“Ah, so there you are!” he called out, and then pushed the barrel to one side.
There was Snap, and in front of him lay the doll with a short string attached to it. Whatever had been tied to the other end of the string was now missing.
“Snap, you’re getting to be a bad dog!” said Mr. Bobbsey sternly. “Give me that doll this instant!”
The dog made no movement to keep the doll, but simply licked his mouth with his long, red tongue, as if he was still enjoying what he had eaten.
“If you don’t behave yourself after this I’ll have to tie you up, Snap,” warned Mr. Bobbsey.
And then, acting as if he knew he had done wrong, the big dog slunk out of sight.
“Here you are, Helen!” called Flossie’s father, as he came back. “Here’s your doll, all right, and she isn’t hurt a bit. But the cookie is inside of Snap.”
“Did he like it?” Helen wanted to know.
“He seemed to—very much,” answered Mr. Bobbsey with a laugh. “He made about two bites of it, after he got it loose from the string by which you had tied it to the doll.”
Helen dried her tears on the backs of her hands, and took the doll which had been carried away by the dog. There were a few cookie crumbs sticking to her dress, and that was all that was left of the treat she had been taking to a make-believe poor lady.