Part 5

“I’m sleepy,” Vevi said. “I think I will take a nap. By the time I wake up, the rain will be over.”

“It is almost over now,” said Hanny.

“I think I will take a nap anyhow,” Vevi declared. “Wake me up when it stops raining.”

Now Hanny did not intend to fall asleep. After Vevi had closed her eyes, she lay very still listening to the rain on the barn roof.

The hay was sweet-smelling and as cozy as a feather bed. She felt delightfully drowsy, shut off from all the world.

Hanny thought she would close her eyes only for a moment. When she opened them, she was astonished to see that dark shadows shrouded the haymow.

Vevi was shaking her.

“M-m,” Hanny mumbled drowsily. For a moment she could not think where she was or what had happened.

Vevi pressed a hand over Hanny’s lips.

“Sh!” she warned.

By this time Hanny had come two-thirds awake. She saw Vevi sitting beside her, hay sticking in her mussed hair.

“Listen!” Vevi whispered.

The rain had ceased and Hanny no longer could hear the whistle of the wind around the corners of the barn. How long had she slept?

Hanny sat up, rubbing her eyes. Only then did she hear a strange murmuring sound from the lower floor of the barn.

“What is that?” she whispered.

“Someone is down there,” Vevi answered, very low. “When I woke up, I heard two people talking.”

“Maybe it is Peter come home.”

“I don’t think so Hanny. Besides, there are two people.”

Their curiosity aroused, the two girls crept to the edge of the hay loft. Peering down they saw a man and a woman standing in the doorway of the barn.

“It is Mrs. Mattox and her husband Joseph,” Hanny whispered. “But why are they here? They refuse me permission to walk on their property.”

Mrs. Mattox was cleaning mud from her shoes.

“We should not stand here,” her husband said. “Peter Van Der Lann may return at any moment, or his little girl.”

“Let them,” said the wife. “At any rate, it was your idea to visit his fields to see what the stubborn Dutchman is raising. Now that you have looked under the box are you satisfied?”

“The tulip is superior to anything that we can enter in the show.”

“I don’t agree,” Mrs. Mattox replied. “Our own flower the cherry-rose candy stick tulip is its equal. We will win the prize, Joseph.”

“Don’t count on it,” Mr. Mattox said gloomily.

“We won’t need to win the blue ribbon to have a profitable business. We have valuable customers. Mrs. Gabriel--”

“How many times must I ask you not to mention her name?” Mr. Mattox broke in angrily. “I wish I had never seen her--she may yet be the cause of me going to jail.”

“Jail?” his wife echoed. “Joseph, I fail to understand you. When Mrs. Gabriel first came to talk to you, why you said we would make a mint of money. Didn’t she give you a large order of bulbs to be imported from Holland?”

“Yes, and I wish she hadn’t! Don’t forget that woman went first to Peter Van Der Lann with her proposition. He must suspect what is going on. If he should turn me in we both might be jailed.”

In the hayloft, Hanny and Vevi caught nearly all of the conversation. But they did not understand why Mr. Mattox was so angry at his wife for mentioning Mrs. Gabriel’s name.

Hanny made up her mind she would tell her Uncle Peter all about it when he came home.

“The rain has stopped,” she heard Mr. Mattox say. “We can go now.”

Never guessing that anyone had listened to their talk, the couple left the barn. By the time Vevi and Hanny had slid down from the loft, they were nowhere in sight.

_Chapter 11_

THE MAN IN GRAY

When Peter Van Der Lann drove into the farm yard twenty minutes later, Hanny and Vevi ran to meet him.

“I came as fast as I could,” the farmer said. “Is everything all right?”

Finding English inadequate, Hanny spoke rapidly in Dutch, telling him everything that had happened during his absence.

Mr. Van Der Lann did not have much to say until he had inspected the tulip fields. Although the high wind and rain had flattened many of the plants, they were not as badly damaged as he had feared.

“Now that the sun is coming out again, they will straighten up,” he said. “We will have a good flower harvest, Hanny.”

The nurseryman did not scold his niece for having forgotten about the windmill. Instead, he told her that she probably had saved the tulip field by shutting off the water.

“As for Mr. and Mrs. Mattox,” he said indifferently, “give them no thought, little Hanny.”

“But Uncle Peter, they came while you were away to peep under the box!”

“It does not matter. Before this week has ended, everyone will have seen our beautiful tulip.”

“Mrs. Mattox spoke of a tulip they are entering in the show, Uncle Peter. A cherry-rose candy stripe, she called it.”

“It will not compare with our flower,” declared Mr. Van Der Lann cheerfully. “Do not worry, Hanny.”

“She spoke also of a customer, Mrs. Gabriel. And a large order of tulip bulbs from Holland.”

The nurseryman became attentive, listening closely as his niece related the entire conversation overheard in the hayloft.

“The Mattoxes are welcome to their big order,” he said. “I can tell you no more, Hanny, except to say that you are never to talk to Mrs. Gabriel or have anything to do with her.”

“But why, Uncle Peter?”

“Do not ask me questions,” he said kindly. “I cannot answer, Hanny. Mrs. Gabriel is not to be trusted. I have told her never to come here.”

Mr. Van Der Lann would say no more about Mrs. Gabriel. As it now was growing dusk, he told Vevi he would take her home in his car.

“When you see the other Brownies, let them know that their wooden shoes will be ready for them by tomorrow night,” he said as he dropped her off at her doorstep. “Also, unless it rains again, there will be tulips for the booth which is to be decorated.”

Now that Mrs. Langley’s flower show was close at hand, the Brownie Scouts dropped all other activities.

Miss Gordon and Miss Mohr had obtained Dutch girl costumes for the girls. A carpenter on the Langley estate helped out by making a booth for the organization to use. It was set up on the lawn not far from the greenhouse where the flowers were to be judged.

On the day before the show, the Brownies all hiked out to Windmill Farm. Their wooden shoes were ready for them, and all were a perfect fit.

Mr. Van Der Lann was too busy picking tulips to talk to the children. He left word with his housekeeper though, that they were to have all the flowers they needed. Hanny helped the Brownies choose the blooms they wanted.

“My, I wish we had a tulip bed,” Vevi remarked. “Miss Mohr, could the Brownie Scouts have a little plot of ground at the library?”

“Yes, I’ve been thinking about it, and I know just the place,” the librarian replied. “It will be too late for spring bulbs. However, once the ground is prepared, you can set out other plants.”

“I would rather have tulips,” Vevi said, burying her nose in the crimson bouquet she had gathered. “They are the most beautiful flowers in the world.”

“I would like a bed of nothing but Golden Beauties,” declared Connie.

“How soon can we have our flower bed?” Sunny Davidson asked.

“I will have the plot spaded and raked tomorrow so that the ground is even and workable,” the librarian promised. “If you speak to Mrs. Langley about it, I am sure she will give you plants from her estate.”

“I’d like pansies,” Rosemary said. “And forget-me-nots.”

Sunny thought the bed should be planted with marigolds or late-flowering plants such as asters or chrysanthemums. Connie favored geraniums, while Jane thought an old fashioned herb garden would be the most interesting.

“I just want tulips,” Vevi said again. “The Brownies should have a tulip garden while the festival is going on.”

“I wish we had thought of it earlier,” Miss Gordon replied. “Since we didn’t, I am afraid you will have to forget the tulip bed, Vevi.”

After gathering armfuls of tulips at Windmill Farm, the girls set the stems in tubs of water so they would not wilt.

Just then Mr. Van Der Lann came in from the field. He spoke to everyone and bestowed a very special smile upon Miss Mohr.

“I am driving to the Langley estate now in my truck,” he said. “I will be glad to take the tubs of flowers there for you.”

“May we ride too?” Jane asked.

“Yes, I have plenty of room,” he assured her. “Jump in.”

Mr. Van Der Lann was carrying a load of potted plants to the estate. The children had never seen so many beautiful tulips.

“It will be fun riding with the flowers!” cried Vevi. “I want to sit beside the Golden Beauty.”

The choice tulip, however, was not among the other potted plants in the back of the truck. Vevi was very worried about it until she discovered that the nurseryman was carrying his best tulips in a special box on the front seat.

At the Langley estate dozens of gardeners were hard at work preparing the grounds for the coming affair.

The grass was being cut with big power mowers. All of the hedges had been neatly trimmed. One worker was edging the walks.

Mr. Van Der Lann drove his truck close to the greenhouse. While he was lifting out his flowers, the Brownies went on ahead into the building.

“My, it’s hot in here!” Vevi exclaimed. “It takes my breath away.”

The Brownies spied Mrs. Langley telling workmen how to arrange different flower exhibits. Mr. Piff was there too. The girls saw him start to put up a poster advertising the Rosedale tulip festival.

“No! No! Not in here, of all places!” Mrs. Langley exclaimed. “You will ruin the artistic effect.”

“Where shall I put the poster?” the promoter asked. He seemed rather annoyed by Mrs. Langley’s refusal to let him tack it up in the greenhouse.

“Not anywhere on the estate, please.”

“Don’t you want to advertise the festival?”

“This is a private, non-commercial judging show,” Mrs. Langley explained. “I can’t have the grounds cluttered with cheap signs.”

“Cheap signs!” Mr. Piff exploded. “Well, I like that! Let me tell you, if we don’t advertise, the festival will be a flop. Your money is invested in it too.”

“How well I know,” replied Mrs. Langley coldly. “I deeply regret that I allowed you to talk me into the affair. Your methods--”

The garden club president did not finish what she had intended to say. At that instant she saw the tulips which Mr. Van Der Lann had brought into the greenhouse.

“Oh, such beautiful flowers!” she exclaimed. “I have never seen more lovely blooms. And this golden-hued tulip! What is it, Mr. Van Der Lann?”

“A new variety I am introducing,” the nurseryman replied politely. “I call it the Golden Beauty.”

“It is the showiest flower so far brought in.”

“Thank you, Ma’am, for the praise,” said the nurseryman. “I only wish that you were to be one of the judges.”

While Mr. Van Der Lann was arranging his display, Mr. and Mrs. Mattox drove up in their truck. They too had brought many gorgeous flowers for the judging contest.

“Look at that rosy-red tulip,” Connie directed Vevi’s attention to a potted plant which Mrs. Mattox was showing to the garden club president. “Isn’t it pretty?”

The tulip which Mrs. Mattox had named Candy Stick, resembled peppermint. It stood on a tall, graceful stem, its outer petals a cherry-rose color. Inside petals were a delicate white.

Vevi was deeply worried when she saw the handsome tulip. For a second she thought it was a prettier flower than the one Peter Van Der Lann had developed. Then she decided that the Golden Beauty was the better.

“They’re both very nice,” Connie said. “I hope though, that Peter’s tulip wins the blue ribbon tomorrow.”

After admiring all the lovely flowers, the Brownies helped Miss Mohr and Miss Gordon decorate the outdoor booth. They put up colored crepe paper to cover the rough boards and pasted on the tulips they had made at the library. When the job finally was finished, the Brownies were very proud of their work.

“I just hope a wind doesn’t come along tonight and ruin everything,” Vevi said anxiously. “That would be too mean.”

“Or a rain,” added Connie, glancing up at the slightly overcast sky.

“If it should rain, workmen will move the booth indoors,” Miss Mohr reassured the girls. “I think though, that tomorrow will be fair.”

Her prediction proved true. The day of the flower show dawned warm and clear.

Vevi and Connie were up with the birds. Even before breakfast they were dressed in their Dutch costumes, ready to go to Mrs. Langley’s estate.

By ten o’clock all of the Brownies, including Hanny, had arrived on the grounds. First of all, before taking turns working at the stand, the children visited the greenhouse where the tulips were to be judged.

In addition to the Golden Beauty and the Candy Stripe, other varieties had been displayed by Rosedale growers. There were groupings of Parrot tulips, Darwins and hybrids. One section of the room was devoted to tiny tulips suitable only for rock gardens.

“Do you think the Golden Beauty will win?” Hanny anxiously asked her little friends.

“Of course,” said Vevi loyally.

“Uncle Peter says that Mr. and Mrs. Mattox have a very fine tulip,” Hanny went on. “The judges seem to like it too.”

Now two men and a lady had been selected to award the prize ribbons. The three were experts in judging tulips. They wandered back and forth between the rows of flowers, making notes on paper. Now and then they whispered together. It was hard to tell though, which tulip they thought was the best.

Vevi noticed a tall stranger in a gray suit who had entered the greenhouse. He seemed to be watching the persons who came in, rather than looking at the flowers.

“Who is that man?” Vevi asked, pointing him out to Hanny and Connie.

“No one I ever saw before,” Connie replied carelessly. “Maybe he is one of Mr. Piff’s friends.”

The stranger, however, did not speak to the flower festival promoter when the latter came into the greenhouse. In fact, the man did not talk to anyone.

“Maybe he is a detective,” Vevi decided. “Mrs. Langley may have hired him to watch the prize tulips.”

Convinced that this was so, she went over to ask the garden club president about it.

“No, dear,” Mrs. Langley assured her, “I do not have a detective on the grounds.”

“Then who is that man who keeps watching everyone so closely?” Vevi asked.

Mrs. Langley turned to glance at the tall man in the gray suit. She had never seen him before.

“He probably is from some nearby town,” she told Vevi. “Many persons are here today that I do not know.”

“Maybe he is a friend of Mrs. Gabriel,” Vevi speculated.

She had noticed that the man kept watching both Mrs. Gabriel and the Mattox couple who had come to the show together.

“Who is Mrs. Gabriel?” inquired Mrs. Langley absently. She was not paying very much attention to the conversation for her mind was on other important matters.

“Mrs. Gabriel is very fond of flowers,” Vevi remarked. “I guess she must have one of the largest gardens in Rosedale.”

“Why do you think that, dear?”

Mrs. Langley knew every interesting garden in the entire city and had never heard of one maintained by a Mrs. Gabriel.

“Because Mrs. Gabriel buys so many tulip bulbs.” Vevi replied. “She tried to place a very large order with Peter Van Der Lann. When he wouldn’t take it, she went to the Mattox Nursery with her business.”

Mrs. Langley now was listening more attentively to the little girl. Neither of them noticed that the stranger in gray had moved closer. He too could hear their conversation.

“You say Mr. Van Der Lann turned down a very large bulb order?” the garden club president asked. “Well, that is odd. I wonder why?”

“He didn’t seem to like Mrs. Gabriel.”

“Mrs. Gabriel--” repeated the society woman, mulling over the name. “I’m quite sure I never have heard of her, or her garden. Why would she order tulips at this time of year? Perhaps it was for fall delivery. No doubt that was it, Vevi. Mr. Van Der Lann turned down the business, because this isn’t a good time to plant bulbs. Any that were bought now would have to be held until Fall.”

Mrs. Langley was called away just then and so said no more about Mrs. Gabriel. However, the man in gray moved over to where Vevi stood.

“Hello, little girl,” he greeted her. And in a friendly voice, he asked: “Which lady is Mrs. Gabriel? Is she the one in the darkblue dress?”

“Oh, no, that is Mrs. Howard,” Vevi answered. “Mrs. Gabriel is over by the door, talking to Peter Van Der Lann.”

“The owner of Windmill Farm?”

Vevi merely nodded and did not answer. She had begun to wonder why the man asked so many curious questions.

“Say, you must be a detective,” she declared, after studying him a moment.

The man only smiled. He started to ask Vevi another question, but before he could do so, Mrs. Langley clapped her hands to attract everyone’s attention.

The room became very quiet.

“The judges are ready to award the prize ribbons,” announced the garden club president. “Clear the aisles, please. In a moment now, we will know which tulip is considered the best in the show.”

_Chapter 12_

A FLOWER SHOW

An expectant hush fell upon the crowd as Mrs. Langley made her announcement.

Everyone watched the three judges, wondering which tulip they would choose for the first prize award.

“Oh, they’re stopping beside the candy stripe tulip!” Vevi whispered nervously to Connie. “That is the flower they are going to choose.”

Connie thought so too and so did Hanny who stood beside the two Brownies. Her tense face puckered up and she looked as if she were about to burst into tears.

“If Uncle Peter’s tulip doesn’t win, I’ll have to go back to the orphanage in Holland,” she whispered. “I know it!”

The judges were now pinning a ribbon on the table where the candy stripe tulip was displayed.

“The Mattox flower wins,” Hanny said with a little moan. “Oh, I was afraid of it. The flower is very beautiful.”

“But not half as nice as the Golden Beauty,” Vevi declared loyally. “I don’t see how the judges could make such a mistake.”

“They haven’t!” cried Connie. “Just look at the color of the ribbon, you dopes!”

Hanny and Vevi laughed aloud, so great was their relief. True, the judges had pinned a ribbon on the Mattox’ table. But it was not a blue ribbon. Instead, it was red and bore printing which said “Second Prize.”

“The first prize hasn’t been awarded yet,” Hanny said, breathing naturally again. “Uncle Peter still has a chance.”

Again the judges paused, this time beside the table on which stood the Golden Beauty. They whispered together. Then one of the men pinned the blue ribbon on Peter Van Der Lann’s choice flower.

“He’s won first prize!” shouted Vevi. “Hurrah!”

Hanny couldn’t say a word. Tears streamed down her cheeks. This time, however, they were tears of happiness.

Everyone crowded about the nurseryman, offering congratulations. At once, flower lovers began asking him how they could obtain bulbs of the Golden Beauty for fall planting.

Mr. Piff pushed through the throng to shake Peter’s hand.

“Congratulations!” he boomed. “Mr. Van Der Lann, you and I will have to make a deal. I understand you have a good stock of bulbs on hand. Now that you’ve won first prize, I can arrange to sell them for you at a fancy price. My commission will be very small--”

“You will receive no commission from me,” the nurseryman broke in. He made it plain that he wanted nothing whatsoever to do with the promoter. “I have already arranged to sell my entire stock to a large seed house in the East. Now that I have won the blue ribbon, the bulbs will command a good price.”

Hanny was so happy over her uncle’s good fortune that she scarcely could contain her joy. She went skipping over the grounds, telling everyone about the Golden Beauty.

“Now you know why I called the locked room our treasure house!” she said to Vevi. “All those fine bulbs that are stored there will be worth their weight in gold.”

“My, I wish the Brownies had a bed of Golden Beauty tulips,” remarked Rosemary Fritche, who had listened to the talk.

“So do I,” added Vevi wistfully.

“I will give you some of the bulbs,” Hanny offered.

“Not of the Golden Beauty?” Rosemary asked in amazement.

Hanny nodded. “I will give you some of the culls,” she promised. “They are bulbs that are too small to sell. Each one will bear a flower, but it will not be large.”

“That wouldn’t matter,” Vevi said. “When may we have the bulbs?”

“Come to Windmill Farm when we leave here and I will give you a bag of them,” Hanny offered.

Throughout most of the day, the Brownie Scouts remained at the Langley estate. They took turns working at the flower stand. Tussie-mussie bouquets sold very well at twenty-five cents each. The girls also disposed of many tulips.

When they sold out, Mr. Van Der Lann and Hanny drove to Windmill Farm in the truck to bring more flowers.

“My, but the Brownies have made a lot of money,” Jane Tuttle remarked, jingling the coins in the cash box. “Shall we count it?”

“Let’s,” agreed Vevi. “You start on the nickels and pennies. I will take the dimes and quarters.”

The large coins were easy to count. Vevi reported very quickly that they amounted to ten dollars and forty cents.

Jane had to count the pennies and nickels twice. She kept getting mixed up.

“There are two dollars and a quarter in nickels,” she finally decided. “I think the pennies add up to a dollar and three cents.”

“That makes thirteen dollars!” exclaimed Vevi. “The Brownies are rich!”

“Thirteen dollars and sixty-eight cents,” corrected Connie who was better at arithmetic than her little friend.

Miss Gordon told the children she would take charge of the money for them. Sunny Davidson asked what the organization would do with the fund.

“Will we have a nice party?” she questioned.

“We could,” Miss Gordon agreed. “I wonder though, if the girls wouldn’t prefer to do something really worthwhile. Miss Mohr has a suggestion.”

The librarian’s proposal was that the Brownie Scout troop use some of its money to send a CARE package of children’s books to a foreign country.

“Any country?” asked Vevi.

“Yes, the girls may make their choice.”

“Italy,” cried Jane before any of the other Brownies could speak. She named that particular country just to tease Vevi.

“No, Holland!” insisted Vevi. “That’s where I want the package to go!”

Usually, the other Brownies had ideas that were very different from hers. This time, however, everyone except Jane agreed with her. Because of Hanny, all the troop members wanted the book package to be sent to Holland.

“I’ll vote for Holland too,” declared Jane, changing her vote.

“That matter is settled then,” Miss Mohr said, well pleased by the decision. “I’ll take care of the matter.”

The Brownies had worked hard at their stand and now were tired and ready to go home. Everyone said the flower show had been a great success. Hundreds of persons had visited the estate, admiring the beautiful plantings.

Mr. Piff and the Mattox couple were the only ones who did not seem pleased.

“This flower show was a mistake,” the promoter complained. “The affair has attracted so many persons that it may hurt attendance at the big festival later this week.”

“The festival will be an anti-climax,” agreed Mr. Mattox. “I wish you hadn’t talked me into contributing so much money.”

“You made us believe that our tulip would win the prize and that we would make a great deal from the sale of bulbs,” Mrs. Mattox accused the promoter. “Now Peter Van Der Lann wins the blue ribbon and he had nothing to do with the festival! It is unfair!”

“Was it my fault the judges didn’t choose your tulip?” Mr. Piff growled. “Let me tell you I’ve had my troubles! Everyone is complaining--jumping on me--saying I haven’t kept my promises.”

“Maybe you’d like to get out of the whole mess?” suggested Mr. Mattox.

“I sure would! I’m fed up with Rosedale and this stupid festival.”

“You’re fed up! You’re starting to make excuses because you are afraid the thing will be a flop. Well, let me tell you this, Mr. Piff. You promised that if we put in five thousand dollars, we’d get it back in bulb sales. You’d better make good!”