ened it a blast of air rushed in, whirling some dead leaves with
it.

"I guess the fine weather's over," said Orde, looking up at the sky.

A dull lead colour had succeeded the soft gray of the preceding balmy
days. The heavens seemed to have settled down closer to the earth.
A rising wind whistled through the branches of the big maple trees,
snatching the remaining leaves in handfuls and tossing them into the
air. The tops swayed like whips. Whirlwinds scurried among the piles of
dead leaves on the lawns, scattering them, chasing them madly around and
around in circles.

"B-r-r-r!" shivered Carroll. "Winter's coming."

She kept herself busy about the house all the morning; ate her lunch in
solitude. Outside, the fierce wind, rising in a crescendo shriek, howled
around the eaves. The day darkened, but no rain fell. At last Carroll
resolved to take her husband's advice. She stopped for Mina Heinzman,
and the two walked around to the stable, where the men harnessed old
Prince into the phaeton.

They drove, the wind at their backs, across the drawbridge, past the
ship-yards, and out beyond the mills to the Marsh Road. There, on either
side the causeway, miles and miles of cat-tails and reeds bent and
recovered under the snatches of the wind. Here and there showed glimpses
of ponds or little inlets, the surface of the water ruffled and dark
blue. Occasionally one of these bayous swung in across the road. Then
the two girls could see plainly the fan-like cat's-paws skittering here
and there as though panic-stricken by the swooping, invisible monster
that pursued them.

Carroll and Mina Heinzman had a good time. They liked each other very
much, and always saw a great deal to laugh at in the things about them
and in the subjects about which they talked. When, however, they turned
toward home, they were forced silent by the mighty power of the wind
against them. The tears ran from their eyes as though they were crying;
they had to lower their heads. Hardly could Carroll command vision clear
enough to see the road along which she was driving. This was really
unnecessary, for Prince was buffeted to a walk. Thus they crawled along
until they reached the turn-bridge, where the right-angled change
in direction gave them relief. The river was full of choppy waves,
considerable in size. As they crossed, the SPRITE darted beneath them,
lowering her smokestack as she went under the bridge.

They entered Main Street, where was a