LITMIR.BIZ

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at moderate speed, for she had no wish to frighten Nan, and, too, she had promised her father to be very careful.

      They were about halfway home, when Patty saw a cow in the road ahead.

      “I wish that old cow would get out of the way,” she said. “A cow has no business to be in the middle of the road like that.”

      She slowed down, and the car crawled along behind the cow, but the indifferent animal paid no heed to the motor or the horn, and ambled along in mild indifference.

      “Oh, get out of the way!” cried Patty, exasperatedly. Then, more coaxingly, “Please, cow, nice cow, do get out of the way.”

      This brought no response, and Patty grew angry again.

      “Shoo! Cow! Shoo! Get out of the road! If you don’t, I’ll—I’ll——” But she could think of no direful deed that would affect the cow, so she paused. Then she resorted to sarcasm: “A nice sort of cow you are, anyway! Alone and unattended on a country road! Why, anybody might kidnap you! Where’s your cow-herd, or whatever you call him?”

      “Patty, don’t be silly,” said Nan, choking with laughter. “Get out and chase the cow away. Hit her with a stick, or something. Throw a little stone at her,—just a very little one. Don’t hurt her!”

      Patty’s eyes grew round with horror.

      “Why, Nan Fairfield, I’m more afraid of that cow than of all the automobiles in the world! I’m terribly afraid of cows! I’m more afraid of cows than of anything, except a mouse! But a mouse wouldn’t block up the road so dreadfully. Nan, you get out and chase the cow.”

      “No,—no,” said Nan, shuddering. “I’m afraid of cows, too. Patty, I’ll tell you what! Steer around the cow!”

      “Just the thing! I believe there’s just about room enough. If she’ll only stay in the middle, now. Which side do you think there’s more room, Nan?”

      “On the right. Go round her on the right.”

      There was plenty of room, and Patty steered carefully out toward the right, and passed the cow safely enough.

      “Hurrah!” she cried, but she hurrahed a trifle too soon.

      As she directed her car back to the hard road, she discovered that she had sidetracked into a very sandy place. The front wheels of her car were all right, but the hind wheels were stuck in the sand,—one but a little, the other deeply.

      “Put on more speed!” cried Nan. “Hurry, before it sinks in deeper!”

      Patty put on more speed, which, contrary to her intent, made the hind wheels sink lower and lower in the soft sand. The car had stopped, and no effort of Patty’s could start it.

      She looked at Nan with a comical smile.

      “Adventure No. 1!” she said. “Oh, Nan, we can’t get home by six! Indeed, I don’t see how we can ever get home.”

      “Are you frightened, Patty?”

      “No; there’s nothing to be frightened about. But I’m—well, hopping mad just about expresses my feelings! You see, Nan, it’s like a quicksand; the more we struggle to get out, the deeper we get in.”

      “H’m; what are you going to do?”

      “Just plain nothing, my lady; for the simple reason that there’s nothing to do.”

      “And do you propose to sit here all night?”

      “That’s as Fate wills it! Do you suppose father will come to look for us,—say, along toward midnight?”

      “Patty, don’t be a goose! Fred will be scared to death!”

      “Because I’m a goose? Oh, no! he knows I am, already. But, Nan, I’ve an idea. If I were only strong enough,—or if you were,—we could lift out one of those fence rails, and stick it in the sand in front of that deepest wheel, and get her out.”

      “Patty, how clever you are! How do you know that?”

      “Oh, I know it well enough. My general gumption tells me it. But,—we’re neither of us strong enough to boost it out of the fence and under the wheel in the right way.”

      “But we might do it together.”

      “We might try. Come on, Nan, let’s make the effort. Bother that old cow, anyway! But for her, we’d be almost home now.”

      They got out of the car, and, with plucky effort, tried to dislodge a fence rail. But it was a fairly new and a well-made fence, and the rails would not come out easily. They tried one after another, but with no success.

      “Well, Nan, here’s my only solution to this perplexing situation. We can’t sit here and let father lose his mind worrying about it, and thinking we’re ground under our own chariot wheels. So one of us must stay here with the car, and the other walk home and tell him about it.”

      “Walk home! Why, Patty, it must be five miles!”

      “I daresay it is, and I’d just as lieve walk it, but I hate to leave you here alone. So you can take your choice, and I’ll take the other.”

      “But, Patty, that’s absurd! Why not let one of us walk to some nearby house and ask for help?”

      “Capital idea, but where’s the nearby house? There’s none in sight.”

      “No, but there must be one nearer than home.”

      “Yes; and, when you go trailing off to look for it, you’ll get lost. Better go straight home, Nan.”

      “And leave you here alone? I won’t do it!”

      “Then there seems to be a deadlock. Oh, hey! Hi! Mister!! I say! Whoo-oo-ee!”

      Nan turned, frightened at Patty’s hullabaloo, to see a man just disappearing round a fork in the road. He had not seen them, and, unless Patty’s quick eyes had spied him, and her sudden call had reached his ears, he would have been gone in a moment. As it was, he turned, stared at them, and then came slowly over to them. He was a rough, but not unkindly-looking fellow, probably a farm labourer, and apparently a foreigner. He spoke no English, but Patty made him understand by gestures what she wanted him to do. A look of admiration came into his stolid eyes, at the idea of Patty knowing enough to use the fence rail, and his powerful strength soon removed a rail, and placed it endwise under the wheel of the captive car. Another was placed under the other hind wheel, and, after much endeavour and slipping and coaxing, the car was once again freed from the sand, and stood proudly on the hard road.

      Patty thanked the man prettily, and, though he couldn’t understand a word, he understood her grateful smiles. More clearly, perhaps, he understood a banknote, which she drew from her purse and gave him, and, with a grateful, if uncouth bow of his awkward head, he trudged away.

      Patty started her car, and soon, at a good rate of speed, they were flying along in the gathering dusk.

Chapter IX.

       Mona at Home

       Table of Contents

      When they reached home it was really after dark, and Patty was prepared for an expected reproof. But Mr. Fairfield came out smilingly to meet them.

      “Accident No. 1?” he asked. “What was it? Power gave out, punctured tire, or misjudged distance?”

      “None of those,” cried Patty, gaily; “but it was a real accident, and a real unavoidable and unforeseeable one!”

      “Oh, of course!” chaffed her father; “accidents are always unavoidable, and never the fault of the person driving!”

      “I’m

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