FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47  
48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   >>   >|  
re the fire. The boys were so glad to see him that they first laughed and then cried almost, while the miller and his wife looked on in wonder. Nugget took things very coolly. "Where did you fellows spend the night?" he asked, after the first greetings were over. "Where did _you_ spend it?" exclaimed Ned. "You gave us a pretty scare, Nugget. We never expected to see you again." "Let him spin his yarn while you're eating breakfast," interrupted the miller. "Lizzie, set three more plates out." A moment later the boys were attacking the food with keen appetites, and as Nugget was now through, he proceeded to relate his adventures. "When the wind came up and separated us," he began, "I got pretty badly scared. I was afraid it would rain hard, so I took out my canvass apron and buttoned it over the cockpit, close up to my waist." "Good for you!" said Ned. "If I'm not mistaken that was what saved you." "Perhaps it was," resumed Nugget. "I paddled on for a little while, trying to find you fellows. All at once I heard an awful roar, and the canoe made a jump as though it was going to stand on end. I gave one yell, and the next thing I knew big waves were jumping all around me." He paused to shiver at the recollection. "And what then?" asked Randy breathlessly. "Then I was more scared than ever," continued Nugget in a reluctant voice. "So I crawled under the apron and snuggled up in the cockpit. There was plenty of room, and the cushion made a nice soft pillow, and--and--I fell asleep." "Fell asleep!" ejaculated Ned in amazement. "You don't mean it?" "Why, yes," said Nugget. "I was awfully tired, you know, and I couldn't keep my eyes open. The next thing I remember is that man there helping me out. It was daylight, and the canoe was in a little channel with thick bushes all around." The boys were not slow to appreciate the ludicrous side of Nugget's adventure, and they laughed long and heartily. Then the miller told how he found the canoe in a stretch of back water that ran a few yards in from the creek, and how surprised he was when he pulled the apron off the cockpit and saw Nugget fast asleep. "I noticed that inlet," said Ned, "but I didn't see anything of the canoe." "Because I pulled it out in the bushes," replied the miller. "The current has a natural drift toward the place, and clogs it up with rubbish sometimes. The lad had a narrow squeeze of it when he went through that hole in t
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47  
48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Nugget

 

miller

 

cockpit

 

asleep

 

scared

 
bushes
 

pulled

 

laughed

 

fellows

 

pretty


couldn
 

helping

 

daylight

 

amazement

 

remember

 

ejaculated

 

snuggled

 
plenty
 

crawled

 

reluctant


squeeze

 

narrow

 

pillow

 

cushion

 

channel

 

surprised

 
natural
 
Because
 

replied

 
noticed

ludicrous

 

continued

 

rubbish

 
adventure
 

stretch

 

heartily

 

current

 

shiver

 
separated
 

proceeded


relate

 

adventures

 

canvass

 

buttoned

 

afraid

 

exclaimed

 
appetites
 
eating
 

breakfast

 

expected