Flossie and Freddie were so surprised at the strange action on the part
of the ragged boy that they hardly knew what to do. Flossie looked at
Freddie and Freddie looked at his sister, and then they looked at the
strange boy and girl.
"You let her alone, an' you let me alone!" ordered the ragged boy. "I
ain't done nothin', an' she ain't done nothin'!"
"You shouldn't say 'ain't,' 'cause it ain't--I mean it _isn't_ a good
word. Our teacher says so," Flossie quickly admonished the strange boy.
"Well, I don't care what I say, you oughtn't to drive us away from
lookin' in this winder," objected the boy. "Nice smells comes out; and
when you ain't--I mean when you _isn't_ got any money to buy candy, you
can smell it!"
Flossie and Freddie looked at each other in surprise. To be so poor that
one had to "smell" candy instead of eating it, was to be poor indeed!
Flossie opened her fat chubby hand and looked at the two moist pennies
clutched there. Freddie did the same. Then the small Bobbsey twins, with
one accord, held out the money to the boy and girl.
"Here," said Freddie. "Take it!"
"Mine too!" added Flossie. "You can buy candy with it!"
For a moment the ragged boy and girl did not know what to say. Then a
smile came over the boy's face. His fist unclenched, and his sister
smiled too.
"You mean this--for us?" he asked.
"Sure!" answered Freddie. "We don't need candy, and we'll feel good for
Thanksgivin'!"
"Oh, I'm going to buy two lollypops!" cried the ragged girl.
"I want gum!" said the boy, and into the store they disappeared.
Freddie drew a long breath.
"I--I feel happy, don't you?" he asked Flossie.
"Yes," she answered. "I--I guess I do! Anyhow, we can ask mother for
more pennies when we go home."
"Let's take them home for Thanksgiving," suggested Freddie.
"You mean that ragged boy and girl?" asked Flossie.
"Yes. Miss Pompret is going to feed some poor, and we can feed some at
our house. Let's take 'em home," went on Freddie.
"Oh, that will be fine!" Flossie agreed. "Let's!"
When they came out of the candy store the ragged boy and his sister, who
at first thought Flossie and Freddie had wanted to drive them away from
the window, were smiling.
"You're coming home with us!" announced Freddie, taking the boy's hand.
"For Thanksgiving," added Flossie. "Course it isn't Thanksgiving yet,
but we want to feel good when it does come, so we're going to feed you
now."
"Well, I'm hungry all right," sighed the ragged boy.
"So'm I," said his sister.
And so, hardly knowing what was going to happen, the ragged boy, who
said his name was Dick, and his sister, who was Mary Thompson, went with
the little Bobbsey twins.
Mrs. Bobbsey was very much surprised when her little son and daughter
came up the steps, leading a strange ragged boy and girl.
"We brought them home for Thanksgiving, like Miss Pompret's going to
do," said Freddie.
"So's to make us be more happier," added Flossie. "And we gave them our
two cents, so please can we have more? And they're hungry, Mother!"
Mrs. Bobbsey understood that it was the kind hearts of Flossie and
Freddie that had brought all this about. So she welcomed the two strange
children, and took them out to Dinah, who, you may be sure, fed them
enough, and almost too much.
After that meal, which Dick said was the "best feed" he ever had eaten,
and after Flossie and Freddie had finished watching their strange,
ragged guests eat, Mrs. Bobbsey asked Dick and his sister some
questions.
She found out that they lived on the other side of town, that their
father was dead, and that their mother did what she could for her
children.
"Do you go to our school?" asked Freddie, during a pause in his mother's
questions. "We've a nice school, and our teacher's name is Miss Snell,
and----"
"And Freddie locked a boy up in the tool shed 'cause he pulled my
hair--I mean the bad boy pulled my hair," broke in Flossie.
"We don't go to school--our clothes is too ragged," said Mary, in a low
voice.
"Never mind, my dear. Perhaps I can find some clothes for you that
aren't quite so full of holes," offered Mrs. Bobbsey kindly. "Clothes
with holes in are fine for summer," she said, with a laugh, "but not so
good for winter. I'll see what I can find."
She found some good, half-worn garments belonging to the twins, and Dick
and Mary took the clothes home. The result was that they appeared at
school the following Monday. But neither Flossie nor Freddie spoke of
their mother having given the two fatherless children clothes to wear.
"Now we'll be happy for Thanksgiving; won't we, Freddie?" asked Flossie,
when it was settled that Dick and Mary were to be taken care of.
"Yes," Freddie agreed. "And I hope we have a big turkey!"
"An' cranberry sauce!" added his sister.
There was a fine Thanksgiving dinner at the Bobbsey home, but the mother
of the four twins did not forget the poor. She helped Miss Pompret with
that lady's Thanksgiving feast for those who were not fortunate enough
to have one of their own, and Mr. Bobbsey and some other good-hearted
men of Lakeport provided money so that the Salvation Army could feed a
number of hungry men who were out of work.
Still there was one reason why at least Flossie and Freddie, of the
Bobbsey family, were not quite happy that Thanksgiving day. And the
reason was because there was no snow. The children had polished their
sleds, had wiped the rust off the runners, and were all ready for a
coast. But without snow there can be no sleigh riding, and though the
weather was cold, the sun shone from a cloudless sky, and Flossie and
Freddie were much disappointed.
"Do you think it will ever snow, Mother?" asked Flossie for about the
twentieth time.
"And will there be ice so I can skate?" Freddie wanted to know.
"Well, my dears, there will be snow and ice, surely, in a little while,"
answered Mrs. Bobbsey. "But when I can not say. You must be patient.
Think of your blessings, as Uncle William would say."
"I want to have some fun," complained Freddie. "Oh, look!" he suddenly
cried, coming back to the window away from which he had started to go.
"What is it?" asked Flossie.
"It's our cat--Snoop! A big dog just came along and Snoop ran up the
tree. Now he can't get down!"
"Oh, of course Snoop can get down out of a tree," said Nan. "He's often
climbed up and down before."
But this time Snoop did not come down. Whether he had been too much
frightened by the dog, or whether he was afraid of falling if he started
to come down backward out of the tree, I don't know. But Snoop stayed up
on a limb, where he cried pitifully.
"I'll get him down," offered Bert. "I can climb out on that limb from
our front porch roof. I've done it before."
Bert went upstairs, climbed out on the porch roof, and a little later
was over in the tree where Snoop was perched.
"Mew! Mew!" dismally cried the cat.
"I'm coming to get you," said Bert, kindly. "Wait a minute, Snoop!"
From the ground Flossie, Freddie and Nan watched Bert make his way out
on a limb toward Snoop. And then, all of a sudden, there was a cracking,
breaking sound and Bert cried:
"Oh, I'm falling! I'm going to fall!"