Abel explained to Cat and Adam how ships stayed afloat and how the sails were adjusted to keep going forward, even when they were sailing into the wind. Then he said, "Benjamin, this is supposed to be a day of rest. Stop working on your books and let's go for a drive. The sun is shining, it's not that cold, and I would like to see more of the Ponderosa."

"Alright Abel. We'll go for a drive. Adam, will you please hitch up the small buggy for us?"

"Sure Pa. Come on Cat. Get your hat and coat and I'll start teaching you how to harness a horse to a buggy."

Once Ben and Abel were out of sight, Cat walked upstairs, got her paper and pencil and traced the men's gloves. Now all she had to do was figure out how to get into Hop Sing's room without getting caught. That was going to be hard to do because he rarely spent time in the great room with the rest of the family. She spent some time thinking and couldn't figure out how to get into Hop Sing's room and decided to get some help from at least one of her brothers. Since it was only a few hours until supper, she decided to get help from Hoss. He was in the yard playing horseshoes with Joe. "Hoss, will you please help me with something?"

"Shore Punkin. What do ya need help with?"

"I need to look in Hop Sing's bedroom. Don't worry, I'm not going to touch or take anything. I'm trying to figure out what to get him for Christmas and I don't want to get him something he already has."

"Ok. How can I help ya?"

"Well, it's only a few hours until supper, so maybe you can talk him about what he's going to make."

"I kin do that for ya. I'll try and talk him into making venison steaks. I'll take him to the smokehouse so he can tell me how much he wants me to cut. Wait for us to leave the house and hurry. Whatever ya do, don't let Adam catch ya in there. He won't listen to you before telling Hop Sing you were in his room and putting ya over his knees."

"I promise, I won't be in there more than a few minutes. I won't open anything. I just want to see what he has laying out."

"Ok Punkin. Git yoreself some paper and a pencil so's ya can write stuff down. That way you'll remember what ya saw." Cat got her paper and pencil and waited for Hoss to get Hop Sing out of the house. Then she went into Hop Sing's room, quickly traced his gloves and went upstairs to put all of the tracings with her school books.

After supper, Ben sat at his desk, writing a letter. "Cat, I'd like you to leave a little bit early for school in the morning. I would like this letter to go out in tomorrow's mail."

"Who ya writtin' to?" asked Cat.

"You need to start using proper grammar. The proper question is 'Who are you writing to?' and I'm writing to your Aunt Victoria. I'm inviting the Barkleys to spend Christmas here with us."

"Does that mean Nick and Audra will be here too?"

"Yes of course it does. They are my sister's children and that makes them family."

Cat became very upset. "No, they can't come! They'll ruin everything! They hate me and I hate them! If they're going to come, I'm going to find a way to get some of my money from the bank and spend Christmas in Dodge with Uncle Matt!" She ran out of the door and into the barn without even grabbing her jacket.

"Does anybody know what that is all about?"

"I think I know why Cat doesn't want Nick here," replied Adam. "First, Nick yells a lot."

"Nick may yell a lot," said Ben. "However that can't be the only reason your sister says he hates her."

"I believe that Cat is still upset with Nick because he spanked her the day everyone left after Kate's funeral. Everyone told him he was wrong but so far, he has refused to apologize to her. I know that Heath apologized before they left but Nick has not," replied Adam.

"Alright, that explains Nick, but not Audra. Do any of you know why your sister is upset at the thought of Audra spending Christmas here?"

"No," said all three brothers together.

"I don't think Audra likes Cat too much," said Joe. "I remember at the party after Cat was baptized, Audra did or said something Uncle Tom didn't like. He took her into the barn and when they came out, she was crying and rubbing her bottom. She had to stay next to him the rest of the day and they left the next morning even though they were supposed to stay longer."

"I remember you saying that Victoria was always jealous of Kate," said Adam. "Could Audra possibly be jealous of Cat? Maybe she did or said something that upset Cat when they were here for Kate's funeral. I do remember that the day Victoria and Cat went riding, Victoria wanted Audra to go with them but she refused."

"Let me go see ifn I can find little sister an' talk to her," said Hoss. "Maybe she'll tell me what's wrong. Joe always did when he was a boy and somethin' was botherin' him. Cat gets upset just like Joe did when he was little so maybe she'll talk to me." Hoss grabbed Cat's jacket and walked outside. Not seeing his sister anywhere, he guessed she was in the barn. Taking a lantern with him, he walked into the barn. He looked in all of the stalls and began to worry when he couldn't find her. Then he noticed Lassie and Silver Chief looking anxiously toward the top of the ladder leading to the hayloft. He found Cat at the back of the loft, laying on several hay bales, crying. "Hey Punkin. Ya forgot to put yore jacket on and it's cold outside. Here, put it on before ya get sick. Now, we both know you ain't supposed to be up here alone, so we'd better go back down the ladder before Pa comes in here and tans your hide for disobeyin' him. Besides that, them pups of yours are worried sick about ya 'cause they can't climb the ladder to be up here with ya." Once they were back on the ground and sitting on hay bales, Hoss asked, "What's got ya so upset about Nick and Audra comin' here with their family for Christmas? Everyone's real worried about how ya got so upset and ran out of the house."

"Nick yells all the time and he spanked me for no reason the day everyone left after Mama's funeral and he wouldn't apologize. Heath said that everyone said they were wrong and apologized for spanking me but Nick just said he was right and everyone else was wrong."

"Well, that's just Nick. He's always been hard headed. Now Joe's real hard headed but he ain't got nothin' on Nick. He'll argue just to argue. He's never been one to admit when he's wrong. Now what's got ya all upset about Audra?"

"I can't tell you what she said. She said if I ever told anyone, she would send me far away to an orphanage in New York where nobody from the family would ever find me. I don't want to get sent to an orphanage in New York so I can't tell anyone what she said."

"That's not true Punkin. The only one who can send ya away is Pa and he ain't about to do that. The only place he sends you is to school but ya come home after every day. I know he's done told you several times that the only time you would ever get sent away is ifn everyone else was sick and then ya would just to go the Devlins, Ingalls, or Kings until everyone was well again. Pa loves ya too much to send you anywhere except to school. Of course, you'll visit your uncles in the summer but you'll just be visitin' family and you'll be back home when summer's over. Now, why don't ya tell ol' Hoss just what it is Audra said that got ya so upset or better yet, come in the house and tell the whole family? Pa needs to know and so do Adam, Joe, Hop Sing, and Adam's grandfather. We're yore family and we can't take care of ya and protect ya ifn we don't know what's bothering you."

"But Pa will get mad at me because Aunt Victoria is his sister and Audra is her daughter."

"No he won't. Audra is seventeen and you're not responsible for what she says or does. You're only responsible for what you say and do. Now it's cold out here and you need ta go in the house and get warm. Then ya gotta talk to Pa and tell him what Audra said to ya. He needs to know and so does the rest of the family."

Hoss picked Cat up and carried her into the house. He set her down in the great room where Hop Sing handed her a cup of hot cocoa and two cookies. "You sit by fire and get warm. Next time you go outside in cold without jacket Hop Sing use spoon on you. Pop, pop, pop!"

Once Cat had finished her hot cocoa, Ben held out his arms and said, "Come here Kitten. We need to talk about what got you so upset. Nobody in the family can help you if we don't know what's bothering you." He pulled her into his lap, hugged her and said, "You're safe here and nobody can hurt you. Please tell me why you got so upset when I said that Nick and Audra would be invited for Christmas with the rest of their family." Cat told him what she had told Hoss in the barn and he replied, "Well, Nick will not be welcome on the Ponderosa until he admits he was wrong and apologizes for spanking you. He will also have to learn not to yell when he's here. Now, why don't you want Audra to come here?"

"She hates me and I hate her."

"Why do you think she hates you?"

"She said so."

"When?"

"The night we buried Mama. Right after you turned out the lamp in my bedroom. She was outside under my window and said some real bad things about me."

"What did she say and why didn't you tell anybody?"

"I told Hoss, I can't tell anybody what she said because she said if I told anybody, she would send me to an orphanage in New York where nobody in the family could find me."

"I done told her she was wrong," said Hoss. "I told her that Audra can't send her away and only you can but you ain't gonna send her anywhere except to school but she comes home after."

"Hoss is right Kitten. I am the only one who can send you away and as I have told you several times, I will not send you away unless everyone in this house is sick. Then you will go to the Devlins, Ingalls, or Kings until everyone is well and it's safe for you to come home again. Now what did Audra say?"

"I don't know who she was talkin' to but she was talking real loud 'cause she wanted me to hear what she was saying. She said she hated me because I was a spoiled rotten little brat who always got everything I wanted and could do anything I wanted and never got in trouble for it. She said that you shouldn't have given Fury to me because I was no good and didn't deserve him. She said you should have given him to her or killed him. She said I was in the way and never should have been born and she would have killed me when she had the chance after I was baptized but her father caught her and punished her. She said it was too bad I wasn't killed instead of my mother and she should pay someone to do it. Then she came into my room and said if I told anybody what she said, she would send me away to an orphanage."

Ben swore silently. "I told Tom not to spoil that girl when she was born but he did anyway. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Our father spoiled her mother until your mother was born. Then Victoria was no longer the only girl or the center of attention. That's why she was so jealous of your mother. It would seem that Audra is just like her mother in that respect. When you were born, she was no longer the youngest child in the family nor was she the only girl any longer. You became the center of everyone's attention and she didn't like that. I also think it has something to do with the money that all of the grandchildren are going to inherit or have inherited from my parents. When you were born, they changed their wills to include you and that meant the rest of the grandchildren would get less money. She was the only one who cared about the money. Joe was ten and when I explained to him that you being born meant he would get less money from my parents when they died, he said he didn't care and hoped that Grandma and Grandpa would live forever. I don't know why Audra was so upset over an inheritance she wouldn't get for many years, because her father was a very wealthy man. She has always lived in that big house and had everything she wanted given to her. I'm going to finish the letter to my sister and tell her that Nick and Audra are not welcome on the Ponderosa and why. Nick is a grown man and hopefully when he is told why he isn't invited here for Christmas, he will find a way to apologize to you and stop yelling so much. I honestly hope that Victoria and Jarrod will do something about Audra's attitude toward you. It could carry over to her nieces and nephews if any of her brothers marry and have children. Now, do you have all of your schoolbooks ready for morning?"

"Yes. I just have to put them in my saddle bags."

"Why don't you do that now so you won't have to do it in the morning? Then you'll have time for two games of checkers."

"If you're not going to send me anywhere, does that mean I don't have to go to school any more?"

"Scamp! Joseph, please ride to some of the neighbors and see if any of them have a mule I can borrow for tomorrow. I plan on making your sister ride to school backwards on one. Maybe then she won't be such a smart-alec."

Once Cat was in bed, Ben reread his letter to Victoria and said, "I can't believe how cruel Audra was to Cat after we had just buried her mother. Victoria was always jealous of Kate but never acted the way Audra did. She just tried to stay away from Kate as much as possible but never tried to harm her. I wish I could be there to see her reaction when she reads my letter. I just hope she realizes how wrong she and Tom were to spoil Audra so badly when she was little. Their little princess has grown up to be anything but that where her younger cousin is concerned. I wish Cat had come to one of us and told us what Audra had said."

"She was scared Pa," said Hoss. "She didn't know nothin' about family 'cause she never had one 'til now. Audra's lots older than Cat and she didn't know Audra was lying and trying to scare her. I wish I had known because I would of had some not so nice words for our little cousin. She might of even accidentally wound up face down in a mud puddle."

"That's too good for our cousin," said Adam. "I'm thinking along the lines of roping a wild stallion and tying the other end of the rope around Audra."

"Boys, that's enough," said Ben. "I am just as angry at my niece as you are but talking about harming her is wrong and you know it. It will be a very long time before Audra is welcome here and your sister will not be spending any time with the Barkleys. Victoria had asked me about Cat spending Easter with them but that is absolutely out of the question. I will not subject Catherine to any more of Audra's viciousness."

At breakfast, Ben asked Cat to please leave a few minutes early for school so she could mail his letter. "Don't worry, Nick and Audra will not be spending Christmas here with us and I told your aunt why. Hopefully she and Jarrod will deal with Audra. Nick is a grown man and as hard-headed as they come. He has never been one to admit when he's wrong or to apologize. He will not be coming here until he does learn to do those things."

Cat left early and since Mike was not at their meeting spot, she rode to his house. "I'm not ready yet. How come you're so early?" he asked when he answered the door.

"Michael!" scolded Mrs. Devlin. "That is no way to greet someone, especially a friend. Come on in Cat. Michael will be ready to leave in a few minutes."

"Thanks Mrs. Devlin. I'm early because Pa needs me to go to the post office and I need to talk to Mr. Miller before school."

"That's fine. Would you like a glass of milk while you're waiting for Michael?"

"Yes please. Thank you."

Cat stopped at the post office to mail Ben's letter first. The clerk said the stamp was two cents and she handed him a dime. "Three, four, five, and a nickel makes ten cents. Thank you for your business Miss Cartwright. It was a pleasure to serve you today."

"Thank you sir. I've got to hurry because I have one more errand to do before school and Pa will kill me if I'm late." She ran out the door, mounted Beauty and rode toward Mr. Miller's shop with Mike.

"Hello Cat, Mike. What can I do for you today?"

Cat looked at Mike and said, "You have to promise not to tell anyone what I'm going to tell Mr. Miller."

Mike looked at her like she was crazy and said, "Ok. I promise."

"Thanks. I need your help Mr. Miller. I want to make winter gloves as Christmas presents for my family but I don't know how. I've got plenty of rabbit skins and deer hides but I don't know what to do with them."

"Well. First of all, we have to determine how big to make each pair."

"Oh, I forgot. I'll be right back." She ran outside, took the drawings out of her saddle bags, and handed them to Mr. Miller. "Sorry. I forgot to take these out of my saddle bags when we got here."

"That's ok Cat. Now let's see what you have." He looked at the tracings and said, "You did a very good job tracing everybody's gloves and I like the fact that you wrote everyone's name on each paper so we would know who they were for. I will definitely help you make the gloves. When you come to school tomorrow, please bring twelve rabbit skins and two deer hides. We will need more but those will be a start. I'll talk to Ben and tell him that I'm keeping you for about an hour after school every day for a week to help me with a special project. Mike, are you going to stay with Cat?"

"Yes sir. Mr. Cartwright doesn't want her in town alone."

"You are a good friend. I'll talk to your father too so neither one of you will get in trouble. Now, the pair of you had better run along before you're late for school."

During dinner recess, Mary and Laura told Cat how they wanted to paint their mother's cart. "We want to make it look like a field full of flowers," said Mary.

"You know," added Laura, "Green grass on the bottom, blue sky on the top and flowers all over the grass."

"Ok. I'll tell Adam when I get home from school. Oh yeah, I'm also supposed to remind you to come over to Mr. McLeod's store with me after school. We're getting new dresses for the winter dance and Christmas."

"I don't know why we're getting dresses for the dance," said Mary. "Ma and Pa never go because Carrie's too little and they can't leave her home alone."

"I don't know what Pa said to convince them to go, but you are going."

"That's great!" exclaimed Laura. "It'll be nice not to be the only fourth grade or older kids that don't go to the dances."

"I agree," replied Mary. "I'm tired of having to stay home while all the other kids are having fun."

Mr. Miller met Cat and Mike after school and told them he had spoken with their fathers and received permission for them to go to his shop after school for as long as the project took to complete. Mike walked over to the general store with the girls and said he wanted to see how Jasper was feeling & would probably see them on the way home. The girls greeted Ben and he hugged all three of them. "How did you get our Ma and Pa to go to the dance?" asked Mary. "They never go because Carrie's too little and they can't leave her home alone."

"It wasn't too terribly difficult. I invited your whole family to supper on the night of the dance. Hop Sing volunteered to watch Carrie and two of the hands volunteered to do your Pa's chores that evening and the following morning, which means your family will be spending the night on the Ponderosa. Your Ma was still reluctant so I pointed out that she and your Pa had not taken a night to enjoy themselves in a long time and I was not going to take no for an answer. So your parents really had no choice but to agree to my plan. Now, the three of you need to pick out material for the dance and Christmas. I have some other things I need to look for so there's no need to hurry."

The girls started looking at the material and Mr. McLeod walked up to Ben. "Ben, would you please come in the back with me? I have something I need to show you." They walked into the storage area and Mr. McLeod took out the three sleds Adam had asked him to put aside for the girls. "I showed these to Adam the day they came in and asked if he thought you would want one for Cat. He said he thought so and asked me to put three of them aside so Laura and Mary could each have one also."

"Thank you George. That was very thoughtful of you to think about Cat when you got these. Of course I'm probably going to have a heart attack the first time I see my little girl going down a hill head first on hers but I will get all three."

"Then I highly recommend that you close your eyes when Cat is sledding so you don't have a heart attack."

"Is it possible to put the girls' names on them? I know that Laura and Mary won't fight over them, but since they're brand new, some of the other children might not be able to resist temptation when they're all out sledding together."

"I'll see what I can do for you about getting names on sleds. Now I heard you tell the girls that you needed some other things besides their dress material so what can I help you with?"

"Cat didn't want to go to church yesterday because of everything those women have said to her. I convinced her to go but she didn't want to wear a dress. I said she didn't have to but she didn't have any other dress clothes to wear so I need to look at your boys dress pants and shirts. Heaven help those women if they utter one word against her the first time she decides to wear them."

"Believe me Ben. Every time I hear of those women saying nasty things to Cat, I want to tell them off and hug her to let her know she's safe and I won't let anybody hurt her. Let's go and see what I have in dress pants and shirts." They walked back to the main part of the store and Mr. McLeod took a notebook from under the counter. He opened it and said, "Since parents don't always remember what size childrens' clothes they bought the last time, I write them down. So when the children start outgrowing the clothes they have, their parents know what size to start with. Here are Cat's sizes. You know that Mary and Laura are going to need at least one pair of pants and a shirt to wear while sledding. They can't go sledding in dresses even if they are wearing long underwear. Start with Cat's size for Laura and go two sizes larger for Mary."

"I didn't even think of that. It is an excellent idea. Thank you. Now I know what sizes to start with. They can try them on first and I can go larger or smaller if necessary."

The two men watched and listened, amused as the three girls looked through the Christmas material. "I thought Cat didn't like wearing dresses," said George. "She sure is having a lot of fun looking at material."

"When Cat lived in Dodge, she wore dresses for dances and church on Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, so she enjoys looking at material. Laura and Mary talked her into wearing dresses to church every Sunday but except for those three days and special occasions, as long as she has dress clothes to wear, I'm not going to make her wear a dress if she doesn't want to. I'm getting sick and tired of the old busy bodies telling me how to raise my daughter and if they are scandalized by her wearing pants and a shirt to church, so be it. I don't care."

The girls finally picked out their fabric and carried it up to the counter. Ben handed Cat a pair of dress pants and a dress shirt and said, "Please go with Mr. McLeod so you can try these on." Then he called Laura and Mary over to the dungarees and shirts. He told them what sizes to pick and to get two shirts in colors they liked and two pair of dungarees.

"Why are you getting these for us Mr. Cartwright?" asked Mary. "Our parents will never let us wear them."

"Never say never. Go with Mr. McLeod when he comes back and he'll show you where you can try them on."

Cat returned a few minutes later and said, "They fit just fine Pa. The pants are just a little bit long but Mr. McLeod said to try them on with my boots since I'll probably wear them instead of my moccasins or shoes and if they're too long, maybe Hop Sing can fix them."

Laura returned a few minutes later and said, "My clothes fit just fine but Mary's are too small."

"Thank you for letting me know. Here's the next largest size. Please take these to your sister, bring your clothes back out here, and put them with your material."

When all of the purchases including three licorice sticks, penny bags of candy and peanuts as well as a little bit of candy and peanuts for Carrie, had been paid for Ben said, "Why don't the three of you walk down to the dress maker's shop? I'll put everything else in my saddle bags and meet you there." When they left the dress shop, he gave them their bags of candy and peanuts and said, you may have two peanuts, pieces of candy, or your licorice for now. Cat, you may put your candy and peanuts in your saddle bags." Ben helped Mary onto Buck and mounted in front of her while Laura rode behind Cat. "Laura, Mary, don't say anything to your parents about the pants and shirts. I don't want them getting upset with you or me. Don't worry, I promise that I'll tell them when the time is right and that will be before you need to wear them."

Roy, Paul, and Reverend Long were standing in front of the parsonage with Mrs. Martin and Mrs. Long when Ben and the girls rode by. They stopped to say hi and Roy said, "Darn it Ben. If you aren't the luckiest man alive, I don't know who is. Just look at you. You don't just have one pretty girl with you, you have three of them. How do you get so lucky. Paul, David, what do you think, should Ben share his pretty girls with us?"

"The answer is yes," said Virginia and Joanne together. "Ben should definitely share his pretty girls with us. Roy, you're the sheriff. Make Ben give those girls to us. They're not spoiled enough and we need to fix that problem."

"Alright Ben, you heard the ladies. Hand over those girls right now. Don't force me to use this on you." He pointed the ear of corn he was eating at Ben, causing everyone to laugh.

"Sorry, but they're mine and I plan on keeping them. I may let you borrow them for an hour or so if you're lucky, but I'm being selfish and will not give them up, even to their parents. You folks have a good day. I've got to get the girls home. They still have homework to do. Don't stay outside too much longer. Paul's jacket has already turned blue."

They were about half way home when they came across Charles driving the wagon to town. "Oh, you're the person who stole my girls. I would like to have them back."

"You are mistaken Charles. These are my girls. I'm quite sure that your daughter is at your house with her mother. Carrie is much too young to go to town without an adult."

"Wait a minute now. If you're going to keep two of my girls, I want something in return. I'll take one of your sons."

"I'm sorry Charles but I have just the right combination of boys and girls. I have three sons and they have three little sisters to keep them busy. Besides that, do you think that Caroline would want to feed Hoss every day?"

"You do have a point there. Hoss does eat a lot. Are you positive you really want that pair? They do tend to quarrel at times."

"Charles, I have three sons. They are always quarreling, especially the eldest and youngest. They have also come to blows on more than one occasion. I've lost count of the number of steaks that have been wasted on black eyes."

Charles laughed. "Alright Ben. You win. Please have them home before bedtime."

"Don't worry. I'll make sure of it. Enjoy your quiet time with Caroline."

When Charles returned home, Caroline asked where the girls were. "Ben refused to give them back so I said he could keep them until bedtime. Once Carrie is in bed, you and I will have some time to ourselves for a change."

Caroline hugged her husband. "I'll go and get supper started. Carrie, do you want to help me or your Pa?"

"Help Pa."

"Alright. Have fun and don't forget to wash up before supper."

When Ben and the girls reached the Ponderosa, Hoss was in the yard and took their horses to the barn. They walked into the house and Ben went into the kitchen. "Hop Sing, I've brought two guests home for supper."

"Little girls always welcome here. Make special dessert."

Ben saw Cat on her way out the door. Where are you going? You have company."

"To see Fury. I haven't seen him since before breakfast. He might forget me. Mary doesn't want to come and Laura's in the outhouse. We'll do our homework after we see Fury."

Ben picked her up and hugged her. "You are a silly little girl. That colt isn't about to forget you. As Hoss told you on Friday, he loves you and you don't forget those you love. Go, play with your colt and then I'm sure Hop Sing will have a snack for you girls." After the girls finished some cookies and milk, Ben said, "Laura, Mary, you may do your homework at the table or in Cat's room."

"I'd like to do mine at the table," said Mary.

"I'd like to do mine in Cat's room," said Laura.

"Joe, can I please get the desk chair out of your room?" asked Cat.

No sooner were the words out of her mouth when Cat found herself being picked up and put across one of Joe's shoulders. "Come on Squirt. Let's get that chair for you." He carried her upstairs with Laura following behind and laughing at the way Joe was carrying her friend.

Laura asked, "Do they always do that to you?"

"Yes, and sometimes they play ball and use me as the ball. They're always careful to stand close together so I don't get dropped, but sometimes Hoss pretends like he's going to drop me."

After supper, Adam asked Mary and Laura if they had decided what color to paint their mother's cart. Mary told him what they wanted to do and he replied, "I appreciate you wanting to make the cart pretty, but what you want to do is going to require a lot of painting and we don't have that much time." Seeing the puzzled looks from the girls, he got a piece of paper and drew what they wanted to do. "The blue and green will be easy to do but each flower will have to be drawn and then painted for both sides and the back. That is going to require more time than we have left if you're going to give the cart to your mother for Christmas." He turned the paper over and said, "Instead of fields full of flowers, why don't we include a lake, some trees, and some flowers?" He illustrated what he was talking about and showed the paper to the girls who were thrilled with his drawing. "Alright, that's settled. Hoss and Joe said they'd start cutting the wood tomorrow and I'll order the wheels. Once they arrive, I'll take them to the blacksmith shop to have the runners and locks made. If we make it the same width as a small buggy, I can order the axles when I order the wheels."

"How much is this going to cost?" asked Laura. "We don't have much money."

"Don't worry about the cost. The two of you thought of a wonderful Christmas gift for your mother so I'll buy the wheels, axles, runners, locks, and harness for the horse. I'll go, talk to Chief Winnemucca tomorrow and see what I can trade for a nice Indian pony for your cart." Adam found himself being hugged by three little girls, and decided that he enjoyed it.