A HUNGRY DETECTIVE.
When aunt Dorcas had ushered the boys into the "room over the kitchen,"
and left them with a kindly "good night," they gazed around in such
astonishment as can best be depicted by Master Plummer's emphatic remark
shortly after the little woman went down-stairs.
"I've always thought swells had a pretty soft snap when they went to
bed; but I never counted on its bein' anything like this. Do you s'pose
she means for us to get right into that bed, an' muss it all up?"
Joe did not reply for several seconds, and then said, doubtfully:
"It seems as if that's what she must have meant, else why did she tell
about her best sheets bein' in the other room? I thought the old German
woman's house was mighty nice; but it wasn't a marker 'longside of this.
If the princess was only here!"
"You can bet I don't bother my head 'bout no princesses when I've got a
chance to crawl into that nest. I almost wish now I'd had sense enough
to use one of them towels we had on the table, 'cause my hands look
pretty dirty when you get 'em side of that sheet."
"Well, see this, Plums! If you'll believe it, here's a pitcher full of
water, an' soap, an' everything! Let's wash up now, will you?"
Ordinarily, Master Plummer would have met this suggestion with a decided
refusal; but, being surrounded as he was by so much luxury, it seemed
necessary he should do something in the way of celebrating.
It was not a very careful toilet which Plums made on this night, for he
was in too great a hurry to get between the lavender-scented sheets to
admit of spending much time on such needless work as washing his hands
and face; but he was more cleanly, and perhaps felt in a better
condition to enjoy the unusual luxury.
"Say, Joe, it's a mighty big pity we've got to go to sleep."
"Why?"
"'Cause we ought'er keep awake jest to know how much swellin' we're
doin'. I stopped at a Chatham Street lodgin'-house one night, when I was
feelin' kind of rich, an' thought the bed there was great; but it wasn't
a marker 'longside of this one. I shouldn't wonder if there were
feathers in it."
Joe was quite as well pleased with the surroundings as was his
companion; but he said less on the subject because his mind was fully
occupied with thoughts of the princess,--sad thoughts they were, for he
was beginning to believe he had been wickedly selfish in taking her away
from the place where her parents might have been found, simply to save
himself from arrest.
He fell asleep, however, quite as soon as did the boy on whose
conscience there was no burden, and neither of the fugitives were
conscious of anything more until aroused by a gentle tapping on the
chamber door, to hear aunt Dorcas say:
"It's five o'clock, children, and time all honest people were out of
bed."
"We're gettin' up now," Joe cried, and he was on his feet in an instant;
but Master Plummer lazily turned himself in the rest-inviting bed, as he
muttered:
"I don't see how it makes a feller honest to get up in the night when
he's out in the country where he hasn't got to go for the mornin'
papers, an' I guess I'll stay here a spell longer."
"You won't do anything of the kind," and Joe pulled the fat boy out of
bed so quickly that he had no time for resistance.
It was seldom Plums lost his temper; but now he was on the verge of
doing so because of having been thus forcibly taken from the most
comfortable resting-place he had ever known.
"Now, don't get on your ear," Joe said, soothingly. "Aunt Dorcas has
told us to get up, an' that settles it. We're bound to do jest as she
says, 'cause all these things are hers. It won't pay to turn rusty,
Plums, else we may find ourselves fired out before breakfast, an' I
_would_ like to stay till to-morrow."
"Don't you want to stop any longer than that?" and Master Plummer began
hurriedly to dress himself.
"'Course I'd like to; but you see I've got to go back to the old German
lady's in the mornin'."
"What good will that do? It ain't likely you can bring the princess
here."
"I know that as well as you do; but I promised to be there in two days,
an' I'm goin', so we won't have any talk about it."
Five minutes later, aunt Dorcas's guests were in the kitchen, where the
little woman was preparing a most appetising breakfast, and he would
have been a dull boy who did not understand that she must have been up
at least two hours before arousing her visitors.
"It ain't right for you to wait on us jest like we was reg'lar folks,
an' we ain't used to it," Joe said, in a tone of mild reproof. "Anything
would have been good enough for us to eat, without your gettin' up so
early an' workin' hard to cook it."
"Bless your heart, Joseph, I'm doing no more than if I was alone, except
perhaps there may be more victuals on the table. My appetite isn't as
hearty as it used to be; but I've got a pretty good idea how it is with
growing boys."
"You're mighty good to us, aunt Dorcas, an' I'll feel a heap better if
you'll give me some work to do before breakfast."
"I might have let you bring in the wood, if I'd thought; but I'm so
accustomed to doing such things for myself that it never came into my
mind. I wonder if you could split up a few kindlings? That is the most
trying part of keeping house alone, for whenever I strike a piece of
wood with an axe I never know whether it's going to break, or fly up and
hit me in the face."
"Of course we can do it. Where's the axe?"
Aunt Dorcas led the way to the shed, where was her summer's store of
wood, and before she returned to the kitchen Joe was causing the chips
to fly in a way which made the little woman's heart glad.
"It does me good to see you work, Joseph. I have always lived in mortal
terror of an axe; but you seem to know how to use one."
Joe earned his breakfast that morning fairly, and Plums appeared to
think he had done his full share by sitting on the saw-horse, watching
his comrade.
Then came the summons to breakfast, and Master Plummer was eyeing
greedily a particularly large roasted potato, which he intended to take
from the plate, if an opportunity presented itself, when aunt Dorcas
suddenly bent her head, and invoked a blessing on the food.
Plums kicked Joe, under the table, to express his surprise at this, to
him, singular proceeding, but, otherwise, behaved in a proper manner.
The meal was prolonged because of the fat boy's hearty appetite, and,
when it was finally brought to a close, Joe said, as he rose from the
table:
"Now, aunt Dorcas, if you'll show us something more to do I'll be glad,
'cause we've got to pay for what we've had, else it won't be a fair
shake."
"You boys may go out and look around the place until I do the dishes,
and then we will see what I am to set you about."
This was so nearly a request for them to leave the kitchen, that they
lost no time in obeying, and when they were in the open air Master
Plummer said, with an air of perplexity:
"She's a mighty fine woman, an' all that kind of thing; but I'd like to
know what she's hintin' at by leavin' them towels on the table; they was
both there jest the same's last night, even though she must have known
that we was washed up in great shape."
"I noticed 'em, but don't believe there's anything out of the way about
it. She's kind of funny, an' perhaps that's one of her queer spots."
Aunt Dorcas's property was not extensive, as the boys learned after
walking over it.
There was an orchard either side of the lane which led from the highway,
and, in the rear of the house, an acre of ground, which had been
cultivated at some time in the past.
The buildings consisted of the cottage itself, the wood-shed, a second
shed which might once have been used as a carriage-house, and a small
barn or stable.
By the time they had concluded their investigations, aunt Dorcas joined
them, and said, with an odd smile on her withered face:
"It isn't much of a farm, as farms go nowadays, boys, but it's my home,
and very dear to me. Mr. McArthur, one of the neighbours, cuts the grass
in the orchards, and pays me a little something for it. I usually have a
garden out here; but this year it was neglected, until now it seems too
late for early vegetables."
"It wouldn't take us long to chuck in a pile of seeds, if that's all
you want," and one to have seen Master Plummer, at that moment, would
have believed him the most energetic of boys.
After aunt Dorcas explained that it would be necessary to spade up the
ground, Plums's enthusiasm for gardening diminished; but Joe begged for
the privilege of showing what he could do, and the little woman supplied
them with such tools as she thought necessary.
"If you want to know about anything, come right up to the house. It is
baking-day with me, and I shall be busy in the kitchen until
dinner-time."
Then she left them, and Plums seated himself within the shadow of the
barn, explaining, as he did so, that perhaps it would be better if he
"kinder got the hang of the thing by seein' Joe work."
Eager to repay aunt Dorcas for her kindness, Joe Potter laboured
industriously, despite the blisters which soon appeared on his hands,
for half an hour or more, and then the two boys were startled by a
warning hiss, which apparently came from one end of the barn.
"There must be snakes 'round here!" and Plums sprang to his feet, in
alarm. "Jim Flannigan says they always hiss like that before they bite."
"Take hold of this spade for a little while, an' they won't bite you. It
seems to me I'm doin' all the work, an' I know you ate more'n your share
of the supper an' breakfast."
The hissing noise was heard again, and, as the two gazed in the
direction from which it came, the head of Dan, the detective, appeared
from behind the barn.
"What are you doin' there, tryin' to frighten us?" Plums asked,
indignantly. "Why didn't you come right up like a man? There's nobody
'round here but aunt Dorcas, an' she wouldn't hurt a fly."
The amateur detective rose slowly to his feet, looking displeased.
"You two are the most careless fellers I ever saw. Here's all the cops
in New York City out on your trail, an' you hollerin' fit to scare a
horse."
"S'posin' we are?" and Master Plummer spoke boldly. "S'posin' the road
was full of perlicemen, how could they see us while we're behind this
barn?"
"It don't make any difference whether they could or not. You've got to
mind your eye, if you want to keep out of jail, an' yellin' to me ain't
the way to do it. If the folks 'round here should know I was on this
case, jest as likely as not some of 'em would send word to the city, an'
then your game would be up."
Plums had lost faith in Dan's detective ability, because of the fact
that the latter had failed to take advantage of the opportunity to spend
the night in aunt Dorcas's home, therefore he replied, boldly, to his
friend's reproof:
"We're jest as safe here as we could be anywhere, an' I tell you what it
is, Dan, you ought'er seen the layout we had last night an' this
mornin'! Why, we slept in a bed that would make the tears come into your
eyes, it was so soft; an' talk 'bout spreads! You couldn't get a
breakfast down to McGinnis's restaurant, no matter how much you paid,
that would come up to what we had!"
"Yes, you fellers are takin' all the chances, an' I'm pretty nigh
starved to death. I haven't had so much as a smell of anything since
yesterday noon."
"You ought'er seen the custard pie aunt Dorcas put out before us last
night; thick as that!" and Plums measured on his finger the length of
three inches or more. "An' a crust that went to pieces in your mouth
like ice-cream."
"If I had a cold boiled potato I'd be mighty glad."
"We had a slat of hot roasted ones with nice butter on 'em, this
mornin'," Plums continued, as if it were his purpose to increase the
detective's hunger.
"I'd give a dime for a sandwich," Dan wailed, and Master Plummer
described the fresh bread and sweet boiled ham with which aunt Dorcas
had regaled them.
"Say, what's the use of tellin' 'bout what you've had, when I've been
fillin' up on wind? It only makes a feller feel worse. Why can't you
sneak in an' get something for me?"
Plums hesitated, as if willing to act upon his friend's suggestion, when
Joe said, sharply:
"Look here, Dan, I'm awful sorry if you're hungry; but Plums can't sneak
into aunt Dorcas's house an' get anything without her knowin' it, not
while I'm 'round. It seems kinder tough to ask her to put out more
stuff, after all we've had; but since you're starvin', we'll do it, an'
offer to pay for what you eat."
"You mean to tell her I'm here?"
"Of course. I wouldn't lie to her, not for any money."
"Then I'll have to starve," Dan replied, angrily, "for I wouldn't let
anybody know I was here while I'm tryin' to keep you fellers out of
jail. But--"
"Here comes aunt Dorcas now!" Plums exclaimed, as he turned towards the
house, and, in a twinkling, the amateur detective was screened from view
by the barn.
"I thought you boys might be hungry, working so hard, and I brought out
this plate of fresh doughnuts," the little woman said, as she placed on
the grass a dish covered with a napkin. "Mr. McArthur always likes a
bite of something when he is here, and it will do you good. How well you
have gotten along! I wouldn't have thought you could have spaded up so
much in such a short time."
Joe, feeling guilty, because he was keeping from aunt Dorcas the fact
that detective Dan was on the premises, was at a loss for a reply, but
Plums said, promptly:
"We'll be glad of 'em, aunt Dorcas, 'cause we're kinder tired jest now,"
and he would have begun to devour the doughnuts, but for a warning look
from his comrade.
"You must eat them while they are hot," aunt Dorcas said, gravely, and
Joe promised to do so as soon as he had finished a certain amount of
work.
Then the little woman went back to her cooking, and she had hardly
entered the dwelling before the amateur detective, with a hungry look in
his eyes, came out, hurriedly, from his hiding-place.
"Now you've got somethin' to eat without our lyin' about it, so pitch in
before aunt Dorcas comes back."
Dan did not need a second invitation, and an expression of deepest
regret came over Plums's face, as he watched the cakes disappear with
amazing rapidity.
"I guess I can stand it, now, till night," the detective said, in a tone
of relief, as the meal was brought to a close, because all the food had
been eaten.
"Are you countin' on stayin' 'round here?" Joe asked.
"Of course I am. How else would you fellers get out of the scrape, if I
didn't?"
"Now, look here, Dan, there's no sense in anything like that. You ain't
doin' any good, sneakin' 'round this house, 'cause, if the cops should
come, how could you prevent their luggin' us off?"
"There's a good many ways that I might pull you through," Master Fernald
replied, with an air of mystery. "If you knew as much about this
business as I do, you'd be mighty glad to have me stay, 'specially when
it ain't costin' you a cent."
"But I don't like to think of your bein' hungry, when it won't do the
least little bit of good. Take my advice, an' go right back to the
city."
"If I should do that, it wouldn't be two hours before you'd be in jail."
"We sha'n't go there any sooner if you leave us, an' it ain't jest
square to aunt Dorcas."
"You can't give me points on detective business, Joe Potter, an' I've
told the fellers in town that I'll look out for you. That's what I'll
do, whether you like it or not," and, after assuring himself, by
stalking to and fro and gazing in every direction, that there were no
enemies in the immediate vicinity, the amateur detective disappeared
around the corner of the barn.
"It's too bad for Dan to act the way he's doin'," Joe said, with a
long-drawn sigh. "I'm 'fraid, if aunt Dorcas gets a sight of him, we'll
have to clear out."
"I don't s'pose it would do any good to ask her to let him bunk in with
us, would it?" Plums said, hesitatingly.
"It would need big nerve, an', even if she was willin', he'd scare the
hair off her head talkin' 'bout lawyers an' detectives hoverin' 'round."
Then Joe continued his interrupted work, and Plums assisted him by
looking on, until the task was completed after which it became necessary
to ask for further instructions.
Although aunt Dorcas could not perform the labour herself, she knew how
gardening should be done, and under her directions, given during such
moments as she could safely leave the kitchen, the ground was prepared
in a proper manner by the time dinner had been made ready.