The Boxcar Children Mysteries: Books One through Twelve (14 page)

“We had better wash dishes in the stream because we may want to drink the water in the barrel,” said Henry.

As he waited for the others, he thought he saw a vegetable garden on the other side of the house. He could not see very well because it was getting dark. “A funny thing to find on an island,” he thought to himself.

“I’m going to bring down my own bed myself,” said Benny, starting back to the barn. “I want the stall right next to Jessie’s for my bedroom.”

“He’s sleepy,” said Jessie, looking at her little watch. “It’s eight o’clock, and I’m sleepy, too.”

After all the children were in bed, Jessie sat up suddenly and listened. She heard a sleepy little voice saying over and over, “Jessie, I want my bear. I want my bear.”

She got up at once. With the flashlight, she soon found the funny-looking animal in the packing box and took it to Benny.

When Jessie woke again, it was morning.

J
essie was not the first one to wake up the next day. At six o’clock, Henry went very quietly to her “room” and opened the swinging door to let Watch out. The dog came very quietly and followed Henry as he walked out of the barn to the spring. Henry stood still and looked around. He was right. It was just as he thought last night. There was a garden, with rows and rows of vegetables in it.

“I wonder if this garden belongs to Captain Daniel,” thought Henry.

Then he heard a little noise, and turned around. A young man was coming toward him. His head was down as he walked. Henry looked at him carefully. Henry thought the man looked very sad, but he forgot that when the stranger looked up and smiled.

“I’m Joe,” he said. “I’m the handy man. How do you like your garden?”

“Mine? Is it mine?” asked Henry.

“Yes. There are two gardens on this island. One belongs to Captain Daniel and this one is yours.”

“How did that happen?” asked Henry. “I just got here.”

“Well, your grandfather knew that you would rather plant it yourself. If you did, it would be too late to start planting when you got out of school. So he told Captain Daniel to plant it, and he said you would weed and look after the garden when you came.”

“I will,” said Henry, opening one of the peas. “These are big enough to eat now.”

“Yes,” said Joe. “The peas are just right, but nothing else will be ready until later.”

“Haven’t you ever eaten tiny vegetables? We did once,” said Henry. “We pulled them because there were too many of them in the garden. It makes me hungry when I remember how good they were. The girls make such good things to eat out of almost nothing.”

The other children appeared at just that minute. But it was Benny who spoke first. “Hello, Joe,” he said. “You look just like Joe. Is this your garden?”

“No,” said Joe, laughing. “It’s yours.”

“Oh, no, it isn’t,” said Benny.

“It is ours, Benny,” said Henry. “Joe and Captain Daniel started it for us, and you may help me weed it.”

“Not now,” said Benny. “I want my breakfast.”

“We’ll eat soon,” said Jessie, smiling at Joe. “This is Violet, and I’m Jessie.”

Joe said, “Yes, Captain Daniel told me all your names. I feel as if I knew you all.”

“Oh, look,” cried Benny. “Peas! I’d like peas for dinner!”

“Our dinner is all planned then,” said Jessie. “We’ll have peas, and everyone will help pick and shell them.”

They walked slowly back to the barn, leaving Joe at the woodpile.

“He’s nice, isn’t he?” said Violet, as they walked along. They all agreed that he was.

After the four bowls and the bread and milk were set on the table, the children sat down carefully on the packing boxes. Then Jessie said, “I think that after breakfast we’d better make a plan for the summer. Every day we must go swimming, and every day we must cook something at noon. After dinner we must either make something or go exploring.”

“Make something, such as a dish cupboard, I suppose,” said Henry, looking at Violet.

“That’s not a bad idea, Henry!” cried Violet.

“I will make you a cupboard this very day,” said Henry.

“Let’s wash the dishes and pick the peas now,” said Jessie. “Henry can make the dish cupboard while we shell the peas. We’ll take the dishpan to hold them.”

On the way to the spring with their bowls and the dishpan, they passed Joe at the woodpile.

“Henry,” called Joe, stopping his work, “did you know that Captain Daniel goes over to the mainland every morning for groceries? If you need any groceries, you may leave your order on a piece of paper in the box on the dock. Captain Daniel will bring your order back to the island before dinner.”

“Oh, how nice,” said Jessie. “I was wondering what to do about milk. Ours is almost gone.”

“Just write what you want and I will take it down now,” said Joe. “Here is my pen.”

Jessie and Henry sat down facing each other on rocks to think.

“We must have butter for the peas,” said Jessie, writing it down on a piece of paper from Joe’s pocket.

“We want bread and four bottles of milk every day all summer,” said Henry.

“Sugar,” called Benny. “And some dog bread for Watch.”

“Good!” said Henry. “I almost forgot Watch.”

“I want to go with Joe and see the little box,” said Benny, taking Joe’s hand.

“Let him go,” said Violet. “I’ll wash his bowl for him, and we can pick peas without him.”

Then the older children set to work. They picked enough for dinner, but lots of peas were left

“Enough for two more dinners,” said Henry, very pleased, “and more will grow. Now I will start that cupboard while you girls shell the peas.

“How many places will you need to put things, Jessie?”

“One shelf for spoons and things,” said Jessie.

“And one shelf for dishes,” said Violet.

“And one shelf for pans and kettles,” said Jessie, “and an extra shelf for groceries.”

The two girls sat in the open door of the barn shelling peas. Henry began to build the cupboard.

“What time shall we go swimming?” asked Jessie.

“We could go in right before lunch,” said Henry. “Or if you were too busy cooking, we could swim before breakfast, and maybe again at four o’clock.”

“Fine,” said Jessie. “Before breakfast when we feel like it—four o’clock when we don’t. Maybe both and go to bed at eight o’clock, or as soon as it gets dark.”

“Oh, dear! Do we all have to go to bed so early?” asked Violet.

“You’ll want to, believe me,” said Henry. “You wait and see.”

When the peas were shelled, Benny came running back. “It’s a big box, Violet,” he said, “and it has a little door, and it will hold lots of bottles of milk and everything. I like to open the door and take out the things.”

“What did you take out?” asked Violet.

“Oh, Captain Daniel let me take out some letters and packages,” answered Benny.

“Maybe you’d like to do that every day, Benny,” said Henry. “You may take the order down to the box. Then you may get the groceries and letters when they come.”

“I’d like to do that,” said Benny. “Captain Daniel was there and he said he’s bringing our groceries soon. Then I can open the little door and get them.”

“That’s fine,” said Henry. He was glad to please Benny and get a little work done at the same time. “Come and hold this door for me, will you?”

“Oh, our cupboard has doors!” said Violet. She watched Henry put two pieces of heavy cloth on the doors so that they would open and shut.

The morning passed very quickly. Jessie lighted the little stove, boiled some water in the kettle, and put in the peas. When they were done, she added some salt, and filled four dishes with peas. On the top of each dish she put a piece of butter. There was no need to call anyone, for the whole family and the dog stood watching her.

“Oh, boy!” cried Henry, as he began to eat.

“Oh, boy!” cried Benny.

Violet said nothing, but when her first dish was empty she passed it for more.

“This is what I like,” said Jessie. “Everything seems better when we have to work to get it.”

It was fun to put white paper in the new dish cupboard and find the best places for each cup and bowl. And at one o’clock the barn was once more in order, the cupboard was shut, and the four children and their dog were ready to explore the island.

T
he children walked through the beach grass and sat on the sand.

“Jessie, look at that!” cried Benny, pointing. As he spoke, a stream of water shot out of the sand. But Henry did not stop to say how pretty it was. “Clams!” he shouted. He jumped up and took a stick from the beach. The rest of the children and the dog ran to watch Henry as he began to dig. Sure enough, he took a real clam from the wet hole.

“Oh, I wish I had a shovel!” cried Henry. “There are lots of clams here. See that hole, and that!”

“Let’s run up and get two big spoons and the dishpan,” cried Jessie. They raced for the tools, leaving Benny and Violet with the stick. When they came running back, they found that Benny had dug out another clam.

“I am going to keep mine,” said Benny, very pleased with himself. “It is such a pretty purple color.”

“You can put all yours together into this pan, Benny,” said Jessie, giving him a saucepan. “You won’t want to keep them when you find out how good they are to eat.”