"Poor boy!" sighed Mr. Bobbsey. "Life is a hard matter for a little chap with no real home."
In the automobile the lumber man and his two boys went back to Lakeport, passing on their way the house where Mr. Mason lived. The two little girls waved their hands to Freddie and Bert as the boys rode past. But there was no sign of Frank Kennedy.
The sadness of the scene the two Bobbsey boys had witnessed was soon forgotten in the joys of getting ready to go to Meadow Brook. They spent that night in their city house, unpacking only such few things as they needed. When morning came Flossie and Freddie were the first up.
"We're going to the country!" sang Flossie, walking about in a long night-gown that trailed over the floor.
"Going to Meadow Brook!" chanted Freddie. "Where's Snoop? I'm going to take him!"
"And may we take Snap, too?" asked Bert, who had taught the former circus dog many new tricks.
[Illustration: THE BOBBSEY HOUSE WAS SOON A VERY BUSY PLACE]
"Yes, we'll take them both," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "Now hurry, children dear. We are going to leave soon after breakfast, and it is a long ride in the train, you know."
"Are we going to ride in the 'merry-go-round car'?" asked Flossie.
"She means a parlor car, with chairs that swing around," said Nan, with a laugh.