The Water Goats, and Other TroublesButler, Ellis Parker
General
The Water Goats, and Other Troubles
Butler, Ellis Parker
Fiction; Humorous stories; Short stories, American
My dear, will you believe it? Those acorns were wormy! They were light.
They would not carry to the window, but scattered like bits of chips
when they had travelled but half-way. I was upset, but Lemuel was not.
He ordered the chauffeur to drive to lower Sixth Avenue with all speed,
in order that he might get a baseball. With this he said he could
hit any mark, and we had started in that direction when, passing a
restaurant on Broadway, I saw emerge Henry and Madge.
“Better far,” I said to myself, “put this young woman in charge of her
brother and his new wife than leave her to elope alone,” and I made the
chauffeur draw up beside them. Hastily I explained the situation, and
where we were going at that moment, and Henry and Madge laughed in
unison.
“Madge,” said Henry, “we had no trouble making wormy acorns travel
through the air, had we?” And both laughed again. At this I made them
get into the automobile, and while we returned to the lover's house
I made them explain. It was very simple, and I had just tied a dozen
acorns tightly in my handkerchief, making a ball to throw at the window,
when the poor woman with the baby noticed that the window was partly
open. I asked Lemuel if he could throw straight enough to throw the
handkerchief-ball into the window, and he said he could, and took
the handkerchief, but a brighter idea came to me, and I turned to the
eloping young lady.
“Let me have your handkerchief, if it has your initials on it,” I said;
“for when he sees that fall into his room he will know you are here. He
will not think you are forward, coming to him alone, for he will know
you could never have thrown the handkerchief, even if loaded with
acorns, to such a height. It will be your message to him.”
At this, which I do pride myself was a suggestion worthy of myself,
all were delighted, and while I modestly tied twelve acorns in the
handkerchief on which were the initials “T. M. C.,” all the others
cheered. Even the woman from whom I had received the three auburn-red
curls cheered, and the baby that was half-filled out of the patent
nursing-bottle crowed with joy. But the chauffeur honked his honker.
Lemuel took the handkerchief full of acorns in his hand and drew back
his famous left arm, when suddenly Theodora Mitchell Corwin--for that
was the eloping young lady's name--shrieked, and looking up we saw her
lover at the window. He gave an answering yell and disappeared, and
Lemuel let his left arm fall and handed me the handkerchief-ball.
In the excitement I dropped it into my pocket, and it was not until I
was on the car for Westcote that I discovered it, and then, not wishing
to be any later in getting home, I did not go back to give it to
Theodora Mitchell Corwin; in fact, I did not know where she had eloped
to. Nor could I give it to Madge or Henry, for they had gone on their
wedding journey as soon as they saw Theodora and her lover safely
eloped.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account