to squeeze in between Nellie and the Captain, who was fumbling at the handle of the door, endeavouring to open it. “I can’t see her, Nell! Where is she?”

“Hold on, can’t you!” grumbled the old sailor, angry with the door for not yielding at once to his efforts. “If you wait a moment you’ll be able to see your ‘aunt Polly’ and everybody else to your heart’s content; that is, as soon as we can get out on to the platform. Bother take the door, how it sticks!” With this exclamation, muttered in a hoarse, stifled voice, by reason of his half-stooping position, the Captain put his knee against the obnoxious door; and this, giving way to his shove, unexpectedly, nearly precipitated him into the arms of Mrs Gilmour, the aunt of our hero and heroine, who had recognised little Nellie’s face at the window and advanced to the side of the carriage, without his perceiving her approach.

“Dear me, Captain Dresser!” she cried with a laugh, just catching him from falling on his face. “I’ve no doubt you are very glad to say me again, but you needn’t be quite so demonstrative in public.”

The Captain rose up, looking very red and confused. “I’m sure I beg your pardon, ma’am,” said he, bowing and laughing, too, as he recovered himself; “but those porters slam and jam the doors so, that they never will open properly when you want to get out quickly!”

His further excuses, however, were cut short by Nellie springing out of the carriage before he could utter another word.

“Oh, aunt Polly!” she exclaimed, hugging the smiling lady, who was a plump merry-looking little body, with dark wavy hair and large, lustrous, almond-shaped eyes, which, strange to say, were of an intense violet blue, presenting a curious contrast. “You dear auntie Polly! How glad I am to see you again!”

“So am I, me dearie, to say you,” replied the other, with the slightest wee bit of a brogue, aunt Polly having been born in the North of Ireland, where blue eyes with black hair and brogues are common; “an’ Bob, too, the darlint! How are you, me boy!”

“All right, auntie, right as a jiffy,” said he brightly, greeting her with like effusion to his sister. “Really, I don’t know when I was so glad as I am to come down here to the sea and see you. Hullo, though, I’m forgetting about Rover!”

With these words, Master Bob darted down the platform to the guard’s van at the end of the train, with Miss Nellie cantering after him; both leaving their newly-met aunt as unceremoniously as the Captain had tumbled against her on emerging from the carriage the moment before!

However, Mrs Gilmour did not appear to mind this, only exchanging a smile with the old sailor, who of course remained beside her; while Dick, as if anxious to make some return for the kindness shown him, had started taking the children’s traps out of the train without waiting for any one’s orders.

As for the Captain, he had no luggage beyond the queer-looking malacca walking-stick called a ‘Penang lawyer’ which he held in his hand, never troubling himself with ‘stray dunnage,’ as he said, when travelling by railway.

Bob and Nellie were presently seen in the distance, in close colloquy with the guard, who, after a bit, lugged out from his van, with much deliberation of movement and ‘gingerliness’ of manner, a huge black retriever, who apparently did not wish just then to issue forth from his retreat.

No sooner, however, had the imprisoned animal once more touched the firm ground of the platform with his four paws, than, carried away with delight at being able to stand again on something that wasn’t moving, he suddenly wrenched himself free from the guard and began plunging about in a mad gambol around.

“Come here, Rover!” cried Bob. “Come here, Rover!” echoed Nellie, alike in vain; for, although Rover approached and jumped up on each in turn in expression of his pleasure at seeing them, he would dart away the next instant out of reach, evidently afraid lest the chain should be taken hold of, and he be boxed up again in purgatory. He would not attend to any, “Come here, sir!”

“He’s too artful to be caught, sir,” said the guard, laughing at the dog’s antics. “He’s too knowing by half.”

“Oh, he’ll come along fast enough after me,” answered Bob with some reserve of manner, thinking it rather beneath his dignity, as well as unjust to Rover, to bandy words about the latter’s disobedience of orders; and so, he walked on up the platform, whistling as he went and followed by Nellie, towards where aunt Polly and the Captain were chatting, the old sailor explaining to Mrs Gilmour how Dick’s acquaintance had been made, she having been much impressed by his civil and attentive demeanour, if not by his appearance.

“Come on!” shouted Bob between his whistles, as he got nearer; Nellie, close behind him, likewise whistling and repeating his cry, “Come on, Rover!”

Rover came on; but, not altogether in the way his young master and mistress wished.

Galloping now in front, now in rear of the two, and then prancing towards them sideways, but always out of reach, he whirled his heavy chain about like a lasso, to the danger of everybody around; many of the passengers being still on the platform looking after their belongings or waiting for cabs, most of the vehicles that had been drawn up on the cab-rank having already driven off loaded.

“Do catch hold of him, Bob!” cried poor Nellie in accents of alarm. “He’ll trip up somebody.”

Rover seemed to hear and understand what she said; and, as if anxious to oblige her, at once twirled his clattering chain round the legs of a fat old lady, who, with her arms full of a number of parcels, was waiting for one of the porters to extract yet more from the carriage in which she had come down.

“Look out, ma’am!” said the Captain, seeing what was coming. “Keep clear of the dog, ma’am, or he’ll foul your hawse!”

But, he was too late for the warning to be of any use; for, at the same instant, the old lady was whirled violently round and round like a teetotum and fell to the ground, uttering the while a series of wild shrieks, coupled with the smothered exclamation—“My good gracious!”

“I thought so!” ejaculated the old sailor as he hastened up to her rescue, and, with the aid of the porter, succeeded in placing her on her feet again; while Nellie and Bob set to work collecting her parcels which were scattered in every direction. “I hope you are not hurt, madam,” Captain Dresser added when the lady was, as he expressed it, ‘all a-taunto’ once more. “I hope you are not hurt!”

However, she did not pay any attention to the polite inquiry, displaying more solicitude for her portable property than her person.

“Who’s to pay for my eggs, I’d like to know?” was all she said. “I s’pose they be all bruck to pieces!”

She evidently alluded to the largest of her parcels, which still lay close to her on the platform, neither Bob nor Nellie having yet reached this to pick it up; for, a thick yellow fluid was oozing out from the wrappings, plainly betokening the nature of its fragile contents and their fate.

“Oh, never mind your eggs, ma’am,” cried the Captain impatiently. “We’ll reimburse you for their loss, as the dog has caused the mischief. I was thinking of your bones!”

“Drat my bones and the dog, too!” said the old lady with equal heat. “One doesn’t get noo laid eggs every day, I’d ’ave yer to know, sir, and I was a-taking these a puppose for my darter, which I brought all the way now from Gi’ford only to ’ave ’em bruck at last!”

“Never mind, never mind,” replied the Captain soothingly; and on Mrs Gilmour at the same time telling her that she kept fowls and would send her some more fresh eggs the very next morning, to replace those broken, if she would give her address, the old lady was finally pacified.