THE VILLAGE OF HIDE AND SEEK. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Illustration: _"The now smiling vagabond stood bowing and scraping in the middle of the sunbaked road."_ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ THE VILLAGE OF HIDE AND SEEK BY BINGHAM THOBURN WILSON AUTHOR OF "YE MOUNTAINEER," "THE TALE OF THE PHANTOM YACHT," ETC. ILLUSTRATIONS BY W. HERBERT DUNTON Illustration: Publisher's logo NEW YORK CONSOLIDATED RETAIL BOOKSELLERS 1905 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ COPYRIGHTED, 1905, BY CONSOLIDATED RETAIL BOOKSELLERS REGISTERED AT STATIONERS' HALL, LONDON ------- (_All Rights Reserved_) ------- PUBLISHED, OCTOBER, 1905. {Printed in the United States of America}. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ _Dedication._ TO THE CHILDREN OF POVERTY AND RAGS. TO THE HOUSEHOLD OF SORROW AND BURDENSOME CARE. TO THE LIVES IN THE SHADOW OF THE DARK GAUNT FORM OF WOE. TO THOSE WHOSE EARS HAVE BEEN ATTUNED TO THE HOLLOW, MOCKING VOICE OF GRIEF. TO THE HUMBLEST OF THE HUMBLE, THE POOR; THE VERY POOR. AND MAY THIS STORY PROVE TO BE STARLIGHT IF NOT SUNSHINE. VERY RESPECTFULLY, THE AUTHOR. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENTS. ------- CHAPTER I. "HIS HIGHNESS," THE VAGABOND II. AUNT TWADDLES III. THE PATH UP THE CLIFF IV. THE CAVE IN THE MOUNTAIN V. THE VILLAGE OF HIDE AND SEEK VI. THE QUEEN OF THE DOLLS VII. KIMBO, THE GIANT VIII. THE ISLAND OF DREAMS IX. SODA WATER FOUNTAIN X. IN THE VILLAGE OF HIDE AND SEEK ------------------------------------------------------------------------ LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. ------- "Frontisepiece."