The Curlytops at Sunset Beach; Or, What Was Found in the Sand Read online

  CHAPTER VII

  LOST IN THE SAND

  Janet and Ted stopped short in their tracks after tipping over theumbrella. They stood there, looking at the strange man and woman--that'swhat the Curlytops did.

  As for the couple under the sun-shade--they, too, were so surprised fora few moments that they could say nothing. Then, noticing how worriedand ashamed the children were, the lady said:

  "It's all right, my dears! No harm done at all. I suppose you wereplaying tag, and you ran so fast you couldn't stop before bumping intoour umbrella."

  "Yes, we'll forgive you," added the man. "I used to play tag myself whenI was a boy. Once I bumped into a cow!"

  Ted laughed a little at hearing this, but Janet still looked worried andserious.

  "Don't take it so to heart, my dear," said the lady. "It was anaccident. We know you couldn't help tipping over our umbrella."

  "Oh, but it wasn't an accident!" exclaimed Janet. She knew that she andher brother must tell the truth.

  "It wasn't an accident?" questioned the lady. "Why----"

  "We did it on purpose!" added Ted, making up his mind that he must dohis share of explaining.

  "You did it on _purpose_!" murmured the man, and the laughing smilevanished from his face and something like a frown took its place.

  "But we didn't mean to do it to you!" Janet hastened to say. "We didn'tknow you were under the umbrella."

  "You thought it was just an umbrella on the sand, with no one under it,did you?" asked the lady, still smiling.

  "No, we knew somebody was under it, 'cause we saw you," said Janet. "Butwe thought it was Mr. and Mrs. Keller. We know _them_, and Ted thoughtit would be fun to knock over their umbrella and holler 'boo!' at them.And we did," she concluded.

  "Only it wasn't Mr. and Mrs. Keller," grimly sighed Ted. "We're sorry,"he went on.

  "And we beg your pardon," added Janet.

  The man was now smiling again, and the lady laughed aloud.

  "Oh, you dear children!" she exclaimed. "How funny you are!"

  Ted was glad if any one could see a joke in it. He couldn't, for hethought the strange man and woman would surely tell his father what hadhappened.

  "So you thought we looked like friends of yours, did you?" asked thelady. "Well, mistakes will happen, and we will forgive this one. No harmis done," she said, as Ted brought back the umbrella, which had rolled alittle way over the sand.

  "Do you children live here?" asked the lady, who, except for her whitehair, did not look like Mrs. Keller.

  "No, ma'am. We just came here for the summer vacation," explained Ted,who had stuck the end of the umbrella handle down in the sand again.

  "And Mr. and Mrs. Keller just came, too, and we thought you were they,"said Janet. "That's our little brother over there," and she pointed toWilliam, who was digging in the sand.

  Just then a big wave came rolling toward him. William did not see it,but Ted did, and he called:

  "Look out, Trouble! Look out!"

  William glanced up and ran back up the beach, but not quite fast enough,for the salt water wet his toes. However, he had taken off his shoes andstockings, so it didn't matter.

  "Trouble? Is that his name?" asked the man, in surprise.

  "That's what we call him," answered Janet, with a smile. "But his realname is William Anthony Curlytop."

  "Curlytop--that's an odd name," murmured the lady.

  "That isn't our real name!" chuckled Ted. "What's the matter with you,Jan?" he asked his sister.

  "Oh, I'm all mixed up," and she, too, laughed. "Our name is Martin," shesaid. "I'm Janet and this is Ted. But we call William by the name ofTrouble, because Daddy says he gets in it so often."

  "Oh, I see," and the lady laughed. "Well, my name is Randall, and thisis my husband. I hope we shall see you children again," she added, asTed and Janet began to move away. For they thought it was about timethey returned to the cottage.

  "Yes, we'll be down on the beach every day," said Ted. "Come on,Trouble!" he called to his small brother. "We're going home!"

  "I want to dig a well and let water come in it for the nellifunt todrink!" asserted Trouble.

  "What does he mean by a _nellifunt_?" asked Mr. Randall.

  "He means an elephant--he's crazy about them. He fed them peanuts in thecircus," explained Janet.

  "And an elephant almost stepped on him in the circus parade. Mr. Kellerpulled him out of the way just in time, and that's how we know Mr. andMrs. Keller," said her brother. "Come on, Trouble! We have to go!" hecalled.

  "I want to make a well an' have water come in for the nellifunt an'----"Trouble was finding many reasons for staying.

  "Elephants don't drink salt water," Janet informed William.

  This, however, might not have made Trouble willing to come away. Butjust then a wave, bigger than any others that had rolled on the beach,came sweeping up. It washed away the sand that William had dug out, andnot only filled with salt water the hole he had dug, but it washed thehole away and splashed up to the little boy's ankles.

  "I--I guess I go home with you," he mumbled, for he was a bitfrightened. "I go home now."

  "The tide's coming in," remarked Mr. Randall. "I think we'd bettermove," he told his wife, as he helped her to arise and then let down thebig, striped sun umbrella. "We'll look for you on the beach to-morrow,"he told the children.

  "We'll look for you," chorused Ted and Janet, and Trouble murmured:

  "I dig a big hole an' make water come in for the nellifunt."

  "Well, children, how do you like it here?" asked Mrs. Martin, when thethree had returned to the cottage, where Norah was getting supper.

  "It's great here!" burst out Ted.

  "And I digged a well, I did, an' a lot of water came in, but Jan saysnellifunts won't drink salt water!" proclaimed Trouble.

  "You ought to have seen us tip over the wrong umbrella!" chuckled Ted.

  "Tip over the wrong umbrella! What do you mean?" demanded his mother.

  Then the story was told, and though Mrs. Martin looked solemn for a fewminutes, she could not help laughing when she found that Mr. and Mrs.Randall were not angry.

  "You must be more careful, Curlytops," she said, and Ted and Janetpromised that they would.

  Supper was rather late, on account of just arriving at a strangecottage, and when the meal was over and the children had played aboutfor a short time, they were glad enough to go to bed.

  "You'll have plenty to see and find lots to do to-morrow," said theirmother.

  "I guess we will," agreed Ted. "I'm going fishing. You can catchterrible big fish in the ocean!" and his eyes opened wide.

  "I can have lovely play parties on the sand with my dolls," added Janet.

  Trouble had been put to bed near his mother's room.

  "I'm goin'--dig a hole for a nelli--for a nellifunt--an'--an'----"

  But that was as far as Trouble could get--his voice trailed off intonothing, for he had fallen asleep even as he talked. And soon Ted andJanet had joined him in Slumberland.

  Bright and early the next day the Curlytops and Baby William went downon the sand to play. Janet had her dolls--for she carried them aroundtwo at a time, and sometimes three. She had a large family of dolls, andthey were quite a responsibility, which is another name for trouble, youknow.

  William carried his sand pail and shovel, and Ted had a collection ofshingles, some sticks of wood, bits of wire and string.

  "I'm going to make something," he said.

  "What?" asked his sister.

  "A sand mill. I saw some in a store. You put a lot of sand in a box andthe sand runs out and it hits a paddle wheel, like a wheel in a mill,and the sand makes the wheel go around. I'm going to make one."

  "I don't believe you can," Janet said.

  "Sure, I can!" asserted Ted.

  So he began work on what he hoped would be a sand mill, and Janet laid acloth down on the beach to put her dolls on it.
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br />   "I'm giving them a sun bath," she explained. "I want 'em to get nice andtanned so everybody will know they've been at the seashore."

  "Pooh, dolls can't tan!" declared Ted.

  "They can so!" retorted his sister.

  They might have had a little dispute then, but Trouble went too near theedge of the waves, with his shoes and stockings on, and got his feetwet. Janet had to take off his things and this kept her so busy that shehad no time to argue with her brother.

  At last the Curlytops were at Sunset Beach, and they loved it very much.It was a wonderful place to spend a summer vacation.

  Ted was working away at his sand mill, Janet was playing with her dolls,and Trouble was at work digging a well for a "nellifunt," far enough upthe beach to be out of the reach of the waves.

  "Well, children, I see you're here!" called a pleasant voice.

  For a moment Janet thought it might be Mr. and Mrs. Randall, but aglance showed her and Ted that it was Mr. and Mrs. Keller. They werestrolling along the shore, smiling and happy.

  "Hello!" greeted Ted, in friendly fashion.

  "You shouldn't say 'hello,'" objected Janet, in a low voice.

  "What should I say then?" her brother wanted to know.

  "You should say 'good morning!' Just like Mother and Daddy do."

  "Oh! Good morning!" and Ted said it loudly enough for several otherpersons on the beach to hear.

  "Good morning!" responded Mr. Keller. "Well, how is every one thismorning?"

  "We're all well, thank you," replied Janet, as she had heard her mothersay. "Are you all right? Did you sleep well?" she inquired politely, forshe thought this was the right thing to say.

  "To tell you the truth, I didn't sleep very well," Mrs. Keller answered."But I shall sleep better to-night. Anyhow, it is lovely here. Let's sitdown and watch the children play," she proposed to her husband.

  He was willing, so they sat together on the sand, Mrs. Keller picking upthe dry, white grains in her hands and letting them run through herfingers.

  AT LAST THE CURLYTOPS WERE AT SUNSET BEACH, AND THEYLOVED IT VERY MUCH.]

  "What are you doing, Trouble?" asked Mr. Keller of William.

  "Makin' a drinkin' well for a nellifunt," was the answer, and Troublenever looked up from his digging in the sand.

  Mr. Keller became interested in what Ted was doing, and he helped theCurlytop boy fasten together the sticks and shingles for the sand mill.

  "Do you think it will work?" asked Ted eagerly. For after he had startedit he had seen that it was not so easy to make as he had thought.

  "I think we can get it to work after a fashion," Mr. Keller answered."We need some nails, though."

  "I'll run home and get them," offered Ted. "Our cottage isn't far away."

  "Won't you come up and see it?" invited Janet. "We thought we saw youdown here last night," she went on, "and we tipped over an umbrella andhollered 'boo!' under it, but it was somebody else. It was Mr. and Mrs.Randall."

  The Kellers laughed when the Curlytops told them about the mistake thathad been made.

  "Let's go up and see Mr. and Mrs. Martin, my dear," suggested Mr. Kellerto his wife. "Then I can get a hammer and some nails and fix Ted's sandmachine."

  "All right," agreed Mrs. Keller. "But perhaps your mother is busyunpacking, and doesn't want any visitors," she added to Janet.

  "Oh, no, ma'am," Janet made haste to say. "Mother told me to tell you,if we saw you, to please call. She says she's going to take it easy downhere and not fuss too much."

  "A very wise thing to do, my dear," said Mrs. Keller. "My husband and Iare on our vacation, and we intend to enjoy it. Of course, it is reallyhis vacation," she added. "But I am helping him spend it. I do hope Mr.Narr won't come after him and make him do some work. I want my husbandto have a good vacation."

  "Why should Mr. Narr try to get me back to do some work?" asked Mr.Keller, with a smile.

  "Well, you know he is spending his vacation somewhere around here," saidMrs. Keller. "In one way it was a mistake, I fear, to come so near him.He knows where we are. And if he needs my husband he is sure to send forhim and ask him to do something," she went on to the Curlytops. "I onlyhope he doesn't find him."

  "So do I," murmured Mr. Keller. "But come on, let's go up to thecottage, Ted, and see if we can get your sand mill to work. All it needsnow is a few nails and a bit of wire."

  "I hope it will work," said Teddy.

  "I guess it will, now that Mr. Keller's going to help you make it," saidJanet. Evidently she had not believed Ted could do the work himself.

  Mrs. Keller had been sitting on the sand near the children. Her husbandarose and she stretched out her hands to him to have him help pull herto her feet. As she did so she uttered a startled cry.

  "What's the matter?" asked Mr. Keller, in surprise.

  "My wedding ring!" she gasped. "It's gone! It isn't on my finger! Itmust have slipped off! My wedding ring is lost in the sand!"

  She was almost ready to cry, and Janet, knowing how much her motherthought of her wedding band of gold, knew how Mrs. Keller must feel.

  "Well, if it's in the sand it ought to be easy to find," said Mr.Keller. "Don't walk around too much. Just stand still and look for it.When did you miss it?"

  "Just a moment ago," she answered. "I was letting the sand run throughmy fingers, and the ring must have slipped off. Oh, if I can't find it Idon't know what I shall do! I shall be heart-broken!"

  The Curlytops could see tears in her eyes.