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07 - The Box Car Children - Gertrude Warner · Adventure Books Library

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  Chapter seven. At home, Jess and Henry had a short committee meeting the
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  next morning before the others awoke. It was agreed that nobody should be allowed
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  to stray off into the woods alone, not even the dog. And with
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  much mystery, Henry left some orders with all of them as to what they
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  should build for him during the morning. What for, asked Benny, shan't
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  tell, old fellow, tease Henry, you just build it and you'll see
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  later. So Henry walked briskly through the woods, feeling sure that the noise
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  in the night had been made by a rabbit. Having no watch, Henry
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  made a slight mistake by appearing at the young doctor's door before eight o'clock.
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  He was just in time to meet the doctor coming in from a night call.
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  If Henry had not been so eager to begin work, he would have
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  noticed how the young man's dark eyes examined him from head to foot, even
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  to his plastered hair wet with brookwater. It was not the doctor who directed
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  his work, but the doctor's mother, the sweet faced Missus mc allister,
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  whose heart was centered in her son and her vegetable garden. Her heart warmed
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  to the boy when she saw how carefully, he thinned out the carrots which
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  had been sadly neglected. I have been so busy, she declared, that
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  I have actually stayed awake nights worrying about these carrots. There see that she
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  pulled out a fairly good sized carrot as she spoke. It had to come
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  out, for it was much too near its neighbors. In fact, when
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  Henry had thinned out half a row, he had quite a little pile of
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  eatable carrots, each as large as his thumb. When missus mc allister saw
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  Henry deftly press the earth back again around the carrots which remained standing, she
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  left him quietly with a smile. Here was a gardener whom she could trust.
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  Henry worked steadily in the hot sun, completing row after row of carrots,
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  parsnips, and onions. When the mill bells rang at noon, he
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  worked on without noticing that his employer was again watching him. When he did
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  at last notice her, he asked her, smiling, what she wanted done
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  with the things he had pulled up. Oh, throw them away, she
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  said, indifferently. Toss them over into the orchard, and sometime we'll burn
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  them when they get dry. Do you mind if I take them myself,
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  asked Henry hesitatingly. Oh no, said missus mc allister, cordially, have
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  you chickens? That will be fine. Henry was thankful that she went right
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  along without waiting for an answer. But in a way he did have chickens.
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  He thought, you must stop working now, She said, any time
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  you want to do something, there will be a place for you here.
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  She gave him a dollar bill and left the delighted boy with the piles of
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  precious little vegetables as long as Henry expected to return so soon, he hastily
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  so selected an orderly bunch of the largest of the carrots and the smallest of
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  the onions. He added a few of the miniature parsnips for good measure.
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  They looked like dolls vegetables. When Henry walked down the drive with his bouquet,
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  he would have seen a face at the window if he had looked up,
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  but he did not look up. He was too anxious to get to
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  the little old man's shop and order his meat. So it happened that Henry
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  walked in upon his little family at about two o'clock with all the materials for
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  a feast. The feast could not be made ready before night. Jess hastened
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  to explain to Benny, who was perfectly satisfied anyway, with bread and milk
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  in his pink cup. Your building's done, Benny informed his brother. I'd
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  build the lots of it. He really did, agreed, Violet, leading
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  the way to the sunny open spot a trifle behind the house. The building
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  was a fireplace with an enormous amount of labor. The children had made quite
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  a hollow at the base of a rock. This was lined completely with flat
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  stones. More flat stones had been set on end to keep out the wind.
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  On top of the stones lay the most wonderful collection of firewood that you
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  can imagine, all ready to light. There were chips and bits of crumpled
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  paper, pine cones, and dry twigs. Beside the big rock was a
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  wood pile. The children had apparently been working like beavers all the morning.
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  Jess had found a heavy wire in the dump and had fastened it between two
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  trees. On the wire, the kettle swung merrily. Fine fine, shouted
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  Henry when he saw it. I couldn't have done it so well myself,
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  and he honestly believed it. We have dinner at night here, observed Jess
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  impressively, what did you buy? When the girls saw the tiny vegetables,
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  they began with cries of delight to cut them from their stalks. With Henry's
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  knife and a broken paring knife, they scrubbed them in the wash tub,
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  filled the kettle half full of water from the well, and proceeded in great
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  excitement to cut the raw meat into cubes. When this had been dropped into
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  the kettle, Henry lighted the fire. It burned frantically, as if it
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  were trying to encourage the stew to do its best. Violet laid the tin
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  plate over the top for a cover, and they all stood by to hear
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  the first bubble. Soon, the savory stuff in the kettle began to boil
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  in good earnest. Watch sat down gravely near it and gave an approving sniff
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  at intervals. Keep it boiling, advised Henry as he departed again. When
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  I come home tonight, I'll bring some salt, and for Mercy's sake,
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  don't get on fire. Violet pointed silently at the big teapot. The little
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  girl had filled it with water in case of emergency. That's if Benny gets
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  on fire. She explained, or what ch Henry laughed and went on his
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  way happily enough. He wished he might share the delightful task of keeping the
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  fire going and sniffing the stew, But when he found out his afternoon's duties,
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  he changed his mind abruptly. Think you can clean up this garage,
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  asked doctor mc allister quizzically. When he appeared. Henry flashed a look around
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  the place and met the young man's eyes with a smile. It did need
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  cleaning rather badly. When the owner purred out in his high powered little car,
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  Henry drew a long breath and began in earnest. He opened all the
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  chests of drawers to begin with. Then he arranged all the tools in the
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  largest deep drawer, and with a long handled brush and a can of black
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  paint that was nearly dry, he labeled the drawer tools with neat lettering.
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  Another drawer he lettered nails, and had sorted its contents into a few of
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  the many boxes that were lying around. He folded up the robes he found,
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  swept off the shelves, and arranged the oil cans in orderly ranks.
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  Sorted out innumerable pairs of gloves and then swept the floor. He washed the
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  cement floor with the hose, and while waiting for it to dry, he
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  rinsed his brushes in turpentine. To tell the truth, Henry had found a
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  few things in the rubbish which he had stored in his own pocket. The
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  treasure consisted, in this case of a quantity of bent and rusty nails of
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  all sizes, and a few screws and nuts. When doctor mc allister returned
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  at six o'clock, he found Henry corking up the turpentine and arranging the brushes
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  on the shelf. My word, he exclaimed, staring at his garage with
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  his mouth open. Then he threw back his head and laughed till his mother
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  came down the walk to see what the matter was. Look at my gloves,
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  mother, he said, wiping his eyes. All made it up.
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  They never met each other before that, I I remember, missus mc allister
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  looked the garage over and observed the newly labeled drawers. Her son opened one
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  of them up and looked at his four hammers. My tack hammer, mother,
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  he said, your tack hammer, and two other hammers. That last
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  one I never expected to see again. If you can use it. You
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  may have it, my boy. Now. It is no exaggeration to say
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  that at that moment, if Henry had been asked what he wanted most of
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  anything in the world, he would have answered without any hesitation whatever a hammer.
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  He accepted it gratefully, hardly able to stand still, so anxious was
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  he to put it into use. On the hill he called home tomorrow's Sunday,
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  said the doctor. Shall I see you on Monday? Oh? Yes,
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  replied Henry, who had lost all track of the days. The cherries
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  need picking, said his new friend. We could use any number of cherry
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  pickers if they were as careful as you. He gave him an odd look,
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  could you, asked Henry eagerly. I'll surely come down with that.
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  He bade his friends good bye and started for home, richer by another dollar
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  two doughnuts. The cook had given him a pocket full of crooked nails and
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  the rest of the vegetables. When he reached his freight car home, a
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  delicious savor greeted him onions. He shouted, running up to the kettle.
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  The cook stood by and took off the cover and put in the salt.
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  It was absolutely the most tantalizing odor that Henry had ever smelled. Years afterward,
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  just tried to duplicate it with the same kettle, vegetables from the same
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  garden, and all stirred with the same spoon. But it didn't equal this
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  stew in flavor. A ladle as sure as I live, gasped Henry.
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  Jess had found a tin cup in the dump and fastened on a wooden handle
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  with a bit of wire. And when she ladled out four portions on four
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  plates of all sizes, some of them tin, and laid a spoon in
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  each. The children felt that the world held no greater riches. The tiny
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  onions floated around like pearls, the carrots melted in your mouth, and the
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  shreds of meat were as tender as possible from long boiling. A bit of
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  bread in one hand helped the feast along wonderfully. The little wanderers ate until
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  they could eat no more. I have time before dark to make Benny's cart.
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  Observed Henry biting a crisp, sweet carrot with my wheels. Asked Benny,
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  yes, sir, with your wheels, agreed Henry. Only when it's
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  done, you'll have to cart stones in it. Sure, said Benny with
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  satisfaction. Carts, stones are anything, we'll need it in making the dam,
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  explained Henry, for the benefit of his sisters. Tomorrow's Sunday, so
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  I shan't work down in the town. Do you think it's all right to
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  build the pool on Sunday, Jess? I certainly do, replied Jess,
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  with emphasis. We're just building the dam so we can keep clean. I
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  guess if Sundays you're only day off, it'll be all right. Henry's conscience
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  was set at rest as he began with great delight to hammer out his bent
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  nails. He and Benny ran about finding pieces of wood to fasten the wheels.
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  On. A visit to the dump was necessary at last in order to
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  find just the right piece of timber for a tongue. But before it was
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  too dark to see, Henry had pounded the last nail in place, and
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  trundled the flat cart back and forth just to see it go. The cart
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  seemed valuable enough to all of them to take it into the house for the
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  night, and Henry could not afford to laugh at Benny for going to sleep
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  with his hand upon one of his precious wheels, for he himself had tucked
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  his new hammer under his pillow end of chapter seven,