Mrs. North sank contentedly down in a big armchair that smelt delightfully like sweet grass, while Miss Palmer took a cozy corner in the settee opposite. Mrs. North adored her beautiful summer home, and the restfulness it offered was ever welcome after a strenuous winter in town.
As for the children, they of course saw no reason for wishing to rest, but tore off to find Mr. Hale and persuade him to devote the rest of the day to showing them over all the already familiar places; a thing which they found not at all difficult to do. And soon their delighted shouts rang merrily from the barn, where they succeeded in clambering up into the hay loft and very nearly lost Bedelia whom, with Peter Pan, they had carried up with them, by dropping her down a chute into one of the mangers below. Here she was discovered with the occupant of the stall thoughtfully nosing her over and over and evidently thinking that someone had presented him with a very queer bunch of hay for dinner.
Bedelia, in addition to being badly scared, was also very much offended and considered that she had been handled shamefully. Besides being somewhat bruised, the horse had nipped her when trying to decide whether or not she was good to eat, and Bedelia felt quite sure that he had taken off a mouthful of her fur, which thought made her perfectly furious, and she longed to scratch and bite when finally rescued by the rather anxious Sally.
She immediately made up her mind to play all the pranks she could think of while at the farm, and the result of one scheme which she later carried out, was certainly of a nature to satisfy even a slighted Teddy bear, as we shall see later on.
CHAPTER VI.
Bedelia Amuses Herself.
HAPPY days succeeded each other with rapidity at the farm. Sally was enchanted with the poultry yard and spent much time fussing over the beautiful Cochin China and White Leghorn fowls. Already one enterprising hen had hatched a brood of dear little fluffy, yellow chicks and marched proudly around the yard clucking and scratching. Sally thought she had never seen such rapacious youngsters. They were always hungry, always peeping for more worms to eat. Sally longed to pick up the dear little fluffy balls and kiss and cuddle them. They reminded her of so many Easter penwipers running around on felt, although in her tender little heart she hoped that the Easter chicks were manufactured. It would have been such an act of cruelty to slaughter the darling baby chickabiddies for horrid old penwipers.
Mr. Hale, however, to whom Sally often confided her views, remarked, with a great want of sentiment, that it was really no worse than eating them later on. At which the little girl became very thoughtful. She was indeed extremely fond of chicken dinners as demonstrated by Mrs. Hale.