HOUSEKEEPING
The next morning Jess was up before the others, as was fitting for alittle housekeeper. That is, she was first if we except the dog, who hadopened one eye instantly every time his little mistress stirred in hersleep. He sat watching gravely in the door of the car as Jess descendedto get breakfast. She walked from the little waterfall quite a distancedown the brook, looking at it with critical eyes.
"This will be the well," she said to herself, regarding a small but deepand quiet basin just below the falls. Below that she found a largerbasin, lined with gravel, with flat stones surrounding it.
"This will be the washtub," she decided. "And now I must go back to therefrigerator." This was the strangest spot of all, for behind the littlewaterfall was a small quiet pool in which Jess had set the milk bottlesthe night before. Not a drop of water could get in, but all night longthe cool running water had surrounded the bottles. They were now fairlyicy to the touch. Jess smiled as she drew them out.
"Is it good?" asked Benny's voice. There he sat in the door of the car,swinging his legs, his arm around the shaggy dog.
"It's delicious!" declared Jess. "Cold as ice." She climbed up besidehim as she spoke, bringing the breakfast with her. The other twochildren sat up and looked at it.
"Today, Jess," began Henry, "I will go back to town and try to get a jobmowing lawns or something. Then we can afford to have something besidesmilk for breakfast."
Milk suited Benny very well, however, so the older children allowed himto drink rather more than his share. Henry did not waste any timetalking. He brushed his hair as well as he could without a brush, rolleddown his sleeves, and started for town with the second dollar.
"Glad you've got a dog, Jess," he called back, as he waved his strawhat.
The children watched him disappear around the curve and then turned toJess expectantly. They were not mistaken. Jess had a plan.
"We'll explore," she began mysteriously. "We'll begin here at the car,and hunt all over these woods until we find a dump!"
"What's a dump?" inquired Benny.
"O Benny!" answered Violet. "You know what a dump is. All old bottlesand papers and broken dishes."
"And wheels?" asked Benny interestedly. "Will there be any old wheels?"
"Yes, maybe," assented Violet. "But cups, Benny! Think of drinking milkout of a cup again!"
"Oh, yes," said Benny, politely. But it was clear that his mind wascentered on wheels rather than cups.
The exploring party started slowly down the rusty track, with the doghopping happily on three legs. The fourth paw, nicely bandaged withJess' handkerchief, he held up out of harm's way.
"I think this is a spur track," said Jess. "They built it in here sothey could load wood on the cars, and then when they had cut all thewood they didn't need the track any more."
This explanation seemed very likely, for here and there were stumps oftrees and decaying chips. Violet took note of these chips, andremembered them some days later. In fact, both girls kept their eyesopen, and pointed out things of interest to each other.
"Remember these logs, Violet, if we should ever need any," said Jesspointing.
"Blackberry blossoms!" returned Violet briefly, turning one over gentlywith her foot.
"Big flat stones!" remarked Jess, later on, as they came upon a greatheap of them.
Here the track came out into the open sunshine, and broken pieces ofrail showed clearly where it had joined the main track at some time inthe past. And here from the top of the wooded hill the children couldplainly see the city in the valley. They walked along the track, pickingout a church steeple here and there, forgetting for a moment the objectof their search.
"There's a wheel!" Benny cried triumphantly from behind.
The girls looked down, and with a glad cry of surprise Jess recognized adump at the foot of the hill. They found it not composed entirely ofashes and tin cans, either, although both of these were there in greatprofusion. It was a royal dump, containing both cups and wheels.
"O Benny!" cried Jess, "if it hadn't been for you!" She hugged him,wheel and all, and began turning over the rubbish with great delight.
"Here's a white pitcher, Jess," Violet called, holding up a perfectspecimen with a tiny chip in its nose.
"Here's a big white cup," said Jess delightedly, laying it aside.
"Want a teapot, Jessy?" inquired Benny, offering her an enormous blueenameled affair without a handle.
"Yes, _indeed_!" cried Jess. "We can use that for water. I've found twocups and a bowl already. And Violet, we ought to be looking for spoons,too."
Violet pointed without speaking to her little pile of treasures. Therewere five iron spoons covered with rust.
"Wonderful!" pronounced Jess with rapture. Indeed, it is doubtful ifcollectors of rare and beautiful bits of porcelain ever enjoyed a searchas much as did these adventurers in the dump heap.
Benny actually found four wheels, exactly alike, probably from the samecart, and insisted upon carrying them back. To please him, Jess allowedhim to add them to the growing pile.
"Here's a big iron kettle," observed Violet. "But we won't really cookwith a fire, will we, Jess?"
"We'll take it back, though," replied Jess with a knowing look. "We canpile lots of dishes in it."
They could, and did, but not until after Benny had discovered hisbeloved "pink cup." It was a tea-party cup of bright rose-color with awreath of gorgeous roses on it, and a little shepherdess giving her lamba drink from a pale blue brook. It had a perfectly good handle, goldinto the bargain. Its only flaw was a dangerous crack through the lamb'snose and front feet. Jess made a cushion for it out of grass and laid iton top of the kettle full of treasures. All the things, even the wheels,were laid on a wide board which the two girls carried between them.
_Benny discovered his beloved "pink cup"_]
Can you imagine the dishwashing when the gay party returned to thefreight car? Children do not usually care for dishwashing. But never dida little boy hand dishes to his sister so carefully as Benny did. Ontheir hands and knees beside the clear, cool little "washtub," thethree children soaped and rinsed and dried their precious store ofdishes. Jess scoured the rust from the spoons with sand. "There!" shesaid, drying the last polished spoon. The children sat back and lookedadmiringly at their own handiwork. But they did not look long. There wastoo much to be done.
"Jess," exclaimed Violet, "I'll tell you!" Violet seldom spoke soexcitedly. Even Benny turned around and looked at her.
"Come and see what I noticed inside the car last night!"
Both children followed her, and peered in at the door.
"See, on the wall, right over on the other door, Jess." Now, all Jesscould see were two thick chunks of wood nailed securely to the closeddoor opposite the open one. But she whirled around and around as fast asshe could, clapping her hands. When she could get her breath, however,she skipped over to the board they had carried, dusted it nicely, andlaid it carefully across the two wooden projections. It was a perfectshelf.
"There!" said Jess.
The children could hardly wait to arrange the shining new dishes on theshelf. Violet quietly gathered some feathery white flowers, a daisy ortwo, and some maidenhair ferns, which she arranged in a glass vasefilled with water from the "well." This she put in the middle, with thebroken edge hidden.
"There!" said Jess.
"You said 'there' three times, Jessy," remarked Benny, contentedly.
"So I did," replied Jess laughing, "but I'm going to say it again." Shepointed and said, "There!"
Henry was coming up the path.
The Box-Car Children Page 5
