"Bland's the gardener," explained Murtagh to Adrienne, "and he always tries to catch us when we bag the fruit."
"But just as we were nearly in the garden," continued Winnie, "what should we hear but Bland coming, tramp, tramp, along the gravel; and Bobbo called out, 'I say, he's got a lantern, an' he's sure to see us.' And, of course, that made him hear us, and it would be all up if we couldn't get hid quick enough; so I jumped down and squeezed in under a bush, but when Bobbo tried to get down, one of the spikes of the gate went through his knickerbockers, and there he stuck. On came Bland, and called out, 'Ha! ye good-for-nothing vagabones; it's caught ye are this time!' and, lo and behold! it wasn't Bland at all, but a great big policeman. He pulled Bobbo down off the gate, and didn't he tear a fine hole in the back of his knickerbockers! Poor Bobbo got in such a fright he couldn't say a word, so I jumped out from under the bush, and I said: 'We're not stealing! we're only going to take some apples for tea. We're ladies and gentlemen.' So he looked at the hole in Bobbo's clothes as if he wasn't quite sure, so I said, 'You tore that, taking him off the gate!' Bobbo did look awfully untidy though, with the light of the lantern shining full on the raggy part of him. Then he turned the lantern on to my face, and laughed, and said, 'I'm sure I beg your pardon, Miss; I hadn't an idea it would be any one but ragamuffins out o' the village about this wild night.'
"So I said, very politely, you know: 'Please would you just help us over the gate? It's so very high to climb when the bars are slippery with rain.' So he helped us both over, and then I said: 'Would you mind just standing about here till we come back? And if you hear Bland coming, give a good loud whistle, will you?' So he said he would, and we ran off and got the apples, and then he helped us back over the gate again, and we gave him some apples, and here we are. By the bye, Bobbo, I've left my hat up in that first apple tree. But wasn't it fun making the policeman keep watch for us?"
"Awfully jolly!" said Murtagh. "What's his number? we'll make him do it to-morrow night, too. No, no, Winnie; that's not the way to settle those apples. Put the streaked one next the rosy one. So. Now put a yellow one, and a Virginia creeper leaf. There; that's it! You've no more eye for color than a steam-engine."
Just as Winnie stopped speaking, the schoolroom door was pushed slowly open, and Rosie entered, carefully holding in both hands a salver with some refreshment. "You look so tired," she said to Adrienne, "that I thought you'd better have this without waiting for tea."
"Thank you," said Adrienne. It was just what she needed, and as she put the glass back upon the salver, she added gratefully, "You are accustomed to be mistress of a house, I see."
Rosie flushed with pleasure, and replied: "There's nobody but me except when Cousin Jane's here. I'll go and see now about hurrying tea; I can't think what they're taking such a time for."
"But my room," suggested Adrienne again; "if I might go to it first, I am so dusty."
"Oh, yes!" said Rosie, "I'll be back in a minute;" and she departed on her errand to the kitchen.
"I'll show you your room, if you like," said Winnie, jumping up from the floor. "Come along!"