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you know what?" she asked happily between coughs.

    “Miss Joyce liked me all the time!” 
     

 4
    Ellen Rides Again
    The arrival of spring meant different things to different people. To Mrs. Tebbits it meant spring cleaning. To Mrs. Allen it meant planting seeds and setting out new flowers. To Ellen and Austine spring meant something much more important. It meant no more winter underwear.
    The two girls were walking home from the library one warm spring afternoon.

    They felt light and carefree in their summer underwear. It was a wonderful feeling. It made them want to do something exciting.
    At the library Austine had been lucky enough to find two horse books. “I wish I could ride a horse sometime,” she said.
    “Haven’t you ever ridden a horse?” asked Ellen.
    “No. Have you?” Austine sounded impressed.
    “Oh, yes,” said Ellen casually. “Several times.”
    It was true. She had ridden several times.
    If she had ridden twice she would have said a couple of times.Three was several times, so she had told the truth.
    “Where? What was it like? Tell me about it,” begged Austine.
    “Oh, different places.” That was also true.
    She had ridden at the beach. Her father had rented a horse for an hour and had let Ellen ride behind him with her arms around his waist. The horse’s back had been slippery and she had bounced harder than was comfortable, but she had managed to hang on.
    And she had ridden at Uncle Fred’s farm.
    Uncle Fred had lifted her up onto the back of his old plow horse, Lady, and led her twice around the barnyard. Lady didn’t bounce her at all.
    And then there was that other time when her father had paid a dime so she could ride a pony around in a circle inside a fence. It hadn’t been very exciting.The pony seemed tired, but Ellen had pretended it was galloping madly. Yes, it all added up to several times.
    “Why haven’t you told me you could ride?” Austine demanded. “What kind of saddle do you use?” Austine knew all about different kinds of saddles, because she read so many horse books.
    “Oh, any kind,” said Ellen, who did not know one saddle from another. “Once I rode bareback.”That was true, because Lady had no saddle.
    “Golly,” said Austine. “Bareback!” Ellen was beginning to feel uncomfortable. She had not meant to mislead Austine.
    She really did not know how it all started.
    “Oh, Ellen, you have all the luck,” exclaimed Austine. “Imagine being able to ride horseback. And even bareback, too.”
    “Oh, it’s nothing,” said Ellen, wishing Austine would forget the whole thing.
    But the next day at school Austine did not forget about Ellen’s horseback riding.
    She told Linda and Amelia about it. They told Barbara and George. Barbara and George told other boys and girls. Each time the story was told, it grew.
    Even Otis was impressed and he was a difficult boy to impress. When the girls started home after school, he was waiting on the edge of the school grounds. He had a piece of chalk and was busy changing a sign from “Bicycle riding forbidden at all times” to “Bicycle riding bidden at all times.” Otis crossed out “for” every time he had a chance, but the rain always washed away the chalk marks.
    “Hello, Ellen,” he said, walking along beside her in his cowboy boots. Since Christmas Otis had worn boots instead of Oxfords. He was not wearing spurs today.
    Miss Joyce had asked him not to wear them to school.
    Ellen and Austine ignored him.
    Otis kicked at the grass along the edge of the sidewalk.“Say, Ellen, is it true you ride a lot? Even bareback?”
    “Of course it’s true,” said Austine.
    “I wish people would stop talking about it,” said Ellen crossly. “What’s so wonderful about riding a horse, for goodness’ sake?”
    “Gee whiz,” said Otis enviously. “Some people have all the luck.”
    The girls continued to ignore him. He followed them for a while, kicking at the grass, and then turned down another