Part 17 (2/2)
Toady Lion took up the burden of his tale.
”Yes, indeedy, and one Sunday _I_ didn't have to go to church--'cos I'd yet up such a yot of gween gooseb----”
”All right, Toady Lion, I know!” interrupted Cissy quickly.
”Of gween gooseberries,” persisted Toady Lion calmly; ”so I had got my tummy on in front. It hurted like--well, like when you get sand down 'oo trowsies. Did 'oo ever get sand in 'oo trowsies, Cissy?”
”Hush--of course not!” said Cissy Carter; ”girls don't have trowsers--they have----”
But any injudicious revelations on Cissy's part were stopped by Toady Lion, who said, ”No, should juss fink not. Girls is too great softs to have trowsies.
”Onst though on the sands at a seaside, when I was '_kye-kying_' out loud an' kickin' fings, 'cos I was not naughty but only fractious, dere was a lady wat said 'Be dood, little boy, why can't you be dood?'
”An' nen I says, 'How can I be dood? Could 'oo be dood wif all that sand in 'oo trowsies?'
”An' nen--the lady she wented away quick, so quick--I can't tell why.
P'raps _she_ had sand in her trowsies! Does 'oo fink so, Cissy?”
”That'll do--I quite understand,” said Cissy Carter, somewhat hastily, in dread of Toady Lion's well-known license of speech.
”An' nen 'nother day after we comed home I went into the park and clum up a nice tree. An' it was ever so gween and scratchy. 'An it was nice. Nen father he came walking his horse slow up the road, n' I hid.
But father he seen me. And he say, 'What you doing there, little boy?
You break you neck. Nen I whip you. Come down, you waskal!' He said it big--down here, (Toady Lion ill.u.s.trated with his hand the place from which he supposed his father's voice to proceed). An' it made me feel all queer an' trimbly, like our guinea pig's nose when father speak like that. An' I says to him, 'Course, father, you never clumb up no trees on Sundays when _you_ was little boy!' An' nen he didn't speak no more down here that trimbly way, but laughed, and pulled me down, and roded me home in front of him, and gived me big hunk of pie--yes, indeedy!”
Toady Lion felt that now he had talked quite enough, and began to arrange his bra.s.s cannons on the dust, in a plan of attack which beleaguered Cissy Carter's foot and turned her flank to the left.
”Where did you get all those nice new cannons? You haven't told me yet,” she said.
”Boughted them!” answered Toady Lion promptly, ”least I boughted some, and Hugh John boughted some, an' Prissy she boughted some.”
”And how do you come to have them all?” asked Cissy, watching the imposing array. As usual it was the Battle of Bannockburn and the English were getting it hot.
”Well,” said Toady Lion thoughtfully, ”'twas this way. 'Oo sees Prissy had half-a-crown, an' she boughted a silly book all about a 'Lamplighter' for herself--an' two bra.s.s cannons--one for Hugh John an' one for me. And Hugh John he had half-a-crown, an' he boughted three bra.s.s cannon, two for himself and one for me.”
”And what did you buy with your half-crown?” said Cissy, bending her brows sweetly upon the small gunner.
”Wif my half-a-crown? Oh, I just boughted three bra.s.s cannons--_dey was all for mine-self_!”
”Toady Lion,” cried Cissy indignantly, ”you are a selfish little pig!
I shan't stop with you any more.”
”Little pigs is nice,” said Toady Lion, unmoved, arranging his cannon all over again on a new plan after the removal of Cissy's foot; ”their noses----”
”Don't speak to me about their noses, you selfish little boy! Blow your own nose.”
”No use,” said Toady Lion philosophically; ”won't stay blowed. 'Tis too duicy!”
Cissy set off in disgust towards the house of Windy Standard, leaving Toady Lion calmly playing with his six cannon all alone in the white dust of the king's highway.
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