Perhaps it was because Dr. Eaton talked so entertainingly all through the meal, or perhaps the big bunch of roses that Eleanor had put in the middle of the table had something to do with it. At any rate "The Merry Hearts" forgot their fear of seasickness, and ate a good dinner; and no one but Roberta was ill for a minute of the trip. Mary insisted that even Roberta was not really seasick--that she was just shamming, so that she could lie in bed all day, and be waited on, and have Dr. Eaton and Miss Hale send her sympathetic messages.