the country to spend September with an old aunt, who lived not far from where Mamma herself had lived when she "was a little girl." [Pg 74] "And is there those funny things—mush—mush—I forget the name—there?" asked Dick. "Mushrooms?" said Mamma. "Oh, yes, in September there will be plenty, no doubt," she replied. "And your birthday's in September," said Lancey. "Oh, Mamma, oh, Dick!" he went on, giving a great spring in his delight, "just think—we can gather mushrooms for it—nice, wild mushrooms, that taste ever so much better than the ones you buy in the shops, don't they, Mamma, darling?" "Than forced mushrooms, you mean, Lancey," she replied. "Yes, forced mushrooms, that means mushrooms grown in hot-houses, or hot-beds;" for she saw on the boys' lips the question, "what are forced mushrooms, please?" "never have the same flavour, I am sure. Besides, one hasn't the fun of hunting for them, and gathering them one's self. I am sure you will enjoy that part of it." "I am sure we shall. I am sure we shall like Fernimoor much better than the seaside," said both boys—"even though we have liked it very much," added tender-hearted Dick. He was so afraid of Mamma being at all hurt, if she fancied he meant that they had not enjoyed the seaside after all the trouble and expense she and papa had been at to take them there. For, as he told Lancey afterwards, he was sure he had seen Papa pay three gold pounds for their railway tickets at the station the day they came[Pg 75]. [Pg 75] "I hope you will enjoy it very much," said Mamma kindly, "and I am sure you will, and so shall I. It will be so nice to show my little boys some of the places I loved when I was as little as they are." "And to teach us how to find musherrooms," said Dick, quite satisfied he had got the hard word right this time. Fernimoor turned out to be very nice, quite as nice as the boys' pleasantest fancies had pictured it. The old-fashioned house was the funniest and prettiest in the world, so was the garden, and the uncle and aunt were the kindest and nicest of old uncles and aunts. There was only one disappointment—and that was the mushrooms![Pg 76] [Pg 76] There had been a good crop of them, said Auntie, a week or two ago, but since then it had been so
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