“Oh, bruvver, aren’t you glad?” said Pamela.  “I wonder what o’clock it is, and if we’ve come a long way.  Oh, I’m so hungry!  I wonder where Tim is!”

Up jumped the boy like a faithful hound at the sound of his own name.

“Here I am, missy,” he said, rubbing his eyes.  “I’ve been asleep too—­it makes one sleepy, I think, the smooth way the boat slips along.”

“Not like the jogging and jolting in the van,” said Duke.  “I’m hungry too, Tim,” he added.

“Just stop where you are a bit while I go out on the deck and see,” said the boy.

He made his way cautiously, peeping out before he let himself be seen.  The coast was clear, however.  Mrs. Peter was knitting tranquilly, baby asleep on her knee—­Peter himself enjoying an afternoon pipe.

For it was already afternoon.

“You’ve had a good nap, all on you,” said the young woman, smiling.  “I thought you’d ’a wakened up for your dinner.  But I looked in two or three times and the little dears was sleeping like angels in a picture—­so Peter and I we thought it would be a pity to disturb you.  Had you so far to come this morning?

“Not far at all,” said Tim.  “I cannot think what made me so sleepy, nor master and missy neither.  Perhaps it’s the being so quiet-like here after all the flurry of getting off and thinking they’d be after us.  It’s not often I sleep past my dinner time.”

“I’ve kep’ it for you,” said Mrs. Peter.  “There’s some baked ’taters hot in the pan, and maybe the little master and missy’d like one of their eggs.”

“I’m sure they would,” said Tim; “a hegg and a baked ’tater’s a dinner for a king.  And there’s the oranges for a finish up.”

And he skipped back merrily to announce the good news.

The dinner was thoroughly approved of by Duke and Pamela, and after they had eaten it they were pleased at being allowed to stay on the deck of the boat, and to run about and amuse themselves as they chose, for they had now left Crookford so far behind them that Peter and his wife did not think it likely any one would be coming in pursuit.

“They’d ’a been after us by now if they’d been coming,” said Peter.  “A horse’d have overtook us long afore this, and not going so very fast nayther.”

The children had not enjoyed so much liberty for many weary days, and their merry laughter was heard all over the boat, as they played hide-and-seek with Tim, or paddled their hands in the clear water, leaning over the sides of the boat.  For they were now quite out in the country, and the canal bore no traces of the dirt of the town.  It was a very pretty bit of country too through which they were passing; and though the little brother and sister were too young to have admired or even noticed a beautiful landscape of large extent, they were delighted with the meadows dotted over with daisies and buttercups, and the woods in whose recesses primroses and violets were to be seen, through which they glided.