But whether Lilly was disappointed or not, no sign of anything but content and pleasure appeared on her pretty, bright face when the little group of bathers, all brushed up and tidy again, took their places round the luncheon-table.
"That"s right," said Mamma. "You really have been very expeditious this morning. Whom am I to praise?"
She knew before it came what the answer would be.
"Oh, Lilly. Lilly, of course," said Joan, always ready to be spokeswoman. "Lilly made us promise to do exactly as she told us before we went."
"She timed us," said Bill.
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"Yes," Joan went on, "wasn"t it a good plan? Lilly put her watch on a rock and gave us five minutes to undress in, and a quarter of an hour to stay in the sea, and ten minutes to dress in. Bill and Humphrey were in the gentlemen"s dressing-room, of course--that"s what we call the other little bay--and Lilly had to roar out to them, "one minute more only,"--"two minutes more," just like a railway man at a station. It _was_ such fun, and--"
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"My dear Joan, you will never eat your dinner if you chatter so," said her mother, "and we can"t wait for you. I am going a long drive this afternoon, and I shall only just have time," and Mamma looked at her watch. "I hope I am a little fast," she added. "What time do you make it, Lilly dear? Your watch is always to be relied on."
Lilly"s hand instinctively went to her watch-pocket--then she suddenly looked up with a rather startled expression.
"My watch!" she exclaimed. "I must have left it up stairs.
Mamma--_might_ I run up for a moment and see, if you don"t mind?"
Mamma nodded. She knew that Lilly"s watch was one of the girl"s most prized treasures. It was a handsome, though rather bulky one, which had been left to her by her G.o.dmother, and Lilly cared for it both because she had loved her G.o.dmother, and also for its own sake. It kept excellent time, and never got out of order as the little fairy-like watches that are now the fashion are rather apt to do.
Lilly"s moment extended to several minutes without her coming back, and the faces round the table grew rather concerned-looking.
"May I--" Joan was beginning, but just as she spoke Lilly appeared. She was pale, and almost seemed as if she had difficulty in keeping back her tears.
"Mamma," she said, "I can"t forgive myself, I am dreadfully afraid my dear watch is gone. I must have left it on the sh.o.r.e."
Up started Bill and Humphrey.
"You"ll let us go, Mamma. We don"t care about any more dinner. We know where Lilly left it--no one"s likely to have been there."
"And the people about here are so honest," said Joan.
"But," said Mamma, "was the stone where you laid it, Lilly, out of reach of the tide? It was almost low tide when you bathed."
All looked startled at this, but the boys persisted.
"All the more reason to go at once," they said, and off they set.
Lilly would fain have gone too, but she gave in to her Mother, and sat quietly, trying to eat, though I fear her luncheon was flavoured by some drops of salt water.
And in a few minutes the whole party started down the road to meet the boys and hear the news.
Alas! as soon as Bill and Humphrey appeared, even in the distance, all hopes were gone. Both boys shook their heads sadly.
"You saw nothing of it?" asked their Mother eagerly. Poor Lilly was past speaking.
"Nothing--as well as we could make out, the tide must have covered the stones where the girls dressed, some time ago," they replied.
"Then I fear there is nothing to be done," said Mamma. "Poor Lilly, I am so sorry for you."
"And to think it was all my own carelessness," sobbed Lilly. "My dear watch and chain--there was the chain too, Mamma."
But Lilly was so seldom careless, and even if she had been so for once, it was in the service of others, that no one would let her blame herself, and all the family joined to try to console her.
"There is one chance," said Bill to Humphrey, when they were alone,--their Mother and elder sisters having gone out for the afternoon,--"the watch is heavy, and the sea is calm. It _may_ be left there when the tide goes back. Let"s see--it will be high tide by about five, and low again by eleven. Those stones should be uncovered by ten o"clock, and it is bright moonlight just now. I tell you what, Humphrey, we"ll get Mamma"s leave to sit up later to-night, and we"ll go off to the sh.o.r.e and have another try for the watch and chain."
Humphrey"s eyes sparkled with sympathy.
"We"ll say nothing to Lilly--it would be cruel to raise her hopes again on such a chance," he said. "We"ll only tell Mamma."
The plan was carried out. At ten o"clock that evening, just as poor Lilly was going to bed, and thinking sadly how strange it seemed to have no watch to wind up, two small figures might have been seen in the moonlight, carefully picking their way among the stones over which the little waves were still softly lapping, for the special group of small rocks they were in search of was not yet uncovered.
It was more difficult than they had expected to find the exact spot. The moonlight and the sheen it cast on the water were rather dazzling. The boys crept along slowly and carefully.
"I say, what a beautiful night it is," said Bill. "It"s a good thing the watch is a gold one; if it were silver there wouldn"t be much chance of seeing it--everything looks silver, and--"
But Humphrey interrupted him.
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"This is the place--I"m sure it is--look, the smooth sand just beyond is where the girls jumped in, and--"
In his turn he was interrupted.
"You"re right," cried Bill, "and--I do believe--no, there"s a little wave hiding it again--now, look, Humphrey--_isn"t_ there something glittering still more than the wet stones, down there--on that smooth flat rock?"
Yes--another wave or two came gently lapping in, as if to say good-bye to the treasure they had been playing with, and then the boys stepped forward over the slippery stones, and Bill stooped down and quickly stood up again, with a shout of triumph, for the rescued prize was in his hands.
"And it really doesn"t seem much the worse," said he and Humphrey to each other, as they made their way home.
Lilly was not in her first sleep--she was too unhappy to fall asleep as quietly as usual--when a tap at the door made her jump up. There stood her brothers, and behind them Mamma, smiling with pleasure, and for a minute or two Lilly"s delight almost stupefied her. She could scarcely believe it was her own dear watch that Bill held out, and when she did believe it, she could not kiss and thank him and Humphrey enough.
The watch had to go to a watch-doctor, of course, and it cost several shillings to put it right, but that is now many years ago, and it still keeps time as well as ever.
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[Ill.u.s.tration: THE BLACKBERRY ELF
By
MRS MOLESWORTH.]