The Adventures of Joel Pepper

  II

  WHAT DAVE HEARD

  "Dave," said Joel, in a whisper. It was the middle of the night,and the loft was very still, save for Ben's breathing over inhis bed in the corner.

  "Don't say a word!" Joel laid his mouth close to the ear on thestraw pillow; "if you do, I'll nip you and snip you."

  "Ow!" said little Davie, huddling down under the scanty blanketand dragging it over his head.

  "Sh--, be still!" cried Joel, with a wrathful pinch. "Ben'llhear you,--there now, just see!"

  "What's the matter, boys?" asked Ben, sleepily.

  Down flew Joel in a heap under his end of the blanket, where hebestowed a kick from one set of toes on David in a little heapagainst the wall.

  The loft was as still as a mouse, so Ben turned over again. "Iguess Joel wanted a drink of water, and he's gone to sleep andforgot all about it. Now, that's good," and off he went again.

  Joel's black stubby head popped up, and he peered into thedarkness. "Now, I've got to wait ever'n ever so long," hegrumbled softly to himself. "No, there he goes!" he addedjoyfully, as Ben breathed hard. "Now, Dave," he rolled over andducked under the blanket-end, "if you scream again, I'll snip,and snip, and snip you, most dreadful."

  "I won't," declared little David, fearfully. "Oh, I won't, Joe,"huddling off from the little brown fingers.

  "Promise, now, you'll never tell,--black and blue,--hope to dieif I do."

  "We must tell Mamsie," said David.

  Joel gave an impatient wriggle. "Mamsie won't care, and she'stoo busy. Now say it, 'black and--"'

  "And we must tell Polly," cried little Davie, in a smotheredvoice. "Oh, Joel, we _must_ tell Polly."

  "_Sh!_" cried Joel, with a warning pinch on the small armthat sent David into a worse heap than before. "Now, you've goneand waked Ben up again," and he pricked up one ear from under thebedclothes.

  "Oh!" exclaimed little David, thinking of Mamsie and Polly whomhe was not to tell.

  Joel drew a long breath, as Ben did not stir.

  "Well, say 'black and blue--hope to die if I do,'" commandedJoel, sliding back again under the blanket. "Hurry up, Dave."

  "'Black and--blue--hope--to die if I do,'" mumbled poor littleDavid, stuffing the end of the blanket into his mouth, tryingnot to cry as he thought of Mamsie and Polly.

  "Now, you know I've found a cave, and I'm goin' up there to livesome day," announced Joel in a smothered whisper, his mouthclose to David's ear.

  "Where?" cried David, fearfully.

  "_Sh!_ don't speak so loud. Over in 'Bandy Leg Mountain.'"

  "Ooh,--dear me!" cried David, stopping himself in the middle ofa scream. "Won't old 'Bandy Leg' catch you, Joel?"

  "Hoh--no, I ain't afraid!" declared Joel. "He's been dead ahundred years, I guess. An' beside, I could knock him flat, yes,sir-ree!" He doubled up his little brown fist, and bounced up in themiddle of the old shake-down.

  "What's the matter, Joe?" called Ben, sleepily; "turn over andgo to sleep, and you'll forget again about the drink of water."

  Joel flung himself flat, and burrowed along the whole length ofthe bed, knocking Davie's shins all the way.

  "You're pullin' all the blanket off me," said Davie, clutchinghis end from Joel's frantic grasp.

  "Go to sleep, boys," said Ben, sharply. "And Joe, stop grumblingfor a drink of water. Now you've waked up David."

  Joel gripped Davie fast and clapped one hand over his mouth.

  "Dear me, I think Ben might stay asleep a minute," he mutteredin an injured voice. "Now, don't you speak a single word andI'll tell you all about it," after a long pause, in which theyheard nothing but a rat nibbling away in the corner.

  "I'm goin' up there to-morrow, an' I'm goin' to take my gun, an'some things to eat, an'--"

  "Oh, Joel!" interrupted little David, "you can't ever in allthis world. Polly won't let you."

  "Polly'll let us go an' play some to-morrow," said Joel,sturdily, "'cause there ain't any work to do. So there now! An'maybe I'll see a bear. An'----"

  "O dear me!" exclaimed little Davie, quite overcome, and tremblingin every limb. "He'll eat you. Joel, I'm going to tell Polly."

  "You can't," said Joel, coolly; "you said 'Black-an-blue-hope-to-die-if-I-do,' and I'm goin' to take you."

  "Oh, I can't go," declared Davie, bouncing up in terror. "Iain't goin'. I ain't, Joey. I ain't----"

  "_Sh-sh_!" warned Joel, with another nip.

  "I ain't--I ain't--" cried David, softly, through his tears.

  "Pshaw! I guess there ain't any bear up there," said Joel,scornfully. "Be still, Dave!"

  "An' old--old Bandy Legs'll catch--catch me," mumbled David,digging his small knuckles into his eyes.

  "Old Bandy Legs has been dead ever'n ever so long. I guess athousand years," said Joel; "an' there's flowers there--oh, mostbeautiful ones!"

  "Are there?" asked David, taking down his hands. "What kinds,Joel?"

  "Oh, all sorts. The most be-yewtiful flowers, red and yellow andgreen, you can't think, Dave Pepper."

  "I never saw a green flower," said little David, thoughtfully.

  "Well, they're up there. Oh, sights an' sights," said Joel,recklessly. "An' pink and blue an'----"

  "Are you sure there are green flowers up there, Joel?" askedDavid, huddling up to him close.

  "Sh--stop talking--oh, the most _beyewtiful_ things, I tellyou, grow up by that cave."

  "I might go up and get some not very near the cave, Joel," saidDavie, after a long breath. "Not very near."

  "So you could," said Joel, quickly. "Then I guess you'll be glad,Dave Pepper, that you came up with me."

  "I shall bring down most of the green ones, Joey," cried littleDavid, joyfully, "'cause I can get the others down below themountain."

  "Yes--yes," whispered Joel, impatiently.

  "An' if I plant 'em, they'll grow, and then Mamsie'll be glad,an' Polly too," he whispered, dreadfully excited. "Won't Pollybe glad though, Joe? She's never seen a green flower."

  "Yes; now go to sleep," cried Joel, with a nudge, "and remembernot to say a word to me to-morrow about it."

  "Can't I say anything to you behind the wood pile?" asked David,in surprise.

  "No, not a teenty word. An' don't you look at me. If you do, OldBandy Legs'll come after you."

  "You said he was dead," cried David in a fearful whisper, andcrouching tight to Joel and gripping him with both arms. "O dearme!"

  "So he is; but he'll catch you if you say a single word. Now goto sleep, an' when I tell you to come with me to-morrow, youmust start just as quick as scat."

  "I shall take a basket for the green flowers," said Davie,trying not to think of "Old Bandy Legs."

  "No, you mustn't; you can bring 'em down in your arms."

  "I can't bring many," said little David, swallowing hard. "Ican't bring many, Joe, an' Polly'll want some in her garden."

  "Well, old Bandy Legs won't let you get any, if you don't stop,"said Joel, crossly, "so there now!" and he rolled off to the edgeof the old straw bed, and in two minutes was fast asleep, leavinglittle Davie peering up at the rafters to watch for the first streak oflight, determined to get as many green flowers as he possibly couldfor Polly's garden.

  "I'll twist up a birch-bark basket, to bring 'em down in," hedecided. And the first thing either of them knew, there wasPolly shaking their arms and laughing. "You lazy little things,you--get up! I've been calling and calling and calling you tobreakfast."

  Joel and David flew up into the middle of the bed.

  "Joe was teasing all night for a drink of water," said Ben, asPolly ran down into the kitchen. "An' I was just going to get upand fetch him some, when he tumbled to sleep again."

  "Dear me," said Polly, rushing at her work; "well, I'll keeptheir porridge warm. Now, Phronsie, you can't help me aboutthese dishes."

  "I'm just as big since yesterday," said Phronsie, standing up onher tiptoes to turn an injured face to Polly. "See, Polly."

  "So you are," said Polly, bursting into a laugh
. "Well, I tellyou, Pet, what you might do that would help me more."

  "More than to wash the dishes, Polly?" cried Phronsie, tumblingdown from her tiptoes. "Oh, do tell me, Polly!" And she ran upto her, and seized Polly's check apron with both fat littlehands.

  "Why, you see I can't do the dishes, all of 'em, till the boysget through their breakfast," said Polly, with a sober face,looking at the old clock, as she thought of the seams on thesacks she was going to fly at as soon as the work was done inthe kitchen. How nice it was that Mamsie had promised she mighttry this very morning while Mrs. Pepper was down at theparsonage, mending the minister's study carpet. "Now I guess themoney'll begin to come in, and Mamsie won't have to work sohard," thought Polly over and over, and her heart beat merrily,and the color flew over her cheek.

  "Tell me, Polly," begged little Phronsie, holding the aprontight.

  "Well, now, Pet, there's a snarl of thread in the work-basket.Don't you remember, the spool rolled under the table, and nobodysaw it go, and the boys kicked it up and made it into a mess, an'Mamsie put it into the little bag, an' I was to pick it out whenI got time? If you only could do that, Phronsie, just think howit would help."

  Phronsie gave a long sigh. She dropped the apron, and folded herhands. "Would it help so very much, Polly?" she asked.

  "Ever an' ever so much," said Polly. "You needn't do but alittle now, an' some other day p'raps you could do some more."

  "I'm going to do it all," said Phronsie, shaking her yellow headdeterminedly. So she got her little wooden chair from againstthe wall, and set it in the middle of the kitchen floor, andthen brought the little cotton bag out of the old work-basket."I shall do it all this very one minute," she declared softly,as she sat down and drew out the snarl of thread.

  "Now, boys," called Polly, as she took one look at her, and juststopped to drop a kiss on the yellow hair, "you must just comedownstairs this very minute. If you don't, you can't have anybreakfast."

  "Coming," sang Joel, and presently down he tumbled, two steps ata time, pulling on his jacket as he went.

  "Such a long time to stay abed," reproved Polly; "just think ofit, it's after seven o'clock, Joel Pepper, and Mamsie's beengone half an hour!"

  "An' I'm working," said Phronsie, twitching at the end of thethread with an important air. "I'm going to pick out the wholeof this, I am, for Mamsie. See, Joey!" She held up the snarl,and away the spool raced, as if glad to get off once more.

  "Hoh!" said Joel, "you're making it worse'n ever, Phron."

  "No, I'm not," cried Phronsie, clutching the snarl with bothlittle fists. "Oh, no, I'm not; am I, Polly?" And the big tearsbegan to race over her round cheeks.

  "No," said Polly. "Oh, for shame, Joel, to make Phronsie cry!"

  "I didn't make her cry," denied Joel, stoutly, his face workingbadly. "I'll get the spool--I'll get the spool. See, Polly, here'tis," and he dived under the table, and came up bright andshining with it in his hand.

  "There now, Phronsie; see, Joel's got it for you," said Polly,beaming at him. "Now, Pet, I'll tell you what, let's putMamsie's basket on the floor, and old Mr. Spool in it. There,Joey, drop him in, then he can't run away again. Now, then!"

  "Mr. Spool can't run away again," smiled Phronsie through hertears, and leaning out of her little wooden chair to see Joeldrop the spool in. "That's nice, Polly, isn't it? Now he can'trun away again," she hummed.

  "Indeed, it is," sang Polly, delighted; "he's fast now, so flyat your snarl, Pet, Mamsie'll be so pleased to think you'vepicked out some of it."

  "I'm going to pick it all out," declared Phronsie in a tone ofdetermination. And wiping off the tears on the back of her fatlittle hand, she set to work, humming away again to herself.

  "Now, whatever keeps David!" cried Polly, dishing out Joel'smush from the kettle on the stove, and setting the bowl on thetable.

  "He's coming," said Joel, hastily. "O dear me, I wish we everhad anything, Polly Pepper, but mush and molasses for breakfast!"

  "Some people don't have anything half as good," said Polly,starting for the stairs.

  "What don't they have?" asked Joel in alarm, as he watched hergo.

  "Oh, I don't know; different things. Da-_vid!_" she called.

  "You said they didn't have things half as good," said Joel,stopping with a spoonful of porridge halfway to his mouth. "Soyou know what they are, now, Polly Pepper."

  "Oh, well, they don't. Plenty and plenty of people don't getnear as good things as we have every day for breakfast."

  "What are they, the things the plenty and plenty of people get?"persisted Joel, beginning on his breakfast comfortably, sincePolly was going to talk.

  "Oh--let me see," said Polly, pausing at the foot of the stairs."Old bread, for one thing."

  "Is it mouldy?" asked Joel.

  "Um--yes, I s'pose so," answered Polly, wrinkling up her face."Eat your own breakfast, Joe, and not stop to think of whatother people have. Da-_vid!_'"

  "You said 'things,'" said Joel, severely, "and you only told memouldy old bread, Polly Pepper! What else?"

  "O dear, I don't know."

  "You _said_----"

  "I mean--well, cold potatoes, for one thing. I s'pose mosteverybody has potatoes. Now eat your breakfast, Joey Pepper.Those are things. Eat your breakfast this minute!"

  When Polly spoke in that tone, the three little Peppers knewthey must obey. Joel ducked his head over his bowl of mush, andbegan to hurry the spoonfuls as fast as he could into his mouth.

  "I must go up and see what is the matter with David," said Polly,preparing to run up the stairs. Just at this moment he appearedcoming slowly down. "Oh, here you are!" cried Polly, brightly,running over to the old stove to dish out his bowl of mush. "Now,Davie, fly at your breakfast, 'cause I've got to sew all themorning just as hard as ever I can."