The Wonderful Bed Read online

  CHAPTER VIII

  MUTINY ON BOARD

  For some time the children leaned over the rail looking back at thegroup of cats gathered at the water's edge. The form of the PirateChief towered above them all as he ran up and down the beach yowlingout all sorts of commands to which was paid very little attention byany one, and stopping every little while to flourish an angry paw inthe direction of the _Merry Mouser_.

  Peter regarded him sadly. "Poor old Mitts," he sighed, "it was anawful mean trick to play on him! He hasn't got any other boat and helooks so mad, I b'lieve he'd swim after us if he could."

  "He could, all right," said Prowler gravely, "but he'd get his pawswet, and that's a serious thing, you know."

  Rudolf and Ann burst out laughing, and even Peter smiled, for itseemed to them a funny thing for a pirate to fuss about.

  "Now," exclaimed Rudolf, as the breeze freshened and the forms of thecat pirates began to fade from sight, "there's a great deal to beattended to. What do you think we'd better get at first?"

  "My pink pajamas!" cried Prowler, leaping in the air and turning adouble somersault in his delight.

  "My paper collars!" shouted Growler, following his example.

  Rudolf was disgusted with the two mates for thinking of such nonsenseat a time like this, but it was no use trying to do anything withthem. They left the _Merry Mouser_ to his management, and rushed belowto bring up the False Hare's suit case. When they returned they werefollowed by the two spotted sailors whom they introduced to thechildren as Toddles and Towser. Toddles and Towser were still verysleepy. They had managed to free themselves by chewing the string thatbound their paws, but they did not seem at all disturbed by the changein affairs or inclined to make any trouble.

  Rudolf placed them both at the wheel with stern directions to keepeach other awake if possible. He then went below to see if he couldfind his sword before either Growler or Prowler should take a fancy toit. It was hanging up over Captain Mittens' berth, and under theChief's pillow, neatly folded ready for the night, Rudolf foundPeter's pajamas. As they were quite dry now, he called Peter andinsisted on his putting them on, much against the little boy'swishes, for hot and tight and furry as his borrowed suit had been,Peter had felt gloriously like a pirate in it! Very sulkily hefollowed his brother out of the cabin, but when the two had mounted tothe deck Peter's sulks gave way to a burst of giggles at the sight ofGrowler and Prowler.

  Ann was sitting on the deck quite weak with laughter, while the twomates, dressed in their stolen finery, paraded up and down in front ofher. Prowler's pink pajamas were a better fit for him than Growler'spaper collar which nearly concealed his pirate's nose, only the pointsof his whiskers and the tips of his black ears showing. Ann had addedto his costume by the loan of her blue hair-ribbon which she had tiedin a nice bow on the tip of his tail. But Prowler, if possible, lookedeven more silly than Growler, for he copied the actions of CaptainMittens as closely as he could, folding his paws on his chest andscowling gloomily about him. He seemed extremely vexed when thechildren laughed, but they really could not help it, since a pirate inpink pajamas is not particularly dreadful. At last, after muchcoaxing, Rudolf got the whole party to sit down in a circle on thedeck and consult with him on some plan of action.

  "We _must_ make up our minds," said he firmly, "on where we are going,and what is the nearest land, and what we are going to do when we getthere, and who is in command of the _Merry Mouser_, anyway, and--"

  Here he was interrupted by Prowler who said would he please go alittle slower, for Rudolf was making his head ache and it reminded himof going to his aunt's to say his catechism.

  "The thing ter do," drawled Growler sleepily, "is ter do nothin' 'talltill ye git somewheres where somethin's gotter be did, an' thenlike's not it's too late ter do anything an' all yer trouble's savedfor ye!"

  Rudolf did not think much of this as advice, but Prowler seemeddelighted. "Hurrah, my hearties!" he shouted, and up he jumped, stoodon his furry head on the deck, and waved his pink pajamaed legs in theair. "Now we can have our tea!" he cried.

  The faces of the three children brightened at the pleasant thought oftea, and when the tray arrived, carried by Towser, Ann asked if shemight pour.

  "Paw away!" cried Prowler, grinning widely as he fixed his roundyellow eyes on a small covered dish that Toddles had just set beforehim.

  Ann lifted the cover of the tea-pot to peep inside but as she sniffedthe steam an expression of disgust wrinkled up her little nose."Ugh!" she cried, "it's catnip tea."

  "Course it is," answered Prowler calmly. "Catnip tea and stewedmouses' tails--an' I asks what could anybody want nicer?"

  "Little girls that don't like what's put before 'em can go without.Ever hear anything like that before?" asked Growler sweetly, and as hespoke he reached over and took the covered dish away from Prowler andhelped himself to it largely.

  "But we don't any of us like this kind of a tea!" cried Rudolfangrily.

  "Then all the more for us that does," said Prowler, and he snatchedthe dish in his turn away from Growler and emptied all that was leftof it on his own plate. Since there was nothing else for the childrento do, they sat and watched the two mates eat, all of them feelingdecidedly cross, especially Peter. When every drop was finished andevery crumb licked up, Growler said to Prowler, "Time for a nap, oldboy," and without so much as a look in the children's direction thetwo rude fellows turned tail and marched off arm in arm to theirbunks.

  "Well, they _are_ nice!" cried Ann. "And what are _we_ going to do, Iwould like to know?"

  "What we are going to do," said Rudolf thoughtfully, "is probably tobe shipwrecked. Oh, not _right_ away," he added quickly as he saw howfrightened his little sister looked. "But there's land close ahead, assure as sure can be, and, if I'm not much mistaken, Toddles and Towserhave both gone to sleep at the wheel."

  It was true. The two common sea-cats had left the wheel to take careof itself and had curled themselves up in a soft round ball on thedeck for a nap from which the children found it impossible to arousethem.

  "I will try to steer and also mind the sheet, I think that's what it'scalled," said Rudolf, "but as I don't know _much_ about sailing a boatexcept what I've read in books, and you and Peter don't know_anything_, I think the least we'll do will be to run her aground."

  "Let's try to wake Growler and Prowler up," Ann begged. "They can't besound asleep yet."

  The two mates were not only sound asleep but snoring loudly. Ann andPeter tried shaking them, spanking them, even drenching them with thecold remains of the catnip tea, but it was all no use, they could notget them to stir. Meanwhile the _Merry Mouser_ was driftingdangerously near land, in spite of all Rudolf could do to prevent her.He did several things and he ordered Peter and Ann to do a good manyothers, but all of them felt glad the False Hare was not there tocompliment them on their seamanship. At last there came a dull shockand a jar, and the _Merry Mouser_ ran her nose into a sand-bar,quivered all over, and then stood still.

  "The thing to do _now_" said Rudolf easily, just as if he had plannedit all, "is for us to get into the little boat we are towing and rowourselves ashore. Of course we must wake up the mates and the crew andtake them with us."

  It was simply astonishing the things those children had to do toGrowler and Prowler before they could get either of them so much as toopen an eye! When they were at last able to understand what hadhappened, they merely turned over and growled out: "Oh, is _that_ all?Aground, are we? Ye needn't have waked us up for _that_! Be off assoon as ye like and give us some rest--do!" They had hardly left offspeaking before they were sound asleep again. As for Toddles andTowser they refused to wake at all.

  The children left them where they lay and climbed Over the side of the_Merry Mouser_ into the little rowboat which Rudolf had broughtalongside. When all were safely aboard, he cut loose the tow-rope,took the oars, and pulled away from the pirate ship. After a short andpleasant row they reached a gently shelving beach where it was notdifficult to make a la
nding.