CHAPTER XV
GEORGE WATSON'S TRICK
The day of the party for Splash, the dog, came at last, though BunnyBrown and his sister Sue were so anxious for the time to arrive that itseemed very long indeed. But everything comes if you wait long enough,so they say, and finally the time for the party came.
"Oh, what a fine day!" cried Bunny, as he ran to the window on themorning of the day of the party. "The sun is shining, Sue!"
"That's good," answered his sister from her room. "A party is no fun inthe rain."
"And there's wind enough to fly the kites," went on Bunny. He and someof his little boy friends had talked over what they would do at theparty.
"The girls will want to play with their dolls," said Harry Bentley.
"Well, we don't want to do that," observed Charlie Star. "What can wedo?"
"We can make kites, and fly 'em," Bunny said, and so this was what heand the boys at the party would do while the girls were playing withtheir dolls. So Bunny was now glad to notice, as he looked from thewindow, that the wind was blowing; not too hard, but enough to flykites.
The two children were soon dressed, and down at the breakfast table. Butthey did not eat as much as usual, and Bunny left more than half hisoatmeal in his dish.
"Why, Bunny! What is the matter?" asked his mother.
"I guess they are thinking so much about the party that they can't eatas they ought," Aunt Lu said.
"Oh, but that isn't right!" Mother Brown exclaimed. "Come, Bunny--Sue,eat a nice breakfast, and then you may fix up the lawn in any way youlike for your party."
"I've a big bow for Splash's neck," said Sue.
"And I'm going to make a harness, and hitch him up to the express wagon,so he can pull us around the yard," remarked Bunny.
"Now please eat your breakfast!" begged their mother, and Bunny and Suedid their best. But it was hard work not to talk or think about theirparty.
Aunt Lu helped them get the lawn in readiness. All about the Brown housewas a big grass plot, and in the back were a number of shade trees. Thetables, which were made from boxes, with boards across the top, were tobe set out there.
There were to be sandwiches, cake, lemonade and ice cream, with AuntLu's lovely jam and jelly tarts besides.
"It was the tarts that made us think about the party, so of course wewant them," announced Sue.
Splash, the dog, seemed quite proud of the big bow that Sue tied on hisneck, to make him look pretty. But Splash did not care so much for theharness that Bunny made. The little boy took some ropes and straps, andtied them about the dog's neck and front legs. Then some ends of theropes were made fast to the little express wagon, and Bunny got in it,calling to Splash to "giddap!" That was the way Grandpa Brown made hishorses go, and so, of course, a dog ought to go when you said that tohim.
Splash went all right, but just as when Bunny had hitched him to theboat, that was stuck on the island, the harness was not strong enough,and it broke, so that Splash ran off, with the straps and ropes danglingfrom him.
"I guess I'm too heavy for him to pull," said Bunny, as he got out ofthe wagon.
"You could have one of my dolls to ride in the wagon," offered Sue."Take an old one, and I don't care if she falls out. She wouldn't be tooheavy for Splash to pull."
"I'll try it," Bunny said.
Once again he tied the ropes about Splash, and the little express wagon,and this time, when Bunny walked along beside the dog, Splash really didpull the wagon along, giving the doll a ride.
But Bunny did not think this was much fun. He wanted to ride in thewagon himself.
"I'm going to make a big, strong harness," he said, and off he went tolook for more rope.
"Well, I'm going to get the tables ready," Sue said. "I'm going to picksome flowers for them."
Aunt Lu, with the help of the cook, had made the wooden tables, whichwere boards over boxes. White cloths were now spread on them, for it wasnearly time for the party. The things to eat would not be set out untilthe party guests came.
Sue loved flowers, and she picked them from the fields and woodswhenever she saw any to gather. Not far from the Brown home, in fact inthe next lot to the lawn, was a field in which grew daisies, buttercups,clover and other wild flowers.
Sue picked many of these, and then she and Aunt Lu put them in pitchersand vases of water, and set them on the tables. There were two tables,one for the girls and one for the boys.
Bunny had asked that this be done.
"'Cause the girls will bring their dolls to the table," he said, "and wefellows don't want to eat with a lot of dolls."
"Oh, you funny boy!" laughed his mother, but she had let him have hisway. So Aunt Lu and Sue had two tables to decorate with flowers.
While they were doing this Bunny was trying to make another harness forSplash, so the dog could pull the express wagon with the little boy init. But Bunny did not have very good luck, or else Splash pulled toostrongly, for one harness after another broke, until Bunny gave up.
"I'll save my money and buy a harness at the store," he said.
"There, I think we have flowers enough, Sue!" exclaimed her aunt, as shelooked at the tables. Indeed they were very pretty, and they would lookeven better when the dishes, and the good things to eat, were put on.
"Isn't it 'most time?" asked Bunny, after a bit. "I'm getting hungry."
"Oh, you must wait for the company," his mother told him. "They willsoon be here."
And, a little later, Sadie West and Helen Newton came. When they saw howpretty the flowers looked on the table they exclaimed:
"Oh, how nice!"
"Where is Splash?" asked Sadie. "I've brought him a bone," and so shehad, all wrapped in waxed paper from the inside of a cracker package,and on the bone, just as she had promised, was a pink ribbon.
"Here, Splash! Splash!" called Bunny, who had given up trying to makehis pet pull the express wagon.
The dog came running up from the far end of the yard.
"See what Sadie has brought for your party!" laughed Bunny.
Splash took the bone, but the ends of the ribbon got up his nose and hesneezed in the queerest way, which made the children laugh.
"I guess Splash doesn't like too much style," said Sadie, who was olderthan Bunny and Sue.
"I wonder how he'll like my dog-biscuit," remarked Helen Newton, as sheunwrapped it from the paper. "I put a red bow on it. Do you like redbetter than pink, Splash?"
The dog, who was gnawing the bone Sadie had brought him, looked up andwagged his tail. He must have thought it was fine to have so many goodthings to eat, even though he did not understand about the party. Hesniffed at the dog-biscuit, which is a sort of cake, with ground-upmeat, and other good things in it that dogs like. Then Splash would gnawa little on the bone, and, afterward, nibble at the hard biscuit.
"Well, Splash is enjoying himself anyhow," said Aunt Lu, as she came outto begin setting the tables.
Soon after this a number of the boys and girls came. There were tengirls and six boys, though ten boys had been invited. But though all thegirls came to the party given for Splash, all the boys did not. It oftenis that way at parties; isn't it? More girls than boys. But the boysdon't know what fun they sometimes miss.
"Play some games, children," said Mrs. Brown. "Run about and play, andthen it will be time to eat. Aunt Lu and I will put on the cake, andother goodies."
"Let's play tag!" said Sue.
"And after that hide-and-go-to-seek," Bunny called.
"And puss-in-the-corner," added Sadie West.
One after the other they played the games, running about on the grassylawn, and having great fun. Splash dug a hole and hid his bone, aftergnawing on it as long as he cared to. He ate all the dog-biscuit, andthen Bunny got a ball which Splash would run after when it was thrown.
Bunny and his boy friends played the ball game with the dog, while thegirls, after having tired themselves with the lively games, like tag,brought out their dolls and dressed and undressed th
em.
"When are we going to fly the kites?" asked Charlie Star.
"We can do it now," Bunny answered.
Each boy had made himself a kite, which he brought with him. Bunny gothis from the house, and, going to an open place, where the trees wouldnot catch the strings, the boys put up their air-toys.
The wind was good, as Bunny had said, and soon there were six kitesfloating in the air. That is there were six for a time, and then Bunny'sstring broke, and away flew his kite.
"Oh, dear!" he cried.
"That's too bad!" exclaimed Charlie Star. "Come on, boys, we'll hauldown our kites and chase after Bunny's!"
They were just going to do this when Mrs. Brown came out to say that itwas time to eat.
"You can look for the kite, afterward," she said; "if you go now all theice cream may melt, as we have taken it out of the freezer."
Of course the boys did not want anything like that to happen, so theysaid they would wait. Down they sat at the tables, the boys at theirsand the girls at the one made ready for them. Aunt Lu, Mrs. Brown andthe cook passed the good things, and, for a time, there was not muchtalking done. The children were too busy eating.
"Don't forget Aunt Lu's jam and jelly tarts!" called out Bunny. "They'refine!"
And when they had been passed around, all the guests at the party saidBunny was right, and that the tarts were just fine!
"I'm so glad you like them," said Aunt Lu, very much pleased.
Bunny wanted to give a Punch and Judy show, with Sue, after the meal wasover. He said he could wear the big, hollow lobster claw, and makehimself look very funny.
"But I think I wouldn't--not now," his mother remarked. "You would haveto build a little booth, or place for you and Sue to get inside of, andwe haven't time for that. Just play some easy games."
"All right," agreed Bunny.
Aunt Lu had all the children sit in a ring on the grass while she toldthem a story. And it was just after the story was finished that GeorgeWatson played his trick.
George had not been invited to the party, because he was too old, Mrs.Brown said.
Perhaps this had made George rather angry. At any rate, when thechildren were thanking Aunt Lu for the nice story she had told them,there was suddenly tossed over the fence, right into the midst of them,a paste-board shoe box. It fell near Bunny's feet, and he jumped back,he was so startled.
"Who threw that?" Bunny asked.
"George Watson did," said Charlie Star. "I saw him walk up along thefence, and throw it over."
"What is it?" asked Sue.
"Maybe it's a present for Splash," suggested Sadie.
"George Watson would rather pull Splash's tail, than give him apresent," declared Bunny. And indeed George often played rather meantricks on animals, and little children.
"Open the box, and see what's in it," suggested Helen Newton.
"I'll open it," offered Bunny.
The cover of the box was tied on, but Bunny slipped off the string. Ashe lifted the cover, Sue, who stood behind her brother, looking over hisshoulder, exclaimed:
"Oh, it's alive! It's alive! Look out, Bunny! There's something alive inthat box, and it might bite you!"