Chapter IV: Spades and Sand

NEXT morning Willie gave Lucy the shells he had found, and she was very much pleased with them indeed. She jumped out of her bed, and gave him a kiss, and thanked him over and over again, saying—

"How kind of you, Willie! But don't you want them?"

"No, I would rather you should have them, Lucy. And we will try to find some more to-day."

Breakfast time soon came, and when the meal was over, nurse told Willie to get his cap, and then to keep quiet while she dressed Lucy, for they were going out on the shore. Willie found it very hard to stand still, while he was so happy; but he knew that if he jumped about, Lucy would want to do the same, so he only walked to the window and stood there, swinging his cap, and begging nurse to "make great haste."

At last they left the house, and Lucy held nurse's hand tight, and looked shy and timid as she always did in new places; but Willie wanted to scamper about, and did not like being called back by nurse.

"I am sure I shan't lose myself, nurse," he said, "and I won't get into mischief. Let me run along the parade, or down on the sands. Are we not going on the shore?"

"In a few minutes," nurse replied. "And don't run so far away again, Master Willie, or I shall be losing sight of you."

"But if you did, I could find my way home," said Willie, feeling a little bit inclined to be cross at not being allowed to run as far as he liked.

"But what do you think your mamma would say if I went home without you?" asked nurse. "No, no, Master Willie, you must be a good boy, and do as you are told, or I shall have to hold your hand and make you walk by my side. Here we are at the shop. Do you think you can help me choose two nice spades?"

Willie looked up with a smile, and clapped his hands.

"O nurse! How kind! Are we going to have them now? Did papa say so?"

"Yes, and here is the money," said nurse.

Then she told the shopwoman to show them some wooden spades, and very soon two were chosen and paid for,—a small one for Lucy, and a rather larger one for Willie.

How grand Willie felt as they walked towards the beach, and he swung his spade about! Nurse told him to carry it gently, but he forgot once or twice, and at length nearly knocked a little boy with it. Then nurse almost took it away from him, but Willie begged her to try him once more, and said he would be very careful, so she gave him one more trial. This time he did not forget, and as he did not swing it again, nurse let him carry it all the way.

When they reached the beach, she sat down on the sands, and took out her work. Willie and Lucy began digging holes near her, and trying which could dig the deepest. Of course Willie was the strongest, and made the largest hole, so he came and helped Lucy to make hers bigger.

"May we go down close to the water, nurse?" asked Willie after a time.

"If you will not get into any mischief," said nurse. "And Miss Lucy too? Well, you must take great care of her, and both of you must come back to me in a moment if I call you. I can't sit down there, for the sand is too flat and not dry enough, and I must get on with my work, for your mamma wants it done. But you may go if you like, only be very steady and careful."

Willie took Lucy's hand, and they ran down the beach, till they were close to the rippling waves, which rolled up and broke upon the wet sparkling sand. Willie began digging again, and was pleased to see his hole fill with water. Lucy tried to help him, but she could not manage her spade very well, and sometimes she knocked the sand into the hole, instead of taking it out. Willie bore it once or twice without a word, and then he asked her to take more care. Lucy tried, but again her spade slipped, and down went a lump of wet sand into Willie's nice large hole. Willie began to grow angry.

"Lucy, you tiresome girl!" he cried. "I won't dig with you at all, if you spoil my holes like that. Look what you have done!" And he stamped his foot on the ground. "How can you be so stupid?"

Poor little Lucy's eyes filled with tears, and her cheeks flushed, as she dropped the spade and stepped back. Willie did not mean to frighten her; but he still felt too vexed to say he was sorry for his unkind words, so he only turned his back to her, and began throwing stones into the sea.

"Willie, I didn't mean to do it," said Lucy at last, in her soft timid voice.

"You should take care," said Willie, turning round to her again. "You spoil my holes when you knock the sand about like that."

"I won't do it again," said Lucy in a trembling voice, and with a little sob. "Please don't be angry, Willie."

How could Willie be angry any longer before that gentle little face. He walked up to her, and gave her a kiss.

"There! You're a dear little thing, and I'm a cross boy, Lucy. I won't scold you any more now. You shall dig as much as you like, only don't throw sand into this one great hole, because I want it to be very big."

"I can't dig," said Lucy sadly. "I don't know how, Willie. I'll look at you."

"Well, I'll tell you what, Lucy; we won't dig any more holes, but we'll make a great high hill of sand, and then I'll stand on it while the water comes up all round me. Won't that be nice?"

Lucy looked bright again, and in a minute they were hard at work, piling up the sand and throwing on fresh spades-full, till it really was a very large heap to have been made by such little people. Nurse came down to see what they were about, and she was glad to find them so happy. But Lucy was growing tired and hot, so she took her back with her to sit quiet. Willie told nurse what he was making his hill for, but she shook her head.

"No, that won't do, Master Willie. I shall have you tumbling into the water."

"But indeed, nurse, I can 'quite' well jump to shore again, when the water is all round it," said Willie.

"No, I can't have you do it, Master Willie. The water is coming in so fast that it would be round you before you knew what you were about; and suppose you should jump into the water instead of on dry land!"

Nurse went away as she spoke, taking Lucy with her. Willie stood in no happy mood, gazing at the hill which had cost him so much trouble, and feeling not a little cross.

"It's too bad," he said to himself. "Nurse treats me as if I were a little baby, and she forgets how old I am. It would be so nice to stand on the top, and see the water come all round me. I wish mamma were out here. I am sure she would let me do it."

What a silly little boy Willie was, to make himself so cross about what he could not do, instead of being happy about what he could do. He stood and looked at the hill, watching the water creeping higher, and the little waves breaking against it; and every moment the longing grew stronger to stand if but for one moment on the top.

"It couldn't do any harm," he said again. Oh, Willie! "No harm" when nurse told you not to do it!

"I could easily jump there and back," he thought, "and I wouldn't stay there. It looks just like a little island when the water runs up all round it like that. Nurse thinks I can't do anything. I have a great mind just to try. Nurse isn't looking, nor Lucy either."

All this passed through Willie's mind a great deal faster than it can be written down. What a pity it was that Willie should allow himself to look on so long, and to wish so much for what he knew he ought not to do. He did not think of asking help from God, who is always willing to give it; and little Willie had no strength in himself to conquer the naughty wishes that were tempting him to do wrong.

He looked again to see if nurse saw him, but she was busy with her work, and Lucy's back was turned. Willie still paused a moment, and then the desire became too strong to be overcome.

He gave a leap and reached the top of the little mound, meaning to jump back in a moment. But it had been thrown up very loosely, and the waves had even now soaked in beneath, and washed away part of the sides, and the soft wet sand gave way in an instant under Willie's feet.

Down he went, and splash!—He fell on his face into the middle of the next wave that came dancing up.