Three little Trippertrots

“It’s almost as nice to ride on a banana wagon as it is on a load of hay,” said Mary. “This is just lovely, I think.”

“So do I,” agreed Tommy. “And there really is hay on this wagon, so it’s almost like a straw ride.”

“Oh, yes, I always put the bananas on soft hay, so they won’t break open when the wagon goes over rough stones,” said the banana man. “But hold tight, now, as I am going very fast.” And so he did, and the children were bounced about, and up and down a bit, but then the hay was so soft that they didn’t get hurt in the least.

“Do you know where our house is?” asked Johnny, after a bit.

“No, but I think I can find it,” answered the banana man. “I know where lots and lots of houses are, and I’m sure one of them must be yours. I’ll go along through the street, and you can look at all the houses you see, and pretty soon you’ll see the right one.”

“Oh, but we have been away from home a long time,” said Tommy. “Ever since early this morning, when we went after the kind fireman to thank him. And we’ve been lost from then on.”

“And maybe some one has painted our house a different color,” spoke Johnny, “so we won’t know it even when we see it.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that,” spoke the banana man. “They couldn’t have painted your house since morning, and it isn’t night yet.”

“The false-face man could,” said Mary. “He is a very fast painter, but then I know he would make funny faces on our house, if he did paint it, so we would know it anyhow.”

“Yes, that’s right,” said the banana man. “But lie down, now, and rest yourselves, and I will wheel you up first one street and then down the other, and soon you may be home.”

So he did that, and lots and lots of persons stopped to look at the funny sight of three lost children sitting on the hay in a two-wheeled banana wagon.

“Do you happen to know where they live?” the banana man would ask the different people who crowded around his wagon.

“No,” said every one, and the men and women shook their heads.

“Do you know any of these people?” the banana man then asked of the Trippertrot children. But neither Mary nor Johnny nor Tommy knew any of them.

“Then we will have to go along a little farther,” said the banana man; and so he went up some streets that were hilly, and down some that were smooth, and along some that were very rough with cobblestones, and all the while he kept wheeling the children in his wagon, or cart, if you’d rather call it that.

And once the wagon went over a stick of wood, and tipped to one side, and Mary nearly fell out. She would have, only Tommy grabbed her just in time, and held her on the hay.

And a little later there was a dog chasing a cat, and the cat ran so fast to get away from the dog that the pussy jumped right up in the wagon, into Mary’s lap.

“Oh, you poor, dear little pussy!” cried Mary, as she rubbed the cat’s fur, and tried to make its tail smaller, for it was all swelled up on account of the dog, you know.

“That cat looks like our cat, Ivy Vine,” said Tommy, when the banana man had driven away the dog.

“Oh, yes, I just wish Ivy Vine was here now,” said Mary.

“And I wish Fido was here,” spoke Johnny. “He is kind to cats.”

“Yes, if we could only find Ivy and Fido, they would show us the way home.” And Mary sighed a little, and a salty tear fell out of her left eye.

“Never mind,” said the banana man. “I think we will soon be there.” But he talked in a tired voice, for his legs were very weary with tramping around all day, selling bananas, and then giving the lost children a ride up and down so many streets, looking for their home. Still he wouldn’t give up.

Pretty soon they came to where a man was selling hot, roasted chestnuts, and also some cold, boiled ones. And the banana man knew the chestnut man, and bought some nuts from him and gave them to the lost Trippertrots, for they were hungry again, those three children were.

“Oh, it doesn’t seem as if we were ever going to be at home again!” said Mary, after a while, when she had eaten some of the roasted chestnuts.

“No, indeed,” spoke Johnny, as he ate some boiled ones.

“I’m never going to run away again,” said Tommy, “not even if the chimney does get on fire.”

“Or even if the house falls down,” added Mary. And then they put their arms around one another and sat there on the banana wagon, and wished they were home.

And the banana man did the best he could. He looked at all the houses, and he asked lots of people where the Trippertrots lived, but none knew.

“I guess you will have to look for the kind policeman again,” suggested Tommy. “He can find our house for us.”

“Or else Mr. Johnson, who took us home in his automobile, the other time when we were lost,” added Johnny. “He might help us.”

“Perhaps I had better look for a policeman,” said the banana man, for he was now very tired, because it was like pushing three baby carriages, made into one, to push the Trippertrots about on the banana wagon.

So he looked all over for a policeman, but he couldn’t see any. I guess they were all down at the big fire, where all the firemen had gone. And the banana man couldn’t even see the pieman or Simple Simon, nor even Jiggily Jig.

“Oh! Whatever shall we do?” cried Mary.

“I don’t know,” answered Johnny. “Do you, Tommy?”

“No, I don’t know, either,” replied Tommy Trippertrot.

But just then they turned around the corner of the street, and they heard some music playing, and there was a hand-organ man, with a monkey!

“Oh, goody!” cried Mary. “There is the hand-organ man who once rode with us in the automobile, and he will know where we live.”

“No, I am sorry to say I don’t know where you live,” answered the hand-organ man, when they had asked him. “You see, I am a new man here, and not the one you thought I was. I just bought this organ and the monkey from the man who rode with you in the auto. The monkey may know where you live, but I don’t.”

“Then let’s ask the monkey,” suggested Tommy.

So they asked the monkey. But, bless you! the monkey couldn’t talk, you know, and all he did was to take off his cap and make a low bow, as if he was asking for pennies.

“That’s of no use,” said Tommy hopelessly.

“No,” agreed Mary. “We’ll never get home that way.”

Well, the three little Trippertrots didn’t know what to do, and they were almost ready to cry, when, all at once, Johnny gave a loud shout.

“What’s the matter?” asked Mary. “Are you hurt?”

“No! But look!” cried Johnny. “There comes Ivy Vine, our cat!”

“And there comes Fido, our dog!” exclaimed Tommy, and he pointed to the dog and cat coming down the street together like twins, only, of course, they weren’t twins—dogs and cats can’t be twins, you know.

“Oh, now we will find our way home,” said Mary. “Ivy and Fido will lead us. We can’t be far from our house.”

“I am glad of it,” said the banana man, who was more tired than ever.

“Here, Fido! Fido!” called Tommy.

“Come, Ivy! Ivy!” cried Mary.

The dog and the cat came running up to the children, and they were very glad to see them. I mean the children were glad to see Fido and Ivy Vine, and Ivy Vine and Fido were glad to see the children. So they were all glad, even the banana man.

“Now show us the way home, Fido!” called Tommy, and, somehow or other, Fido understood, for he wagged his tail so hard that it almost dropped off, and Ivy Vine wagged her tail, and then they trotted on ahead of the banana wagon. They looked back every now and then, to see if the wagon was coming.

“Just follow them, and we’ll soon be at our home,” said Mary. And the banana man did so, riding the children on his cart, and a little later, just as they went around a corner, there was the Trippertrots’ house!

“Oh, we’re home! We’re home!” cried Mary joyfully.

“And how glad we are!” cried Tommy and Johnny, and they all hugged each other. Fido capered about, barking as loudly as he could; and then out ran Suzette and Mr. Trippertrot and Mrs. Trippertrot.

“Oh, you children!” cried their mamma. “Lost again, I suppose!”

“Yes’m,” answered Mary.

“And we were looking all over for you,” said their papa.

“But Fido and Ivy Vine and the banana man brought us home,” explained Tommy, “and we had some wonderful adventures since we went to thank the fireman.”

“Well, please don’t ever have any more,” said their mamma.

“No’m, we won’t,” answered Mary.

Then they all went into the house and had supper, and Mr. Trippertrot thanked the banana man very kindly, and gave him some money.

“I don’t want any more adventures very soon,” said Tommy.

But my goodness sakes alive and the mustard spoon! It wasn’t any time at all before those three little Trippertrots had something more happen to them.