rubber blanket toward the building on the shore of the lake.

But alas for the hopes of the children! When they reached the place they
found that what Freddie had thought was a house was only an old empty
cabin. It had once been used by campers or by fishermen, and at one time
may have been a cosy place. But now the glass in the windows was broken,
the door hung sagging by one hinge, and inside there was a rusty stove
which showed no signs of a warm, cheerful fire.

"There's nobody here," said Flossie sadly, after they had looked inside
and had seen that the shack was deserted.

"Well, but it doesn't rain so hard inside as it does outside," remarked
Freddie. "Let's go in. This blanket makes me tired."

The rubber covering was rather heavy for the little children, and they
were glad to step inside the cabin. Even though the roof leaked in
places, there were spots where it did not. Picking out one of these
spaces, Freddie moved some boxes over to it, and he and his sister sat
down, tired and wet, but feeling better now that they were within some
sort of shelter.

"This isn't a very nice place," Flossie observed, looking around.

"No. But it's better'n being outside," stated Freddie. "And maybe
there's a bed in the next room." The cabin consisted of two rooms, the
door between them being shut. "I'm going to look," Freddie went on.

"No, don't!" begged Flossie, clutching Freddie by the sleeve.

"Why not?" he asked. "Don't you want me to look in that room and see if
there's a bed? 'Cause maybe we'll have to stay all night."

"Don't look!" begged Flossie "Maybe--maybe Mr. Blipper is in there!"

"Mr. Blipper?" echoed Freddie. "What would he be doing here? He's at his
merry-go-round."

"No, he isn't at his merry-go-round," insisted Flossie. "'Cause we was
there and he wasn't there when daddy wanted to ask him about the coat
and the lap robe. Maybe Mr. Blipper's in that room, and I don't like
him--he's so cross!"

"Yes, he's cross," agreed Freddie. "And he was mean to Bob Guess. But
maybe Mr. Blipper isn't in that room. I'm going to look!"

But Freddie never did. He got down off the old box he was using for a
seat, under a part of the roof that didn't leak, when Flossie gave a
cry, and pointed out-of-doors.

"Look!" she exclaimed.

"Is somebody coming?" Freddie wanted to know.

"No, but I see a boat," Flossie went on. "We can get in the boat and row
back on the fair grounds and we'll be all right."

Freddie