by Oliver Optic
"We have to go see Miss Putnam," she whispered. "About Mickey, youknow."
Brother looked frightened.
"She won't let us in," he said in alarm. "She thinks we threw tar onher porch. 'Sides, can't Mickey go see her?"
"No, we want to have it all fixed for him," explained Sister patiently."Mickey is scared of her, too, and maybe he wouldn't go. But if shesays yes, he can work for her, he'll go work 'cause he wants the shoes.Come on, Roddy, I'm not afraid."
"Will you do the talking?" suggested Brother.
Sister promised to "do the talking," and without saying anything toanyone in the house, the small boy and girl set out for the "terrible"Miss Putnam's.
In her heart of hearts, Sister was very much afraid of the cross oldlady, and when they turned in at her gate she was almost ready to runhome. But she remembered Mickey and how sadly he needed the new shoes,so she lifted the brass knocker on the white door and waited as bravelyas she could.
"Land sakes!" gasped Miss Putnam when she came to the door. "What onearth do you want?"
This wasn't a very gracious welcome, and Sister stuttered a little fromnervousness as she said they wanted to speak to her.
"Come in then," said Miss Putnam shortly. "Mind you wipe your feet, anddon't scratch the rounds of the chairs with your heels."
She led them into a tiny sitting-room and Brother and Sister sat downon two hard, straight chairs while Miss Putnam took the only rocker.
"Well?" she asked expectantly.
"We've come about Mickey Gaffney," said Sister hurriedly. "He hasn'tany shoes to wear to school and he wants to earn money to buy 'em. He'sgoing to work for us, some, but school starts in about three weeks andwe're afraid he won't have enough money."
"And couldn't he work for you?" chimed in Brother bravely, determinednot to let his sister have to do all the talking.
"Why, I do need a man to do odd jobs," said Miss Putnam quite mildly."Is he very strong?"
You see, she hadn't listened very carefully to Sister, or else shedidn't stop to think--no man wants shoes to wear to school.
"Yes'm, he's pretty strong," Sister assured her earnestly. "He's eightyears old and big for his age."
"Eight years old!" echoed Miss Putnam. "Why, that's a mere BABY! Whatcan such a child do to earn money?"
"Mickey can run errands and sweep and weed the garden," recitedBrother, gaining confidence since Miss Putnam neither shouted at themnor chased them from her house. "He can dry dishes, too--he says hedoes 'em for his mother."
Miss Putnam thought for a few moments.
"I'm going to need someone to do errands for me this winter when Ican't get around," she said slowly. "And I've about broke my back inthe garden this summer. But boys are noisy, careless creatures--I don'tknow as I could stand a boy around me."
"Oh, Mickey is nice," Sister hastened to explain. "He's going to growup and support his mother. He won't make any more noise than he canhelp."
Miss Putnam smiled grimly.
"I guess that's true," she said. "Well, tell your Mickey to come roundand see me, and if he doesn't charge too much, perhaps we can suit eachother."
Brother and Sister trotted home, well-pleased with the success of theirerrand. It was something to have secured the promise of more work forMickey.
"There he is now!" exclaimed Brother, spying the flaming red head ofthe Gaffney boy ahead of them. "Hey, Mickey!"
Mickey was on his way to the grocery store for soap, he informed them.
"Wait a minute," said Brother. "We want to tell you--Daddy says you canhelp Jimmie and Ralph in our garden and they will pay you, by the hour,Ralph says. And Miss Putnam says you can run errands for her."
"Miss Putnam?" repeated Mickey, surprised. "Miss Putnam wouldn't have aboy in her yard."
"Yes, she will," declared Sister. "She said so. And you can run errandsafter school this winter when she can't get around--she said so, didn'tshe, Roddy?"
Brother nodded.
"It would be kind of nice to have a job this winter, wouldn't it?" saidMickey thoughtfully. "My mother would like that. Well, if you're sureMiss Putnam won't come out with a broom when she sees me, I'll go."
"No, she won't," Sister assured him. "I don't believe she's so crosswhen you know her."
"'Cept about tar," said Brother sorrowfully.
Mickey looked at them, mystified.
"What about tar?" he asked. "Has Miss Putnam any?"
CHAPTER XXII
MICKEY OWNS UP
Brother told Mickey the tar incident in a few words.
"And you can't make her believe Betty and I didn't put it on herporch," he concluded. "She's just 'termined we did it."
"And she sent the policeman to your house and all," mused Mickey. "Gee!"
His face was rather red and he looked at Brother and Sister queerly. Heopened his mouth as though to say something, then apparently changedhis mind.
"Well, we have to go home," declared Brother. "You'll go see MissPutnam, won't you, Mickey?"
"I suppose so," muttered Mickey. "So long!"
"Maybe he doesn't like it," said Sister as they went on toward theirhouse.
"Oh, yes he does," replied Brother confidently. "He'll go, you see ifhe doesn't."
Mickey Gaffney did go see Miss Putnam, and something about him made theold lady like him right away. She engaged him to do errands for her anhour in the morning, and again in the afternoon, and she paid himfifteen cents an hour. If he weeded in the garden that was to be extra.
"Will you have enough for your shoes?" asked Sister anxiously onemorning, when Mickey came to do some weeding in the garden for Jimmie.
"My, yes, and I guess I can buy my little sister a pair," said Mickeyproudly.
"Have you a little sister?" demanded Brother and Sister together. "Howold is she?"
"Five," answered Mickey, getting down on his hands and knees and goingat the weeds in a business-like way. "She'll be five next month."
"Isn't that nice!" commented Sister. "I'm five years old, too."
Mickey avoided her eyes and was apparently too busy to talk much tothem, so by and by Brother and Sister ran off and left him to hisweeding.
If they had stayed, they might have seen Mickey throw down hisweeding-fork suddenly and march out of the garden.
"Don't believe that boy is going to stick to his work," said Molly toMother Morrison. "He's gone already."
But Mickey was hurrying along toward Miss Putnam's house and did notcare very much what anyone thought of him. He didn't think kindly ofhimself at that moment.
"Why, Mickey!" Miss Putnam looked up at him in amazement as he camearound to the back porch where she was sweeping a rug. "What's thematter, child, don't you feel well?"
"I feel all right," he said briefly. "Say, Miss Putnam, you know thattar that was on your porch? I threw it!"
"You--you what?" gasped Miss Putnam. "You threw that hot tar all overmy clean porch and walk? Why, Mickey!"
"Yes'm," muttered Mickey miserably.
"But why?" insisted Miss Putnam. "And Mrs. Graham told me that theMorrison boy and girl did it."
"Guess she thought she saw 'em--it was most dark," said Mickey. "But itwasn't Roddy and Betty. I did it, and Nina, my little sister, helpedme."
"But why?" persisted Miss Putnam. "I never should have thought it ofyou, Mickey, never."
Strange as it may seem, Miss Putnam really liked Mickey. He was sowilling and so cheerful and so quick that the old lady who had had todo all the work of her small home so long that she had forgotten how itfelt to have younger hands helping her, began to look forward toMickey's coming every day.
And Mickey liked Miss Putnam. He found she was very fair about time andreasonable about the amount of work she expected him to accomplish. Thefact that he was barefooted did not seem to bother her and she treatedhim exactly as though his clothes were whole instead of torn and poorlypatched.
Now when she asked him why he had thrown the tar, it was hard for himto tell the truth. Bu
t he did. When Mickey once made up his mind to doa thing, he always went through with it.
"It was 'count of the barbwire," Mickey explained in a low voice. "Ididn't know you put it up, and I climbed the fence one night, to scareyou through the window, and I thought you'd run out and chase me. And Itore my coat on the wire and scratched my face. So after that I wasalways looking for a chance to get even."
"When I saw the tar, I came back after supper and made Nina carry itfor me while I slung it--we had a tin bucket. I'm awful sorry, MissPutnam; honest I am!"
"But--did you let me send a policeman to the Morrison's house?" askedMiss Putnam uncertainly.
"I never knew about that till just before I came here to work," saidMickey earnestly. "And ever since I've felt mean as dirt, not telling.Nina is just as old as Betty. It wasn't her fault--Nina's, I mean; shedoes whatever I tell her to."
"Well, I'll go call on Mrs. Morrison this afternoon," said Miss Putnambriskly. "And then I'll take down that wire. I don't need it nowanyway, for the children don't bother me since you're here. I guessthey're afraid you'd catch them if you should chase them," she smiledgrimly.
"And I can go right on working?" suggested Mickey anxiously.
"Of course, child. Why not?" said Miss Putnam.
That settled Mickey's last worry. With a hurried "thank you," he dashedaway, out through the yard and up the street. He wanted to find Brotherand Sister and tell them what he had done.
"My goodness, I think you're ever so brave," said Sister when she hadheard his story. "I'd be scared to death to tell Miss Putnam like that."
"Pooh, she's all right," answered Mickey. "I like her. And now I have alot of time to make up--most half an hour."
"School begins two weeks from today," announced Brother, watchingMickey tackle an onion row. "You're sure you're going, Mickey?"
"Of course," said Mickey proudly. "I'll stop for you the first morningjust to prove it."
"And we'll go every day and never be late once, will we?" chimed inSister.
But whether they were able to keep this good resolution or not remainsto be seen. If you are interested to know you will have to read thenext book about them, called "BROTHER AND SISTER'S SCHOOL DAYS."
THE END