o be sure it was still there. "If you will just
tell me what color you like best I'll send a note to the governor and
ask him to have them painted that way."

"How sweet of you," mocked Bess, and a moment later grasped her chum's
arm in fright. "Did you see that?" she cried, as the driver put on his
brakes and they stopped within about two inches of the back of a great
lumbering truck. "I'm afraid this driver is going to kill us before ever
we can get to the dock."

"Never mind, honey," said Nan soothingly, though she herself had been
considerably startled at the close call. "Papa Sherwood says all the
drivers are like that in New York, and yet there are very few accidents.
We must be near the dock, anyway."

"Isn't that horrid?" cried Bess with one of her quick changes of
interest. "Just think, we'll have to go and leave New York before we
have really seen anything of it."

Nan shrugged her shoulders helplessly.

"I thought you weren't enjoying your ride," she said, "and here you are
bemoaning the fact that it is nearly over. Bess, I give you up."

Bess merely chuckled, and a few minutes later insisted upon stopping the
machine while she got out and bought some oranges from a tempting
fruit-stand.

"Now," she said, proudly exhibiting her purchase to Nan when the car was
once more bumping onward over cobblestones toward the dock, "we sha'n't
starve on our trip, anyway. Oh, look, Nan; we're there!" she cried,
pointing excitedly out of the window. "See that thing over there that
looks like something between a cave and a barn with a sign over it? That
must be the entrance to one of the docks. Yes, see the people going in?
And there's another and another. Oh, oh!"

"For goodness' sake, sit still," commanded Nan. "You're spilling all the
oranges."

"My, what a joy killer you are, Nan Sherwood," sighed Bess, as she
rebelliously stuffed the bag of oranges into her already over-filled
suitcase. "What are a few oranges more or less at a glorious time like
this?"

Then the taxicab left the rough pavement and rolled along over the
smooth asphalt. On all sides of them were trucks and autos, with here
and there a horse-drawn vehicle. The noise was something awful.

"Goodness gracious, how different from the quietness at the Hall!"
remarked Bess.

"And how different even from Tillbury," returned Nan.

"What a lot of foreigners here, Nan."

"I guess they come from the ships. The docks are all along here, so I've
bee