Kernel Cob And Little Miss Sweetclover

  KERNEL COB AND LITTLE MISS SWEETCLOVER

  Written by

  GEORGE MITCHEL

  Illustrated by Tony Sarg

  1918

  _To_ Ursula, Dordie, Hutch and Bob And children the wide world over, I dedicate brave Kernel Cob And dear Little Miss Sweetclover.

  CHAPTER I

  Jackie was a little boy and he had a little sister named Peggs, andthey lived with their Aunt who was very old, maybe thirty-two.

  And it was so very long since she had been a little girl, that shequite forgot that children need toys to play with and all that.

  So poor little Jackie and Peggs had no soldiers or dolls but couldonly play at make-believe all day long.

  They lived in a little white house nearly all covered withhoneysuckle, and a little white fence with a little white gate in itran all about and at the back of the little white house was a littlegarden with beautiful flowers growing in it.

  And once, when they were making pies in the garden, Peggs began to cryand Jackie ran and put his arms about her, for he loved his littlePeggs very dearly; and he said to her:

  "What's the matter, Peggsie? Did a spider bite you?"

  "No," says Peggs, "it didn't."

  "Was it a naughty worm?"

  "No," says Peggs, "it wasn't."

  "Well, what was it?" says Jackie.

  "It weren't anything that bit me, only I want a doll," and away shecried again.

  "Huh!" says Jackie, "that's nothing. You don't want a doll any mor'n Iwant a soldier," and he sat down beside her and began to cry, too.

  And after they had cried for a long time, maybe four hours or two,they stopped.

  "I tell you what!" says Jackie.

  "What?" says Peggs, drying her eyes on her pinafore.

  "If no one will give us a soldier"...

  "But I don't want a soldier," says Peggs. "I want a doll."

  "Let's make one," says Jackie.

  "That's a good way," says Peggs.

  "You bet," says Jackie, and he slapped one of his legs the way sailorsdo in tales of the sea.

  "What'll we make it of?" asked Peggs.

  "Things," says Jackie. "Goodie!" says Peggs.

  And they went in search of the things they would make the dolls of.And pretty soon, Peggs made the most wonderful doll of flowers thatever a child could see.

  The head was of Sweetclover, the dress was a purple morning-gloryturned upside-down so it looked like a bodice and a skirt, and it wastied to the head so that they wouldn't come apart. And perched on thetop of the head was a little bonnet, only it wasn't really a bonnet,you know, but a little four o'clock.

  And she called it Little Miss Sweetclover and it was the dearestlittle doll and as fresh as the morning dew.

  In the meantime, Jackie had been busy, you may be sure; but hecouldn't find anything to make a soldier of except sticks of wood, buthe had no jack-knife, much as he had always wanted one.

  "Whatever shall I do?" thought Jackie, as he looked about the garden,and just then he saw an ear of corn and he picked it up.

  "Maybe this will do," and he picked all the kernels off except two forthe eyes, one for the nose, two more for the ears and a row for theteeth.

  And he ran to Peggs to have her sew some clothes for his soldier.

  "What do you think of Little Miss Sweetclover?" says Peggs, holding itup for Jackie to see.

  "I think she's very pretty," says Jackie, "only she needs legs." Andwhile Peggs cut out and sewed a uniform for the soldier, Jackie wentin search of legs for Sweetclover.

  And these he made of two stems of a flower, bent at the ends to looklike feet. And he ran back to Peggs with them.

  "Here are the legs for Sweetclover with green shoes and stockings on."And he tied them to the rest of Sweetclover so that when she walked,they wouldn't come off.

  By this time Peggs had finished the uniform for Jackie's soldier and ahat of newspaper with a great plume of cornsilk and a lot of medalswhich were cut from the gold leaf that comes on a card of buttons. Andwhen they were all sewed on the jacket, he cut out a sword from thegold leaf and made hands and feet from the corn husk. And he coloredthe eyes with black ink and the lips with red, and, much before youcould say "Crickety," the soldier was all finished.

  "What'll we call him?" asked Jackie.

  And they thought, and thought, and thought.

  "I have it!" said Jackie.

  "What?" asked Peggs.

  "We'll call him Kernel Cob," says Jackie.

  "Goodie!" says Peggs, clapping her hands with glee.

  And you will see what wonderful dolls they were, and what wonderfulthings they did, and how they helped Jackie and Peggs to find ... butnever mind.

  You will see.

  CHAPTER II

  And one day, when Jackie and Peggs were playing in the garden withKernel Cob and Sweetclover, the sun was very hot, so Peggs ran and gota parasol and put it over the dolls so they wouldn't wilt.

  "I'd like Kernel Cob to be a great general," said Jackie as he put upthe parasol, "and fight in all the wars of the world and lead hissoldiers with a sword in his hand and get wounded and all that. Notvery much wounded, though. Or I'd like to have him be an Admiral andsail all around the world. What do you think of that?"

  "That's good," said Peggs.

  "You bet," said Jackie. And he stood on his tippy toes to look bigger.

  "And I'd like Sweetclover to be a mother," says Peggs, "and havehundreds and hundreds of children so she could give them all the dollsthat ever they wanted."

  "That would be noble," said Jackie.

  "It's terrible for children to have no father or mother isn't it?"asked Peggs looking far off at nothing in the sky.

  "Yes," said Jackie.

  "I would rather have a mother and father than everything else in theworld," says Peggs.

  "Better'n little Sweetclover?" asked Jackie.

  "Yes," answered Peggs, "for I could make another doll, but you canonly have one mother and one father."

  "Maybe you're right," said Jackie, "but I love Kernel Cob very much,just the same."

  "Of course!" says Peggs.

  Now, all of this was heard by Kernel Cob and Sweetclover, for allflowers and vegetables understand the language of people, but peopledo not understand the language of flowers and vegetables; and whenKernel Cob and Sweetclover talked, Jackie and Peggs couldn't hear thembecause flowers whisper very softly, and even if the children couldhear them they couldn't understand them, you see, because it's adifferent kind of language and they never had heard it.

  Sometimes, if you are a child, and sit in the garden when the wind isblowing, and listen, you may hear a kind of whispering among theflowers. And if you look very closely, you will see them sway towardeach other and smile and nod their heads. Well, that is when theywhisper in each other's ears just as if they were children.

  And all vegetables are like that too, only the corn has a loudervoice, because the wind loves to blow through its ears and make itwave so it looks like a great green ocean.

  "Did we have a mother and father?" asked Peggs.

  "Of course!" answered Jackie, "Everybody has to have a mother and afather, except orphans."

  "Are we orphans?" asked Peggs.

  "I guess we must be," said Jackie, "I heard Auntie tell somebody, theother day, that both our parents were lost."

  Just then the wind blew Sweetclover toward Kernel Cob, and, if you'dbeen there, you could have heard a whispering sound, and, if you'dbeen a flower, you would have heard Sweetclover say to Kernel Cob:

  "Poor little Peggs!" and if you had looked very closely you would haveseen dew drops in her eyes.

&n
bsp; "What did she do?" asked Kernel Cob, and his voice was slow, for youmust remember that it took him a long time to think, because his headwas heavy and so filled up with corn cob. But, like most people whoare slow, he was very determined, and once he made up his mind to do athing you might be sure he would do it, no matter what.

  "She lost her motheranfather," said Sweetclover.

  "Did Jackie lose his motheranfather too?" asked Kernel Cob.

  "Of course," answered Sweetclover. "Don't you know that Jackie andPeggs are brother and sister?"

  "Sure," said Kernel Cob.

  "Well then," said Sweetclover.

  "You didn't tell me," said Kernel Cob.

  "Tell you what?" asked Sweetclover.

  "If Jackie lost his motheranfather," said Kernel Cob.

  "Jackie's motheranfather are the same as Peggs'," explainedSweetclover.

  "Doesn't everybody have his own motheranfather?" asked Kernel Cob.

  "Not always," says Sweetclover. "Why?" asks Kernel Cob.

  "Please keep quiet," said Sweetclover, "I can't hear what they aresaying."

  "If our mother and father are lost," says Peggs, "why doesn't Auntietry to find them?"

  "I wish she would," says Jackie.

  "Did you hear that?" says Sweetclover.

  "What?" asked Kernel Cob.

  "That they would like to find their motheranfather," says Sweetclover.

  "Are they lost?" asks Kernel Cob.

  "Yes," says Sweetclover.

  "Who lost them?" asks Kernel Cob.

  "Hush!" says Sweetclover.

  For a long time nobody spoke and pretty soon a little breeze swayedKernel Cob over toward Sweetclover and he said:

  "Let's try to find Jackie and Peggs' motheranfather. Let us pray tothe fairies that something will come along to help us."

  "Good!" said Sweet clover, and they prayed and prayed and prayed.

  And just then a great wind came and raised the parasol from theground, and the hook of the handle caught in Kernel Cob's belt andpulled him up with it and Sweetclover was just in time to catch holdof him as he sailed away. And Jackie and Peggs sat upon the grass andcried because they had lost their little dolls.

  CHAPTER III

  And the parasol went up and up in the sky all the afternoon, and, tryas he would, Kernel Cob could not get it to stop.

  "I wonder what the fairies are sending us up here for?" shouted KernelCob.

  "Maybe they're in Heaven," said Sweetclover, and just then the parasolwent skimming through a beautiful white cloud, and the sun was dancingon it, making it look like pink eiderdown.

  And soon they came out of the cloud and were in the blue sky again.

  And up and up they sailed. And the sun dipped down in the sea, and itslight went out, and the stars came out and began to peep through thesky like little fire-flies, and the moon came up, too, to see what wasgoing on, and it grew bigger and bigger till it was nearly as big asthe old Earth.

  And then they came to the Moon and could see little people runningaround the edge waving their hands excitedly, and they were alldressed in silver clothing, and when Kernel Cob and Sweetclover werelanded the Moonpeople ran to them and wondered.

  And everything about them was silver. Churches and houses and rocksand rivers and trees and everything.

  And the Moonpeople ran ahead in great confusion to show them the way.

  And Kernel Cob formed them into line and put himself at the head ofthe column, as a general does, and they marched in step and everythinguntil they came to the Palace of the King, which was of silver withturrets and spires of diamonds, and glittered so you could scarcelysee.

  And the King and the Queen were sitting on thrones, and when the Kingsaw how Kernel Cob had formed his people in order, he was greatlypleased and said to himself, "Here is a fine General. I will put himat the head of all my armies."

  And Kernel Cobb and Sweetclover were invited to a great banquet, assplendid as ever you could imagine.

  And when they were seated, Sweetclover saw some flowers on the banquettable which were very beautiful, white with silver calyx, and theywere called Silverfloss, and Sweetclover whispered to Silverfloss:

  "Do you understand Earth talk?"

  "Ting-a-ling," answered Silverfloss, and it sounded like the tinklingof a little silver bell.

  "What did she say?" asked Kernel Cob.

  "It must be Moonflower talk," said Sweetclover, and she looked aboutand saw some Edelweiss and she was very glad and said: "Edelweiss,Edelweiss, how came you here?"

  Now you must know the Edelweiss is a little white flower that growsaway up in the snow of the mountains of Switzerland.

  "One night I was blown up here in a great snow storm and I've beenhere ever since," said Edelweiss.

  "Can you speak Moonflower talk?" asked Sweetclover.

  "Yes," said Edelweiss.

  "Very well," said Kernel Cob, "we are trying to find Jackie and Peggs'motheranfather and we came all the way from the Earth on a parasol todo so. Maybe you can help us."

  "I would if I could," replied Edelweiss. "But I am afraid they are nothere. I've been here over four seasons and I've never seen a humanbeing, and even if they were here they couldn't live here because it'stoo cold."

  "You bet it is," said Kernel Cob, and he shivered till the medals onhis coat rattled.

  "Maybe they could be here in some other part of the Moon!" saidSweetclover. "Would you mind looking?"

  "I would be glad to look," said Edelweiss, for he was a very politelittle flower and had very pretty manners.

  And turning to Silverfloss he asked her if she had seen twoearth-people on the Moon.

  "Ting-a-ling," answered Silverfloss and you would have thought it wastwo bells tinkling.

  "She says there never was a human being on the Moon," said Edelweiss.

  "Well if they are not here," said Kernel Cob, "we had better go beforewe freeze to death," and his teeth chattered.

  "How'll we get off?" asked Sweetclover.

  "I'll tell Silverfloss to weave you a strand of silver," and he turnedto Silverfloss and said some tinkling words to her.

  "She's doing it," he said. "It's a thread of silver so thin that itcan't be seen and yet it is so strong that it can easily bear yourweight."

  "But I can't climb all the way down," said Kernel Cob.

  "You won't have to," said Edelweiss. "All you have to do is to catchhold of the end of the silver thread and hang on to it, and, asSilverfloss weaves the thread it gets longer and longer, until youhave reached the Earth. You'd better start now, if you are going."

  So Kernel Cob wound the silver thread around his waist, and, liftingSweetclover, was ready to start. "Good-bye," said Kernel Cob."Good-bye," said Sweetclover.

  "Good-bye," said Edelweiss, "Hold on tight!"

  "All right," said Kernel Cob.

  "Thank you very much," cried Sweetclover.

  And down they went, Kernel Cob hanging to the silver thread andSweetclover snuggled close against his jacket.

  CHAPTER IV

  Kernel Cob and Sweetclover went down and down and down through the skyfrom the Moon.

  And after they had gone down and down and down a long time Sweetcloversuddenly cried:

  "What's that?" and pointed below. "It's like a great ball turninground and round."

  "It looks like another Moon with the lights out."

  "It's the Earth!" cried Sweetclover with delight, for she could nowsee the tops of trees as the sun began to show his golden head abovethe hills in the East. And little by little, as Kernel Cob andSweetclover neared the Earth, they could see rivers and lakes andsteeples and houses and after awhile, people and horses in the fields.

  And down, down, down they came, getting nearer and nearer and neareruntil they saw, beneath their very feet, a great tall house with sailson it going round and round at a rapid rate, and, before you couldsay, "Look out!" Kernel Cob was caught in one of the sails and dashedto the ground.

  "Are you hurt?" asked Sweetc
lover sitting on the ground where she hadbeen thrown.

  "No," said Kernel Cob, for a soldier must bear pain without complaintand pretend he isn't hurt even if he is.

  And a number of people who were working in the fields ran out to seewhat had happened, and you may be sure that they were surprised to seethese strange dolls. And they spoke a strange language which neitherKernel Cob nor Sweetclover could make out.

  "I wonder where we are," said Sweetclover, "and who these people canbe?"

  "They're very funny," laughed Kernel Cob, "I never saw shoes likethose before. They look like boats."

  "They're made of wood," said Sweetclover.

  And just then a little Dutch girl--for you have guessed that they werein Holland--came over and picked them up and carried them off into herhouse.

  And little Antje, for that was her name, played with them all day,and, when night was come, she put them to sleep in a chair before thefireplace where it was nice and warm and cosy.

  And, in the middle of the night, a cricket came out on the hearthstone and began to chirp.

  "Chirp, chirp, chirp," sang the cricket, and Kernel Cob woke up andrubbed his eyes and listened.

  "Hello, Mister Cricket," shouted Kernel Cob peering over the side ofthe chair.

  And the Cricket hopped over to where Kernel Cob was lying.