It was in the Dales that Gerda and little Birger outgrew their cradle and
their baby clothes, and became the sturdy children their father longed to
have them.

When they were seven years old their mother took them to live in
Stockholm; but with each new summer they hurried away from the city with
its schools and lessons, to spend the long vacation at the farm.

"Gerda and Birger are here!" they would cry, opening the door and running
into the living-room to find their grandmother.

"Gerda and Birger are here!" The news always ran through the neighborhood
in a twinkling, and from far and near the boys and girls flocked down the
road to bid them welcome.

"Ger-da! Ger-da!" the old clock in the corner ticked patiently, just as
it had been ticking for eleven long years. But who could listen to it
now? There were flowers and berries to pick, chickens to feed, and games
to play, through all the long summer days in Dalarne. Surely, Gerda and
Birger had no time to listen to the clock.




CHAPTER II

THE SURPRISE BOX


All day long the gentle breezes blowing through the city streets, and the