“I wanted to, and, oh, I could hardly keep from it!  But I thought if I did it would wake Gracie and scare her to death, and the man would be sure to jump out and kill us at once.”

“Dear child,” Elsie said, “you have shown yourself thoughtful, brave, and unselfish; how proud your father will be of his eldest daughter when he hears it!”

“O Grandma Elsie, do you think he will?  How glad that would make me!  It would pay for all the dreadful fright I have had,” Lulu said, her tones tremulous with joy, as, but a moment ago, they had been with nervousness and fright.

“I am quite sure of it,” Elsie answered, smoothing the little girl’s hair with caressing hand, “quite sure; because I know he loves you very dearly, and that he admires such courage, unselfishness, and presence of mind as you have shown to-night.”

These kind words did much to turn Lulu’s thoughts into a new channel and thus relieve the bad effects of her fright.  But Elsie continued for some time longer her efforts to soothe her into calmness and forgetfulness, using tender, caressing words and endearments; then she left her, with an injunction to try to go immediately to sleep.

Lulu promised compliance, and, attempting it, succeeded far sooner than she had thought possible.

The whole occurrence seemed like a troubled dream when she awoke in the morning.  It was a delicious day in early October, and as soon as dressed she went into the garden, where she found John Hencle already at work, industriously weeding and watering his plants and flowers.

“Goot-morning, mine leetle mees,” he said, catching sight of her, “Was it so goot a night mit you?”

“No,” she said, and went on to tell the story of her fright.

“Dot ish lige me,” he remarked, phlegmatically, at the conclusion of her tale.  “Von nighd I hears somedings what make me scare.  I know notings what he ish; I shust hears a noise, an’ I shumpt de bed out, and ran de shtairs down, and looked de window out, and it wasn’t notings but a leetle tog going ‘Bow wow.’”

“I don’t think it was very much like my fright,” remarked Lulu, in disgust; “it couldn’t have been half so bad.”

“Vell, maype not; but dat Nero ish a goot, kind tog; he bide dramps, but nefer dose nice leetle girl.  Dis ish de great day when dose nice old lady pees von huntred years old.  What you dinks? a fery long dime to live?”

“Yes; very long,” returned Lulu, emphatically.  “I wish I knew papa would live to be that old, for then he’d be at home with us almost forty years after he retires from the navy.”

“Somebody ish call you, I dinks,” said John, and at the same moment Grace’s clear, bird-like voice came floating on the morning breeze, “Lulu, Lulu!” as her dainty little figure danced gayly down the garden path in search of her missing sister.

“Oh, there you are!” she exclaimed, catching sight of Lulu.  “Come into Aunt Wealthy’s house and see the pretty presents everybody has given her for her hundredth birthday.  She hasn’t seen them yet, but she is going to when she comes down to eat her breakfast.”