Part 21 (2/2)
”Have you found any nuts yet?” asked Freddie, after a minute or two.
”Oh yes, I've got one!” cried Flossie. ”I've got two--three--a whole lot,” and she showed some brown things in her fat little hand.
”Let's see,” called Bert, and when Flossie held them out to him he laughed and said:
”Those aren't chestnuts. They are acorns. You have been looking under an oak tree, Flossie. You must look under a chestnut tree.”
”Aren't these all chestnut trees?” asked Freddie.
”Oh, no,” replied Bert, whose father had told him something of the different kinds of trees, from which lumber is made. ”There are oak, hickory, maple and elm trees in these woods. Here, I'll show you a chestnut tree.”
He pointed one out to the little twins, showing them how they could always tell it afterward by the leaves and bark.
”Look there for chestnuts and maybe you'll find some,” said Bert.
Flossie threw away the acorns, and she and Freddie began poking in among the leaves again, while the others went to different trees.
Freddie soon called:
”I've found some! I've found some!”
He hurried over to Bert with some s.h.i.+ny brown nuts in his hand. Each nut had a little ”tail” fastened to it.
”Yes, those are chestnuts,” Bert said. ”Now see whether you or Flossie will fill a bag first.”
”I've got a whole lot of nuts!” Flossie cried. ”Oh, such a lot. Come on Freddie and--Ouch! Oh dear!” she suddenly cried.
”What is it?” asked Nan, quickly running over to her little sister. ”Did you hurt yourself?”
”Something stuck me in the fingers,” Flossie answered, holding up her chubby hand.
”Maybe it's a snake,” said Freddie.
”No, it's only chestnut burr stickers,” said Nan. ”I'll get them out for you, Flossie. After this, open the burrs with a stick. Oh, look here!”
she cried, as she glanced down at the ground. ”Flossie _has_ found a whole lot of nuts in a pile!”
They all came over to look at Flossie's find. Surely enough, there were a number of the brown nuts in a little hollow in the ground.
”How did they get there?” asked Nellie.
”Some squirrel or chipmunk must have gathered them in a heap, ready to carry to its nest,” said George. ”Well, we'll just take them, as it will save us the trouble of hunting for them. Put them in your bag, Flossie.”
”But won't the squirrel be hungry?” asked the little girl.
”Well, don't take quite all of them. But there are lots of chestnuts this Fall, and the squirrels can find and gather them more easily than we can. Take them, Flossie.”
”I'll give Freddie some too,” she said, and the two small Bobbsey twins divided most of the nuts between them.
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