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02 - The Box Car Children - Gertrude Warner · Thrilling Adventures - Daily

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  Speaker 1: Chapter two. The second night, the roosters crowed and the
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  Speaker 1: hens clucked. The farmer's wife began to get breakfast, and
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  Speaker 1: the four children slept on. Dinner time came and went,
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  Speaker 1: and still they slept, for it must be remembered that
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  Speaker 1: they had been awake and walking during the whole night.
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  Speaker 1: In fact, it was nearly seven o'clock in the evening
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  Speaker 1: when they awoke. Luckily, all the others awoke before Benny.
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  Speaker 1: Can you hear me, Jess, said Henry, speaking very low
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  Speaker 1: through the wall of hay. Yes, answered Jess softly. Let's
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  Speaker 1: make one big room of our nests. No sooner said
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  Speaker 1: than done. The boy and girl worked quickly and quietly
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  Speaker 1: until they could see each other. They pressed the hay
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  Speaker 1: back firmly until they had made their way into Violet's
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  Speaker 1: little room, and then she, in turn groped until she
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  Speaker 1: found Benny. Hello, Little Cinnamon, whispered Violet playfully. And Benny
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  Speaker 1: had once made up his mind to laugh instead of cry.
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  Speaker 1: But laughing out loud was almost as bad. So Henry
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  Speaker 1: took his little brother on the hay beside him and
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  Speaker 1: talked to him seriously. You're old enough now, Benny, to
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  Speaker 1: understand what I say to you, now, listen when I
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  Speaker 1: tell you to keep still after this, that means you're
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  Speaker 1: to stop crying if you're crying, or stop laughing if
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  Speaker 1: you're laughing, and be just as still as you possibly can.
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  Speaker 1: If you don't mind, you will be in danger. Do
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  Speaker 1: you understand? Don't I have to mind? Jest and Violet too,
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  Speaker 1: asked Benny absolutely said Henry, you have to mind us, all,
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  Speaker 1: every one of us. Benny thought a minute. Can't I
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  Speaker 1: ask for what I want any more? He said, indeed
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  Speaker 1: you can, cried Jess and Henry together. What is it
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  Speaker 1: you want? I'm awful hungry, said Benny anxiously. Henry's brow cleared,
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  Speaker 1: Good old Benny, he said, we're just going to have supper,
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  Speaker 1: or is it breakfast? Jess drew out the fragrant loaf
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  Speaker 1: of bread. She cut it with Henry's jackknife into four quarters,
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  Speaker 1: and she and Henry took the two crusty ends themselves.
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  Speaker 1: That's because we have to be the strongest, and crusts
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  Speaker 1: make you strong, explained Jess. Violet looked at her older sister.
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  Speaker 1: She thought she knew why Jess took the crust, but
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  Speaker 1: she did not speak. We will stay here till dark,
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  Speaker 1: and then we'll go on with our journey, said Henry cheerfully.
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  Speaker 1: I want a drink, announced Benny. A drink you'll have,
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  Speaker 1: Henry promised, But you'll have to wait till it's really dark.
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  Speaker 1: If we should creep out to the brook now and
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  Speaker 1: any one saw us, he did not finish his sentence,
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  Speaker 1: but Benny realized that he must wait. He was much
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  Speaker 1: refreshed from his long sleep and felt very lively. Violet
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  Speaker 1: had all she could do to keep him amused, even
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  Speaker 1: with Cinnamon Bear and his five brothers. At last, Henry
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  Speaker 1: peeped out. It was after nine o'clock. There were lights
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  Speaker 1: in the farmhouse still, but they were all up stairs.
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  Speaker 1: We can at least get a drink now, he said,
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  Speaker 1: and the children crept quietly to the noisy little brook
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  Speaker 1: not far from the haystack cup said Benny. No, you'll
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  Speaker 1: have to lie down and drink with your mouth, Jess explained,
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  Speaker 1: and so they did. Never did water taste so cool
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  Speaker 1: and delicious as it did that night to the thirsty children.
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  Speaker 1: When they had finished drinking, they jumped the brook, ran
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  Speaker 1: quickly over the fields to the wall, and once more
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  Speaker 1: found themselves on the road. If we meet any one,
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  Speaker 1: said Jess, we must all crouch behind bushes until he
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  Speaker 1: has gone by. They walked along in the darkness with
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  Speaker 1: light hearts. They were no longer tired or hungry. Their
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  Speaker 1: one thought was to get away from their grandfather if possible.
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  Speaker 1: If we can find a big town, said Violet, won't
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  Speaker 1: it be better to stay then a little town? Why,
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  Speaker 1: asked Henry, puffing up the hill. Well, you see, there
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  Speaker 1: are so many people in the big town nobody will
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  Speaker 1: notice us, and in a little village everyone would be
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  Speaker 1: talking about us, finished Henry, admiringly, you've got brains, Violet.
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  Speaker 1: He had hardly said this when a wagon was heard
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  Speaker 1: behind them in the distance. It was coming from Middlesex.
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  Speaker 1: Without a word, the four children sank down behind the
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  Speaker 1: bushes like frightened rabbits. They could plainly hear their heart's beat.
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  Speaker 1: The horse trotted nearer, and then began to walk up
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  Speaker 1: the hill. If we hear nothing in townshend They heard
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  Speaker 1: a man say, we have plainly done our duty. It
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  Speaker 1: was the baker's voice. More than our duty, said the
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  Speaker 1: baker's wife. Tiring out a horse. With going a full
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  Speaker 1: day from morning until night, there was silence as the
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  Speaker 1: horse pulled the creaky wagon. At least we will go
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  Speaker 1: on to Townsend tonight, continued the baker, and tell them to
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  Speaker 1: watch out. We need not go to Intervale, for they
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  Speaker 1: never could walk so far. We are well rid of them,
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  Speaker 1: i should say, replied his wife. They may not have
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  Speaker 1: come this way. The milkman did not see them, did he.
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  Speaker 1: The baker's reply was lost, for the horse had reached
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  Speaker 1: the hill top where he broke into a canter. It
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  Speaker 1: was some minutes before the children dared to creep out
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  Speaker 1: of the bushes again. One thing is sure, said Henry,
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  Speaker 1: when he got his breath. We will not go to Townsend,
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  Speaker 1: and we will go to Intervale, said Jess, with a
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  Speaker 1: definite goal in mind. At last, the children set out
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  Speaker 1: again with a better spirit. They walked until two o'clock
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  Speaker 1: in the morning, stopping often this time to rest and
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  Speaker 1: to drink from the horse's watering troughs. And then they
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  Speaker 1: came upon a fork in the road with a white
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  Speaker 1: sign post shining in the moonlight. Townsend four miles, Intervale
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  Speaker 1: six miles, read Henry aloud. Any one feel able to
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  Speaker 1: walk six more miles? He grinned. No one had the
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  Speaker 1: least idea how far they had already walked. We'll go
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  Speaker 1: that way at least, said Jess. Finally that we will,
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  Speaker 1: agreed Henry, picking up his brother for a change and
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  Speaker 1: carrying him pig back, Violet went ahead. The new road
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  Speaker 1: was a pleasant, woody one, with grass growing in the middle.
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  Speaker 1: The children could not see the grass, but they could
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  Speaker 1: feel it as they walked. Not many people passed this way,
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  Speaker 1: I guess, remarked Violet. Just then she caught her toe
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  Speaker 1: in something and almost fell, but Jess caught her. The
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  Speaker 1: two girls stooped down to examine the abstruction. Hey, said Jess, Hey,
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  Speaker 1: repeated Violet, Hey said, Henry, coming up, What did you say?
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  Speaker 1: It must have fallen off somebody's load, said Jess. We'll
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  Speaker 1: take it with us. Henry decided wisely, load on all
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  Speaker 1: you can carry, Jess for benny, thought Violet to herself.
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  Speaker 1: So the odd little party trudged on for nearly three hours,
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  Speaker 1: laden with hay, until they found that the road ended
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  Speaker 1: in a cart path through the woods. Oh, dear, exclaimed Jess,
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  Speaker 1: almost ready to cry with disappointment. What's the matter, demanded
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  Speaker 1: Henry in astonishment. Isn't the woods a good place to sleep.
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  Speaker 1: We can't sleep in the road. You know, it does
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  Speaker 1: seem nice and far away from people, admitted Jess. And
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  Speaker 1: it's almost morning. As they stood still at the entrance
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  Speaker 1: to the woods, they heard the rumble of a train.
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  Speaker 1: It roared down the valley at a great rate and
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  Speaker 1: passed them on the other side of the woods, thundering
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  Speaker 1: along toward the city. Never mind the train, either, remarked Henry.
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  Speaker 1: It isn't so awfully near, and even if it were,
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  Speaker 1: it couldn't see us. He set his brother down and
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  Speaker 1: peered into the woods. It was very warm, Listen, said Benny. Listen,
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  Speaker 1: echoed Violet. More water, Benny cried, catching his big brother
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  Speaker 1: by the hand. It is only another brook, said Henry,
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  Speaker 1: with a thankful heart. He wants a drink. The trickle
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  Speaker 1: of water sounded very pleasant to all the children as
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  Speaker 1: they lay down once more to drink. Benny was too
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  Speaker 1: sleepy to eat. Jess quickly found a dry spot thick
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  Speaker 1: with moss between two stones. Upon this moss, the three
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  Speaker 1: older children spread the hay in the shape of an
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  Speaker 1: oval bed. Benny tumbled into it with a great sigh
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  Speaker 1: of satisfaction, while his sisters tucked the hay around him,
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  Speaker 1: pine needles up here, Jess called Henry from the slope.
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  Speaker 1: Each of them quickly scraped together a fragrant pile for
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  Speaker 1: a pillow, and once more lay down to sleep with
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  Speaker 1: hardly a thought of fear. I only hope we won't
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  Speaker 1: have a thunder storm, said Jess to herself, as she
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  Speaker 1: shut her tired eyes, and she did not open them
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  Speaker 1: for a long time, although the dark gray clouds piled
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  Speaker 1: higher and more thickly over the sleeping children. End of
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  Speaker 1: Chapter two,