"Oh, mamma, come quick!" called Flossie, running along a path at the edge of the wood. "There's a tree over there pouring water, and it isn't raining a drop!"Everybody set out now to look at the wonderful tree, which was soon discovered where Flossie had found it.
"There it is!" she exclaimed. "See the water dropping down!""A maple tree," Harry informed them, "and that sap is what they make maple sugar out of.""Oh, catch it!" called Freddie, promptly holding his cap under the drops.
"It would take a good deal to make a sugar cake," Harry said, "but maybe wecan get enough of it to make a little cake for Freddie."At this the country boys began looking around for young maples, and as small limbs of the trees were broken the girls caught the drops in their tin cups. It took quite a while to get a little, but by putting it all together a cupful was finally gathered.
"Now we will put it in a clean milk bottle," Mrs. Bobbsey said, "and maybe we can make maple syrup cake to-morrow.""Let's have a game of hide-and-seek," Nan suggested.
In a twinkling every boy and girl was hidden behind a tree, and Nan found herself "It." Of course it took a big tree to hide the girls' dresses, and Nan had no trouble in spying Mildred first. Soon the game was going along merrily, and the boys and girls were out of breath trying to get "home free.""Where's Roy?" exclaimed Tom Mason, the little boy's brother. "Hiding somewhere," Bessie ventured, for it only seemed a minutebefore whenthe little fat boy who was Freddie's companion had been with the others.
"But where is he?" they all soon exclaimed in alarm, as call after call brought no answer.
"Over at the maple tree!" Harry thought. "Down at the spring," Nan said. "Looking for flowers," Flossie guessed.
But all these spots were searched, and the little boy was not found. "Oh, maybe the giants have stoled him!" Freddie cried.
"Or maybe the children's hawk has took him away," Flossie sobbed.
Meanwhile everybody searched and searched, but no Roy could they find.
"The boat!" suddenly exclaimed Tom, making a dash for the pond that ranalong at the foot of a steep hill.
"There he is! There he is!" the brother yelled, as getting over the edge ofthe hill Tom was now in full view of the pond.
"And in the boat," called Harry, close at Tom's heels.
"He's drifting away!" screamed Bert. "Oh, quick, save him!"Just as the boys said, the little fellow was in the boat and drifting.
He did not seem to realize his danger, for as he floated along he ran his little fat hand through the water as happily as if he had been in a steam launch, talking to the captain.
"Can you swim?" the boys asked Bert, who of course had learned that usefulart long ago.
"She's quite a long way out," Tom said,
"But we must be careful not to frighten him.See, he has left the oarshere.Bert and I can carry one out and swim with one hand.Harry and Jack,can you manage the other?"The boys said they could, and quickly as the heaviest clothes could be thrown off they were striking out in the little lake toward the baby in the boat. He was only Freddie's age, you know, and perhaps more of a baby than the good-natured Bobbsey boy.
"Sit still, Roy," called the anxious girl from the shore, fearing Roy would upset the boat as the boys neared him. It was hard work to swim and carry oars, but our brave boys managed to do it in time to save Roy. For not a great way down the stream were an old water wheel and a dam. Should the boat drift there what would become of little Roy?
Mrs. Bobbsey and Aunt Sarah were worrying over this as the boys were making their way to the boat.
"Easy now!" called Bert. "Here we are," and at that moment the first pair of swimmers climbed carefully into the boat, one from each side, so as not to tip it over. Jack and Harry were not long in following, and as the boys all sat in the pretty green rowboat with their white under- clothing answering for athletic suits, their looked just like a crew of real oarsmen.
"Hurrah, hurrah!" came shout after shout from the bank. Then as the girls heard the rumble of wheels through the grove they all hurried off to gather up the stuff quickly, and be ready to start as soon as the boys dressed again. The wet under-clothing, of course, was carried home in one of the empty baskets that Freddie ran back over the hill with to save the tired boys the extra walk.
"Here they are! Here they are!" called the girls as the two little fellows, Roy and Freddie, with the basket of wet clothes between them, marched first; then came the two pairs of athletes who proved they were good swimmers by pushing the heavy oars safely to the drifting boat.
"And all the things that happened!" exclaimed Flossie, as John handed her into the hay wagon.
"That made the picnic lively!" declared, John, "and all's well that ends well, you know." So the picnic was over, and all were happy and tired enough to go to bed early that night, as Nan said, seeing the little onesfalling asleep in hay wagon on their way home.
