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Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue Keeping Store, a novel by Laura Lee Hope |
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Chapter 19. The Window Display |
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_ CHAPTER XIX. THE WINDOW DISPLAY Bunny Brown and his sister Sue spent much time during the next few days out in their barn--that is when they were not going to the store for their mother. Every chance they had, however, they bought things of Mrs. Golden, to help her as much as they could by trading at her store. "And we ought to get the other boys and girls to go there," Sue said. "We will, after a while," agreed Bunny. "Just now we have to do something else." And the something else had to do with his idea and the time he and Sue spent in the barn. With them, most of the time, was Splash, their dog, and Charlie Star often came over with a covered basket. "What do you think the children are doing?" asked Mrs. Brown of Mary, the cook, one day. "Oh, I guess they're getting up some kind of a show," Mary answered. "I can hear Splash barking now and then, and there's a cat mewing." "Cat!" exclaimed Mrs. Brown. "We haven't a cat!" "I guess it's Charlie Star's," went on the cook. "He brings it over every day in a basket and takes it home again. I guess they're getting ready for a show." "Bunny and Sue did have a show once," observed Mrs. Brown. "I hardly believe they would get up another. I must see what they are up to." However, as company came just then and Mrs. Brown had to entertain them, she forgot all about her two children. Meanwhile things were happening out in the barn. But Bunny and Sue kept it a secret, in which only Charlie Star had a share, and Charlie did not tell. When Mrs. Brown's company had left some one telephoned to her and she forgot all about her plan to ask Bunny what was going on. It was a few days after this that Bunny and Sue were again sent to the store for their mother, and you may easily guess to which store they went--the little corner one, of course. Mrs. Golden was sitting in her usual easy chair, and there were no other customers in the place. "How's business?" asked Bunny, as he had often heard men ask his father. "It might be better and not hurt itself," was Mrs. Golden's answer. "Customers are few and far between." "Mrs. Golden," said Bunny, "my Uncle Tad says you ought to have a special sale. Did you ever have one?" "Oh, yes, years ago," she answered. "I had a sale of notions, and a number of women came in to get things to make dresses with. But I haven't had a special sale for a long while." "Why don't you, then?" asked Bunny eagerly. "I think a special grocery sale would be good. You could put a lot of things in your window and mark the prices on them, and people would come in to buy." "Yes, I suppose I could do that," agreed Mrs. Golden slowly. "I have a big stock of a new kind of oatmeal on hand. Some new concern sold it to me, but it didn't take very well. Lately I got a letter from them saying I could sell it at a special price. I suppose that would bring in some trade. I never thought of it. I'm getting too old, I guess, and worrying too much. When my son Philip comes home I'll have a special sale." "No, don't wait!" cried Bunny Brown eagerly. "Let's have it now! Where are those oatmeal things?" Mrs. Golden smiled at his eager, bustling air. "They're in the storeroom," she said. "Some of the cases aren't open yet." "We'll open 'em for you!" cried Bunny. "Then we'll stack the oatmeal in the window, and we'll make a sign saying it's awful cheap and you'll sell a lot, Mrs. Golden." "Well, maybe I will, dearie. I'm sure I hope so. And it's good of you to help me. Let me see now, I'll put 'em in the left window, I guess. That has less in it," and she looked toward the window she meant. So did Bunny and Sue, and Sue's first idea was made plain when she said: "Could I wash that window, Mrs. Golden?" "Wash the window? Why, yes, I suppose so," answered the storekeeper. "It is pretty dirty," she added. "I don't very often look at 'em, and that's a fact. I declare! you can hardly see what I have in my windows, can you? Dear me, I am getting old. If Philip was here he'd wash 'em for me." "I'll do it!" offered Sue. "I often wash the low windows for mother. She lets me. Have you got any of that white stuff that makes 'em shine?" "Oh, yes, I know what you mean," said Mrs. Golden. "Yes, you can take a cake from the grocery shelf. My, I never thought of a special sale and having windows washed. It may bring me trade!" "Uncle Tad says it will!" exclaimed Bunny. In a measure it was Uncle Tad's idea that Bunny and Sue were carrying out. "You wash the window," he told his sister, "and I'll open the oatmeal." Soon there was a busy time in Mrs. Golden's store. Bunny was hammering and pounding away opening the oatmeal cases, and Sue was washing the window, having first taken out the few things Mrs. Golden had on display there--not that you could see them very well from the outside, however. "Could I wash the other window, too?" asked Sue, when she had finished the first. "Are you going to put oatmeal in both windows?" asked Mrs. Golden. "Seems to me that will be too much. Wash the other window if you want to, dearie, but two of them filled with oatmeal----" "Oh, we aren't going to put oatmeal in _both_!" exclaimed Bunny, with a queer look at his sister. "We're going to fix up the second window to make people come in and buy." Mrs. Golden did not seem to understand exactly. She shook her head in a puzzled way and murmured that she was getting old. And as the postman came along just then with a letter from Philip, she was soon so busy reading it that she paid little attention to what Bunny and Sue were doing. The children worked hard and faithfully all morning, and promised to come back in the afternoon. When they left to go home to lunch, both windows were brightly shining, though there were a few streaks here and there where Sue had forgotten to wipe off the white, cleaning powder. But they didn't matter. "I'll pull the shades down," said Bunny, as he was leaving. "We don't want people looking in the windows until we get 'em all fixed up, and then we'll surprise 'em." "Just as you like, dearie. Just as you like," said Mrs. Golden, in a dreamy tone. She was thinking of what her son had said in his letter. Hurrying through their lunch as quickly as their mother would let them, Bunny and Sue hastened back to Mrs. Golden's store. They told something of their plans at home, and Uncle Tad said: "That's a fine idea! I'll stop down there later and see how it looks." "Come on, Splash!" called Bunny to his dog, as he and his sister started back. "We want you!" "And we must stop at Charlie's house and tell him," said Sue. "Yes, we will," Bunny agreed, and Charlie, when he heard the news, said: "I'll be at the store in about half an hour." Certainly things were getting ready to happen. Bunny and Sue found Mrs. Golden lying down on her couch in the back room when they reached the store again. "I'm afraid I have another of my bad headaches coming on," she said. "You lie down," said Sue kindly. "Bunny and I will tend store again, and we'll start the special sale." The windows were now dry and clean. All the old goods had been taken out, and Bunny and his sister were ready to put in the special display of oatmeal which was to be sold at a low price. Mrs. Golden told Bunny where to find some price cards to put in the window telling of the special sale. These cards were of a sort that most grocers keep on hand. With the help of Sue, Bunny piled the boxes of oatmeal in the window. They were stacked up as nearly like a fort as he could make them, and he knew how to do this, for he had often helped the boys build forts of snow. Here and there he left holes in the piled-up wall of oatmeal boxes. "Oh, if you only had something like little cannons to put in the holes it would look more like a real fort!" said Sue. Bunny thought this was a good idea, and looked around for something to use. He saw some round pasteboard boxes, the top covers of which were a dull black. "They'll look just like cannons," he said, as he fitted them in the holes of the oatmeal box fort. The window shades being down, no one could see from the street what was going on. Splash, the big dog, was content to sleep in the store while the children were there. "Now for the other window," said Bunny to Sue, when the oatmeal was all in place, with the low price plainly marked on cards stuck here and there. "We have to wait for Charlie," Sue said. "He's coming now," observed Bunny, looking from the door. No customers had come in while the children were busy fixing the window, and they were just as well satisfied. They hoped for a rush of trade when the shades were raised. Charlie came in with the covered basket, and the next fifteen minutes were busy ones for the children. Mrs. Golden had fallen asleep and did not come out of the back room to see what they were doing. "Well, we're all ready now," said Bunny, at last. "Pull up the shades!" He and Charlie did this. The sun shone in through the newly cleaned windows and lit up such a display as never before had been seen in Mrs. Golden's store. _ |
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