A Substitute Brownie
“I’m going to miss my mother a lot,” Veve sighed as she sank back on
the seat.
Connie didn’t say anything. But from the way she looked, Veve knew she
would miss her parents too. They both felt a bit homesick even though
they weren’t a mile out of Rosedale.
Soon the train was traveling at full speed. Fields and houses rolled by
just as if they were moving instead of the train.
“I know what let’s do,” proposed Veve. “Let’s count telegraph poles.”
For a little while this was great fun. Eileen and Jane, who sat in the
seat across from Connie and Veve, tried it too.
At three hundred and four Veve lost count and didn’t want to play the
game any more.
“What shall we do now?” she asked restlessly.
“Let’s just ride awhile,” Connie proposed.
Presently a cold draft of wind blew through the car. The conductor, who
was fat and jolly, came down the aisle. He collected the tickets from
Miss Gordon, and talked with the Brownies.
“You’ll need to shake your furs out of moth balls when you get to
Deerford,” he joked. “Snow’s six feet deep there. I nearly had my ears
nipped off when we went through on the run yesterday.”
The Brownies settled down to enjoy the long ride ahead. Eileen and Jane
played a card game.
Rosemary, who sat with Miss Gordon, helped her turn the seat so that
the four faced each other. Sunny, who didn’t want to sit alone,
squeezed in beside them.
After a while, when the girls were tired of playing cards and talking,
Sunny began to hum the Brownie “Smile” song.
Soon, to the enjoyment of the passengers, all the girls except Veve
were singing it. Veve tried to join in, but not being a Brownie, she
didn’t know the words.
“I’ve something in my pocket;
It belongs across my face,
And I keep it very close at hand,
In a most convenient place.
“I’m sure you couldn’t guess it
If you guessed a long, long while,
So I’ll take it out and put it on--
It’s a great big Brownie smile.”
As the Brownies sang the song, they grinned from ear to ear. Soon all
the passengers in the car were smiling too.
“Is it almost time for lunch?” Veve asked after a while. “I’m starving!”
“So am I!” declared Rosemary. “I could eat a fried elephant!”
Miss Gordon looked at her watch. “It is only five minutes after
eleven,” she told the girls. “The diner won’t be open for at least
twenty-five minutes.”
“Then where can I get a drink of water, please?” asked Veve. She was
more restless than thirsty.
Connie had noticed a water cooler at the end of the aisle. She offered
to show Veve.
Beside the tank was a metal container which held paper cups nested
together. Veve took out one for herself and one for Connie. They drank
the ice water slowly. It was so cold it made their teeth ache.
Veve, who liked to remove the paper cups from the machine, decided to
take a drink to Miss Gordon.
Down the aisle she started, balancing the filled cup carefully.
Just then the train gave a sudden lurch as it slackened speed for a
curve. Veve stumbled sideways.
The cup slipped from her hand, and a little water splashed on a man who
sat along the aisle.
“Oh, I am terribly sorry,” Veve said politely.
When Veve finally reached Miss Gordon’s seat, not much water was left
in the cup. The teacher drank what little there was and thanked Veve.
Sunny offered to get her another cup, and soon all the Brownies needed
a drink. Miss Gordon had to ask them to remain in their seats because
she was afraid they might disturb the other passengers.
“Let’s play jacks,” suggested Veve, who wanted to do something every
minute.
“What with?” inquired Connie, not very much interested.
“Oh, I brought some with me,” Veve said, taking them from her pocket.
“We can play on the seat.”
The girls crossed their legs and sat at either end of the car cushion.
This left a small place between them where they could play.
“You start first, Veve,” Connie suggested politely. “Let’s see if you
can get past your ‘ones.’”
“Oh, I’ll go up to my ‘fours’ at least,” Veve boasted. “Just watch!”
The little girl threw one jack on the cushion. She tossed another into
the air, scooped up the one on the cushion and caught the other before
it fell. Then she threw two down and continued until she had reached
her “fours.”
“Didn’t I tell you, Connie?”
“Yes, but it’s going to be hard now,” said Connie. “There are three
jacks together and one off at the side.”
“I can do it. Just watch!”
Veve caught up three of the jacks. But when she tried to get the
fourth, all flew from her hand and went helter-skelter over the car
floor. Several rolled into the aisle.
Before Connie or Veve could pick them up, the same elderly man who had
been doused with water ambled down the aisle.
He failed to see the jacks lying on the car floor. Veve tried to warn
him, but she spoke too late.
The man stepped squarely on one of the jacks and the points cut through
his soft-soled slipper.
“Ouch!” he exclaimed. “My goodness!”
The other Brownies, Miss Gordon and many of the passengers, turned to
see why the man was making such a fuss.
“Mister, you are standing on one of my jacks,” said Veve.
Although she spoke politely, it seemed to be exactly the wrong thing to
say.
“_Your_ jacks?” demanded the man. “You might have crippled me for life!”
“Veve didn’t mean to do it,” said Connie quickly. “The jacks just
slipped from her hand.”
She stooped down and gathered up four jacks which she gave to Veve.
“One is missing,” said Veve, gazing directly at the elderly man. “I
think you are standing on it.”
“This is an outrage!” declared the man irritably. “Children should not
be allowed to play games on trains. Where are your parents?”
Connie and Veve did not reply. They were relieved when Miss Gordon left
her seat and spoke to the man.
She explained to him that Veve had dropped the jack quite by accident.
The man accepted the apology, but he remained rather cross.
“It was an accident too when she spilled water on me,” he said. “I hope
it doesn’t happen again.”
The man went on down the aisle and Veve picked up her jack.
“Now shall I try my ‘fours’ again?” she asked.
“Oh, no,” Connie replied, shaking her blond tangled curls. “Let’s not
play any more. Everyone is looking at us.”
“Then what shall we do until lunch time?”
“Let’s just ride awhile,” sighed Connie. “I think everyone needs a
rest.”
Veve, she knew, was causing considerable annoyance to Miss Gordon and
the other train passengers, although her playmate never intentionally
made trouble.
“Look! It’s snowing!” cried Jane suddenly from across the aisle.
Everyone turned to gaze out the windows. Big feathery flakes were
fluttering down, banking up on the double glass.
“What beautiful patterns!” cried Eileen. “Miss Gordon, are any two
snowflakes ever alike?”
Now the leader of the Brownie troop was very glad that the question had
been asked. It gave her an opportunity to call all the girls together
and keep them from annoying other passengers.
“Shall I tell you a few things about snow?” she asked, without
immediately answering Eileen’s question.
“Oh, yes! Please do!” pleaded the Brownies.
Connie and Veve perched on the chair arms as Miss Gordon gathered the
girls in the double seats.
“Now first, I’ll answer Eileen’s question,” the teacher declared. “No
two snowflakes ever are exactly alike.”
“How can one be sure?” inquired Jane.
“Scientists have photographed them. A study of more than five thousand
flakes revealed no two quite alike.”
“Some of the snowflakes are like stars,” Connie said softly, watching
them pelt against the window.
“The hexagonal shape is fairly common,” Miss Gordon explained.
“Three-sided flakes are considered rare.”
Immediately the Brownies began to watch for a triangular snowflake.
They did not see a single one.
“The flakes are like tiny white parachutes floating down,” Connie
declared. “Why are they white when they’re made of water?”
“Another excellent question. Snow is white because it reflects and
refracts light. If you should examine it under a microscope you would
see that the edges are like a prism, breaking the light into rainbow
colors.”
“What makes the flakes large or small?” questioned Sunny.
“Temperature, I believe, determines the size. At low thermometer
readings, flakes tend to be smaller.”
“I think the flakes are getting smaller now,” announced Veve. “Does
that mean it’s getting colder outside?”
“We’re traveling north, so it may be getting colder,” replied Miss
Gordon. “However, I meant that large flakes are likely to fall when the
temperature high in the clouds is at freezing or slightly below.”
“I don’t see any small flakes,” Jane insisted. “They’re still coming
down as large as ever.”
“I wish we could save the flakes instead of having them melt,” said
Connie quickly. She was afraid Veve might argue with Jane about the
size of the crystals.
“There is a way, you know,” informed Miss Gordon.
“A way to preserve snowflakes?” Connie echoed, and all the other girls
looked surprised.
“One needs a solution of plastic resin. A drop of it is placed on a
glass side, then a captured snowflake, and another drop of the resin.”
“A snowflake sandwich!” laughed Connie.
“Were you ever out in a heavy snowstorm?” Rosemary next asked the
Brownie leader. “I mean a real blizzard?”
“Once when I was a girl in Minnesota. I remember how the wind howled
and dashed snow in my face. I was walking home from school at the time
and I feared I never could make it.”
“What was it like?” Jane asked, eager for additional details.
“If ever you are in a blizzard, you never will forget the experience.
The snow coats your face and even freezes on your eyelids. One can’t
see very far ahead and the wind catches your breath. Some folks have
lost their way in such storms.”
“Do they have blizzards in Minnesota--I mean at Snow Valley?” Veve
corrected herself.
“Oh, yes, but a true blizzard is rather rare. I doubt we’ll see other
than heavy snow while we are there.”
Just then the conductor came through the car calling:
“Albion Junction! Albion Junction! Twenty-five minutes stop!”
“May we get off and walk around?” Rosemary asked Miss Gordon. She was
very tired of sitting for so long a period.
The Brownie leader said that perhaps the entire group could have
luncheon at the Junction instead of going into the dining car where
meals would cost a great deal more.
Accordingly, she talked with the conductor a moment and returned to
report that Albion Junction had a lunchroom in the depot.
“Will we have time enough?” asked Sunny anxiously. She was afraid the
train might leave without them.
“Yes, providing we go directly to the lunchroom and order promptly,”
Miss Gordon said.
She instructed the girls to pair off and to remain together. As soon
as the train stopped at Albion Junction, they alighted and walked in
orderly file to the lunchroom.
All of the Brownies ordered the plate luncheon. Veve, who wanted to be
different, asked the waitress to bring her a sandwich and a cherry ice
cream soda.
It took a long while for the sandwich to be made, so the other girls
were nearly finished before she started to eat. Miss Gordon kept
glancing anxiously at the lunchroom clock.
“We have five minutes,” she warned the girls when finally Veve had
taken a last sip of her cherry soda. “Everyone ready?”
The girls paired off, Veve walking with Eileen.
Already the other passengers were getting on the train.
“All aboard!” called the brakeman.
As the girls reached their car, Veve stopped short.
“My pocketbook!” she exclaimed in a frightened voice. “I left it on the
lunch counter.”
Before Miss Gordon could stop her, Veve whirled and ran back toward the
lunchroom.
“Oh, she’ll miss the train!” wailed Sunny. “It’s ready to start now.”
Miss Gordon was very worried. Directing the other Brownies to climb
aboard and take their seats, she hurried off to the lunchroom in
pursuit of Veve.
Now Veve, in reaching the cafeteria, saw her red purse lying on the
counter where she had left it.
Snatching it up, she darted out the side door instead of the one she
had entered. Therefore, when Miss Gordon came in a moment later, Veve
was nowhere to be seen.
“Did you see a little girl in here just now?” she asked the waitress.
“Yes, she ran out the side door,” the other responded.
Miss Gordon hastened back to the train. She looked up and down the
platform. Veve was nowhere to be seen.
Had the little girl boarded the train? Or had she gone elsewhere?
Anxiously, Miss Gordon asked the brakeman if he had helped the child
onto the car.
“Haven’t seen her,” he replied.
“How long have we here?”
“Two more minutes,” said the brakeman, looking at his big yellow gold
watch. “Can’t hold the train either. We’re already fifteen minutes
behind time.”
Miss Gordon was nearly beside herself with worry. She didn’t know what
to do. She couldn’t allow the Brownies to travel on alone to Snow
Valley, nor dared she leave Veve behind.
A few passengers who had alighted at Albion Junction remained on the
platform. Miss Gordon asked them if they had seen Veve anywhere. No one
had paid particular heed to the little girl.
The engine began to puff steam. In a moment it would start.
“All aboard!” called the brakeman again.
The last of the straggling passengers hastily entered the car. Only
Miss Gordon remained.
“Sorry,” said the brakeman. “I’d like to hold the train, but we can’t.
All aboard!”
He reached down to pick up the step-stool. Slowly the train began to
move.