Bunny Brown and his sister Sue and their trick dog

by Laura Lee Hope

After a little talk the boys decided on this and that is what they were doing when Mrs. Brown came to the barn and asked about Sue.

“We’ll help find her,” said Bunny.

“She must be around here somewhere,” added George.

“’Cause she was here only a little while ago,” remarked Charlie.

The trapeze, with the seat for Patter partly finished, was left hanging by its swaying ropes, and the boys scattered through the barn calling Sue’s name and looking for her. Mrs. Brown also looked, and so did Patter.

But for all their looking and for all their calling, Sue could not be found. They tossed aside the hay, for once Sue had gone into the barn to play with Bunny, and she had fallen asleep. Some hay was scattered over her, and it was a long time before she was found. Mrs. Brown had been very anxious then and Bunny was so frightened that he cried.

“So this time we must first make sure that Sue isn’t under the hay,” said the little girl’s mother.

The boys searched and tossed the hay this way and that, even looking under the pile they had put on the floor for Patter to jump upon. But Sue was not there.

“Maybe she’s in the oat bin,” suggested Bunny.

Now, as there was only Toby, the pony, and only one old horse, used to haul the boats up on the beach, not many oats were needed, and only a few were kept in the big bin that, formerly, was filled. The bin made a good hiding place and Bunny and Sue often used it when playing games.