Enid Blyton (7 page)

THE YOUNG WOMAN LOOKED SURPRISED WHEN SHE SAW THE TWINS.

We'll just have to tell our mother we're going out for a bit."

"Well, tell her, and come along," said Mr. Pink-Whistle, feeling almost as excited as the twins. They ran to tell their mother and then they went off with Mr. Pink-Whistle.

"We simply love our dolls, but we'd love a real baby a hundred times more," said Rose. "But not even our aunts have got a baby. So we have to make do with dolls."

"Here we are," said Mr. Pink-Whistle and led them in at a little front door. The young woman was on the bed, still looking pale. She looked surprised when she saw the twins.

"Oh, I know these little girls," she said. "I often meet them out, wheeling their dolls' prams. But they wouldn't know how to bath and feed my precious baby."

"They would said Pink-Whistle, earnestly. "I've watched them with their dolls for a long time, and I tell you they could do everything just as well as you could. Anyway, you're here to tell them exactly what to do!"

The baby began to wail. Rose ran to it and picked it up gently. She held it against her shoulder, and patted it and talked to it. It stopped crying at once.

"There!" said Pink-Whistle, pleased. "What did I tell you? I'll go now and come back in an hour's time to take the twins home."

Well, those twins had a most wonderful time. "Isn't the baby warm and soft and cuddly?" said Rose to Daisy. "Look at his downy curls— and see his tiny nails!"

"He's holding on to my finger," said Daisy. "Do you want your bath, Baby? I'll get it ready."

Mrs. Jones, the young mother, told the twins where everything was.

Before long the baby was in his bath, crowing and splashing. Then he was out on Daisy's lap, being patted dry. Then he was powdered by Rose, who also brushed his soft curls.

"I'll clear away the bath water and hot up his bottle, while you hold him and love him," she said to Daisy. "Then it will be my turn to hold him, and I'll give him his bottle."

Mrs. Jones watched the twins in surprise and delight. Why, these children loved her baby and looked after him as well as she did. What loving little hearts they must have—and how clever of that funny little man to find them for her!

Soon the baby was having his bottle on Rose's knee, happy and warm and cuddlesome. Rose looked down on him and thought what a wonderful thing it was to have something warm and living to hold instead of her cold, rather hard dolls—though she did love them, of course. But a baby was so different!

Daisy helped Mrs. Jones to get to bed. Then she brought her a boiled egg and some bread and butter, and made her some cocoa. "You good, kind children!" said Mrs. Jones. "I simply don't know what I should have done without you."

The twins laid the baby in his cot. He was almost asleep. He hung on to Rose's finger as if he would never let it go. He made a little cooing noise.

"Listen—he's saying thank you!" said Rose.

There came a soft knock at the front door. "That's Mr. Pink-Whistle come to fetch us home," said Daisy. She went to open the door and Mr.

Pink-Whistle walked in, beaming all over his face, to see Mrs. Jones tucked up in bed, drinking cocoa, and the baby fast asleep in his cot.

"Well—had a good time, everybody?" he asked.

THE TWINS TOOK THE BABY OUT IN HIS PRAM.

"Lovely!"
said the twins. "Dear Mr. Pink-Whistle, thank you for thinking of us."

"I'm much better now," said young Mrs. Jones. "I shall be quite all right in the morning, and able to look after Baby myself."

"Oh,
will
you?" said the twins, in such disappointed tones that Mr. Pink-Whistle laughed.

"Surely you're not sorry that Mrs. Jones is better?" he said.

"Well—we're glad about that—but sorry she'll be able to look after the baby herself," said Rose.

"We do so love him," said Daisy. "We've always wanted a real live baby, Mr. Pink-Whistle. And we've only had a
taste
of this one, you see."

"And it's Saturday to-morrow, and we could have looked after him all day long," said Rose. "Especially as our mother is going out for the day and we'll be alone except for Janet our cook."

"Look here, dears, if you're going to be alone you come and spend the day with
me"
said Mrs. Jones. "I will give you a lovely lunch and make you a treacle pudding—and we'll have a chocolate cake for tea, and banana sandwiches. And you shall take Baby out in his pram and give him his bottle."

"Do you mean it?" said Rose, her eyes shining. "Take him out in his pram! Oh, we
should
feel grand after wheeling our tiny dolls* prams! We'd love to come, Mrs. Jones."

"Would you come to tea, too, Mr. Pink-Whistle?" asked Mrs. Jones.

"I'd love to," said Pink-Whistle, beaming. "My word—two nice children and a baby to play with. I'll be very, very lucky!"

Well, the twins went for the day and Mr. Pink-Whistle went to tea, and I couldn't really tell you who was the happiest in that little house—

Mrs. Jones, or Mr. Pink-Whistle, or the twins, or the baby.

And now the twins go to Mrs. Jones every single day after school to play with a real live baby instead of dolls—though they haven't forgotten their dolls, of course. They have a wonderful time with the baby—but just wait till they see his very first tooth. It's coming through to-morrow, and nobody knows yet—except Mr. Pink-Whistle.

He knows so much, doesn't he? It must be nice to put so many things right. I hope he'll be along the day things go wrong with
you!

MR. PINK-WHISTLE TRICK

ONE winter's afternoon, just as it was getting dark, Mr. Pink-Whistle walked down a road near a school.

"Let me see—it's just about the time that the children come out of afternoon school," said Mr. Pink-Whistle, trying to see the time by his watch. "I'll watch them as they go by. Perhaps one or two of them will know me!"

So he stood by a shop and waited. Soon he heard chattering and clattering—and out came all the children from the school down the road.

Two small girls came first, talking together. They walked along and didn't notice Pink-Whistle. Just as they had passed him, another child ran up—a big boy. As he passed the two little girls he swerved and bumped into them both.

Down went one of them—and the other was sent into the nearby wall. They screamed.

The boy roared with laughter and ran on. "It's Sam again!" said one girl, picking herself up "Horrid thing—why does he always have to bump into people when he passes them? I suppose he thinks it's funny."

"Your coat is all muddy," said the other little girl. "Your mother will be awfully cross! How I hate Sam! He's always so rough."

Mr. Pink-Whistle was just going to go up to the two children to see if he could do anything about the little girl's coat when they ran off together.

He frowned. What a horrible boy! Did he really make a habit of bumping into others like that?

A small boy came by with his satchel on his back—and suddenly someone swopped down on him, bumped into him and knocked him flying!

TWO SMALL GIRLS CAME FIRST, BUT THEY DIDN'T NOTICE MR. PINK-WHISTLE.

"You beast, Sam!" yelled the small boy. "Lying in wait for me again!

I'll tell my father."

"Pooh!" shouted back Sam, and shot off across the road. Mr. Pink-Whistle went to help the small boy to pick up his books. They were lying in a puddle.

"Oh—thanks," said the boy. "Gosh, I shall get into a row—all my books soaked! Blow Sam! I bet he's hiding somewhere near to bump into as many of us as he can. He's so big, you see—the biggest of our class."

It was rather dark now and the little boy couldn't see Pink-Whistle clearly. How pleased he would have been if he had known who it was that was helping him!

A girl came along after that, and two more behind her. Pink-Whistle stood nearby, watching out for the horrid Sam. Was he hiding somewhere again so that he could rush out at these children, too?

Yes—he was! Whooosh! He shot across the road and bumped heavily into the first little girl—and then swung round to bump into the others. Pink-Whistle shouted a warning to them.

"Hey—lookout!"

They just got out of Sam's way in time and he almost crashed into the wall himself. He peered into the shadows angrily, trying to see who it was that had warned the two girls. He was afraid that it might be a policeman, and he shot off into the darkness.

Pink-Whistle felt sure that he wouldn't appear again, and he set off down the street, wondering if he could do anything about this tiresome Sam.

Suddenly someone came running behind him, and bumped hard into him, giving him a shove at the same time. A shout of laughter told Mr. Pink-Whistle that it was Sam again!

Over went the little man like a skittle—Sam was certainly good at bumping! Pink-Whistle found himself sitting in a big patch of soft mud—most unpleasant!

"Ha! Sam again, I suppose!" he said, angrily. "I'm small—so he thought I was a child. Well, it's certainly time he was stopped—and I'll soon stop him, too!"

Pink-Whistle got up, caught a bus and went home to his little cottage.

He told Sooty, his cat, all that had happened. Sooty grinned. He put Pink-Whistle's coat to dry, and made him some tea.

"You want to get the old Wobbly-Man to walk down that street” he said. "It would give Sam a most unpleasant surprise to find someone he couldn't possibly push over!"

"Good idea," said Pink-Whistle. "And what about me walking down the pavement carrying a nice bunch of prickly holly, Sooty?"

"I'd like to be there and see Sam bumping into that!" said Sooty. "And what about putting a hat and a pair of boots and a coat on a great big balloon, and putting a walking spell into the boots?"

Pink-Whistle nearly fell off his chair with laughing. "Oh dear—you do think of peculiar things," he said to Sooty. "Yes, we'll certainly do the balloon idea. You see, it's just too dark to see properly at that time in the afternoon—so Sam won't be able to see who he's bumping, and as I and the Wobbly-Man are both small, he will think we are children and come rushing full speed at us!"

"And he is sure to want to bump into someone who looks nice and fat like the Walking Balloon," said Sooty. "Well, you're certainly going to have some fun to-morrow, Master!"

Pink-Whistle went to see the Wobbly-Man after he had had his tea. The Wobbly-Man nodded and smiled. He was always ready for a joke. He had no feet at all, only a curved base, and he got along by wobbling himself fast. Ha!

He would give Sam a shock to-morrow!

"Nobody's ever knocked me over yet," he said to Pink-Whistle, "and nobody ever will! I'll be along to-morrow Pinkie!"

The next morning Pink-Whistle gathered some fine holly out ofhis garden—two big armfuls.

SOOTY WHISPERED TO PINK-WHISTLE, " NOW'S THE TIME TO BEGIN,
MASTER."

Then he sent Sooty to buy a balloon, a long one, not a round one.

He blew it up as big as ever he could, but he had to put a bit of magic into his blow because he wanted a rather big balloon. He stuck an old top-hat on it with glue and put a pair of old boots at the bottom, also stuck on with glue—very strong glue it was, too!