<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX</h2><h3 class="nobreak">THE JOURNEY WITH THE SANDPIPER</h3>
<p></p>
<p><span class="smcap">The</span> Sandpiper arrived in about one more
minute. He made many apologies for
being late.</p>
<p>“You see, my wife has a seamstress to-day,”
he said. “They have been very busy making
over the children’s summer suits, and I have had
to do all the housework. The children play so
much in the little pool that they wear out their
clothes very quickly.”</p>
<p>Mr. Sandpiper was a very pleasant traveling
companion, although it must be said that he
had some queer habits. He would run along
the beach very rapidly and then stop for a few<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</span>
minutes and teeter while talking to Ready.
His voice was very sweet and low.</p>
<p>Ready greatly admired his neat and slender
body, his very neat and slender legs, and his
particularly neat and long slender bill.</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/image100.png" width-obs="400" height-obs="157" alt="" /></div>
<div class="caption"><p class="center">Mr. Sandpiper</p>
</div>
<p>By this time Ready, having had so much
experience with so many different birds and
beasts, knew very well how to entertain them.
He asked Mr. Sandpiper quite naturally if he
had a comfortable home this year.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</span></p>
<p>“Very comfortable indeed, thank you,” was
the reply. “It has the best lining we have ever
had.”</p>
<p>And then Mr. Sandpiper was off for a drink
in a pool near by. He flew above Ready in a
rather jerky fashion and at last alighted on a
little rock and commenced teetering again.</p>
<p>“Our nest is a little farther from the water
than usual,” he continued, and then was off
again for another drink. Indeed it was quite
difficult to follow him, either in movements or
conversation.</p>
<p>Things were going along pretty well, however,
when Mr. Sandpiper stopped short right
in the middle of a sentence and a teeter.</p>
<p>“What’s that?” he said anxiously.</p>
<p>Ready listened but heard nothing.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</span></p>
<p>“There’s trouble at home. That’s my wife’s
danger call,” Mr. Sandpiper exclaimed. And
then Ready did hear a low, frightened, far-away
little peep.</p>
<p>Away flew Mr. Sandpiper in his queer jerky
fashion, while Ready followed him as rapidly
as he could. And then quite suddenly there
appeared the strangest sight that Ready had
ever seen.</p>
<p>Two boys were walking along the beach, and
in front of them on the sand lay Mrs. Sandpiper,
flopping about on one wing in a very pitiful
way. She would wait until the boys had almost
caught her before she would raise herself and
fly a little farther away from them. Then she
would flop again.</p>
<p>“She is not really hurt, you know,” whispered<span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</span>
Mr. Sandpiper, “but those dreadful boys
want to rob us of our home, and she is trying
to lead them away from it. I must fly over
and look after the children, who have probably
been told to hide under some leaves.”</p>
<p>He was off without another word and disappeared
behind a tall rock.</p>
<p>At first the boys thought it was great fun to
try to catch the Sandpiper, but after failing
to do it several times, they began to grow tired.</p>
<p>“Oh, let’s go away,” said one. “I believe
she is just trying to fool us. I have heard that
they do that sometimes.”</p>
<p>“I am sure the nest is near by,” said the
other boy. “I heard something over there.”</p>
<p>So the boys turned away from Mrs. Sandpiper
and went over toward the little rock.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</span></p>
<p>Ready knew that something must be done,
or they would surely find the nest. Mrs. Sandpiper
gave a frightened little peep which said,
“Oh, please, please, somebody do something
to save my home and children.”</p>
<p>It took all Ready’s courage, but it must be
done. It was against his bringing up, against
his highest principles, against good taste in
dogs’ circles, but it <i>must be done</i>. He ran barking
at the two boys. He did not wait for them
to protect themselves with sticks and stones,
but growling and showing his teeth, he made
a spring towards them. The boys ran off, with
Ready close upon them. He must finish up
the work now and get them really out of the
way.</p>
<p>On and on ran the boys, on and on went<span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</span>
Ready, growling and barking savagely all the
time. You would have thought he was the
most snappy, vicious little dog in the world
if you had heard and seen him then, but all
the time he was running, his heart was growing
heavier and heavier.</p>
<p>Something seemed to be saying to him, “You
will lose the way, <i>go back, go back</i>.”</p>
<p>And then something else seemed to be answering,
“<i>But every dog must do his duty.</i>”</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/image105.png" width-obs="400" height-obs="157" alt="" /></div>
<div class="caption"><p class="center">On and on ran the boys, and on and on went Ready</p>
</div>
<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</span></p>
<p>At last they came to a rather rocky part of
the beach. There was one very high queerly
shaped rock, and the boys quickly climbed
over it and tried to hide behind it.</p>
<p>“Here is a good place to turn around,”
Ready decided. “I’ll pretend to have lost them
and run back now.”</p>
<p>But just as he turned and started on the
backward stretch, he felt a sharp stinging pain
in one of his legs. A horrid little sharp stone
had hit him, and then came another, almost
touching him.</p>
<p>The boys were now taking their revenge.</p>
<p>In spite of the sharp pain, Ready knew that
he must not linger here or let them see that
he had been hurt, so he ran bravely along, holding
his head proudly, never once letting those<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</span>
mean, cowardly boys know that anything was
the matter.</p>
<p>The pain began to grow very bad, and Ready
felt that he must stop somewhere soon. But
there was no sheltered spot in sight. The sunny
beach stretched out before him for miles and
miles.</p>
<p>At last he saw another Sandpiper taking a
drink in a tiny pool in one of the rocks. Ready
limped up to him and asked if he knew any
shady spot where he could rest for a few minutes.
You see, he knew Sandpiper language
very well by this time.</p>
<p>The Sandpiper, after jerking himself about,
remembered a nice little place behind a rock
about a quarter of a mile away. He guided
poor limping Ready to it, and then Ready told<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</span>
him all about his difficulties. The Sandpiper
was very much interested.</p>
<p>“I think I know your guide quite well,” he
said, “and I will fly back and tell him where you
are. He is a neighbor of mine. Hasn’t he a
particularly large black spot right in the middle
of his white shirt front?”</p>
<p>Wasn’t it splendid that Ready remembered
this very spot? He had noticed it during Mr.
Sandpiper’s first teeter. As you see, Ready was
really a very observant little dog.</p>
<p>After the Sandpiper had gone, and Ready
was left all alone with the pain, it felt very bad
indeed. Life seemed pretty hard. There was
always something unpleasant happening to
him.</p>
<p>He wondered if he would ever really reach<span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</span>
his journey’s end. Perhaps his leg would
grow worse and worse. He had heard of legs
that did do that. Perhaps—but just then from
right around the corner <i>a big shaggy brown
dog appeared</i>!</p>
<p>Ready was a great judge of dogs. Indeed,
he had been brought up with them, and one
look in this dog’s face told him that he had
found a friend. He was such a kind-eyed dog,
with understanding ears and tail. Ready knew
at once that this dog was years older than he,
and that he would know all about lame legs.</p>
<p>“You are suffering,” gently barked Shaggy
Dog.</p>
<p>At this Ready gave up and moaned out his
story. Shaggy Dog’s eyes grew kinder and
kinder. In a moment he had looked at the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</span>
poor leg and had made it much more comfortable
by a little licking. Then he had Ready
bathe it in a pool near by, and gave him the
best medicine in the world. Do you know
what it was? He gave him back his <i>courage</i>.</p>
<p>“Your leg will feel much better in a half
hour,” he said, “and you will be able to go along
easily. Your Sandpiper friend will soon be
here, and I will stay with you until he does
come.</p>
<p>“You have made a wonderful journey and
from what you tell me, I know you must be
nearly there. Be thankful that the very last
part of your journey you can take alone, for
then you need have no interruptions.”</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/image111.png" width-obs="500" height-obs="645" alt="" /></div>
<div class="caption"><p class="center">“You are suffering,” gently barked Shaggy Dog</p>
</div>
<p>Ready was much comforted, and his leg began
to feel a great deal better. Shaggy Dog<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</span>
told Ready that he would gladly go with him
to the end of his journey, but his business, as
the oldest dog in the neighborhood, was to
carry dog messages and to look after things
generally all along the beach.</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/image112.png" width-obs="400" height-obs="132" alt="" /></div>
<div class="caption"><p class="center">Mr. and Mrs. Sandpiper and three of their children</p>
</div>
<p>This afternoon he was taking a special delivery
to a young collie some distance away.
It was a message from his grandfather to say
that he was coming that night to spend the
week-end. The young collie must know about
it this afternoon in order to get some special<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</span>
food ready for his grandfather, whose teeth and
digestion were very poor.</p>
<p>Then Shaggy Dog, seeing that Ready was
still a little nervous, recited some dog poetry
he had made. It went something like this:</p>
<div class="poetry-container">
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“If you have a lame leg,</div>
<div class="verse indent0">You won’t have to beg.</div>
<div class="verse indent0">Forget the old stone,</div>
<div class="verse indent0">And think of a bone.</div>
<div class="verse indent0">Instead of a moan,</div>
<div class="verse indent0">Say, ‘Soon I’ll be home.’”</div>
</div></div>
</div>
<p>Do you know what happened? Ready was
asleep in a few minutes. When he awakened,
Shaggy Dog was smiling down at him and Mr.
and Mrs. Sandpiper, with three of the children,
were twittering above his head.</p>
<p>As soon as they saw that Ready was awake,
they flew toward him. Then Mother Sandpiper,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</span>
in a pretty little song, thanked him for
saving all the family from destruction. Father
Sandpiper joined in the last two lines, and at
a signal from their mother, the little Sandpipers
joined in the chorus.</p>
<p>It sounded to Ready something like this:</p>
<div class="poetry-container">
<div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="verse indent0">“Peet-weet, peet-weet,</div>
<div class="verse indent0">You deserve much meat.</div>
<div class="verse indent0">Peet-weet, peet-weet,</div>
<div class="verse indent0">You’ll soon be on your feet.”</div>
</div></div>
</div>
<p>After all the hand-shaking and good-byes
were over, Ready found out that his leg was
about well, and Mr. Sandpiper and he started
off again.</p>
<p>He hated to leave old Shaggy Dog, but had
to be satisfied with the promise of a visit from
him on the very first day of his vacation.</p>
<p>As they went along, Mr. Sandpiper explained<span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</span>
that he would have followed Ready
immediately if he had not found Mrs. Sandpiper
in hysterics, and it had taken some time
to quiet her. He said he was quite proud of
the children, who had stood motionless under
some tall weeds during the terrible danger.</p>
<p>At last Ready and Mr. Sandpiper came to
a place where a long straight road lay before
them. This was the place where the Sandpiper
had to leave him. He carefully explained how
easy it was to follow the road.</p>
<p>He said, “You remember that the Heron
was to go with you and show you a short cut
through the marshes. Perhaps it is just as well
for you that he had appendicitis, as he always
stops a long time to get his evening meal. Then
if he is startled he flies at once to a tree. Moreover,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</span>
he is rather apt to pick a quarrel. It is
thought by some of the best authorities in Birdland
that his appendicitis came from eating
too heartily one night and quarreling violently
afterwards.”</p>
<p>It was after twilight when the Sandpiper
finally said good-bye and left Ready alone on
the long dark road.</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/image116.png" width-obs="400" height-obs="411" alt="" /></div>
<div class="caption"><p class="center">Alone on the long, dark road</p>
</div>
<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" />
<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</span></p>
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