Enid Blyton stories. by Enid blyton enid blyton, enid blyton (web ebook reader TXT) 📕

the cottage where Mister Stick the policeman lived. He was just finishing his morning cup of cocoa, and he listened in surprise when Nobbly told him what he had seen the night before." Yes, I tell you," said Nobbly, all excited. " That nasty, unkind gnome came into my room in the middle of the night, hid himself at the end of my bed, and then, when I woke up, I saw his big hands sticking up ready to come at me! Think of that, now! Don't you think you ought to go and take Big-Hands to prison? "Nobbly went to the cottage where the policeman lived." Well, no, I don't," said Mister Stick. " You see, you might have made a mistake, Nobbly. After all, you didn't see Big-Hands' face, did you? It might have been anyone else."" Pooh! " said Nobbly, scornfully. " It couldn't have been anyone else! No one else has such enormous hands as Big-Hands. I know they must have been his hands."" Well, wait and see if he comes again," said Mister Stick. " I'll wait outside to-night, and if you give a call I'll come in and take Mister Big-Hands off to prison, if it really is him."" But suppose he escapes before you come? " said Nobbly. " How shall I get hold of him? He is such a big fellow."" Well," said Mister Stick, thinking hard, " you might take a piece of rope and make a loop in it, Nobbly. Then, if Big-Hands does come again and scares you by sticking up his great hands at the end of the bed, you just throw the loop of rope round them, draw it tight—and you'll have got him prisoner all ready for me to march off! "" Ooh, that's igood idea! " said Nobbly, very pleased. He went home and got a piece of rope. He carefully made a loop in it and put it beside his bed, ready for the night. When his bed time came he undressed, got into bed, and put the loop of rope under his pillow. Aha, Mister Big-Hands, just wait!He fell asleep—and woke again with a jump just after midnight. And dear me, bless us all, there were his great bony feet sticking up again in the moonlight, looking like enormous hands!" Oh, it's you, Big-Hands, again, is it! " cried Nobbly, and he fished under the pillow for his loop of rope. In a trice he had it out and threw it neatly over what he thought were the hands at the foot of the bed—but of course they were his own feet! He pulled the loop tight, and then gave a scream." Oh, oh, let go my feet, Big-Hands! Oh you wicked gnome, you've got my feet! "As the rope pulled tightly and bound his feet together poor Nobbly rolled about in the bed. He thought he had got hold of Big-Hands with the rope, so he pulled and pulled—and the more he pulled the more tightly the rope cut into his nobbly feet!"Ow! Ow! Help! Help!" yelled the goblin, and rolled or!the bed with a bump. He tried to get up, but of course his feet were tied together, and he fell over each time he tried. He was really dreadfully frightened." Mister Stick, Mister Stick, come and help me! " he called. " Big-Hands has got me by the feet and won't let go! "Now Mister Stick had been hiding in the garden, as he promised— but he had fallen asleep. He woke up in a hurry when he heard such a yelling and shouting going on. He jumped up—and at the same moment Big-Hands who had been awakened by the dreadful yells and shouts from Nobbly, rushed out of his cottage." What's the matter, what's the matter ? " called Big-Hands, running up the path and bumping into Mister Stick the policeman, who was mostsurprised to see him for he quite thought he must be inside Nobbly's cottage, frightening him!The two of them opened the door and ran to the stairs. Nobbly was still shouting and yelling, rolling about on the floor with his feet tied tightly together by the loop of rope." Come on, quick, someone's hurting poor Nobbly! " cried Big-Hands, all his quarrel with the goblin quite forgotten. Up the stairs they rushed, both of them, and flung open the bedroom door. It was quite dark in the bedroom, and Mister Stick shone his lantern round.Nobbly was panting on the floor, pulling with all his might at his rope! Mister Stick set his lantern down on a table and lifted Nobbly to his feet." Someone's tied your feet together," said Big-Hands in astonish­ment, as he saw the loop of rope tightly round the goblin's bony feet. " Whoever did that? "" Why, wasn't ityou?" said Nobbly in amazement, staring at Big-Hands." No, indeed it wasn't," answered Big-Hands at once. " I wouldn't do such a horrid thing! You ought to know that. Besides, Mister Stick the policeman will tell you I came rushing up the stairs with him—I wasn't in your bedroom at all. I do wonder who it was. Let's hunt round a bit and see if we can see any robber, shall we, Mister Stick? "They untied poor Nobbly's feet and then, taking the lantern, they all hunted round the cottage—but, of course there was no one there at all! They couldn't understand it." I'm so frightened! " wept Nobbly. " I can't make it out. Who is this person with great, enormous hands who keeps coming to frighten me? Oh, dear Big-Hands, do please stay with me for the rest of the night and sleep here so that I shan't be alone. Then, if the person comes again, you will be able to scare him away for me. You are so brave."" Very well," promised Big-Hands. So they said goodnight to Mister Stick, and off he went home. Big-Hands and Nobbly settled down to sleep in the bed—it was rather a tight fit for two people—and soon nothing was to be heard but gentle snores from Nobbly and enormously loud ones from Big-Hands.Well, Big-Hands suddenly gave such a tremendous snore that Nobbly woke up with a jump—and goodness me, there were his feet again, sticking up in the moonlight just like big hands coming to get him.Up the stairs they rushed, both of them." Big-Hands, don't tell anyone," said Nobbly, in a small voice. " Please be friends with me again—and don't tell anybody about this. I do hate to be laughed at."" Well, you deserve to be," said Big-Hands. " You have been very unkind lately, Nobbly—smacking my cat, and throwing rubbish into my garden, and letting your bonfire smoke come into my kitchen, and playing your gramophone when I am trying to have a nap. You don't deserve any kindness from me. No—I think everyone must hear this funny story about you. It's such z joke! "" Oh please, Big-Hands, I know I've been unkind and horrid," wept the goblin. " But I won't be again. I do want to be friends with you. You were so kind to stay with me to-night. I will buy your cat a nice fresh fish from the fishman each day for a fortnight if you will forgive me, and promise not to tell anyone at all."" Well, that's a kind thought of yours," said Big-Hands, who was always pleased when anyone was good to his cat. " I'll forgive you and be friends again, then, Nobbly. But you won't mind if I have a good laugh now and again, will you, when I think about to-night? For really it was very, very funny! "So now the two are great friends once more, and Big-Hands' cat can't understand her good luck when she is given a fish each day by Nobbly the goblin!And, sometimes, when Nobbly is a bit silly and does foolish things, Big-Hands looks at him with a twinkle in his eye, and begins to laugh. " Do you remember when you caught your own feet instead of a robber?" he chuckles. Then Nobbly goes red, and stops being silly. He does so hate to be reminded of the night when he thought his feet were hands! Let's Make Some Lanterns for Xmas!

How can we make one? I'll tell you! Get a piece of coloured paper, and make it 9 inches wide and 12 inches long by measuring it and then cutting it the right size.Now fold it as I have shown you in Pic­ture A. Done that? Now cut up from the folded edge in strips about J inch wide. Look at Picture B to see what I mean.Now you have cut the paper. Straighten it out: Bend it round and paste the edges together, and lo and behold you have a pretty little coloured lantern, like the one shown in Picture C. You can make the handle by pasting a strip of paper to the top.Now make one of another shape. Look at Picture D and fold the paper like that. Cut the strips as before. Do you see the little extra fold, which gives the second lantern (Picture E) its pretty middle bit?You can easily make these little lanterns for Christmas decorations. Hang them on a string, and see how pretty they all look to­gether !

Joey,s lost keys

The children were playing out in the fields. They had a ball, a doll's pram, and Joey, a little clockwork clown who danced round and round and clashed a little pair of cymbals when he was wound up.The clockwork clown belonged to Robin. He was very proud of his dancing clown, and wound him up a hundred times a day to show the others how he danced.Every one was excited that morning. It was Saturday, and a circus had come to the field beyond Farmer Lane's farm. The children were going to it that afternoon, and how they longed for the time to come!" There is a wonderful chimpanzee! " said Katie." And a great big elephant," said Lucy." And a man that can walk the tight-rope! " said Bobby." And four dancing bears! " said Harry." But I'm sure they won't dance as well as my clockwork clown! " said Robin, winding him up again, and making him dance in the grass."You and your clockwork clown! " said Katie. "I wonder you don't wear that key out, winding him up so much! "Robin put the key into his pocket. He was sure