Part 21 (1/2)

BORIS WALKS EVERY WAY IN NEW YORK

PART 1

One morning when Boris was eating his breakfast, he suddenly thought of the wide green country around his old home in Russia. I don't know what made him think of it. He just did! ”Mother,” he said, ”I want to see some gra.s.s.”

His mother smiled. ”Want to go to the Park, Boris?” she asked.

”No, more gra.s.s than that even. I want to see it everywhere,” and Boris waved his arms around. ”I think I'll go and find lots and lots of it!”

”I'd like to see lots and lots of gra.s.s too, Boris,” smiled his mother.

But her eyes were full of tears too! ”But I don't know where you can go in New York and see gra.s.s everywhere!”

”Then I'll go out of New York!” cried Boris. ”If I walk far enough I'll surely find gra.s.s, won't I?”

”You can try,” answered his mother. Boris was now much bigger than when he came to New York and could talk quite a little English too. So his mother let him walk over the city alone. Boris clapped his hands! For though he was much bigger, he was still a little boy, you know!

”Which way had I better go?” thought Boris when he was out on the street. ”I think I'll go west first.” So he walked west. Though the streets were crowded he had learned to go faster than when he took his first walk and discovered the subway and elevated. West, west, west he went. Street after street,--houses set close together all the way. Then at last he saw something that made him run. The city came to an end! And there was a big river, oh! such an enormous river! The edge of the river was all docks,--docks as far as he could look. Across on the other side he could see another city with big chimneys and lots and lots of smoke.

There were lots of boats in the river too. ”Some day I'll come and watch them,” thought Boris excitedly, ”but now I want to find my gra.s.s.” So he turned around. ”I'll have to go east, I guess,” he thought.

So east he went. East he went until he came to his house. But he did not stop. He went right by it. ”How many houses there are” he thought. ”How many people there must be!” And still he walked east. And still the houses were set close together street after street. After a while he saw something that made him run again. The city came to an end! And there was another big river! This edge too was all docks,--docks as far as he could look. Across on the other side he could see another city with big chimneys and lots of smoke. ”Well,” thought Boris, ”isn't it the funniest thing that when I walk west I come to a river and when I walk east I come to a river too!”

Now this puzzled him so that he thought he must ask somebody about it.

Close to him was a big dock and at the dock was a flat barge. A lot of men were unloading coal from her. He walked up to one. ”Please,” he said, ”what river is this?”

The man stopped his work for a minute. ”It's the East River of course.

Where do you come from, boy?”

”From Russia,” said Boris, ”so you see I didn't know. And please, is the other river the West River then?”

”What other river, boy? What are you talking about?”

This made Boris feel very uncomfortable, but he knew there was another river in the west for hadn't he just walked there? So he said bravely, ”If you keep walking west you _do_ come to another river. I know you do!

For I've done it. And it's a bigger river than this, too!”

The man laughed out loud. ”Right you are, boy!” he said. ”You're a great walker, you are. Did you walk all the way from Russia?” Now Boris thought the man couldn't know very much to ask him such a question. But, then, he didn't know much either. He was asking questions too! So he answered, ”Oh! no! I came on an enormous boat. But please you haven't told me the name of the other river?”

The man laughed louder than ever. ”It's a funny thing, boy, that we call it the North River. But you are right: it _is_ west! It's really the Hudson River, boy, that's what it is. And a mighty big river it is too.

Want to know anything more?” And the man turned back to his work.

”Well,” thought Boris. ”I can't get to my gra.s.s today if I strike rivers everywhere I go.” And he turned and walked home slowly, because he was sorry. And he was very, very tired too. For you see he had walked all the way across the city twice and that is a pretty long walk even for a boy the size of Boris.

Boris, he went out to walk To find the country wide.

And he walked west and west he walked But found the Hudson wide!

And so he turned himself about And walked the other way And he walked east and east he walked And there East River lay!

PART 2

The next morning at breakfast, Boris suddenly thought again of the wide green country around his old home in Russia. I don't know why he thought of it again. He just did! And then he thought of the Hudson River he had found by walking west and of the East River he had found by walking east. ”I might try walking north this time,” he thought. And so he said to his mother, ”I think I'll go on another hunt for gra.s.s,--gra.s.s that's everywhere!” and again he waved his arms.