Part 37 (2/2)

But I do love to be with you, all by your lonesome, and now let's have some real old Kayuna times. Come down on the beach, and let's talk about it,” with another squeeze. And then, with their arms about each other's waists, they ran down the yard.

On the small sloping beach behind the big rocks, Zaidee and Helen and Kenneth were playing by themselves. Helen and Kenneth were sitting up very straight and stiff, with their little legs out straight in front of them, and their small hands folded in their laps. They were listening with intent faces, and round, wide-open eyes, to Zaidee, who, with small forefinger uplifted, was telling them something, with a very serious face. The girls crept softly near to see what they were doing.

”And these _naughty_ chil'en,” went on Zaidee, ”came out of the city, and they made lots of fun of Lishers, and they ran after him, an' kept calling him names, an' saying, 'Go up, ole bullhead! go up, ole bullhead!' An' Lishers got very angry--as angry as Luke did the other day, when I asked him if he liked to have such mixed-up eyes,” (poor Luke was very cross-eyed, and very sensitive about it), ”and he said, 'There's some gre-at big bears in these woods, 'n' I'll call 'em to come and eat you chil'en up, if you doesn't stop calling names. Only bad little chil'en, 'thout any one to tell 'em any better, calls names.'

But they didn't one of 'em stop, an' Lishers just whistled, an'

forty-two bears came trotting right out of the woods, an'

eated--up--every--one--of--those--bad--chil'en, quicker'n scat.

'Liza said so, herself. So, Helen and Kenneth, you mustn't ever call any one any names, an' _specially_ you mustn't call 'em 'bullheads,'

cause bears will come out of the woods an' eat you all up, and it's very unpolite, too.”

Helen looked awed, and Kenneth unbelieving.

”Ain't any bears,” he said, stoutly.

”You mustn't inkerrupt the Sunday school,” said Zaidee, severely. ”Any way, there are crocky-dolls, if there ain't any bears. I saw a funny, long thing come out of the water the other day, and 'Liza said she guessed it was a crocky-doll.”

”Tould it eat me up?” demanded Kenneth, hastily.

”I don't think it could eat you all up at once,” said Zaidee, cautiously; ”but it might take bites out of you.”

”What are you doing, children?” said Eunice, coming forward, and throwing herself on the sand beside them, and pulling Helen, her special pet, down into her arms.

”Playing Sunday school, Eunice,” said Zaidee, sitting down, herself.

”We're going to have a Sunday school every Tuesday afternoon, just the same as you have the Echo Club, you know. Helen's going to make up the texts. She makes up _beautiful_ texts, just like the Bible.”

”Why, Zaidee!” remonstrated Eunice, looking shocked. ”You mustn't say that anything is as nice as the Bible. What was it, pettikins?”

But Helen was shy, and needed much coaxing before she could be persuaded to give her ”text,” which was a very practical one.

”She who doth not what she is told, gets worse.”

”Bravo!” cried Eunice, laughing. ”That _is_ a fine text.”

”She made it up all her own self,” said Zaidee, quite as proud of her twin's performance as if it had been her own.

”I don't want to play Sunday school any more, Zaidee,” said Kenneth, getting up. ”I'd ravver play turch. I'm ze talking man, wiv white skirts on,” he added, standing on a stone, and waving his short arms about, for the young man had made his first appearance at church the Sunday before, and had wanted to play ”turch” ever since.

”You were a naughty boy,” said Zaidee, reproachfully, ”you talked out loud right in meetin'-church, and I was so 'shamed.”

”And you falled off the stool when all the people were kneeling down and saying, 'The seats they do hear us, O Lord;' and you made a great _big_ noise,” added Helen, severely, for her.

”'The seats they do hear us,'” repeated Cricket. ”What _does_ she mean, Eunice, do you suppose?”

”Why, don't you know, Cricket,” explained Helen, for herself. ”When all the people are kneeling down, and the minister keeps saying things, and the people keep saying, 'The seats they do hear us,' 'course they hear them, 'cause they say it right at the back of the seats.”

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