WHAT BEN DID
The members of the Elderflower Club were so eager to begin business that
they could scarcely wait till the next day. The more retiring ones, like
Alcinda, contented themselves with beginning their ministrations to
relatives or those they knew, but it was to adventurous spirits like
Esther Ann and Reliance that a difficult case such as old Nathan Keener
appealed. Reliance, following out Mrs. Conway's advice, gave a cheery
"Good-morning, Mr. Keener," as she went by his dilapidated house on her
way to school. She reported this performance to the other girls at
recess.
"Oh, Reliance, you didn't dare, did you?" exclaimed Alcinda. "What did
he do? Did he run after you?"
"No, he only frowned and grunted."
"Did you walk very fast when you went by?" asked little Letty Osgood,
being very sure that she would not have loitered upon such an occasion.
"No, not so very. I just walked as I always do."
"Then I think you were very brave," continued Letty.
"Pooh!" exclaimed Esther Ann, "that wasn't anything to do. Just wait
till you see what I am going to do."
"What, Esther Ann? What?" clamored the girls.
"Wait till this afternoon and you will see," was all Esther Ann would
say to satisfy their curiosity.
This being Friday and Edna's last day at her grandmother's, her friends
begged that she be allowed to go with them to school that afternoon.
"We don't have real lessons," Reliance told her, "for Miss Fay reads to
us, and we have a sewing lesson."
"I'd love to go," said Edna, "and I could take the work bag I am making
for Celia. I could finish it, I think. May I go?"
"I haven't the slightest objection," Mrs. Conway assured her. So she set
off with Reliance, and felt quite at home since she knew all the girls
of her own age, and older, and, as she said, "the littler ones don't
count."
Everything moved along pleasantly during the school session, and the
girls started along in a bunch toward home. "You just come with me,
Edna," said Esther Ann. "You see you are a member of the club, too, and
this will be your only chance to do a deed. The others can follow along
if they want. I'll tell you what I am going to do and you can take
part, if you like."
The others were both timid and curious, and were quite content to obey
Esther Ann's suggestion to "follow on." Edna, it may be said, was not
inspired with that wholesome dread of old Nathan which possessed the
others, for she had not been brought up under the shadow of his
ogre-like actions, and she felt that this was an opportunity which she
could not neglect. She trotted along valiantly by Esther Ann's side, the
others keeping a safe distance behind.
"Tell me what you are going to do," said Edna to her companion, as they
proceeded on their way.
For answer, Esther Ann dived down into her school-bag and produced first
one then another big, red apple. "I am going to give these to Nathan.
You can give one. I mean just to walk right up to him and say, 'Won't
you have an apple, Mr. Keener?'"
"Suppose he isn't there," returned Edna.
"Oh, he'll be there; he always is when it is a bright day like this. He
sits in an old chair on that broad doorstep in front of his house, and
leans on a big, thick stick he always carries."
"Who cooks for him?"
"Oh, he cooks for himself, when he has anything to cook. He has a little
garden, but it doesn't amount to much. He has no apple trees except an
old one that is nearly dead and never has but a few little, measly,
knerly apples on it; that's why I thought he'd like these."
Their walk was carrying them nearer and nearer the old man's door.
"There he is now," whispered Esther Ann. "I'll go first and you come
right up behind me. Here, take your apple." She thrust the fruit into
Edna's hand and hastened her own pace a little. Edna's heart began to
beat fast, for surely Nathan Keener was anything but an attractive
figure as he sat there glowering and muttering, his gaunt hands resting
on his knotted stick, and his grizzly old face wearing a wrathful look.
True to her guns, Esther Arm dashed forward and held out her apple
saying in a shrill, excited voice, "Won't you have----"
But she got no further, for with a snarl the old man reached out one
long, bony arm and grabbed her by the shoulder, raising his stick
threateningly, "I'll larn ye, ye little varmint," he began.
Esther screamed. Edna, paralyzed with fright, looked on with affrighted
eyes, but presently found voice to quaver out, "Please don't hurt her!
Oh, please don't!"
The other girls a little distance off stood huddled together like a
flock of sheep. No one was brave enough to venture within reach of that
terrible stick, but just then along came a crowd of boys from school.
The foremost took in the situation in a glance, and in another instant
was on the platform by Esther's side.
"Here, you old mut, what are you doing to my sister?" he cried, at the
same time trying to wrest the stick from the old man's grasp.
But Nathan had too long wielded the stick with effect to lose it so
readily. Loosing his hold upon Esther, he swiftly shifted his weapon to
his other hand and brought down a blow on the boy's back.
By this time the other boys had come up; there were cries, threats,
screams from the girls, shouts from the boys. All was in a dreadful
hub-bub when along the road approached a young man who stood for a
moment and then dashed to the scene of battle. "Here, boys, here," he
cried, "what are you doing to that old man?"
"He was going to beat my sister," spoke up the one who had first hurried
to the front.
"You old scalawag," cried the young man, "what were you up to? If you
are yearning to hit somebody, take a fellow your own size." He wrenched
the stick from the man's grasp and threw it away. "Now," he said, "have
it out if you will. I'm ready." He squared off, but the old man had
neither strength nor desire to grapple with such a masterful opponent,
and he slunk back against his door.
"I guess if your life was pestered by a set of young wretches like
these, you'd threaten, too," he said surlily. "I guess I'm getting too
smart for their tricks, and know enough not to take anything they offer
me. I don't have to have more'n one apple full of red pepper set on my
doorsill. I guess I know who hides my loaf of bread, and puts salt in my
can of milk. I guess I cut my eyeteeth a good many years ago, and can
catch 'em at their tricks."
The young man looked around at the group of boys, now rather shamefaced,
at the group of girls now gathered around Esther Ann. On the edge of
this latter group he recognized a little round face now tear-stained and
affrighted. In a moment he was by Edna's side. "Well, I'll be
everlastingly switched," he exclaimed, "Edna, my child, what are you
doing in this mix-up?"
"Oh, Ben," returned Edna, "it was all a mistake. Nobody meant to play a
trick."
"Come over here and tell me all about it," said Ben, leading her aside.
Edna poured forth her tale of woe, during the recital of which more
than once Ben's mouth twitched and his eyes grew merry. "It doesn't do
to be too zealous, does it?" he said at the close of the story. "Here,
old fellow, come back here." He made a dash at old Nathan who was now
retreating within his own doorway. Ben pulled him back by his
coat-tails. "We aren't through with this yet," he went on as the man
turned upon him with a few smothered words. "That isn't a pretty way to
talk. You have something of a case, I admit, but you happened to
overreach yourself this time. No, you're not going in yet. A little more
fresh air won't hurt you. Sit down there and be good and I will tell you
a pretty little story." He pushed the old man gently into his chair and
stood guard over him. "No, you don't need your stick yet; you might get
careless with it. I'll just lean it up against the house. Now, then,
those little girls hadn't a notion of playing you a trick; they were
trying to do you a kindness. They knew you were lonely and hadn't much
chance to run around with the boys, or run an automobile, so they
thought they would chirk you up a little by presenting you with a large,
sweet, juicy, red apple. Their little hearts were throbbing with
good-will; they had an unconquerable desire to bring a smile to your
lips and a gleam of happiness to your eye. To prove this to you, I will
now dissect this large, sweet, juicy, red apple. I will eat half and you
will eat the other. If it isn't a good apple, I'll eat my hat." He
carefully cut the apple, which Edna had given him, pared and quartered
it, stuck a piece on the end of his knife and offered it to the old man,
who pushed it away contemptuously. "Let me insist," Ben went on. "We are
not playing Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. There is no serpent in
sight, not so much as a worm, and if you find so much as a grain of red
pepper I'll acknowledge myself beaten."
The old man muttered incoherently as Ben finished his harangue, but made
no motion to take the apple. "You don't know what you are missing," Ben
went on. "Now just for the sake of old times, let's try to be jolly and
remember when we were boys. Why, many a time you and I have raced down
this shaded street, shouting with mirth, have climbed the wall by the
orchard and stuffed our pockets with apples like these. You never could
take a joke, as I remember, but still you weren't a bad fellow, and I'll
bet you were a wonder at baseball. I shouldn't wonder if your batting
didn't beat the town. The way you swing around that stick of yours shows
there is 'life in the old land yet.'"
The old man's face had relaxed a little and he no longer muttered under
his breath. Ben winked at the boys who had drawn nearer and were
enjoying the situation to the utmost. "Now, just for old times' sake,"
continued Ben, "just tell me what was the last real, good, old-fashioned
trick you ever played?" The old man cast a half-suspicious look at the
smiling young man by his side, but made no reply. "Too bad you forget,"
said Ben, "but I'll bet an apple to an oyster you don't forget that last
game you played."
"Who told you about it?" snapped out the old man.
"Never mind. Do you suppose such a game as that will ever be forgotten?
I'm going to tell these boys all about it some day, see if I don't."
Nathan wheeled around in his chair and glanced over the row of young
faces before him. Then he leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"I'll bet you wouldn't mind a good game now, but you've no use for these
boys and they haven't much for you. When's the next game, boys?" He
turned to the row of faces.
"We've stopped playing baseball for this year," came in a chorus.
"Don't have football up here?"
"No, we haven't any team."
"Too bad. I might join you on that. Well, Mr. Keener, some of these days
you and I will go to a game together; we'll get that fixed up. Which of
you boys was it who so doughtily sped to the rescue of the young
maiden?"
"Jim Tabor; it was his sister the old man was after," piped up the boys.
"All right, and mighty little respect I would have had for him, if he
hadn't pitched in the way he did. Step up here, Jim."
Jim came forward, a little awkwardly, the other boys snickering. "Mr.
Keener, this is Jim Taber. I want you to look at him and tell me if,
when you were a boy of his size you had seen anyone threatening your
sister with a stick, you wouldn't have pitched in and fought for her for
all you were worth. You weren't any slouch in those days when it came to
fighting, I know. That's all, Jim, no apologies necessary. Now, Mr.
Keener, there is just one thing more. I don't believe these children are
really bad, only mischievous as you used to be when you were a
youngster. The girls, I know, are all ready to be friends, bless their
dear little hearts. As for the boys, I'll venture to say we can patch up
a treaty of peace with them. If you will promise to be a little less
free with that stick and not get a grouch on you every time a boy looks
your way, they will promise to play no more tricks. If they don't
promise, I'll give every mother's son of them Hail Columbia when I come
this way again," and by his looks, the boys knew he meant what he said.
They were conscious that Ben was standing up for old Nathan, and yet
that he meant to be perfectly fair to them. Ben looked up and down the
line. "Well?" he said.
The boys looked at one another. "If he'll promise, we will," spoke up
Jim Taber.
"It's a go," said Ben. "Now, Mr. Keener, it's up to you."
Old Nathan gave a grunt which might have meant anything, but Ben chose
to interpret it his own way. "I think that is meant for assent," he
said. "The gentleman seems to be speaking a foreign language to-day,
Choctaw, I should say, or maybe Hindostanee. However, it is all right.
Now, Mr. Keener, allow me, sir." He opened the door with a flourish and
handed the old man his stick. Without a word, Nathan took the stick and
went in, Ben bowing and scraping and saying, "Thank you for a very good
time," then receiving no reply, not even a grunt, he added, "Not at all,
the pleasure is entirely mine." The door closed and that was the end of
it.
Edna came running up. "Oh, Ben," she said, "how glad I am to see you.
Oh, wasn't it dreadful? How did you happen to come along?"
"Why, Pinky Blooms, I was on my way to grandpa's, thought I would come
to take mother back to-morrow, and, as it was a fine afternoon, I
concluded, to walk up from the station. Happened by just in the nick of
time, didn't I? Funny old curmudgeon, isn't Nathan?"
"Oh, he is terrible," responded Edna, with a remembrance of the uplifted
stick. "Are you going home with me?"
"No; you trot along with the rest of the brood; I am going to stay here
a few minutes and have a chat with the boys; I'll be along directly."
So Edna left him, the boys crowding around and asking all sorts of
questions. Ben was no new figure in the town, and most of them knew him
at least by sight. Just what he said to the boys, Edna never knew, but
it is a matter of comment that from that day on there were no more
tricks played on old Nathan Keener, and though the big stick was not so
much in evidence, it was a long time before any of the Elderflowers made
any headway in winning even so much as a grunt from him. It was a great
setback to the enthusiasm of the girls, but as Reliance told Esther Ann,
she should not have tried so venturesome a thing at the very outset.
"Mrs. Conway says we should have worked up to it gradually. It's just
like training a wild animal, you have to win its confidence first." But
Esther Ann declared she wanted no more of Nathan Keener, and Reliance
was perfectly welcome to try any methods she liked so long as Esther Ann
was not asked to share in the effort. It was a very exciting afternoon,
taking it all in all, and was the means of bringing some ridicule and
some censure upon the little club. One or two of the girls resigned,
saying their mothers did not approve of such proceedings. All this,
however, did not happen during Edna's Thanksgiving visit, but she heard
of it afterward, and of further matters concerning the Elderflowers.