that had come down in the night, and the
clay was as slippery as glass. The little boy and girl dug their heels
in, or they tried to, but the clay was hard, as well as slippery.

Down and down they went, faster and faster. Sue tried to dig her fingers
into the clay, but she could not, any more than Bunny, neither of them
could stick the heels of their shoes in. On and on they slid, faster and
faster.

"Oh, dear!" cried Sue. "I wish our dog Splash were here!"

"He couldn't stop us!" replied Bunny. "He'd slide too, same as we're
sliding."

"Well--well, anyhow!" said Sue, almost ready to cry, "he--he could pull
me out when I fall in the water--an'--an' I'm goin' to fall in, Bunny! I
know I am! I'm goin' to fall in! Oh, dear!"

"Never mind, Sue. I'll fall in with you, and I'll pull you out. It isn't
deep."

"No, but it's aw--awful muddy, Bunny!"

Bunny did not have time to answer. He only had time to yell:

"Look out, Sue! Here we go in!"

And--"splash!" in went Bunny Brown and his sister Sue. Right in the
shallow pond of muddy water they slid, sitting down. It did not hurt
them, for the clay was soft and smooth where the water covered it. But,
though the two children were not hurt--oh, so dirty and muddy as they
were! They had made such a hard splash into the puddle that the water
was sprinkled all over them, like a shower from a fountain.

For a moment, after sliding in, and coming to a stop, Bunny and Sue
looked at one another, not saying a word.

"Well," said Bunny, after a bit, with a long breath, "you didn't get
hurt; did you, Sue?"

"No, not hurt, Bunny--but--but look at my--my dress!"

Sue's lips quivered, and her eyes filled with tears.

"Don't care," said Bunny kindly. "I'm all mud, too."

"Le--let's go home," Sue went on. "I must get a clean dress. And I don't
want any more frogs, Bunny."

"I guess I don't, either. We'll let 'em go."

Bunny tried to get up from where he was sitting in the puddle of muddy
water and clay, but it was so slippery that, almost as soon as he stood
on his feet, he went down again.

"Oh! Oh!" cried Sue. "You're splashing me more, Bunny!"

"I--I couldn't help it," he said. He looked at Sue and laughed.

"What are you laughin' at?" she asked.

"At you. You do look so funny! There's a lump of clay right on the end
of your nose!"

"Oh, is there?" Sue reached for her pocket handkerchief to wipe off the
mud, for she did not like a dirty face. But she found that her