"We must put the panniers back, and the girl must sit between them
somehow," said the man. "She can't walk--the boy must run beside."

So saying, he lifted both children off the donkey, not so gently but
that Pamela gave a cry as her sore foot touched the ground. But no one
except Duke paid any attention to her, not even Tim, which she thought
very unkind of him. She said so in a low voice to Duke, but he whispered
to her to be quiet.

"If only my foot was not sore, now us could have runned away," she could
not help whispering again. For all the gipsies seemed so busy in loading
themselves and the donkey that for a few minutes the children could have
fancied they had forgotten all about them. It was not so, however. As
soon as the panniers were fastened on again Mick turned to Pamela, and,
without giving her time to resist, placed her again on the donkey. It
was very uncomfortable for her; her poor little legs were stretched out
half across the panniers, and she felt that the moment the donkey moved
she would surely fall off. So, as might have been expected, she began to
cry. The gipsy was turning to her with some rough words, when Diana
interfered.

"Let me settle her," she said. "What a fool you are, Mick!" Then she
drew out of her own bundle a rough but not very dirty checked wool
shawl, with which she covered the little girl, who was shivering with
cold, and at the same time made a sort of cushion for her with one end
of it, so that she could sit more securely.

"Thank you," said Pamela, amidst her sobs; "but oh I hope it's not very
far to home."