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  So, as there was plenty of time, she thought she’d go and visit Dum-dum before school today. So she slipped in by the side gate, and found him busily tidying his feathers in the morning sunshine. He looked surprised and very pleased to see her, and they had a run round the garden and found one slug and five woodlice (which Dum-dum thought very tasty for breakfast!). Then she shut him back in his enclosure, and latched his little gate, and shut the side gate and fastened it as Mr Moggs had shown her, and went off to school. (And she only just wasn’t late, this time!)

  Well, they’d sung the hymn, and Miss Edwards had called their names, and everybody was there except Billy Blunt and the new little girl called Bunchy. And they had just settled down for an arithmetic lesson when the little girl Bunchy hurried in, looking rather frightened. And she told Miss Edwards there was a great big goose outside, and she dared not come in before because she thought it might bite her!

  “A goose!” said Miss Edwards. “Nonsense! There are no geese round here.”

  WHO DO YOU THINK CAME IN WITH HIM?

  And Milly-Molly-Mandy looked up from her exercise book quickly. But she knew she had shut Dum-dum up carefully, so she went on again dividing by seven (which wasn’t easy).

  And then the door opened again, and Billy Blunt came in with a wide grin on his face and a note in his hand. (It was from his mother to ask Miss Edwards to excuse his being late, because he’d had to run an errand for his father, who had no-one else to send.)

  And who do you think came in with him, pushing between Billy Blunt’s legs through the doorway, right into the schoolroom?

  It was Dum-dum!

  “Billy Blunt!” said Miss Edwards. “What is this?”

  “I couldn’t help it, ma’am,” said Billy Blunt. “He would come in. I tried to shoo him off.” (But I don’t really think he had tried awfully hard!)

  “You mustn’t let it come in here,” said Miss Edwards. “Turn it out. Sit down, children, and be quiet.” (Because they were all out of their places, watching and laughing at the duck that came to school.)

  “Oh, please, Teacher,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy, putting up her hand.

  “Sit down, Milly-Molly-Mandy,” said Miss Edwards. “Take that duck outside, Billy Blunt. Quickly, now.”

  But when Billy Blunt tried again to shoo him out Dum-dum slipped away from him, farther in, under the nearest desk. And Miss Muggins’s Jilly squealed loudly, and pulled her legs up on to her seat.

  “Please, Teacher –” said Milly-Molly-Mandy again. “Oh, please, Teacher – he’s my duck. I mean, he’s a friend of mine.”

  “What is all this?” said Miss Edwards. “Be quiet, all of you! Now, Milly-Molly-Mandy – explain.”

  So Milly-Molly-Mandy explained who Dum-dum was, and where he lived, and that she thought he had come to look for her – though how he had got out and found his way here she couldn’t think. “Please, Teacher, can I take him back home?” she asked.

  “I can’t let you go in the middle of school,” said Miss Edwards. “You can shut him out in the yard now, and take him back after school.”

  So Milly-Molly-Mandy walked to the door, saying, “Come, Dum-dum!”

  And Dum-dum ran waddling on his flapping yellow feet after her, all across the floor, saying “Huh! Huh! Huh!” as he went.

  How the children did laugh!

  Billy Blunt said, “I’ll just see that the gate’s shut.” And he hurried outside too (lest Miss Edwards should say he needn’t!)

  He tried to stroke Dum-dum as Milly-Molly-Mandy did, but Dum-dum didn’t know Billy Blunt well enough. He opened his beak wide and said “Huhhh!” at him. So Billy Blunt left off trying and went and shut the gate.

  “He must have some water,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy (because she knew ducks are never happy if they haven’t).

  So they looked about for something to hold water, other than the drinking-mug. And Billy Blunt brought the lid of the dustbox, and they filled it at the drinking-tap and set it on the ground. And Dum-dum at once began taking sip after sip, as if he had never tasted such nice water before.

  So Milly-Molly-Mandy and Billy Blunt left him there, and hurried back to their lessons.

  Directly school was over the children rushed out to see Milly-Molly-Mandy lead the duck (drake, I mean) along the road back to his home. (It wasn’t easy with so many people helping!) Mr Moggs was just coming away from the Big House, but he went back with her to find out how Dum-dum had escaped, for his gate was shut as Milly-Molly-Mandy had left it. And they found Dum-dum had made a little hole in his wire netting and pushed through that way and under the front gate. So Mr Moggs fastened up the hole.

  And while he was doing it Milly-Molly-Mandy noticed that the windows were open in the Big House, and the curtains were drawn back.

  “Oh!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “Have the people come back?”

  “They’re coming tomorrow,” said Mr Moggs. “Mrs Moggs is just airing the place for them.”

  “Then I shan’t be able to come and see Dum-dum any more!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy.

  And she felt quite sad for some days after that, to think that Dum-dum wouldn’t want her any more, though she was glad he wasn’t lonely.

  Then one day (what DO you think?) Milly-Molly-Mandy met the little girl Jessamine and her mother in the post-office, and the little girl Jessamine’s mother said, “Mr Moggs tells me you used to come and cheer up our old duck while we were away!”

  Milly-Molly-Mandy wondered if Mrs Green was cross about it. But she wasn’t a bit. She said, “Jessamine is going to boarding school soon – did you know? – and she was wondering what to do about Dum-dum, Would you like to have him for keeps, when she has gone?”

  And the little girl Jessamine said, “We want him to go to someone who’ll be kind to him.”

  Milly-Molly-Mandy was pleased!

  She ran home to give Father the stamps she had been sent to buy, and to ask the family if she might have Dum-dum for keeps.

  And Mother said, “How kind of the Greens!”

  And Father said, “He can live out in the meadow.”

  And Grandma said, “It will be very lonely for him.”

  And Grandpa said, “We must find him a companion.”

  And Aunty said, “You’ll have to save up and buy another one.”

  And Uncle said, “I’ve been thinking of keeping a few ducks myself, down by the brook. Your Dum-dum can live along with them, if you like, Milly-Molly-Mandy.”

  Milly-Molly-Mandy was very pleased indeed.

  The next day she hurried down to the Big House to tell the little girl Jessamine and her mother. And they let her take Dum-dum home with her at once.

  So she led him slowly by the short cut across the fields to the nice white cottage with the thatched roof. And he followed her beautifully all the way. In fact, he walked right over the step and into the kitchen with her!

  When Uncle saw him following her about he said:

  “Milly-Molly had a duck.

  Its little head was green.

  And everywhere that Milly went

  That duck was to be seen!”

  “Yes, and he did follow me to school one day, like Mary’s little lamb!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy.

  And do you know, old Dum-dum didn’t want to live down by the brook with the other ducks; it was too far from Milly-Molly-Mandy. He chose to live in the barn-yard with the cows and Twinkletoes the pony, and drink out of Toby the dog’s drinking-bowl. And whenever the garden gate was undone Dum-dum would waddle straight through and make for the back door and knock on it with his beak, till Milly-Molly-Mandy came out to play with him!

  5

  Milly-Molly-Mandy and the Gang

  Once upon a time Milly-Molly-Mandy was in Mr Smale the grocer’s shop to get some things for Mother. There was someone else just being served, so while she waited she looked from the doorway at Billy Blunt, who was spinning a wooden top on the pavement opposite, outside his father’s corn-shop.

  Presently some b
oys came along the road. As they passed Billy Blunt one of the boys kicked his top into the gutter, and another pulled his cap off and threw it on the ground; and then they went on down the road, laughing and shouting to one another.

  Billy Blunt looked annoyed. But he only picked up his cap and dusted it and put it on again, and picked up his top and wiped it and went on spinning.

  And just then Mr Smale the grocer said, “Well, young lady, and what can I do for you this morning?” So Milly-Molly-Mandy had to come away from the door and be served.

  Milly-Molly-Mandy had seen the boys before. They didn’t belong to the village, but had come to stay near by, and they were always about, and always seemed to be making a lot of noise.

  Well, Milly-Molly-Mandy got the things Mother wanted – a tin of cocoa, and a tin of mustard, and some root-ginger (for making rhubarb-and-ginger jam). And then she left the shop, to go across and speak to Billy Blunt.

  But as she stepped over the step the boys were coming back again, up her side of the road this time, and they bumped into her so that the basket of groceries was knocked out of her hand. The tins came clattering out, and the paper of root-ginger burst all over the pavement.

  And instead of saying “Sorry!” the boys only grinned broadly and went on their way, turning back to look at her now and then.

  Billy Blunt came across the road to help.

  “Billy!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy, “I believe they meant to do that! They bumped into me on purpose!”

  Billy Blunt said, “Lot of donkeys.” And began picking up bits of ginger.

  “What did they want to do it for?” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “And pull your cap off too!”

  Billy Blunt only grunted, and picked up more bits of ginger.

  Mr Smale the grocer came to his door to see what was going on, and said, “Them stupid young things knocked your basket, did they? Tell your mother to give that ginger a rinse in cold water and it’ll be all right. Out to make nuisances of themselves, they are. They’ve got something to learn, stupid young things!”

  Miss Muggins’s niece, Jilly, came running over. She had been watching from Miss Muggins’s draper’s shop opposite.

  “They’re a gang, they are,” she told Milly-Molly-Mandy and Billy Blunt. “They try to knock people’s hats off and make them drop things all the time. They’ve got a leader, and they’re a gang!”

  “They’re donkeys,” said Billy Blunt. And he went back to his own side of the pavement, winding up his top as he went.

  Milly-Molly-Mandy said, “Thank you!” to him, and started off home with her basket. And Miss Muggins’s Jilly went with her a little way, talking about “the gang” and the naughty things they did.

  “They’re silly,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “I shouldn’t take any notice of them.”

  “Oh, I don’t,” said Miss Muggins’s Jilly. And she went right on talking about them till they came to the duck-pond. There they parted, and Milly-Molly-Mandy went on up the road to the nice white cottage with the thatched roof, where Mother was waiting for her groceries. (She washed the ginger, and it was quite all right.)

  The next morning little-friend-Susan came round to see if Milly-Molly-Mandy was coming out to play.

  Milly-Molly-Mandy was just helping Mother to clean the big preserving-pan that the rhubarb-and-ginger jam had been cooked in.

  So Mother gave little-friend-Susan a spoon so that she could help to clean it too! And when the pan was as clean as they could make it with their two spoons they washed their sticky hands and faces, and then Mother gave them a big slice of bread-and-jam each to take out into the fields to eat.

  So they went over the road and climbed the stile and strolled along the field-path, eating and talking and enjoying themselves very much.

  And they were just turning down the lane leading to the Forge (which is always a nice way to go if you’re not going anywhere special) when little-friend-Susan said, “Look at those boys; what are they doing?”

  Milly-Molly-Mandy looked, licking jam off her fingers, and she saw they were the boys whom Miss Muggins’s Jilly called “the gang”. They were peeping round the hedge by the next stile.

  “They’re waiting to knock our hats off, only we haven’t got any on!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy.

  “Hadn’t we better go back?” said little-friend-Susan.

  “No!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “They’re just silly, that’s what they are. I’m going on.”

  So they went on, and climbed over the stile, Milly-Molly-Mandy first, and then little-friend-Susan.

  And just as she had got over one of the boys jumped out of the hedge and knocked the piece of bread-and-jam (only a very small piece now) out of little-friend-Susan’s hand into the dirt, and ran behind the hedge again.

  Little-friend-Susan didn’t like having her last piece of bread-and-jam spoiled. But Milly-Molly-Mandy even more didn’t like seeing who the boy was who did it.

  “It’s Timmy Biggs,” she said. “You know, that boy who won the race at the Fête, and Billy Blunt used to practise with. Why did he want to do that?”

  Little-friend-Susan was looking at her bread-and-jam. “I can’t eat this now,” she said. “I’ll take it to the ducks.” (Because, of course, you never waste bread.)

  So Milly-Molly-Mandy just called out, “You’re silly, Timmy Biggs!” at the hedge, and they went on past the Forge and down to the duck-pond. (The blacksmith wasn’t hammering or doing anything interesting, so they didn’t stop to watch.)

  Billy Blunt was in his garden by the corn-shop, busy with the lock of the old cycle-shed which stood in one corner. He saw them coming down the back lane, and as they didn’t pass the garden fence he knew they must have turned the other way. So presently he wandered out and found them by the duck-pond.

  There were five ducks quacking and paddling in the water, and little-friend-Susan was tearing her bread into as many tiny bits as she could, but it didn’t go very far!

  “Hullo, Billy,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy, as soon as he came near. “What do you think – Timmy Biggs has gone and joined that gang. He knocked Susan’s bread-and-jam into the dirt.”

  “I saw him with them,” said Billy Blunt.

  “We ought to do something,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy.

  “Umm,” said Billy Blunt.

  “Knock their caps off and see how they like it!” said little-friend-Susan.

  “I don’t see why we have to be silly just because they are,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “I don’t want to be in their sort of gang.”

  “Might start a gang of our own,” said Billy Blunt.

  “Oh, yes !” said Milly-Molly-Mandy and little-friend-Susan exactly together. (So then they had to hold each other’s little finger and think of a poet’s name before they did anything else. “Robert Burns!” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “Shakespeare!” said little-friend-Susan.)

  Then they set to work to think what they could do in their gang.

  “It must be quite different from that other one,” said Milly-Molly-Mandy. “They knock things down, so we pick things up.”

  “And they leave field-gates open, so we close them,” said little-friend-Susan.

  “And we could have private meetings in our old cycle-shed,” said Billy Blunt. “It’s got a lock and key.”

  That was a splendid idea, and the new gang got busy right away, clearing dust and spiders out of the cycle-shed. (There were no bicycles kept there now.)

  And while they were in the middle of it – sweeping the floor with the garden broom, scraping the corners out with the garden trowel, and rubbing the tiny window with handfuls of grass – suddenly they heard shouting and footsteps running. And through the fence they saw boys tearing down the road from Mrs Jakes the postman’s wife’s gate.

  “Come on,” said Billy Blunt to his gang.

  THEY ALL RAN OUT TO SEE WHAT HAD HAPPENED

  And they all ran out to see what had happened.

  Mrs Jakes was in her yard, flapping her hands with annoyance, her clea
n washing lying all along the ground.

  “Oh-h-h,” she cried, “those boys! They untied the end of my clothes-line. And now look at it.”

  Billy Blunt picked up the end of the rope, and they all tried to lift the clothes-line to tie it up again, but it was too heavy with all the washing on it. So Mrs Jakes told them to unpeg the clothes and take them carefully off the ground, so as not to dirty them any more. The grass was clean and the things were nearly dry, so they weren’t much hurt – only one or two tea-cloths needed to be rinsed where they had touched against the fence.

  The new gang collected the pegs into a basket, and helped Mrs Jakes to carry the washing into her kitchen, and she was very grateful for their help.

  “It’s not near so bad as I thought when I first saw that line come down,” she said. “Do you three like gooseberries?”

  She gave them a handful each, and they went back to the cycle-shed and held a private meeting at once.

  The next day Miss Muggins’s Jilly found out about the new gang, and asked if she could join. She wanted to so much that they let her. And they made up some rules, such as not telling secrets of their private meetings, or where the key of the cycle-shed was hidden, and about being always on the look-out to pick things up, and mend things, and shut gates, and about being faithful to the rules of the gang, and that sort of thing.

  Well, they were kept quite busy in one way and another. They helped Mrs Critch the thatcher’s wife to collect her chickens when they were all let loose into the road. And they kept an eye on the field-gates, that cows and sheep didn’t get a chance of straying. And they rescued hats and caps and things belonging to other children when they were knocked off unexpectedly. And whenever there was anything important to discuss or if any of their gang had anything given to them, such as apples, they would go along to the cycle-shed and call a private meeting.