"And beside the silver runnel, on a little heap of sand, I saw the green gnome sitting with his cheek upon his hand." Τ HEIR mother made no objection in the morning when she found what they wished to do, but after they had helped her with her work, she put up a nice lunch for them, tied their sunbonnets, and let them start. The little light boat lay close to the bank, and after they had stepped carefully in, it floated gently with the stream. As they passed Mr. Wray's farm they saw Ned leading his father's horse down to drink. They nodded and smiled at him, and he stood watching them as they went by. "He must feel surprised," said Janet, complacently. And now they floated through the low green meadows again, but this time without alarm, for they had the day before them, and they wanted to see where their stream went. The sun shone bright and warm, the birds were singing overhead, the little fish were swimming and leaping in the water, and the Kanter girls were as happy as they could be. After the meadows came a thick wood, where alders grew down close to the banks and shaded the water. In one place two or three black bears came to the very edge and growled, but the children were not afraid, for the good little stream swept them bravely and merrily by. Then there were more farms, with orchards and sloping fields, but the children could not tell whose they were, for they had never been so far before. Then came a little straggling village, and there were boys down at the bank sailing chips. The stream went faster now, there were more farms, more forests, more villages, but the Kanter girls did not grow tired, it was all new and wonderful to them. By and by, the banks, instead of being green and mossy, became sandy, with rocks here and there, and suddenly Janet exclaimed: Why, our stream is a river! See how wide it has grown! And, oh! Prue, Prue, what is all that dazzling blue space ahead that does not look like sky?" "It must be the sea!" said Prue, rapturously. All her life long she had wanted to behold the sea. Their stream, which was a river now, swept them rapidly and resistlessly along. They passed islands with lighthouses, they passed ships with white sails, till finally they seemed to pass everything, and to be alone with the sea and sky. "Now we have gone far enough," said Janet; "let's eat our lunch and go back." So while Prue uncovered the basket, Janet called out, "Go back, stream, go back!" But nothing happened, the face of the waters did not change at all, and the boat still bounded on. 66 Perhaps I ought to say river," thought Janet, so she called out again, "Go back, river, go back!" Still nothing happened, and the boat bounded on. Janet began to feel frightened, and Prue looked up wondering. |