Chapter 10 TUESDAY.

Beth, a little paler than usual, but quite ready for work, was the first at the breakfast table next morning. The evening before, when Berta and Dick had gone to see her for a few minutes, the three had planned what they would do the very first thing in the morning; and the glances and smiles which passed between them during the meal, did not escape the Doctor's eye. Before leaving the table, he whispered to his sister that mischief was brewing. Mrs. Marvin took Jack upstairs with her for safe keeping; and Mrs.

Selwyn, with an eye on the other three, busied herself at the china closet while they brought in a bushel basket, filled it with straw from a barrel in the corner of the dining-room, carried it into the front hall and put it under the staircase. She waited until she saw them go into the library and begin to pack their books and games, when, knowing that her husband would look after them there, she hurried to the work waiting upstairs.

After packing and unpacking the box many times, the children decided that it was ready for the cover. Mr. Selwyn came down from his ladder to nail it on for them; but in order to please them, he had to drive so many nails into it that the heads of them made a very neat border around the edge. Then the telephone rang; and when he returned to the library, the little ones had gone. A half hour later, he needed the hammer and nails; but they were not to be seen. After a long search, he thought he must have carried them to the telephone with him; but no, not a nail could he find. Suddenly, he remembered that he had promised to call up his lawyer that morning, and not being sure of the number, he turned to look it up in the directory. The book was not in its usual place, nor could he find it anywhere else in the room. He asked the packers if they had seen it, but they had not. Then he called to Mary to see whether anyone upstairs had it or his hammer and nails. In a few moments, she came down empty-handed.

"Have you asked the twinnies, Father?"

"I thought they were upstairs with you. I have not seen them for a half hour."

"They are up to something then. I wouldn't be surprised if they were out in the yard driving nails into the fence and benches."

As she ran through the hall, she heard a muffled meow coming from under the staircase and saw there what looked like a heap of carpet with a hassock on top of it. Again came the meow. "Surely, Fluff can't be under there. The poor little thing would be smothered." She lifted the hassock and a thick rug and found a bushel basket carefully covered with a barrel head which began to move. She raised it, and out sprang the pretty Angora kitten which the Doctor had brought to her little sisters a few evenings before. Down the hall toward the kitchen it fled, and Mary hurried out the side door to the yard. No sign of the children there, and Tom in the barn had not seen them that morning. She searched the basement and then returned through the kitchen and dining-room to the front hall, where she decided that they must have gone up the back stairs while she was coming down the front ones. Just outside the dining-room door she paused. Surely, that was a whisper. There it was again. "Yes, she's gone. Goody!" The table cloth, which had not been taken off after breakfast, hung nearly to the floor. Mary lifted one corner of it, and three pairs of eyes, dancing with mischief, met hers.

"Sh! sh! we's making Daddy a s'prise-a most beauty, grand s'prise." Berta pointed to the box of nails before them and to the box cover in which lay a number of them carefully wrapped in white tissue paper. The hammer, also well wrapped, was near by.

"But how is Father going to fasten the covers on his boxes of books if you pack all his nails?"

"Oh, I'se quite sure Tom has plenty of nails and hammers and all things same as that in his big box in the barn--plenty!"

"Then why did Father go to the store last evening to buy these, Beth? He has looked everywhere for them and can't imagine what has become of them. Surely, when he has nailed your box up so nicely for you, you won't be so stingy as to take his hammer and all his nails from him."

"But--but you don't misstand, Mary. We's making a s'prise for Daddy."

"But Father would rather have his hammer and nails, Berta. It is too bad to spoil the surprise; but I know what we can do. Put all the nails that you have wrapped so nicely into the box cover, and I shall ask Father to try to get along with those in the box. If there are any left, you can pack them later; and it won't be very much trouble to wrap the hammer again."

The three looked rather mournful as they crept out from under the table.

"Oh, I almost forgot about it. Do you know anything about the telephone book?"

From the way they looked at one another, Mary felt sure that they knew a great deal about it. Just then, Fluff ran across the room.

"Why, Fluff, where did you come from? We thinked you was all packed nice and comfy in the basket we fixed for you. Go right straight back there this instinct and don't be jumping around our feets and falling us down same as you did yesterday morning-time."

"O Berta! you don't want to kill poor Fluff, do you? She was almost smothered in the basket with that thick rug tucked in all around it; and I'm sure I wouldn't think that stiff straw very comfortable."

"Mary, I think you is jes' drefful! You is spoiling all our nice s'prises ev'y single time, so you is! And we's not going to tell you 'bout the telefome book, so now!"

"Ye--es," big tears filled Beth's eyes, "we thinked we is making beauty s'prises for Daddy when we wrapped ev'y single nail so nice and smooth and packed the telefome book 'way, 'way down in the bottom of our box; and now you come and say they isn't nice s'prises at all, and--and--"

"Why, Bethy, I know you meant to make the loveliest surprises in the whole world, but you just made a little mistake, don't you see? Wilhelmina and I have made ever so many mistakes, and we didn't mind when Mother or Aunt Etta told us to unpack a great big trunk and pack it all over again a better way. But I know something that would be a beautiful surprise for everybody in the whole house, and I am sure that no one else would think of doing it. There are things in the yard that we shall need at Bird-a-Lea, and if you three would go around and mark them with some lovely colored chalk that I shall give you, it will save poor Father ever so much time and trouble. Wait for me on the side porch while I run upstairs for the chalk. Berta shall have a red stick, because red is her color; and Beth must have blue; and what color would you like, Dick?"

"Yellow's a pretty good color, Mary, and it shows, too."

In a very short time, Mary returned with the chalk, and to Beth's question, "Must we make ev'ything all red and blue and yellow all over?" she hastened to reply, "Indeed, no. Just a little criss-cross on the things you think we should take."

"But what kind of things, Mary?"

"I'll show you, Berta. I see one right now." And Dick bounded down the steps to put a yellow mark on a rake leaning against a tree.

"Oh, I know where they's whole lots of things. I saw them this morning-time when we went to get the basket. Come on, chilluns!" Berta led the way around to the back steps. A hoe and a spade stood between them and the fence and were promptly marked. Beth next spied a broom on the porch; and Dick, a basket of clothes pins.

"'M, 'm, 'm, it's going to take a puffeckly drefful long time to mark ev'y single one of these."

"Just mark the basket, Berta," said Dick.

But the little girl thought each pin should be plainly marked, and the three were very busy for some time.

"Does you think we ought to mark the steps, Beth?"

"Why, Berta, they's plenty of steps at Bird-a-Lea, plenty! Doesn't you 'member? They's some in front and some in back and some at both sides all going up to the porch."

"W--ell, what else is they to take? Oh, I know! The wheely-ba'l, so we can have nice rides in our own garden same as Danny gives us in his wheely-ba'l in the garden at Aunt Mary's."

"If you'll come home with us, I'll let you ride in my billy goat cart."

"What is that, Dick?"

"Why--why, it's a dandy, little, red cart that we harness a billy goat to, 'stead of a pony or horse."

"But what is a billy goat?"

"A billy goat? Didn't you girls ever see a billy goat? He's just an animal for pulling carts and--and--"

"What kind of a amanal, Dick?"

"How big is he?"

"What color is he?"

"He's about as big as Thor-that's our dog-and he's a sort of a white color 'cept when he rolls in the dust, and he's got horns, and when he gets mad you've got to look out or he'll stick them into you--"

"Oh, oh! I guess I like a wheely-ba'l best of all."

"But, Beth, somebody has to push you in that, and you can drive our Billy 'zactly the same as a horse. He doesn't get mad very often; and when he does, we run behind trees so he can't get at us. Ask your father and mother to let you come home with us. We'll have no end of fun."

"But--but I 'splained to you, Dick, the why we can't go home with you. We has to live in our own house with Father and Mother and Uncle Frank and Mary. It would be ever so much better if you would bring your billy cart and come to live at Bird-a-Lea. They's so many chilluns in your fambly, and they's only three in ours, and we hasn't nenny little brothers 'cept two in heaven."

"But, you see, Berta, it doesn't make any diff'runce how many children we have in our family. A fellow's s'posed to live with his own father and mother."

"Maybe Daddy and Mother will take us to see Dick and Jack sometime, Berta; and then you will ride us in your billy cart, won't you, Dick? And when you come to see us at Bird-a-Lea, you can have a nice ride in our wheely-ba'l, so you can."

They next marked the garden benches and porch chairs.

"And I'se quite sure Daddy will say we must take this nice white walk. They's only all little stones on the walks at Bird-a-Lea."

"That's gravel. We have that on all our walks and on the driveway. Everybody in the country has that 'stead of walks like this."

They went around and around the old-fashioned yard, putting colored marks on everything they thought should be taken to the new home, until there was very little left of their sticks of chalk.

"I know what ought to be marked. Ourselves. We're not going to be left behind."

"Oh, yes, Dick, let's mark our own selfs," cried the twins; and when poor old Aunt Mandy came to call them to get washed before luncheon, she threw up her hands in horror at sight of their faces streaked with red, blue, and yellow, in real Indian style.

After luncheon, Mr. Selwyn was taken out to see the "s'prise," and he had to turn aside and cough many times when he saw even the leaves of certain plants in the garden plainly marked.

"In course, Daddy, we know they's a big, big garden of most beauty flowers at Bird-a-Lea; but p'raps they isn't nenny jes' 'zactly like these. And Beth and I can't 'member if they's nenny Kismus trees out there; so we thinked it would be better to take this nice little one so Sandy Claws will find it when he comes, you know."

"Oho! trust him to find dozens of Christmas trees ever so much larger and finer than this one in the country around our new home, pet. Santa Claus does not depend on city yards and parks for his Christmas trees. No, indeed!"

The afternoon nap that day was very much shorter, for the three were bent on helping indoors. They were not very well pleased, therefore, when they were dressed for the afternoon and sent out to play in the yard. The Doctor, coming home early, saw them walking about in a listless way and went out to see what the trouble was.

"Well, what is wrong now, little folks?"

"O Uncle! ev'ybody is all the time saying, 'Not jes' now,' and 'After while,' and 'Not at present, thank you,' and all things same as that when we want to help, so they is," pouted Beth.

"Yes, and we didn't ask nennybody for presents, Uncle, not ever, ever at all."

"Not ever, ever at all. We jes' want to help."

"And when is 'after while,' anyway, Uncle Frank. Seems to me big folks are always saying that, and it never comes," added Dick.

"Dear, dear, it is too bad to have your feelings hurt in this way. I must see what can be done about it. Surely there must be something for such willing hands to do."

"Oh, we did whole lots of things this morning-time. See all those red and blue and yellow marks we made on ev'ything?" Beth lowered her voice. "All 'cept Jack. He's too little, you know; but he's so cute."

"Yes, I saw the marks as soon as I came out here. May I ask what they mean?"

"The why we made them is 'cause we want ev'ybody to know jes' 'zactly the things we must take to Bird-a-Lea with us."

"A very fine idea indeed, Berta. And now I have one that I am sure you will all like. It will never do, you know, for us to leave our old home looking untidy. I was thinking of hiring a man to put the yard in order after we go; but perhaps you would like to do it for me. There are a great many dead leaves on the grass, and the rain has washed the earth out on the walks in several places, and I saw some cobwebs on the porch--"

"Ugh! ugh! maybe they's spiders in them!"

"Never mind, Beth, I'se going to dead them for you. Beth doesn't like spiders and crawly things so very well, Uncle, you know."

"Then we shall leave the cobwebs to you and Dick, and let Beth and Jack rake leaves. But you will need the proper things to work with. Tom's rake and broom are too large and clumsy for you. Suppose you run up, Berta, to tell Mother and Aunt Etta that I am going to take you shopping with me."

The little girl soon returned, her face beaming. "Ev'ybody says they's puffeckly 'lighted to have you take us, Uncle."

Some time later, the neighbors were surprised at the strange procession coming up the street. It was led by Dick, proudly pushing a little red wheelbarrow filled with garden tools and big sun hats. Berta came next with a small broom over each shoulder. Beth followed in the same manner, and baby Jack strutted after her with a little hoe. The Doctor brought up the rear, carrying anything that the children could not manage.

"But where is we going to put all these things so ev'ybody won't see them, Uncle?"

"We shall go in at the side gate, Beth, and Tom will find a hiding place for them in the barn. We are a little late for dinner, so no one will see us on our way back there."

Flushed and happy, the four took their places at the table.

"Nennybody can't guess what Uncle buyed us, and nennybody doesn't know the beauty grand s'prise we's going to make to-morrow morning-time. Oh, I wish it was then now!" And Berta beamed on all present.

"But they's jes' one thing Uncle couldn't buy for us, 'cause they wasn't any room in the wheely-bal for it. But you'll take us for a nice walk this evening-time and buy it for us, won't you, Daddy?"

"There is some very important business which I must see your father about this evening, Beth," said the Doctor with a warning look which Mr. Selwyn did not catch. He had been so long separated from his family that he was anxious to do everything he could to make them happy. "Making up for lost time," he called it; and he would have spoiled the twins if it had not been for his wife, who would not let him buy everything they asked for.

"Perhaps I can go with you some other evening, pet. What is it you wish me to get for you?"

"O Daddy, it's the most beauty little bed for our dollies. Outside is all soft, white velvet, and inside is all white, shiny stuff and lace, and--and oh! it's jes beauty! And it has a cover to keep the flies and skeeties off when our chilluns go to sleep."

Mary and Wilhelmina left the table very quickly, and the Doctor chuckled. "We passed the undertaker's on the avenue, and it was all I could do to get them home."

The two mothers looked at each other.

"I shall see that Rob takes no more evening walks until we are safe in the country," Mrs. Selwyn declared, and then listened to her husband's answer to the twins' coaxing.

"We already have so many things to pack that I really do not see where we shall find room for anything else. Better wait until Christmas when I shall tell Santa Claus to bring each of you a pretty brass bed for your dollies, with soft, warm blankets and everything just as you have for your own cribs. Velvet and satin and lace soil so easily, you know."

Mrs. Selwyn breathed a sigh of relief, and Mary and Wilhelmina returned to the table.