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The Corner House Girls Among the Gypsies
The Corner House Girls Among the Gypsies / How They Met, What Happened, and How It Ended
CHAPTER I – THE FRETTED SILVER BRACELET
If Sammy Pinkney had not been determined to play a “joey” and hooked back one of the garage doors so as to enter astride a broomstick with a dash and the usual clown announcement, “Here we are again!” all would not have happened that did happen to the Corner House girls – at least, not in just the way the events really occurred.
Even Dot, who was inclined to be forgiving of most of Sammy’s sins both of omission and commission, admitted that to be true. Tess, the next oldest Corner House girl (nobody ever dignified her with the name of “Theresa,” unless it were Aunt Sarah Maltby) was inclined to reflect the opinion regarding most boys held by their oldest sister, Ruth. Tess’s frank statement to this day is that it was entirely Sammy’s fault that they were mixed up with the Gypsies at all.
But —
“Well, if I’m going to be in your old circus,” Sammy announced doggedly, “I’m going to be a joey – or nothin’.”
“You know very well, Sammy, that you can’t be that,” said Tess reprovingly.
“Huh? Why can’t I? I bet I’d make just as good a clown as Mr. Sully Sorber, who is Neale’s half-uncle, or Mr. Asa Scruggs, who is Barnabetta’s father.”
“I don’t mean you can’t be a clown,” interrupted Tess. “I mean you can’t be just nothing. You occupy space, so you must be something. Our teacher says so.”
“Shucks!” ejaculated Sammy Pinkney. “Don’t I know that? And I wish you wouldn’t talk about school. Why! we’re only in the middle of our vacation, I should hope.”
“It seems such a long time since we went to school,” murmured Dot, who was sitting by, nursing the Alice-doll in her arms and waiting her turn to be called into the circus ring, which was the cleared space in the middle of the cement floor.
“That’s because all you folks went off cruising on that houseboat and never took me with you,” grumbled Sammy, who still held a deep-seated grouch because of the matter mentioned. “But ’tain’t been long since school closed – and it isn’t going to be long before the old thing opens again.”