Laura Lee Hope

“ She and Russ expected every moment to hear the bull dash against the hen-house door. The boy was afraid, if this happened, that the shaky door would be broken so the bull could get in.
But, to his surprise, a moment later Laddie cried:
“Look! He ran right past here!”
And that is just what happened. The bull, charging head down, had carried himself well past the hen-house, but could be seen to one side rushing around.
That is one difference between a bull and a cow. A bull charges with his head down and cannot well see where he is going, so that if one is very active he can leap out of the way. ”

“ All six of the little Bunkers went with their mother.
They strolled through the field, and in a [Pg 219] distant pasture saw the old bull that had chased them. But he seemed good-natured now, for he was lying under a tree asleep.
“Oh, I have a riddle!” suddenly cried Laddie. “When is a bad bull a good bull?”
“After he gets whipped, maybe,” suggested Russ.
“After they give him salt,” said Rose, when Laddie had said Russ was wrong.
“No, that isn’t it,” the riddle-giver replied. “A bad bull is a good bull when he’s asleep.” ”

“ For there is nothing more worrying to a farmer than to hear it rain, knowing it is spoiling his hay. Hay, once wet, is never quite so good as that which has not been soaked.
Though it rained all night, the sun came out the next day, and the six little Bunkers could play about and have fun. Russ and Laddie were glad of the storm, for the rain had made the brook higher, and water was now for the first time running over the little dam they had made so their water wheel could be turned. ”

“ You can’t get much of a view down here under the trees, but it’s beautiful just the same.”
“Here’s the view I was looking at,” said Russ, with a laugh, and he pointed to the piles of lunch boxes and baskets in the front part of the hay wagon. “That’s a better view than just trees, Rose.”
“Oh, you funny boy!” she laughed. “Always thinking of something to eat! Don’t you ever think of something else?” ”

“ Before the two brothers could reach their sister there came running toward Rose another boy. This boy had a freckled face and red hair.
“Don’t hit my dog!” cried this red-haired boy. “He won’t hurt you. Hi, Jimsie!” called this new boy, “behave yourself! Down! Quiet! Quit your barking!”
The dog looked around at the voice, wagged his tail to show that he was friendly, and stopped barking. Just then up rushed Russ and Laddie with sticks in their hands. Rose also had a stick which she had raised toward the dog, but she had not hit him. ”

“ So Russ and Rose were the only ones allowed to see Farmer Joel, Daddy Bunker, and Adam North break off pieces of ice with heavy sticks of wood. Out to the wagon the chunks were carried. There they were covered with straw to keep them from melting too much.
“Now for some ice cream!” cried Russ, as they drove home. “I don’t believe you could find ice in the summer time in many places, could you?” he asked.
“Well, no,” his father told him. “Not every place has an ice cave, though they are not as rare as you might suppose. ”

“ Laddie remarked cheerfully. He certainly was good-natured.
Now that the time of going to the farm had arrived, Violet was eager to find out all about the animals. She fairly pestered Adam with wanting to know things. She asked:
“How many chickens are there? How many cows? Did you ever count the bees?”
“Count the bees? Good land, no!” laughed Adam. “There’s millions of ’em and they never keep still long enough to be counted. Besides, if I tried they might sting me.”
“Well,” said Vi, “are there any——”
“Violet, get in the truck and sit still,” ordered her mother firmly, and Violet obeyed. ”

“ When she does, all the other bees will cluster around her, as thickly as possible. Then, if Farmer Joel is lucky enough to find them, he can take an empty hive, put it on the ground under the queen bee and the bunch of worker bees, jar them off into the hive, clap the cover on, and bring it back to his apiary.”
“What’s an ap—an ap—ap—?” began Violet.
“An apiary means a place where bees are kept,” explained Mr. Bunker. “It comes from the Latin word apis, which means bee. Now while we are waiting to see what happens I’ll tell you a little about bees and why they swarm.” ”

“ Six hungry little Bunkers sat down to the supper table, and pretty soon there were no more six hungry little Bunkers, for they ate so many of the good things Norah cooked for them that they were no longer hungry. But there was still six little Bunkers, and they were anxious to try Rose’s strawberry shortcake.
“I’ll bring it in to the table and Rose can cut it,” said Norah.
She went to the pantry, but in less than half a minute she came hurrying back with a strange look on her face.
“What’s the matter?” asked Daddy Bunker. “Did you see a ghost, Norah?” ”

“ Ralph and his dog were not in sight.
“Do you suppose the cows are trying to hook Laddie and Violet with their horns?” asked Rose.
[Pg 98]
“I don’t think cows would,” panted Russ as he ran on followed by Rose, who could not go quite so fast. “Cows don’t hook you, I guess, but bulls do, though I didn’t hear Ralph say there were any bulls in this pasture.”
“Is a bull worse than a cow?” Rose asked.
“For hooking you a bull is the worst there is,” Russ answered. “But I don’t suppose it’s a bull. Maybe the cows are only shaking their heads at Violet and she thinks they’re trying to hook her.” ”

“ The workers fly off to the fields to gather honey from the flowers, and they also gather something else.”
“I know!” cried Russ. “Our teacher in school told us! They gather yellow stuff. It is called——”
“Pollen!” exclaimed Rose. “I know that.”
“Yes,” her father answered, “the bees gather pollen, or the yellow dust from the flowers, and by mixing this yellow dust with some juices from their bodies they make beeswax, from which the cells are built to hold the sweet honey juice.”
“But I thought you said only one queen bee could live in a swarm,” said Violet. ”

“ My bees!” cried Farmer Joel. “The queen must be with them, for the bees wouldn’t stay and make honey without a queen. Well, now that I know where they are, I’ll mark this tree and when cold weather comes I’ll come here and take my bees back again—my bees and the fifty dollar queen.” ”

“ Violet, as usual, asked a question.
“Why, if Margy had had on a rubber apron the whites and yellows of the eggs wouldn’t ‘a’ soaked out and she could carry ’em to the kitchen and Norah could make a cake. She says broken eggs are just as good for cakes as other eggs.”
“Yes,” agreed Violet. “’Cause you have to break eggs, anyhow, to get them into a cake. But even if Margy had these in a rubber apron, there’d be a lot of shells.”
“That’s so,” agreed Laddie. “I guess even a rubber apron wouldn’t be much good. The best way is not to break eggs. Now I’m going to make a riddle about them.” ”

“ Bunker pointed to Farmer Joel, who was still chasing after his runaway swarm.
[Pg 112]
“That’s what happens when two queens get in a hive,” said Daddy Bunker. “One queen leaves, taking with her perhaps half the worker bees and some drones. They fly away to start a new hive, swarm, or colony, as it is sometimes called.
“But not always do bees swarm because there are two queens in a hive. Often the queen may take a notion that she would like a new home, so out she flies and with her go her faithful subjects, just as in real life the subjects of a human king or queen follow them.” ”

“ Don’t come up here!”
“What’s the matter?” asked Laddie.
“There’s something in the straw,” Russ answered.
“It’s an animal!” added Rose. “A big animal!”
“Oh, I want to see it!” cried Mun Bun. “I like animals! Maybe we can have a circus—this is like a circus wagon!”
The big truck certainly was. But Rose did not intend to have Mun Bun or the other small ones rush into danger. She stood on the milk platform at the top of the steps, holding out her hands.
“You mustn’t go in there where the animal is!” cried Rose. “Russ, can’t you do something?” ”

“ He might have thought they had salt to give him, for often Farmer Joel and his men gave this dainty to the bull and the cows in the fields. Or the bull may have been just playful. Or perhaps his temper was just ugly. It is hard to tell sometimes the difference between playfulness and temper. Bulls are strong and like to show off their strength, sometimes butting their heads against a fence just for fun, it seems.
At any rate on came this bull after the children, and Russ and Rose hastened with their younger brothers and sisters toward the open door of the hen-house. ”

“ Bunker. “There is the worker bee, of which there are thousands in every swarm, or hive. The drones are the father bees, and, I am sorry to say, they are a lazy lot. They never work, and they eat lots of honey, and sometimes, when too many drones, or father bees, get into a hive, the worker bees sting them to death, for they can’t afford to feed too many lazy bees that won’t work. Then, most important of all, is the queen bee.” ”

“ To know the six little Bunkers is to take them at once to your heart, they are so intensely human, so full of fun and cute sayings. Each story has a little plot of its own—one that can be easily followed—and all are written in Miss Hope’s most entertaining manner. ”

“ Bunker, “and even you, not knowing anything about [Pg 110] bees, could easily pick her out of hundreds of others. The drones are a little larger than the workers, and the queer thing about the drones is that they never sting. They have no stings and cannot harm you. The queen can sting, but she never does, or hardly ever; for once a bee stings, it leaves the stinger in a person or an animal, and that means the bee dies. And it wouldn’t do to have the queen bee die.”
“What would happen if she should die?” asked Russ. ”

“ I’m looking for a family named Bunker. Do you know if they live around here?”
“We’re the Bunkers!” quickly answered Russ. “Anyhow, we’re the most of ’em,” he [Pg 19] added, laughing. “All but daddy and——”
“Oh!” murmured the driver of the truck. “Are there more of you?”
“It is rather a large family,” said Mrs. Bunker. “I have two more boys.”
“My daddy’s in his office,” volunteered Violet, who was now satisfied that her doll, Esmeralda, was all right except for a little dirt.
“And Laddie and Mun Bun are digging a hole to China,” added Margy. ”

“ Bunker to Adam. “Russ is all right, but the others would shower every one passing in the street.”
“I reckon so, and wash out all the new plants besides,” chuckled Farmer Joel’s hired [Pg 33] man. “And now,” he went on, “since you have been so kind as to ask me to stay to supper and remain all night, I’d like to wash up myself. I’m pretty dirty,” he added, with a laugh, as he looked at his grimy hands, for he had been delving in the dirt to set out the flowers.
“Come with me,” said Mrs. Bunker. “And, Russ,” she added, “be careful about the hose. Don’t spray on any people who may be passing.” ”

“ Farmer Joel has orchards, bees, flowers, chickens, cows, and horses.”
[Pg 22]
“Oh, what a lovely place that would be to go to for the rest of the summer!” exclaimed Rose.
“Could we go there, Mother?” begged Vi.
“I—now—I know a riddle about a horse,” spoke up Laddie. “When is a boy a little horse?”
“We haven’t time for riddles now, dear,” said his mother. “I must tell this man where to leave the flowers that Farmer Joel was so kind as to send us.”
“Well, then I’ll tell you when a boy is a little horse,” went on Laddie. “It’s when he has a cold.” ”

“ Then men went about piling the hay into cocks, or cone-shaped piles, which, as Laddie said, looked like the igloos of the Eskimos. Now all that remained to be done was to load the hay on a big, broad wagon and cart it to the barn.
Laddie was a bit disappointed because all the hay was raked up, for he wanted to ride on the big machine which did this work. But Farmer Joel said:
“We always have a second raking after we draw in the hay, for a lot of fodder falls off and is scattered about. You shall ride on the rake when we go over the field for the second time.” ”

“ Farmer Joel set the pail of cream down on a chair and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“Churning is hard work,” he said. “Sometimes it’s a long while before the butter comes. Of course we have a churn, but——”
“Oh, I’ll get Russ to help me and we’ll take turns churning!” cried Rose. “Please let me.”
And Farmer Joel did. He brought up the dasher churn from the cellar. Norah scalded it out with hot water, and when it was cool the sour cream was put in it and the cover made fast. ”

“ And, surely enough, Russ and Rose also felt the top of the load of hay beginning to slip to one side. Adam North was riding with the children, Farmer Joel and Daddy Bunker having remained in the field, while one hired man drove the team of horses. ”

“ Bulls are very strong,” said his mother. “I should think Farmer Joel would be afraid this one would knock the fence down. But perhaps it is all right.”
However, the fence was not all right, or else the bull was stronger than was supposed, for a few days later something very alarming took place.
Russ and Rose had been left in charge of the four smaller Bunkers while their father and mother went visiting a distant farmer whom Mr. Bunker had known some years before.
“Let’s go down and look at the water wheel,” suggested Russ, for Laddie, Violet, Mun Bun and Margy never seemed to tire of this. ”

“ Being hoarse when you have a cold isn’t being a horse on a farm,” declared Rose.
“It’s good enough for a riddle,” replied Laddie. “Oh, I want a ride!” he cried, as he saw the driver climbing up on his seat after Mrs. Bunker had pointed out her house.
“No, Laddie! Keep off the truck,” his mother warned him.
“Farmer Joel!” said Russ, in a musing tone as they all turned to go back home. “I wonder if we could go there?”
[Pg 23]
“Maybe you’ll have the chance,” his mother said, smiling.
“Oh! Oh! Oh!” cried the six little Bunkers in delight. ”

“ And a little smoke does them no harm; though, of course, if they had too much of it they would die.
“So when a man works in his apiary he puts a mosquito veil over his head and takes his smoker. A few puffs from that down in a hive of bees will so quiet the insects that he can, with his bare hands, pick them up and they will not sting him. In this way he can also pick out the queen from among her thousands of workers and put her in another hive. If he can do this in time he will stop the swarm from dividing, part of it flying away, as just happened.”
“Bees are queer,” said Russ. ”

“ As for Laddie, he was fond of asking riddles such as:
“You can have a house full and a hole full but you can’t keep a bowl full. What is it?” The answer, of course, is “smoke,” but nothing gave Laddie more pleasure than to find some one who couldn’t answer that or some [Pg 17] other riddle he asked. Sometimes he made up riddles himself, or he might ask one that came out of a book. A queer little chap was Laddie.
Then there was Margy, who was seldom called by her real name of Margaret, and Mun Bun, otherwise known as Munroe Ford, as I have mentioned. ”

“ In the cells, or little holes in the wax honeycomb, are many eggs that after a while will hatch out into other bees, mostly workers or drones. The queen bee lays the eggs that hatch into other bees. But if it should happen that the queen should die, the worker bees at once begin to feed to some of the half-hatched little bees a peculiar kind of food gathered from the flowers. It is a sort of mixture of honey and juices from the bees’ bodies. ”

“ Certainly it was a fearsome sound.
“I want my mamma!” wailed Margy.
“So do I!” joined in Mun Bun.
“We’ll take care of you!” quickly said Rose, putting her arms around the two younger children. “Oh, Russ!” she whispered, “what are we going to do?”
“We ought to have something red to shake at the bull!” cried Violet. “Red makes bulls go away.”
[Pg 210]
“It does not!” declared Laddie. “It’s just different. Red makes ’em run at you! Has anybody got any red on?” he asked anxiously.
He looked quickly at the others. To his relief no red was to be seen, and Laddie was glad. ”