tfire and
Gregory and Blacky should have plunged in to swim across, when they had
never done such a thing before in all their lives, and of course must
have hated the very touch of water, as all cats do; but I think it was
still more wonderful in Tottontail to have reasoned that if he ran along
the stream for a little distance, he might possibly come to a place
where he could get over by an easier way than swimming, and without
wetting his feet.

[Illustration: The kittens swimming for dear life across the
brook.--PAGE 46.]

The summer was gone before the children felt as if it had fairly begun.
Each of them had had a flower-bed of his own, and ever so many of the
flowers had gone to seed before the children had finished their first
weeding. The little cats had enjoyed the gardens as much as the children
had. When the beds were first planted, and the green plants were just
peeping up, the kittens were very often scolded, and sometimes had their
ears gently boxed, to keep them from walking on the beds; but by August,
when the weeds and the flowers were all up high and strong together,
they raced in and out among them as much as they pleased, and had fine
frolics under the poppies and climbing hollyhock stems.

When the time of Johnny's and Rosy's visit drew near its end, Johnny
felt very sad at the thought of leaving his kittens. They were "just at
the prettiest age," he said; "just beginning to be some comfort," after
all the pains he had taken to train them; and he was very much afraid
they would not be so well taken care of after he had gone. Fred was
going away to school for the winter, and Phil, he thought, would never
have patience to feed thirteen cats each day. However, he did all that
he could to make them comfortable for the winter. He boarded up the
sides of their house snug and warm, so that they need not suffer from
cold; and he made his Aunt Mary promise to give them plenty of milk
twice a day. Then, when the time came, he bade them all good-by one by
one, and had a long farewell talk with his favorite Spitfire. Rosy, too,
felt very sad at leaving them, but not so sad as Johnny.

[Illustration: "Johnny and Rosy bade them good-by, one by one."--PAGE
50.]

Johnny and Rosy and their mother were to spend the winter at their
Grandma Jameson's, in the town of Burnet, only twelve miles from
Mendon, and Johnny said to Spitfire,--

"It isn't as if we were going so far off, we couldn't ever come to see
you. W