winkles too. You shall taste them yourself.'

'Oh, Georgie, do throw them into the sea! They are horrid!' she
exclaimed, shuddering. 'I don't like this bay, or the dark cruel rocks,
or the waiting for Thomas, with the tide coming in to drown us if he is
late! And now those dirty shells--alive and horrid--which you want to
eat!'

Georgie laughed with such shouts of merriment that Alan told him to shut
up; he would have the boat over if he kicked about in that manner. But
his laugh was so infectious that Estelle was forced into joining,
especially when, to please her, he threw the shells into the waves as
they landed.

The wood, dignified by the name of the Wilderness, led up to the rear of
the Moat House. It was of great extent, reaching to the coastguard path
on the cliffs, and stretching far across the coast-line. In the midst of
it was the old ruined summer-house, in which the children delighted. It
was not in the least like a summer-house, nor could anybody give a
reason for its name. It was, in fact, all that remained of the ancient
rampart which had once surrounded the Moat House. It was fifteen feet
high, and was probably the last of many such three-cornered towers. Now
the flanking walls had either disappeared altogether, or they had become
little moss-covered mounds of stone. Trees and bushwood hid it from view
on one side; broken steps went up a second, which led more or less
perilously to the top, where a table, some rough wooden seats, and a
rustic chair or two showed that it was used by the children, if not by
their elders. On the third side, where the ivy had grown thick with age,
and stood out from the wall like a tree, was a heavy oak door, clamped
with iron and studded with large nails. In front of this spread a soft
carpet of ground ivy and moss, just now starred with celandines and
morning glories, while the bright, fresh green of the slender birches
drooped over it, and cast trembling shadows.

The door had a special attraction for the children. They would often
stand and gaze at it, making up long stories of what might be found
inside. Each in turn had tried to induce the old gardener, Peet, to open
it, but as yet no persuasions or arguments had had any effect upon him.
He refused to let them have even one peep.

Great was Estelle's surprise, then, when passing it on their return from
the boat, to find it open. She rubbed her eyes, and caught hold of Alan
in her excitement, pointing with her oth