CHAPTER VIIITHE STREET CLEANING SQUAD
It took little time for the news to spread around the camp that a picnic was planned for that day, and many a Little Citizen forgot newly acquired table manners, in the eagerness to talk it over.
Breakfast out of the way, the cook and her helpers went to work to freeze cream, bake cookies, and prepare other delicious goodies for the treat. The Little Mothers hurried to their Nests to attend to their several duties.
The Health Board went its round conscientiously to see that all beds were aired, all dust swept and wiped up carefully, all clothing dry and clean, and above all, that everyone brushed and cleaned their teeth properly.
The Blue Birds were present at these visits and enjoyed watching the older girls of the camp take charge of things and order the children around.
One of the Health Officers named Marybell was a red-haired, freckled girl of twelve. She was a born captain and now found her opportunity in life.
“Say you, Rebecca Einstein, who tol’ you’se to sweep that dust under de crex rug?” said Marybell upon reaching the Nest where Rebecca had the sweeping to do that day.
“Dere ain’t no dus’ pan,” complained Rebecca.
“Wall, you’se know where t’ git one, den! Go ’an git it!” ordered Marybell, pointing a determined finger towards the kitchens.
Rebecca ran, glad to be away from the disconcerting gaze of the Blue Birds.
“Now you Eliza—come here and show the ladies your teet’ an’ finger-nails,” said Marybell, selecting the girl she had the most trouble with on those very scores.
“I ain’t all done wid dem yet,——lemme run an’ finish,” said Eliza, hurriedly, but blushing at being caught so unexpectedly.
“Ain’ done! Laws me, sloven, yeh had more’n an hour since breakfast t’ do yer toilet!” exclaimed Marybell, frowning.
“She gits out of doin’ ’em all the time,” willingly tattled another girl.
“Come right here, Emmy, an’ lemme see yer own nails!” said Marybell, while the other little girls in the Nest tittered.
When Emmy slowly shuffled up and held out her fingers, Marybell expressed disgust at the sight. “A black mark fer you’se, an’ one fer Eliza! Yeh can’t be depended upon. Mebbe yeh better stay away from de picnic an’ tend to yer teet’ an’ nails!”
“Oh no, no! Please not dat, Marybell! Give us all black marks, if yeh wants to, but let us go today!” cried the two delinquents.
“Well den, git a hustle on an’ clean up before I git back,” said she, shaking a warning head at them and going her way to the next Nest.
This inspection continued, the Blue Birds enjoying every phase of it, until they arrived at one of the newest Nests—that is the tenants had just come from the city. Marybell had been asked to look after them until a regular Health Member was selected for that district of the camp.
As the visitors came near the Nest they sawa little girl with skirts pinned up about her waist, standing bare-legged in the creek, which was up to her knees. She was bending over and doing something energetically, but her back being turned to the Health Officer and the Blue Birds, they could not see what it was that so occupied her time and attention.
“What’s dat gals’ name—out in de brook?” Marybell asked one of the six Little Citizens of the Nest.
“She’s Annie Markey,” said several voices obligingly.
“What’s she standin’ in de crick fer?”
“She’s scrubbin’ her teet’ like we wuz tol’ to do.”
“Scrubbin’ her teet’ in all dat water! How long’s she been at it?” wondered Marybell.
“Ever since we came back from breakfus’, cuz she says she was tol’ all dat grey had to come offen her front teet’, an’ she can’t rub it off,” explained the oldest of the group.
Marybell hurried down to the creek and called: “Annie—hoh, Annie Markey, come out here!”
Annie turned and saw the Officer beckoning her. She came up on the bank, and Marybell sawshe held a bit of broken mirror in one hand and the brand-new toothbrush in the other.
“Open yer mout’,” said Marybell.
Annie obeyed—it opened widely.
“Back teet’ all gone—nuttin’ but holes left dere! Now skin yer teet’—like dis!” And Marybell showed two rows of sharp front teeth as she wrinkled up her face fearsomely.
Annie imitated the Officer and Marybell frowned. “You’se ain’t got no kinda teet’ to clean, nohow! Dey gotta go to a dentis’ an’ be scoured er pulled—I don’ know which, but I’ll report you to de hospital anyway and let ’em do what dey says,” was Marybell’s terrifying verdict.
“Oh please don’ report me to a hospital—please! An’ I don’ want all my teet’ pulled neider! I’ll run away firs’. I come here to eat all I kin and have a good time, an’ now yeh wants to pull out my teet’ an’ I can’t chew any more!” wailed Annie.
“Nah, I don’t, Annie! I on’y wants to git out dem bad ones what will ache, an’ de udders kin be scoured to git de black off. What made ’em so bad?” soothed Marybell.
“De school-teacher in Harlem says it was ’cause I eat so much candy—me fadder keeps a candy store wid cigars, yeh see.”
“Hum—we unnerstan’—nuttin’ like trashy candy to eat up good teet’!” declared Marybell, wisely, for she had just been told a few lessons prior to this application, about the evil effects of sweets on the teeth of children.
In the last Nest in the row, Marybell found that a roof had leaked during a slight shower the preceding night. The bed-clothes of the bed standing under the stream of rainwater were soaked, but so eager was the child to finish its work and get away that the damp sheets were used in making up the bed.
“Say—you chumps, who made dis bed?” shouted Marybell, as the six Little Citizens ran up to await inspection.
“Franzy Bedell—it’s her bed!” cried five voices in unison.
“Franzy—pull off dem beddings!” ordered the Officer.
Franzy slowly removed the covers and exposed a large damp place at the foot of the mattress.
“Diden’ yeh know any better! Why, even inRivington er Ludlow Streets, de mudders know better’n use soaked beddin’. Ye git a black mark fer dat!” exclaimed the captain of the squad.
Franzy said nothing but awaited further punishment.
“Now spread each artick’l out on somethin’ to dry an’ don’t yeh dare make dat bed till dey is good an’ dry—you hear?”
“Yes’sm!” quickly said Franzy, glad to get off so easy.
“I’m comin’ back, remember, so don’t yeh cheat again!” And with that threat, Marybell led the Blue Birds away.
On the way back to the Infirmary where Marybell had to hand in her reports, she said: “Sometimes dem ninnies jus’ pull de bed-covers up an’ smooth ’em out, tryin’ to fool me to thinkin’ dey was all aired and made fresh, but I kin tell! Yep, I kin tell every time!”
“What else do you have to watch, Marybell?” asked Ruth, who was highly interested.
“Oh, some of de kids wear clo’es what is dirty or damp from the brook, an’ I has to make ’em change er report ’em. Lots of dese East Siders can’t see good, an’ lots got somethin’wrong wid dere noses an’ t’roats. I has to watch ef dey breat’ hard. Den I tells de nurse at de infirmary an’ she makes tests.”
“I guess there’ll be a lot of better children going back home after this summer,” mused Vene, seriously.
“Yes, and it’s too bad the city can’t let girls like Marybell take charge of certain school departments just as she is doing here at camp,” said Ruth.
Marybell now reported to the superior at the Infirmary, and the Blue Birds waited outside for her reappearance. Meantime, the Bobolinks were entertained by the Captain of the Street Cleaning Squad.
“We begin on Primrose Lane—dat runs down de middle of de camp-ground. One Member goes down Violet Lane while anudder goes down Daffodil Lane. Each member of the Squad has his own streets to take care of—dere all called by flower lanes and paths, but we fellers call ’em streets like dey do in Noo York, yeh know!”
While the Squad was collecting the rubbish that was placed outside each Nest in the morning, the Captain showed the boys how theyworked for promotion. A Captain held his office two weeks and at the expiration of his term, if he was worthy, he was given a medal for service. Any boy holding a medal would be allowed to come to camp the following year. Every boy in the Squad was eager to be Captain of course, but such an office was voted upon and decided by the deportment of the applicant, during his stay in camp.
“Now come over to Farmer Jones’ dump-heap and I will show you what he does with trash and debris,” said the Captain.
As the Bobolinks neared the extreme corner of the estate far removed from camp and house, they noticed a disagreeable odor.
“Ha, ha! You smell our pigs!” laughed the Captain.
“Pigs! Whose pigs?” chorused the Bobolinks.
“Little Citizens’ pigs! We are raisin’ a hull litter of ’em on de leavin’s of de table. I’ll show you.”
The Bobolinks were soon watching the fat little porkers who had so much clean food to eat. All the garbage from the kitchens was carefully sorted by a few of the Squad each day, and thepeelings or bits of raw fruit and vegetables were thrown into a great kettle near the sty. This was boiled into mush and fed to the pigs. All bread, meat and other refuse from table or kitchen, was mixed well and given to the pigs at noon. The mushy food was fed in the morning and at night. The sty was kept as clean as possible, and the pigs were scrubbed every day to keep them clean and healthy.
“Goodness me! Who scrubs them?” laughed Ned.
“Oh, we draw lots for that work. Every feller in the Squad wants to do it, but we take turns,” replied the Captain.
Then he showed the Bobolinks the other refuse heap. The papers were all picked out and kept in bags to sell. All rags were also collected for sale. Tin cans and other metals were picked out and thrown in a bin for sale also. The money thus earned was to be used for an outing or for some form of general good for the Little Citizens—such as a victrola, or game, or other pleasure.
The Bobolinks followed their host back to the camp and found the Squad had completed theirrounds and were rolling the little basket-wagons to the dump. So they said good-by to the captain and ran away to join the Blue Birds who were coming from the Infirmary.
“Say, Uncle Ben has this plan worked down to a fine system, hasn’t he?” said Ned, approvingly.
“Of course he has. I’d like to own one of those pigs myself, and try for a county-fair prize,” said Jinks.
“It’s a wonder he hasn’t thought of keeping bee-hives for Little Citizens, or mushroom cellars, and a lot of other things,” laughed Meredith.
“Now say, Mete, that bee idea isn’t so bad. Let’s suggest it. Lots of these boys would be glad to try it out, I should think.”
“I’ll mention it when we get home tonight,” said Meredith.
“There’s one thing they’ve overlooked thus far, boys,” said Jinks.
“Yes—what?” queried the others.
“Some scheme to get rid of these mosquitoes and flies! That always takes the fun out of camping, I think,” replied Jinks.
“Maybe they have something planned, but it ought to work. That’s another item we’ll ask him about tonight,” said Ned.
It happened that night, after everyone was seated on the piazza of Miss Selina’s house, that the topics were mentioned and Uncle Ben had to admit that he had not yet taken care of ridding the camp of flies and mosquitoes.
“I’ll tell you what, boys! I wish you’d take charge of those two important matters and I’ll attend to the bee idea. I believe the care of bees will help the boys at camp a lot, and give them honey as well as pastime.”
“We’ll do the fly and mosquito business, all right, Uncle Ben, but we must have crude oil to sprinkle over the marshy or pool spots in the woods,” said Ned.
“Easy enough to secure oil, and whatever else you may need for the pests,” agreed Uncle Ben.
So the Bobolinks found an important work to do while they visited at Happy Hills, and not only were the Little Citizens more comfortable thereafter, but they found out how to keep free of flies and malarial mosquitoes.