"B" Is for Betsy (5 page)

Every day Betsy stopped at the store window to look at the pretty dishes. Two days before Ellen's birthday, Mother drove Betsy to school in the automobile. When Betsy and her mother reached the school, Betsy said, "Mother, please come look at the dear little dishes in the Good Lady's window." Mother was in a great hurry, but she stepped out of the car and went with Betsy to look in the shop window. "Aren't they lovely little dishes, Mother?" asked Betsy. "I want to buy them—"

"Not now," interrupted Mother, "we can talk about them when there is more time. Run along now, Betsy."

Betsy ran along to school and Mother drove away.

That afternoon when school was over, Betsy stopped again to look in the window. The dishes were gone. Betsy couldn't believe her eyes. The dishes had been there this morning and now there was just an empty space. Betsy had never thought that someone else might buy them. She had thought of them always as Ellen's dishes.
Perhaps,
thought Betsy,
The Good Lady still has them inside.
She opened the door of the shop. The sleigh bells, hanging on the door, jingled. Betsy walked up to the counter. The Good Lady smiled and said, "Well, my dear?"

"Where are the little dishes?" asked Betsy, pointing to the window.

"I just sold them an hour ago," said the Good Lady. "Were you thinking of buying them?" she asked. Betsy nodded her head. "Now that's too bad," said the Good Lady. "Perhaps I have something else you would like?" But Betsy did not like anything else. She had set her heart on the dishes for Ellen and now they were gone. Betsy walked home feeling very sad.

When she reached home, Mother was sitting in the library. She was sewing. When she saw

Betsy's sad little face, she said, "Betsy, what's happened to Mother's little Sunshine?"

Betsy ran to Mother. "Oh, Mother," she cried, "the dishes are gone. Now I can't give them to Ellen for her birthday."

Mother lifted her little girl on her lap. "Betsy, darling," she said, "I didn't know that you wanted to give the dishes to Ellen." Betsy hid her face on Mother's shoulder. "Look at Koala over there in the corner," said Mother.

Betsy looked and there sat Koala Bear, having a tea party all by himself. There were the six little cups and saucers, the teapot, the sugar bowl, and cream pitcher all spread out in front of him. Betsy couldn't believe her eyes. "Where did they come from, Mother?" she asked.

"I bought them on my way home," replied Mother. "I thought my little girl wanted them."

"Oh, no," said Betsy, "I wanted to buy them for Ellen with my own money. Big Bill is full of pennies that I have saved."

"Ellen can still have her present," said Mother. "I have saved the box."

"And the pink cotton?" asked Betsy.

"Yes, and the pink cotton," replied Mother.

"Oh, thank you," said Betsy. "It's a lovely present, isn't it, Mother?"

At last Ellen's birthday arrived. It was Saturday. Betsy's mother had invited Ellen and her mother and her baby sister to spend the afternoon. Ellen wore her best dress. It was a white dress with tiny blue forget-me-nots all over it. It had a blue sash. When they reached Betsy's house, Betsy ran to the door to meet Ellen. Betsy handed Ellen the little box and said, "Happy birthday, Ellen." Ellen unwrapped the paper around the box. Betsy held her breath as Ellen took off the lid. Under the lid was a layer of pink cotton. Slowly Ellen lifted one end of the cotton and looked underneath. There was the pink-and-white tea set! "Oh!" said Ellen. "Oh, my little dishes!" Then both Betsy and Ellen began to laugh because they were so happy. Ellen was so excited she forgot to say "Thank you."

After a while, Billy Porter arrived. He had a package for Ellen. When she opened it she found six pretty handkerchiefs. In a few minutes Kenny Roberts came. He had a present for Ellen, too. Then came Mary Lou, and Betty Jane, and Peter, and Christopher. They each had a present for Ellen. Ellen was so surprised and so happy she didn't know what to do, but she did remember

to say "Thank you." When they went into the library and Ellen saw a donkey game pinned on the wall, she cried, "Why, it's a party! I am having a birthday party!"

The children had a merry time trying to pin the tail on the donkey. Billy pinned it right on the donkey's nose. Christopher pinned it on his ear, which made the donkey look very funny indeed. Betty Jane pinned it on the donkey's hind leg, and everyone agreed that Betty Jane had come nearer to putting the tail in the right place than anyone else. So Betty Jane won the prize. It was a box of paints with two brushes and a lot of pictures to color.

After the children had played games, Betsy's mother took them into the playroom. There were a table and eight little chairs. In the center of the table there was a birthday cake. It was covered with white frosting and decorated with pink roses. It had six lighted pink candles. Ellen thought it was the most beautiful birthday cake she had ever seen. The children sat down and Betsy's mother brought them plates of pink ice cream. Then Ellen blew out the candles and cut her cake. She was too little to cut the slices, so Betsy's mother cut each of the children a slice of birthday cake.

That night, when Ellen's father went into her room for a goodnight kiss, Ellen was very sleepy. When her father leaned over her bed, he heard her say, "I had a birthday party. Pink candles and—donkey—tails—and—dishes."

Every morning at recess time an old lady came to the schoolyard gate. The children called her Grandma Pretzie. On one arm she carried a big basket of fresh pretzels, and on the other arm a little stool. She sat on the stool and sold the pretzels for a penny apiece. They were big, thick pretzels, golden-brown, and sprinkled with coarse salt. The children loved
the pretzels and they loved Grandma Pretzie. She was very, very old. Betsy thought that she must be a hundred years old, but she really wasn't quite as old as that. She was very poor and she lived in a tiny wooden house near the school. Her face was wrinkled like a dried-up apple. She always wore a little black bonnet that tied under her chin with black ribbons. On very cold days she would pull her woolen shawl up over her head.

Grandma Pretzie knew the most wonderful fairy stories and the children would gather 'round her at recess and shout, "Tell us a story, Pretzie, tell us a story." Pretzie would always say, "Go 'long with you, I don't know any stories today. I have to sell my pretzels." But the children would coax and tease until at last the old lady would begin—"Once upon a time," and she would tell them a story. It was wonderful, the way Pretzie could tell stories and sell pretzels at the same time.

One day in November, Miss Grey told the children that it would soon be Thanksgiving Day. She asked them if they knew what Thanksgiving is. Billy said, "I know, Miss Grey; it's the day you eat turkey." Betsy said it was a day when

you said thank you to God, and Miss Grey said that Betsy was right.

Then Miss Grey told the children about the first Thanksgiving which was hundreds of years ago. She told them about the people who had come to America from away across the ocean, and how they had to cut down the trees to build their houses and dig big rocks out of the ground before they could plant their seeds. Miss Grey said that these people were called Pilgrims. The Pilgrims were so thankful to God for His care that they decided to have a special day just to say thank you to Him. "And that is the reason," said Miss Grey, "that we have a Thanksgiving Day every year."

Miss Grey asked the children if they would like to fill a basket with food for someone who did not have enough money to buy a Thanksgiving dinner.

"Yes, yes," cried the children.

"I can bring some eggs," said Billy. "My father has chickens and we have lots of eggs."

"Who will we give the basket to?" asked Ellen.

"Let's give it to Grandma Pretzie," said Betty Jane; "she would like to have a Thanksgiving dinner."

"Oh, yes," cried the children, "let's give it to Grandma Pretzie. May we, Miss Grey?"

Miss Grey said that she thought it would be lovely to give a Thanksgiving basket to Grandma Pretzie. "You must not tell her," said Miss Grey, "because it must be a surprise." So it was a big secret.