THE RAILWAY CHILDREN

Contents.

I. The beginning of things.
II. Peter's coal-mine.
III. The old gentleman.
IV. The engine-burglar.
V. Prisoners and captives.
VI. Saviours of the train.
VII. For valour.
VIII. The amateur fireman.
IX. The pride of Perks.
X. The terrible secret.
XI. The hound in the red jersey.
XII. What Bobbie brought home.
XIII. The hound's grandfather.
XIV. The End.



Chapter I. The beginning of things.


They were not railway children to begin with. I don't suppose they had
ever thought about railways except as a means of getting to Maskelyne
and Cook's, the Pantomime, Zoological Gardens, and Madame Tussaud's.
They were just ordinary suburban children, and they lived with their
Father and Mother in an ordinary red-brick-fronted villa, with coloured
glass in the front door, a tiled passage that was called a hall, a
bath-room with hot and cold water, electric bells, French windows, and
a good deal of white paint, and 'every modern convenience', as the
house-agents say.

There were three of them. Roberta was the eldest. Of course, Mothers
never have favourites, but if their Mother HAD had a favourite, it might
have been Roberta. Next came Peter, who wished to be an Engineer when he
grew up; and the youngest was Phyllis, who meant extremely well.

Mother did not spend all her time in paying dull calls to dull ladies,
and sitting dully at home waiting for dull ladies to pay calls to her.
She was almost always there, ready to play with the children, and read
to them, and help them to do their home-lessons. Besides this she used
to write stories for them while they were at school, and read them
aloud after tea, and she always made up funny pieces of poetry for their
birthdays and for other great occasions, such as the christening of the
new kittens, or the refurnishing of the doll's house, or the time when
they were getting over the mumps.