PHILIPPE RUNS AWAY
In the morning early a very excited little boy stood at the door of a
farmhouse and gazed down the road.
Philippe was ready to travel to Antwerp with his friends, the two
gentlemen. They had promised to stop by for him, and he had arisen
early.
He was now in a state of great excitement. Mother Yvelle stood by his
side. Her face was sad. She did not like to see her son leaving her.
They heard a sound. The big motor car was approaching the tiny farm.
"Goodbye, Mamma. I shall be home soon. Do not worry," said Philippe.
He threw his arms about his mother's neck. The big car stopped before
the door. The gentlemen jumped out.
"He will be back in two or three days," said the Englishman to Mother
Yvelle. "We shall take good care of him. Have no fear."
Bundling Philippe into the car, the two gentlemen waved cheerily to the
Belgian woman. She stood and watched them as they disappeared down the
road.
"What is that?" cried the American, looking in surprise at his feet.
The lap robe of the car was moving.
"What can it be?" exclaimed the Englishman.
They lifted the lap robe. There, crouching on the floor of the car and
looking up at them with friendly eyes, was Philippe's dog, Trompke.
"Trompke!" cried Philippe, "How did you get in? Shame!"
The puppy's tail went thump, thump! on the floor.
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Philippe. "I'll take him back if you'll stop the
car."
"Never mind," laughed the Englishman. "Let him go along. He must have
jumped in while we were saying goodbye to your mother."
"He would not let me go off without him," said Philippe. "He is so used
to coming along."
So Trompke made the fourth traveler.
Along the smooth roads they motored. They passed tall poplar trees and
well-tilled fields. They passed busy farmers. Everybody works in
Belgium. It is an industrious little country.
They were soon in Antwerp. It is a short drive. They found the city less
beautiful than Brussels. It seemed bristling with excitement and
business. Some of the streets were picturesque and charming. Others were
dirty and filled with rough people.
Philippe told his friend travelers that the most interesting place to
see was the water front.
"It was there that the supplies, sent from your country during the World
War, arrived," said the boy, looking at his American companion. "That is
the port through which thousands and thousands of vessels pass each
year."
They drove to the docks. Flags were flying from ships of almost every
nation. There were miles and miles of masts and funnels. The air was
full of busy noises.
"Did you know," asked the English gentleman, "that Antwerp is the second
most important shipping port in Europe? Hamburg alone is more
important."
[Illustration: ANTWERP IS THE SECOND MOST IMPORTANT SHIPPING PORT IN
EUROPE]
After they had left the docks, they wandered about the city on foot.
[Illustration: THERE WERE MILES AND MILES OF MASTS AND FUNNELS IN
ANTWERP HARBOR]
They saw the house where the great painter, Rubens, lived.
[Illustration: HOME OF RUBENS, ANTWERP]
It was growing late, and they talked of resting at a hotel before
dinner. They were crossing a noisy street, on their way to a hotel, when
Philippe suddenly saw Zelie and Tom.
The boy stopped. The two gentlemen were already on the opposite side.
But Philippe stood stock still in the middle of the street and clutched
his fat little puppy until the dog squealed. He had seen Zelie and Tom!
But only for a moment.
Zelie was pushing the big organ. They had disappeared from sight, down
an alleyway.
Only for a moment did Philippe stand still. Then he gathered his wits
together. Off he dashed, after Zelie and Tom. But even though Philippe
had followed almost immediately, they had now completely disappeared.
Thinking that he had been mistaken in the direction, Philippe turned
around quickly and started down another street. Oh, he must find Zelie
and Tom. He had missed them so. He wanted to talk with them again.
Frantically he turned, and once more he ran down the alleyway. There was
a group of children playing on the curb.
"Have you seen a man and a girl with an organ?" asked Philippe in
French.
The children did not understand. They giggled. Philippe realized that in
Antwerp most of the people speak Flemish. He repeated his question in
that language.
"Yes," replied one of the children. "They went very fast down that way.
They went past the church toward the station."
Calling back his thanks, Philippe darted off in the direction given.
Asking questions as he went, he finally arrived at the railway station.
Puffing and panting, he dashed up to the station master.
"Have you seen--a tall man--and a girl--with an organ?" puffed Philippe.
The station master smiled at the wild face of the boy before him.
Then he pointed to a train just chugging away and replied, "They are on
that train which is leaving the station."
Philippe's face fell. His heart pounded.
"Where is that train going?" he demanded.
"To Ghent," replied the station master, smiling. "It is too late to
catch it now."
"When does the next train leave for Ghent?" asked Philippe.
"There is no train for Ghent tonight--only a freight train which leaves
here in an hour," the man answered.
[Illustration: GHENT IS A VERY OLD CITY, AND IN SPITE OF ITS STORMY
HISTORY, RETAINS MUCH OF ITS ANCIENT SPLENDOR]
The boy thanked the station master and turned away quickly. Philippe
knew that he would not be allowed to ride on the freight train. But he
also knew that he was going to follow his friends to Ghent if he had to
board the train secretly and hide.
And that is just what he did. A wild idea had come into his head. Why
should he go back to Brussels with the two gentlemen? Why should he
begin all over again that dull life in the market place? Why not run
away and join Tom and Zelie? They were not far. They were in Ghent. Yes,
Philippe would go to Ghent.
So, huddled between boxes and crates, the boy and his puppy sat still in
the stuffy freight car and waited for it to leave the station. Finally
it pulled out, and Philippe knew that he was on his way to Ghent and to
his friends.
Then he began to think of the thing he had done. What would the two
foreign gentlemen think? What would his father and mother do when the
gentlemen returned to Brussels without their boy?
Philippe smiled to himself as he thought, "I shall write to them. They
will be pleased when I send them great sums of money."
Poor Philippe! Little did he know what awaited him! Little did he dream
that much trouble lay between himself and his return home.
He only knew that at last he was off on his adventure. Young Philippe
was now going forth into the world like a knight of old. But instead of
riding a steed, this knight sat huddled in an old freight car with a fat
puppy in his arms.
[Illustration: SAT HUDDLED IN AN OLD FREIGHT CAR]