The Curlytops and Their Pets | Page 5

cutest, curliest curly hair that ever grew on the heads
of any children anywhere in the world. So it is no wonder they were
called "Curlytops."

Some of you were introduced to them in the first book of this series,
"The Curlytops at Cherry Farm," which told of their adventures in the
country.
After that they had more adventures on "Star Island," where they went
camping with Grandpa. The fun on the island was wonderful, even
more wonderful were their adventures when they were "Snowed In"
and when the Curlytops went to Uncle Frank's ranch, and rode on
ponyback. Ted, Janet and Trouble thought they had never seen such
good times in all their lives. They helped solve a strange mystery, too.
The book just before this one that you are reading is named "The
Curlytops at Silver Lake," and in that you may learn what Ted, Janet
and Trouble did when they went on the water with Uncle Ben, and how
they helped capture some bad men.
The summer had been filled with adventures, and there were some
good times in the winter that followed. Now it was summer again, and
the Curlytops were ready for more fun.
Mr. Richard Martin was the father of the Curlytops. He was a
storekeeper in the city of Cresco, in one of our eastern states. There
were just three of the Curlytops, Theodore Baradale, Janet and William
Anthony Martin. But Theodore was nearly always called Ted or Teddy,
Janet's name was shortened to Jan and William answered to the call of
Trouble as often as to any other.
In addition to the children there was Skyrocket, the dog, and Turnover,
the cat. The cat was called that name because she had a trick of lying
down and rolling over when she wanted something to eat. There had
also been Nicknack, a goat, and Clipclap, a pony, but these had been
sent away for a time, and the dog and cat were the only pets the
children had at present. But they were soon going to have more, as I
will tell you presently.
It was a warm, pleasant, sunny day when Ted and Jan went down to the
brook to play that pieces of boards were their "ships." Then Trouble
had joined them, and, just after the mail carrier left the strange letter

from Uncle Toby, Trouble had, as usual, gotten into trouble.
Janet and Teddy were not quite certain who Uncle Toby might be. They
had heard of him, once or twice, as a distant relative of their father or
their mother, but they had not seen him in a number of years. They only
dimly remembered him as an old man who lived in a city about fifty
miles from Cresco, but they had not visited him in some time.
Just now the plight of Trouble so filled the minds of Ted and Jan that
they had no thought for Uncle Toby or his strange letter. Nor did Mrs.
Martin give any heed to the missive she had dropped.
"Be careful, Teddy!" she called, as she saw her older son splashing his
way through the water. "Don't fall!"
"I--I won't, Mother! Not if--if I--I can help----"
But just as Teddy got that far he stumbled on a round stone in the brook,
and down he went with a splash!
"Oh, he'll be drowned!" screamed Janet, who was following her mother
along the bank of the brook, while Trouble was out in the middle in his
leaking, packing-box ship that Skyrocket had pulled to the stream for
him. The dog, who had found the stick which Teddy threw, had rushed
back, and was now barking as loudly as he could.
But the water was not deep enough to drown Teddy. It, however, made
him very wet. Up he rose, dripping all over, and gasping for breath.
Mrs. Martin paused only long enough to look back and see that Teddy
was all right, and then hurried along, trying to pull toward her, with the
long stick, the floating box and her little son.
"Det me out! Det me out! I is all wet--I is!" cried Trouble. "My hoots is
all wet!" Sometimes the letter "f" bothered him, and he put an "h" in its
place, as saying "hoots" for "foots." Of course neither word was right,
but who minded a thing like that when poor Trouble was in such a
plight?

"I'll get him!" cried Teddy, as he caught his breath. Then he wiped
some of the water from his face, and dashed on down the brook. But by
this time the packing box, in which Trouble was taking more of a ride
than he had counted on, was some distance down the brook. However,
Mrs. Martin was keeping alongside of it, though it was