Maida's Little Shop Part 21

"Making things," d.i.c.ky said cheerfully.

On the table were piles of mysterious-looking objects made entirely of paper. Some were of white paper and others of brown, but they were all decorated with tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs of colored tissue.

"What are they?" Maida asked. "Aren't they lovely? I never saw anything like them in my life."

d.i.c.ky blushed all over his face at this compliment but it was evident that he was delighted. "Well, those are paper-boxes," he said, pointing to the different piles of things, "and those are steams.h.i.+ps. Those are the old-fas.h.i.+oned kind with double smokestacks. Those are double-boats, jackets, pants, badges, nose-pinchers, lamp-lighters, firemen's caps and soldier caps."

"Oh, that's why you buy all that colored paper," Maida said in a tone of great satisfaction. "I've often wondered." She examined d.i.c.ky's work carefully. She could see that it was done with remarkable precision and skill. "Oh, what fun to do things like that. I do wish you'd show me how to make them, d.i.c.ky. I'm such a useless girl. I can't make a single thing."

"I'll show you, sure," d.i.c.ky offered generously.

"What are you making so many for?" Maida queried.

"Well, you see it's this way," d.i.c.ky began in a business-like air.

"Arthur and Rosie and I are going to have a fair. We've had a fair every spring and every fall for the last three years. That's how we get our money for Christmas and the Fourth of July. Arthur whittles things out of wood-he'll show you what he can do in a minute-he's a crackajack. Rosie makes candy. And I make these paper things."

"And do you make much money?" Maida asked, deeply interested.

"Don't make any money at all," d.i.c.ky said. "The children pay us in nails. I charge them ten nails a-piece for the easy things and twenty nails for the hardest. Arthur can get more for his stuff because it's harder to do."

"But what do you want nails for?" Maida asked in bewilderment.

"Why, nails are junk."

"And what's junk?"

The three children stared at her. "Don't you know what _junk_ is, Maida?" Rosie asked in despair.

"No."

"Junk's old iron," d.i.c.ky explained. "And you sell it to the junkman.

Once we made forty cents out of one of these fairs. One reason we're beginning so early this year, I've got something very particular I want to buy my mother for a Christmas present. Can you keep a secret, Maida?"

Maida nodded.

"Well, it's a fur collar for her neck. They have them down in a store on Main street every winter-two dollars and ninetyeight cents.

It seems an awful lot but I've got over a dollar saved up. And I guess I can do it if I work hard."

"How much have you made ordinarily?" Maida asked thoughtfully.

"Once we made forty cents a-piece but that's the most."

"I tell you what you do," Maida burst out impetuously after a moment of silence in which she considered this statement. "When the time comes for you to hold your fair, I'll lend you my shop for a day.

I'll take all the things out of the window and I'll clean all the shelves off and you boys can put your things there. I'll clear out the showcases for Rosie's candy. Won't that be lovely?" She smiled happily.

"It would be grand business for us," d.i.c.ky said soberly, "but somehow it doesn't seem quite fair to you."

"Oh, please don't think of that," Maida said. "I'd just love to do it. And you must teach me how to make things so that I can help you.

You will take the shop, d.i.c.ky?" she pleaded. "And you, Rosie? And Arthur?" She looked from one to the other with all her heart in her eyes.

But n.o.body spoke for a moment. "It seems somehow as if we oughtn't to," d.i.c.ky said awkwardly at last.

Maida's lip trembled. At first she could not understand. Here she was aching to do a kindness to these three friends of hers. And they, for some unknown reason, would not permit it. It was not that they disliked her, she knew. What was it? She tried to put herself in their place. Suddenly it came to her what the difficulty was.

They did not want to be so much in her debt. How could she prevent that? She must let them do something for her that would lessen that debt. But what? She thought very hard. In a flash it came to her-a plan by which she could make it all right.

"You see," she began eagerly, "I wanted to ask you three to help me in something, but I can't do it unless you let me help you.

Listen-the next holiday is Halloween. I want to decorate my shop with a lot of real jack-o'-lanterns cut from pumpkins. It will be hard work and a lot of it and I was hoping that perhaps you'd help me with this."

The three faces lighted up.

"Of course we will," d.i.c.ky said heartily.

"Gee, I bet d.i.c.ky and I could make some great lanterns," Arthur said reflectively.

"And I'll help you fix up the store," Rosie said with enthusiasm. "I just love to make things look pretty."

"It's a bargain then," Maida said. "And now you must teach me how to help you this very afternoon, d.i.c.ky."

They fell to work with a vim. At least three of them did. Rosie continued to frisk with Delia and Tag on the floor. d.i.c.ky started Maida on the caps first. He said that those were the easiest. And, indeed she had very little trouble with anything until she came to the boxes. She had to do her first box over and over again before it would come right. But d.i.c.ky was very patient with her. He kept telling her that she did better than most beginners or she would have given it up. When she made her first good box, her face beamed with satisfaction.

"Do you mind if I take it home, d.i.c.ky?" she asked. "I'd like to show it to my father when he comes. It's the first thing I ever made in my life."

"Of course," d.i.c.ky said.

"Don't the other children ever try to copy your things?" Maida asked.

"They try to," Arthur answered, "but they never do so well as d.i.c.ky."

"You ought to see their nose-pinchers," Rosie laughed. "They can't stand up straight. And their boxes and steams.h.i.+ps are the wobbliest things."

"I'm going to get all kinds of stuff for things we make for the fair," Maida said reflectively. "Gold and silver paper and colored stars and pretty fancy pictures for tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs. You see if you're going to charge real money you must make them more beautiful than those for which you only charged nails."

"That's right," d.i.c.ky said. "By George, that will be great! You go ahead and buy whatever you think is right, Maida, and I'll pay you for it from what we take in at the fair."

"That's settled. What do you whittle, Arthur?"

"Oh, all kinds of things-things I made up myself and things I learned how to do in sloyd in school. I make bread-boards and rolling pins and s.h.i.+nny sticks and cats and little baskets out of cherry-stones."

"Jiminy crickets, he's forgetting the boats," d.i.c.ky burst in enthusiastically. "He makes the dandiest boats you ever saw in your life."

Maida looked at Arthur in awe. "I never heard anything like it! Can you make anything for girls?"

"Made me a set of the darlingest dolls' furniture you ever saw in your life," Rosie put in from the floor.

"Say, did you get into any trouble last night?" Arthur turned suddenly to Rosie. "I forgot to ask you."

"Arthur and Rosie hooked jack yesterday, in all that rain," d.i.c.ky explained to Maida. "They knew a place where they could get a whole lot of old iron and they were afraid if they waited, it would be gone."

"I should say I did," Rosie answered Arthur's question. "Somebody went and tattled to my mother. Of course, I was wet through to the skin and that gave the whole thing away, anyway. I got the worst scolding and mother sent me to bed without my supper. But I climbed out the window and went over to see Maida. I don't mind! I hate school and as long as I live I shall never go except when I want to-never, never, never! I guess I'm not going to be shut up studying when I'd rather be out in the open air. Wouldn't you hook jack if you wanted to, Maida?"