OFF FOR NEW YORK
"Where is that basket of groceries for the Jones house? Where can it
have gone to?" asked Tommie aloud, as he looked back into his wagon.
"I'm sure I put it in, and now--"
He turned around on his seat, and stepped over into the back part of the
wagon, among the boxes and baskets. He looked at them carefully, and
finally he raised the horse blanket that was over Bunny and Sue.
"Why--why--what--what in the world are you doing here?" cried Tommie,
much surprised to see the two children hiding there.
"We--we're having a ride," said Sue.
"Where did you get in?" asked Tommie.
"When you stopped at our house," answered Bunny. "And we've been riding
with you ever since."
"Well, well!" cried Tommie. "And to think I never knew it! You riding
in with me all the while, and I never knew a thing about it! Well,
well!"
He laughed, and Bunny and Sue laughed also. It was quite a joke.
"You don't mind, do you, Tommie?" asked Bunny.
"No, not a bit. I'm glad to have you."
"And will you ride us home?" asked Sue.
"Sure, yes, of course I will. But I've got to deliver the rest of my
groceries first. And that makes me think--I've lost a big basket full
that ought to go to Mr. Jones. I'm sure I put 'em in the wagon, but
they're not here. You didn't see a big basket of groceries--butter,
bread, tea, coffee and sugar--fall out, while you were riding in there,
did you?"
Bunny and Sue looked at one another. They were both thinking of the same
thing.
"That must have been the basket," said Bunny slowly.
"Yes," agreed Sue.
"What basket?" asked Tommie.
"We--we gave a basket of groceries to old Miss Hollyhock," said Bunny
slowly. "It was while you were in Mr. Thompson's house. You know old
Miss Hollyhock is awful poor, and we gave her the things to eat. We left
'em on her doorstep."
"For a Hallowe'en surprise," added Sue, "or a Valentine, though it isn't
Valentine's Day yet, either."
"So that's what happened; eh?" cried the grocery boy. "Old Miss
Hollyhock has the things I ought to leave for Mrs. Jones! Well, well!"
"Is you mad?" asked Sue, for there was a queer look on Tommie's face.
"No, not exactly mad, Sue," said Tommie slowly. "But I don't know what
to do. I know you meant to be kind, and good to old Miss Hollyhock; but
what am I to do about the things for Mrs. Jones? I can't very well go
and take them away from old Miss Hollyhock, for she must think that some
of her friends sent them, as they often do. It wouldn't do to take them
away."
"Oh, no! You musn't take 'em away from her, after we gave 'em to her,"
said Bunny. "That would make her feel bad."
"And she feels bad now, 'cause she's poor," put in Sue. "She's hungry,
too, maybe."
"Yes, I guess she is," agreed Tommie. "Well, I don't know what to do. If
I go back to the store to get more things for Mrs. Jones, Mr. Gordon
will want to know what became of the basketful I had. And old Miss
Hollyhock has them. Well--"
"Oh, I know what to do!" cried Bunny.
"What?" asked Tommie.
"You go to my house," said the little boy, "and my mamma will give you
money to buy more groceries for Mrs. Jones. Then old Miss Hollyhock can
keep the ones Sue and me give her. Won't that be all right?"
"Yes, I s'pose it will if your mother gives me the money," answered
Tommie slowly.
"She won't have to give you the money," said Sue. "We don't pay money
for groceries anyhow; we charge 'em."
"Well, it's the same thing in the end," said Tommie with a laugh. "But I
guess the best I can do is to take you two youngsters home, and see what
happens then. I'll tell Mrs. Jones I'll come later with her groceries."
Tommie ran up to the Jones house, and was soon back on the wagon again.
He drove quite fast to the home of Bunny and Sue.
"Oh, you children!" cried Mrs. Brown, when she heard what had
happened--about Bunny and Sue riding in the grocery wagon, and giving
the things away to old Miss Hollyhock that Mrs. Jones ought to have had.
"You'll pay for the groceries, won't you, Mother?" asked Bunny.
"Yes, dear, I suppose so. I know you meant to be kind, but you should
ask me before you do things like that. However, the food will be a great
help to old Miss Hollyhock. I was going to send her some anyhow.
"Here, Tommie, you give this note to Mr. Gordon, the grocer, and he will
charge the things to me, and give you more for Mrs. Jones. I'm sorry you
had all this trouble."
"Oh, I don't mind," and Tommie was smiling now. "I'm glad Bunny and Sue
had a nice ride."
"And it makes you feel good to give things to people," said Bunny. "I
mean it makes you feel good inside."
"Like eating bread and jam when you're hungry," observed Sue.
"No, it isn't like that," said Bunny. "'Cause when your hungry, and you
eat bread and jam it makes you feel good here," and he put his hand on
his stomach. "But when you make somebody, like old Miss Hollyhock, a
present it makes you feel good higher up," and he patted his little
heart.
"Well, I'm glad to know you like to be kind," said Mother Brown. "But
please don't run away and ride in any more grocery wagons, or something
may happen so that you can't go on a visit to Aunt Lu's city home."
"Oh dear!" cried Sue. "We wouldn't want that to happen! Are we soon
going, Mother?"
"Pretty soon, I guess. I have some sewing to do first. I must make you
some new dresses."
The next week was a busy one in the Brown house. There were clothes to
get ready for Bunny and Sue, and as they had just come back from a long
visit to grandpa's, in the country, some of their things needed much
mending. For Bunny and Sue had played in the hay; they had romped around
in the barn, and had run through the woods, and across the fields.
But the summer vacation had done them good. They were strong and
healthy, and as brown as little Indian children. They could play all day
long, come in, go to bed, and get up early the next morning, ready for
more good times.
One day the postman brought another letter from Aunt Lu.
"I can hardly wait for Bunny and Sue to come to
see me," said Aunt Lu. "I am sure they will have a
fine time in the city, though it is different from
the seashore where they live. Bunny will not find
any lobster claws here. And my home isn't in the
country, either. There are no green fields to play
in, though we can go to Central Park, or the Bronx
Zoo."
"What's a Zoo?" asked Bunny. "Is it something good to eat?"
"It's a game, like tag," guessed Sue.
"No," said Mother Brown. "Aunt Lu means the Bronx Zoölogical Park, and
she calls it Zoo for short. That means a place where animals are kept."
"Wild animals?" asked Bunny.
"Yes."
"Pooh! I know what a Zoo is--it's a circus!" the little boy exclaimed.
"Well, it's partly like that," said his mother. "But that isn't all of
Aunt Lu's letter."
"What else does she say?" asked Sue.
"Why, she writes that she has a surprise for you."
"Oh, what is it?" asked Bunny.
"Tell us!" begged Sue.
"Aunt Lu doesn't say," said Mrs. Brown. "You will have to wait until you
get to Aunt Lu's city home. Then you'll find out what the surprise is."
Bunny and Sue tried all that day to guess, but of course they could not
tell whether they had guessed right or not.
"Oh dear!" sighed Sue. "I wish it was time to go now."
But the days soon passed, and, about a week later, Mrs. Brown, with
Bunny and Sue, were at the railroad station, ready to take the train for
New York. Mr. Brown could not go with them, though he said he would come
later. He went to the station with them, however.
"Here comes the New York train," said Mr. Brown as a whistle sounded
down the track. "Now you're off for Aunt Lu's!"