“There’s been an accident!” said one man.

But it was not so bad as he feared, and he and his companion soon lifted Helen out on solid ground again, a rather frightened little girl, but not in the least hurt.

“I told you to stay away from that hole!” said Miss Bradley, rather severely.  “I was afraid something like this might happen.  It is fortunate it was no worse.  Who started it?”

There was a moment’s pause, and then Helen raised her hand.  She had been crying.

“If—­if you please, Teacher, I went there first,” she stammered.

“Well, I think your fright has been punishment enough for you,” said Miss Bradley kindly, “and we will say nothing more about it.  But if any of you go near that hole again he or she will be kept in after school.  It isn’t that I mind your seeing what the workmen are doing, it is just that it would be dangerous for even grown folks to go too near the edge of the trench, and much more so for you little folk.  So keep away from the hole.  I hope the pipes will be in this week, and the hole closed up.  Now do you all promise to keep away?” she asked.  “Raise your hands!”

Every hand went up, for the boys and girls were fond of their teacher and did not want to cause her worry.

It was a solemn moment, for they all felt that something dreadful might have happened to Helen had the dirt caved in on her.

“Hands down,” said Miss Bradley, and down they went.

Just then the bell rang.  Recess was over, and the lines of boys and girls marched into the schoolhouse once again.

Charlie Star reached for his handkerchief, which he had again stuffed over his toy automobile after he had crowded that toy into his pocket when going back into school after recess.  As he pulled out his handkerchief the auto came with it and fell to the floor.

Suddenly there was a strange buzzing sound in the room.  Neither the teacher nor the girls knew what it was, but Bunny and the boys knew it was Charlie Star’s new toy automobile which he had bought from Mrs. Golden.

With a buzz the busy auto ran from Charlie’s desk straight down the aisle toward Miss Bradley, who was standing in front of her platform.

CHAPTER VII

THE BARN STORE

For a second or two Miss Bradley seemed to pay no attention to the buzzing sound which Bunny, Charlie, and some of the other pupils heard only too plainly.  The teacher was busy thinking whether she had done enough talking to make sure her boys and girls would not again go near the deep hole in the school yard.

“I wouldn’t want any of them to get hurt,” thought Miss Bradley.  “I had better scare them a little now than have any of them harmed the least bit.”

She was thinking what else she might say, to impress on the pupils the danger of the hole, when she seemed to hear, for the first time, the buzzing of Charlie’s auto.