"Goodness me! We don"t care about scenery, mother!" objected George.
"Of course not! We want to play nice outdoor games," added Martha.
"What have you been doing since we stopped reading?" asked Mrs. Davis.
"I didn"t hear a sound from you, so I thought you were pining for something to do; that is why I proposed the drive," said Mrs. Parke.
"Oh, no, we never pine. First we found Jim, and then we went to John"s side of the hedge to get him. After talking over the best thing to play, we decided to build something Jack knows all about "cause he has camped, and we are going to carpenter just as he tells us this afternoon, so you see we haven"t time to admire the scenery," explained George.
"That is very nice, and constructive play is always to be encouraged, Kate," remarked Mrs. Davis to Mrs. Parke.
"But there is generally something doubtful under all of the quiet and constructive plays George favors so readily," doubted Mrs. Parke.
"Mother, if you don"t believe we are going to build something great and worth while, ask Jim. He never tells fibs!" said George, with such a disappointed expression in his eyes that said "My own mother hesitates to trust me," that both ladies hastened to a.s.sure him that they fully trusted him.
So the mothers were sent off on the drive, and the two armies continued their plans for a grand fight.
The moment luncheon was over Martha crept to the back door and thence to the store-room that was built out from the butler"s pantry. The servants were all downstairs eating lunch and talking, so the time was most opportune for a raid. Jim was already there trying to pry up lids of cereal cartons and other boxes.
"Heah"s some mos" empty," said he, the moment Martha appeared in the store-room.
"They"re all right! Even if there is a little oatmeal and rice in some of "em-so much the better, cause we must try to fish "em out of the water when the Yanks throw the cargo in," said Martha, carrying the three boxes to the window, and dropping them out on the gra.s.s where George stood waiting.
Besides the three boxes used for cereal, Jim found a real tea-caddy, but it was more than half full, so Martha emptied the contents on a newspaper spread on the floor behind the door.
Also they found a soap box and the contents was emptied on top of the tea for want of a better place. A cardboard drum that had held dried fruit or other viands, stood on the shelf with some stuff in it-lumpy and pulverized together.
"What is this?" asked Martha, taking up a lump.
"Ah donno, but maybe yo" kin tell ef yo" tas" it," suggested Jim.
So Martha carefully touched the lump to her tongue, but the moment it came in contact with the pink tip, the washing-soda burned and smarted horribly.
Martha dropped it and held her mouth frantically, while Jim implored her not to make a noise or they would be "ketched." But the venture was enough for Martha, who hurried out of the room to seek a drink of cooling water.
Jim, thinking it a shame to leave a nice drum there after such a painful experience, emptied the soda upon the soap and orange pekoe tea and dropped the drum from the window. He then climbed up and dropped himself out upon the gra.s.s, where George waited.
"Where"s Martha?" queried Jack.
"Makin" soap-suds, Ah reckon," giggled Jim.
"Making what?" demanded George, surprised.
"Wall, she"s went fer a drink an" ef dat sody sticks to her tongue she"ll have suds all inside her mouf, won"t she?" said Jim.
Martha"s appearance quieted any fears for her safety, however, and soon after all were running to the creek with their burdens of boxes and broomstick guns.
The raft was heavy and hard to move, but finally all hands heaved and tugged and moved it inch by inch nearer the water. The bank of the stream was about three feet above the surface of the water, so when the raft was half over the bank they expected to see it plunge headlong in with a splash, but it stuck on the jagged trunk of a tree, and the children tried in vain to dislodge it.
Then Jack had an inspiration.
"We"ll use the broomsticks and pry her off!"
"Fine idea! Here, John, you stand there and pry under her with this stick. Jim can stand there just opposite you, while Jack and I, being strongest, will pry and shove from the back to shove her over," said George.
Obediently, John took his place and Jim stood on a flat stone opposite, but on the lower side of the raft. When the signal was given by Martha, all four shoved and worked together and the raft moved an inch more nearer the water.
"Fine! Now, boys, once more!" shouted Jack.
Again the signal sounded, and all four pried and pushed. Suddenly the weight of the raft carried it forward with great momentum, dislodging the stone upon which Jim stood and pushed with his broomstick. He lost his balance and fell upon the raft just as it submerged in the creek.
Jim went with it, and as the mud that was stirred up from the bottom of the sluggish stream when the heavy corner of the raft dug down through the water immediately clung to him, Jim was an object for pity when he sputtered up from the water.
"Dear me! The first man overboard and neither side ready for the act!"
sighed Anne seriously.
"Aren"t you ashamed of yourself, Jim, to go and spoil the battle like that?" demanded Martha, justly angry.
"Huccome Ah feel "shamed? Diden" dat ole warship give me struggle enough widdout yo" all blamin" me fer a wettin"?" cried Jim defensively, trying to rub the mud from his eyes.
"Well, now that you"re wet, you"d better be the captain on the ship. Get the raft back here to sh.o.r.e so we can load her up with tea," ordered Jack.
"Whose going to be British and who the Yanks?" asked John.
"I"m always George Washington in these fights," hinted George.
"Then you"re out of this battle, "cause Washington hadn"t a thing to do with the tea party," returned Martha.
"You ought to be a Lord Somebody who sailed with the captain on the _Dartmouth_ when that tea was brought over from England," said Jack.
"Guess I will. Jim can tow the raft over to the bank, and those of you who are colonists must hurry across the bridge to the other side. We British will stay here and pile up the cargo of tea and sail the raft across the creek.
"When we sail into Boston harbor you must try to keep us out, and that is the way the fight will begin. Whichever side wins can take the raft, and cargo and sail it wherever they like," explained George.
It had not been Jack"s plan to have George take the first ride on the raft, nor, indeed, command the warship, but having said it he could not very well change the order, so the next best plan was to sail with Lord Somebody, with Jim the captain.
The captain, so proud of his t.i.tle and position, forgot about his muddy appearance, and eagerly hauled the c.u.mbersome raft to the bank.
"S"posin" you girls and John be the colonists on the other bank. You must use the guns and anything you can to keep us from landing the tea,"
said Jack.
As neither Anne nor Martha wished to risk their dry clothes on the tipsy-looking raft, this suggestion met with their fullest approval; but John grew sulky, as he wanted to try the raft.
"It"s made of my father"s boards, too!" grumbled John.
"What"s that?" shouted Jack, now engaged in loading the ship with chests.
"Nothing much! I don"t see any fun in this fight, that"s all,"