Bobbsey, quickly.
Freddie spoke up for himself.
"The bell had a sign on it," said the little fellow, "and it said to
ring it for a fire. I wanted to see a fire, and so I rang the bell and--
and--"
Freddie's lips began to quiver. He was just ready to cry.
"There, there, my little man!" said the captain kindly. "No harm is
done. Don't worry. It's all right," and he patted Freddie on the
shoulder.
"You see it's just as Freddie says," the captain went on. "There is a
large sign painted near the bell which reads: 'Ring this for a fire.' I
suppose it would be better to say; 'Ring the bell in case of fire.' I
believe I'll have it changed to read that way. Anyhow, your little boy
saw the sign over the bell, And on the bell is a rope so low that any
one, even a child, can reach it. So your Freddie just pulled the rope,
clanged the bell, and then he cried 'Fire!' as loudly as he could. Some
one else took up the cry, and, there you are!"
"And so you rang the bell, did you, Freddie, because you wanted to see a
fire?" asked the father of the little fellow.
"Yes," answered Flossie's brother. "I wanted to see how they put out a
fire on a boat, and the bell said for to ring for a fire, and I wanted a
fire, I did; not a big one, just a little one, and so----"
"And so you just naturally rang the bell!" laughed the captain.
Pages:
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151