CHAPTER II
A SUDDEN STOP
"I don't remember my father very well," said Tommy Todd. "I was reallittle when he went away. That was just after my mother died. Mygrandmother took care of me. I just remember a big man with black hairand whiskers, taking me up in his arms, and kissing me good-bye. Thatwas my father, my grandmother told me afterward."
"What made him go away from you?" asked Flossie. "Didn't he like to stayat home?"
"I guess maybe he did," said Tommy. "But he couldn't stay. He was a seacaptain on a ship, you know."
"Of course!" cried Freddie. "Don't you know, Flossie? A sea captainnever stays at home, only a little while. He has to go off to steer theship across the ocean. That's what I'm going to do."
"I don't want you to," returned Flossie, as she nestled up closer to herbrother. "I want you to stay with me. If you have to go so far off to bea sea captain couldn't you be something else and stay at home? Couldn'tyou be a trolley-car conductor?"
"Well, maybe I could," said Freddie slowly. "But I'd rather be a seacaptain. Go on, Tommy. Tell us about your father."
"Well, I don't know much," went on Tommy Todd. "I don't remember him sovery well, you know. Then my grandmother and I lived alone. It was in abetter house than we have now, and we had more things to eat. I neverget enough now when I'm home, though when I was on the fresh air farm Ihad lots," and, sighing, Tommy seemed sad.
"My father used to write letters to my grandmother--she is his mother,"he explained. "When I got so I could understand, my grandmother readthem to me. My father wrote about his ship, and how he sailed away upwhere the whales are. Sometimes he would send us money in the letters,and then grandma would make a little party for me.
"But after a while no more letters came. My grandmother used to ask thepostman every day if he didn't have a letter for her from my father, butthere wasn't any. Then there was a piece in the paper about a ship thatwas wrecked. It was my father's ship."
"What's wrecked?" asked Flossie.
"It means the ship is all smashed to pieces; doesn't it?" asked Freddieof Tommy.
"That's it; yes. My father's ship was in a storm and was smashed on therocks. Everybody on it, and my father too, was drowned in the ocean, thepaper said. That's why I like the country better than the ocean."
"I used to like the ocean," said Flossie slowly. "We go down to OceanCliff sometimes, where Uncle William and Aunt Emily and Cousin Dorothylive. But I don't like the ocean so much now, if it made your fatherdrown."
"Oh, well, there have to be shipwrecks I s'pose," remarked Tommy. "But,of course, it was awful hard to lose my father." He turned his head awayand seemed to be looking out of the window. Then he went on:
"After grandmother read that in the paper about my father's ship sinkingshe cried, and I cried too. Then she wrote some letters to the companythat owned the ship. She thought maybe the papers were wrong, about theship sinking, but when the answers came back they said the same thing.The men who owned the ship which my father was captain of, said thevessel was lost and no one was saved. No more letters came from myfather, and no more money. Then grandmother and I had to move away fromthe house where we were living, and had to go to a little house down bythe dumps. It isn't nice there."
"Does your grandma have any money now?" asked Flossie.
"A little. She sews and I run errands for the groceryman after school,and earn a little. But it isn't much. I was glad when the fresh airfolks took me to the farm. I had lots to eat, and my grandmother hadmore too, for she didn't have to feed me. She is going to the fresh airfarm some day, maybe."
"That will be nice," said Flossie. "We're going to Uncle Dan's farmagain next year, maybe, and perhaps your grandma can come there."
"I don't believe so," returned Tommie. "But anyhow I had fun, and Iweigh two pounds more than 'fore I went away, and I can run errandsfaster now for Mr. Fitch."
"Why, he's our grocery man!" cried Freddie. "Do you work for him,Tommy?"
"Sometimes, and sometimes I work for Mr. Schmidt, a butcher. But I don'tearn much. When I get through school I'll work all the while, and earnlots of money. Then I'm going to hire a ship and go to look for myfather."
"I thought you said he was drowned in the ocean!" exclaimed Flossie.
"Well, maybe he is. But sometimes shipwrecked people get picked up byother vessels and carried a long way off. And sometimes they get on anisland and have to stay a long time before they are taken off. Maybethat happened to my father."
"Oh, maybe it did!" cried Freddie. "That would be great! Just likeRobinson Crusoe, Flossie! Don't you remember?"
"Yes, mother read us that story. I hope your father is on RobinsonCrusoe's island," she whispered to Tommy.
"I'll tell you what we'll do," said Freddie to the new boy. "When I gethome, I'll take all the money in my bank, and help you buy a ship. Thenwe'll both go off together, looking for the desert island where yourfather is; will you?"
"Yes," said Tommy, "I will, and thank you."
"I'm coming, too," said Flossie.
"No. Girls can't be on a ship!" said Freddie.
"Yes they can too! Can't they, Tommy?"
"Well, my mother was once on the ship with my father, I've heard mygrandma say."
"There, see!" cried Flossie. "Of course I'm coming! I'll do the cookingfor you boys."
"Oh, well, if you want to cook of course that's different," saidFreddie, slowly, as he thought about it.
"I'm going to ask my father how much I got saved up," he went on toTommy. "And how much it costs to buy a ship. He'll know for he sellslumber. You wait here and I'll ask him."
Freddie slipped from the seat into the aisle of the car. Flossie stayedto talk to Tommy. Bert and Nan were looking at a magazine which Mrs.Bobbsey had bought for them, and she and her husband were still talkingto the fresh air lady. Scattered about the car, the fresh air childrenwere talking and laughing, telling each other of the good times they hadhad in the country. All of them were sorry to go back to the city again.
"Papa," began Freddie, as he reached the seat where Mr. and Mrs. Bobbseysat, "how much money have I saved up? And how much does a ship cost?'Cause Tommy Todd and I are going off to look for his father who is loston a desert island, and we want to bring him home. Does it take muchmoney?"
Mr. Bobbsey looked at his little boy, wondering what he meant, and hewas just going to answer him, and say it took much more money thanFreddie had saved to buy a ship, when, all at once, the train came tosuch a sudden stop that Freddie was nearly thrown off his feet. Hisfather caught him just in time.
"Oh!" cried Mrs. Bobbsey. "I hope there has been no accident!"
"If dey is I'se gwine t' git out quick!" cried Dinah. "Come on,chilluns. I'se got de cat!" and she started to run for the door,carrying the basket holding Snoop.
"Be quiet," said Mr. Bobbsey. "Nothing much seems to have happened. Wedidn't hit anything, anyhow."
Some of the fresh air children were excited, and the two ladies incharge hurried here and there quieting them.
Bert Bobbsey, who was with his sister Nan, looked out a window.
"Oh, see!" he cried. "A lot of men with guns are standing along thetrack. They stopped the train, I guess. They must be robbers! I'm goingto hide my money!"
Several women heard Bert speak of robbers, and they screamed.
"Bert, don't be foolish!" said Mr. Bobbsey. "I dare say it isn'tanything. I'll go out and see what it means."
"I'll come with you," said a man in the seat behind Mr. Bobbsey. Severalother passengers also left the train. And while they are out seeking thecause of the sudden stop I'll tell my new readers something about theBobbsey twins, so that they may feel better acquainted with them.
Those of you who have read the other books in this series, beginningwith the first, "The Bobbsey Twins," know enough about the childrenalready. But others do not.
There were two sets of Bobbsey twins. Bert and Nan were about ten yearsold. Both were tall and slim, with dark hair and eyes. Flo
ssie andFreddie, who were about five years of age, were short and fat, and hadlight hair and blue eyes.
The Bobbseys lived in an Eastern city called Lakeport, near Lake Metoka,on the shore of which Mr. Bobbsey had a large lumber yard. Once this hadcaught fire, and Freddie had thought he could put the blaze out with hislittle toy fire engine. Ever since then Mr. Bobbsey had called thelittle chap "fireman."
Dinah Johnson was the Bobbsey's cook. She had been with them many years.And Sam, her husband, worked around the house, carrying out ashes,cutting the grass, and such things as that.
Besides these, the Bobbsey family consisted of Snap, the big dog whoonce had been in a circus and could do tricks, and Snoop, the black cat.
These pets were taken along wherever the Bobbsey twins went on theirSummer vacations. For the Bobbseys used to spend each Summer either inthe mountains or at the seashore. The second book tells about the goodtime they had in the country while the third one tells of theiradventures at the shore.
"The Bobbsey Twins at School," is the name of the fourth book, and inthat I had the pleasure of telling you the many good times they hadthere. Later on they went to "Snow Lodge" and helped solve a mystery,while on the houseboat, _Bluebird_, where they spent one vacation, theyfound a "stowaway," and, if you want to know what that is, I advise youto read the book.
"The Bobbsey Twins at Meadow Brook," is the name of the book just beforethis present one. On the farm of Uncle Daniel Bobbsey the twins had hada most glorious time, and they were on their way home in the train whenthe fresh air children got aboard, and Tommy Todd told the story abouthis lost father. Then had come the sudden stop, and Bert had seen themen with guns outside the train.
"I tell you they _are_ robbers, Nan," Bert whispered to his sister."Look, one of 'em has a mask on his face."
"That's so," agreed Nan. "Oh, I wonder what it is!"
"Don't be afraid!" exclaimed Bert. "I guess they won't come in this car.Father won't let them."
By this time Flossie and Freddie had also seen the masked men with theirguns standing along the track, and Freddie cried:
"Oh, look! It's just like Hallowe'en. They've got false faces on!"
Many in the car laughed at this.