Hidden Treasure: The Story of a Chore Boy Who Made the Old Farm PaySimpson, John Thomas
Science
Hidden Treasure: The Story of a Chore Boy Who Made the Old Farm Pay
Simpson, John Thomas
Farm life
"How long'll I have to wait before I catch a turtle, Bob?" she asked,
as they started for the house.
"Maybe an hour and maybe not till to-morrow morning, and maybe as long
as a day or two--it just depends," he replied.
About three o'clock in the afternoon, he noticed that Ruth, who had
gotten tired running the mixer, had gone to the house. A little later
he saw her with Edith passing through the barnyard in the direction of
the pond.
It was perhaps a half hour later when he heard shouts in the direction
of the pond and someone calling his name. He dropped his tools and
rushed across the plowed field, when he saw Edith hurrying toward him
as fast as she could walk over the newly-plowed ground. She was waving
her hand to him, motioning him to hurry.
"What's happened to Ruth now?" he asked breathlessly, catching up to
her.
"It isn't Ruth this time," she replied. "It's Duncan Wallace."
"Why, what's the matter with him?" he asked eagerly, surprised that
the staid old Scotchman should have gotten into trouble.
"Well, it was this way," said Edith, between breaths, as they started
in the direction of the sand pit, "when Ruth and I went down to the
pond the first line we pulled out had a turtle on it, and while I held
it by the tail, Ruth took a forked stick and pried the hook out of its
mouth; then she thought it'd be good sport to take it down and show it
to Duncan Wallace, and when she got near she held it up by the tail
and showed it to him.
"'What's that you have there Mister--Miss--?'
"'A turtle, Mr. Wallace,' said Ruth, laughing over the fact that he
did not know whether she was a boy or a girl.
"'Oh, a turtle, is it? Well, let me see it.' Then he took the turtle
from her, Bob, and laid it on the shovel he was using to screen sand.
He held the shovel so that the turtle's head was not very far from and
on a level with his face. Then, much to my disgust, he began spitting
tobacco juice in the turtle's eyes, forcing it to draw its head into
the shell. It didn't seem to like it very much, for all of a sudden it
reached out its head and grabbed Duncan Wallace by the nose, and, oh,
Bob, you should have seen him dance and heard him swear; he swore
something terrible," she said laughing heartily. "It was the funniest
thing, Bob, I ever saw in my life--neither Ruth's ride on the cow the
other day nor her experience with Jerry this morning could compare
with the way that old Scotchman hopped around, waving his shovel in
one hand, the turtle dangling from his nose, and swearing like a
pirate."
"Well, how did you get the turtle off?" asked Bob, laughing in spite
of his fears for the Scotchman's safety.
"We didn't get it off," said Edith; "that's why we got you here. Ruth
tried to shake it off, but his nose bled terribly. He was sitting on a
pile of sand holding on to the turtle when I left," she replied.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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