rlily. "I don't like it."

Bert's ankle hurt too much for him to continue the quarrel. He felt
himself growing dizzy and he fell back.

"Let us go home," whispered Nan.

"I'll ride you home if you can't walk," put in Charley, who was growing
alarmed.

In the end Bert had to accept the offer, and home he went, with Charley
and Nan pulling him and with the broken sled dragging on behind.

It was all he could do to get into the house, and as a consequence Mrs.
Bobbsey was much alarmed. She took off his shoe and stocking and found
the ankle scratched and swollen, and bathed it and bound it up.

"You must lie down on the sofa," she said. "Never mind the broken sled.
Perhaps your papa can fix it when he comes home."

Bert detested playing the part of an invalid, but he soon discovered
that keeping the ankle quiet felt much better than trying to walk around
upon it. That night Mr. Bobbsey carried him up to bed, and he remained
home for three days, when the ankle became as well as ever. The broken
sled was sent to a nearby cabinet maker, and came back practically as
good as new.

"You must not have anything to do with Danny Rugg," said Mrs. Bobbsey to
her son. "He is very rough and ungentlemanly."

"I'll leave him alone, mamma, if he'll leave me alone," answered Bert.

During those days spent at home, Nan did her best to amuse her brother.
As soon as she was out of school she came straight home, and read to him
and played games. Nan was also learning to play on the piano and she
played a number of tunes that he liked to hear. They were so much
attached to each other that it did not seem natural for Nan to go out
unless her twin brother could go out too.

The first snow storm had been followed by another, so that in the garden
the snow lay deeper than ever. This was a great delight to Freddie and
Flossie, who worked hard to build themselves a snow house. They enlisted
the services of Sam, the stableman, who speedily piled up for them a
heap of snow much higher than their heads.

"Now, chillun, dar am de house," said the colored man. "All yo' hab got
to do is to clear out de insides." And then he went off to his work,
after starting the hole for them.

Flossie wanted to divide the house into three rooms, "dining room,
kitchen, and bedroom," as she said, but Freddie objected.

"'Taint big enough," said the little boy. "Make one big room and call it
ev'rything."

"But we haven't got an _ev'rything_," said Flossie.