et, and I guess Snap wouldn't let a gypsy come near him."

But Flossie and Freddie were not satisfied until they had looked and had
seen the big black cat cosily asleep, and had heard Snap bark outside
when Bert called to him from a window.

"The gypsies won't take your pets," their father told the small twins,
and then, hand in hand, they went upstairs again to bed.

CHAPTER IV

THE GOAT

"Can't we come, too?"

"We're not afraid of the gypsies--not in daytime."

Flossie and Freddie thus called after their father and Bert, as the two
latter started the next morning to go to find the gypsy camp. The night
had passed quietly, Snap and Snoop were found safe when day dawned, and
after breakfast Mr. Bobbsey and his older son were to go to Lake Metoka
and find where the gypsies had stopped with the gay red and yellow
wagons. They were going to see if they could find any trace of Helen's
doll, and also things belonging to other people in town, which it was
thought the dark-skinned visitors might have taken.

"Please let us go?" begged the little Bobbsey twins.

"Oh, my dears, no!" said Mrs. Bobbsey. "It's too far; and besides----"

"Are you afraid the gypsies will carry us off?" asked Freddie. "'Cause
if you are I'll take my fire engine, and some of the funny bugs that go
around and around and around that we got in New York, and I'll scare the
gypsies with 'em and squirt water on 'em."

"No, I'm not afraid of you or Flossie's being carried off--especially
when your father is with you," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "But there is no
telling where the gypsies are camped, and it may be a long walk before
they are found. So you stay with me, and I'll get Dinah to let you have
a party."

"Oh, that will be fun!" cried Flossie.

"I'd rather play hunt gypsies," said her brother, but when he saw Dinah
come out of the kitchen with a tiny little cake she had baked especially
for him and his sister to have a play-party with, Freddie thought, after
all, there was some fun in staying at home.

"But take Snap with you," he said to Bert. "He'll growl at the gypsy
men, and maybe he'll scare 'em so they'll give back Helen's doll."

"Well, Snap can growl hard when he wants to," said Bert with a laugh.
"But still I think it wouldn't be a good thing to take him to the gypsy
camp. They nearly always have dogs in their camp--the gypsies do--and
those dogs might get into a fight with Snap."

"Snap could beat 'em!" declared Freddie.