Several family parties were gotten up for their entertainment, and at one of them Cousin Ronald, at Walter's urgent request, exercised his skill in ventriloquism, to the great surprise and delight of the younger folk. They were quite a large company, assembled in the parlors of Dr. Landreth's house, just after leaving the tea-table. Presently a buzzing bee seemed to be flying about among them, now circling around the head of one person and now flying above that of another. They involuntarily tried to dodge it, and sent searching glances here and there in the vain effort to see just what and where it was. It could not be seen. Presently it was no longer heard, and someone said, "We are rid of it, I think; it seems to have gone out of the window." But the words were scarcely spoken when there was a scream from the porch, "Oh, I'm stung! and the bee's on me yet! Somebody come and take it off!" At that the doctor, Walter, and Percy rushed out in response to the entreaty. But the bee's victim seemed to have vanished with wonderful celerity. The porch was entirely deserted. "Gone! gone already! who can she have been?" exclaimed Percy, glancing about in great surprise. "I cannot imagine," said the doctor; then catching sight of Walter's face, which told of suppressed mirthfulness, a sudden recollection came to him; and he added, "Ah, I think I understand it," turned, and went back into the parlor. "Who was it?" asked several voices. "Nobody, apparently," answered the doctor with a smile; and Percy added, "She had strangely disappeared." "Well," said a rough voice, seemingly coming from the hall, "if I was a doctor, and a poor woman got badly stung right here in my own house, d'ye think I wouldn't do something fur her?" "Bring her in here, and I will do what I can for her," replied the doctor. "Hello here, Bet!" called the voice; "I say, go right along in thar and see what he'll do fur ye." "What'll he do? p'raps hurt me worse than the bee has?" snarled a sharp, disagreeable voice. "I guess I won't resk it." "All right then, Bet, let's go," said the other voice; "'taint our way to stay long where we git nothin' but stings." A sound as of shuffling footsteps followed, then all was still. Some of the children and young people ran to the door and windows, hoping to catch sight of the strange couple, but were surprised that they could see nothing of them. But the bee seemed to have come in again and to be buzzing all about the room--now up near the ceiling, now down about the ears of one and another of the company. There were dodgings and curious glances here and there, exclamations of surprise that the creature was not to be seen as well as heard, till their attention was taken from it by the furious barking of a dog, seemingly on the porch, and mingled with it screams of pain and terror in a childish voice; cries of "Oh, take him off! he's biting me! Oh, oh, he'll kill me! Oh, come quick, somebody, before he kills me!"