Once more the grocery boy took off his cap, and scratched his nose and ear. Then he again waved his apron like a flag, and said:
“Well, in that case, I will give you each a penny, as I happen to have three,” and he showed them to the children. So they walked along together, the grocery boy with his eyes shut, so he couldn’t see the Trippertrot house first, while Mary and Tommy and Johnny were eagerly watching for it.
In this way the children went along for some distance, but they couldn’t find their house. They saw many wonderful things, however, such as men and ladies riding around in automobiles, and some people in trolley cars, and they saw a dog chasing a cat, and the cat ran up a tree, and her tail was as big as two bananas. At last, however, Mary said:
“Oh, dear, I don’t believe we’ll ever find our home this way. We ought to have the old fisherman, or Jiggily Jig, or Simple Simon, or the newsboy, to help us. We’ll never get home.”
“Oh, yes, we will,” said the grocery boy.
“Ah, I have an idea,” suddenly exclaimed Tommy. “The grocery wagon horse knows where our house is, because he stopped in front of it. Do you know where to find your horse, grocery boy?”
“Yes, I expect he is in the stable now,” was the answer.
“Then go get him, and he’ll take us home in the wagon,” said Tommy.
“The very thing. I’ll do it at once!” exclaimed the grocery boy. “You stay right here until I come back, and I’ll soon have you home in your own house, and I think the horse will know the shortest way, too.”
So the grocery boy started off to the stable, and the Trippertrot children sat down on the front steps of a house to wait for him to come back.