Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue at Aunt Lus City Home | Page 6

"Wait! Wait!" begged Sue. "Take hold of my hand, Bunny."
"I can't!" he answered. "I've got to hold up my robe, or I'll tumble and

bump my nose. Besides, how can I take hold of your hand when you
haven't got any hand for me to take hold of?"
That was true enough. Sue was holding up her long robe with both
hands.
"If I had some string I could tie up our robes," said Bunny, looking on
the moonlit sidewalk, hoping he might find a piece. "But I hasn't got
any," he said, "so I can't hold your hand, Sue. But I'll go slow for you."
He waited for his sister to catch up to him, and then the two children
hurried on. They could go faster now, for their long bath robes did not
dangle around their feet.
Down the street they hurried. The bell kept ringing and ringing, and
Bunny and Sue could see and hear many other persons who had gotten
up to see what it all meant, and who were now hurrying down the
street.
"Oh, Bunny!" said Sue. "Isn't it just nice out to-night?"
"Yes," he said. The night was warm, and the moon was bright. Bunny
Brown and his sister Sue did not think they were doing wrong to get up
at midnight, and run down the street.
"I--I wonder where mother is?" said Sue, as they turned a corner.
"We don't want to see her, or daddy either," answered Bunny, keeping
in the shadows, out of sight.
"Why not, Bunny Brown? Why don't we want to see our papa or
mamma?"
"'Cause they'll send us back to bed, and we want to see the fire."
"Oh! do you think there is a fire, Bunny?"
"I guess so, or the bell wouldn't ring. But we'll soon see it, Sue, for
we're almost at the church."

CHAPTER III
AUNT LU'S INVITATION.
"Ding-dong!" went the bell in the steeple. "Ding-dong! Ding-dong!"
By this time many persons were out in the street. Mr. Gorden, the
grocery man, who lived next door to the Brown family, saw Bunny and
Sue hurrying along.
"Hello!" he cried. "What are you two youngsters doing up at this hour
of night?"
"We--we came to see the fire," said Bunny.
"Where is your pa and your ma?" asked Mr. Gordon.
"They--they went on ahead," explained Bunny.
"Oh, well, if they're with you I guess it's all right," the grocer said.
Of course Mr. and Mrs. Brown were not with Bunny and Sue, and their
parents didn't even know that the children were out of their beds. But
Mr. Gordon thought Bunny and Sue were all right, for he hurried on,
calling back over his shoulder:
"I don't know where the fire is. I think it must be a mistake, for I don't
see any bright light. Good-night, Bunny and Sue!"
"Good-night!" called the children, and they followed on behind Mr.
Gordon.
Now they were in front of the church. Before it was quite a crowd of
people, but Bunny and Sue seemed to be the only children. At first no
one noticed them. Everyone was anxious to know what the ringing of
the bell meant.
"Where's the fire?"

"Who rang the alarm?"
"Why didn't they ring the fire bell instead of the church bell?"
"Who's ringing it, anyhow?"
"And what a funny way to ring it!"
Those were some of the remarks and questions Bunny and Sue heard,
as they stood in front of the church.
"Ding-dong!" the bell kept on ringing. "Ding-dong!"
"Well, there's one thing sure," said Mr. Gordon. "There isn't any fire
around here, or we'd see it."
"Then someone must be ringing the bell for fun," suggested another
voice.
"That's daddy," whispered Sue to Bunny.
"Hush!" Bunny said, as he moved around behind Mr. Gordon. He did
not want his father or his mother to see him just yet--not until he had
found out what made the bell ring.
"It must be some boys doing it just for fun," said another man.
"Then we ought to get the police after them!" exclaimed someone else.
"The idea of waking folks up at this hour of the night by ringing a
church bell! They ought to be spanked!"
"Ding-dong! Ding-dong!" went the bell again. Everyone looked up at
the church steeple, trying to see who was ringing the bell. There was no
fire--everyone was sure of that.
Then, all at once a man cried:
"There he is! I see him! There's the boy who has been ringing the bell!"

He pointed up to the steeple. Climbing out of one of the little windows,
near the top, could be seen something small and black.
"It's a boy--a little boy!" cried Mr. Gordon.
"Oh, he'll fall!" gasped Mrs. Brown. "The poor little fellow! How will
he