This, of course, was part of the game, and d.i.c.k and Midget wrung their hands in despair as they saw their daughter forcibly detained by the master of the house.

Then Gladys and Dorothy were awakened by the noise, and added their frightened screams to the general hullaballoo.

Kitty was bound hand and foot in the very dining-room where the silver had been, and King went valiantly out to hunt the other marauders. Then the game was for King and his family to try to catch d.i.c.k and Midget, or for Kitty's parents to release her from her bondage.

At last, as King and Gladys were both engaged in chasing d.i.c.k, Marjorie found an opportunity to free Kitty, and then the game began again, the other way round.

At last they tired of hostilities and agreed to rebuild their houses, combining them in one, and calling it a big hotel.

"Or a clubhouse," said King, who had recently visited one with his father, and had been much impressed.

"Clubhouses are grand," he said. "They have porches, and swimming-pools, and gyms, and dining-rooms, and everything!"

So the architecture was changed, and soon a fine clubhouse was outlined in leafy relief.

"Then if this is a clubhouse, we're a club," said Kitty, thoughtfully.

"Oh, let's be a club!" exclaimed Marjorie. "Clubs are lots of fun. I mean children's clubs--not big ones like father's."

"What do clubs do?" asked Dorothy, who had a wholesome fear of some of the Maynards' escapades.

"Why, we can do anything we want to, if we're a club," said d.i.c.k. "I think it would be fun. What shall we do?"

"Let's cut up jinks," said Marjorie, who was especially energetic that day.

"And let's call it the Jinks Club," suggested Gladys.

"Goody! Goody!!" cried Midge. "Just the thing, Glad! And then we can cut up any jinks we want to,--as long as they're good jinks," she added, thoughtfully.

"What do you mean by that?" demanded King.

"Well, you see, last summer at Grandma's, she told me there were good jinks and bad jinks. She meant just plain fun, or real mischief. And I promised I'd cut up only good jinks."

"All right," said d.i.c.k, "I'll agree to that. We just want to have fun, you know; not get into mischief."

So, as they were all agreed on this, the Jinks Club was started.

"I'll be president," volunteered Marjorie.

"Does somebody have to be president?" asked Gladys. "And does the president have all the say?"

"Let's all be presidents," said King. "I know clubs usually have only one; but who cares? We'll be different."

"All right," said Marjorie. "And, anyway, we won't need a secretary and treasurer and such things, so we'll each be president. I think that will be more fun, too."

"Me be president," announced Rosy Posy, "an' Boffin be a president, too."

"Yes," said King, smiling at his baby sister, "you and Boff and all the rest of us. Then, you see, we can all make rules, if we want to."

"We don't need many rules," said d.i.c.k. "Just a few about meetings and things. When shall we meet?"

"Every day after school, and every Sat.u.r.day," said Marjorie, who was of a whole-souled nature.

"Oh, no!" said Gladys. "I know Mother won't let me come as often as that."

"Don't let's have special times," said King. "Just whenever we're all together, we'll have a meeting."

This was agreed to, but Marjorie didn't seem quite satisfied.

"It doesn't seem like a real club," she said, "unless we have dues and badges and things like that."

"Huh, dues!" said King. "I want to spend my money for other things besides dues to an old club! What would we do with the dues, anyway?"

"Oh, save them up in the treasury," said Marjorie, "until we had enough to go to the circus, or something nice like that."

This sounded attractive, and King reconsidered.

"Well, I don't mind," he said. "But I won't give all my money. I have fifty cents a week. I'll give ten."

"So will I," said d.i.c.k, and the others all agreed to do the same.

Of course, Rosy Posy didn't count, so this made sixty cents a week, and furthermore it necessitated a treasurer.

"Let's each be treasurer," said King, remembering how well his presidential plan had succeeded.

"No," said Midget; "that's silly. I'll be treasurer, and I'll keep all the money safely, until we want to use it for something nice."

"Yes, let's do that," said Gladys. "Mopsy's awfully careful about such things, and she'll keep the money better than any of us. I haven't mine here now; I'll bring it over this afternoon."

"I don't care much about the money part," said King. "I want to cut up jinks. When do we begin?"

"Right now!" said Marjorie, jumping up. "The first jink is to bury King in leaves!"

The rest caught the idea, and in a moment the luckless Kingdon was on his back and held down by d.i.c.k, while the girls piled leaves all over him. They left his face uncovered, so he could breathe, but they heaped leaves over the rest of him, and packed them down firmly, so he couldn't move.

When he was thoroughly buried, Marjorie said: "Now we'll hide. Don't start to hunt till you count fifty, King."

"One, two, three," began the boy, and the others flew off in all directions.

All except Rosy Posy. She remained, and, patting King's cheek with her fat little hand, said: "Me'll take care of you, Budder. Don't ky."

"All right, Baby,--thirty-six, thirty-seven, thirty-eight,--take that leaf out of my eye! thirty-nine, forty--thank you, Posy."

A minute more, and King shouted "Fifty! Coming, ready or not!" and, shaking himself out of his leaf-heap, he ran in search of the others.

Rosy Posy, used to being thus unceremoniously left, tumbled herself and Boffin into the demolished leaf-heap, and played there contentedly.

King hunted for some minutes without finding anybody. Then a voice right over his head said, "Oo-ee!"