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THE OLD MAN'S BAG
T. W. H. CROSLAND AND J. R. MONSELL
The Dumpy Books for Children
NO. 22. THE OLD MAN'S BAG.
THE DUMPY BOOKS FOR CHILDREN.
_Cloth, Royal 32 mo, 1/6 each._
I. The Flamp, the Ameliorator, and the Schoolboy's Apprentice. By
E. V. LUCAS.
II. Mrs. Turner's Cautionary Stories. Edited by E. V. LUCAS.
III. The Bad Family. By MRS. FENWICK. Edited by E. V. LUCAS.
IV. The Story of Little Black Sambo. Illustrated in Colours. By
HELEN BANNERMAN.
V. The Bountiful Lady. By THOMAS COBB.
VI. A Cat Book. Portraits by H. OFFICER SMITH. Text by E. V. LUCAS.
VII. A Flower Book. Illustrated in Colours by NELLIE BENSON. Text by
EDEN COYBEE.
VIII. The Pink Knight. Illustrated in Colours by J. R. MONSELL.
IX. The Little Clown. By THOMAS COBB.
X. A Horse Book. Illustrated in Colours. By MARY TOURTEL.
XI. Little People: An Alphabet. Illustrated in Colours by HENRY
MAYER. Verses by T. W. H. CROSLAND.
XII. A Dog Book. Illustrated in Colours by CARTON MOORE PARK. Text by
ETHEL BICKNELL.
XIII. The Adventures of Samuel and Selina. Illustrated in Colours by
JEAN C. ARCHER.
XIV. The Little Girl Lost. By ELEANOR RAPER.
XV. Dollies. Illustrated in Colours by RUTH COBB. Verses by RICHARD
HUNTER.
XVI. The Bad Mrs. Ginger. Illustrated in Colours by HONOR C. APPLETON.
XVII. Peter Piper's Practical Principles. Illustrated in Colours.
XVIII. Little White Barbara. Illustrated in Colours by ELEANOR S. MARCH.
XIX. The Japanese Dumpy Book. Illustrated in Colours by YOSHIO MARKINO.
XX. Towlocks and His Wooden Horse. Illustrated in Colours by HONOR
C. APPLETON. Text by ALICE M. APPLETON.
XXI. The Three Little Foxes. By MARY TOURTEL. Illustrated in Colours.
XXII. The Old Man's Bag. By T. W. H. CROSLAND. Illustrated in Colours
by J. R. MONSELL.
XXIII. The Three Goblins. By M. E. TAGGART. Illustrated in Colours.
_A Cloth Case to contain Twelve Volumes can be had, price 2s. net; or
the First Twelve Volumes in Case, price L1 net._
LONDON: GRANT RICHARDS,
48 Leicester Square.
[Illustration: The old man went for a walk and took the bag with him.]
THE OLD MAN'S BAG
By
T. W. H. CROSLAND
PICTURES BY
J. R. MONSELL
LONDON:
GRANT RICHARDS
1903
ILLUSTRATIONS.
THE OLD MAN WENT FOR A WALK _Frontispiece_
PAGE
THE OLD MAN SAID "CHUCK, CHUCK!" 2
THE RED POLICEMAN RAN AFTER HIM 7
"WHATEVER ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?" 10
SHE TOOK THE BAG DOWN 15
"BUTTER IS CHEAP TO-DAY" 18
"YOU ARE A VERY FOOLISH OLD WOMAN" 23
WHO SHOULD STEP IN BUT THE RED POLICEMAN 26
"PLEASE MEASURE ME FOR A SOLDIER'S SUIT" 31
HE BEGAN TO STRUT ABOUT 42
THE OLD WOMAN WAS KNOCKING APPLES OFF A TREE 47
BURNT THE PIECES ON THE FIRE 58
THE OLD MAN'S BAG.
CHAPTER I.
The old man lived in a wood. He had a wife and a bag. The bag was quite
a large bag. One day the old man went out for a walk. He took the bag
with him. By and by he saw a hen in a field. Now when you see a hen in
a field you say "Chuck, chuck!" The old man said "Chuck, chuck!" And
the hen came to him. So that he caught her by the neck and put her in
his bag. She made a great to-do, but he put her in.
[Illustration: The old man said "Chuck, chuck!" and the hen came to
him.]
On his way home, just as he turned a corner, the old man saw a
policeman. The policeman had a red suit. He was one of those policemen
who wear red suits because they are tired of wearing blue. The red
policeman looked very hard at the old man and very hard at his bag. In
fact he looked so very very hard that the old man got frightened and
turned round and ran away.
Of course the red policeman ran after him. When they had run about five
miles the old man dropped his bag in order that he might run quicker.
The red policeman had made up his mind to catch him; so that he did not
stop to pick up the bag but kept on running after the old man. At
length when they had run about ten miles he caught him.
[Illustration: The red policeman ran after him.]
"Now, sir," said the red policeman, "what have you got in that bag?"
"Nothing," said the old man.
"Oh, you wicked old person," said the red policeman. "You know
perfectly well that you have a hen in it. But you must come back with
me, and we will soon find out."
So the red policeman took the old man back to the place where he had
dropped the bag. The bag was there, and the red policeman picked it up
and opened it with great care. But the hen had got away. There was a
big hole in the corner of the bag, and through this the hen had
squeezed herself and run home as fast as ever she could. When the
policeman found that the bag was empty he looked much puzzled. The old
man for his part smiled a great deal. "I told you there was nothing in
it," he said.
The red policeman said, "Well, I expect I shall have to let you go this
time. BUT MIND YOU DON'T DO IT AGAIN."
And the old man went home quite cheerfully with his bag under his arm.