making believe he was a colored man, or an Irishman, at times, that he
had every one laughing. Bunker Blue came to dinner also, and he said he
had had as much fun as if he had been to the theater.
"You'll come to our show, won't you, Bunker?" asked Bunny, when he could
eat no more.
"Oh, sure, I'll come!" said the fish boy. "And I'll clap as loud as I
can when you get in the water trough."
"I'm not going to get in," decided Bunny. "I'm going to let Charlie
Star do that--he's smaller 'n I am."
The children were given their parts for the farm play, and they
practiced whenever they had a chance over the garage. The scenery was
still stored there, and Mr. Brown was trying to find a place in town
large enough for the show to be given.
It was one evening after a day of practice, and while Bunny, Sue, and
the others in the Brown house were talking about the play, that a ring
came at the front door.
"Oh, maybe that's a special delivery letter to say our uncle and aunt
have been heard from!" exclaimed Lucile.
"Oh, if it should be!" murmured Sue, hopefully.
But it was Mr. Raymond, the hardware store keeper, in whose place Wango
the monkey had once got loose.
"Good evening, Mr. Brown," was Mr. Raymond's greeting as he came in. "I
heard you were looking for a place for the children to give some sort of
entertainment--is that so?"
"Yes," was the answer. "I did hope we might get the old moving picture
theater, but that's been sold, and I really don't know what to do. We
have the scenery, the children have nearly learned their parts, but we
have no place to give the show."
"Well, I've come to tell you where you can find a place," said the
hardware man, and Bunny and Sue clapped their hands in delight.
CHAPTER XI
THE STRANGE VOICE
"This is very kind of you, I'm sure, Mr. Raymond," said Mr. Brown. "I
didn't know there was any place in town I hadn't thought of. The church
will hardly do, and the Opera House costs too much to hire for a simple
little play. The town meeting hall is too small, and I was thinking we'd
have to get a tent, perhaps.
"No, you won't have to do that," said the merchant. "You know there's a
big loft over my store, don't you?"
"Yes, but I thought you had that piled full of things," said Mr. Brown.
"Well, it was, but it's partly cleaned out now," was the answer. "I'm
going to clean out the rest, and you can have that place for your show,
and welcome. It won't cost you a
|