The rubber covering was rather heavy for the little children, and they
were glad to step inside the cabin. Even though the roof leaked in
places, there were spots where it did not. Picking out one of these
spaces, Freddie moved some boxes over to it, and he and his sister sat
down, tired and wet, but feeling better now that they were within some
sort of shelter.
"This isn't a very nice place," Flossie observed, looking around.
"No. But it's better'n being outside," stated Freddie. "And maybe
there's a bed in the next room." The cabin consisted of two rooms, the
door between them being shut. "I'm going to look," Freddie went on.
"No, don't!" begged Flossie, clutching Freddie by the sleeve.
"Why not?" he asked. "Don't you want me to look in that room and see if
there's a bed? 'Cause maybe we'll have to stay all night."
"Don't look!" begged Flossie "Maybe--maybe Mr. Blipper is in there!"
"Mr. Blipper?" echoed Freddie. "What would he be doing here? He's at his
merry-go-round."
"No, he isn't at his merry-go-round," insisted Flossie. "'Cause we was
there and he wasn't there when daddy wanted to ask him about the coat
and the lap robe. Maybe Mr. Blipper's in that room, and I don't like
him--he's so cross!"
"Yes, he's cross," agreed Freddie. "And he was mean to Bob Guess. But
maybe Mr. Blipper isn't in that room. I'm going to look!"
But Freddie never did. He got down off the old box he was using for a
seat, under a part of the roof that didn't leak, when Flossie gave a
cry, and pointed out-of-doors.
"Look!" she exclaimed.
"Is somebody coming?" Freddie wanted to know.
"No, but I see a boat," Flossie went on. "We can get in the boat and row
back on the fair grounds and we'll be all right."
Freddie looked to where she pointed and saw a rowboat drawn up on the
shore.
"If it's got oars in we could row," he said, for both he and his little
sister knew something of handling boats, their father having taught
them.
"Let's go down and look," proposed Flossie. "It isn't raining so hard
now."
The big drops were not, indeed, pelting down quite so fast, but it was
still far from dry.
Getting under the rubber blanket again, the children ran out of the
cabin and toward the boat. They were delighted to find oars in it, and,
seeing that the rowboat was in good shape, Freddie got in.
"Ouch!" he exclaimed as he sat down on a wet seat. "Here, wait a minute
before you sit there, Flossie. I'll put the rubber blanket down to sit
on."
The inside of the rubber blanket was dry, and Freddie put the wet side
down on the wooden seat. This gave the children something more
comfortable to sit on than a wet piece of wood.
"We'll each take an oar and row," proposed Freddie, for he and Flossie
were sitting on the same seat. This was the only way to use the same
rubber blanket.
Loosening the rope by which the boat was made fast to a stump on shore,
Freddie pushed out into the lake. The rain had almost stopped now, and
the children were feeling happier.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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