All the children except Tommy clapped their hands when Luella finished.
It did indeed sound sweet and she spoke it very prettily, waving her
hand and winking her own eye at the end.
Rosanna and Myron felt that their time had come. They looked at each
other, but Minnie settled the question.
"Now it is Miss Rosanna's turn," she said, "and then Myron's. Ladies
first. Give us a real nice story, Miss Rosanna."
"About robbers," said Tommy, chewing on a grass stem.
"I don't know any about robbers," said Rosanna pleasantly, "but I do
know one about a cat, or a kitten rather, and it really happened. Helen
told one about a dog, and this is about a cat.
"Once there were two little boys, Walter and Harold, and they were going
a long, long way to their new home in the West where they were going to
live. And they had a pet kitten that they wanted to take along so badly
that fin'ly their mother and father said they might take it if they
would carry it in its basket all the way and never ask anyone else to
take care of it. So they said they would, and by-and-by they had
everything packed up and ready, and when the time came, they started
off and got on the train, kitten and all.
"They had things for it to eat and milk for it to drink, and when the
conductor was not in the car they used to take it out of its basket and
pet it and play with it. And the kitten didn't mind it a bit.
"Well, when they had been on the train a couple of days they let the
kitten out, and Harold had it on his lap sound asleep.
"But just when they were at a station and the train was standing still,
something awfully exciting happened outside the window, and both boys
forgot the kitten. She jumped down from Harold's lap and went along
under the seats toward the end of the car. She thought she was going to
have a nice little walk, but just then the brakeman came into the car
and there was a kitten under one of the seats. He thought of course it
had hopped on the car there at the station, so he took it up and put the
poor little thing off the train, and then that _very_ minute the whistle
blew and off they went.
"It was a vestibule train, and when Walter and Harold found out that
their kitten was gone they hunted every inch of the car over, and then
hunted through the next car, thinking that she might have gone across
the vestibule and into the other car. But she was not there. Just then
along came the brakeman again and when the boys asked him if he had seen
a kitten, he said, 'Why, sure! Was that _your_ cat? I thought she had
hopped on the train back there at the last station, and I took her and
put her off.'
"Well, the boys felt so badly they didn't know what to _do_, and the
brakeman said they would not stop at any station for sixty miles. Walter
said he was going back to see if he could find her, but the brakeman
said she was most likely gone by this time or somebody had picked her
up. He was awfully sorry about it.
"When they had gone the sixty miles the car stopped, but the boys didn't
care to look out or anything. They just sat and thought about their
little kittie, and Harold said, 'Seems as though I can hear her cry,'
and Walter said, 'Don't say that again,' and then he looked funny,
because he thought he could hear her himself!
"Harold said, 'I suppose she is dead, and that is her ghost.' Walter
said, 'No, it's not; even kitten ghosts don't make a noise. There it is
again.'
"And then they looked around very slowly, the way you do when you think
something is going to happen and you don't know just what it will be,
and there in the seat back of them was the brakeman and he was holding
that kitten!
"When he opened the car door he found her squeezed up in a corner of the
top step, where she had ridden all that long way. When the brakeman
tossed her off she knew that the boys were on the train, so she climbed
right back, but she didn't get on quick enough to get into the
vestibule before the door was shut, so she had to hang on and ride
outside. She was scared nearly to death and jumped at every sound and
trembled for days, but the boys petted her and comforted her, and
by-and-by she felt all right. And there were lots of mice in the house
they went to live in, and that took her mind off herself. And that's all
of that," said Rosanna, smiling.
"That's a nice story," said Minnie. "Now let's hear what Myron has to
tell."
Myron shook his head. "Oh, go on, Myron," said Helen. "Tell us a story,
please, even if it _is_ short!"
"Once there was a little boy," said Myron, without waiting to be teased.
"Once there was a little boy and he had a mamma and two brothers and
three sisters, and he grew up and made lots of money, and bought lots of
nice things for his mamma, and his two brothers and his three sisters
and that's all."
"The dear lamb!" said Minnie. "That's the best story of the lot."
"Mine was better," said Tommy. "Mine was a real feller."
"Oh," murmured Minnie, "Louisa Cordelia has just _got_ to get hold of
you, young man!"
"I suppose it is my turn now," said Mary, "as long as you want to save
Minnie for the last. Could you let me say you a little poetry, or was
Luella's enough? I think some poetry sort of mixes things up a little."
"I think poetry is _lovely_," said Rosanna sweetly. "We loved Luella's
verses."
"Well, then I will say some instead of a story." Mary cleared her throat
and, rising, made a little bow.
UNAFRAID
The day I die, I'll quickly go
Past all the angels, row on row,
Straight up to God; I'll know His face
Even up there in that new place.
In Sunday School, the way they teach,
God is almost too great to reach.
They act a little bit afraid;
Because the world and all He made.
But if He made the heavens blue,
He made the sweet wild violets too;
And Oh, what careful work it took
To plan the small trout in the brook.
I know He's just the very size
Of father; with most loving eyes.
Just big enough so one like me
Can safely lean against His knee.
"Those were lovely verses," said Minnie when Mary had finished. "I
wonder who wrote them."
"My teacher wrote them," said Mary. "I think they are real nice."
"I do think it is a waste of time for me to tell a story," said Minnie.
"First you know the machine will be here and then we will have to hurry
home."
"I would like to hear you tell a story ever so much," said Mary. "I know
it would be a nice one, but I must be starting along pretty soon. It is
a long way from here to the car track, and I have to stop so often on
account of the baby being so heavy. It is so funny about babies, they
seem to get so heavy toward night."
"Indeed they do after you have lugged them about all day," said Minnie.
"I say I know all about it, dearie."
"We are not going to let you walk at all," said Rosanna. "We are going
to take you wherever you live right in the car."
"Nautomobile ride! Nautomobile ride!" chanted Tommy, tossing his cap.
"I think you are just too good," said Mary. "Will your automobile hold
such a lot?"
"Oh, yes, indeed, and more too!" said Rosanna, glad for once that she
had a big Pierce-Arrow.