Part 20 (1/2)
”Dear me! dear me!
What shall I do?
The're so many things, I'll never get through!”
Boris looked at the big policeman who stood in the middle of _this_ street. After a while the big policeman raised his hand and all the autos and horses and trucks stopped and Boris scampered across and ran down the block to the next street crossing. And there the same thing happened again.
Kachunk, kachunk, kachunk went by an auto; Clopperty, clopperty, clopperty went by a horse; Thunk-a-ta, thunk-a-ta, bang, bang went by a truck.
”I'll not get much of a walk this way,” he thought. ”I have to wait and wait at each corner. And the're so many things I'll never get through.”
Just then he saw a street car. ”I might take a car,” he thought. But then he saw on the street a long line of cars waiting, waiting to get through. ”It wouldn't do much good,” he thought. ”They're just like me.”
”Dear me! dear me!
What can they do?
The're so many things, They'll never get through!”
Then he noticed a big hole in the sidewalk. Down the hole went some steps and down the steps hurried lots and lots of people. ”I wonder what this is?” thought Boris and down the steps he ran.
[Ill.u.s.tration]
At the bottom of the steps there was a big room all lined with white tile and all lighted with electric lights. On the side was the funniest little house with a little window in it and a man looking through the window. Boris watched carefully for he didn't understand. Everyone went up to the window and gave the man 5 cents and the man handed out a little piece of blue paper.
”That's a ticket,” thought Boris, for he was a very smart little boy.
”These people must be going somewhere.” So he reached down in his pocket and pulled out a nickel. For all he was so little, and so new to New York, he knew what a 5 cent piece was quite well. He had to stand on tiptoe to hand the man his nickel and to reach his little blue ticket.
Then he watched again. Everyone dropped this ticket in a funny little box by a funny little gate and another man moved a handle up and down.
So Boris did just the same. He stood on tiptoe and dropped his ticket in the box and walked through the little gate to a big platform. And what do you think he saw there? A great long tunnel stretching off in both directions,--a long tunnel all lined with white tiles! And on the bottom were rails! ”I wonder what runs on that track?” thought Boris.
Just then he heard a most terrible noise:
Rackety, clackety, klang, klong!
Rackety, clackety, klang, klong!
and down the tunnel came a train of cars. ”Yi-i-i-i--sh-sh-sh-s.h.!.+”
screamed the cars and stopped right in front of Boris. And then what do you suppose happened? The doors in the car right in front of him flew open. Everyone stepped in. So did Boris.
It was the front car. He walked to the front and sat down where he could look out on the tracks. He could also look into the funny little box room and see the man who pulled the levers and made the car go and stop.
In a moment they started:
Rackety, clackety, klang, klong!
How fast! How fast!
Then ”Yi-i-i-i--sh-sh-sh-s.h.!.+” The man put on the brakes and they stopped at another station. In another moment they started again. Rackety, clackety, klang, klong! Then ”Yi-i-i-i--sh-sh-sh-sh” another station!
And so they went flying from lighted station to lighted station through the white-tiled tunnel.
Boris was very happy. He sat quite still watching out of the window and saying with the car; rackety, clackety, klang, klong; rackety, clackety, klang, klong! ”This is the way to go if you're in a hurry,” he thought.
He looked up and smiled to think of all the autos and horses and trucks above going oh! so slowly down the street!
At last he thought he would get out. So the next time the man put the brakes on and the train yelled ”Yi-i-i-i--sh-sh-sh-s.h.!.+” Boris walked through the open doors on to the platform, then through the little gate, up some long steps and found himself on the street again. But right near him what do you think he saw? A park all full of trees and gra.s.s! This made Boris happy for he hadn't seen so many trees and so much gra.s.s since he had left the wide country in his old home in Russia. A little breeze was blowing too! He clapped his hands and ran around and laughed and laughed and laughed and sang: