Produced by Avinash Kothare, Tom Allen, Charles Franks and
the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.
"I don't think we'd better go home that way, Helen."
"Why not? Mr. Bassett won't care—and it's the nearest way to theroad."
"But he's got a sign up—and his cattle run in this pasture," saidRuth Fielding, who, with her chum, Helen Cameron, and Helen's twinbrother, Tom, had been skating on the Lumano River, where the ice wassmooth below the mouth of the creek which emptied into the largerstream near the Red Mill.
"Aw, come on, Ruthie!" cried Tom, stamping his feet to restorecirculation.
The ground was hard and the ice was thick on the river; but theearly snows that had fallen were gone. It was the day afterChristmas, and Helen and Ruth had been at home from school atBriarwood Hall less than a week. Tom, too, who attended the MilitaryAcademy at Seven Oaks, was home for the winter holidays. It wassnapping cold weather, but the sun had been bright this day and forthree hours or more the friends had enjoyed themselves on the ice.
"Surely Hiram Bassett hasn't turned his cows out in this weather,"laughed Helen.
"But maybe he has turned out his bull," said Ruth. "You know howugly that creature is. And there's the sign."
"I declare! you do beat Peter!" ejaculated Tom, shrugging hisshoulders. "We are only going to cut across Bassett's field—it won'ttake ten minutes. And it will save us half an hour in getting to themill. We can't go along shore, for the ice is open there at the creek."
"All right," agreed Ruth Fielding, doubtfully. She was younger thanthe twins and did not mean to be a wet blanket on their fun at anytime; but admiring Helen so much, she often gave up her owninclinations, or was won by the elder girl from a course which shethought wise. There had bee