Book 2 26. GOING OUT Little House On The Prairie By Laura Ingalls Wilder

going out

after breakfast next morning paw and ma

packed the wagon

first all the bedding was made into two

beds laid on top of each other across

the back of the wagon

and carefully covered with a pretty

plaid blanket

mary and laura and baby carrie would

ride there in the daytime

at night the top bed would be put in the

front of the wagon for palma to sleep in

and mary and laura would sleep in the

bottom bed where it was

next pot took the small cupboard from

the wall and in it mop packed the food

in the dishes

paul put the cupboard under the wagon

seat and in front of it he laid a sack

of corn for the horses

it will make a good rest for our feet

caroline he said tomorrow

ma packed all the clothing in two carpet

bags

and paul hung them to the wagon boughs

inside the wagon

opposite them he hung his rifle in its

straps

and his bullet pouch and powder horn

hung beneath it

his fiddle in its box he laid on one end

of the bed where it would ride softly

maul wrapped the black iron spider the

bake oven

and the coffee pot and sacks and put

them in the wagon

while paw tied the rocking chair and the

tub outside

and hung the water bucket and the horse

bucket underneath

he put the tin lantern carefully in the

front corner of the wagon

box where the sack of corn held it still

now the wagon was loaded the only thing

they could not take

was the plow well that could not be

helped

there was no room for it when they came

to wherever they were going

park could get more furs to trade for

another plow

laura and mary climbed into the wagon

and sat on the bed in the back

ma put baby carry between them they were

all

freshly washed and combed paw said they

were clean as a hound’s tooth

and ma told them they were bright as new

pins

then paw hitched pat and patty to the

wagon

ma climbed to her place on the seat and

held the lines

and suddenly laura wanted to see the

house again

she asked paul please to let her look

out so he loosened the rope in the back

of the wagon cover

and that made a large round hole laura

and mary could look out of it

but still the rope held up enough canvas

to keep carrie from tumbling into the

feed box

the snug log house looked just as it

always had

it did not seem to know they were going

away

paul stood a moment in the doorway and

looked all around inside

he looked at the bedstead and the

fireplace

and the glass windows then he closed the

door carefully

leaving the latch string out someone

might need

shelter he said he climbed to his place

beside maw

gathered the reins into his own hands

and chirped to pet and patty

jack went under the wagon pet winnie to

bunny who came to walk beside her

and they were off just before the creek

road went down into the bottoms

paw stopped the mustangs and they all

looked back

as far as they could see to the east and

to the south

and to the west nothing was moving on

all the vastness of the high prairie

only the green grass was rippling in the

wind

and white clouds drifted in the high

clear sky

it’s a great country caroline paul said

but there will be wild indians and

wolves here for many a long day

the little log house and the little

stable sat lonely in the stillness

then pat and patty briskly started

onward

the wagon went down from the bluffs into

the wooded creek bottoms

and high in a treetop a mockingbird

began to sing

i never heard a mockingbird sing so

early said ma

and paul answered softly he’s telling us

goodbye

they rode down through the low hills to

the creek

the ford was low and easy crossing

on they went across the bottoms where

antler deer stood up to watch them

passing

and mother deer with their fawns bounded

into the shadows of the woods

and up between the steep red earth

cliffs the wagon climbed to the prairie

again

pat and patty were eager to go their

hooves had made a muffled sound in the

bottoms

but now they rang out on the hard

prairie and the wind sang

shrill against the foremost wagon bows

paw and ma were still and silent on the

wagon seat

and mary and laura were quiet too but

laura felt all excited inside

you never know what will happen next

know where you’ll be tomorrow when

you’re traveling in a covered wagon

at noon paw stopped beside a little

spring to let the mustangs eat

and drink and rest the spring would soon

be dry in the summer’s heat

but there was plenty of water now

ma took cold corn bread and meat from

the food box

and they all ate sitting on the clean

grass

in the shade of the wagon they drank

from the spring

and laura and mary ran around in the

grass picking wild flowers

while ma tidied the food box and paw

hitched up

pet and patty again then for a long time

they went on across the prairie

there was nothing to be seen but the

blowing grass

the sky and the endless wagon track

now and then a rabbit bounded away

sometimes a prairie hen with her brood

of prairie chicks scuttled out of sight

in the grass

baby carey slept and mary and laura were

almost asleep when they heard paw say

something’s wrong there laura jumped up

and far ahead on the prairie she saw a

small

light-colored bump she couldn’t see

anything else unusual

where she asked paw there

pause said nodding toward that bump it

isn’t moving

lara didn’t say any more she kept on

looking

and she saw that that bump was a covered

wagon

slowly it grew bigger she saw that no

horses were hitched to it

nothing moved anywhere around it then

she saw something dark

in front of it the dark thing was two

people

sitting on the wagon tongue they were a

man and a woman

they sat looking down at their feet and

they moved only their heads to look up

when pat and patty stopped in front of

them

what’s wrong where are your horses paw

asked

i don’t know the man said i tied them to

the wagon last night and this morning

they were gone

somebody cut the ropes and took them

away in the night

well what about your dog said paw

haven’t got a dog the man said

jack stayed under the wagon he didn’t

growl

but he didn’t come out he was a sensible

dog and knew what to do when he met

strangers

well your horses are gone paul told the

man

you’ll never see them again hanging’s

too good for horse thieves

yes the man said paul looked at ma

and ma barely nodded then paul said

come ride with us to independence no

said the man all we’ve got is in this

wagon

we won’t leave it why man

what will you do paul exclaimed there

may be nobody along here for days

weeks you can’t stay here i don’t know

the man said we’ll stay with our wagon

the woman said she was looking down at

her hands clasped in her lap

and laura couldn’t see her face she

could see only the side of her sun

bonnet

better come pot told them you can come

back for your wagon

no the woman said they wouldn’t leave

the wagon

everything they owned in the world was

in it so at last pau drove on

leaving them sitting on the wagon tongue

all alone in the prairie

palm muttered to himself tender feet

everything they own and no dog to watch

it

didn’t keep watch himself and tied his

horses with

ropes paw snorted tender feet

he said again shouldn’t be allowed loose

west of the mississippi

but charles whatever will become of them

ma

asked him there were soldiers at

independence said paul

i’ll tell the captain and he’ll send out

men to bring them in

they can hold out that long but it’s

durn lucky for them that we came by

if we hadn’t there’s no telling when

they would have been found

lara watched that lonely wagon until it

was only a small lump on the prairie

then it was a speck then it was gone

all the rest of that day pod drove on

and on

they didn’t see anybody else when the

sun was setting

paw stopped by a well a house had once

been there

but it was burned the well had plenty of

good water

and laura and mary gathered bits of

half-burned wood to make the fire

while paw unhitched and watered the

horses and put them

on the picket lines then paul took the

seat down from the wagon

and lifted out the food box the fire

burned beautifully and mark quickly got

supper

everything was just as it used to be

before they built the house

pau and ma and carrie were on the wagon

seat

laura and mary sat on the wagon tongue

they ate the good

supper hot from the campfire pat and

patty and bunny

munched the good grass and laura saved

bits for jack

who mustn’t beg but could eat his fill

as soon as supper was over

then the sun went down far away in the

west

and it was time to make the camp ready

for night

paw chained pat and patty to the feed

box at the end of the wagon

he chained bunny to the side and he fed

them all

their supper of corn then he sat by the

fire and smoked his pipe

while ma tucked mary and laura into bed

and laid baby carrie beside them

she sat down beside paw at the fire

and paw took his fiddle out of its box

and began to play

oh susannah don’t you cry for me the

fiddle wailed

and paul began to sing

i went to california with my wash pant

on my knee

and every time i thought of home i

wished it wasn’t me

do you know caroline paw stopped singing

to say

i’ve been thinking what fun the rabbits

will have eating that garden we planted

don’t charles ma said

never mind caroline pau told her

we’ll make a better garden anyway

we’re taking more out of indian

territory than we took in

i don’t know what ma said and paul

answered

why there’s the mule then ma laughed

and paw and the fiddle sang again

dixie land i’ll take my stand and live

and die and dixie

a way away away away away down south and

dixie

they sang with a lilt and a swing that

almost lifted laura right out of bed

she must lie still and not wake carrie

mary was sleeping too

but laura had never been wider awake

she heard jack making his bed under the

wagon

he was turning round and round trampling

down the grass

then he curled into that round nest with

a flop

and a sigh of satisfaction

pat and patty were munching the last of

their corn

and their chains rattled bunny lay down

beside the wagon

they were all there together safe and

comfortable for the night

under the wide starlit sky once more the

covered wagon was home

the fiddle began to play a marching tune

and paw’s clear voice was singing like a

deep toned bell

and we’ll rally round the flag boys will

rally

once again shouting the battle cry of

freedom

laura felt that she must shout too but

softly

ma looked into the round hole in the

wagon cover

charles ma said laura is wide awake she

can’t go to sleep on such music as that

paw didn’t answer but the voice of the

fiddle changed

softly and slurringly it began a long

swinging rhythm that seemed to rock

laura gently

she felt her eyelids closing

she began to drift over endless waves of

prairie grasses

and paul’s voice went with her singing

like a feather we sail in

[Music]

lightly love over the

sea daily

and nightly i’ll wander with thee

[Music]

you