"Well, we found this over by the Avery barn. They have a big scrap pile out there. We couldn't find anything around here that would suit, so we looked, over there. It's just a pile of rubbish, and we knew they wouldn't mind."
"Else you would not have taken it, eh? Anything like apples, for instance, is quite under the ban."
"Yes, indeed," smiled Lark. "We're too old to steal apples."
"Of course," added Carol. "When we need our neighbor's apples, we send Connie. And get nicely punished for it, too, I promise you."
"Quite so! And this exquisite board?"
"Well, we've found a perfectly gorgeous place up in the old tree where we can make a seat. It's quite a ways out from the trunk, and when the wind blows it swings splendidly. But it isn't very comfortable sitting on a thin limb, and so we want a seat. It's a fine place, I tell you. We thought you could nail this securely on to the limbs,—there are two right near each other, evidently put there on purpose for us. See what dandy big nails we have!"
"From the Avery's woodshed, I suppose," he suggested, smiling again.
"Oh, they are quite rusty. We found them in a sack in an old barrel. It was in the scrap heap. We're very good friends with the Averys, very good, indeed," she continued hastily. "They allow us to rummage around at will—in the barn."
"And see this rope," cried Carol. "Isn't it a dandy?"
"Ah! The Avery barn must be inexhaustible in its resources."