Instantly the three boys kicked off their shoes and dived into the water to look for him. They found Bud pinned under the branch. His shirt was caught on the branch and was holding him under water !
“We must get him loose!” Bert thought.
The boys had to surface for air. Then they dived under again and managed to pull Bud free. Quickly they came to the top and towed Bud to shore. He was unconscious.
“We’ll have to give him artificial respiration!” Bert declared. He had gone to a first-aid class in Lakeport and knew the procedure for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
They laid Bud on his back and tilted back his head. Bert kneeled beside him and began his work.
After some time Bud opened his eyes and coughed. “What happened?” he murmured groggily.
Tom told him. “You nearly drowned!”
Bud sat up. “I remember now,” he said. “I got stuck on something and couldn’t get loose.”
Bert explained what had happened.
“Thanks, fellows,” the stout boy said gratefully. “You saved my life !” Then he added with a weak grin, “I’m sorry I scared all the fish away!”
“They couldn’t compete with a big fish like you!” Tom agreed jokingly. “Anyway, I’ve had enough fishing for today!”
Bert and Harry felt the same. Bert picked up the wicker basket with the three fish inside. “Here, Bud,” he said, “you can have mine. You tried harder than any of us.”
Harry and Tom grinned and quickly donated theirs too.
“I didn’t hook any fish but I’m going home with three,” Bud said with a wan smile.
The boys collected their poles and started the walk back. “Let’s keep in the sun,” Harry suggested. “Maybe our clothes will dry out by the time we get home.”
“That’s a good idea,” Bert agreed. “We might scare our families if we arrived dripping!”
The four cut through the strip of woods that bordered the water until they reached open fields. Then they started downstream parallel to the river.
Suddenly Bud, who was carrying the basket of fish, noticed he was being followed. The odor of the fish had attracted a large gray cat and four kittens. The meowing mother cat and her kittens walked single file behind the stout boy.
“Bud, how about throwing them one of your fish!” Tom teased.
Bud peered into the basket. “I’ll give them the smallest one.”
Tom’s fish was tossed to the parade of cats. They pounced on it immediately, and the boys hurried on.
As they walked, a movement in the woods on his left attracted Harry’s attention. He stopped. “Do you see anything in there, fellows?” he asked in a whisper.
“I hear it,” Bert answered. “Sounds like some sort of animal.”
“What do you think it is?” Bud asked.
“I don’t know, but I’m going to take a look!” Bert said and started to run toward the woods.
The other boys followed. When they caught up with Bert he motioned them to stop. “It’s just on the other side of those bushes,” he whispered.
Stealthily, he crept forward. Then suddenly he stopped and began to laugh. “It’s a cow!” he cried.
Tom ran up. “There’s a tag in her ear.” He read it. “Why this cow belongs to Mr. Peter Burns. How do you suppose she got over here?”
“I don’t know but I’d better return her to him,” said Harry.
“I’ll go with you,” Bert offered.
Tom and Bud decided they would continue to their own homes while Harry and Bert made the detour to the Burns farm.
Harry took hold of the cow’s halter and headed off across the field. Bert followed, slapping the animal now and then to help guide her.
Mrs. Burns met the boys as they turned into the lane leading to her farm. “Where did you find Bessie?” she asked in surprise. “She’s been missin’ since yesterday and my husband was terribly worried. She’s one of our best milkers.”
Harry explained how they had come across the animal. “Well, thank you both for bringing her home,” Mrs. Bums said. “My husband hasn’t been feelin’ well lately and he’s been extra worried over losin’ Bessie.”
The boys put the cow in her stall in the barn, then hurried on to the Bobbsey farm. As they walked into the kitchen, Dinah greeted them with an astounding announcement.
“I heard that piano ghost! It sure was real. And I got proof somebody was there when everybody was out!”
CHAPTER XI
CHERRY TREE MISHAP
AT DINAH’s announcement, all the Bobbsey children gathered to learn the details about the ghostly piano playing.
“You heard it?” Nan queried.
“I sure did, honey. Nobody else was in the house, so I can’t ask ’em about it. But I know somebody ran up those piano keys.”
Dinah added, “I got proof.” She explained that she had just finished dusting and wiping off the keys and had returned to the kitchen. “When I first heard the playin’, I was kind of scared to go look for that ghost. But finally I did. And there were his fingermarks right on the keys!”
The whole group raced into the living room to look at the marks. There they were—small, brownish smudges. Harry raced off to get a magnifying glass, and the children took turns looking at the marks.
All were mystified except Bert and Nan, who winked at each other. “Let’s keep it a secret,” Nan whispered, and her twin nodded.
The next morning when the children came to breakfast Aunt Sarah looked worried. “Mrs. Burns just phoned me,” she explained. “Mr. Burns is still ill and they can’t get their beans picked. If the beans aren’t taken off the vines today, they’ll be too big to bring a good price!”
Nan spoke up at once. “Why don’t we offer to pick them for her? Maybe we can finish in time!”
“That’s very thoughtful of you, Nan,” Aunt Sarah observed. “How about it, boys?”
“Sure!” Bert agreed. “And I’ll bet Tom and Bud would like to help, too.”
When Harry phoned them, the two boys declared themselves eager to pick beans. In a short time they arrived at Meadowbrook farm wearing jeans and big straw hats.
“I want to wear a hat like that!” Freddie declared.
“Me too!” Flossie piped up.
“I’m sure we have sun hats enough for all of you,” Aunt Sarah assured her, laughing.
A little later, the five boys and two girls set out for the Burns farm. They all wore blue jeans and large hats. Mrs. Burns was surprised and delighted when Nan told her why they had come.
“Why, you dear children!” she cried. “I declare that’s the nicest thing I ever heard of ! Wait until I tell my husband. Then I’ll get the truck and drive you down to the field.”
In a few minutes she backed a pickup truck from the garage, and the children climbed in. When they reached the field, she said, “Each of you grab a bushel basket,” and pointed to several piles in a corner of the truck. “When you’ve filled these, come back for more!”
The farmer’s wife showed the children just how to snap off the bean pods without pulling up the plants. “Don’t pick any beans smaller than this,” she said, holding up a pod for a sample.
“I’ll take this row and you take that one,” Bert suggested to Harry. “Then we can talk as we move along.”
Tom and Bud took the next two rows, then came Nan with the small twins.
“Let’s have a race,” called Tom. “See who picks a basketful the fastest!”
“You bet,” said Bert. “But to make it fair, I think Flossie and Freddie should fill one basket together.”
“Okay. Let’s go!”
They all set to work, and for a long time no one spoke. The beans were plentiful, and the baskets were filled quickly.
Presently Flossie called out, “We’ve finished!”
Mrs. Bums, who had been picking too, straightened up and looked over at Freddie and Flossie.
“That’s fine!” she called. “Can you carry the basket to the truck or a
re you tired?”
“We’re not tired ! Flossie and I are going to pick a million baskets of beans!” Freddie boasted.
They each took a handle of their basket and started toward the truck. But the load was awkward and Freddie stumbled. Down they both went, overturning the container as they fell! Beans flew in all directions !
As Flossie scrambled to her feet, she wailed, “Now we have to pick the same beans twice!”
Nan came over to help and in a few minutes all the beans had been recovered.
“My basket’s full!” Bert shouted.
“I’m next!” Tom Holden called.
The boys carried their baskets to the truck, got empty ones and resumed picking. All the baskets were quickly filled, so Mrs. Bums drove them to the barn and returned with additional empty ones.
“You’re the best workers I ever had,” she said. “I’m inviting you all to lunch.”
“We accept,” Harry replied with a grin.
Now and then the children stopped to rest. On one of these occasions Nan glanced up at the sky. The sun was directly overhead.
“It must be noon!” she exclaimed. Nan was standing near Flossie, and whispered to her, “I have an idea! Why don’t we slip away now? We’ll go to the house and get lunch ready.”
“That’s a scrumptious idea!” Flossie cried. “No one’s looking. Let’s go!”
When the girls entered the cheerful kitchen, they found Mr. Burns lying on a daybed where he could look out the window.
“I saw you coming,” he remarked. “You must be hungry.”
Nan explained that she and Flossie had thought they might surprise Mrs. Burns by preparing lunch.
“That would be fine!” Mr. Burns observed. “I’ve been lying here wishing I could do it, but I’m a little wobbly on my legs I”
“Maybe you can tell us what to get,” Nan suggested, going over to the sink to wash her hands.
“Indeed I can,” the farmer replied. “It’s not very fancy because we didn’t know you were coming. But it’s good farm food!”
At his direction Nan took a large home-cured ham from the refrigerator. She set it on the big round table covered with a red-and-white checkered cloth. Then Nan carefully sliced a platterful of the spicy pink meat. Flossie brought out two big pitchers of foamy milk.
“Over there in the cupboard,” Mr. Burns said, “you’ll find some of Mother’s homemade bread. I think she makes the best in the county!” In addition to the bread the girls found jars of preserves and jelly.
Mr. Burns now pointed to a big iron bell mounted on top of a pole outside the kitchen door. “That’s the farm dinner bell,” he explained. “Just pull the rope and your bean pickers will come running!”
Ding Dong! Ding Dong! the old bell rang out. The girls heard the truck start in the distance. In a few minutes, it pulled into the yard and the boys tumbled out.
“Well now, isn’t this just wonderful!” Mrs. Burns exclaimed when she saw the neatly set table. “Aren’t these good children, Peter?” she asked, tears shining in her eyes.
Mr. Burns nodded in agreement. “They are!”
After everyone’s hands had been washed, the group sat down at the table.
“Oh boy, this tastes good!” Freddie cried as he bit into the crusty bread.
When the last piece of bread and the last slice of ham had been eaten, Mrs. Burns got up from the table. “I have a surprise for you,” she announced. “I did have some dessert already made.”
She walked into the pantry and a minute later returned carrying a tray of cherry tarts.
“Goody, goody!” Flossie chirped. “I love baby cherry pies!”
“They’re made from our own cherries,” Mr. Burns explained. “They came from that old tree right outside the door!”
Mrs. Burns smiled. “If you’d like to, Freddie, you may pick some to take to your aunt.”
Freddie’s eyes shone at the prospect. “Thank you, Mrs. Burns,” he said eagerly. “That will be neat!”
The cherry tarts were soon eaten, then Bert stood up. “Come on, fellows,” he suggested. “There are still beans to be picked!”
Nan and Flossie said they would wash the luncheon dishes and then walk down to the field.
Freddie decided he would stay with the girls. Presently he strolled over to the cherry tree.
“I guess I’ll get my cherries now,” he thought.
The next minute he had scrambled up to the first limb. Higher and higher he climbed. Soon he was near the top where the cherries had not been picked.
Freddie settled himself on a branch and reached out to pick a red cluster of fruit. “Oh, oh,” he thought in dismay. “I didn’t bring anything to put the cherries in!”
He thought very hard. It seemed a long way to climb down just to get a basket. “I’ll put them down my shirt front,” he decided. “When I can’t hold any more, I’ll go find something to put the rest in.”
Freddie picked quickly, stuffing the cherries inside his brown shirt. At length, when there was no more room, he began climbing down.
As he neared the bottom, Freddie decided to jump down. But he lost his balance. Bang! Freddie landed face down on the ground!
In the kitchen Nan and Flossie heard the thump. Flossie dashed out the door to see Freddie lying motionless in a mass of red I
“Nan!” she screamed. “Freddie is killed!”
At the sound of her cry Freddie sat up unsteadily. “I’m not killed, Flossie,” he assured her. “I just—lost my breath—for a minute.”
“But you’re bleeding!” Flossie insisted.
By this time Nan was bending over her little brother. “It’s not blood!” She giggled. “It’s cherry juice!”
“I’ve smashed all my cherries!” Freddie wailed.
When Nan led Freddie into the kitchen, Mr. Bums sat up, startled. “What happened?” he asked.
Nan explained about the fall and the ruined cherries as she took off Freddie’s soggy shirt and washed the red juice from his face and arms and chest.
“I’m glad you’re not hurt, young fellow,” Mr. Burns said thoughtfully. “There’s a paper bucket on the porch if you want to get some more cherries.” This time Freddie was very careful and soon had a bucket full of shiny red fruit.
Presently the pickers drove up with a truck-load of beans. They laughed upon hearing the story of “bloody” Freddie.
As the boys climbed out of the truck, Mrs. Burns said, “Wait a minute now and I’ll get your money.”
“But we don’t want any money, thank you,” Bert replied. “We picked the beans to help you out!”
The other children nodded vigorously. In spite of Mrs. Burns’ insistence, they refused any payment.
“You’re really wonderful boys and girls,” she exclaimed. “I’ll drive you home.”
“No, thank you,” Harry spoke up. “We’ll walk. I know a short cut.”
A while later the children climbed a distant stone wall and started across a pasture. Bert suddenly cried out, “Look! There’s a bull loose! Is it Major?”
CHAPTER XII
A NEW CLUE
MAJOR! Had the Bobbseys’ missing bull broken away from the men who had stolen him? Was he trying to find his way home?
By this time the bull was trotting toward them. Harry looked closely, then suddenly he exclaimed, “That’s not Major! The bull belongs to Mr. Hopkins, and it’s a mean animal! We’d better run!”
Nan grabbed Flossie’s hand while Harry caught Freddie by the arm. They dashed across the field with the other boys close behind.
“Over the fence! Quick!” Harry called.
But all at once Bert’s ankle turned and he went down. The others did not see him fall. They scrambled over the fence, then looked back when they noticed Bert was not with them.
“Bert!” Nan screamed. “Hurry!”
As Bert picked himself up, he saw the bull charging straight toward him. The boy knew he never could reach the fence in time.
“What�
�ll I do?” Bert thought desperately. Then a picture on bullfighting flashed into his mind. The thing the fighter did to keep the bull from charging him was to fool him.
Quickly Bert made up his mind. As the animal lunged toward him, Bert jumped nimbly aside, and the bull plunged ahead. Quick as lightning Bert raced to the wall. By the time the bull could turn around, the boy was safe on the other side.
“Oh, Bert, I was so scared!” Nan sank down limply on the grass.
“Me too!” Flossie gasped.
“That was a close call,” Harry commented. “You used your head I”
“I’m sorry the bull wasn’t Major,” Bert replied. “But you ought to hear something about him soon.”
“Bert’s a real bullfighter! Freddie exclaimed admiringly.
“He sure is!” Tom agreed.
“Say!” said Bud. “We ought to have a show. Bert could put on a terrific act.”
“That would be fun,” Harry agreed. “We could train some of our pets to perform.”
“And charge admission and give the money to Skipper!” Nan suggested.
Everyone became enthusiastic about the idea. All the rest of the way home the talk was about the proposed show. It was decided that each child would train an animal to perform.
Bert would teach Rocket a trick. Nan said she had an idea for Frisky, and Harry would think of some way to use his homing pigeons. Freddie volunteered to do something with Snoop and Fluffy. Tom and Bud had goats which they would race.
Only Flossie could think of nothing to enter. “Never mind, honey,” Nan consoled her. “We’ll help you find an animal trick.”
“When and where shall we have the performance?” Harry asked.
“This is Thursday,” Bert said slowly. “How about next Tuesday? That would give us enough time to get ready.”
This day was agreed upon for the show.
“We can have it at our place,” Tom offered. “My dad has a big awning he uses for stock shows. I’m sure he’d put it up for our show. We could have some of the acts under it and use our riding ring for Rocket’s trick and the goat race.”
“That will be super!” Nan replied.
Before separating, Tom, Bud, and Harry said they would call their friends and spread the news of the forthcoming show around the countryside.
The Bobbsey Twins' Adventure in the Country Page 7
