"Tolerable."

"Then why not pick up first one fore-foot, then another, and place them
on the planks. You'll see what the horses will do then."

Janus scratched his head and fingered his beard.

"I swum, Jim!" he grinned, "let's try it."

Each man took hold of a fore-foot of each horse, and, without much
difficulty, raised it to the planks before each animal. They were
about to go after the other fore-foot when Tommy, who had been standing
back at a safe distance, attracted their attention by uttering a little
cry.

"Oh, look! it ith growing light," she exclaimed.

"Daylight? Why, it is getting light," cried Margery.

A faint glow was flickering at the end of the bridge, casting rays
through the farther portion of the covered structure. The light was of
a reddish tinge. At first, not realizing that the night was still
young, the Meadow-Brook Girls welcomed that light with shouts of
approval. But there was something strange about the glow that caused
Miss Elting, Harriet and the men to gaze in open-mouthed wonder.

As they gazed the glow seemed to grow stronger. Then it flamed into a
great glare of red.

"Fire! Fire!" yelled Jane McCarthy.