To provide against an attack by the city brigands who are always prowling in the vicinity of picnic parties, it will be judicious to attend to the following rules: Select all the fat women of the party, and seat them in a ring outside the rest of the picnickers, and with their faces toward the centre of the circle.

For reasons which the accompanying view may render obvious, Mr. P. and his men declined the invitation of the picnickers to stop and join them.

And where were the picnickers?

" Over the hill to the south came other wagons filled with jolly picnickers, who soon had their pots boiling over quickly-constructed tripods.

They were loud in their expressions of sympathy for the disappointed picnickers and promptly offered their potatoes as refreshments when they should be done.

Muggles and Molly had no doubt withdrawn from the mass of picnickers, and were billing and cooing together.

It was up the foothills a mile or two above, and just beside the valley in which were the picnickers.

The little brooks were filled, and tumbled into the creek which ran down the canyon where were the picnickers.

Bred in the region, the picnickers knew what such a flood meant, and with the first sound of thunder had clambered up the canyon side, where they sat unsheltered and awaiting events.

Foodless and scared, the picnickers huddled far up the little canyon's side and sat awed and watchful as the lightning flashed about them and the waters rose beneath them.

She was accustomed to the company of children who could see, and she showed a ready disposition to join in the games of the other picnickers.

"Picnickers from Coombe, in an unfortunate predicament.

And as soon as the boat was safely moored, he gave his orders to his mate for the day, and leaping down joined the glad Katie; and before the picnickers had even missed them they were well out of sight, walking away briskly over the brown fields.

The McClouds' flax camp had been built in the edge of the spruce grove where the picnickers had held their dance and merry-making on that June day, memorable to Donald and Elspie and Katie.

Mrs. Green, within, was generously busy with biscuits, cold chicken, doughnuts fried since sunrise, and coffee richly compounded with cream and sugar, which a great tin can stood waiting to receive and convey, and which was at length to serve as cooking utensil in reheating upon the fire of coals the picnickers would make up under the very tassel of Feather-Cap.

" Four o'clock found the picnickers leaving the wood, the injured one assisted on either side by Polly and Nelson Randolph.

Then she thought it was the face of a picnicker, resentful of her intrusion.

The baskets and hampers were speedily unpacked, the table-cloth laid on a broad, flat stone, so used by generations of Brant House picnickers, and the party fell to.

"Had they got back to the other picnickers?"

They dropped the subject then, for the barn was just ahead of them, and the gay picnickers came running out, demanding to know where they had been so long.

And after the merriest breakfast at little tables in the great dining-room the intending picnickers met in conclave to decide as to what they should do.