“What’s in there?” asked his sister.

“Lunch for the chestnutting party,” George answered.  “Now you won’t have to worry, Flossie and Freddie.”

“That’s nice!” said the two little twins in a chorus.

Together the children walked down the street, past Mr. Bobbsey’s lumber yard, and then they were out in a part of the city where there were very few houses.  It was almost like the country.  A little later they came to the woods.  The woods were on both sides of a broad road, and before the children reached the clump of trees they could see other boys and girls scurrying around, poking in among the leaves on the ground to get the nuts which had fallen down when the frost cracked open the burrs.

“I hope they’ll leave some for us,” said Nellie Parks.

“Oh, I guess there will be plenty,” returned her brother.

The Bobbsey twins and their friends hurried into the woods.  Flossie and Freddie were the first to begin poking among the leaves with sticks which they picked up.

“Have you found any nuts yet?” asked Freddie, after a minute or two.

“Oh yes, I’ve got one!” cried Flossie.  “I’ve got two—­three—­a whole lot,” and she showed some brown things in her fat little hand.

“Let’s see,” called Bert, and when Flossie held them out to him he laughed and said: 

“Those aren’t chestnuts.  They are acorns.  You have been looking under an oak tree, Flossie.  You must look under a chestnut tree.”

“Aren’t these all chestnut trees?” asked Freddie.

“Oh, no,” replied Bert, whose father had told him something of the different kinds of trees, from which lumber is made.  “There are oak, hickory, maple and elm trees in these woods.  Here, I’ll show you a chestnut tree.”

He pointed one out to the little twins, showing them how they could always tell it afterward by the leaves and bark.

“Look there for chestnuts and maybe you’ll find some,” said Bert.  Flossie threw away the acorns, and she and Freddie began poking in among the leaves again, while the others went to different trees.

Freddie soon called: 

“I’ve found some!  I’ve found some!”

He hurried over to Bert with some shiny brown nuts in his hand.  Each nut had a little “tail” fastened to it.

“Yes, those are chestnuts,” Bert said.  “Now see whether you or Flossie will fill a bag first.”

“I’ve got a whole lot of nuts!” Flossie cried.  “Oh, such a lot.  Come on Freddie and—­Ouch!  Oh dear!” she suddenly cried.

“What is it?” asked Nan, quickly running over to her little sister.  “Did you hurt yourself?”

“Something stuck me in the fingers,” Flossie answered, holding up her chubby hand.

“Maybe it’s a snake,” said Freddie.

“No, it’s only chestnut burr stickers,” said Nan.  “I’ll get them out for you, Flossie.  After this, open the burrs with a stick.  Oh, look here!” she cried, as she glanced down at the ground.  “Flossie has found a whole lot of nuts in a pile!”