to another seat, and of course there was one who
could not find a seat, and he or she had to be driver. That broke up the
stiffness. Then they had "Cross Questions," where you answered for your
neighbor, and he answered for you, and you were always forgetting and
had to pay a forfeit. Of course they had to be redeemed.

Charles Reed came, though his mother couldn't decide until the last
moment. He looked very nice, too. He had to sing a song, and really, he
did it in a manly fashion.

But the little girl thought "Oats, peas, beans," the prettiest of all.
It nearly foreshadowed kindergarten songs. The children stood in a ring
with one in the middle, and as they moved slowly around, sang:

"Oats, peas, beans, and barley grows,
'Tis you nor I nor nobody knows
How oats, peas, beans, and barley grows.
Thus the farmer sows his seeds,
Thus he stands and takes his ease,
Stamps his foot and claps his hands
And turns around to view his lands;
A-waiting for a partner,
A-waiting for a partner,
So open the ring and take one in,
And kiss her when you get her in."

The children had acted it all, sowing the seed, taking his ease,
stamping, clapping hands, and whirling around. They looked very pretty
doing it. Bessy Ritter had asked Ben to stand in first and he had
obligingly consented. Of course he chose her. Then the children sang
again:

"Now you're married you must obey,
You must be true to all you say,
You must be kind, you must be good,
And keep your wife in kindling-wood.
The oats are gathered in the barn,
The best produce upon the farm,
Gold and silver must be paid,
And on the lips a kiss is laid."

The two took their places in the ring, and Jim next sacrificed himself
for the evening's good and chose another of Josie's cousins. Then John
Robert Charles manfully took his place and chose Josie Dean. So they
went on until nearly all had been chosen. Then Mrs. Dean asked them out
to have some refreshments. They were all very merry indeed. Mr. Dean
sang some amusing songs afterward, and they all joined in several school
songs.

"I've just been happy through and through," admitted Charles. "I wish I
could give a party. You should come and plan everything," he whispered
to Josie.

It was time to go home then. There was a Babel of talk as the little
girls were finding their wraps, mingled with pleasant outbursts of
laughter. Mr. Dean was t