CHAPTER V
SAM IS WORRIED
While fathers, mothers, and other relatives were gathering up their ownchildren, or children of whom they had charge, to see that they weresafely loaded into the two big trucks to go home from the picnic, theBobbsey twins--at least Bert and Nan--were searching for their father'scoat. Flossie and Freddie were too small to pay much attention toanything of this sort. The smaller twins were talking about themerry-go-round and starting over again the dispute as to who should rideon the wooden lion.
"Are you sure you left your coat hanging on the tree limb?" asked Mrs.Bobbsey.
"I'm certain of it," her husband answered. "And this old coat never wasmine--I wouldn't own it!"
He dropped to the ground the ragged garment that had been found lyingbeneath the tree.
"I thought maybe you had hung your coat over by the ice cream shed,"went on Mrs. Bobbsey. "You may have done that and have forgotten aboutit."
"No, I didn't do that," said the father of the Bobbsey twins. "Iremember hanging my coat on the tree, for I recall noticing what aregular hook, like one on our rack at home, a broken piece of the branchmade. My coat was here. But it's gone now, and this old one is left inplace of it."
There was no question about that. Search as Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey and thechildren did, over the picnic grounds, the lumberman's coat, with moneyin one pocket and papers in another, was gone.
"Who do you s'pose could have taken it?" asked Nan, as her father lookedabout him with a puzzled air.
"I don't know," he answered, "unless----"
"Maybe it was tramps!" interrupted Bert.
"There weren't any tramps here on our picnic grounds," said Mrs.Bobbsey. "Some of the drivers of the merry-go-round trucks looked liketramps, but they didn't get off their seats, did they?"
"Not that I noticed," her husband answered. "Well, there's no uselooking farther. My coat is gone--stolen I'm afraid. This old one isleft in its place. I haven't any use for this," and he kicked it to oneside. "Never mind. It isn't cold. I can ride home without a coat."
"There's a lap robe in the auto," Mrs. Bobbsey said. "You can wrap thatabout you if you get chilly on the way home."
"Yes," agreed Mr. Bobbsey, "I can do that. Trot along, Bobbsey twins.Get into your picnic truck, and we'll see who gets home first."
"Like Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf," laughed Flossie.
While Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey walked over to where Mr. Bobbsey had left therunabout auto in which he and his wife had come to the picnic grounds,Bert, Nan, and the other children took their places in the big truck.
"Merrily we roll along--roll along--roll along!"
Some one started that song as the trucks rumbled out of the picnicgrove. On account of the broken bridge a different road home had to betaken; a longer one. Having a lighter car than the trucks, Mr. Bobbseyand his wife could go faster than the loads of merry-makers, and thetwins waved good-by to their parents, who were soon lost to sight.
"I guess they'll get home first," said Nan to Bert.
"I guess so--I Bob Guess so!" he added, making a joke on the name of thestrange lad who had worked the steam organ of the merry-go-round.
"I feel sorry for that boy," said Nan. "Mr. Blipper was so cross andmean to him."
"Yes, he was cross," agreed Bert. "I hope daddy finds his coat," headded. "It's funny to have a coat stolen at a Sunday school picnic."
"Maybe somebody took it by mistake," suggested his sister.
"I don't believe they would, and leave an old ragged coat in place of agood one," Bert remarked.
"Maybe not," said Nan.
The picnic party was rather more quiet on the journey home than it hadbeen on the way to Pine Grove. The reason was that the children weretired, and some of them sleepy. They sang for a while after leaving thegrove, Bert and Nan starting many melodies in which the others joined.
But finally the songs died away, and about the only noise that was heardwas the rumble of the big trucks.
"Do we have to cross any bridges?" asked Mrs. Morris, of the driver ofthe auto in which she rode with the Bobbsey twins.
"One bridge--yes, lady," was the answer.
"Dear me! I hope it doesn't break down as the white one did to-day,"exclaimed the nervous little lady.
"No danger. It's a big iron one," said the driver.
"I'm glad of that," went on Mrs. Morris. "I'm always worried when Icross a bridge."
But there were no more accidents. The trucks took a little longerreturning to Lakeport than they had making the trip earlier in the day,for they had to go a roundabout way. But finally the outskirts of thetown were reached, and the children began getting off as they nearedtheir homes.
"Good-by! Good-by!" they called one to another.
Finally the home of the Bobbsey twins came in sight in the early summerevening.
"Good-by, Bert and Nan!" called their chums.
"Good-by, Flossie and Freddie!"
"Good-by! Good-by!" echoed the Bobbsey twins.
"Dad is home ahead of us," remarked Bert to Nan, as they went up thesteps.
"How do you know?" asked Nan.
"Because I see the runabout there," and Bert pointed toward the garage."Seems to be something wrong," Bert went on. "Mother is there and so isSam."
"Let's go see what it is," suggested Nan, as Dinah came to the door,calling:
"Am mah honey lambs safe an' sound?"
"Yes, Dinah!" said Freddie. "And I'm hungry, too!"
"Ah spects yo' is, honey! Ah spects yo' is!" laughed the jolly, fatcook. "Come right in yeah an' hab some cake!"
"I'm going to ride on a lion, I am!" stated Flossie.
"Good lan', chile! A lion!" exclaimed Dinah, raising her hands insurprise.
"Yep! A lion!"
"Oh, mah honey lamb! Don't yo' do no sich a thing!" cried Dinah. "A liondone eat yo' laigs off!"
"'Tisn't a real lion. I mean a wooden lion on a merry-go-round like wesaw to-day," Flossie explained.
"Oh, a wooden lion!" and Dinah laughed. "Well, come in yeah, honeylambs, an' I'll feed yo'. Ah'll make beliebe yo' all is hungry lions,an' Ah'll feed yo'!"
And while Flossie and Freddie went into the house with Dinah, Bert andNan hurried toward the garage, where they saw their father and mothertalking with Sam Johnson.
"I's done suah I put dat lap robe in de auto," said Dinah's husband.
"I thought you did, Sam," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "Yet when Mr. Bobbseylooked for it, to put around him, as he had no coat, the robe was gone."
"Are you sure it isn't in the garage, Sam?" asked Mr. Bobbsey.
"Sartin suah, sah! I done put it in de little auto when yo' all startedoff, 'case I reckoned it'd be dusty."
"Well, the lap robe is gone like my coat," said Mr. Bobbsey. "Too bad,for it was a new one."
"It suah am too bad!" declared Sam. "Yo' all has me worried!"
"Well, you don't need to worry, Sam," said Mrs. Bobbsey kindly. "Itisn't your fault. I know you put the robe in the auto, for I saw it whenwe started. But when I wanted it to wrap around Mr. Bobbsey, after hiscoat was taken, and it was cool riding home, the robe was gone."
"Stolen, Mother, do you think?" asked Nan.
"I wouldn't say that. It may have fallen out on the way."
"Well, that's two things gone the same day," said Mr. Bobbsey, who wasstill in his shirt sleeves, as he had come from the picnic. "My coat andthe lap robe. I guess that Blipper's merry-go-round, which is to show atthe Bolton County Fair, didn't bring me any good luck."
Bert and Nan were wondering if Bob Guess or the red-faced man knewanything of their father's coat and the missing lap robe when from thekitchen Dinah's voice excitedly called:
"Come heah! Come heah if yo' please, Mr. Bobbsey! Suffin's done gone an'happened!"
"Oh, dear!" cried Mrs. Bobbsey. "What's the matter now?"