country and waved their love to him every morning, wet or fine.

For they were now able to go out in all sorts of weathers such as they would never have been allowed to go out in when they lived in their villa house. This was Aunt Emma's doing, and the children felt more and more that they had not been quite fair to this unattractive aunt, when they found how useful were the long gaiters and waterproof coats that they had laughed at her for buying for them.

Mother, all this time, was very busy with her writing. She used to send off a good many long blue envelopes with stories in them,—and large envelopes of different sizes and colours used to come to her. Sometimes she would sigh when she opened them and say:—

"Another story come home to roost. O dear, O dear!" and then the children would be very sorry.

But sometimes she would wave the envelope in the air and say:—

"Hooray, hooray. Here's a sensible Editor. He's taken my story and this is the proof of it."

At first the children thought "the Proof" meant the letter the sensible Editor had written, but