The Outdoor Girls on Pine Island | Page 4

out?" It was Betty's
voice, plaintive and half hysterical.
Will and Frank shook the hay from their own eyes and then went to the
rescue of the girls. Then they stared at each other. Gradually the look of
utter bewilderment faded from their faces and a smile flashed from one
to the other like a ray of sunshine.
Then suddenly Mollie laughed. "Oh, you look so funny!" she gasped.
"Just when I thought we were all going to be killed----"
"You get disappointed," Frank finished with a rueful smile. "Just the
same, it's lucky for us that big haystack was just exactly where it is," he
added. "When I hit the rock I sure thought we were all goners."
"Oh, don't," begged Grace, then added, with a shame-faced little smile,
"I'm sorry I made such a fuss--I always am ashamed of myself when

the danger is over."
"You needn't apologize, Grace," said Betty, quickly. "If there's one
time you ought to be excused for making a fuss it's when you think it's
going to be your last chance."
That was Betty all over--bright, generous, fun-loving, the
acknowledged leader of the girls. Grace was tall, graceful, slender, with
a pretty face framed in a wealth of bright hair. She was accustomed to
take life more easily than Betty and, although not a coward in the true
sense of the word, she was always willing to have the other girls go
first. Then there was Mollie, dark eyed and quick tempered, with more
than a touch of the French in her, but Betty's equal in bravery. The last
of the little quartette was Amy Blackford (formerly called Amy
Stonington), who has not yet appeared in this book. Up to a year before
she had been surrounded by a mystery which would have held great
interest for the girls even had they not loved and admired her for her
own good qualities.
Such were the girls who, with Betty's help, were fast recovering their
good spirits.
"If we can back the machine out of this haystack," Frank was saying, "I
guess we had better start for home."
"But don't you think we had better walk," Grace suggested nervously.
"I'm afraid to trust myself to the old thing again."
"Oh, there won't be any danger now," Will assured her. "We can go
back by a roundabout route where there aren't any hills to speed us into
haystacks. How about it, Frank?"
"You're right! We are not going to take any more chances, I can tell
you that." Then, turning to the girl beside him, he added, "How are you
feeling, Betty? Awfully shaken up?"
"Not a bit," she assured him, gaily. "Why, after the first shock I really
enjoyed it."

"That's the way to talk and I'm mighty glad no one's hurt. Now for
home."
After a great number of half starts and sudden stops they succeeded
finally in backing the great machine away from the haystack and out on
the road again.
"Now remember your promise," cried Grace as they started off. "No
more speeding, Frank, and no more hills."
"Right," he sang back, cheerily. "We have had excitement enough for
one day. Just watch me."
And, true to his word, after an hour's roundabout trip, they swung
quietly into Deepdale, without having encountered further mishap on
the way.
CHAPTER III
FORTUNES
Early the next morning Mollie hailed Betty as the Little Captain went
up the street.
"Where to, so early?" she called. "Why didn't you stop for me?"
"Oh, I was going to Amy's first, to find out how Mrs. Stonington is,"
said Betty as she turned back. "Then I was going to stop in to see if you
would go with me to call on Grace. I promised her last night I would
come over this morning."
"But isn't it early?" said Mollie, doubtfully. "Probably Grace won't
even be up yet."
The Little Captain seated herself comfortably on the board step of the
veranda. "Yes she will," she said decidedly. "I told her yesterday that if
I came over this morning and found her in bed eating candy before
breakfast instead of enjoying the wonderful morning air, I'd never come

over again. She knows that I mean it, too."
"Well, in that case, she may be up," laughed Mollie. "If you will wait a
minute I'll go with you to Amy's," she added and ran lightly into the
house.
The girls found Mrs. Stonington very much improved and Amy only
too glad to get out into the glorious sunshine of the summer morning.
As the three chums, clad daintily in white, with a background of
velvety green lawn to set them off, approached the Fords' beautiful
home, they were surprised beyond measure to see Grace swinging
leisurely back and forth in the big hammock