o the others, and no one
would seriously miss them until after the arrival at the picnic grounds.

But Eleanor and her companion conquered another mile of the way, when
they came to what Harry had feared, two roads that crossed their path
like two sides of a triangle, each leading in a totally different
direction.

Both riders reined up. Harry found a spring and Eleanor felt refreshed
after drinking and bathing her face in the cold water. But which road
should they take? They had both given up all hope of rejoining the rest
of the party on their way to the springs; all the two now dreamed of was
ultimately to arrive there. After careful consideration Harry and
Eleanor chose the wrong road.

The old sulphur springs had been a fashionable summer resort in Virginia
twenty-five years before. It still had its famous sulphur well and a
dozen or more brick cottages in various stages of dilapidation. The big
hotel had been burned down and no one had attempted to rebuild it.

It had been Miss Betsey Taylor's special desire to drink the waters of
the famous sulphur well. She had heard of it as a cure for all the ills
of the flesh.

When the riding party dismounted from their horses Madge and Phil espied
Miss Betsey peering down the old well. Madge had visited sulphur wells
before. "Want a drink, Miss Betsey?" she inquired innocently, coming up
to the old lady. She decided to revenge herself on Miss Betsey for the
excellent daily advice that the maiden lady bestowed upon her.

Miss Betsey looked pleased. "Certainly. I intend to drink the sulphur
water all day, and to have some of it put up in bottles to take back
home with me. I can't say that I exactly like the odor." Miss Betsey's
aquiline nose was slightly tilted.

"Here you are," interrupted Madge, passing Miss Betsey a glass of the
sulphur water.

Miss Betsey took one swallow and gave a hurried gasp. "Take it away,
child," she urged faintly. "It is the most horrible thing I ever tasted
in my life." The old maid's eyes almost twinkled. "I think, my dear,
that I will cure my nerves in a pleasanter way," she decided.

Miss Jenny Ann hurried over to them. "What has become of Nellie, Madge?"
she questioned immediately.

The little captain shook her head. "She will be along soon. She and
Harry Sears were loitering a little behind the rest of us."

But Eleanor and Harry did not arrive. An hour passed, then Miss Jenny
Ann and the girls began to feel uneasy. It was growin