The Bobbsey Twins and the Mystery at Snow Lodge by Laura Lee Hope

Author:Laura Lee Hope
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Tags: Mystery, Childrens
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Published: 1913-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER X

TRICKS

“B-BLACK Monster!” Freddie whispered as Bert gave his father the note to read. The little boy’s whole body was tense with fright.

Flossie gasped and grabbed her mother, who was seated next to her on the sofa.

Mr. Bobbsey examined the coarse white paper. Then suddenly he chuckled. “Don’t be frightened, children,” he said. “There’s no such thing as a ‘Black Monster.’ One of your friends is playing a joke on you. I think a child wrote this note.”

Instantly all eyes turned on Dorothy. But the girl who loved to play jokes declared she had had nothing to do with this one. “You know I wasn’t out of this room, so how could I have sounded the chimes?”

“You didn’t get someone to do it for you?” Harry put in.

“No, and why should I?” Dorothy was becoming a little indignant. “I want to go to Snow Lodge as much as anybody.”

“Sorry,” said Harry. “Uncle Dick, do you think it could have anything to do with the phone call from that man who wanted to know when we were leaving?”

If Mr. Bobbsey thought so, he did not admit it. Instead, looking at Freddie and Flossie, he said, “Now which one of your playmates might play such a trick?”

“I know just which one—Danny Rugg!” Bert exclaimed. “Don’t you see,” he said to Flossie and Freddie, “this practically has Danny’s name written all over it.”

“The note does sound like the type of prank Danny plays,” admitted Mrs. Bobbsey, stroking Flossie’s hand.

“I agree,” said Nan. “Remember his threat to ‘fix the Bobbseys’? Well, the note is probably Danny’s idea of how to do it. Let’s spoil his plan by not letting on we care one bit.”

Suddenly Bert snapped his fingers. “In fact, I’ll bet I can prove that Danny wrote this silly thing. One of the fellows in our class passed around a sheet of paper the other day, and everybody wrote a little poem on it—a sort of Christmas greeting to our teachers. Remember, Nan?”

“Yes, and I brought the poems home and copied them in green ink on a piece of red Christmas paper,” his twin added. “The original sheet is still on the desk in my bedroom. Wait a second. I’ll get it.”

In a few minutes Nan was back, holding the sheet of notebook paper on which there were a number of handwritten verses. The older twins rapidly scanned the paper until they came to the one signed by Danny Rugg.

“Here it is,” Bert said. A queer look came over his face, then he chuckled. “Danny’s not much of a poet. He wrote, ‘Christmas comes but once a year and are we glad when it gets here.”’

Nan laughed and added, “Well, I guess we’d all better get to bed.”

Instantly Mrs. Bobbsey, knowing something was wrong, literally scooped up Freddie and Flossie and whisked them upstairs.

After they were safely out of earshot, Bert said, “Dad, this note wasn’t written by Danny. And it looks like a man’s handwriting, anyway.”

Mr. Bobbsey looked at Nan and Bert proudly.

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