THE DINNER HORSES
In a certain house on a certain street there lives a certain little girl and her name is Ruth (one of children’s names). She sleeps in a little bed in a room with a big window opening on to the street. She sleeps all night in the little bed with her eyes closed tight. In the morning she opens her eyes and it’s just beginning to get light. Then she stretches and stretches her legs. Then she stops still and listens. For she hears him coming, coming, coming down the street. Clopperty, clopperty, clopperty, clop! comes the milk horse down the street! He stops in front of Ruth’s house. Ruth hears him. Then she hears the driver jump out and pat, pat, pat, she hears his feet coming to the door. Clank, clink, clank, go the milk bottles in his hands. Clank! she hears him put them down. Then fast she hears his feet, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat. “Go on, Dan!” she hears him call, and clopperty, clopperty, clopperty, clop! off goes the milk horse down the street.
Then after a while she hears something else. It’s quite light now. Ruth thinks it must be time to get up. She stretches and stretches her legs. Then she stretches and stretches her arms. Then she stops still and listens.
For she hears him coming, coming, coming down the street. Clippety, lip, lip, lip, clippety, lip, lip, lip! comes the bread horse down the street. He stops in front of Ruth’s house. Ruth hears him. Then she hears the driver jump out and pat, pat, pat, she hears his feet coming to the door. Rattle, crackle, goes the paper as he puts down the loaves of bread all wrapped up to keep them clean. Then fast she hears his feet, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat, pat. “Go on, Bill!” she hears him call and clippety, lip, lip, lip, clippety, lip, lip, lip! off goes the bread horse down the street.
After breakfast when Ruth is all ready to go to school she hears a big auto coming down the street. Kachug-a-chug-a-chug comes the grocery auto down the street. It stops at Ruth’s house. Ruth runs and looks out of the window. She sees the driver jump out and take from the back of the auto a basket all full of things. She can see spinach and potatoes and a package of sugar and——and——and——.
Then pat, pat, pat, the driver runs to the door. Prrrrrr! she hears the bell ring and Ruth knows that the driver is giving Bessie all the things at the kitchen door. Then pat, pat, pat back comes the driver, jumps into the auto and kachug-a-chug-a-chug! off goes the grocery auto down the street!
On the way to school Ruth passes another wagon. Rattling and clattering, she hears the butcher’s wagon come down the street. “Is there anything in that wagon for us?” asks Ruth. And her mother answers, “Yes, a little chicken.” Then rattling and clattering off to Ruth’s house goes the butcher’s wagon down the street.
Now while Ruth is away at school Bessie washes the spinach and chops it up fine and puts it on the stove to boil. She puts the little chicken in a pan and puts it in the oven to roast. Then she puts some big potatoes in the oven to bake. Then she slices some bread and cuts off a piece of butter and pours out some glasses of milk.
When Ruth comes home from school she smells something good. “Dinner’s all ready,” calls Bessie. Ruth answers, “Come father, come mother. I’m hungry.”
So Ruth and her father and mother sit down at the table and they drink the milk and they eat the bread and the spinach and the potatoes and the chicken which the milk horse and the bread horse and the grocery auto and the butcher’s wagon brought in the morning.
THE GROCERY MAN
Prrrip! prrrip! prrrip! the telephone rings in the grocery store. “Hello,” says the grocery man. “Who are you?”
“I’m Ruth’s mother. Good morning, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Good morning, Ruth’s Mother. What can I send you today?”
“Please, Mr. Grocery Man, send me some potatoes and some graham crackers and a package of sugar and some carrots.”
“Is that all, Ruth’s Mother?”
“Yes, that’s all. Goodbye, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Goodbye, Ruth’s Mother.”
So the grocery man hangs up the telephone and takes a basket and in the basket he puts some potatoes, some graham crackers, a package of sugar and some carrots.
Then prrrip! prrrip! prrrip! the telephone rings again.
“Hello!” says the Grocery Man. “Who is this?”
“This is John’s Mother. Good morning, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Good morning, John’s Mother. What can I send you today?”
“Please, Mr. Grocery Man, send me some spinach and some apples and some butter and some eggs.”
“Is that all, John’s Mother?”
“Yes, that’s all. Goodbye, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Goodbye, John’s Mother.”
So the Grocery Man hangs up the telephone and takes another basket and in the basket he puts some spinach and some apples and some butter and some eggs.
Then prrrip! prrrip, prrrip! the telephone rings another time.
“Hello!” says the Grocery Man. “Who are you?”
“I’m Robert’s Mother. Good morning, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Good morning, Robert’s Mother. What can I send you today?”
“Please, Mr. Grocery Man, send me some prunes and some macaroni and some salt and some oatmeal.”
“Is that all, Robert’s Mother?”
“Yes, that’s all. Goodbye, Mr. Grocery Man.”
“Goodbye, Robert’s Mother.”
So the Grocery Man hangs up the telephone and takes another basket and in the basket he puts some prunes and some macaroni and some salt and some oatmeal. Then he carries Ruth’s basket out and puts it in a wagon on the street. Then he carries John’s basket out and puts it in the wagon. At last he carries Robert’s basket out and puts that in the wagon with the others. Then the driver jumps to the seat and gathers up the reins and says “Go on, Old Dan,” and clopperty, clopperty clop! off goes Old Dan down the street.
Old Dan goes clopperty, clopperty, clop till he gets to Ruth’s house and there he stops. The driver jumps out and takes the basket and pat, pat, pat, go his feet running to the door. Prrrr! he rings the bell and gives Ruth’s mother the potatoes, the graham crackers, the sugar and the carrots. Then pat, pat, pat, he is back in the wagon. “Go on, Old Dan,” and clopperty, clopperty, clop! off goes Old Dan down the street.
Old Dan goes clopperty, clopperty, clop till he gets to John’s house and there he stops. The driver jumps out and takes another basket and pat, pat, pat go his feet running to the door. Prrrr! he rings the bell and gives John’s mother the spinach, the apples, the butter and the eggs. Then pat, pat, pat, he is back in the wagon. “Go on, Old Dan,” and clopperty, clopperty, clop! off goes Old Dan down the street.
Old Dan goes clopperty, clopperty, clop till he gets to Robert’s house and there he stops. The driver jumps out, takes another basket and pat, pat, pat, he is at the door. Prrrr! he rings the bell and gives Robert’s mother the prunes, the macaroni, the salt and the oatmeal. Then pat, pat, pat, he is back in the wagon. “Go on, Old Dan,” and clopperty, clopperty, clop! off goes old Dan down the street.
So Old Dan goes clopperty, clopperty, clop from house to house until he has left a basket with everybody who telephoned to the grocery man in the morning.
THE JOURNEY
This story, which is an adaptation of a five-year-old’s story quoted in the introduction, embodies the details given to me by another three-year-old child. The sound of the train should be intoned, as it was in the original telling.