Produced by Chris Curnow, Ritu Aggarwal, Joseph Cooper and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net KRISTY'S RAINY DAY PICNIC [Illustration: They were playing that the wax Doll was Sick.] KRISTY'S RAINY DAY PICNIC BY OLIVE THORNE MILLER WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY ETHEL N. FARNSWORTH BOSTON AND NEW YORK HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN CO. COPYRIGHT 1906 BY H. M. MILLER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED _Published October 1906_ CONTENTS I. THE RAINY DAY 1 II. PLAYING DOCTOR; AND WHAT CAME OF IT 5 III. A SCHOOLGIRL'S JOKE 20 IV. ALL NIGHT IN THE SCHOOLHOUSE 27 V. MOLLY'S SECRET ROOM 45 VI. HOW MAMMA RAN AWAY 61 VII. HOW AUNT BETTY MADE HER CHOICE 73 VIII. NORA'S GOOD LUCK 91 IX. ONE LITTLE CANDLE 106 X. THE LOCKET TOLD 123 XI. HOW A DOG SAVED MY LIFE 145 XII. LOTTIE'S CHRISTMAS TREE 156 XIII. CHRISTMAS IN A BAGGAGE-CAR 172 XIV. HOW A BEAR CAME TO SCHOOL 189 XV. HOW LETTIE HAD HER OWN WAY 202 XVI. HOW KATE FOUND A BABY 223 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS THEY WERE PLAYING THAT THE WAX DOLL WAS SICK (page 6) _Frontispiece_ KRISTY STOOD PEERING INTO A WORLD OF DRIZZLING RAIN 2 SHE HAD TO PASS A COTTAGE ALMOST HIDDEN WITH FLOWERS 124 IN THE PARK I FOUND A BABY ... AND I SAT DOWN BESIDE IT 226 KRISTY'S RAINY DAY PICNIC CHAPTER I THE RAINY DAY "I think it's just horrid!" said Kristy, standing before the window, peering out into a world of drizzling rain. "Every single thing is ready and every girl promised to come, and now it has to go and rain; 'n' I believe it'll rain a week, anyway!" she added as a stronger gust dashed the drops against the glass. Kristy's mother, who was sitting at her sewing-table at work, did not speak at once, and Kristy burst out again:--