Laura Lee Hope - The Bobbsey Twins
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Laura Lee Hope >> The Bobbsey Twins
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"I have received just as many as I sent out," said Nan, counting them
over.
"I sent out two more than I received," said Bert.
"Never mind, Bert; boys don't expect so many as girls," answered Nan.
"I'd like to know who sent that mean thing that was marked
GHOST," went on her twin brother.
"It must have come from Danny Rugg," said Bert, and he was right. It had
come from Danny, but Nan never let him know that she had received it,
so his hoped-for fun over it was spoilt.
In the evening there was more fun than ever. All of the children went
out and dropped valentines on the front piazzas of their friends'
houses. As soon as a valentine was dropped the door bell would be given
a sharp ring, and then everybody would run and hide and watch to see who
came to the door.
When the Bobbsey children went home they saw somebody on their own front
piazza. It was a boy and he was on his knees, placing something under
the door mat.
"I really believe it is Danny Rugg!" cried Nan.
"Wait, I'll go and catch him," said Bert, and started forward.
But Danny saw him coming, and leaping over the side rail of the piazza,
he ran to the back garden.
"Stop," called Bert. "I know you, Danny Rugg!"
"I ain't Danny Rugg!" shouted Danny in a rough voice. "I'm somebody
else."
He continued to run and Bert made after him. At last Danny reached the
back fence. There was a gate there, but this was kept locked by Sam, so
that tramps might be kept out.
For the moment Danny did not know what to do. Then he caught hold of the
top of the fence and tried to scramble over. But there was a sharp nail
there and on this his jacket caught.
"I've got you now!" exclaimed Bert, and made a clutch for him. But there
followed the sound of ripping cloth and Danny disappeared into the
darkness, wearing a jacket that had a big hole torn in it.
"Was it really Danny?" questioned Nan, when Bert came back to the front
piazza.
"Yes, and he tore his coat--I heard it rip."
"What do you think of that?"
Nan pointed to an object on the piazza, half under the door mat. There
lay a dead rat, and around its neck was a string to which was attached a
card reading, "Nan and Bert Bobbsey's Ghost."
"This is certainly awful," said Bert.
The noise on the piazza had brought Mrs. Bobbsey to the door. At the
sight of the dead rat, which Freddie had picked up by the tail, she
gave a slight scream.
"Oh, Freddie, leave it go!" she said.
"It won't hurt you, mamma," said the little boy. "The real is gone out
of it."
"But--but--how did it get here?"
"Danny Rugg brought it," said Bert. "Look at the tag."
He cut the tag off with his pocket-knife and flung the rat into the
garbage can. All went into the house, and Mrs. Bobbsey and her husband
both read what Danny Rugg had written on the card.
"This is going too far," said Mr. Bobbsey. "I must speak to Mr. Rugg
about this." And he did the very next day. As a result, and for having
torn his jacket, Danny received the hardest thrashing he had got in a
year. This made him more angry than ever against Bert, and also angry at
the whole Bobbsey family. But he did not dare to do anything to hurt
them at once, for fear of getting caught.
Winter was now going fast, and before long the signs of spring began to
show on every hand.
Spring made Freddie think of a big kite that he had stored away, in the
garret, and one Saturday he and Bert brought the kite forth and fixed
the string and the tail.
"There is a good breeze blowing," said Bert. "Let us go and fly it on
Roscoe's common."
"I want to see you fly the kite," said Flossie. "Can I go along?"
"Yes, come on," said Bert.
Flossie had been playing with the kitten and hated to leave it. So she
went down to the common with Snoop in her arms.
"Don't let Snoop run away from you," said Bert. "He might not find his
way back home."
The common was a large one with an old disused barn at one end. Freddie
and Bert took the kite to one end and Freddie held it up while Bert
prepared to let out the string and "run it up," as he called it.
[Illustration: THE KITE WENT UP INTO THE AIR AND SNOOP WITH IT.--P.
177.]
Now, as it happened, the eyes of Snoop were fixed on the long tail of
the kite, and when it went trailing over the ground Snoop leaped from
Flossie's arms and made a dash for it. The kitten's claws caught fast
in the tail, and in a moment more the kite went up into the air and
Snoop with it.
"Oh, my kitten!" called out Freddie. "Snoop has gone up with the kite!"
CHAPTER XXI
THE RESCUE OF SNOOP, THE KITTEN
It was certainly something that nobody had been expecting, and as the
kite went higher and higher, and Snoop with it, both Flossie and Freddie
set up a loud cry of fear.
"Snoop will be killed!" exclaimed the little girl. "Oh, poor dear
Snoop!" and she wrung her hands in despair.
"Let him down!" shrieked Freddie. "Oh, Bert, please let my dear kitten
down, won't you?"
Bert did not hear, for he was running over the common just as hard as he
could, in his endeavor to raise the kite. Up and up it still went, with
poor Snoop dangling helplessly at the end of the swaying tail.
At last Bert ran past the old barn which I have already mentioned. Just
as he did this he happened to look up at the kite.
"Hullo, what's on the tail?" he yelled. "Is that a cat?"
"It's Snoop!" called out Freddie, who was rushing after his big brother.
"Oh, Bert, do let him down. If he falls, he'll be killed."
"Well, I never!" ejaculated Bert.
He stopped running and gradually the kite began to settle close to the
top of the barn. Poor Snoop was swinging violently at the end of the
ragged tail. The swinging brought the frightened creature closer still
to the barn, and all of a sudden Snoop let go of the kite tail and
landed on the shingles.
"Snoop is on the barn!" cried Bert, as the kite settled on the grass a
few yards away.
"Oh, Snoop! Snoop! are you hurt?" cried Freddie, running back a
distance, so that he might get a view of the barn top.
Evidently Snoop was not hurt. But he was still scared, for he stood on
the edge of the roof, with his tail standing straight up.
"Meow! meow! meow!" he said plaintively.
"He is asking for somebody to take him down," said Freddie. "Aren't you,
Snoop?"
"Meow!" answered the black kitten.
"Oh, dear me, what will you do now?" cried Flossie, as she came chasing
up.
"Perhaps I can get to the roof from the inside," said Bert, and he
darted quickly into the barn.
There were a rickety pair of stairs leading to the barn loft and these
he mounted. In the loft all was dark and full of cobwebs. Here and there
were small holes through the roof, through which the water came every
time it rained.
"Snoop! Snoop!" he called, putting his mouth close to one of the holes.
The kitten turned around in surprise. He hardly knew from whence the
voice came, but he evidently knew Bert was calling, for he soon came in
that direction.
As the barn was an old one and not fit to use, Bert felt it would do no
harm to knock a shingle or two from the roof. Looking around, he espied
a stout stick of wood lying on the floor and with this he began an
attack on the shingles and soon had two of them broken away.
"Come, Snoop!" he called, looking out of the hole. "Come here!"
But the sound of the blows had frightened the kitten, and Snoop had fled
to the slope of the roof on the opposite side of the barn.
"Where is he?" called the boy, to the twins below.
"Gone to the other side," said Freddie. "Don't like the noise, I guess."
"Chase him over here," returned Bert.
Both Freddie and Flossie tried to do so. But Snoop would not budge, but
stood on the very edge of the roof, as if meditating a spring to the
ground.
"Don't jump, please don't jump, Snoop!" pleaded Flossie. "If you jump
you'll surely break a leg, or maybe your back!"
Whether Snoop understood this or not, it would be hard to say. But he
did not jump, only stayed where he was and meowed louder than ever.
"Can't you drive him over?" asked Bert, after a long wait.
"Won't come," said Freddie. "Wants to jump down, I guess."
Hearing this, Bert ran down to the lower floor and outside.
"Can't you get a ladder?" asked Flossie. "Perhaps Mr. Roscoe will lend
you one."
Mr. Roscoe lived at the other end of the common. He was a very old and
very quiet man, and the majority of the girls and boys in Lakeport were
afraid of him. He lived all alone and was thought to be queer.
"I--I can see," said Bert hesitatingly.
He ran across the common to Mr. Roscoe's house and rapped on the door.
Nobody came and he rapped again, and then a third time.
"Who's there?" asked a voice from within.
"Please, Mr. Roscoe, is that you?" asked Bert.
"Yes."
"Well, our kitten is on the top of your old barn and can't get down. Can
you lend me a ladder to get him down with?"
"Kitten on my barn? How did he get there?" and now the old man opened
the door slowly and cautiously. He was bent with age and had white hair
and a long white beard.
"He went up with a kite," said Bert, and explained the case, to which
the old man listened with interest.
"Well! well! well!" exclaimed Mr. Roscoe, in a high piping voice. "Going
to take a sail through the air, was he? You'll have to build him a
balloon, eh?"
"I think he had better stay on the ground after this."
"He must be a high-flyer of a cat," and the old man chuckled over his
joke.
"Will you lend me a ladder?" went on Bert.
"Certainly, my lad. The ladder is in the cow-shed yonder. But you'll
have to raise it yourself, or get somebody to raise it for you. My back
is too old and stiff for such work."
"I'll try it alone first," answered the boy.
He soon had the long ladder out and was dragging it across the common.
It was very heavy and he wondered who he could get to help him raise it.
Just then Danny Rugg came along.
"What are you doing with old Roscoe's ladder?" he asked.
Bert was on the point of telling Danny it was none of his business, but
he paused and reflected. He wanted no more quarrels with the big boy.
"I am going to get our cat down from the barn roof," he answered.
"Humph!"
"Do you want to help me raise the ladder, Danny?"
"Me? Not much! You can raise your own ladder."
"All right, I will, if you don't want to help me," said Bert, the blood
rushing to his face.
"So that's your cat, is it?" cried Danny, looking toward the barn. "I
wouldn't have such a black beast as that! We've got a real Maltese at
our house."
"We like Snoop very much," answered Bert, and went on with his ladder.
Danny hunted for a stone, and watching his chance threw it at Snoop. It
landed close to the kitten's side and made Snoop run to the other side
of the barn roof.
"Stop that, Danny Rugg!" cried a voice from the other end of the common,
and Nan appeared. She had just heard about the happening to Snoop and
was hurrying to the spot to see if she could be of assistance.
"Oh, go on with your old cat!" sneered Danny, and shuffled off past Mr.
Roscoe's house.
The old man had come out to see what Bert was going to do with the
ladder, and now he came face to face with Danny Rugg.
"Well, is it possible!" murmured the old man to himself. "That boy must
belong around here after all!"
When Bert reached the barn he found a dozen boys collected, and several
volunteered to assist him in raising the long ladder. It was hard work,
and once the ladder slipped, but in the end it rested against the barn
roof and then Bert went up in a hurry.
"Come, Snoop!" he called, and the kitten came and perched himself on
Bert's shoulder.
When Bert came down the ladder those standing around set up a cheer, and
Freddie and Flossie clapped their hands in delight.
"Oh, I'm so glad you got him back!" said Freddie and hugged the kitten
almost to death.
"What boy was that who threw the stone?" asked Mr. Roscoe of Nan, while
Bert was returning the ladder to the cow-shed.
"That was Danny Rugg," answered Nan. "He is a bad boy."
"I know he is a bad boy," said Mr. Roscoe. "A very bad boy indeed." And
then the old man hurried off without another word. What he said meant a
good deal, as we shall soon see.
CHAPTER XXII
THE LAST OF THE GHOST--GOOD-NIGHT
The rescue of the kitten was the main subject of conversation that
evening in the Bobbsey household.
"I never dreamed he would go up with the kite," said Flossie. "After
this we'll have to keep him in the house when Bert and Freddie do their
kite-flying."
Bert had seen Danny Rugg throw the stone at the kitten and was very
angry over it. He had also seen Danny talk to Nan.
"I think he's an awful boy," declared Nan. "And Mr. Roscoe thinks he is
bad, too."
"He had better stop throwing things or he'll get himself into trouble
before long," said Bert.
"It's queer Mr. Ringley never heard about the window," whispered his
twin sister.
"So it is. But it may come out yet," replied the brother.
That evening the Bobbseys had their first strawberry shortcake of the
season. It was a beautiful cake--one of Dinah's best--and the
strawberries were large and luscious.
"Want another piece," said Freddie, smacking his lips. "It's so good,
mamma!"
"Freddie, I think you have had enough," said Mrs. Bobbsey.
"Oh, mamma, just a little piece more!" pleaded Freddie, and received the
piece, much to his satisfaction.
"Strawberries is beautiful," he declared. "I'm going to raise a whole
lot on the farm this summer."
"Oh, mamma, are we going to Uncle Dan's farm this summer?" burst out Nan
eagerly.
"Perhaps, Nan," was the reply. "I expect a letter very shortly."
"Meadow Brook is a dandy place," said Bert. "Such a fine swimming hole
in the brook!"
"Oh, I love the flowers, and the chickens and cows!" said Flossie.
"I like the rides on the loads of hay," said Nan.
The children talked the subject over until it was time to go to bed.
Their Uncle Dan and Aunt Sarah lived at Meadow Brook, and so did their
cousin Harry, a boy a little older than Bert, and one who was full of
fun and very good-natured in the bargain.
Bert went to bed with his head full of plans for the summer. What
glorious times they could have after school closed if they went to their
uncle's farm!
It was a full hour before Bert got to sleep. The room was quite bright,
for the moon was shining in the corner window. The moon made him think
of the ghost he had once seen and he gave a little shudder. He never
wanted to see that ghost again.
Bert had been asleep less than an hour when he awoke with a start. He
felt sure somebody had touched him on the foot. He opened his eyes at
once and looked toward the end of his bed.
_The ghost was standing there!_
At first Bert could scarcely believe that he saw aright. But it was true
and he promptly dove under the covers.
Then he thought of Danny Rugg's cry, "Afraid of a ghost!" and he felt
that he ought to have more courage.
"I'm going to see what that is," he said to himself, and shoved back the
covers once more.
The figure in white had moved toward the corner of the room. It made no
noise and Bert wondered how it would turn next.
"Wonder what will happen if I grab it, or yell?" he asked himself.
With equal silence Bert crawled out of bed. Close at hand stood his
base-ball bat, which he had used a few days before. It made a formidable
club, and he took hold of it with a good deal of satisfaction.
"Want another piece of strawberry shortcake," came to his ears. "Please
give me another piece of strawberry shortcake."
Bert could hardly believe his ears. It was the ghost that was speaking!
It wanted strawberry shortcake!
"Freddie!" he almost shouted. "Freddie, is it you?"
The ghost did not answer, but turned towards the door leading into the
hallway. Bert ran after the figure in white and caught it by the arm.
The ghost was really Freddie, and he was walking in his sleep, with his
eyes tightly closed.
"Well, I declare!" murmured Bert. "Why didn't we think of this before?"
"Please let me have another piece of strawberry shortcake, mamma,"
pleaded the sleep-walker. "Just a tiny little piece."
Bert had heard that it was a bad thing to awaken a sleep-walker too
suddenly, so he took Freddie's arm very gently and walked the little
fellow back to his bedroom and placed him on his bed. Then he shook him
very gently.
"Oh!" cried Freddie. "Oh! Wha--what do you want? Let me sleep! It isn't
time to get up yet."
"Freddie, I want you to wake up," said Bert.
"Who is talking?" came from across the hallway, in Mr. Bobbsey's voice.
"I'm talking, papa," answered Bert. He ran to the doorway of his
parents' bedchamber. "I've just found out who the ghost is," he
continued.
"The ghost?" Mr. Bobbsey leaped up. "Where is it?"
"In bed now. It was Freddie, walking in his sleep. He was asking for
another piece of strawberry shortcake."
By this time the whole household was wide awake.
"Oh, Freddie, was it really you?" cried Nan, going to the little fellow.
"Wasn't walking in my sleep," said Freddie. "Was dreaming 'bout
shortcake, that's all. Want to go to sleep again," and he turned over on
his pillow.
"Let him sleep," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "We'll have to consult the doctor
about this. He will have to have something for his digestion and eat
less before going to bed in the future." And the next day the doctor was
called in and gave Freddie something which broke up the sleep-walking to
a very large extent.
"I am glad you caught Freddie," said Nan, to her twin brother. "If you
hadn't, I should always have believed that we had seen a ghost."
"Glad I don't walk in my sleep," said Flossie. "I might tumble
downstairs and break my nose."
"I shall watch Freddie in the future," said Mrs. Bobbsey, and she did.
When Bert went to school the next day he met Danny Rugg and the tall boy
glared at him very angrily.
"Think you are smart, don't you?" said Danny. "I'm not going to stand
it, Bert Bobbsey."
"Oh, Bert, come along and don't speak to him," whispered Nan, who was
with her twin brother.
"Went and saw Ringley, didn't you?" went on Danny, edging closer.
"Keep away, Danny Rugg," answered Bert. "I want nothing to do with you,
and I haven't been to see Mr. Ringley."
"Yes, you did go and see him," insisted Danny. "Wasn't he to see my
father last night?"
"Did Mr. Ringley come to see your father?" asked Bert curiously.
"Yes, he did. And my father--but never mind that now," broke off the
tall boy. He had been on the point of saying that his father had given
him a severe thrashing. "I'm going to fix you, Bert Bobbsey."
"Don't you dare to strike my brother, Danny Rugg!" put in Nan, stepping
in between them.
How much further the quarrel might have gone, it is impossible to say,
for just then Mr. Tetlow put in an appearance, and Danny sneaked off in
great haste.
When the children came from school they learned that Mrs. Bobbsey had
been down-town, buying some shoes for herself and Flossie.
"Mr. Ringley was telling me about his broken window," said she to her
husband. "He found out that Danny Rugg broke it. Old Mr. Roscoe saw
Danny do it. He didn't know Danny at the time, but he has found out
since who Danny was."
"That Rugg boy is a bad one," answered Mr. Bobbsey. "I suppose Mr.
Ringley made the Ruggs pay for the window."
"Oh, yes, and Mr. Rugg said he was going to correct Danny, too."
The children heard this talk, but said nothing at the time. But later
Nan called Bert out into the garden.
"I see it all," she whispered to her twin brother. "That's why Mr.
Roscoe asked me who Danny was, and that's why he said Danny was such a
bad boy."
"I'm glad in one way that Danny has been found out," answered Bert, "for
that clears me." And he was right, for he never heard of the broken
window again.
The children were still waiting anxiously for a letter from their Uncle
Dan or their Aunt Sarah. At last a letter came and they listened to it
with great delight.
"Oh, what do you think?" cried Nan, dancing up to Bert. "We are to go to
Meadow Brook as soon as vacation begins!"
"Good!" shouted Bert, throwing his cap into the air. "Won't we have the
best times ever was!" And this proved to be a fact. What happened to
the Bobbsey twins at Meadow Brook will be told in another book, which I
shall call, "The Bobbsey Twins in the Country." The country is a lovely
place, especially in the summer time, and all of my young readers can
rest assured that the twins enjoyed themselves at Meadow Brook to the
utmost.
"I'll be so glad to see Cousin Harry again," said Bert.
"And I'll be glad to see Aunt Sarah," piped in Freddie. "She makes such
_beau_tiful pies!"
"Think of the lovely big barn," put in Flossie. "It's just like a--a
palace to play in on wet days!"
"Oh, Flossie, to compare a barn to a palace!" exclaimed Nan. "But it is
a nice place after all," she added, after a moment's thought.
That evening, to celebrate the good news, the twins gave a little party
to half a dozen of their most intimate friends. There were music and
singing, and all sorts of games, and a magic-lantern exhibition by one
of the boys. All enjoyed it greatly and voted the little party a great
success.
"Good-night! Good-night!" said the young folks to each other, when the
party broke up. And here let us say good-night, too, for my little story
has reached its end.
THE END
* * * * *
The Famous Rover Boys Series
By ARTHUR W. WINFIELD
Each volume is hailed with delight by boys and girls everywhere.
12mo. Cloth. Handsomely printed and illustrated.
Price, 60 Cents per Volume. Postpaid.
THE ROVER BOYS AT COLLEGE
Or, The Right Road and the Wrong
Brimming over with good nature and excitement.
THE ROVER BOYS ON TREASURE ISLE
Or, The Strange Cruise of the Steam Yacht
A search for treasure; a particularly fascinating volume.
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM
Or, The Last Days at Putnam Hall
The boys find a mysterious cave used by freight thieves.
THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS
Or, The Deserted Steam Yacht
A trip to the coast of Florida.
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS
Or, The Mystery of Red Rock Ranch
Relates adventures on the mighty Mississippi River.
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER
Or, The Search for the Missing Houseboat
The Ohio River is the theme of this spirited story.
THE ROVER BOYS IN CAMP
Or, The Rivals of Pine Island
At the annual school encampment.
THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA
Or, The Crusoes of Seven Islands
Full of strange and surprising adventures.
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS
Or, A Hunt for Fame and Fortune
The boys in the Adirondacks at a Winter camp.
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES
Or, The Secret of the Island Cave
A story of a remarkable Summer outing; full of fun.
THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST
Or, The Search for a Lost Mine
A graphic description of the mines of the great Rockies.
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
Or, Stirring Adventures in Africa
The boys journey to the Dark Continent in search of their father.
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN
Or, A Chase for a Fortune
From school to the Atlantic Ocean.
THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL
Or, The Cadets of Putnam Hall
The doings of Dick, Tom, and Sam Rover.
* * * * *
GROSSET & DUNLAP--NEW YORK
The Putnam Hall Series
Companion Stories to the Famous Rover Boys Series
By ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
Open-air pastimes have always been popular with boys, and should always
be encouraged, as they provide healthy recreation, both for the body and
the mind. These books mingle adventure and fact, and will appeal to
every manly boy.
12mo. Handsomely printed and illustrated.
Price, 60 Cents Per Volume, Postpaid.
THE PUTNAM HALL ENCAMPMENT
Or, The Secret of the Old Mill
A story full of vim and vigor, telling what the cadets did during the
summer encampment. * * * and among other things their visit to a
mysterious old mill, said to be haunted. The book has a wealth of
healthy fun in it.
THE PUTNAM HALL REBELLION
Or, The Rival Runaways
The boys had good reasons for running away during Captain Putnam's
absence. They had plenty of fun, and several queer adventures.
THE PUTNAM HALL CHAMPIONS
Or, Bound to Win Out
In this new tale the Putnam Hall Cadets show what they can do in
various keen rivalries on the athletic field and elsewhere. There
is one victory which leads to a most unlooked-for discovery.
THE PUTNAM HALL CADETS
Or, Good Times in School and Out
The cadets are lively, flesh-and-blood fellows, bound to make friends
from the start. There are some keen rivalries, in school and out, and
something is told of a remarkable midnight feast and a hazing that had
an unlooked for ending.
THE PUTNAM HALL RIVALS
Or, Fun and Sport Afloat and Ashore
It is a lively, rattling, breezy story of school life in this country,
written by one who knows all about its ways, its snowball fights, its
baseball matches, its pleasures and its perplexities, its glorious
excitements its rivalries, and its chilling disappointments.
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