st toss them into the flames, and they're
gone! What's left is clean and good and useful, and we will make all the
better use of it for having lost what is burning now."

"Isn't it strange, Miss Eleanor," said Bessie King, "that this should
have happened to us so soon after the fire that burned up the Pratt's
farm?"

"Yes, it is," replied Eleanor. "And there's a lesson in it for us, just
as there was for them in their fire. We didn't expect to find them in
such trouble when we started to walk there, but we were able to help
them, and to show them that there was a way of rising from the ruin of
their home, and being happier and more prosperous than they had been
before."

"We're going to do that, too," said Dolly, with spirit. "I felt terrible
when I first saw the place in the light, after the fire was all out, but
it looks different already."

"Mr. Salters will be here soon," said Eleanor. "And now there's nothing
more to do until he comes. We'll have a fine meal--and if you're half as
hungry as I am you'll be glad of that--and we'll spend the afternoon in
getting the place to rights. But just now the best thing for all of us
to do is to rest."

"I'll be glad to do that," said Dolly Ransom, as she linked her arm with
Bessie's and drew her away. "I am pretty tired."

"I should think you would be, Dolly. I haven't had a chance to thank you
yet for what you did for me."

"Oh, nonsense, Bessie!" said Dolly, flushing. "You'd have done it for
me, wouldn't you? I'm only just as glad as I can be that I was able to
do anything to get you away from Mr. Holmes--you and Zara."

"Zara's gone to pieces completely, Dolly. She was terribly
frightened--more than I was, I think, and yet I don't see how that can
be, because I was as frightened as I think anyone could have been."

"I never saw them get hold of you at all, Bessie. How did it happen?"

"Well, that's pretty hard to say, Dolly. You know, after we found out
that that yacht was here just to watch us, I was nervous, and so were
you."

"I think we had reason to be nervous, don't you?"

"I should say so! Well, anyhow, as soon as I saw that the tents were on
fire, I was sure that the men on the yacht had had something to do with
it. But, of course, there wasn't anything to do but try as hard as I
could to help put out the fire, and it was so exciting that I didn't
think about any other danger until I saw a man from the boat that had
come ashore pick Zara up and start