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Authors: Noel Streatfeild
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going to be spoiled in America. Jane as usual spoke what she thought.
“You aren’t cute, and goodness knows, nobody could call you darling.”
There would have been a quarrel, but fighting their way through the half-running citizens of New York took up all their attention and breath.
The Empire State Building was a wonderful thrill to the children but not to Peaseblossom. Her insides could not comfortably have stood a ride up 2 stories; 102 were nearly fatal. She arrived at the top looking green as grass and holding a handkerchief ready. Actually they got the best view when they came down one story because there they could go outside and lean over a wall. The mist of the morning had gone, and it was a marvelous sight. On the top of the highest building in the world the skyscrapers of New York ceased to tower; instead they seemed to be straining to be as tall as the Empire State Building. On one side of the city wound the Hudson River, the ships on it looking from that height like toy ships made to float in a bath. The children saw how neatly arranged the New York streets were, almost as neat as a chessboard: long roads stretching across the city and across them other roads east and west. The children would have stayed up there twice as long as they did; only Peaseblossom said it made her feel queer even to watch them hanging over the wall, so out of pity they had to take her down.
When they came out of the Empire State Building, they remembered the other thing Aunt Cora’s friend had said they would like: ice-cream sodas. Peaseblossom looked around at the hurrying, swirling crowd.
“I must find a policeman. He will be sure to know somewhere nice.”
It took time but Peaseblossom found a policeman. At once she felt more at home than she had done since she arrived, for policemen knew everything, never minded how many questions you asked, and were never in a hurry.
She went up to this one with a confident smile.
“Constable, could you tell me of a nice place to take these children to drink ice cream sodas?
Peaseblossom waited for the- brotherly smile, for the pause while the virtues of various places where considered, for the final advice, “If I were you, I’d take them ...” Nothing like that happened. The policeman never smiled, scarcely looked at Peaseblossom. He paused all right but it was the pause of somebody marveling why a stupid, woman should bother him. Then he moved away; as he moved, he said, “Drugstore opposite.’’
Peaseblossom’s faith in the United States of America quivered. What kind of land was it where policemen were not everybody’s friend and advisor?
“What a strange man! A drugstore! Why should he think I want a chemist?”
Tim was thirsty and unwilling to wait longer for his drink. He knew now that in New York it was no good saying anything slowly because nobody heard you. He laid a hand on the arm of a passing lady.
“Where do we buy ice-cream sodas, please?”
She was the nicest lady. Not only did people in America, once they had stopped hurrying, seem to have not only lots of time to help strangers. The lady called Tim honey and said “surely” twice and then showed them the same drugstore the policeman had shown them. She laughed when she saw Peaseblossom’s surprised face and said it was clear they hadn’t been long over, and he remembered being just as mixed up when she first visited Europe. She explained that a drugstore in America was not the same thing as a chemist in England; it sold drugs, all right, but everything else as well, including ice-cream sodas.
The drugstore was beautiful. All down one side was a counter with men behind it in white coats. A most friendly man mixed their drinks. He tried to persuade Peaseblossom to have a soda, too, but when she explained about the sea and the Empire State Building, he quite understood and said he had just the drink for her and mixed her something which looked like fruit salts.
Whatever it was, it did her good.
“You aren’t cute, and goodness knows, nobody could call you darling.”
There would have been a quarrel, but fighting their way through the half-running citizens of New York took up all their attention and breath.
The Empire State Building was a wonderful thrill to the children but not to Peaseblossom. Her insides could not comfortably have stood a ride up 2 stories; 102 were nearly fatal. She arrived at the top looking green as grass and holding a handkerchief ready. Actually they got the best view when they came down one story because there they could go outside and lean over a wall. The mist of the morning had gone, and it was a marvelous sight. On the top of the highest building in the world the skyscrapers of New York ceased to tower; instead they seemed to be straining to be as tall as the Empire State Building. On one side of the city wound the Hudson River, the ships on it looking from that height like toy ships made to float in a bath. The children saw how neatly arranged the New York streets were, almost as neat as a chessboard: long roads stretching across the city and across them other roads east and west. The children would have stayed up there twice as long as they did; only Peaseblossom said it made her feel queer even to watch them hanging over the wall, so out of pity they had to take her down.
When they came out of the Empire State Building, they remembered the other thing Aunt Cora’s friend had said they would like: ice-cream sodas. Peaseblossom looked around at the hurrying, swirling crowd.
“I must find a policeman. He will be sure to know somewhere nice.”
It took time but Peaseblossom found a policeman. At once she felt more at home than she had done since she arrived, for policemen knew everything, never minded how many questions you asked, and were never in a hurry.
She went up to this one with a confident smile.
“Constable, could you tell me of a nice place to take these children to drink ice cream sodas?
Peaseblossom waited for the- brotherly smile, for the pause while the virtues of various places where considered, for the final advice, “If I were you, I’d take them ...” Nothing like that happened. The policeman never smiled, scarcely looked at Peaseblossom. He paused all right but it was the pause of somebody marveling why a stupid, woman should bother him. Then he moved away; as he moved, he said, “Drugstore opposite.’’
Peaseblossom’s faith in the United States of America quivered. What kind of land was it where policemen were not everybody’s friend and advisor?
“What a strange man! A drugstore! Why should he think I want a chemist?”
Tim was thirsty and unwilling to wait longer for his drink. He knew now that in New York it was no good saying anything slowly because nobody heard you. He laid a hand on the arm of a passing lady.
“Where do we buy ice-cream sodas, please?”
She was the nicest lady. Not only did people in America, once they had stopped hurrying, seem to have not only lots of time to help strangers. The lady called Tim honey and said “surely” twice and then showed them the same drugstore the policeman had shown them. She laughed when she saw Peaseblossom’s surprised face and said it was clear they hadn’t been long over, and he remembered being just as mixed up when she first visited Europe. She explained that a drugstore in America was not the same thing as a chemist in England; it sold drugs, all right, but everything else as well, including ice-cream sodas.
The drugstore was beautiful. All down one side was a counter with men behind it in white coats. A most friendly man mixed their drinks. He tried to persuade Peaseblossom to have a soda, too, but when she explained about the sea and the Empire State Building, he quite understood and said he had just the drink for her and mixed her something which looked like fruit salts.
Whatever it was, it did her good.
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