Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue at Aunt Lu's City Home Part 16

"What makes them call it a dumb waiter?" asked Sue.

"'Cause as how it can't talk, chile. Anyt'ing dat can't talk is dumb, an' dis waiter, or lifter, can't talk. So it's dumb."

Bunny and Sue looked at the dumb waiter for some time. Mary showed them how it would go up or down on the rope, very easily.

A little while after that, Mary went to her room to put on a clean ap.r.o.n; Bunny and Sue were still in the kitchen.

"Sue," said Bunny. "I know something we can do to have fun."

"What?" asked the little girl.

"Play with the dumb waiter. It's just like a little elevator. Now I'll get in, you close the door, and I'll ride down cellar. Then when I ride up it will be your turn to ride down."

"All right!" cried Sue. "I'll do it. You go first, Bunny."

Standing on a chair, Bunny managed to crawl into the dumb waiter box, where the piece of ice had been. And then, all at once something happened.

CHAPTER XI

A LONG RIDE

"Are you all ready, Bunny?" asked Sue, as she stood on the chair close to the little door of the dumb waiter, or elevator.

"Yep," Bunny answered.

Sue closed the door, and then there was a squeaking sound inside the little closet where the waiter slid up and down. At the same time Bunny's voice was heard crying:

"Oh, Sue! I'm falling! I'm falling down!"

Sue did not know what to do. She tried to open the door, but it had shut with a spring catch when she pushed on it, and her small fingers were not strong enough to open it again.

"Oh dear!" cried the little girl. "Oh dear! Bunny! Mother! Aunt Lu!

Mary! Wopsie!"

She called every name she could think of, and she would have called for her father, Grandpa Brown and even Uncle Tad, only she knew they were far away.

"Bunny! Bunny!" Sue called. "Is you there? Is you in there?"

But Bunny did not answer. And now Sue could hear no noise from the dumb waiter, inside of which she had shut her brother.

"Bunny! Bunny!" begged Sue. "Speak to me! Where is you?"

But no answer came. Bunny was far off. I'll tell you, soon, where he was.

Sue got down off the chair, on which she stood to push shut the door, after Bunny crawled inside the dumb waiter. The little girl ran out of the kitchen, calling to her mother, Aunt Lu and Wopsie. The colored cook was the first one to answer.

"What's the matter?" she called. "What hab happened, Sue?"

"Oh, it's Bunny! He's gone! He's gone!" sobbed Sue.

"Gone? Gone where?" Mary asked.

"Down there!" and Sue pointed to the dumb waiter door.

Mary ran across the kitchen, and opened the door. She looked down, and then she turned to Sue and asked:

"Did he fall down, Sue?"

"No, he didn't fall down. But he got in the little box, where the ice was, and told me to shut the door. He was going to have a ride. It was going to be my turn when he came back. But there was a big b.u.mp, and Bunny hollered, and he didn't come back, and oh dear! I guess he's losted again!"

Mrs. Brown and Aunt Lu came hurrying into the kitchen. Behind them was Wopsie, her hair standing up more than ever, for she had just finished tying it in rags.

"What's the matter?" asked Mother Brown and Aunt Lu at the same time.

"Oh, Bunny's gone!" wailed Sue.

"He's in de dumb waiter," explained Mary.

"Oh, did he fall?" cried Aunt Lu.

"No'm, he jest got in to hab a ride, same as dat little boy who used to lib up stairs," Mary explained. "We'll find him in de cellar all right, Miss Baker."

"Find who?" Sue wanted to know.

"Yo' brudder!" said Mary. "Now don't yo' all git skairt. 'Case little Ma.s.sa Bunny am suah gwine t' be all right."

"I'll go and get him!" cried Aunt Lu.

"And I'll go with you," said Mother Brown.

"Oh, I'm coming too!" exclaimed Sue.

"No, you stay here, dear," said her mother. "You stay here with Mary and Wopsie."

Mrs. Brown and her sister, who was the aunt of Bunny and Sue, went down in the big elevator to the bas.e.m.e.nt or cellar of the apartment house.

And there they saw a strange sight.

Bunny, whose clothes were all dusty, and whose hair was all topsy-turvy, was standing in front of the janitor, an iceman and a policeman. These three men were looking at the little boy who did not seem to know what to do or say. But he was not crying. He was too brave for that.

"Oh, Bunny Brown!" cried his mother. "Why did you do it?"

Bunny did not answer, but the policeman spoke, and said:

"Is it all right, lady? Does he belong here?"