The children shouted with laughter and Sam looked bewildered.  Bobby explained to him they were laughing because he said “I’ll bet.”

“Well you see, you set me a bad example,” said Sam good-naturedly.  “You’d better be more careful.”

“Why don’t we tow the car along with us?” Bobby suggested.

“One reason, we haven’t a rope and another reason, Walt has all he can do to tow us and still another reason is that we don’t want to be accused of making off with a stranger’s car,” said Sam, and stopped for breath.

“Well, anyway, there’s a sled—­we can take that, can’t we?” said Dot placidly.

CHAPTER XVII

MR. MENDAM

“Sled!” chorused all the other Blossoms.  “Where is there a sled?”

Dot pointed to a drift at one side of the road.  Sure enough, the runners of a sled were sticking straight out.

“Perhaps there is a little boy in there,” Twaddles whispered, awe-struck, and Sam hooted with laughter.

“No little boy would stay quietly buried in a snow drift, Twaddles,” said Sam.  “But I begin to think this road is bewitched—­we seem to be finding stray belongings every other yard or two.”

The children hopped out over the side of the sleigh and pulled out the sled.  It was a good sled, but not new; the paint was worn off it in patches and one of the runners was a little bent.  It had the name in faint gilt letters across the top, “The King.”

“Now what do you know about that?” said Sam.  “What shall we do with the thing?  It isn’t yours, even if you did find it.”

“But let’s take it with us,” Meg urged.  “We can put up signs in the Fernwood post-office—­the way they do in Oak Hill when anything is lost and found.  You know how, Sam?”

“Bring it along, then,” yielded Sam.  “But after this we can’t make any more stops; we’ll be too late to get the freight if we dawdle and that happens to be what we were sent for.”

Bobby lifted the sled into the sleigh and the four children settled down cozily again, under the warm blankets and robe.  Sam did not seem to be cold—­he had heavy gloves and he whistled cheerfully when he wasn’t talking.

They were soon off the cross road and when they turned into the main highway, the going was much easier.  There were many cars and a few other sleighs on this road and most of them were going toward Fernwood.  The four little Blossoms had been to that town before, with their daddy in the car, and they knew where the post-office was.  Meg wanted to go there first, but Sam was anxious to reach the freight station.

“Well, let us get out at the post-office,” Bobby begged, always eager to do whatever Meg wanted done.  “We can print the signs—­or maybe the post-office man will.  Then when you come back we’ll be ready to go.”

“Will you promise not to go away from the post-office, but wait for me there?” asked Sam.