Part 18 (1/2)
”So am I.”
”By gum, you're celebratin' all right!” came from Jack Ness, as he poked his head from behind a tree. ”I guess they must have heard that clear down to the Corners.”
”Further than that!” replied Tom.
”Oh, Tom, did you do that?” came a voice from an upper window, and Nellie showed her face.
”What an awful noise!” came from another window, as Dora appeared.
”Did it wake you up?” cried Tom.
”It made me bounce right out of bed!” declared Nellie. ”I thought I was shot.”
”I thought the house had been hit,” said Dora.
”Did your cannon burst?” questioned Grace, as she appeared beside Nellie.
”Not a bit of it!” declared Tom. ”Just listen, while we fire another shot.”
”Oh, Tom, wait till I put some cotton in my ears!” cried Mrs. Rover, as she showed herself, followed by the others.
”Boys, you didn't shoot off anything in the cannon, did you?” asked Randolph Rover, nervously.
”Nothing but powder and paper, Uncle,” answered Sam.
”That ain't so!” suddenly shouted Jack Ness. ”By gum! You hit the bee hive, an' here come the bees! Gee, shoo! Git out! Oh, my! I'm stung!” And he started to run from the orchard.
The boys stared for a moment. Down in the orchard was the hive which their uncle had set apart from the others. It seemed to be torn at the top, and a swarm of angry bees were flying around. Part of the swarm had made for Jack Ness, and now the hired man was running for his life.
”Why, I don't see how we hit the hive--” commenced d.i.c.k, when a yell from Sam interrupted him.
”The bees! The bees! Some of 'em are heading this way!”
”Hi! hi! don't let 'em fly away!” screamed Randolph Rover. ”They are very valuable! Stop them! Make them go back in the hive!”
”Excuse me from touching any bees!” murmured Tom. ”I'm going to get out of here!” And he started to run.
”Don't go to the house!” cried d.i.c.k. ”We don't want the ladies and the girls to get stung. Head for the barn!”
His brothers understood, and they scampered at top speed for the nearest barn. In the meantime they could see poor Jack Ness slas.h.i.+ng around wildly with a coat he was carrying.
”Git out o' here, you troublesome critters!” screamed the hired man.
”Lemme alone, consarn ye! Oh, my nose! Oh, my eye!” And then he pelted for the vegetable garden. Here he fell over a hot-bed frame and went sprawling. But he soon picked himself up, and then he streaked it down the garden to a patch of corn, gradually outdistancing his little tormentors.
”Say, this is the worst yet!” groaned Tom, and he and his brothers watched the bees from a distance. ”However did we happen to hit that hive?”
”I'm sure I don't know,” replied d.i.c.k, ”unless you put something in the cannon. Did you use stones?”