Billy Whiskers Part 4

Wondering what the racket could be about, he climbed on top of a pile of boxes that were next to the fence and looked into the yard beyond. He found that the building was used as a fire-engine station, and that the racket he had heard was caused by the horses taking their places at the engine ready to start to a fire.

Through two large doors that opened into the yard Billy could see what was going on inside. And when he saw the men jump to their places on the engine and the driver whip up his horses, he became so excited he could stand it no longer and he determined to go with them to the fire. With a spring he was over the fence and following after the engine at a stiff run.

It was a good thing Billy had a strong pair of lungs or he would never have been able to keep up with the fast speed of the fire-engine horses, but he did and arrived at the fire in good shape.

The fire was found to be in a three-story frame house, and when they got there the flames were already coming out of the upper windows; but the strangest thing about the fire was that the inhabitants of the house, if there were any, seemed to be in utter oblivion that their house was on fire for not a person was in sight about the place and all the doors and windows were securely locked.

Two men ran up the steps with axes, while two followed dragging the hose after them. The men with the axes had given one knock to the door when Billy saw what they were up to, and as he had often used his head as a battering-ram, he ran up the steps, and before the men knew he was there, he gave the door a mighty b.u.t.t with his head which made it crash in and the men and goat fell through the opening.

This tickled the crowd who had gathered to see the fire, and they called out: "Bravo for the goat!"

Billy followed the firemen upstairs but when he got there the smoke was so thick he could see nothing, and it made his eyes smart beside choking him dreadfully, so he decided to go out again. He turned to find the head of the stairs he had come up, but instead of discovering them he ran into the wall and the more he tried to find his way out, the more confused he became. He fell over something and when he regained his feet, after having nearly gone head over heels into a box, as he thought, but which was a baby's cradle, he felt something heavy hanging to his horns. At the same time he heard a baby cry.

"Poor little thing," thought Billy, "everyone has gone out of the house and left the baby asleep and now it is going to be burned to death. Wish I knew where it was; it sounds near but I can't see for this smoke." Just then a little bare foot slipped down over Billy's eyes and then he knew the heavy thing hanging to his horns was the baby.

As soon as he found this out, he tried harder than ever to find the stairs and presently he found them, and with the baby's clothes still twisted around his horns he ran down and out into the street, just in time to meet the baby's nurse coming from the drugstore around the corner. She was wild with joy when she saw the baby and rushed up to Billy to unfasten the baby's clothes from his horns. The child was unhurt, and a crowd soon gathered around Billy to pet and praise him for saving the baby's life.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Billy stayed there until the fire was put out and watched the hose being rolled up, while the firemen that were doing it talked to him all the time.

When the hose was all on the cart and the firemen stepped up on the little step that is at the back to ride home, Billy walked over and stepped up also but he had to stand on his hind legs with his fore feet on the coil of hose in front of him.

One fireman thought this a very clever thing for a goat to do, so he put his arm around his neck and said, "All right, old fellow, you shall ride home with me, but take care for we are going to start and the road is rough and you may fall off." And in this way Billy rode back to the fire station, causing many smiles from the people they pa.s.sed.

As they drove into the station one of the policemen who was standing outside their station called out, "Where did you get that goat?" Billy's friend called back: "I don't know where he came from; all I know is that he followed us to the fire, where he made himself useful by saving a life."

"Well, we have his brother in our back yard. If not his brother, then one that looks precisely like him."

"Oh, I guess not," answered Billy's friend, "for there are not two such fine looking goats in town."

"Well, I'll show you, come over and see for yourself."

So the two men went into the police station yard with Billy lagging at their heels, laughing to himself to think how fooled the policeman was going to be at not finding any goat there.

When they got to the yard the policeman looked everywhere, but could find no sign of a goat, so went into the station to ask the other policemen where the goat had gone, but none had seen him and all thought he was still in the yard.

"Well that must be my goat, then," said the policeman.

"Not much!" answered the fireman. "You will have to bring better proof than that before I give him up."

"Well, I don't want him anyway," said the policeman, "and you will be glad to get rid of him yourself in a day or two for he is the most troublesome goat you ever heard of. You should hear of the mischief he got into at the flat we took him from."

"Very well," said the fireman, "I'll stand all the trouble he will cause."

And with that he led Billy out of the yard into their back yard and gave him a nice place to sleep, a big dinner and a bucket of water, all of which Billy was thankful for as he was both hungry and thirsty after his trip to the fire.

After his first ride on the hose-cart, Billy liked it so much that every time the cart went out Billy went too and rode, as he had before, with his hind legs on the step and his fore feet on the coil of hose in front of him and the fireman always steadied him with his arm. And soon this fire company was known as the White Goat Company, with Billy as its mascot.

Billy had been with the firemen about a month, when one day he heard them talking about a procession they were going to be in, that all the fire-engines, hose-carts and hook-and-ladder companies were to be in the parade and that the horses were to have their hoofs gilded and wear collars of roses, and that he, Billy, was to have his horns and hoofs gilded also, and wear a rose collar and be led by a chain made of roses, by one of the firemen who was to wear a red shirt, black trousers and high patent leather boots and his fireman's hat with a visor.

When Billy heard this he said, "I won't march in their old procession, and make a circus of myself. I'll run away first."

But he did not get a chance.

When the morning of the day of the procession came, Billy watched the firemen polish the bra.s.s of the engine and trim it with garlands of flowers tied with bright colored ribbons; but when they commenced to gild the horses' hoofs one of them said to him:

"It will be your turn next Billy; we are going to give you a scrubbing in the tub until your hair is as soft and shiny as silk, and then we are going to gild your long horns and tie blue ribbons on them, and put the handsomest wreath of pink roses we can find round your neck. My! but you will look fine, Billy. And we expect you to behave and walk in a dignified manner, for the Fire Marshal is going to give you a gold medal to wear round your neck for saving the baby's life."

"It is very nice of them to give me a medal," thought Billy, "and they have been good to me; but I don't like being scrubbed and dressed up like a clown, beside I am getting tired of town life and I long for the country and Nanny. I might as well run away one time as another, so I will watch my chance, and when they are all busy and not looking, I will walk out of the station quietly, as if I were only going for my usual walk up the street, and when I get to the corner, I will turn it and once out of sight I will run until I get so far away they can't find me."

But for once Master Billy's plans were foiled for just as he was walking out of the station one of the firemen saw him and said:

"Here, here, Billy, not so fast! We are ready for you now and if you go for a walk there is no knowing when you will come back."

And he took Billy by the horns and led him into the back yard where another fireman had a big tub of soapy water ready to put him in.

Billy stood in the tub and submitted to the scrubbing until the soapy water ran into his eyes and then he got mad and b.u.t.ted the fireman, who was holding his horns, clear over, and kicked the other man, who was scrubbing him, in the stomach; and then around and around the yard he ran bleating and shaking his head, wild with the smart of the soap that was in his eyes.

"Here, Jack, this will never do," said one fireman to the other, "he is not half clean. Let us get the hose and turn it on him while he is running around."

"All right," said the other, "that will be great sport."

And they got the hose and soon they were squirting it over Billy as he ran, first on one side and then on the other, and no matter where he went the stream of water followed him and played all over him, and if he stopped running and hugged the fence it was worse than ever for then the water flowed in a perfect stream and doused him from head to foot, sending a spray over the fence.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THIS CALLED FORTH A SHOUT OF GLEE FROM THE POLICEMEN WHO WERE LOOKING OVER THE FENCE.]

All the firemen had come out to see the fun and when the policemen in the next yard heard a great deal of laughing and racket in the fireman's back yard, they too hurried to the fence and watched the fun.

Of course, this only added to Billy's rage, to see his hated enemies, the policemen, laughing at him, and he vowed he would get even with them some day, and with the firemen right away, for he knew his strength. With a bound and a quick run he made for the group of firemen that were tormenting him and b.u.t.ted and hooked them in all directions, and sent the fireman who was playing the hose on him sprawling into the tub of soapy water that but a few minutes before he had Billy in.

This called forth a shout of glee from the policemen who were looking over the fence, and with another angry bound Billy went for them and b.u.t.ted the fence down that they were leaning against, and they made their escape into the police station just in time, for Billy came through the fence and after them, right up to the door they had run through.

He gave it one b.u.t.t and then turned and walked back into his own yard where he lay down on a pile of straw to cool off after his exertion. He had been there about half an hour when his pet fireman came out with a large plate in his hand heaped full of good things to eat and as he walked toward Billy, the goat could smell the cabbage, turnips, apples and carrots. He bleated a friendly greeting to let the fireman know that he would not hook him if he came nearer and the man came up and set the plate down under Billy's nose and Billy gave him a goat smile showing that all was forgiven and began to eat.

While he was eating this same fireman went in and brought out a kettle with a brush in it and began to gild Billy's horns and hoofs. Then he tied a wreath of roses round his neck and went to get the rope wound with roses to lead him by. But while he was gone Billy ate up the front of the wreath and as much more of it as he could reach.

When the fireman came back dressed for the parade with the rose chain in his hand that he was to lead Billy with, he spied the eaten wreath, and said:

"Why, Billy, you beat any bad boy I ever heard of for mischief!

Now you will have to come into the station and have another wreath tied round your neck, and I bet you won't chew this one for I will tie it so close to your neck you can't reach it with your mouth."

As they went in the station Billy heard a band playing and the rat-ta-tah-tah of the drums, and when they heard the music the engine horses, all decked in rose collars and bridles, with plumes on their heads, started to prance and pull the beautifully draped and polished engine out of the station to join the procession.

And before Billy knew what was up, he was led out and made to march in the procession between the engine and hose-cart. After they had started he rather enjoyed it for from all sides he heard the people say:

"There, look! There goes the goat that saved the baby's life."

"Isn't he a beauty?"