The Mountain of Adventure

Four children were singing at the tops of their voices in a car that was going up a steep mountain-side road.A parrot was also joining in, very much out of tune, cocking up her crest in excitement. The man at the wheel turned round with a grin.“I say! I can’t even hear the car hooter. What’s the matter with you all?”Philip, Jack, Dinah and Lucy-Ann stopped singing and shouted answers at him.“It’s the beginning of the hols!”“And we’re going to have a donkey each to ride in the mountains!”“Pop goes the weasel!” That was Kiki the parrot, of course, joining in.“We’ve got eight weeks of fun all together.”“And you’ll be with us, Bill, as well as Mother! Mother, aren’t you excited too?”Mrs. Mannering smiled at Philip. “Yes—but I hope you’re not going to be as noisy as this all the time. Bill, you’ll have to protect me from this rowdy crowd of children.”