Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter nineteen of The Bobbsey Twins Keeping House. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Read by Martha Heaton, August twenty twenty three. The Bobbsey
(00:22):
Twins Keeping House by Laura Lee Hope In Church again,
there was no help for it. If the doctor was
to come to Aunt Sally to help her, Bert must
go after him. The telephone would not work. It isn't far,
Bert said to Nan, when he had tried several more
times to get an answer from the telephone operator. I
(00:45):
can soon push my way down to doctor Martin's office.
Maybe he won't come back with you, suggested Nan. Maybe
he'll think the storm is too bad for him to
come out in. Doctors aren't that way, declared Bert. They
go out and any kind of a storm when anybody
is sick. So he made ready to go out again,
(01:05):
putting on his boots and getting out his long overcoat
and mittens in order to leave his legs free. When
he was chopping at the tree branch, Bert had put
on a short pea jacket, as sailors call them, But
now to venture out on the streets in the storm,
He decided his longer overcoat would be best inside the warm,
(01:26):
cozy house. The storm had not seemed quite as terrible
as it was to Bert when he stepped outside. At first,
the wind nearly took his breath, and the snowflakes tossed
this way and that by. The wintry blast stung the
boy's cheeks, but he laughed and shouted, pretending that he
was a soldier fighting the storm. As he floundered out
(01:48):
into the drifts and down toward Doctor Martin's house. There
were very few persons out in the tempest, which was
in fact a blizzard. Bert saw no one whom he knew,
but a man who was tramping his way through the
snow called to the boy, quite a storm, that's right,
panted Bert, stopping to get his breath. More wires down
(02:10):
than before. The man went on, and a lot of
trains are stuck in the snow. Bert felt a sinking
feeling in his heart, and he hoped his father and
mother had not started back from Uncle Rossiter's, only to
be snowed in. Bert decided he would say nothing to
Nan about what this man had told him. Floundering on
(02:30):
through the snow, falling down once but getting up quickly
again with a laugh. Bert at last reached the doctor's
house and rang the bell. A maid let him into
the office. The doctor will see you in a few minutes,
she said. I don't want him to see me, replied Bert,
I'm not sick. It's Aunt Sally Prye. She's staying at
(02:51):
our house and she has the lumbago. The maid smiled
at the boy, and the doctor, who happened to be
in the next room, opened the door. For Bert had
spoken rather loudly. Oh Bert, it's you, isn't it, asked
doctor Martin, for he knew the Bobbsey twins. What's the
trouble at your house? Bert told him, mentioning that his
(03:12):
father and mother, as well as Sam and Dinah were away,
and you twins are keeping house all alone, are you,
asked the doctor. Sure we are, said Bert a bit proudly.
Well you're a fine family of children. I'll say that
for you, said doctor Martin, admiringly. I'll come over and
see what I can do for Aunt Sally in a
(03:33):
little while. Bring something for the lumbago, advised Bert. Yes,
I'll do that, the doctor promised, laughing, and don't get
stuck in a snow drift going back. Bert. I won't,
said the boy, But I was stuck in one early
this morning, and he told about having fallen off the roof.
Out again into the storm stepped Bert Bobbsey back over
(03:56):
the way he had come. He floundered again when a
little way from home he heard a faint mewing sound.
It's a cat, cried Bert. I wonder if that could
be our cat's snoop. Come back for snoop with snap,
the dog had been sent away to an animal doctor's
for a time. The mewing of the cat sounded more plainly,
(04:18):
and Bert looked around. Then up in a tree, but
not far above the ground, he saw a little Maltese kitten.
Oh you poor little cat, exclaimed Bert. Guess you got
lost in the storm. I'll take you home. He reached
up and, by standing on his tiptoes, managed to get
hold of the pussy. She dug her claws into the
(04:39):
bark of the tree, for she was afraid of falling,
but Bert gently pulled her loose, then cuddled her in
his arms, murmuring, oh, you're a nice little kitten. I'm
glad I found you. Flossy and Freddy will just love you,
and Nan will give you some warm milk. I guess
you got out of some house and don't know how
to give back. However, there were no houses very near
(05:03):
the tree in which Bert had found the little cat,
so not knowing to whom she belonged, he took her
home with him. At first, the pussy mewed pitifully as
Bert cuddled her in his arms, but soon she began
to purr contentedly. Now you're happy, said the boy. Nan
opened to the side door for Bert, for she was
(05:24):
watching for him to come back, and at first she
did not see the cat. Is the doctor coming? Nan
wanted to know. He'll be here in a little while,
was the answer. Then the pussy in Bert's arms moved,
and Nan caught sight of the bright eyes and the
little tail waving. Oh the darling, she cried, where did
(05:44):
you get her? Bert found her mewing up in a tree.
By this time, Flossie and Freddy, having heard Bert enter,
ran to greet him, and they too saw the pussy.
Oh can I have her? Flossie wanted to know, reaching
up to stroke the animal, in Bert's arms. Is that Snoop?
Growed little Freddy, asked for Snoop was a very big cat.
(06:08):
This is Snowflake, a new cat, Bert answered, I named
her Snowflake because I got her out in the snow storm. Oh,
I just love her, cried Flossie. Please let me hold Snowflake.
I want to hold her, too, broke in Freddy. Now
look here, said Bert, somewhat sternly. There must be no
pulling this pussy apart by you two to see who's
(06:30):
going to hold her. You must take turns. As soon
as I hear you disputing over the pussy, I'll put
her back in the tree where I found her. This
was such a terrible thing to think of having happened
that Flossie and Freddy were quite alarmed. I won't pull
the pussy, promised Freddy. And I won't either, said Flossie. Freddy.
(06:52):
You can take her now for a little while if
you like, and I'll take a turn afterward. All right, Flossie,
thank you, said Freddy politely, very gently. He took the
pussy in his arms, and Nan and Bert looked at
each other, smiling over the heads of the smaller Bobbsey children.
It's a good thing you said that to them, or
else they'd be disputing all the while, whispered Nan. Now
(07:14):
they'll be quiet for a time. Doctor Martin came in
a little while and went up to see Missus Prye.
Where does it hurt you the most? He asked the
old lady. What's that? Cried Aunt Sallie, sitting up in bed.
You say you fell over a post. I hope you
didn't get hurt, Doctor Martin. No, I didn't fall over
a post, said the doctor, and then he looked up
(07:36):
to see Nan behind Missus Priye's back, motioning to her
ears to let him know the old lady was deaf.
I ask you where the pain hurt most? Oh? The pain? Yes,
you don't speak as loudly as you used to, Doctor Martin,
or else my hearing is getting bad. Why the pain
most is in my back? The doctor then asked her
(07:59):
other questions and left some medicine for her, saying he
thought she would be better in a few days. Keep
her warm, he told Nan as he was leaving, having
promised to come the next day. Heat is the best
thing for lumbago. I've been giving her hot flat irons
for her bag Nan explained. That's a good idea. Keep
it up, said doctor Martin. And how are you getting
(08:21):
on with your housekeeping alone as you are? Oh pretty well,
Nan said, of course, we're lonesome without father and mother.
And when the window got smashed early this morning, we
were all frightened. But Bert fixed it, Yes, and he
nearly fixed himself at the same time, laughed the doctor
as he remembered what Bert had told him about falling
off the porch roof. Well, good bye and good luck,
(08:44):
he said, as he went out into the storm and
keep Aunt Sally warm. Nan felt better now that the
doctor had called, and she was glad Flossy and Freddy
had the kitten to play with. But soon Freddy came
to Nan in the kitchen and said, Snowflake is hung
she wants some milk. I guess we haven't any milk
except sweetened condensed, and I don't believe she'll like that.
(09:07):
Dan said, I wish we had some fresh milk and
some other things from the store. I'll go, offered Bert.
It isn't snowing quite so hard now. This was true.
The flakes were not falling quite so fast, and the
wind had gone down a little, so Nan thought it
would be all right for Bert to venture out. Freddy,
of course wanted to go, but it was not hard
(09:30):
to persuade him to stay in to help Flossie look
after Snowflake. Nan told Bert what to buy at the
store and gave him a basket in which to carry
the groceries. I'll stop at the post office and see
if there's any mail in, yet, decided the Bobbsey boy,
as once more he went out into the snow. He
went to the post office first, and was much disappointed
(09:52):
when he learned that there were no letters for him
or Nan. The trains snowed up, yet, asked Bert, most
of them must be, said the postmaster. Anyhow, no mail
has come in. Maybe there'll be some tomorrow. Bert certainly
hoped so, and he could not help worrying about his
father and mother. They might be in a train that
(10:13):
was very deep in a great heap of snow, and
there might be nothing to eat in the cars. I
wish they'd come home, sighed Bert. He found several men
and boys in the store buying things to eat, for
it had not been possible to make any deliveries. Charlie
Mason was there getting things for his folks. Say, it's
fun not to have to go to school, isn't it,
(10:34):
asked Charlie. Yes, some fun, Bert admitted, But I guess
it will be open in a few days now. This
storm can't last much longer. No, I guess, not, answered Charlie.
Seen anything of Danny Rugg, Yes, I saw him the
other day, Bertie answered, But I don't like him any more, nor,
I agreed Charlie, Danny is getting bad again like he
(10:56):
used to be. The two boys parted outside the door,
Charlie going one way with his basket of food and
Bert the other. And it was when Bert came in
front of the church, the same church where the window
had been broken, that Bert once more saw Danny Rugg.
This time, the young bully did not see Bert, for
Danny was intent on slipping in the side door of
(11:19):
the church, which was open. Danny also had a basket
of food. Say this is queer, murmured Bert to himself.
What's he going into the church again? For I'm going
to find out. Maybe he's going to try to mend
that broken window. And Bert looked up at the stained glass.
It had not yet been repaired, A plain piece of
(11:41):
white glass having been put over the hole. Waiting a
moment until Danny was inside the church, Bert softly followed.
He set his basket of groceries down in the vestibule,
stood still and listened. He heard Danny tramping up to
the balcony. Now I'll catch him at whatever he's up to,
whispered Bert to himself. And I'm not going to fall
(12:02):
down any trapdoors either. End of Chapter nineteen, read by
Martha Heaton
Chapter nineteen of The Bobbsey Twins Keeping House. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Read by Martha Heaton, August twenty twenty three. The Bobbsey
(00:22):
Twins Keeping House by Laura Lee Hope In Church again,
there was no help for it. If the doctor was
to come to Aunt Sally to help her, Bert must
go after him. The telephone would not work. It isn't far,
Bert said to Nan, when he had tried several more
times to get an answer from the telephone operator. I
(00:45):
can soon push my way down to doctor Martin's office.
Maybe he won't come back with you, suggested Nan. Maybe
he'll think the storm is too bad for him to
come out in. Doctors aren't that way, declared Bert. They
go out and any kind of a storm when anybody
is sick. So he made ready to go out again,
(01:05):
putting on his boots and getting out his long overcoat
and mittens in order to leave his legs free. When
he was chopping at the tree branch, Bert had put
on a short pea jacket, as sailors call them, But
now to venture out on the streets in the storm,
He decided his longer overcoat would be best inside the warm,
(01:26):
cozy house. The storm had not seemed quite as terrible
as it was to Bert when he stepped outside. At first,
the wind nearly took his breath, and the snowflakes tossed
this way and that by. The wintry blast stung the
boy's cheeks, but he laughed and shouted, pretending that he
was a soldier fighting the storm. As he floundered out
(01:48):
into the drifts and down toward Doctor Martin's house. There
were very few persons out in the tempest, which was
in fact a blizzard. Bert saw no one whom he knew,
but a man who was tramping his way through the
snow called to the boy, quite a storm, that's right,
panted Bert, stopping to get his breath. More wires down
(02:10):
than before. The man went on, and a lot of
trains are stuck in the snow. Bert felt a sinking
feeling in his heart, and he hoped his father and
mother had not started back from Uncle Rossiter's, only to
be snowed in. Bert decided he would say nothing to
Nan about what this man had told him. Floundering on
(02:30):
through the snow, falling down once but getting up quickly
again with a laugh. Bert at last reached the doctor's
house and rang the bell. A maid let him into
the office. The doctor will see you in a few minutes,
she said. I don't want him to see me, replied Bert,
I'm not sick. It's Aunt Sally Prye. She's staying at
(02:51):
our house and she has the lumbago. The maid smiled
at the boy, and the doctor, who happened to be
in the next room, opened the door. For Bert had
spoken rather loudly. Oh Bert, it's you, isn't it, asked
doctor Martin, for he knew the Bobbsey twins. What's the
trouble at your house? Bert told him, mentioning that his
(03:12):
father and mother, as well as Sam and Dinah were away,
and you twins are keeping house all alone, are you,
asked the doctor. Sure we are, said Bert a bit proudly.
Well you're a fine family of children. I'll say that
for you, said doctor Martin, admiringly. I'll come over and
see what I can do for Aunt Sally in a
(03:33):
little while. Bring something for the lumbago, advised Bert. Yes,
I'll do that, the doctor promised, laughing, and don't get
stuck in a snow drift going back. Bert. I won't,
said the boy, But I was stuck in one early
this morning, and he told about having fallen off the roof.
Out again into the storm stepped Bert Bobbsey back over
(03:56):
the way he had come. He floundered again when a
little way from home he heard a faint mewing sound.
It's a cat, cried Bert. I wonder if that could
be our cat's snoop. Come back for snoop with snap,
the dog had been sent away to an animal doctor's
for a time. The mewing of the cat sounded more plainly,
(04:18):
and Bert looked around. Then up in a tree, but
not far above the ground, he saw a little Maltese kitten.
Oh you poor little cat, exclaimed Bert. Guess you got
lost in the storm. I'll take you home. He reached
up and, by standing on his tiptoes, managed to get
hold of the pussy. She dug her claws into the
(04:39):
bark of the tree, for she was afraid of falling,
but Bert gently pulled her loose, then cuddled her in
his arms, murmuring, oh, you're a nice little kitten. I'm
glad I found you. Flossy and Freddy will just love you,
and Nan will give you some warm milk. I guess
you got out of some house and don't know how
to give back. However, there were no houses very near
(05:03):
the tree in which Bert had found the little cat,
so not knowing to whom she belonged, he took her
home with him. At first, the pussy mewed pitifully as
Bert cuddled her in his arms, but soon she began
to purr contentedly. Now you're happy, said the boy. Nan
opened to the side door for Bert, for she was
(05:24):
watching for him to come back, and at first she
did not see the cat. Is the doctor coming? Nan
wanted to know. He'll be here in a little while,
was the answer. Then the pussy in Bert's arms moved,
and Nan caught sight of the bright eyes and the
little tail waving. Oh the darling, she cried, where did
(05:44):
you get her? Bert found her mewing up in a tree.
By this time, Flossie and Freddy, having heard Bert enter,
ran to greet him, and they too saw the pussy.
Oh can I have her? Flossie wanted to know, reaching
up to stroke the animal, in Bert's arms. Is that Snoop?
Growed little Freddy, asked for Snoop was a very big cat.
(06:08):
This is Snowflake, a new cat, Bert answered, I named
her Snowflake because I got her out in the snow storm. Oh,
I just love her, cried Flossie. Please let me hold Snowflake.
I want to hold her, too, broke in Freddy. Now
look here, said Bert, somewhat sternly. There must be no
pulling this pussy apart by you two to see who's
(06:30):
going to hold her. You must take turns. As soon
as I hear you disputing over the pussy, I'll put
her back in the tree where I found her. This
was such a terrible thing to think of having happened
that Flossie and Freddy were quite alarmed. I won't pull
the pussy, promised Freddy. And I won't either, said Flossie. Freddy.
(06:52):
You can take her now for a little while if
you like, and I'll take a turn afterward. All right, Flossie,
thank you, said Freddy politely, very gently. He took the
pussy in his arms, and Nan and Bert looked at
each other, smiling over the heads of the smaller Bobbsey children.
It's a good thing you said that to them, or
else they'd be disputing all the while, whispered Nan. Now
(07:14):
they'll be quiet for a time. Doctor Martin came in
a little while and went up to see Missus Prye.
Where does it hurt you the most? He asked the
old lady. What's that? Cried Aunt Sallie, sitting up in bed.
You say you fell over a post. I hope you
didn't get hurt, Doctor Martin. No, I didn't fall over
a post, said the doctor, and then he looked up
(07:36):
to see Nan behind Missus Priye's back, motioning to her
ears to let him know the old lady was deaf.
I ask you where the pain hurt most? Oh? The pain? Yes,
you don't speak as loudly as you used to, Doctor Martin,
or else my hearing is getting bad. Why the pain
most is in my back? The doctor then asked her
(07:59):
other questions and left some medicine for her, saying he
thought she would be better in a few days. Keep
her warm, he told Nan as he was leaving, having
promised to come the next day. Heat is the best
thing for lumbago. I've been giving her hot flat irons
for her bag Nan explained. That's a good idea. Keep
it up, said doctor Martin. And how are you getting
(08:21):
on with your housekeeping alone as you are? Oh pretty well,
Nan said, of course, we're lonesome without father and mother.
And when the window got smashed early this morning, we
were all frightened. But Bert fixed it, Yes, and he
nearly fixed himself at the same time, laughed the doctor
as he remembered what Bert had told him about falling
off the porch roof. Well, good bye and good luck,
(08:44):
he said, as he went out into the storm and
keep Aunt Sally warm. Nan felt better now that the
doctor had called, and she was glad Flossy and Freddy
had the kitten to play with. But soon Freddy came
to Nan in the kitchen and said, Snowflake is hung
she wants some milk. I guess we haven't any milk
except sweetened condensed, and I don't believe she'll like that.
(09:07):
Dan said, I wish we had some fresh milk and
some other things from the store. I'll go, offered Bert.
It isn't snowing quite so hard now. This was true.
The flakes were not falling quite so fast, and the
wind had gone down a little, so Nan thought it
would be all right for Bert to venture out. Freddy,
of course wanted to go, but it was not hard
(09:30):
to persuade him to stay in to help Flossie look
after Snowflake. Nan told Bert what to buy at the
store and gave him a basket in which to carry
the groceries. I'll stop at the post office and see
if there's any mail in, yet, decided the Bobbsey boy,
as once more he went out into the snow. He
went to the post office first, and was much disappointed
(09:52):
when he learned that there were no letters for him
or Nan. The trains snowed up, yet, asked Bert, most
of them must be, said the postmaster. Anyhow, no mail
has come in. Maybe there'll be some tomorrow. Bert certainly
hoped so, and he could not help worrying about his
father and mother. They might be in a train that
(10:13):
was very deep in a great heap of snow, and
there might be nothing to eat in the cars. I
wish they'd come home, sighed Bert. He found several men
and boys in the store buying things to eat, for
it had not been possible to make any deliveries. Charlie
Mason was there getting things for his folks. Say, it's
fun not to have to go to school, isn't it,
(10:34):
asked Charlie. Yes, some fun, Bert admitted, But I guess
it will be open in a few days now. This
storm can't last much longer. No, I guess, not, answered Charlie.
Seen anything of Danny Rugg, Yes, I saw him the
other day, Bertie answered, But I don't like him any more, nor,
I agreed Charlie, Danny is getting bad again like he
(10:56):
used to be. The two boys parted outside the door,
Charlie going one way with his basket of food and
Bert the other. And it was when Bert came in
front of the church, the same church where the window
had been broken, that Bert once more saw Danny Rugg.
This time, the young bully did not see Bert, for
Danny was intent on slipping in the side door of
(11:19):
the church, which was open. Danny also had a basket
of food. Say this is queer, murmured Bert to himself.
What's he going into the church again? For I'm going
to find out. Maybe he's going to try to mend
that broken window. And Bert looked up at the stained glass.
It had not yet been repaired, A plain piece of
(11:41):
white glass having been put over the hole. Waiting a
moment until Danny was inside the church, Bert softly followed.
He set his basket of groceries down in the vestibule,
stood still and listened. He heard Danny tramping up to
the balcony. Now I'll catch him at whatever he's up to,
whispered Bert to himself. And I'm not going to fall
(12:02):
down any trapdoors either. End of Chapter nineteen, read by
Martha Heaton
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