Part 3

He was an ENORMOUS rooster. He had won a prize at the fair because he was so big. When Bingo jumped in among the hens, they were all so scared that they ran around and said, “Cluck, cluck, cluck, CLUCK.” But the rooster was not a bit scared--no, indeed, he was most _indignant_. He opened his beak, and Bingo heard a TREMENDOUS sound--“Ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo! ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo! ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo!” And the rooster sprang up in the air, and flapped his wings, and rushed at Bingo!

Bingo was so startled that he jumped backwards toward the chicken house, and the rooster dashed after him. All the hens came hurrying up and the chickens, too, saying, “Cluck, cluck, cluck, CLUCK.” They seemed to be on every side! Poor Bingo was terribly frightened, as well he might be--because the rooster was really very much annoyed, and he would have pecked Bingo if he had caught him.

But he did not catch him. Just in the nick of time, Bingo saw the chicken house, and he just managed to scramble in at the door before the rooster caught him--he was safe.

Yes, he was safe, but he had to stay there! The rooster did not quite like to go in after Bingo (you see Bingo was really very nearly as big as the rooster), but he determined to keep Bingo a prisoner. He strutted solemnly up and down in front of the chicken-house door, and every time that Bingo would try to come out he would crow, “Ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo! ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo! ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo!” and scare Bingo so that he decided to stay where he was.

Poor Bingo! it seemed to him that he had been hours and hours in the chicken house. He wondered if he would ever get out again. He was sure that it was long past his dinner hour, he felt so _dreadfully_ hungry. Poor Bingo was a very unhappy little dog.

At last Charlie had finished helping the farm lady make the butter. They had taken it out of the churn, and the farm lady had put it in a big wooden bowl and beaten it with wooden butter paddles so that all the butter milk was squeezed out. She had given Charlie some butter in a smaller bowl so that he could finish making some of the butter all by himself. The farm lady had promised him that they should have it on the dinner table and surprise his Mother and his Auntie.

But it wasn’t dinner time yet, so Charlie ran into the garden to play with Bingo--and there was no Bingo to be seen! He called Bingo, but Bingo did not come. Then he decided to go down to the big barn to look for him. As he passed near the chicken house he heard a _tre-men-dous_ commotion--“Cluck, cluck, cluck, cluck, CLUCK,” “Ooka-ooka-ooka-oooooooooo, ooka-ooka-ooka-oooooooooo, ooka-ooka-ooka-ooooooooo” ... Bingo had been trying to get out again!

Then Charlie said, “Shoo, shoo, shoo!” and the hens and even the rooster all got out of the way, and Bingo was free again! Oh, how glad he was! He jumped, and pranced, and followed Charlie to the kitchen, where his dinner was waiting for him.

But never again did Bingo bark at the chickens and chase them. He no longer thought it an amusing game. In fact Bingo never went near that chicken house again, he was so afraid of that terrible rooster.

CHARLIE DELIVERS MAIL FOR THE STAGE DRIVER

Well, I can tell you that Charlie and Topsy and Bingo liked living in the country very much. There were so many interesting things to do, and so many interesting people to talk to, and every single thing in the country was different from what it was in the city.

Charlie had different things to eat, and he wore different clothes. You never can guess what kind of clothes Charlie wore when he was in the country! Charlie wore blue denim overalls, just like the farm workers, and his Mother bought them for him at the country store, which is _ex-act-ly_ where the farm workers bought theirs!

One day Charlie ran out to the gate before breakfast to mail a letter for his Auntie. In the country there are no post boxes at every corner as there are in the city. Oh, no! When Charlie wanted to mail a letter he just had to go down to the gate and put it in the box that was fastened outside; then he had to take out an old red tobacco tin that was inside the mail box, tied to it by a string, and leave it hanging outside the box, so that the mailman would see it when he went past and know that there was a letter for the mail. If he did not see the tobacco tin hanging out, the stage driver would not stop at all--so it was very important not to forget to hang the tobacco tin out.

Well, Charlie got to the gate just as the stage driver was driving up. When he saw Charlie standing there, he said, “Hello, good morning.” And Charlie said, “Hello, good morning,” too. Then he said, “Are you the postman?” The stage driver laughed. “We-e-ll, I reckon that you can say that’s what I am, though folks here about call me the stage driver.”

“That is very interesting,” said Charlie. “Do you know, in the city the postman wears a gray cap and coat and trousers and he does not drive a cart, he has to walk?”

The stage driver was most surprised. “Is that so?” he said. “Well, I reckon there’s lots of things they do differently in the city, and you, being a city boy, must surely know all about it. I certainly would like to hear about city ways. Supposing you ask your Mother if she would let you drive with me this afternoon when I take the afternoon mail up; then you can show me how they deliver mail in the city.”

Oh, my goodness, but Charlie was excited! He ran to the house so fast that he puffed and he blowed, and, as he ran, he called out, “Mother, Auntie! The stage driver says that I can go with him and give out the letters just like a real postman in the city! He says that I can go this afternoon, if you say yes. Oh, Mother, oh, Auntie, I _can_ go, can’t I?”

Of course his Mother and his Auntie were _de-light-ed_ when they heard that Charlie was to go and help deliver the mail just like a real postman, and of course they both said “Yes,” that Charlie might go.

Well, the very minute that Charlie had finished his dinner, he said very politely, “Please excuse me, I don’t want to keep the stage driver waiting.” Then the lady where they were boarding and his Mother and his Auntie said, “Yes,” he might be excused.

So Charlie got his hat and his whistle, which belonged to his sailor suit, because he knew he would need it as he was going to be a postman--and he ran down to the gate as fast as ever he could. No, Charlie did not keep the stage driver waiting. It was Charlie who had to wait for the stage driver!

But at last he came driving down the road and, when he saw Charlie waiting at the gate, he said, “Hello, young man, so you are coming with me. That’s fine! Hop in.”

So Charlie hopped in and he showed the stage driver his whistle and how he was going to blow it just like a real city postman.

The stage driver said, “First we are going to the station to get the mail;” and he clicked with his whip and said, “Gid ap, gid ap!” to the horses, and they _did_ “gid ap,” and their bells jingled as they trotted along the road.

The station was a long way off from the farm where Charlie and his Mother and his Auntie were staying, but the horses trotted so quickly, so quickly, that they got there before the train did.

Charlie and the stage driver got down, and the stage driver hitched the horses to the post, and then they both went on to the platform to wait for the train.

Everybody in the station talked to Charlie--even the station master and the man in the ticket office--and they said, “Is this the new stage driver?” The stage driver said, “No; this boy is the new postman and he is going to deliver the mail for me.”

You can believe that Charlie felt proud and important when he heard them talk like that.

At last the train came in, and it was the same train that had carried Charlie and his Mother and his Auntie and his Daddy and Topsy and Bingo and Jane to the country. Yes, it was the very same train and the very same engine that Charlie had ridden on, and the fireman was there, and he looked out of the cab and called out, “Hello, Charlie!”

Well, the stage driver went to the baggage car and a lot of men were unloading packages, and there was one great big sack.

Charlie asked what was in that great big sack--and the stage driver told him that was the mail. Yes, all the letters that Charlie was going to deliver were stuffed into that great big sack!

So the stage driver got the mail bag and the packages on to the stage. The stage driver carried all the big packages and Charlie carried all the little ones.

Then the stage driver said, “Gid ap!” and off they went again. First they went to the post office and waited there a long time. They had to wait till the postmaster had taken out of the mail sack all the mail for the people who lived near the post office and who had to come and get their mail for themselves. But at last the postmaster had finished _his_ job, and it was time for Charlie and the stage driver to begin theirs.

This, of course, was the interesting part of the drive. The stage rattled along the road, the horses went so fast; and at last they came to a house and the horses stopped of their own accord.

The stage driver gave Charlie some letters and told him to go and deliver them.

So Charlie climbed down from the stage and he blew his whistle, one, two, three times--but nobody came to the gate to get the letters from the postman. No, even though Charlie blew again and again, nobody came at all.

Then the stage driver said, “I reckon the folks at this farm are not used to city postmen. I reckon they don’t even _know_ that that whistle means that there is mail for them. You had better just slip the letters in the box, the way we do in these parts, and we’ll drive on to the next farm.”

So Charlie did as the stage driver said. He had to stand on tiptoe because the box was so high. He felt a little sad that nobody had come to get the letters from him--but it was fun putting the letters in the box.

Then they drove on to the next farm. This time there were a whole lot of letters and a parcel, too. Charlie carried the parcel himself, as it was a little one. He said to the stage driver, “Perhaps I had better not blow my whistle this time.” But the stage driver said, “Oh, go ahead and blow your whistle, you know you are a city postman and you must do as they do.”

So Charlie blew on his whistle--he blew a TREMENDOUS blast, and he blew again and again. And--what do you think?

The farmer who was in the field, hoeing potatoes, threw down his hoe and he came running, as fast as he could run, to see what Charlie’s whistle meant.

And the farmer’s wife, who was in the kitchen frying doughnuts, the minute she heard Charlie’s whistle, threw down her cooking spoon and ran out of the kitchen door to see what Charlie’s whistle meant.

And the cat, who was sleeping on a rocking chair on the porch, sprang straight up in the air when she heard the whistle; and _she_ came tearing down to the gate to see _what in the world_ all that whistling meant.

And the watch dog, who was tied up outside his kennel--he jumped and pranced and tried to get loose because _he_ wanted to find out what all that whistling meant!

And they all came rushing down to the gate, except the dog, and when they saw Charlie with the parcel and the letters--my goodness, they were surprised!

The farmer said, “Well, well, to think that we have a postman just the same as they have in the city--well! well!” and he shook hands with Charlie.

Then the farmer’s wife said, “Mr. Stage Driver, couldn’t you wait a minute while I run into the house and get a doughnut apiece for you and the postman?” The stage driver thought that would be very nice--so the farmer’s wife brought the doughnuts and they were _delicious_.

Then they said, “Good-by” to the nice farmer and his wife and thanked her for the delicious doughnuts, and off they went to the next farm. Charlie blew his whistle, and he blew his whistle every single time they came to a farm, but nobody else came to the gate to see what was the matter; so Charlie put the letters in the box every time.

Soon they came to a long stretch of road where there were no houses at all, and Charlie and the stage driver could talk together without being interrupted every minute by Charlie having to deliver letters.

Charlie told the stage driver all about the city and about his Mother and his Auntie and his Daddy, and about Jane and Topsy and Bingo, and about the iceman and the postman, and the letter boxes that are at the corner of the streets where you mail your letters.

Then the stage driver told Charlie all about the country and what an important person the stage driver is when he lives in the country--even more important than the postman. For the stage driver not only brings letters, and parcels for birthdays or Christmas, he brings _everything_ that the people in the country need--clothes, and furniture, and medicine--every single thing that they use, except what they grow themselves.

Everything is sent from the city by the train in great big packages. And the stage driver puts the packages on to the stage, and carries some of them to the country store, where the people can come and buy the things they want--but some of the things go directly to the farmers who live too far from the country store.

Charlie thought this very interesting. There were a whole lot of questions that he wanted to ask. But now they had come to another farm and there was a great big package all ready at the gate!

The stage driver got down and put it on to the stage. Charlie was much surprised. He said, “I thought you brought packages _to_ people, I did not know that you took any away.”

Then the stage driver said, “I reckon you can’t guess what is inside _this_ package and where it is going to be sent. Why, this package is full of maple sugar, and it is going to be sent to the city because people could not get maple sugar in the city unless the people in the country sent it to them. This package is going to a big store in the city, and when you go back home, maybe you and your Mother will go into the store and buy a pound of this very same maple sugar that is in this package!”

Yes, that is what the stage driver said, and Charlie was so interested and surprised that the stage driver started to surprise him some more.

“See all those pretty blossoms on the apple trees. Well, by Fall they will all have turned into apples. Then the farmer will gather them off the trees, and he will put them in sacks, and I will take them to the station on my stage and load them on to the train, and they will be taken to the city, where you city folks will buy them. Same thing with the wheat growing in the fields, and the vegetables, and everything the farmer raises. Everything that he doesn’t need for his own use the farmer sends to the city, first by the stage driver and then by the train.”

My goodness! This gave Charlie a lot to think about! He said, “I think that trains and mail stages are the most interesting things in the world. I will either be a stage driver or a fireman when I grow up, and I will take things to the country people that _they_ need and bring back things to the city people that _they_ need.”

By this time _all_ the letters and _all_ the packages had been delivered. And the stage driver was driving back the way they came.

At last they came to the farm where Charlie was staying. And the stage driver said, “Here is one more letter for you to deliver, and then your job will be finished. You have been a great help to me to-day. I think you are a fine postman and I hope you will come with me another day and deliver the mail for me. This letter is for your Mother.”

So Charlie thanked the stage driver and climbed down from the stage. He ran all the way to the house; then he rang the bell and blew his whistle just as the postman did at home. And who do you think opened the door? It was his Mother.

She said, “Good afternoon, Postman, have you a letter for me?” And Charlie said, “Yes, ma’am,” just like the postman. Then he couldn’t help laughing, and he forgot that he was the postman, and he hugged his Mother and said, “Is it a letter from Daddy?”

And it _was_. Yes, it was a letter from Daddy, and what do you think? The letter said that Daddy found that after all he would be able to get away from the city--and that he would arrive on Friday afternoon, and Charlie was to be sure to come and meet him.

Then Charlie’s Mother hugged him again for bringing her such a nice letter and his Auntie came downstairs, Topsy and Bingo prancing after her. Bingo jumped up and down and Topsy climbed on to Charlie’s shoulder, and they all listened to the adventures he had had that afternoon when he was a postman.

CHARLIE MAKES A POOL AND SAILS HIS BOAT

All the time that Charlie and his Mother and his Auntie were living in the country Charlie’s Daddy came down every single Saturday to visit them, and he stayed in the country with them until Sunday night, when he had to go back to the city. And every Saturday, when Charlie’s Daddy came to visit them in the country, he _always_ brought a present for everybody!

One Saturday Charlie’s Daddy came and he brought Charlie’s Mother a basket of peaches, and he brought his Auntie a box of candy, and he brought Bingo a ball, and he brought Jane and Topsy a catnip mouse--and what do you think he brought for Charlie? I will tell you. Charlie’s Daddy brought Charlie a sailboat! It was a beautiful boat, painted white with a green water line. It had a mast and two sails. His Daddy told Charlie that the big sail at the back is called the _mainsail_ and that the stick that holds it out at the bottom is called the _boom_; and that the little three-cornered sail in front is called the _jib_ and the stick to which it is fastened is called the _bowsprit_.

Of course Charlie’s Daddy did not say “the front and back” of the ship either. Oh, dear, no! Charlie’s Daddy called the front part of the ship the _bow_, and he called the back part the _stern_, and the bottom of the ship he called the _keel_--and, I can tell you, _nobody ought to own a ship who does not know these things_.

Well, of course, the very first thing that Charlie wanted to do was to go and sail his boat--but what do you think? The brook was so shallow and full of stones that there was no place deep enough to sail the boat at all! That was very sad.

Charlie and his Daddy walked a long way beside the brook looking for a pool where the water was deeper, but they could not find one.

Then Charlie’s Daddy said, “Well, unless some rain comes to make the brook get deeper, I guess you’ll have to wait to sail your boat till you come back to town and can sail it in the bath tub. As long as you are in the country you will have to say that the boat is in ‘dry dock.’”

But what do you think? Charlie didn’t even know what a dry dock _is_. No, his Daddy had to explain to him all about it--how the ship is put into “dry dock” when it has to be mended or painted below the water line. First the ship sails into the dock, and then the dock is closed up behind the ship and all the water is pumped out and the ship is propped up straight with props from each side of the dock.

So Charlie and his Daddy made a dry dock for his ship on the bureau in his room. They made the dock of books, and propped the ship up straight with blocks on each side of the keel. The ship looked very beautiful on the bureau, but Charlie _did_ wish that he could sail it and that he did not have to keep it in “dry dock” all the time.

One day, when his Daddy had gone back to town, Charlie and his Mother and his Auntie went for a walk.

They went for a new walk. Instead of just going along the road, they thought it would be interesting to follow the creek. So they climbed a wall and followed the creek through the fields and into a wood which was “private property”; but there was a sign which said people could walk there if they did not do any damage.

Then they came to a place where there was a stone wall built right across the creek from side to side and above the stone wall was a great _e-nor-mous_ pool! And the water pounded over the stone wall like a waterfall. The pool was very deep and wide, but above the pool the creek was all stony and shallow again.

Charlie was very much interested. He said, “Why is that stone wall built across the creek, and what makes that pool so deep and broad when the rest of the creek is shallow and narrow?”

Then his Mother explained to Charlie all about it. She explained to him that the pool was a swimming pool, and that the stone wall built across the creek from side to side was a _dam_. The dam keeps the water in like a basin until it gets as deep as the dam is high and then the water flows over the top.

Charlie was _very much interested_ when he heard this. He said to his Mother, “Can anybody build a dam?”

And of course his Mother said that anybody could. She said that you only had to heap a lot of mud and stones together just below where you wanted the pool to be, and just as high as you wanted the pool to be deep.

Oh, my goodness! Charlie _was_ excited then. I wonder if you can guess what he said?

I will tell you. Charlie said, “Mother, Auntie, I want to go home _im-me-di-ate-ly_, I AM GOING TO BUILD A DAM! Yes, I am going to build a dam across the brook and make a great ENORMOUS pool to sail my boat in.” Of course his Mother and his Auntie said they would go home immediately when they heard that Charlie was going to do such an important thing.

So they did go home, and Charlie put on his overalls and he ran down to the brook and began to work at his dam.

First he found a place where the brook was a little wider and where the banks were quite steep. Then he started scooping out the stones at the bottom of the brook, so that there would be no rocks for his boat to get wrecked on.

You may be sure that Bingo and Topsy were very much interested in what Charlie was doing. Yes, they both came and watched him awhile. Then Topsy began to dig a hole in the grass--he wanted to show that _he_ could dig a hole just as well as Charlie could. Bingo tried to dig a hole, too, but he soon got tired of it and ran around and barked, “Yap, yap!” He wanted Charlie and Topsy to come and play with him.

But Charlie was much too busy to pay any attention to Bingo. He just went on bending over the brook, digging out the stones until he had the bottom of the brook, where his pool was going to be, nicely cleaned out. Then he started to work on the dam.

First Charlie hunted around until he had got together a nice lot of flat stones, and he began to pile them up one on top of the other, and he went on piling them up until the dam went right across the brook from bank to bank.

At first the water paid no attention to Charlie’s dam at all. It just went on flowing through the chinks between the stones, just as if there were not any dam there at all! But Charlie piled up great banks of mud, and put in more big stones and then little stones to fill the chinks--and at last the water began to rise!

Yes, the water rose, and it rose until it was a nice big pool and came up to the top of the banks on both sides, and then it began to dribble over the top of the dam. So Charlie knew that the dam was finished! Of course the water in the pool was _dreadfully_ muddy, but Charlie did not mind a bit. Why should he, when the pool was so nice and wide and deep? Yes, it was so deep that it came all the way up to his knees!

Then Charlie saw his Mother and his Auntie walking across the field from the house. They had come to see how Charlie was getting along with his dam.