Читать книгу Smuggler Ben - Enid blyton - Страница 3

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Three children got out of a bus and looked round them in excitement. Their mother smiled to see their glowing faces.

“Well, here we are!” she said. “How do you like it?”

“Is this the cottage we’re going to live in for four weeks?” said Alec, going up to the little white gate. “Mother! It’s perfect!”

The two girls, Hilary and Frances, looked at the small square cottage, and agreed with their brother. Red roses climbed all over the cottage even to the chimneys. The thatched roof came down low over the ground-floor windows, and in the thatch itself other little windows jutted out.

“I wonder which is our bedroom,” said Hilary, looking up at the roof. “I hope that one is—because it will look out over the sea.”

“Well, let’s go in and see,” said Mother. “Help with the suitcases, Alec. I hope the heavy luggage has already arrived.”

They opened the white gate of Sea Cottage and went up the little stone path. It was set with orange marigolds at each side, and hundreds of the bright red-gold flowers looked up at the children as they passed.

The cottage was very small inside. The front door opened straight on to the little sitting-room. Beyond was a tiny dark kitchen. To the left was another room, whose walls were covered with bookshelves lined with books. The children stared at them in surprise.

“The man who owns this house is someone who is interested in olden times,” said Mother, “so most of these books are about long-ago days, I expect. They belong to Professor Rondel. He said that you might dip into any of the books if you liked, on condition that you put them back very carefully in the right place.”

“Well, I don’t think I shall want to do any dipping into these books!” said Hilary.

“No—dipping in the sea will suit you better!” laughed Frances. “Mother, let’s see our bedrooms now.”

They went upstairs. There were three bedrooms, one very tiny indeed. Two were at the front and one was at the back. A small one and a large one were at the front, and a much bigger one behind.

“I shall have this big one,” said Mother. “Then if Daddy comes down there will be plenty of room for him, too. Alec, you can have the tiny room overlooking the sea. And you two girls can have the one next to it.”

“That overlooks the sea, too!” said Hilary joyfully. “But, Mother—wouldn’t you like a room that looks out over the sea? Yours won’t.”

“I shall see the sea out of this little side window,” said Mother, going to it. “And anyway, I shall get a wonderful view of the moors at the back. You know how I love them, especially now when the heather is out.”

The children gazed out at the moors ablaze with purple heather. It was really a lovely spot.

“Blue sea in front and purple heather behind,” said Alec. “What can anyone want better than that?”

“Well—tea for one thing,” said Frances. “I’m most terribly hungry. Mother, could we have something to eat before we do anything?”

“If you like,” said Mother. “We can do the unpacking afterwards. Alec, there is a tiny village down the road there, with about two shops and a few fishermen’s cottages. Go with the girls and see if you can buy something for tea.”

They clattered down the narrow wooden stairway and ran out of the front door and down the path between the marigolds. They went down the sandy road, where blue chicory blossomed by the wayside and red poppies danced.

“Isn’t it heavenly!” cried Hilary. “We’re at the seaside—and the holidays are just beginning. We’ve never been to such a lovely little place before. It’s much, much nicer than the big places we’ve been to. I don’t want bands and piers and steamers and things. I only want the yellow sands, and big rocky cliffs, and water as blue as this.”

“I vote we go down to the beach after tea, when we’ve helped Mother to unpack,” said Alec. “The tide will be going out then. It comes right up to the cliffs now. Look at it splashing high up the rocks!”

The children peered over the edge of the cliff and saw the white spray flying high. It was lovely to watch. The gulls soared above their heads, making laughing cries as they went.

“I would love to be a gull for a little while,” said Frances longingly. “Just think how glorious it would be to glide along on the wind like that for ages and ages. Sometimes I dream I’m doing that.”

“So do I,” said Hilary. “It’s a lovely feeling. Well, come on. It’s no good standing here when we’re getting things for tea. I’m awfully hungry.”

“You always are,” said Alec. “I never knew such a girl. All right—come on, Frances. We can do all the exploring we want to after tea.”

They ran off. Sand got into their shoes, but they liked it. It was all part of the seaside, and there wasn’t anything at the sea that they didn’t like. They felt very happy.

They came to the village—though really it could hardly be called a village. There were two shops. One was a tiny baker’s, which was also the little post office. The other was a general store that sold everything from pokers to strings of sausages. It was a most fascinating shop.

“It even sells foreign stamps,” said Alec, looking at some packets in the window. “And look—that’s a fine boat. I might buy that if I’ve got enough money.”

Hilary went to the baker’s. She bought a large crusty loaf, a big cake and some currant buns. She asked for their butter and jam at the other store. The little old lady who served her smiled at the children.

“So you’ve come to Sea Cottage, have you?” she said. “Well, I hope you have a good holiday. And mind you come along to see me every day, for I sell sweets, chocolates and ice-creams, as well as all the other things you see.”

“Oooh!” said Hilary. “Well, we’ll certainly come and see you then!”

They had a look at the other little cottages in the village. Fishing-nets were drying outside most of them, and one or two of them were being mended. A boy of about Alec’s age was mending one. He stared at the children as they passed. They didn’t know whether to smile or not.

“He looks a bit fierce, doesn’t he?” said Hilary. They looked back at the boy. He did look rather fierce. He was very, very dark, and his face and hands were burnt almost black. He wore an old blue jersey and long trousers, rather ragged, which he had tied up at the ankles. He was barefooted, but beside him were big sea-boots.

“I don’t think I like him much,” said Frances. “He looks rather rough.”

“Well, he won’t bother us much,” said Alec. “He’s only a fisher-boy. Anyway, if he starts to be rough, I shall be rough, too—and he won’t like that!”

“You wouldn’t be nearly as strong as that fisher-boy,” said Hilary.

“Yes, I would!” said Alec at once.

“No, you wouldn’t,” said Hilary. “I bet he’s got muscles like iron!”

“Shut up, you two,” said Frances. “Don’t quarrel on our very first day here.”

“All right,” said Alec. “It’s too lovely a day to quarrel. Come on—let’s get back home. I want my tea.”

They sat in the garden to have their tea. Mother had brought out a table and stools, and the four of them sat there happily, eating big crusty slices of bread and butter and jam, watching the white tops of the blue waves as they swept up the shore.

“The beach looks a bit dangerous for bathing,” said Mother. “I’m glad you are all good swimmers. Alec, you must see that you find out what times are best for bathing. Don’t let the girls go in if it’s dangerous.”

“We can just wear bathing-costumes, Mother, can’t we?” said Alec. “And go barefoot?”

“Well, you won’t want to go barefoot on those rocky cliffs, surely!” said Mother. “You can do as you like. But just be sensible, that’s all.”

“We’ll help you to unpack now,” said Hilary, getting up.

“Gracious, Hilary—you don’t mean to say you’ve had enough tea yet?” said Alec, pretending to be surprised. “You’ve only had seven pieces of bread and jam, three pieces of cake and two currant buns!”

Hilary pulled Alec’s hair hard and he yelled. Then they all went indoors. Mother said she would clear away the tea when they had gone down to the beach.

In half an hour all the unpacking was done and the children were free to go down to the beach. The tide was now out quite a long way and there was plenty of golden sand to run on.

“Come on!” said Alec impatiently. “Let’s go. We won’t change into bathing things now, it will waste time. We’ll go as we are!”

So off they sped, down the marigold path, through the white gate, and into the sandy lane. A small path led across the grassy cliff-top to where steep steps had been cut in the cliff itself in order that people might get up and down.

“Down we go!” said Alec. “My word—doesn’t the sea look grand! I’ve never seen it so blue in my life!”