THE absence of the twins caused a good deal of consternation in the nursery, and although Peter Pan had searched the house from attic to cellar on the night of their disappearance, he had, of course, discovered nothing. He now knew enough to turn out the lights, and so returned to the nursery, leaving no tracks behind him. Bedelia was frantic over the loss of her cubs. She stormed in private and went into hysterics in public, applying to her husband a series of appellations that were anything but conjugal. Moreover, she accused him of driving away her children by his cruelty, a charge which he could not truthfully refute.

In short, a lioness bereft of her cubs was as water to wine compared to Bedelia deprived of hers.

Peter Pan was driven almost to the verge of lunacy, not because he had any especial affection for either the cubs or Bedelia, but because his wife was managing to make things so very uncomfortable for him.

Naturally everybody sympathized with her attitude in regard to her children and Peter Pan began to discover that society was giving him the cold shoulder.

There was really no foundation for his ridiculous jealousy. His wife had a perfect right to make friends where she chose just the same as he did. This was the general verdict.

Peter Pan, who by this time was really very miserable, redoubled his efforts in searching and researching the house, but as his attempts at discovery met with no results whatever he was forced to discontinue them, hoping that chance which seemed to have spirited away the cubs would some day return them in an equally mysterious manner.

Meanwhile Bedelia pined and fretted incessantly. She refused to eat and grew thin and yellow. The loss of her appetite, which had always been a most robust one, was indeed an alarming symptom. And what to do to improve matters remained for some time a problem.

Finally an idea, a big, brilliant idea, dawned upon the Teddy bear’s mind, and he proceeded at once joyfully to put it into execution.

The North family had been discussing, in Peter Pan’s hearing, the probability of a trip to Europe the following summer, and the Teddy bear decided at once that a sea voyage would go far toward restoring Bedelia’s mental and physical balance.

To be sure, the only sheet of water available was the bath tub and the only craft in the nursery the Noah’s ark. This latter Mr. Noah was willing and even eager to lend, while Bedelia herself hailed the plan with delight and immediately forgot her grouchiness in her excitement over the proposed trip.

But upon taking measurements it was discovered that Bedelia was almost, if not quite, as large as the proposed pleasure craft. This difficulty was gotten out of the way, however, by Mrs. Noah, who suggested that the voyager should sit firmly on top of the ark, drawing up her hind paws so that they should not trail in the water. This plan was hailed with joy by all, especially by Bedelia, who had, for the moment, greatly feared that her excursion was on the eve of a miserable failure.

The bath-room was a fine large room with tiled floor and walls and equipped with every modern convenience for bathing.

The great marble bath itself was sunk in the floor and one descended into it by means of several steps. Thither Peter Pan and a score of assistants dragged the creaking ark, while others turned on the cold water and attended to minor details. Finally Bedelia herself arrived, supported by Mrs. Noah and looking pale and interesting in a tourist hat and veil, the loan of which had been offered by one of the dolls.

The ark was ready, anchored at the foot of the steps. It had been decorated with a number of tiny flags and looked superb as it rocked on the restless waves of the bath tub, as if impatient to be gone.

There now arose some difficulty in getting the passenger aboard, for the ark tipped absurdly whenever she essayed to step upon the gang plank, which had been improvised from a couple of long handled bath brushes. The difficulty was finally overcome by the rubber Brownies, who swam gallantly out and clung to the opposite side of the ark, thus nicely balancing things. Bedelia was then assisted to her seat on the roof, in which lofty position she appeared rather as if riding cross-saddle.

But now arose another unforeseen obstacle. The boat, when pushed off by a dozen pairs of willing hands, refused to go. And there was really nothing very odd in this, as it contained no motive power of any description whatever. To be sure, its usual method of locomotion was to be dragged about the nursery floor with a string, where it traveled smoothly enough on its little wooden wheels.

Finally the big papier-mache alligator that Bob had brought from Florida threw himself into the breach, and gallantly offered to tow the boat, an offer that was joyfully accepted.

Bedelia, who by this time was in tears, plucked up her spirits, and after some little delay, caused by the necessary search for a piece of string, the ark moved majestically off, while Bedelia gaily waved her handkerchief from her airy perch.

Twice did they circle grandly around the bath, Bedelia calling out to the admiring crowd which lined the shore that she was already experiencing much benefit from the cool breezes. But as they started for a third trip the baby cub, animated, no doubt, by the Imp of the Perverse, leaning far out over the water as if to wave to her mother suddenly smote the alligator full in the neck with a large cake of Turkish bath soap which she had purloined from the near-by wash stand.

Now the alligator was without a doubt a fine fellow, but he had never been intended to stand such a soaking as he was now getting. As the fearsome missile, hard as Pharaoh’s heart, took him in his tenderest spot, silently, and without a quiver, his head separated from his body and sank gently but firmly to the bottom.

The ark, thus suddenly arrested in its course, spun around and tilted over crazily, sending poor Bedelia flying off at a tangent.

At this awful exhibition a dreadful cry went up from the horrified crowd that lined the banks. The next moment Bedelia was seen waddling toward the shore and crying lustily to be pulled out. To be sure, the water was not deep enough to drown her and she could easily enough have scrambled up the steps had she not been too thoroughly terrified to attempt to help herself, and she was naturally very wet and draggled, when hauled out with some difficulty by her almost demented better half.

The poor alligator, now reduced to a shapeless pulp, floated idly on top of the water, while his beautifully varnished complexion slowly soaked off and stained the tide in every direction. It was indeed a piteous spectacle. As it was impossible to do anything with him at so late an hour, it was decided to leave him where he was for the night, and on the following evening to fish him out and give him a grand funeral. These most laudable intentions were, however, foiled by Betty, the housemaid, who coming in early to clean the bath-room, discovered the remains of the departed and promptly deposited them in the kitchen coal scuttle, whence they were ingloriously cremated by cook the very next time she put coal on the fire.

Meanwhile Bedelia had been dried and put to bed. Her plush coat had suffered considerably from the wetting and she was in a decidedly hysterical condition. Therefore, the canary bird who could hop around in his cage and sing after being wound up, made a flying trip to the library to consult Dr. Owl, who sat all the time perched on the helmet of Minerva over one of the book cases.

The Doctor never made outside cases, as he found it quite impossible to fly while hampered with such an incumbrance as the head of Minerva, to which an unkind fate had firmly attached him.

Dr. Owl listened to the canary bird’s message with a very wise expression, after which he closed his eyes, ruffled up his feathers and to all intents and purposes went to sleep. Only he could not stand on one foot as owls usually do at such a time as both of his claws were solidly annexed to Minerva’s helmet.

Presently the canary bird grew impatient and as he was still more than half wound up began to sing at the top of his voice. This had an immediate effect, for Dr. Owl promptly sat up and inquired sweetly if the canary bird had supposed him to be asleep. And before the bird had time to answer that it looked very much like it, had hastily added that in moments of deep meditation over complicated cases he always closed his eyes. He then selected a prescription, picking it out at random from a little basket at his side and remarking as he did so, “It really doesn’t matter in the least which one you take, you know. There isn’t the smallest chance in the world of your ever getting it put up. Fifty dollars, please.” The canary having come without his pocketbook, he had been in such haste, requested that it be charged to Peter Pan, Esq., Left Window Seat, The Nursery. After which he bowed very politely and flew away with the precious and rather costly bit of paper in his beak, and reached the nursery in a somewhat anxious frame of mind, as he felt himself rapidly running down and feared that he would not have time enough to get to his cage before giving out altogether.