Henry and Ribsy (5 page)

Henry did not answer. He wiggled his teeth and kept an eye on Scooter.

“You keep quiet,” Scooter said to Robert. “I asked him first.”

“He's more my friend than he is yours,” answered Robert.” We're the same age and we're in the same room at school.”

Henry wiggled his teeth and let the boys argue. While they were arguing, Mary Jane, Beezus, and her little sister Ramona came down the street. Henry could tell they had been to the store, because Mary Jane was carrying a jar of mayonnaise, Beezus a carton of milk, and Ramona a pound of butter, which wouldn't break if she dropped it.

“Henry has two loose teeth at the same time,” Robert announced to the girls.

“Let's see,” said Beezus eagerly.

“Oh, it's nothing,” said Henry modestly, and bared his teeth. He wiggled first the right tooth and then the left tooth while the girls watched and admired. If he kept them busy looking at his teeth, they might not say anything about his hat.

“If you'll tie strings to them, I'll be glad to pull them for you,” said Beezus.

“Hey, I asked first,” Scooter reminded Henry.

“Nope,” said Henry.

“Henry Huggins, you better pull them out,” said Mary Jane. “My dentist says if you leave loose teeth in too long it makes your grown-up teeth come in crooked.”

Henry scratched at the bits of hair down his back as he thought this over. “Nope,” he said, to keep the argument going, “I'm going to keep them.”

“If you tie strings on them and tie the other ends to a doorknob and slam the door, they come out without even hurting,” said Beezus.

“He could eat a whole bunch of chewy candy. That would pull the teeth out,” suggested Mary Jane.

“That's no fun,” objected Scooter. “Besides, he might swallow them.”

“He could tie a string to each tooth and then tie rocks to the other ends of the strings and throw the rocks in the river.” Robert looked pleased with his suggestion.

“I know a better way,” said Scooter. “He could tie the rocks to his teeth and walk along a railroad track until he came to a high trestle, and when he got to the middle he could throw the rocks off. Boy, that would really pull them out!”

“I know,” said Robert. “He could tie the other ends of the strings to the back end of a fire engine, and when it took off—yow! Would his teeth come out in a hurry!”

“He could tie them to a skyrocket and set off the rocket. Zowie! That would really be something to watch.” Scooter looked proud of himself for thinking up this idea.

“Now you're being silly,” said Mary Jane. “Anyway, the Fourth of July is past.”

“Say, whose teeth are they, anyway?” demanded Henry. Was Scooter eyeing his hat? He couldn't be sure, so he continued. “Besides, I don't want to lose the teeth for keeps. I want to put them under my pillow at night and find dimes instead of teeth in the morning. Anyway, I'll think of a way to pull them myself.”

“How?” everyone wanted to know.

“You just wait,” said Henry. “It'll be a good way, a way nobody ever pulled teeth before.” Then he wished he hadn't said it. Now he would have to think of a way to pull the teeth, and he already had enough troubles. He scratched his back where the loose hair made him itch and wished his mother would hurry up and call him in to dinner.

“What do you keep scratching for?” Scooter asked, glancing at Henry's hat.

“I itch,” said Henry coldly.

“Ramona!” shrieked Beezus suddenly. “Now look what you've done!”

Ramona was busy eating the pound of butter, which she had unwrapped and was holding in her grimy little hands. Ribsy finished licking the greasy paper and moved closer to help Ramona finish the butter.

“Ribsy!” yelled Henry, and grabbed his dog by the collar. He couldn't have Ribsy eating the Quimbys' butter. Beezus's mother would be sure to complain if he did. The Quimbys might eat butter that had been licked by Ramona, but they probably wouldn't eat butter licked by Ribsy even though he was a nice clean dog.

Ribsy strained so hard toward the butter that Henry had to hang onto his collar with both hands. Ribsy coughed and pawed the air with his front feet. “Cut it out, Ribsy,” ordered Henry. “Do you want to get me in trouble?”

“Ramona, just wait till Mother sees this butter,” scolded Beezus, as she pried at her little sister's slippery fingers. “Look at it. It's all squeezed and dirty.”

Out of the corner of his eye Henry saw Scooter raise his hand. Henry let go of Ribsy's collar, the dog bounded forward, and Henry clapped his hands to his head an instant too late. Scooter had snatched the sailor hat.

“You give me that hat!” yelled Henry, trying to cover his hair with one hand while he grabbed at his hat with the other.

“Try and get it,” taunted Scooter, and began to laugh. “Boy, oh, boy! Look at the haircut!”

“Ribsy!” screamed Beezus.

“I've got him,” said Robert, grabbing Ribsy by the collar.

“Henry Huggins, what happened to you?” Mary Jane was horrified. “You look all chewed.”

“Wow!” exclaimed Robert, keeping a firm grip on Ribsy's collar. “Look at that hair!”

“Scooter McCarthy, you give me that hat!” Henry tried to grab it, but Scooter held it out of reach.

“What happened, Henry?” Robert asked. “Did you cut your own hair?”

“Aw, keep quiet,” said Henry.

“It looks as if something had been chewing on it!” Scooter stopped and laughed. “Look at it. Did you ever see anything so chewed?”

Beezus, who was trying to stuff the melting remains of the butter back into the box, looked at Henry. “I know what happened. His mother cut his hair, that's what. I can tell, because my mother cuts my hair and she never gets the bangs straight.”

“Is that what happened?” Scooter demanded, as he spun Henry's hat around on his finger.

Henry kicked at a tuft of grass. He was too miserable to answer.

“Boy, she really fixed you,” said Scooter, laughing harder than ever. “Look at those nicks in back. And the way it sticks out over your ears.”

“I'm glad my mother doesn't cut my hair,” said Robert. “I wouldn't want to go around looking like that.”

“Wait till the kids at school see it,” said Scooter. “I wouldn't want to be in your shoes.”

“It does look pretty awful,” said Beezus, as she tried to hang onto her little sister's greasy fingers. “I guess it's easier to cut girls' hair.”

Henry did not have a thing to say. He knew how awful his hair looked.

At last Mrs. Huggins came out on the porch. “Henry, dinner is ready,” she called.

Henry caught the sailor hat as Scooter tossed it to him. “Come on, you old dog,” he said to Ribsy as he climbed the front steps. “Look at all the trouble you got me into just because I was trying to keep you out of trouble. Now what am I going to do?”

Ribsy's ears and tail drooped as he followed Henry into the house.

T
hat evening, when Henry wore his sailor hat to the dinner table, he noticed his mother glance at him and then look at his father. She looked as if she was going to say something, but instead she sighed and was silent.

“You're looking pretty gloomy,” remarked Mr. Huggins, as he filled Henry's plate.

“Yeah,” said Henry. “Don't give me much to eat. I'm not very hungry.” Henry was careful to bite with his solid front teeth. He couldn't take chances with his loose teeth. He had to have them to show off to people who started making fun of his hair.

“I'm afraid the boys were giving him a bad time about his hair,” exclaimed Mrs. Huggins.

“Would you feel better if you went to the barber to see what he could do about it?” asked Henry's father. “A short crew cut might help.”

“Well, maybe, but I don't think anything would help very much,” said Henry. He wiggled first his right tooth and then his left tooth.

“I wonder if…” began Mrs. Huggins and paused.

“If what?” Mr. Huggins asked.

“Oh, nothing. I was just thinking.” Mrs. Huggins suddenly smiled at Henry.

Henry wiggled his teeth and wondered what his mother was thinking about. He hoped it wasn't anything like another home haircut.

“Really, Henry,” said his mother, “you shouldn't go around with your teeth flapping that way.”

“Aw, Mom, they don't flap,” protested Henry. “They just wiggle.”

“I see by the paper that old teeth left under pillows are turning into quarters instead of dimes, because the cost of living has gone up,” said Mr. Huggins.

Henry grinned. He knew it was really his father who had always taken away his old teeth and left the dimes under his pillow. But right now, much as he could use two quarters, he needed two loose teeth more.

The next morning Henry examined his hair in the mirror. He could not see that it had grown any, so he put on his sailor hat and moped around the house. He tried drawing a face on an electric lightbulb with colored chalk. When he found the face did not shine through the shade the way he had planned, he felt even gloomier. He stood with his nose pressed against the front windowpane until Ribsy scratched at the door and asked to be let out.

Henry followed his dog out the door and sat down on the front steps. Gloomy as he felt about his hair, he didn't want to risk losing that fishing trip by giving Ribsy a chance to get into trouble with the neighbors. While he kept his eye on Ribsy, he could not keep from poking first his right tooth and then his left tooth with his tongue. They were looser all right. He discovered he could poke the two teeth out between his lips so they felt like little tusks.

As Henry experimented with his teeth, he happened to glance up Klickitat Street. Then, thinking he must be seeing things, he jumped up and stared. Robert and Scooter were walking toward him, both of them wearing sailor hats with the brims turned down over their eyebrows!

Well, how do you like that, thought Henry. Wearing sailor hats just to make fun of me. A couple of fine friends they turned out to be. Well, they weren't going to get a chance to tease him. “Come on, Ribsy,” he said. “Let's go in the house before they see us.”

Ribsy did not care to go into the house. He was busy sniffing the rosebushes along the edge of the Grumbies' property.

“OK, you old dog,” muttered Henry, and steeled himself for the meeting with Scooter and Robert.

Side by side the two boys walked down the street. They did not seem to see Henry. Looking straight ahead, they stalked past the Hugginses' house.

Henry stared after them. What's the matter with them anyhow? he wondered. What did I do to them? Then a thought struck Henry. Could it be? No, it couldn't. Yes, it must be! Suddenly Henry had a feeling he was no longer the only boy with a chewed-up haircut. “Hey!” he yelled.

Robert and Scooter stalked on.

Why are they acting like that, Henry wondered. It's not my fault if they have home haircuts. Henry felt he had to know for sure. If he wasn't the only one with chewed-up hair, things wouldn't be so bad. “Hey, fellows,” he yelled again and as he yelled, his tongue touched one of his loose teeth. What were a couple of loose teeth anyhow? He made up his mind. “Want to watch me pull my teeth?”

Robert and Scooter hesitated. Then they stopped and turned around.

“I've thought of a keen way to pull them,” said Henry, trying frantically to think of an unusual way to get those teeth out of his mouth.

“How?” demanded Scooter, as he and Robert came up to the steps.

“You'll see,” said Henry feebly. But, he thought, how
am
I going to pull them? To stall for time, he fished through his pockets and found a piece of string. “Uh…how come you fellows are wearing hats?” he ventured.

“Come on, Robert,” said Scooter. “He said he was going to pull his teeth, but I guess he didn't mean it.”

“I am too going to pull them.” Henry was determined not to let the boys get away before he found out what had happened. He carefully untangled the string and tried to sound casual. “Did you fellows get your hair cut?” he asked.

“We sure did,” said Scooter, “and it's all your fault.”

“What do you mean, it's all my fault?” asked Henry. “What did I do?”

“You know.” Scooter scowled at Henry. “And if you ask me it was a pretty mean trick. As bad as tattling.”

“Worse,” said Robert.

“What mean trick?” Henry demanded. “What are you talking about?”

“Your mother phoned our mothers and told them about the sale of hair clippers, that's what,” said Scooter. “She phoned just like you told her to. And they both went right over to the clipper sale at the Colossal Drugstore.”

“My mother?” Henry was genuinely bewildered. “My mother phoned your mothers?”

“Honest, didn't you know about it?” Robert asked.

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” said Henry. Well, so that was what his mother had been thinking about at dinner last night! Leave it to her to think of something. Henry wanted to laugh and shout but he didn't dare, not with Scooter glowering at him.

“See?” said Robert to Scooter. “I told you it wasn't his idea for his mother to tell our mothers. I knew Henry wouldn't do a thing like that and you said he would.”

Henry looked injured. “You're some friend, thinking I'd do a mean thing like that.”

“Well, maybe you didn't,” said Scooter grudgingly, “but I bet you haven't really thought of a way to pull your teeth.”

“I have, too,” said Henry. Now how was he going to get out of this fix, he wondered, as he slowly tied one end of the string to his right tooth. Then he slowly tied the other end of the string to his left tooth while he tried to think of a way to stall for time. “How about letting me have a look at your hair?” he suggested, anxious to see if their haircuts were worse than his.

“Come on! Let's see you pull your teeth,” said Scooter.

“I need some more string,” explained Henry. “I can't pull them until somebody gives me some more string.”

Robert and Scooter searched their pockets. “I don't have any,” said Robert.

“Me neither,” said Scooter. “You're just stalling.”

“I'm not either stalling.” Should he suggest they go around to the backyard, Henry wondered. Maybe he could climb the cherry tree and hang the string that joined his two teeth over a branch and jump out of the tree. It was not much of an idea, but it would have to do.

Henry started to call Ribsy, who was napping with his nose on his paws, when suddenly he had an inspiration. Of course! Why hadn't he thought of it before! All he needed was a little cooperation from Ribsy, and this time he had a feeling that for once Ribsy would do the right thing at the right time.

Henry picked up Ribsy's tug-of-war rope. He tied one end to the middle of the string that joined his two teeth and tossed the other end onto the grass. “Here, Ribsy,” he called. Ribsy opened one eye and looked at Henry. Then he opened the other eye and bounded across the lawn. “Wuf!” he said.

Henry braced himself in case it hurt to have his teeth pulled. Ribsy grabbed the end of the rope, growled deep in his throat, and tugged. Henry's teeth flew out of his mouth so fast he didn't even feel them go.

Henry put his hand to his mouth and stared at his teeth lying on the grass. They had come out so easily he could scarcely believe they were gone. He poked his tongue into the right hole in his mouth and then into the left hole. They were gone, all right. “How's that for a way to pull teeth?” he asked. “They were canine teeth, so I thought I'd let my dog pull them out.”

“Say, that was a smart idea,” exclaimed Robert. “I never heard of anyone having a dog pull his teeth before. Maybe I can get him to pull the next one I have loose.”

“Good old Ribsy,” said Henry, and hugged him. Maybe Ribsy did get into a little trouble once in a while, but he was pretty useful for getting out of a tight spot. Ribsy wriggled with delight and licked Henry's face with his long pink tongue.

“A tooth-pulling dog. That's pretty good.” Scooter sounded impressed. “Take you long to train the old garbage hound?”

“Not very long, and he's
not
a garbage hound.” Henry untied his teeth and put them in the watch pocket of his jeans for safekeeping till he put them under his pillow that night. “He's a smart dog, aren't you, Ribsy?”

“Wuf,” answered Ribsy, and worried the rope.

Henry looked at Scooter's and Robert's sailor hats. “Well, how about letting me see your haircuts?” he asked, pulling off his own hat.

“Nope.” Scooter took hold of his hat and tried to yank it farther down over his ears.

“Aw, come on, Scoot,” coaxed Henry. “I pulled my teeth like I said I would.”

Robert snatched off his own hat, and he and Henry studied each other's haircuts. “Yours is better in front but mine is better in back,” Robert decided. “At least it feels better.”

Henry examined Robert's hair. It looked pretty bad, a little worse than his own he decided, especially where it was gouged out over the left ear. “I suppose hair really does grow pretty fast,” said Henry.

“Anyway, we're better off than Scooter,” observed Robert. “He's bald on one side. It'll take months to grow out.”

“No kidding?” said Henry. “Really bald?” Then he and Robert began to laugh.

Scooter looked even gloomier. “It's all right for you guys to laugh. You're in the same room at school and you can stick together, but I'll be the only one in my room who doesn't have a boughten haircut.”

“Gee, that's tough,” said Robert, but he didn't sound very sorry.

“It sure is,” agreed Henry cheerfully. What did he care about his haircut? As Scooter said, he and Robert could stick together.

Then Henry had an idea. “Hey, fellows, look!” he said. He turned on the garden hose, filled his mouth with water and blew as hard as he could. Two streams of water shot through the gaps in his teeth. “I bet you wish you could spit double,” he said. Boy, oh, boy! He still had something to show the kids at school. Something besides his haircut.