THE MINNOW TWINS
Once upon a time the minnow family had been a very large one, for
there were fifteen of the children by actual count; but one day a
cruel net was dropped lightly into the brook, and twelve of them were
scooped up and taken away. All that remained were Father and Mother
Minnow, Baby Minnow, and the Twins.
It was such a delightful brook where the minnow family lived--one of
the kind which runs along quietly for a short way, then suddenly
bursts into little laughing ripples, bubbling, foaming, and hurrying
along madly, as though it were trying to race away from itself. The
brown bed of the brook was all paved with wonderful pebbles, and when
the sun shone down upon them they sparkled just like fairy jewels.
Oh, quite wonderful are the hidden treasures of the brook! It is
filled with queer, interesting brook people.
The black and yellow turtle family lived beneath a tussock of coarse
grass just at the bend of the brook, where the limb of an old tree
had fallen, and lay half submerged in the water. Quite convenient it
was, too, for the turtles; one would usually find some of them
sunning upon the log; and when they all came out, they made a long
line quite across the log, and frequently jostled each other "plump"
off into the deep water.
Below, in a dark, still place, all day long the "lucky bug" family
darted stupidly and aimlessly to and fro upon the mirror-like
surface; and just above, under the roots of an old willow tree, whose
snaky roots projected far into the water, lived Mr. and Mrs. Muskrat,
and their three young ones. Beneath a flat rock, which shelved out
into the water further down-stream, where it was deep, still, and
mysteriously shadowy, two large fierce pickerel had their haunts;
regular robbers and bandits they were, who made their living by
preying upon everything which came within their reach. There were
endless other families, all more or less interesting, which lived
upon the banks, or within the brown waters of the brook.
But this time I am going to tell you about the minnows. In spite of
the cruel net, which of course broke up the family, the minnows were
about the jolliest family living in the brook. Father and Mother
Minnow were very old and wise. They had wonderfully large, green
bulging eyes, which looked not unlike green glass marbles, and could
detect the approach of an enemy yards away. Then they would whisk
out of sight in an instant, under the nearest stone, remaining right
there until the danger passed.
Next in importance came the Twins, and they were so precisely alike
that only their mother could really tell them apart. She knew quite
well that one of them wore an extra speckle of brown upon his right
side. The Twins were for ever getting into scrapes, and were full of
mischievous pranks, which caused their parents no end of anxiety.
Because they were so full of curiosity about everything, these Twins
had to investigate any strange thing which entered the brook; this,
in spite of oft-repeated warnings from their parents. I must not
forget to mention the baby, a little bit of a slim, brown minnow, and
so very timid that he seldom left his mother's side.
One day the minnows were all swimming together happily down-stream,
pausing occasionally to exchange pleasant greetings with their
neighbours. Just as they were passing the coarse grass tussock, Mrs.
Spotted-Turtle stuck her head out between the grasses to tell them of
an accident which had befallen one of her family, the youngest; one
of his feet had been bitten off by the cruel old pickerel who lived
down stream.
So very much interested were Mr. and Mrs. Minnow in listening to this
sad story that they forgot to keep a watchful eye upon the Twins,
who, as soon as they discovered that they were not being watched,
darted fleetly off and were soon out of sight around a bend of the
brook. They longed for strange, new adventures, thrilling things,
and were quite mad with joy to be out of sight of the kind, watchful
eyes of their parents, whom they considered unduly fussy and strict.
Baby Minnow attempted to follow the Twins, but soon gave up and just
waited under the edge of a pebble until his parents should join him.
Off and away darted the Twins; so swiftly did they travel that their
slim sides flashed through the water like arrows of gold and silver.
Wild with delight and freedom they often gave little sudden leaps and
skips quite out of the water. They mischievously and wilfully swam
in among the "lucky bug" family, scattering them far and wide, until
the foolish things completely lost their heads, darting confusedly in
all directions. The Twins even forgot to watch the spot where a pair
of cruel jaws armed with sharp teeth usually lay in wait for them,
snapping dangerously as they passed by the pickerel's den. But he
did not catch them, because they were swimming too rapidly for the
sly old fellow, who had been napping and was sluggish in his
movements.
A whole drove of pale yellow butterflies joined the Twins just above
the pickerel hole, and kept them company a long distance downstream,
dancing merrily along over the water until a robin flew in among them
and scattered them in all directions. Oh, they were never lonely
upon their way; there was plenty of company. Musically hummed the
blue, lace wings of a team of giant dragon-flies which escorted them
for some distance. As the dragon-flies spent too much time darting
for gnats, the Twins left them far behind. Soon they were a long way
down-stream. The brook was full of surprises for them, as it
gradually widened, and the sweet-flags and cat-tails grew tall and
dense to the very edge of the water. They travelled less swiftly and
swam in and out of the shallows, investigating the jewelled pebbles,
aimlessly nibbling in a bed of watercress. Finally they paused to
rest and take a leisurely view of their new surroundings.
Just in the edge of the water directly in front of them, near the
watercress patch, suddenly they espied a strange, glittering object.
Never in their lives had the Twins seen anything like this thing
before them. Larger than any pebble it was and far more beautiful.
They knew about scoop-nets, and for a time viewed the strange thing
before them with misgivings. However, it failed to move, so they
sidled cautiously nearer and nearer. Perhaps it was something good
to eat, and they were decidedly hungry. It felt smooth and cool to
the touch as they brushed it with their fins. Wonderful! There was
an opening at one end, but it was not a mouth, because there were no
teeth; therefore it would not bite.
Finally, one Twin poked his head boldly into the opening and entered.
Strangely enough his twin could plainly see him upon the other side
of the object. He signalled with one fin for his brother to join
him, that all was safe, nothing to fear, and then both the Minnow
Twins went right inside the glass jar, for that was what it was. In
an instant the boy who owned the glass jar had pulled the string
which was tied about its neck, only the foolish minnows had not seen
it, and the next moment they were captives.
Frantically they dashed about the glass prison, bumping their noses
cruelly, until at last, quite exhausted by their efforts to get free,
they finally lay panting at the bottom of the jar. Occasionally they
would rise to the top for air, but oh, how miserably unhappy they
were. They could picture to themselves even now the agony of mind
their parents and little brother endured as they searched frantically
behind every pebble to find their wayward children.
They longed, oh, so sadly, for their beloved brook with its shady
haunts, to lie basking in the clear water which the sun warmed
pleasantly, while their neighbours sang sweetly above them--the
bluebird, the thrush, and hundreds of other birds which charmed and
entertained them all day long when they came to bathe in the brook.
The water in the fruit-jar was rapidly growing stale and lifeless.
The Twins realised that they could not live there very long. What
would be their sad fate? Cautiously they looked from their glass
prison; the boy was no longer in sight. Soon all became dark about
them and they knew it was night. Doubtless their parents and little
brother were dreaming peacefully deep down in the cool, dark waters
of the brook in a favourite nook beneath some broad lily leaf.
Next morning the Twins were barely alive; they lay gasping weakly.
Suddenly a great striped paw armed with hooked claws was thrust down
into the jar which it overturned, Minnow Twins and all, and the Twins
thought their last moment had come. Then the boy appeared and they
heard him say:
"Hi, there, Pussy, you rogue. Clear out. You're trying to steal my
minnows that I worked so hard to catch for bait. Get out!"
The boy put the minnows back into the jar and poured fresh water upon
them, which served to revive them wonderfully. Another boy finally
appeared carrying a tin pail in which he had many other unfortunate
minnows.
"I know a fine place to fish," he exclaimed; "there's an awful big
pickerel lives right under a great, flat stone, down near the
swimming hole. Come on; let's go and try for him."
It was a very hot day, and by the time the boys reached the brook
they had decided to take a little swim in a certain deep hole, down
by the willows, so they set the pail and jar carefully on a stone
beside the brook. They were in such a rush to get undressed and
plunge into the water that they had a race to see which should get in
first.
Thus it happened that one boy in pulling off his shoe aimed it
carelessly at the fruit-jar. Over it toppled with a jingling crash,
and the next instant the Minnow Twins were back in the brook and had
darted out of sight under a stone. Here they lay just a few seconds,
because they felt a little weak after their confinement. At last
they stole cautiously forth, and as good luck would have it found
themselves right in a little bed of mint. They nibbled greedily of
the healing mint roots, and soon the wonderful tonic made them quite
strong again. Whisking off and looking warily to right and left,
they started in the direction of their old haunts.
Soon dear, familiar landmarks began to appear. They hailed with
delight the form of old Mrs. Muskrat, grey and fat, sitting upon the
bank scolding her children crossly through her whiskers. Their
little friend, the water wag-tail bird, came tiptoeing in and out of
the brook, searching every pebble for bugs, just as she always did
day after day. She gave a droll little flirt, a sort of welcome,
with her funny little tail as the Minnow Twins slid quickly by. The
grey squirrels were chasing each other up and down the tree trunks
merrily, and surely--yes, far up-stream, they caught sight of the
old, familiar log, which lay just below the grass tussock, and right
there Mrs. Spotted-Turtle and her family lay sunning themselves,
ranged in a long line down the log. All the little turtles craned
their scaly, spotted necks over the log as the minnows passed under,
and one of the turtles which recognised the Twins flopped off the log
in his excitement into deep water.
Quickly the Twins passed on and soon they arrived at the familiar
bend where the white birch hung, dipping its silvery leaves into the
brook. Two chubby, glistening minnows closely followed by a little
bit of a slim baby minnow darted out to meet the homesick Twins.
They were made welcome with rejoicing and much nose-rubbing right
back into the bosom of the minnow family once more.
That night all the minnows rested quietly far down in the bottom of
the brook just beneath the protection of a large flat stone. The
whip-poor-wills came as they always did every evening to sing their
lullaby songs on the top of the old rail fence near, and everything
was peaceful and beautiful once more. If you tread very carefully
and lightly through the long grasses bordering the brook and peer
down into a certain nook perhaps you may be able to discover the
entire minnow family some day. You may be sure of the very spot if
you look for the old log, the grass tussock, and you may see some of
the yellow-spotted turtle family sunning themselves, if you have good
luck.