epy Snake Creek, as it goes past you. You will know!" Elnora
turned to Freckles.

He nodded. "Who better?" he asked. "This is secure while the children
are so small, but when they grow larger, we are going farther north,
into real forest, where they can learn self-reliance and develop
backbone."

Elnora laid away the violin. "Come along, children," she said. "We must
get at that backbone business at once. Let's race to the playhouse."

With the brood at her heels Elnora ran, and for an hour lively sounds
stole from the remaining spot of forest on the Island, which lay beside
the O'More cottage. Then Terry went to the playroom to bring Alice her
doll. He came racing back, dragging it by one leg, and crying: "There's
company! Someone has come that mamma and papa are just tearing down the
house over. I saw through the window."

"It could not be my mother, yet," mused Elnora. "Her boat is not due
until twelve. Terry, give Alice that doll----"

"It's a man-person, and I don't know him, but my father is shaking his
hand right straight along, and my mother is running for a hot drink and
a cushion. It's a kind of a sick person, but they are going to make him
well right away, any one can see that. This is the best place.

"I'll go tell him to come lie on the pine needles in the sun and watch
the sails go by. That will fix him!"

"Watch sails go by," chanted Little Brother. "'A fix him! Elnora fix
him, won't you?"

"I don't know about that," answered Elnora. "What sort of person is he,
Terry?"

"A beautiful white person; but my father is going to 'colour him up,' I
heard him say so. He's just out of the hospital, and he is a bad person,
'cause he ran away from the doctors and made them awful angry. But
father and mother are going to doctor him better. I didn't know they
could make sick people well."

"'Ey do anyfing!" boasted Little Brother.

Before Elnora missed her, Alice, who had gone to investigate, came
flying across the shadows and through the sunshine waving a paper. She
thurst it into Elnora's hand.

"There is a man-person--a stranger-person!" she shouted. "But he knows
you! He sent you that! You are to be the doctor! He said so! Oh, do
hurry! I like him heaps!"

Elnora read Edith Carr's telegram to Philip Ammon and understood that he
had been ill, that she had been located by Edith who had notified him.
In so doing she had acknowledged defeat. At last Philip was free. Elnora
looked up with a radiant face