CHAPTER VI
FREDDIE'S FIRE ENGINE
"Papa, when can we go sailing in the houseboat?"
"May I take my fire engine along?"
"Where did you leave that boy?"
"Did he get a ride to Lemby?"
"Thus Bert, Freddie, Flossie and Nan questioned Mr. Bobbsey when hecame home to supper after the visit to the Bluebird.
"My! My!" exclaimed the lumber merchant, as he stopped in the hall tohang up his hat. "What a lot of talk all at once! Let me see--whosequestion shall I answer first?"
"Did you manage to get that poor boy a ride?" asked Mrs. Bobbsey.
It was the first time she had had a chance to ask her question.
"Answer mamma first," said Bert politely. "The rest of us can wait."
Mr. Bobbsey gave his older son a pleased look, and then replied:
"Yes, I found that one of our lumber wagons was going within half amile of the village of Lemby, so I let the boy ride with the driver.It will give him a good lift."
"Indeed it will," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "I felt so sorry for him. I wishI could help him!"
"I hope the horses don't run away," spoke Freddie with such a seriousair that they all laughed.
"I guess they won't run away, little fat fireman!" said Mr. Bobbsey,as he caught Freddie up in his arms. "They are good, steady horses,and they had a pretty heavy load to drag. So Will won't be in anydanger. But I hope supper is ready. I'm hungry!"
"But you didn't answer my question," said Nan. "When are we going inthe houseboat, father?"
"Oh, whenever school ends and your mother is ready," was the answer."I should say in about two weeks."
"Good!" cried Bert. "And are we going to take Snap along?" he asked,as he caught sight of the trick dog outside, standing on his hindlegs, while Sam Johnson held up a bone for him. Snap was "begging" forhis supper, as he often did.
"Yes, I think we can find room for Snap on board," the lumber mansaid.
"What about our cat, Snoop?" asked Flossie. "I want to take Snoopalong. Wouldn't you like to go in a boat, Snoop?" and Flossie pickedthe fat cat up in her arms. Snoop was quite an armful now. "Don't youwant to go, Snoop?"
"Meow!" was all Snoop said, and that might have meant anything at all.
"Supper first," suggested Mr. Bobbsey, "and after that we'll talkabout the boat."
The meal was a merry one, and there was much talk and laughter. AsDinah brought on one good thing to eat after another, Mrs. Bobbseysaid:
"I hope every one has as nice a supper as we have."
"Were you thinking of any one in particular?" asked her husband.
"Yes, of that poor boy who came on the boat to-day," she answered. "Iwonder if he has a good supper after his long walk this morning?"
"Well, they say Mr. Hardee doesn't feed his help any too well," spokeMr. Bobbsey. "But now let's talk about our houseboat trip."
"Oh, what fun we'll have!" cried Freddie and Flossie, clapping theirchubby hands.
"Did you plan a trip?" Mrs. Bobbsey wanted to know.
"Well, partly, yes. I thought we could go down Lake Metoka to LembyCreek. We haven't been down that direction in some time."
"Lemby Creek!" exclaimed Bert. "Isn't that the name of the place wherethat boy came from?" "Well, Lemby is a town on Lemby Creek," spoke hisfather. "Will Watson works on Mr. Hardee's farm, and that is justoutside the village. Lemby Creek is about ten miles long, and by goingalong that we can get into Lake Romano. That is a large body of water,and there is a waterfall at the farther end."
"A waterfall!" cried Freddie. "Oh, goodie! Can we go see it, papa?"
"I guess so," said Mr. Bobbsey. "We'll make this a long trip. It willtake over a month, but of course we won't travel every day. Some dayswe'll just anchor the boat in a shady place, and---"
"Fish!" interrupted Bert.
"Yes, fish, or go in swimming--anything to have a good time," Mr.Bobbsey said.
"Oh, won't we have fun!" cried Freddie again. "We'll take Snoop andSnap along, and they'll like it, too."
"I guess Snap will, because he's fond of the water," said Bert, with alaugh. "But Snoop doesn't care for it."
"Snoop can sleep on deck in the sun," said Nan. "She'll like that. Iwish I could ask one of my girl friends to come along with us for thehouseboat trip. We have so many nice rooms on the Bluebird it seems apity not to use them."
"And I'd like one of my boy chums, too," spoke Bert. Flossie andFreddie were busy trying to make Snoop do one of the tricks the circuslady had taught her. But Snoop wanted to go out in the kitchen, andhave Dinah give her some supper.
"Company, eh?" exclaimed Mr. Bobbsey, slowly. "Well, I don't know. Wehave plenty of room on the Bluebird. I wonder how it would do to askHarry and Dorothy to come with us?" he inquired of his wife.
"Oh, Cousin Harry!" cried Bert. "That would be fine!"
"And Cousin Dorothy!" added Nan. "She and I could have lovely timestogether. Do ask her, mother!"
"We might ask the cousins," agreed Mrs. Bobbsey. "They haven't been tovisit us in some time, and I think both Harry and Dorothy would enjoythe trip."
Harry and Dorothy, as I have told you, were cousins of the Bobbseys.Harry lived at Meadow Brook, in the country, and Dorothy at OceanCliff, near the sea.
"I'll write to-morrow," said Mrs. Bobbsey, "and find out if they cango with us. Now have we anything else to settle about our trip?"
"What about something to eat?" asked Freddie, in such a funny, anxiousvoice, that all the others laughed.
"My goodness, little fat fireman!" exclaimed his father. "Here youhave just finished your supper, and you are already hungry again."
"Oh, I'm not hungry now," explained Freddie, "but I will be on theboat."
"Don't worry," said his mother. "Dinah is coming with us."
"Oh, then it will be all right," went on the little twin, with acontented sigh. "Come on, Flossie," he called to his small sister, "Iknow how we can have some fun. 'Scuse me," he murmured, as he and theother little twin slipped from their chairs.
Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey, with Nan and Bert, remained at the table forsome time longer, talking about the coming trip in the Bluebird. AsMr. Bobbsey had said, it would be about two weeks, yet, before theycould start. There were two weeks more of school, but the classeswould close earlier than usual that summer, because an addition was tobe built to the school building, and the men wanted to get to work onit, to have it finished in time for school early in September.
"So we'll get an extra week or so of vacation," explained Bert. "Andwe'll spend it all on the houseboat."
"Well, perhaps not all of it," said Mr. Bobbsey. "I may not be able tostay with you all that while. But we'll spend a month or two on theBluebird."
"What will we do the rest of vacation?" asked Bert.
"Oh, perhaps we'll go to the mountains, or some place like that," hismother said with a smile. "It isn't settled yet."
"Is it a high waterfall at Lake Romano?" asked Nan. "I just lovethem."
"Yes, it's a pretty high one," her father said. "I haven't been toLake Romano in some years, but I remember it as a very beautifulplace."
"I'm sure we shall enjoy it," Mrs. Bobbsey said.
"Is the fishing good?" Bert wanted to know.
"So I have heard. We'll take some poles and lines along, anyhow, andtry our luck," his father replied.
Mr. Bobbsey pushed back his chair from the table, and looked aroundfor the evening paper. Bert and Nan had some home work to do, to getready their lessons for the next day's school classes, and Mrs.Bobbsey got out her sewing basket. There were always stockings tomend, if there was nothing else of the children's that neededattention.
The house was quiet except for the distant rattling of dishes in thekitchen, where fat Dinah was singing away as she worked. Suddenly hersong ceased, and she was heard to exclaim:
"Now yo' want t' be careful, honey lamb! Doan't yo' go to muxin' upDinah's clean kitchen flo'."
"No, we won't, Dinah!" replied Fredd
ie's voice.
"If any gets spilled, I'll wipe it up," said Flossie.
"I wonder what those children are up to now?" remarked Mrs. Bobbsey,as she rolled up two stockings she had just darned.
"Oh, I guess they're all right," said Mr. Bobbsey easily, as he turnedover a page of the evening paper.
The next moment there came a shout from Dinah in the kitchen.
"Stop it, Freddie. Stop it, I say!" cried the fat, colored cook. "Yo'suah am gittin' me all wet! Oh, there it goes ag'in! Stop it!"
"I--I can't!" cried Freddie. "Hold your hand over it, Flossie!"
"Oh, now it's squirting on me!" came in Flossie's tones. "Make itstop, Freddie."
"It--it won't stop!" was the frightened answer.
"Oh! Land ob massy!" shouted Dinah. "Sam! Sam! Mr. Bobbsey, come heahquick! It's squirtin' all ober!"
"Oh! Something has happened!" exclaimed Mrs. Bobbsey, starting towardthe kitchen.
"Maybe a water pipe has burst," suggested Mr. Bobbsey, dropping hispaper and making a jump toward the kitchen. As he did so, he heardDinah cry again:
"Oh, yo' am all wet, honey lamb! Yo' is all soakin' wet! Oh, now it'scomin' fo' me ag'in! Oh, stop it, Freddie! Stop it!"
"I--I can't!" was all Freddie said.
The next moment Mr. Bobbsey, followed by his wife, had reached thekitchen. There they saw a queer sight.
In the middle of the floor stood Flossie and Freddie, water drippingfrom their hands and faces. Dinah, too, was wet, and she was fairlyflying around, with a plate in one hand and a dish towel in the other.
And, all about the kitchen was spurting a stream of water, while overby the stove stood Freddie's toy fire engine. It was this engine thatwas spraying the water all over the room.