Some of the other children heard the good news--the loss of the real
estate papers did not bother them, for they were too little to worry; but
they loved to hear about Grandma Bell.

"And I'm going to take some fire-to'pedos!" exclaimed Laddie. "I'm going
to shoot 'em off for Fourth of July at grandma's."

Daddy Bunker shook his head.

"I think we'd better have our Fourth of July at home here, before we go,"
he said. "That will be next week, and we can go to Maine soon afterward.
Grandma Bell doesn't like fire-crackers, anyhow. We'll shoot them off
before we go."

"Goody!" cried Laddie again. Anything suited him as long as he could have
fun. "We'll shoot sky-rockets, too. What makes 'em be called sky-rockets?"
he asked, "Do they go up to the sky?"

"You go and ask Jerry Simms about that," suggested Mr. Bunker. "Jerry can
tell you how they shot signaling rockets in the army. Trot along!"

Laddie was glad to do this. He liked to hear Jerry talk.

"Maybe he'll tell me a riddle about sky-rockets," said the little fellow.

Russ sat down on the porch and began whittling some bits of wood with his
knife.

"What are you making now, Russ?" asked his father, while Mrs. Bunker went