“I kin git along by myse’f, without any man,” Dinah had said to Mrs. Pry when they had talked it over before the children came home from school. “But wif Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey away, I don’t want mah honey lambs to git frightened.”
“I don’t believe they will,” said the old lady. “The Bobbsey twins—especially the older ones—seem quite able to look after themselves, even if Sam has to go.”
And so it proved. Bert took a manly stand nor did Nan seem much worried, or, if she was, she did not show it.
As for Flossie and Freddie, nothing worried them very much nor for very long at a time. In fact, they did not pay a great deal of attention to the going of Sam Johnson. They had seen him around in the morning, and he was gone when they came home. That was all there was to it. If Dinah had had to leave—well, that would be quite a different thing.
The short early winter afternoon was fading. It would soon be dark. Sam had brought in a lot of wood and had carried up a whole box full of coal before he went away, so Bert did not have this to do.
“But I’ll go out and lock up the garage,” he said to Nan. “Sam always does that the last thing at night, even if none of the cars have been taken out. Now I’ll do it.”
Mr. Bobbsey kept two automobiles, but neither was in use now that he and his wife had gone to Uncle Rossiter’s.
“And be sure the house is locked up well, too, Bert,” warned Mrs. Pry. “Go over every door and window to make sure. We don’t want any burglars coming in, with Sam away.”
“Huh! If any of dem burglar men come in, I’ll fix ’em!” declared Dinah.
“What would you do?” asked Bert, looking at Nan.