ind your lost
doll!"

CHAPTER VI

JOLLY NEWS

Whisker, the big white goat, seemed to know exactly what he was doing,
whether or not it was taking the two smallest Bobbsey twins and Helen
Porter to the woods to find the lost doll. For the goat stepped briskly
along, pulling after him the wagon in which the children rode. They were
bumped about quite a bit, for the path through the woods was anything
but smooth.

In some places there was no path at all, but this did not seem to worry
Whisker. He went along anyhow, now and then stopping to nibble at some
green leaves, and again turning to one side to crop some grass.

"Do you really think he's taking us to my doll?" asked Helen eagerly.

"I--I hope so," answered Flossie, somewhat doubtfully.

"Maybe he is," said Freddie. "Anyhow, the gypsies that took your doll
Mollie came to the woods, and we're in the woods, and maybe the doll is
here and maybe we'll find her."

That was as much as Freddie could think of at one time, especially as he
had to hold the reins that were fast to the bit in Whisker's mouth. For
the goat was driven just as a horse or pony is driven, and Freddie was
doing the driving this time.

At least the little boy thought he was, and that was very near the same
thing. But Whisker went along by himself pretty much as he pleased,
really not needing much driving by the leather reins. And he never
needed to be whipped--in fact, there was not a whip in the wagon, for
the Bobbsey children never thought of using it. They were kind to their
goat.

"Oh, I'm falling out!" suddenly cried Helen, as the wagon went over a
very rough, bumpy place in the path.

"Hold on tight like me," said Flossie. "Anyhow," she went on, as she
looked out of the wagon, "if you do fall you won't get hurted much,
'cause there's a lot of soft moss and leaves on the ground."

"But I'll get my dress dirty," said Helen.

"Then we'll go down to the lake and wash it off," said Freddie, for the
woods in which they now were led down to the shore of the lake.

"Well, I don't want to fall, anyhow," said Helen. "'Most always when I
fall I bump my nose, an' it hurts."

"It's smoother now, and I guess the wagon won't tip over," observed
Freddie, a little later.

They had come now to a wider path in the woods, where it was not so
bumpy, and the wagon rolled easily over the moss and leaves as Whisker
pulled it along.

"It's nice in here," said Flossie, looking about her.

"