ticket window was
closed. Inside the office could be heard the clicking of the telegraph
sounders, and this, with the voices of the colored boys playing with
their tops, were the only noises to be heard.

"Where can Bunny and Sue have gone?" exclaimed Mrs. Brown, getting more
and more worried. "They must have wandered off. If there had been an
accident on the track, I'd see something of it." She was glad there was
no sign of a train having hurt any little boy or girl. In fact, except
for the freight train having pulled away, there had been no other
trains moving around the station since the Browns had arrived.

"I'll go ask those colored boys if they have seen Bunny and Sue," said
Mrs. Brown to herself.

She walked around the corner of the station, and was just in time to see
one little colored boy trip another, sending him sprawling in the dust.

"Heah, yo' li'l sinnah!" cried the boy who had sent the other sprawling.
"What fo' yo' tuck mah top!"

"Ah didn't tek yo' top, Sam!" answered the other, as he arose from the
dust.

"Yes, yo' did!" declared the other. "Now yo' go on 'way from heah or
Ah'll cuff yo' ears!"

In answer the other colored boy, the one who had been tripped, rushed at
his enemy and struck him with clenched fist. In an instant the other hit
back, and soon there was a lively fight. The colored boys fell down and
rolled over and over in the dust.

"Here! Here! You boys mustn't fight!" cried Mrs. Brown, hastening
toward them and trying to pull off the one on top, who was pounding the
bottom lad with his fists. "Stop it!"

"You best let 'em alone, lady," said an older colored boy, with a grin.
"Dem two am always fightin', but dey don't do no harm nohow!"

"But it isn't nice to fight," said the mother of Bunny and