“Oh, that will be nice!” cried Polly, squeezing her friend’s arm, and beaming on her right-hand neighbor.

“Am I going too fast for you?” was the next question.

“Not a bit!”—­“It is lovely!”—­“The faster the better!” came in merry succession from the back seat.

They spun along the smooth road with greater speed, and the freshness of the country was brought to them in one steady sweep.

“This is glorious!” breathed Miss Sterling.

“I never rode in one of these cars before,” confessed Mrs. Adlerfeld blithely.

“Indeed!” a pleasant light flashed in the driver’s eyes.  “And how do you like it?”

“Oh, I like it very!” The wrinkled face was radiant.  “It makes me so glad and happy!”

“We will have another ride some day,” was the unexpected response, which made the little Swedish woman fairly gasp in delight.

The gayety of the party came to a sudden end when Mr. Randolph drove into the Home grounds.

“Please, not a word to anybody about my fall,” said Miss Sterling in a low voice, as she was helped from the car.

“Is that wise?” It was asked in a surprised tone.

“Extremely wise,” was the smiling response.  “I might wish to go picnicking again, you know.”  Her twinkling eyes met his puzzled face.

“As you will,” he promised gravely.

There was time for no more.  The others were waiting.

Polly kept beside Miss Sterling who walked without a limp and gave no sign of the torture she was undergoing.

“Go right upstairs!” whispered Polly.  “I’ll report for all of you when I come down.”

“You needn’t go up, the rail will be sufficient.”

But Polly would not relinquish her charge until she saw her safe in her room.

“How came you to be riding with the president of the Home?” Miss Sniffen looked down sternly on Polly.

“Oh! did you see us come?  Wasn’t it lucky—­nice that Mr. Randolph had his car?  And wasn’t he good to bring us?”

“Was the meeting by arrangement?” questioned Miss Sniffen severely.

“Oh, no!  I was so surprised!  We all were!  He happened to go over there to see about some trees, and so stayed to luncheon.  We had a lovely time!  Wasn’t it queer it happened to be his land?”

Miss Sniffen’s thin lips drew themselves into a sarcastic line.

“‘Happened!’ There seems to have been a number of happenings.”

“I know it,” Polly agreed demurely, looking at her watch to make sure of the time.  “We came in about five minutes ago, Miss Sniffen.  It was twenty minutes of six just before we got here.”

“What time did you leave the picnic grounds?”

“I think it was four o’clock.”

“Did you come directly back?” Miss Sniffen’s hard eyes fastened on Polly’s face.

“Oh, no!  We had a beautiful ride!  We went way out on the Flaxton road, along by the river.  Don’t you think Mr. Randolph is a very lovable man?”