if you're afraid of the dark, of course," Hortense sniffed.

"Who said I was afraid?" challenged Andy.

"Well, come if you aren't afraid," said Hortense. "But you mustn't make
any noise, of course, or they'll catch us."

Andy looked long at her and swallowed hard.

"I'll come," he said bravely.

CHAPTER V

"_Jeremiah's disappeared again._"

After dinner that night, Grandfather took Hortense on his knee and told
her an exciting story, of pirates and Malay Kris.

"Is it true?" Hortense asked.

"Pretty nearly," said Grandfather. "It might be true."

"If you think things are true, then they are true, aren't they?"
Hortense demanded.

"Perhaps," said Grandfather, wrinkling his forehead. "Philosophers
disagree on that point. Now run off to bed."

Hortense kissed her Grandfather and Grandmother good night and went to
her room.

"I hope you got a good nap to-day," she said to Highboy when she had
closed the door, "because we are going to play hide and seek to-night,
and Andy, who lives next door, is coming over."

"I slept all day," said Highboy, "and I'm fit as a fiddle."

"Why do you say fit as a fiddle?" asked Hortense. "Do fiddles have
fits? Cats have, of course!"

"And dresses," added Highboy, "and things fit into boxes. Your
grandmother says when she puts things into me, 'This will fit nicely,'
so I suppose a fiddle fits or has fits the same way."

"It doesn't seem clear to me," said Hortense.

"How many things are clear?" Highboy demanded.

"Lots of things aren't," Hortense admitted. "Of course, a clear day is
easy."

"And you clear the table," said Highboy.

"And clear the decks for action," said Hortense, "but that's pirates. I
must ask Malay Kris about that. He's seen it happen lots of times.
We'll get him to play to-night."

"Who is Malay Kris?" asked Highboy.

"He's the long, snaky knife that hangs in the parlor," said Hortense.
"Then there's Alligator Sofa, too. We'll get him to play, if he'll wake
up. He's so slow I suspect he'll always be _It_."

Highboy shivered until he creaked.

"They sound fierce and dangerous to me," he said, "worse than Coal and
Ember."

"Perhaps we can set him on Jeremiah and the other one," said Hortense.
"I'm longing to see the bright, round one with prickly sides. I've a
guess as to who it is."

Highboy shivered again.

"Don't mention them in my hearing--please!" he begged. "You never can
tell when Jeremiah is snooping about, and he's a tel