birthday anniversary falls on Hallowe'en and your grandmother would always have me invite the boys in the neighborhood to a party on that night."

"Oh, I wish mine weren't two days later or I might have a party too," sighed Toad.

"There's no reason, Thomas," said his mother, with a smile, "why you can't celebrate your birthday on Hallowe'en, if you'd like to."

"Oh, Mother, that's fine," cried Toad, jumping up from the table and running around to his mother's place to give her a hearty hug. "You always make things right," he added.

"We'd better ask all the fellows in school today," suggested Chuck, "for Saturday is Hallowe'en."

Toad lost no time when he reached school that morning in giving his invitations to the party and all the boys were glad to accept, for they always had a fine time at Toad's house.

When Saturday morning arrived, Mother Brown sent Toad off to the barn to get some large red apples.

"Be sure they have strong stems," she warned him, "or I shall not be able to use them."

The apples had been packed in barrels with plenty of straw to keep them from freezing, and when Toad reached the barn he pulled out one after another until he thought he had plenty. Just as he was wondering how many trips he would have to make to get all the apples to the house, a face peeped around the doorway.

"Hello, Reddy," laughed Toad, "come on in and help me with these apples. I've got to carry them up to the house," he explained, "they're for the party tonight."

"Couldn't we eat just one now?" asked Reddy, picking up from the floor a shining red apple.

"Hey, not that one," cried Toad, "take one without a stem."

"Huh," protested Reddy, "what difference does that make? I wasn't going to eat the stem."

Toad laughed.

"Mother wants strong stems on them. I don't know why," he explained.

"What's a Hallowe'en party like?" inquired Reddy, seating himself on the top of a potato barrel.

"Fat says," he continued, "that there's always ghosts."

"Aw, who's afraid of baby things like ghosts," jeered Toad.

"Well, I'm not either," protested Reddy. "I knew he was only trying to scare me."

After the boys had carried the apples up to the house Mother Brown looked them over and exclaimed:

"They're just what I want, such fine strong stems."

CHAPTER II

THE FUN BEGINS

At about half past seven o'clock that night the boys who had been invited to the party began to arrive at the Brown's home where they were met at the door by a figure in white. It had queer rabbit ears, made from tying up the corners of a pillow slip that had been placed over its head. The eyes were holes cut in the slip.

The large hall was lighted by many candles set in hollowed-out pumpkins which had queer grinning faces cut in them.

"Wow, but this is spooky," giggled Fat, at which the other boys laughed.

Now the figure in white, which was really Toad, asked the boys to follow him as he led them to Father Brown's study. Here they were met by Chuck, also in white.

"Good evening, Mr. Ghost," greeted Reddy, bowing low.

"How do," nodded the ghost and Chuck could scarcely keep from laughing as he added in a deep voice, "Put on these slips and hurry up," pointing to a pile of them on the floor.

"Oh, I know who you are," laughed Fat, "but I won't tell," and he hastened to scramble into a pillow slip, which he twisted around his head until he got the slits for the eyes in the right place.

"My ears