Parnassus on Wheels Read Online Free

Tell him I've gone over to see Mrs. Collins."
    I climbed the little steps and entered my Parnassus with a pleasant
thrill of ownership. The terrier on the bunk jumped to the floor
with a friendly wag of the tail. I piled the bunk with bedding and
blankets of my own, shook out the drawers which fitted above the
bunk, and put into them what few belongings I was taking with me.
And we were ready to start.
    Redbeard was already sitting in front with the reins in hand. I
climbed up beside him. The front seat was broad but uncushioned,
well sheltered by the peak of the van. I gave a quick glance around
at the comfortable house under its elms and maples—saw the big, red
barn shining in the sun and the pump under the grape arbour. I waved
good-bye to Mrs. McNally who was watching us in silent amazement.
Pegasus threw her solid weight against the traces and Parnassus
swung round and rolled past the gate. We turned into the Redfield
road.
    "Here," said Mifflin, handing me the reins, "you're skipper, you'd
better drive. Which way do you want to go?"
    My breath came a little fast when I realized that my adventure had
begun!

Chapter Four
*
    Just out of sight of the farm the road forks, one way running on
to Walton where you cross the river by a covered bridge, the other
swinging down toward Greenbriar and Port Vigor. Mrs. Collins lives a
mile or so up the Walton road, and as I very often run over to see
her I thought Andrew would be most likely to look for me there. So,
after we had passed through the grove, I took the right-hand turn to
Greenbriar. We began the long ascent over Huckleberry Hill and as I
smelt the fresh autumn odour of the leaves I chuckled a little.
    Mr. Mifflin seemed in a perfect ecstasy of high spirits. "This is
certainly grand," he said. "Lord, I applaud your spunk. Do you think
Mr. McGill will give chase?"
    "I haven't an idea," I said. "Not right away, anyhow. He's so used
to my settled ways that I don't think he'll suspect anything till he
finds my note. I wonder what kind of story Mrs. McNally will tell!"
    "How about putting him off the scent?" he said. "Give me your
handkerchief."
    I did so. He hopped nimbly out, ran back down the hill (he was a
spry little person in spite of his bald crown), and dropped the
handkerchief on the Walton Road about a hundred feet beyond the
fork. Then he followed me up the slope.
    "There," he said, grinning like a kid, "that'll fool him. The Sage
of Redfield will undoubtedly follow a false spoor and the criminals
will win a good start. But I'm afraid it's rather easy to follow a
craft as unusual as Parnassus."
    "Tell me how you manage the thing," I said. "Do you really make it
pay?" We halted at the top of the hill to give Pegasus a breathing
space. The terrier lay down in the dust and watched us gravely. Mr.
Mifflin pulled out a pipe and begged my permission to smoke.
    "It's rather comical how I first got into it," he said. "I was a
school teacher down in Maryland. I'd been plugging away in a country
school for years, on a starvation salary. I was trying to support an
invalid mother, and put by something in case of storms. I remember
how I used to wonder whether I'd ever be able to wear a suit that
wasn't shabby and have my shoes polished every day. Then my health
went back on me. The doctor told me to get into the open air. By and
by I got this idea of a travelling bookstore. I had always been a
lover of books, and in the days when I boarded out among the farmers
I used to read aloud to them. After my mother died I built the wagon
to suit my own ideas, bought a stock of books from a big second-hand
store in Baltimore, and set out. Parnassus just about saved my life
I guess."
    He pushed his faded old cap back on his head and relit his pipe.
I clicked to Pegasus and we rumbled gently off over the upland,
looking down across the pastures. Distant cow bells sounded
tankle-tonk among the bushes. Across the slope of the hill I could
see the road winding away to Redfield. Somewhere