pick it up, Mother?"

"Yes. Why not?" said Mrs. Bunker, glancing about, and seeing no one who
might have dropped it. "Why shouldn't you pick it up, Rose?"

"'Cause maybe it's an April fool one, and somebody will pull it away
with a string," the little girl answered.

CHAPTER VII

A SAD LETTER

April fool was something Mrs. Bunker had not thought of as she looked at
the pocketbook lying on the sidewalk. As Rose had said, it did seem to
have money in it, but perhaps it might be stuffed with paper.

Then, too, there might be a string tied to the wallet, and boys, hidden
somewhere near, might pull on the string and yank the pocketbook away
just as soon as any one stooped over to pick it up. Still Mrs. Bunker
said to Rose:

"This is too late for April fool. This is August, and no boys would
think of playing such tricks now."

"Maybe not, Mother," Rose agreed. "I just thought maybe that was what it
was there for. But I'll pick it up. I hope it's got a lot of money in
it!"

With shining eyes Rose stooped to pick up the purse.

"Open it, Rose, and see what is inside," said Mrs. Bunker. "We may find
out the name of the owner, and, if she lives around here--for it looks
like a lady's pocketbook--we can take it to her."

"But we don't know the streets, Mother," said Rose.

"We can ask a policeman. If we find the name of the owner, and it is too
far for us to go where she lives, we can give the pocketbook to the
policeman and he will deliver it for us. But open it and see what is in
it," returned Mrs. Bunker.

The pocketbook opened easily enough, and as Rose turned back the flap
she gave a cry of surprise.

"What's the matter?" asked the excited child's mother.

"Oh! Oh, it's just _full_ of money!" cried the little girl. "It's piled
full of money, Mother! Look!"

She hurried to her mother's side with the opened pocketbook. Surely
enough, when Mrs. Bunker looked, she saw a roll of green bills. Just
how many were in the pocketbook she could not tell.

"Well, this is quite a find!" said Rose's mother. "The person who lost
this will feel bad about it. We must try to find the owner."

"Oh, can't I keep it?" asked Rose.

"Of course not," said her mother. "Whenever we find anything we must try
to discover the owner and give the lost thing back. If you lost your
doll you'd want whoever found her to give her back; wouldn't you?"

"Oh, of course, Mother! But Sue--she isn't a _pocketbook_ full of
money."

"