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They made quite a voyage of it and had some trouble, for the waves were rough and the seas were high, but they reached port safely at last. They hadn't seen anything of the pirates yet, and they decided to make another try for it when Hepzebiah came to the wharf. She wanted to sail too, but the Captain only said, very thoughtfully, "It's not safe for the women an' children."
"All right, I'll do that," said Jehosophat, but the Toyman stopped him. "Hold on there, Sonny, that's the ladies' job." Then he called Hepzebiah and gave her the bottle. "Now, little girl, you stand here and say: 'I christen thee White Swan." But, "I ckwithen Wite Thwan" was the best she could do. "Now drop the bottle!"
So, after dinner, old Methuselah was hitched up, and away they drove, the Toyman, Jehosophat, Hepzebiah, and Marmaduke, with little Wienerwurst, as usual, in back. He was very happy, barking at all the carriages hurrying up the road to the circus. They came to the field with the big white tents and were just going to turn in, when they heard music way off in the streets of the town.
But Rover was only a dog, and couldn't realize the danger at all. At last the big fat pirate's pole hit the ship a terrible crack, and overboard Slave Hepzebiah fell. Dick Deadeye reached for her, but his hand only touched her uniform, and over he fell, too, down in the coffee-colored waves. It was way over his head. Down, down, he sank.
Jehosophat, Marmaduke, and Hepzebiah came up to the "Crying Tree." "What are you doing, Toyman," asked Marmaduke. "Watch and you will see." They were always asking him that question and he was always telling them to watch and see. So they did. In his hand he had his knife, which could make as many things as a fairy's wand. It had four blades and a corkscrew.
"Oh, I know, I know," he cried, "they're Mother's kind deeds all she's done for me and Jehosophat and Hepzebiah and, oh, how many there are!" he added. "Yes indeed, my dear. You never guessed there were so many, did you?" Marmaduke grew very solemn as he replied, "But I won't forget now ever." From where they stood, the great blue fields rose into a hill.
It's out of harm's way. Dicky Means, who has a cruel heart and robs birds' nests, can't reach it way up there!" "What's in it, Muvver?" asked little Hepzebiah. You see her little tongue didn't work just right. She never could say words with "th" in them. "Little eggs, dear. They are white, with little dark spots and funny dark scrawls on them as if somebody had tried to write with a bad pen."
And Hepzebiah fell into the snowdrift head first so that only her legs could be seen, and they were kicking wildly in the air. Now the Toyman was busy untangling the rope, which had gotten mixed with the steering-gear, and he hadn't noticed Fatty and Reddy at their old tricks. But her two brothers pulled her out of the drift by her little kicking legs, and brushed her off and dried her tears.
Then Marmaduke let another snowball fly. That hit one of the white soldiers and knocked his black eye out. And Hepzebiah threw her snowball. She tried very hard. But it didn't go very far and didn't do any damage. Jehosophat looked worried at that. He couldn't depend on Hepzebiah at all.
As a special treat the children were allowed to stay up late and hear Uncle Roger's stories of the great sea. They stayed up very late, although the Little-Clock-with-the-Wise-Face-on-the-Mantle spoke several times. So next morning they were very tired. The sun was warm and while Jehosophat, Marmaduke and Hepzebiah sat on the porch they fell asleep.
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