It was the middle of winter and Cloverfield Farm was deep under snow.
The ponds were all frozen over and even the little brook had stopped
babbling and was frozen into silvery ice.
Bobby liked the winter, because he could coast on the Little Hill and
take rides in the big bob-sleigh.
There was no work to be done on the farm in winter; so Prince and Daisy
stood all day in their stalls in the Old Red Barn.
"How would you like a long sleigh ride to-day, Bobby?" asked father one
morning.
"I'm ready for one; that would be great fun. Where are you going?"
answered Bobby.
"Well, harvest time has come," said father. "So Prince and Daisy and I
are going to help harvest butter and ice cream."
"This is not harvest time," said Bobby; "harvest time is in the summer
when it is very hot. And besides, Prince and Daisy cannot make butter
and ice cream. Mother makes the butter, and John freezes the ice
cream."
"Do you remember, Bobby, how they helped make bread?" asked father.
"Yes," said Bobby.
"If you will come with me, I will show you how they _do truly_ help to
make butter and ice cream too," said father.
"Shall I have to go far, father?"
"Yes, it is quite a long drive. Ask mother to bundle you up warm," said
father.
Before long, father was at the door with the big bob-sleigh drawn by
Prince and Daisy. He tucked Bobby in warm and snug with the buffalo
robe, and then away they went. The bells on the horses jingled merrily
as they went skimming along over the snow.
"Are we going to the city?" asked Bobby.
"No, Bobby, not this time. We are going to the river," said father.
"I never saw any ice cream in the river," said Bobby.
"Keep your eyes wide open, Bobby, and you will see Prince and Daisy
help get ice cream from the river," said father.
When they came to the river, Bobby could see that it was all one mass
of ice. Men working there had swept the snow off and were cutting the
ice into great blocks.
"Oh!" said Bobby, "this is where we get the ice for John to put in the
freezer."
Father drove close down to the edge of the river and the men filled the
sleigh with a great load of the big blocks of ice.
"May I have a dish of the ice cream to-day?" asked Bobby.
"Not to-day," said father, "not until summer."
They were on the way home now, the horses going slowly with the heavy
load.
"But it will not be summer for a long time," said Bobby. "By that time
the snow and ice will all melt."
"This ice will not melt," said father, "even when spring comes and the
snow goes off."
"That is strange," said Bobby. "Truly I am afraid it will melt and then
we shall have no ice cream."
"Just watch," said father, "and see where I put it."
When they reached home father drove to the ice house.
"Look in there," he said to Bobby, "and tell me what you see."
"I see a great pile of sawdust," said Bobby. "You won't put the ice in
there will you, father? I do not want sawdust in my ice cream."
"We will see that no sawdust gets into the ice cream," said father,
"and yet we could not make the ice cream without it."
Father carried the big cakes of ice into the ice house and piled them
in rows on a deep layer of sawdust. Then he went for another load and
another and another. All that week he kept drawing ice until the ice
house was nearly full. Over the top of the ice and around the sides of
it he packed sawdust until it looked like a mountain.
"Are you trying to keep the ice warm?" asked Bobby.
"No, Bobby, I am covering it with the sawdust to keep it cool," said
father.
"That is very strange," said Bobby. "Mother puts blankets on me to keep
me warm. You put a blanket on the ice to keep it cool. I think there
must be a mistake somewhere."
After a few months spring came and the snow melted and the ice on the
river melted.
One day mother said, "If you will get me some ice we will have ice
cream to-day. I am going to churn too and will need some for the
butter."
"I am afraid the ice is all melted, mother," said Bobby.
"Come with me and we will see," said father.
So they went to the ice house. Father climbed on top of the mountain of
sawdust. Bobby climbed after him.
Father dug some of the sawdust off, then said, "Now you may dig,
Bobby."
Bobby began to scoop the sawdust off. Pretty soon his hand touched
something cold. He dug some more and then came to a piece of shiny
silvery ice.
Father lifted it out. There was a large cake of glittering ice just as
they had put it in last winter.
"Now we'll wash the sawdust off," said father.
So they stopped at the well and washed it all clean, and then broke it
into pieces. Part of it they took to mother to keep the butter cool;
part of it to John to freeze the ice cream.
When the ice cream was frozen and Bobby was eating a dish of it, father
said, "Well, Bobby, who made the ice cream to-day?"
"I see now," said Bobby. "We could not have had it on this hot day if
Prince and Daisy had not drawn the heavy loads of ice last winter."
"And I could not have made such good butter without the ice," said
mother.
"If horses liked ice cream," said Bobby, "I would give some of mine to
Daisy and Prince."
[Illustration: PRINCE PLAYS TAG]
X
This is a story about Prince when he was naughty. It was one time when
Farmer Hill let him out into the pasture for a day and Prince would not
come back at night.
It began when Farmer Hill said one Sunday morning in spring, "I will
turn Prince and Daisy into the pasture to-day and let the other horses
take us to church."
All winter long Prince had been in his stall in the barn, except once
in a while when he had been driven to the village or the city.
He had been standing in the dark stall so long that when Farmer Hill
turned him loose in the pasture, he felt very strange.
At first he just stood near the bars and nibbled the short fresh grass.
Then he slowly walked around to the clump of trees in the middle of the
lot and ate some more grass; then he went to the far corner and took a
drink of cool water from the little brook.
The sun was shining brightly, the birds were singing in the trees.
Prince liked the bright sunlight, he liked the gentle breeze, he liked
the fresh grass.
"I shall stay here always," thought Prince. "I should like to run and
kick up my heels."
So he kicked up his heels and ran to the other end of the field.
After a while he went galloping back again.
All day Prince and Daisy were out in the pasture, sometimes eating
grass, sometimes resting under the trees, sometimes running and
prancing around.
Toward night, when it was time for them to go back into the stable,
Farmer Hill came to the bars and whistled.
They both heard him whistle.
Daisy came running toward him, and he opened the stable door and put
her in.
But Prince did not come.
Instead, he turned and ran to the other end of the field.
"I shall not go into the stable tonight," thought Prince. "I shall stay
here always."
"He acts as frisky as a young colt," said father. "I shall have to put
a halter on and lead him."
So he took the halter from its peg near the stable door, and walked
toward Prince.
Farmer Hill had almost reached Prince, who had been standing quite
still, when suddenly Prince kicked up his heels, gave his mane a toss
and was off like the wind.
"Whoa, Prince," said Farmer Hill.
Prince did not stop until he reached the other end of the field near
the barn.
Farmer Hill came back toward him, and once more Prince stood still
until he was almost there and then bounded off.
"It is like a game of tag," said Bobby, who had been watching by the
bars. "You never can catch him, father."
"I will fool him," said father. "I shall catch him then."
"How will you do it?" asked Bobby.
"Just watch, Bobby, and you will see," said father.
Father got a measure of oats from the granary and walked toward Prince,
holding it out to him.
When Prince saw the measure of oats, he wanted some to eat.
After a while he started to walk up to the measure. Then he stopped.
"I will not go near him," thought Prince. "I will stay out in the
pasture."
But the more he thought about the oats, the more he wanted them. After
a while a bright idea came to him.
"I will go and take one bite," thought Prince, "and then I will run
away quickly."
So he walked slowly up to Farmer Hill.
Farmer Hill let him put his head into the measure.
Prince took one bite. That tasted so good that he took another and
another until the oats were all eaten. While he was eating, Farmer Hill
slipped the halter around his neck.
Then he tried to get away, but the halter held him tight.
"I have you now," said Farmer Hill. "You must come into the stable."
As father led him to the stable, Bobby said, "Prince was naughty that
time, wasn't he, father?"
"Yes," said father, "he led me a merry chase, but I cannot blame him
much. Who would not rather be outdoors on a day like this than in the
finest stable, or house either?"
"I think Prince was sensible," said Bobby.
[Illustration: ROVER DOES SOME MISCHIEF]