Uncle Daniel patted her, then said with a chuckle, “You’re lucky you didn’t slide to the bottom of this rocky cliff, or there’d have been only one-half of a certain Flossie Bobbsey.” He became serious. “The State ought to put up a fence here. It’s entirely too dangerous.”
“If they don’t,” said Harry, “why don’t all of us get together and do it?”
“All right. We will,” his father agreed.
The group walked back to the picnic spot. Presently Harry said, “It’s time to let the pigeons loose!” He ran to the hay wagon where the cage with the carrier pigeons had been left.
“What are you going to write the message on?” Tom wanted to know.
Uncle Daniel took a small notebook from his pocket. “Here, son, use this,” he said, tearing out a sheet of paper and handing it to Harry.
While everyone was intently watching Harry print a message, Mark Teron sidled over to the cage. Quietly he opened the door and one of the pigeons flew out!
Bert turned around just in time to see this. Quick as a flash he ran over and caught the second pigeon as it was about to fly away.
“That was a mean trick!” he cried, putting the bird back into the cage and fastening the lock.
“Oh, will the pigeon get lost?” Flossie asked fearfully.
“No,” Uncle Daniel said. “It’ll just go home.”
“You think you’re smart, Bert Bobbsey!” Mark was muttering. He gave the boy a shove which almost knocked him off his feet.
“Here, here, none of that!” Uncle Daniel exclaimed. “You two boys had better have a wrestling match fair and square, and get this out of your systems!”
“I’m game!” Bert declared, and Mark nodded.
The other children formed a circle as Bert and Mark grabbed each other. Mark was heavier than Bert and soon had the Bobbsey boy on the ground. But Bert had learned wrestling at school and in a few minutes was forcing Mark’s shoulders to the dirt.
“Come on, Bert!” Harry cried. “Pin him!”
Mark struggled but suddenly both his shoulders hit the ground. Bert stood up immediately. He had won !
“Come on,” he urged. “Let’s send off the carrier pigeon!”
While Mark got sullenly to his feet, Harry put the little roll of paper into a tiny metal tube. Fastened to this was a band which he pinched into place around one of the bird’s legs.
“What does the message say?” Freddie asked.
Harry grinned. “It’s to Martha and Dinah and says we’ll be home to supper at six.”
Then he took the pigeon in both hands and with a little toss sent it on its way. In a few seconds the bird was high in the sky. It circled several times, then started for the farm.
“I wish I could fly like that!” Freddie observed, as the carrier pigeon disappeared.
“Now for some games,” Uncle Daniel said. “You older boys hunt for fallen, but not rotted, tree limbs we can use to build that rail fence at the cliff. Don’t go far. I’ll play with the girls.”
The boys scattered to look for the limbs. Bert and Harry stayed together. They found several, then the farm boy said, “Bert, how would you like to see the quarry?”
Bert nodded eagerly. Unnoticed by the others, the two boys hurried off among the trees. Soon they reached the huge hole in the ground.
“This limestone was used for building around here,” Harry explained, “but the quarry hasn’t been worked for a long time.”
The two boys stood at the edge of the excavation and looked down. The jagged layers of rock reached far below the surface of the ground.
“Can we climb down?” Bert asked eagerly.
Harry looked around. “Say!” he exclaimed. “There’s a ladder. Let’s try it.”
The cousins ran to it and started down. They found that the ladder covered only the sheer upper portion of the excavation and then ended. At this point the slope was more gradual, and Bert and Harry were able to gain a footing.
“We can climb down from here to the bottom,” Bert said. “It’ll be easy.”
“Sure,” Harry agreed, beginning to scramble over the dusty rock.
Together the boys made their way to the bottom of the huge hole in the ground. There they discovered a pool of water and amused themselves by tossing pieces of rock into it.
“Boy, it must be deep!” Bert remarked. “You can’t see the bottom!”
After a while Harry suggested that they go back. “Dad will be wondering where we are.”
As they reached the sheer part of the quarry, Bert was in the lead. “Isn’t this the spot we came down the ladder?” he called back to his cousin.
“Yes. What’s the matter?”
“The ladder’s gone! We’ll never be able to climb out!”
Harry hurried to Bert’s side. “Maybe it was a little farther to the right,” he said.
But though the boys looked along the rock face in both directions, there was no sign of the ladder.
“Someone pulled it up!” Harry said. “I’ll bet it was Mark ! He was angry when you beat him at wrestling and he’s trying to get even I”
“I suppose he’s laughing at us right now,” Bert said. “I wish we could get out anyway. Then the laugh would be on him!”
But, try as they might, the boys could not get up to the rim of the quarry.
“I guess we’re stuck!” Harry said in despair.
“Let’s go back to the bottom and look around there,” Bert suggested.
So, slipping and sliding, the two boys made their way down again. The sun was lower in the sky by now and the bottom of the pit was in deep shadow. The boys walked around, carefully skirting the deep pool, and looking for a way out of their rocky prison.
In the meantime, back at the picnic grove, the other boys had come in and joined a ball game which the girls had organized. The small children were kept busy chasing the ball while the older ones took turns at bat.
Finally Uncle Daniel, who had occasionally joined in the game, announced, “It’s time to start back. Let’s get everything into the wagon.”
There was a great scurrying around to gather up the picnic things. Suddenly Nan said, “Where are Bert and Harry?”
No one answered. “I suppose they’re still looking for rails,” Uncle Daniel said, “but I’ll find them.”
“I’ll do it,” Mark offered, and raced off.
He went straight to the quarry, picked up a ladder lying on the ground, and put it in place down the side.
“I’ll pretend I don’t know anything about it,” the boy told himself, chuckling.
Mark had just succeeded in replacing the ladder when Uncle Daniel came up beside him. “Do you see the boys?” he asked anxiously.
Mark peered down into the quarry. No one was there 1
“Why—why—” he stammered. “What could have happened to them?” Mark was so frightened that his knees shook.
At this moment, someone clapped him on the shoulder. He turned around with a start. It was Harry!
“You thought you had us trapped in the quarry, didn’t you?” Harry asked angrily.
“And you would have if we hadn’t found another way out!” Bert joined in.
“Wh-what did you do?” Mark asked.
Harry explained that Bert had found a rough path up on the opposite side of the excavation and the boys had managed to scramble out that way. They had then worked their way through the underbrush to the spot where they now were.
“That’s the third mean trick you’ve played today,” Bert said, advancing on Mark with his fist clenched.
Uncle Daniel spoke up. “Did you really pull that ladder up, Mark?” he asked sternly.
Mark hung his head. “I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I just wanted to scare the fellows. I wasn’t going to leave them down there!” Then he added to Harry, “But you really scared me. I thought something terrible had happened when I didn’t see you in the quarry!”
“In that case, Mark, perhaps you’ve been punished enough,” Un
cle Daniel observed. “But if you’re going to play with these boys, you’ll have to learn to behave yourself!”
Mark promised, so nothing was said of the incident when they joined the others. The rail fence was laid at the edge of the cliff, then they all went to the hay wagon.
As they settled down for the long ride home, Flossie said, “Skipper, did you have a good time?”
“Yes.” Skipper sighed. “It was the best day I ever had in my whole life!”
“You’ll have to come visit us again while you’re at the Fresh Air Camp,” Uncle Daniel said kindly.
“Yes,” Freddie agreed. “So you can go for that ride in our pony cart.”
“And you can help us solve our mysteries,” Flossie added.
“What mysteries?” Kim Harold asked. “I didn’t know there were any mysteries about Meadowbrook Farm!”
“Somebody plays our piano in the middle of the night,” Flossie said.
“Oh!”
“And our prize bull Major was stolen while we were at the auction yesterday,” Harry added.
“How terrible!” Kim exclaimed.
Skipper sat up, his brown eyes snapping with excitement. “Was the bull in the same barn where you found me?” he asked.
“Why yes, Skipper,” Bert remarked. “Did you see him?”
The little boy explained that when he had gone into the barn he had heard an animal snorting and pawing at the floor but he had been too frightened to go near the stall.
“I just climbed the ladder and went to sleep in the hay,” he said. “But I woke up and heard two men talking about the bull. I thought they were the people who lived on the farm and I didn’t want them to find me. So I kept very still.”
“Did you see the men?” Nan asked eagerly.
The little boy shook his head. “I was too scared to look,” he replied, “but I heard them talking about taking the bull away.”
“Where?” Bert asked excitedly.
“I don’t know.”
“Did they call each other by name?” Harry spoke up.
“Yes. They said Mitch and Clint,” Skipper replied.
CHAPTER VIII
PRIZE PARADERS
“MITCH and Clint!” Harry looked at his father in bewilderment. “Do you know any men around here with those names, Dad?” he asked.
Uncle Daniel shook his head. “Not in this neighborhood, nor anywhere. But as soon as we get home, I’ll report to the State Troopers what Skipper said.”
“Now maybe we’ll get Major back soon,” Harry said hopefully. “Oh, I want to so much. Besides, he’s entered in the County Fair and I’m sure he’ll get an award.”
First Harry’s friends were dropped at their homes. Then Uncle Daniel drove to the Fresh Air Camp and turned in at the gate. In a few minutes they came to a cluster of tents surrounding a large log cabin on the banks of the river.
“Say, this looks great!” Freddie exclaimed and grinned at Skipper. “I’d like to stay here, too!”
As Uncle Daniel stopped the horses, a pleasant-looking woman came out of the log cabin and walked toward them.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Manily,” Uncle Daniel called. “We’ve brought your missing guest!”
“I’m very glad to have him here,” the woman said kindly, reaching up to help Skipper down from the hay wagon. “I hope he’ll be happy with us.”
“I’m sure he will be,” said Mr. Bobbsey.
“See you soon,” the children chorused as they waved good-by to Skipper.
After the little boy had run into the cabin, Mrs. Manily sighed and said, “I do want him to have a good time here. His father died last year and his mother is an invalid. There is no money for Skipper to have anything but just necessities.”
“Perhaps we can help him in some way,” Nan said kindly.
“You have helped by taking him on your picnic,” the camp director assured her, waving good-by.
When the Bobbseys reached the farm they found that both homing pigeons had returned and Martha had received the carrier message. No word had been heard from the police about Major. Uncle Daniel called headquarters and told the trooper who answered what Skipper had overheard.
“That may turn out to be a good lead,” the man replied. “We’ll let you know if we come across anything.”
The next morning at breakfast Aunt Sarah reminded the twins that their father would arrive late that afternoon.
“Goody !” Flossie cried. “He’ll be here for the Fourth of July!”
“That’s right,” Nan agreed. “Tomorrow is the Fourth. We ought to plan some sort of celebration.”
“There are to be speeches and a band concert on the village green at eleven o’clock,” Uncle Daniel said.
“We could have a parade beforehand,” Bert suggested.
“That would be fun!” Flossie clapped her hands. “We can dress up!”
“And march into town,” Harry said.
He went to the telephone and called Patty, Kim, Tom, and Bud. They eagerly agreed to take part in the parade, and to come over to the farm and make plans.
As soon as everyone was gathered on the front porch, Nan asked, “What shall we wear?”
“We could make red-white-and-blue paper hats,” Patty suggested.
“That’s a good idea,” Nan agreed. “I’ll see if Aunt Sarah has any crepe paper.”
In a few minutes she returned carrying several rolls of brightly colored paper. “We’re lucky,” she said. “It’s just what we want!”
They set to work and soon had seven hats pasted together. The older boys made theirs three-sided. “We’ll all look like George Washington!” Bert chuckled, putting on his tricorn.
“I want to be Uncle Sam!” Freddie insisted.
“All right,” Nan said. “We’ll make you a top hat and you can wear those red-and-white striped pajamas you brought!”
“I want to be somebody special, too!” Flossie spoke up.
“You could be Miss Liberty,” Kim remarked.
“What will I wear?” Flossie asked doubtfully.
Nan thought a moment, then said, “You can have a crown of gold paper, and wear a white nightgown !”
“Nan, you should ride Rocket with Freddie and Flossie standing up in the cart!” Harry suggested. “It’ll be like a float.”
“Wonderful!” she exclaimed.
“I have an idea for us fellows,” Bud put in. “Let’s decorate our bicycles with the paper and have a race after the parade.”
“That would be great!” Harry agreed.
By the time the twins’ mother was ready to leave for the station to meet their father, all the costumes had been assembled and the plans completed. The children agreed to meet at the farm by ten o’clock the following morning.
“Oh, Daddy!” cried Flossie as Mr. Bobbsey stepped from the train, “we’re going to have the most bee-yoo-ti-ful Fourth of July parade tomorrow!”
Then Nan told him about the purchase of Rocket. “He’s just the most precious pet!” she said, hugging her father. “Thank you for letting us buy her.”
The twins took turns telling Mr. Bobbsey all that had happened since their arrival.
“You really have been busy since I saw you last!” he said, “and I’m sorry about Major.”
The next morning Patty and Kim arrived wearing shorts and blouses. Nan was dressed the same way. The older boys had on neat blue jeans and white shirts.
Flossie looked very sweet in her white nightgown with the gold crown on her yellow curls. Freddie strutted about with his tall red-white-and-blue hat and the striped pajamas.
“Nan, you’d better start on in the cart with Freddie and Flossie,” Aunt Sarah advised. “I’ll drive the other girls and the boys with their bicycles to the edge of town. You can parade to the green from there.”
Soon they all met and began the march. Word of the little parade spread. Boys and girls and some parents began to line the sidewalks to watch. Nan on Rocket and Freddie and Flossie in the cart drew lots of
applause.
“Aren’t they sweet?”
“What a splendid idea!”
“Very good!”
The children glowed with pleasure as they marched to the village green. The mayor greeted them and handed Nan a tall candy Uncle Sam.
“We wanted your ‘float’ to have a special prize,” he said, smiling. “That was a clever idea, Uncle Sam and Miss Liberty.”
A few moments later Uncle Daniel picked up the boys and drove them and their bicycles to the end of Main Street. They quickly unloaded the machines and took their places.
Harry, Bud, and Tom had called several friends the night before and urged them to join the race. Twelve boys were lined up.
“The police are clearing Main Street for you all the way to the grandstand,” Uncle Daniel said.
Although Main Street was fairly wide, the row of boys took up its entire width. Quickly the town policeman cleared the street of all traffic.
“Let’s go!” Tom shouted as Mr. Bobbsey sounded the whistle.
It was about half a mile from the starting place to the village green. The boys bent over the handle bars and their feet flashed up and down as they pedaled furiously.
Tom and Bert took an early lead. Bud came puffing along in third place. But as he looked over his shoulder to see who was behind him, his wheel turned out of control. The next minute he was sprawled in the middle of the street!
“Watch out!” Harry yelled as he managed to swing around his fallen friend.
The next boy was not so lucky. He ran into Bud’s bicycle and landed on the ground nearby. In a few minutes there were five boys in the pile-up! By the time they got to their feet and onto their bicycles again, the others were far up the street.
“I’m coming!” Harry shouted as he drew abreast of Bert and Tom.
Bert grinned as his cousin pedaled past him across the finish line. “Good work, Harry!” he called.
“Harry Bobbsey is the winner!” the mayor announced.
The crowd cheered, then everybody took seats on the grass to hear the program which had been arranged. The mayor read the Declaration of Independence and the Fire House band played several patriotic songs.
The Bobbsey Twins' Adventure in the Country Page 5