“Don’t be an idiot,” said George. “Come on, it’s getting dark. Hallo, here comes the caravan we saw down in the lane just now!”

It came slowly up the grassy hillside, bumping as it went. On the side was painted a name in large, scarlet letters.

“Mister India-rubber.”

“Oh — the rubber-man!” said George. “Dick — is he the driver, do you think?”

They all stared at the driver. He was long and thin and droopy, and he looked as if he might burst into tears at any moment. His horse looked rather the same.

“Well — he might be Mr. India-rubber,” said Julian. “But certainly there doesn’t seem to be much bounce in him! Look — he’s getting down.”

The man got down with a supple, loose grace that didn’t seem to fit his droopy body at all. He took the horse out of the shafts and set it loose in the field. It wandered away pulling here and there at the grass, still looking as sad and droopy as its master.

“Bufflo!” suddenly yelled the man. “You in?”

The door of the second caravan opened and a young man looked out — a huge young man with a mop of yellow hair, a bright red shirt and a broad smile.

“Hiya, Rubber!” he called. “We got here first. Come along in — Skippy’s got some food ready.”

Mr. India-rubber walked sadly up the steps of Bufflo’s caravan. The door shut.

“This is really rather exciting,” said Dick. “An india-rubber man — Bufflo and Skippy, whoever they may be — and a man with tame snakes next to us. Whatever next!”

Anne called to them. “Do come in. Timmy’s whining like anything.”

They went up the steps of her caravan and found that Anne had got ready a light supper for them — a ham sandwich each, a piece of fruit cake and an orange.

“I’ll have a pickled onion with my sandwich, please,” said Dick. “I’ll chop it up and put it in with the ham. What wonderful ideas I do have, to be sure!”

Chapter Five

Night and morning

As they had their supper they talked about the queer new arrivals. Timmy sat close to George, trying to tell her that he was sorry for causing such a disturbance. She patted him and scolded him at the same time.

“I quite understand that you don’t like the snakes, Timmy — but when I tell you to stop barking and come away you MUST do as you’re told! Do you understand?”

Timmy’s tail dropped and he put his big head on George’s knee. He gave a little whine.

“I don’t think he’ll ever go near that box again, now he’s seen the snakes that came out of it,” said Anne. “You should have seen how scared he was when he looked out of the window with me and saw them. He went and hid under the table.”

“It’s a pity we’ve made a bad start with the fair-folk,” said Julian. “I don’t expect they like children much, because as a rule the kids would make themselves an awful nuisance — peering here and poking there.”