CHAPTER VII
AT SCHOOL
Freddie saw Danny coming, and did the most natural thing in theworld. He dropped the hose and ran. And you know what a hose, withwater bursting from the nozzle will sometimes do if you don't holdit just right. Well, this hose did that. It seemed to aim itselfstraight at Danny, and again the rough boy received a charge ofwater full in the face.
"Ha--ha--here! You quit that!" he gasped. "I'll fix you for that!"
The water got in his eyes and mouth, and for a moment he could notsee. But with his handkerchief he soon had his eyes cleared, andthen he came running toward Bert.
Danny Rugg was larger than Bert, and stronger, and, in addition,was a bullying sort of chap, almost always ready to fight someonesmaller than himself.
But what Bert lacked in size and strength he made up in a boldspirit. He was not at all afraid of Danny, even when the bully camerushing at him. Bert stood his ground manfully. He had taken upthe hose where Freddie had dropped it, and the water was spurtingout in a solid stream. Freddie, having gotten a safe distance away,now turned and stood looking at Danny.
Danny, too, had halted and was fairly glaring at Bert, who lookedat him a bit anxiously. More than once he and the bully had cometo blows, and sometimes Bert had gotten the best of it. Still hedid not like a fight.
"I'll get you yet, Freddie Bobbsey!" cried Danny, shaking his fistat the little fellow. Whereupon Freddie turned and ran toward thehouse. Danny saw that he could not catch him in time, and so heturned to Bert.
"You put him up to do that--to douse me with water!" cried Dannyangrily.
"I did not," said Bert quietly. "It was just an accident. I'msorry---"
"You are not! I say you did that on purpose--or you told Freddieto, and I'm going to pay you back!"
"I tell you it was an accident," insisted Bert. "But if you wantto think Freddie did it on purpose I can't stop you."
"Well, I'm going to hit you just the same," growled Danny, and hestepped toward Bert.
"You'd better look out," said Bert, with just a little smile."There's still a lot of water in this hose," and he brought thenozzle around in front, ready to squirt on Danny if the bad boyshould come too near.
Danny came to a stop.
"Don't you dare put any more water on me!" cried the bully. "Ifyou do, I'll----" He doubled up his fists and glared at Bert.
"Then don't you come any nearer if you don't want to get wet,"said Bert. "This hose might sprinkle you by accident, the same asit did when Freddie had it," he added.
"Huh! I know what kind of an accident that was!" spoke Danny, witha sneer.
"You'd better get out of the way," went on Bert quietly. "I want tosprinkle that flower bed near where you are, and if you'll thereyou might get wet, and it wouldn't be my fault."
"I'll fix you!" growled Danny, springing forward. Bert got readywith the hose, and there might have been more trouble, except thatSam, the colored man, came out on the lawn. He saw that somethingout of the ordinary was going on, and breaking into a run he calledout:
"Am anyt'ing de mattah, Massa Bert? Am yo' habin' trouble wifanybody?"
"Well, I guess it's all over now," said Bert, as he saw Danny turnand walk toward the gate.
"If yo' need any help, jest remembah dat I'm around," spoke Sam,with a wide grin that showed his white teeth in his black, butkindly face. "I'll be right handy by, Massa Bert, yes, I will!"
"All right," said Bert, as he went on watering the flowers.
"Huh! You needn't think I'm afraid of you!" boasted Danny, but hekept on out of the gate just the same. Sam went back to his work,of weeding the vegetable garden and Bert watered the flowers.Pretty soon Freddie came back.
"Did--did Danny do anything to you?" the little fellow wanted toknow.
"No, Freddie, but the hose did something to him," said Bert.
"Oh, did it wet him again?"
"That's what it did."
"Ha! Ha!" laughed Freddie. "I wish I'd been here to see it, Bert."
"Well, why did you run?"
"Oh, I--I thought maybe--mamma might want me," answered Freddie,but Bert understood, and smiled. Then he let Freddie finish wateringthe flowers, after which Freddie played he was a fireman, savinghouses from burning by means of the hose.
Snap, the trick dog came running out, followed by Flossie, who hadjust been washed and combed, her mother having put a clean dresson her.
"Oh, Freddie," said the little girl, "let's make Snap do sometricks. See if he will jump over the stream of water from the hose."
"All right," agreed her little brother. "I'll squirt the waterout straight, and you stand on one side of it and call Snap over.Then he'll jump."
Flossie tried this, but at first the dog did not seem to want todo this particular trick. He played soldier, said his prayers,stood on his hind legs, and turned a somersault. But he wouldnot jump over the water.
"Come, Snap, Snap!" called Flossie. "Jump!"
Snap raced about and barked, and seemed to be having all sorts offun, but jump he would not until he got ready. Then, when he did,Freddie accidentally lowered the nozzle and Snap was soaked.
But the dog did not mind the water in the least. In fact he seemedto like it, for the day was warm, and he stood still and let Freddiewet him all over. Then Snap rolled about on the lawn, Freddie andFlossie taking turns sprinkling.
And, as might be expected, considerable water got on the two children,and when Snap shook himself, as he often did, to get some of thedrops off his shaggy coat, he gave Flossie and her clean dressa regular shower bath.
Nan, coming from the house saw this. She ran up to Flossie, whohad the hose just then, crying:
"Flossie Bobbsey! Oh, you'll get it when mamma sees you! She cleanedyou all up, and now look at yourself!"
"She can't see--there's no looking glass here," said Freddie, witha laugh.
"And you're just as bad!" cried Nan. "You'd both better go in thehouse right away, and stop playing with the hose."
"We're through, anyhow," said Freddie. "You ought to see Snap jumpover the water."
"Oh, you children!" cried Nan, with a shake of her head. She seemedlike a little mother to them at times, though she was only fouryears older.
Mrs. Bobbsey was very sorry to see Flossie so wet and bedraggled,and said:
"You should have known better than to play with water with a cleandress on, Flossie. Now I must punish you. You will have to stayin the house for an hour, and so will Freddie."
Poor little Bobbsey twins! But then it was not a very severepunishment, and really some was needed. It was hard when two oftheir little playmates came and called for them to come out. ButMrs. Bobbsey insisted on the two remaining in until the hour wasat an end.
Then, when they had on dry garments, and could go out, there wasno one with whom to play.
"I'm not going to squirt the hose ever again," said Freddie.
"Neither am I," said his sister. "Never, never!"
Snap didn't say anything. He lay on the porch asleep, being cooledoff after his sport with the water.
"I--I wish we had our cat, Snoop, back," said Flossie. "Then wewouldn't have played in the water."
"That's so," agreed Freddie. "I wonder where he can be?"
They asked their father that night if any of the railroad menhad seen their pet, but he said none had, and added:
"I'm afraid you'll have to get along without Snoop. He seems tohave disappeared. But, anyhow, you have Snap."
"But some one may come along and claim him," said Freddie. "ThatDanny Rugg says he belongs to Mr. Peterson in Millville, father,"said Bert.
"Well, I'll call Mr. Peterson up on the telephone to-morrow, andfind out," spoke Mr. Bobbsey. "That much will be settled, at anyrate."
"Did you hear anything from the circus people about the fat lady?"asked Mrs. Bobbsey.
"Yes, but no news," was her husband's answer. "The circus has goneto Cuba and Porto Rico for the winter, and I will ha
ve to writethere. It will be some time before we can expect an answer, though,as I suppose the show will be traveling from place to place andmail down there is not like it is up here. But we may find thefat lady and the cup some day."
"And Snoop, too," put in Nan.
"Yes, Snoop too."
One fact consoled the Bobbseys in their trouble over their lostpet and cup. This was the answer received by Mr. Bobbsey from Mr.Peterson. That gentleman had lost a valuable dog, but it was asmall poodle, and unlike big Snap. So far no one had claimed thetrick dog, and it seemed likely that the children could keep him.They were very glad about this.
"Oh dear!" exclaimed Bert, one afternoon a few days following thefun with the hose, "school begins Monday. Only three more days ofvacation!"
"I think you have had a long vacation," returned Mrs. Bobbsey,"and if Freddie and Flossie are going to do such tricks as theydid the other day, with the hose, I, for one, shall be glad thatyou are in school."
"I like school," said Nan, "There are a lot of new girls comingthis term, I hear."
"Any new fellows?" asked Bert, more interested.
"I don't know. There is a new teacher in the kindergarten, though,where Flossie and Freddie will go. Nellie Parks has met her, andsays she's awfully nice."
"That's good," spoke Flossie. "I like nice teachers."
"Well, I hope you and Freddie will get along well," said MammaBobbsey. "You are getting older you know, and you must soon beginto study hard."
"We will," they promised.
The school bell, next Monday morning, called to many rather unwillingchildren. The long vacation was over and class days had begun oncemore. The four Bobbseys went off together to the building, whichwas only a few blocks from their home. Mr. Tetlow was the principal,and there were half a dozen lady teachers.
"Hello, Nan," greeted Grace Lavine. "May I sit with you this term?"
"Oh, I was going to ask her," said Nellie Parks.
"Well, I was first," spoke Grace, with a pout.
"We'll be in the room where there are three seated desks." saidNan with a smile. "Maybe we three can be together."
"Oh, we'll ask teacher!" cried Nellie. "That will be lovely!"
"I'm going to sit with Freddie," declared Flossie. "We're to betogether--mamma said so."
"Of course, dear," agreed Nan. "I'll speak to your teacher aboutit."
Bert was walking in the rear with Charley Mason, when Danny Ruggcame around a corner.
"I know what I'm going to do to you after school, Bert Bobbsey!"called the bully. "You just wait and see."
"All right--I'll wait," spoke Bert quietly. "I'm not afraid."
By this time they were at the school, and it was nearly time for thelast bell to ring. Danny went off to join some of his particularchums, shaking his fist at Bert as he went.
The Bobbsey Twins at School Page 7
