The Bobbsey Twins on a Houseboat

by Laura Lee Hope

  CHAPTER III

  DINAH'S UPSET

  "What's the matter? What has happened?" asked Mrs. Bobbsey, who hadrun out to the front porch, upon hearing the excited cries, and theexclamations of fat Dinah, the cook. "Oh! has anything happened to anyof the children?"

  "Yes'm, I s'pects there has, ma'am," said Dinah. "Pore li'l Freddie amdone smashed all up flatter'n a pancake, Mrs. Bobbsey!"

  "Freddie--Oh!"

  "He's all right!" shouted Bert, who had, by this time, reached hislittle brother, and was lifting him out of the bicycle. "Not hurt abit, are you, Freddie?"

  "N--no, I--I guess not," said Freddie, a bit doubtfully. "I--I'mscared, though."

  "Nothing to be frightened at now, Freddie," said Bert, holding up thelittle chap, so his mother could see him.

  "Why, Freddie isn't hurt, Dinah," said Mrs. Bobbsey, in great relief."What made you think so?"

  "Well, I seed him all tangled up in dat two-wheeled velocipede obBert's, an' de hoss team was comin' right down on de honey-lamb. Ithought shuah he was gwine t' be squashed flatter'n a pancake. But heain't! Bless mah soul he ain't! Oh, dere's mah cake burnin'!" and intothe kitchen ran Dinah, glad, indeed, that nothing had happened worsethan the scare Freddie received.

  "Good Snap! Good old dog!" said Nan, as she patted his head.

  "Bow wow!" barked Snap. He still held the horse reins in his strongwhite teeth. He was not going to let the horses go yet.

  "Oh, Freddie!" cried Mrs. Bobbsey, when she understood what hadhappened. "What danger you were in! Why did you take Bert's wheel?"

  "I--I wanted a ride, Mamma. I didn't think I'd fall off, or that theteam would come."

  "You must never do it again," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "Never get on Bert'swheel again, unless he is with you to hold you. You are, too small,yet, for a bicycle."

  "Yes'm," said Freddie in a low voice.

  "But where is the driver of the wagon?" went on Mrs. Bobbsey, lookingat the empty seat.

  "Maybe he fell off," suggested Nan, who had taken Freddie from Bert,the latter picking up his wheel, and looking to see if it had beendamaged by the fall. But it was all right.

  "Here comes a driver now," said Flossie, who saw one of the men fromher father's lumber yard hurrying along the road.

  "Is anybody hurt?" the man asked, as he came up, running and breathingfast, for he had come a long way.

  "No one, I think," answered Mrs. Bobbsey. "But my little boy had avery narrow escape."

  "I am sorry," said the driver. "I left the team standing out in frontof the lumber yard, while I went in the office to find out where I wasto deliver the planks. When I came out the horses were trotting away.I guess they were scared by something. I ran fast, but I could notcatch them."

  "Snap caught them for you," said the twins' mother, as she looked atthe former circus dog, who was still holding the horse-reins.

  "Yes, he's a good dog," the lumber wagon driver said. "I was afraid,when I saw how far the horses had gone, that they might do somedamage. But I'm glad no one was hurt."

  "I think we all are glad," spoke Mrs. Bobbsey. "It was partly mylittle boy's own fault, for he should not have gotten on his brother'sbicycle. But he won't do it again."

  "No, I never will!" promised Freddie, as he rubbed his leg where ithad been bruised a little from becoming tangled up in the wire spokes.

  Snap barked and wagged his tail, as the driver took the lines fromhim, and then, when the man drove off with the horses and the load oflumber, Mrs. Bobbsey went with the twins back into the yard.

  "Well, I'm glad all the excitement is over," she said. "Where wereyou, Nan? Grace Lavine called for you, but I looked out in the yardand did not see you, so she went away again."

  "Why, I went down to papa's office, Mamma, with that letter you gaveme for him."

  "Yes, I know, but I supposed you had come back. What kept you solong?"

  "Well, I--er--I was talking to papa, and---"

  Nan did not want to go on, for she did not want to tell that she hadbeen talking about the houseboat.

  Mr. Bobbsey had been intending to keep that as a little secretsurprise for his wife, but now, if her mother asked about it, Nan feltshe would have to tell. She hardly knew what to say, but just thensomething happened that made everything all right.

  Mr. Bobbsey himself came hurrying down the street, from the directionof his lumber office. He seemed much excited, and his hat was oncrooked, as though he had not taken time to put it on straight.

  "Is everything all right?" he called to his wife. "None of thechildren hurt?"

  "No, none of them," she answered with a smile. Mr. Bobbsey could seethat for himself now, since Freddie and Flossie were going up the walktogether, Freddie tying one of the book straps around the dog's neck,while Nan and Bert followed behind them, with Mrs. Bobbsey.

  "Someone telephoned to me," said the lumber merchant, "that they sawone of our teams running away down this street, and I was afraid ourchildren, or those of some of the neighbors, might be hurt. So Ihurried down to see. Did you notice anything of a runaway team?"

  "Yes," said Mrs. Bobbsey. "But everything is all right now. Only Ihaven't yet heard what it was that kept Nan so long down at youroffice," and she smiled.

  Nan looked at her father, and Mr. Bobbsey looked at Nan. Then theyboth smiled and laughed.

  "To tell you the truth," said Mr. Bobbsey, with another smile, "Nandiscovered a secret I was not going to tell at once."

  "A secret?" asked Mrs. Bobbsey in surprise.

  "Yes, it's about---" began Nan.

  Then she stopped.

  "Go on. You might as well tell her," said Mr. Bobbsey, laughing.

  "I know!" exclaimed Freddie, who was all over his fright now. "It'sabout a boathouse and---"

  "A houseboat!" interrupted Bert. "You've got the cart before thehorse, Freddie."

  "That's it!" exclaimed Nan. "Papa has bought the Marvin's houseboat,Mamma, and we're going to have lovely times in it this summer."

  "And I'm going to run the engine," declared Bert.

  "I'm going to be fireman!" cried fat Freddie. "I'm going to put oncoal and squirt water on the fires!"

  "I'm going to sit on deck and play with my dolls," spoke Flossie, whowas trying to climb up on Snap's back to get a ride.

  Mrs. Bobbsey looked at her husband.

  "Really?" she asked. "Have you bought the boat?"

  "Yes," he replied, "I have. You know we have been thinking of it forsome time. Lake Metoka would be just fine for a houseboat, and wecould go on quite a cruise with one. Mr. Marvin wanted to sell hisboat, and as he and I had some business dealings, and as he owed mesome money, I took the boat in part payment."

  "And is it ours now, Papa?" asked Bert.

  "Yes, the houseboat is ours. It is called the Bluebird, and that is agood name for it, since it is painted blue--like your eyes, little fatfairy!" he cried, catching Flossie up in his arms.

  "Is it a big boat, Papa?" asked Bert. Like most boys he liked thingsbig and strong.

  "Well, I think it will be large enough," said Mr. Bobbsey with a smileas he set down Flossie and caught up Freddie in the same way. "Wereyou frightened when you fell down and saw the lumber team comingtoward you?" he asked.

  "A little," Freddie said. "But I wished my legs were long enough so Icould ride Bert's bicycle. Then I could get out of the way."

  "You'd better keep away from the wheel until you are bigger," said hisfather, who had been told about the accident and the excitement. "Butnow I must get back to the office. I have plenty of work to do."

  "Oh, but can't you stay just a little longer, to tell us more aboutthe boat!" pleaded Nan. "When can we have a ride in it?"

  "A boat is called 'her,'" interrupted Bert,

  "Well, 'her' then," said Nan. "Tell us about HER, papa. I didn't hearmuch at your office."

  "You heard more than I meant you to," said Mr. Bobbsey with a smile."Nan came in with that letter just as Mr. Marvin and I were finishingour talk about the houseboat,"
he went on. "I was going to keep itsecret a little longer, but it's just as well you should know now.

  "I think you will like the Bluebird. It has a little gasoline engine,so we can travel from place to place. And there is a large livingroom, a kitchen, several bed rooms and a nice open deck, where we cansit, when it is too hot to be inside."

  "Oh, that's going to be great!" cried Bert. "I want a room near theengine."

  "And can I be a fireman?" asked Freddie.

  "I want to be near mamma--and you," spoke little Flossie.

  "Oh, isn't it going to be lovely!" exclaimed Nan, clapping her hands.

  "Scrumptious, I call it!" cried Bert, and he ran into the house,through the hall, and into the dining-room, just as big, fat Dinah,the cook, was entering the same room, carefully holding a big cakewhich she had just covered with white frosting.

  "Oh dear!" cried Bert, as he ran, full tilt, Into the big cook.

  "Good land ob massy!" fairly yelled Dinah. "Wha--wha---"

  But that was all she could say. She tried to save herself fromfalling, but she could not. Nor could Bert. He went down, on one sideof the doorsill, and Dinah sat down, very hard, on the other, the cakebouncing from her hands, up toward her head, and then falling into herlap.