Helen Fuller Orton

“ In the road the dust was several inches deep.
"The plums and peaches are falling from the trees," said Farmer Hill. "If it doesn't rain soon, we won't have any fruit."
"My flowers are dying," said Mother.
They watched the sky every day, to see if there were any signs of rain.
"I see a little cloud," said Bobby every few days. "Perhaps it will rain to-day." ”

“ But Rover, lying under the pine tree in the front yard, heard the commotion and came running like the wind past Mrs. Hill.
He jumped at the fierce hawk and snapped at him with his sharp white teeth, just as the hawk was swooping to pick up Little Yellow Chick.
When Mr. Hawk heard the barking and saw Rover dash towards him he forgot about wanting to eat Little Yellow Chick and flew away as fast as he could. ”

“ Across from him, John sat reading a book. Sue was softly playing on the piano.
Mother stopped a moment in the doorway to enjoy the scene. [Pg 122]
"Winter time or Summer time, home is best," she thought.
Then she took her place in the easy chair which John had drawn up for her near the lamp, and opened her book to read.
Upstairs, Bobby lay awake for some time, listening to the wind and rain.
Then he fell asleep and dreamed that he was in the hayfield playing with Rover; and the sound he heard was not the storm but the hum of the mower cutting the clover. ”

“ There was no work to be done on the farm in winter; so Prince and Daisy stood all day in their stalls in the Old Red Barn. [Pg 56]
"How would you like a long sleigh ride to-day, Bobby?" asked father one morning.
"I'm ready for one; that would be great fun. Where are you going?" answered Bobby.
"Well, harvest time has come," said father. "So Prince and Daisy and I are going to help harvest butter and ice cream."
"This is not harvest time," said Bobby; "harvest time is in the summer when it is very hot. And besides, Prince and Daisy cannot make butter and ice cream. ”

“ Rover and Bobby's big brother John were driving them. Hobson, the hired man, went ahead.
"Where are you taking the sheep?" asked Bobby. "Have you sold them?"
"Come and you shall see," answered Father. "Do you want to ride with me in the buggy, or help drive the sheep?"
"I'd like to help," said Bobby. [Pg 30]
"Well, here is a long stick for you," said Father.
Bobby was off like the wind and soon caught up with the others.
The leader of the flock, the big bell wether, went ahead. All the other sheep followed. Sometimes they tried to stop and eat grass by the roadside. ”

“ There was only one man in the village who kept window glass—Mr. Barlow, the carpenter. As fast as he could run, Bobby ran to the village, and as he ran, he kept thinking, "Will he be at home? Will he have a big glass?" ”

“ He will not jump or run away even if you meet a threshing machine." [Pg 4]
"I am glad of that," said mother. "Daisy jumps to one side if even a piece of paper blows near her."
"He is a good horse," said Farmer Hill. "He will not run away, but he is very strong-bitted and will have his own way sometimes. It would take a strong arm to hold him back if he wanted to run fast."
"What is his name?" asked Sue.
"His name is Prince," said father.
"That is a fine name," said Sue.
"I hope Prince will prove to be a good horse," said mother. ”

“ So Bobby ran along beside father down the lane to the Old Red Barn.
Father harnessed Prince and Daisy, drove them to the field below the barn and hitched them to a tool with a shiny steel point. [Pg 25]
"But, father, that is a plow," said Bobby. "Mother does not make bread with a plow. She makes it in a pan and stirs it with a big spoon." ”

“ Then he and Rover, the Big Shepherd Dog, went across the field to the snowdrifts in the fence corners. Bobby slid down a huge snowbank, which gave his sled such a start that he went skimming over the field on the hard snow. Eight long slides he took there.
In the afternoon, he went skating on the Duck Pond. It was shiny and smooth and beautiful for skating. Twenty times across the pond he went.
When he went into the house, Mother said, "Well, Bobby, you have had a busy day."
"I've had lots of fun," said Bobby. "I shall go sliding and skating every day all Winter." ”

“ John and mother were waiting for father and came out on the back porch as they heard the wheels coming. [Pg 102]
"We were afraid something had happened to you, it is so late," said mother.
Then father told them how the bridge was gone and how Prince had refused to go on.
"But I cannot understand," said he, "why he would not come into the yard by the driveway."
"I'll go and see," said John.
John took the lantern and went down toward the road.
In a moment he came running back.
"Come here," he called. "That big flash of lightning must have struck here. There is a great hole in the ground." ”

“ When they were part way home, they met another flock of sheep coming down the road.
"Drive ours up next to the fence," said Farmer Hill, "so they will not [Pg 37] get mixed with that flock."
So they were driven up by the fence and kept there until the other flock had passed on their way to be washed.
Bobby rode with Father in the buggy the rest of the way.
"How do they get the wool off the sheep?" he asked.
"That," said Father, "will be something more for you to see, another time. You won't have to wait many days."
Bobby had a great story to tell Mother and Sue that night. ”

“ Just then Bobby came running in and shouted: "Father's coming with the new horse."
All three looked toward the road—mother and John and Sue.
Down the road was father in the [Pg 3] buggy, driving Daisy while he led the new horse behind the buggy with a halter.
All the family went out to see the new horse when Farmer Hill reached the back yard.
"He is not as handsome as I had hoped," said Sue, "but he has a kind face."
"Can he go fast?" asked John.
"He is not a race-horse," said father, "but he has long, slim legs and can go over the ground pretty fast—quite fast enough for us." ”

“ How ugly the Big Window looked now, with the big, jagged hole in it and the glass cracked in all directions. He felt the chill November air coming in through the broken pane.
"It will never do," thought he. "I must get a new pane put in right away." ”

“ Mother came close along by his side; while John and Sue patted Rover's neck and said, "Good dog, good dog."
Rover looked up at them with his kind eyes and wagged his tail very hard.
Baby Betty went to playing again in the yard, and Rover lay down under the apple tree to watch over her.
[Pg 81]
XIII
"May I have a horse to drive to town this afternoon?" asked mother one noon in summer. "I must take Bobby and Betty to get them some new shoes."
"Yes," said father. "You may have Prince to-day. He is our safest horse." ”

“ The men stopped work and put the horses in the barn, so they would not get wet. The hens and chickens went under the shed. The cows in the pasture went under the big trees.
It was not long before the lightning [Pg 88] flashed and the thunder crashed and the rain came down.
They all went to the Big South Window to watch the storm—Father, Mother, John, Sue, Bobby and Betty.
"I like to watch a storm," said Bobby.
"It is a good sight," said Father. "Now the corn and potatoes will grow and the fruit will stay on the trees." ”

“ When he told her about getting on the raft she looked surprised. When he told her what Rover did, she turned and patted Rover's neck and said, "Good dog, good dog!"
"Of course, you will have to go to bed while your clothes get dry," she said to Bobby.
"Can't I put on one of my clean suits?" he asked.
"No," said Mother. "When boys get on rafts and fall into the water, [Pg 96] they always go to bed while their clothes dry." ”

“ One day Rover lay under the apple tree in the back yard, taking his afternoon nap. Just over the fence in the pasture Farmer Hill's cows were grazing.
Suddenly Molly, the Big Red Cow, came near the stone wall on the farther side of the pasture. She smelled the corn in Neighbor Newman's cornfield beyond the stone wall.
Now if there is one thing that cows [Pg 17] like better than anything else, it is growing sweet corn. ”

“ Bobby climbed into the buggy and reached under the seat and began to pull something out.
"Why, it looks just like the tail to my kite," said he. [Pg 19]
"Why, it is my kite," he shouted, as he saw his name on the cross-piece. "Where did you get it?"
Father told him.
"I'll tie the string together and fly it again," said Bobby.
"You had better get some stronger cord," said Father. "I might not happen to find it if it flew away again."
Bobby rode to the village when John went to the blacksmith shop. He went to Mr. Brown's store and bought a ball of strong cord. ”

“ After a while mother said to John: "Prince must be thirsty. Father may not be back for some time, so I think you had better let Prince have a drink."
John opened the stable door and led him to the watering trough in the barn-yard. ”

“ The sheep were dreadfully frightened. Some ran up the road and some ran down the road.
Rover ran at the big, black dog and drove him back into his yard. Then [Pg 31] he and John and Hobson and Bobby brought the frightened sheep together again and started them down the road.
"I wonder where we are taking the sheep," thought Bobby.
About ten o'clock, they came to a creek with a bridge over it. Across the bridge they drove the sheep. On the other side, Hobson stopped them and drove them to one side of the road. Farmer Hill tied Prince to the fence. ”

“ A few days after the sheep had been washed at the creek, a strange man named Mr. Price came to Cloverfield Farm one morning.
"If you want to see something interesting," said Father to Bobby, "you may come along with us."
They all went down to the Old Red Barn, and Bobby noticed that the flock of sheep had been driven into the basement.
On the basement floor, near the gate which shut the sheep in their pen, they [Pg 39] put down a platform of boards, about six feet square. ”

“ Farmer Hill intended to come back on the eleven o'clock train; but his business took him longer than he expected, so he could not come until the next train at one o'clock.
Meanwhile Prince stood very still and patient for some time. Then he began to take a few steps forward once in a while, and then a few steps backward. [Pg 43]
Prince liked to go. He did not like to stand still so long.
Every time he stepped back and forth, the knot in the halter loosened a little. After a while, about one o'clock, it became entirely untied. ”

“ Bobby stopped. For a few moments he stood and watched her. Then he set the two basins down on the ground and went over to the rabbit-pen. [Pg 71]
"I'll be back in a minute," he said to himself. "It won't hurt the chickens to wait a little while for their breakfast."
Bunny was so interesting with her long ears and her wiggly nose, that Bobby stayed fifteen minutes, watching her. By that time, he had forgotten all about Old Speckle and the chickens.
Next he went to a corner of the rail fence to see whether there were any more eggs in the robin's nest. He found four blue eggs. ”

“ So that is how Prince and Rover happened to be written.
H. F. O.
[Pg 1]
I
At Cloverfield Farm there were four horses—Dobbin and Bird, Dan and Daisy. Dan was getting old so he could not go fast or work hard any more.
"We need another horse," said Farmer Hill one morning. "Mr. Ross has some for sale. I am going over to look at them to-day and perhaps I will buy one."
"I hope," said John, "that you will get one that can go fast—faster than Daisy." [Pg 2]
"I hope," said Sue, "that you will get a fine-looking horse." ”

“ The proudest creature on Cloverfield Farm was Red Top, the big rooster.
He was called Red Top because of his beautiful, big red comb.
Red Top was proud of his big red comb. He was proud of his glossy reddish-brown feathers. He was proud of his crow.
"Just hear those silly hens," he would say. "All they can do is to cackle. But listen to my beautiful song. Cock-a-doodle-doo, cock-a-doodle-doo! Was there ever a grander [Pg 47] sound?" ”