The Bobbsey Twins at School

  CHAPTER XIX

  WHO WAS SMOKING?

  Mr. Bobbsey laughed, though he was worried about the fire. It seemedso odd for Freddie to want to go out in the cold, dark night.

  "Not this time, my Fat Fireman!" said Freddie's papa, "It may beonly a pile of rubbish on fire. I'll tell you about it when I comeback."

  "Where does it seem to be?" asked Mrs. Bobbsey.

  "Down near the lake," answered her husband. "I'm afraid," he addedin a lower voice, "that it may be our boathouse. It seems to beabout there."

  "Oh, I hope not!" she exclaimed. "Still, better that than our ownhouse."

  "If it's near the lake, papa," said Flossie, who heard part ofwhat her father said, "it will be easy to put it out, for thereis plenty of water."

  "Pooh! engines have their own water!" exclaimed Freddie, who hadrather hazy notions as to how fire engines work. He was getting overhis disappointment about not being allowed to go with his father,and had again cuddled down in his warm crib.

  Another engine dashed by the Bobbsey house, and the ringing of thealarm bell increased. The voices and footsteps of many persons,as they rushed on to the blaze, could also be heard, and thereresounded the cry of:

  "_Fire! Fire! Fire!_"

  Bert, who had been aroused with the others of the household, wasdressing in his room. He felt that his father would let him goto the fire. At any rate he intended to be all ready when he madehis request, so as not to cause delay.

  "Are you going, Bert?" asked Nan, as from her room, next to thatof her brother, she heard him moving around.

  "I am, if father will take me," he said,

  "It's too cold for me!" Nan exclaimed with a shiver, as she wentback in bed again. She bad gotten up to peer from the window atthe red glare in the sky.

  From the third floor, where Dinah slept, the colored cook now calleddown:

  "Am anybody sick, Mrs. Bobbsey? What am de mattah down dere?"

  "It's a fire, Dinah!" answered her mistress.

  "Oh good land a'massy! Don't tell me dat!" she cried. "Sam! Sam!Wake up. De house is on fire an' you'se got t' sabe me!"

  "No, no, Dinah!" cried Mrs. Bobbsey, to calm the cook. "It isn'tthis house. It's down by the lake. If you look out of your windowyou can see it."

  Dinah hurried across to her window, and evidently saw the reflectionof the blaze, for she exclaimed:

  "Thank goodness it ain't yeah! Mah goodness, but I suah was skaritfo' a minute!"

  By this time Mr. Bobbsey had dressed, and had started downstairs.Bert came out of his room, also ready for the street.

  "May I come, father?" he asked.

  "Well, I declare!" exclaimed Mr. Bobbsey, in surprise. "So yougot dressed too, did you?"

  "Yes, sir. May I come?"

  Mr. Bobbsey hesitated a moment, and then with a smile, said:

  "Well, I suppose so, since you are all ready. I'm taking Bert,"he called to his wife. "Freddie, you'll have to be the Fat Firemanwhile I'm gone, and look after the house."

  "That's what I will," said Freddie, "and if any sparks fly overhere I'll throw the bathroom sponge on 'em!"

  "Good!" cried Mr. Bobbsey, and then, he and Bert hurried out.

  The fire was now larger, as they could see when they got out inthe street. There was no wind and the flames went straight up inthe air. There were not many buildings down by the lake, only someboat shelters and places like that. The Bobbsey's boathouse wasa fine large one, having recently been made bigger as Mr. Bobbseywas thinking of buying a new motor boat.

  Mr. Bobbsey and his son hurried on, following the crowd that filledthe street leading to the lake. Several gentlemen knew the lumbermerchant, and called to him.

  "I guess you're glad this isn't your lumber yard," said one.

  "Yes, indeed," was the answer. "I had a little fire there once, andI don't want another. But I'm afraid this is some of my propertyjust the same."

  "Is that so?"

  "Yes, it looks to be my boathouse."

  "So it does!" cried another man.

  "Oh, father!" cried Bert. "Our nice boathouse!"

  "Well, the firemen may save it," said Mr. Bobbsey. "We will hopeso, anyhow," he added.

  They had not gone on much farther before Mr. Bobbsey and Bert couldsee that it was indeed their boathouse on fire. One side was allablaze, and the flames were slowly, but surely, eating their wayover the whole place. But two engines were now pumping streams ofwater on the fire, and they might put it out before too much damagewas done.

  Mr. Bobbsey rushed forward, and, as the policemen and firemen knewhim, they let him get close to the boathouse.

  "You stay here, Bert," said Mr. Bobbsey to his son.

  "Where are you going?" Bert wanted to know.

  "I'm going to see if we can save any of the boats."

  There was a sailing craft, a number of rowboats, and a small gasolinelaunch in the boat-house. They had been stored away for the winter.

  "Come on, men!" cried Mr. Bobbsey, as he saw some of his workmenin the crowd. "Help me save the boats!"

  All rushed forward willingly, and, as there was part of the placewhere the flames had not yet reached, they could make their wayinto the house. They began lowering the boats into the icy water,while the firemen played the several lines of hose on the flames.

  The third engine was now working, and so much water was pumped thateven a larger fire could not have stood it for very long.

  The blaze began to die down, and when Mr. Bobbsey and his men wereabout to lower the gasoline launch into the icy water the chiefran up, saying:

  "You don't need to do that! We've got the fire under control now.It will soon be out."

  "Are you sure?" asked the lumber merchant.

  "Yes. You can see for yourself. Leave the boat there. It will beall right."

  Mr. Bobbsey looked, and was satisfied that the larger part of theboathouse would be saved. So he and his men stopped their work,and went outside to cool off.

  A little later the fire was practically out, but one engine continuedto throw water on the smouldering sparks. The crowd began to leavenow, for there was nothing more to see, and it was cold.

  "My!" exclaimed Bert as his father came back to where he had lefthis son, "it didn't take long to settle that fire."

  "No, we have a good fire department," replied Mr. Bobbsey.

  The fire chief came up to Mr. Bobbsey, who expressed his thanksfor the quick work of the firemen.

  "Have you any idea what started the fire, Mr. Bobbsey?" asked thechief. "Was the boathouse in use?"

  "No," was the answer. "It had been closed for the winter some timeago--in fact as soon as the carpenters finished making the changes.No one was in it as far as I know."

  "Then how do you account for this?" asked the chief, as he heldout a box partly filled with cigarettes. "I picked these up in theliving room," he went on, for the boathouse had one room carpeted,and fitted with chairs and tables, and electric lights where thefamily often spent evenings during Summer.

  "You found those cigarettes in the living room of the boathouse?"asked Mr. Bobbsey.

  "I did; and the question is who was smoking?" went on the chief."In my opinion the end of a cigarette thrown aside, or perhaps alighted match dropped in some corner, started this fire. Who wassmoking?"