"But I didn't know we had to take on a whole Mother Goose set of fairy tales with a little two cent shoe-string shop," protested Nancy. "Of course it will serve me right if I get into an awful squall. My rebellion against the long-loved house-work idea, is sure to get me into some trouble, isn't it?" "Who doesn't rebel secretly?" admitted Ruth. "Isn't it fairer to up and say so than to be always hoping the dishpan will spring a leak, and dish-towels will blow away?" Ruth was making rapid strides in gaining Nancy's affection. She was so unaffected, so frank, and so sensible. Vera wasn't saying much but she was poking a lot. Just now she was fussing with some discarded and disabled toys. She held up a helpless windmill. "Imagine!" she said, simply. "Well, what of it?" asked Ruth. "It was pretty--once!" "Pretty! As if anyone around here would ever buy a thing like that." "Let me see it," Nancy said. "I'm sure Ted would love 'a thing like that.' He'd spend days tinkering with it." Nancy took the red and blue tin toy and inspected it critically. As she wound a tiny key a little bell tinkled. "Lovel-lee!" cried Ruth. "That's a merry wind. Or is it a tinkle-ly wind? Anyway it's cute. Save it for the small brother, Nancy. And I think he's awfully cute. Here's something else for his camp," she offered, handing Nancy over a red, white and blue popgun. "Great!" declared Nancy. "Ted has been too busy to rummage yet, but he's sure to be thrilled when he does go at it. Yes, I think Ted is cute, and I hope the disappearing man won't cast a spell on him," she finished, laughing at the idea, and meanwhile inspecting the toy windmill. "You can joke," warned Vera, "but my grandmother insists that what everyone says must be true, and everyone says Baldy Sanders is freakish." "Baldy," repeated Nancy gaily. "I noticed that. But he has enough of eyes to make up for the lost hair. I never saw such merry twinkling eyes." "Really!" Vera commented. "I never notice men's eyes." "Just their bald heads," teased Ruth. "Now Vera, if Mr. Sanders is a professor, as some folks claim, and if he ever gets our class in chemistry, I'm afraid you would just have to notice his merry, twinkling eyes. Anyhow," and Ruth cocked up a faded little blue muslin pussy cat, "he's merry, and that is in his favor. What are you doing with that windmill, Nancy?" "Inspecting it. It's a queer kind of windmill. Look at the cross pieces on top and this tin cup." All three girls gave their attention to the queer toy. It was, as Nancy had said, different from the usual model. It had cross pieces on top instead of on the side, and one piece was capped off with a metal cup.