Stuffed Bear Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner Page B

for soft old bears like Mister B.”
    Standing on the hill, Peggy and the Aldens watched Miss Sayer struggle to get Chatter Bear out of her van.
    “They’re quite a pair,” Peggy said. “I’m not sure Chatter Bear is quite ready for the jamboree. He has a few problems, what with his voice box and battery-powered eyes. Doc tried to tell Miss Sayer she might do better by designing a simple bear, but she won’t listen.”
    Violet hugged Mister B. “I’m glad our bear doesn’t have eyes that need batteries. He’s only got one eye, anyway.”
    Peggy gave the Aldens’ bear a gentle pat. “Never you mind, Mister B. I’m sure Doc will get you a new glass eye. We’ll soon have plenty of natural sheep wool to fatten you up. Now let’s go to Shepherd’s Cottage. That’s where you children will be staying. Don’t mind the animal parade,” she said when her pets followed everyone.
    After the children got their suitcases, Peggy brought them by the barn. “This is where we shear our sheep and prepare the wool we use for my bears.”
    Peggy noticed Miss Sayer’s yellow van parked next to the barn. “Oh, dear. I asked Miss Sayer not to go in there without one of us. She crashes around so, scaring the sheep. Besides, I really can’t have her alone with all my wool-making equipment.”
    Benny tugged on Peggy’s sleeve. “Can we go in there? I promise not to scare the lambs, especially this guy.”
    Peggy saw how gently Benny held the lamb in his arms. “Of course. Not right now, though.” She stuck her head in the door. “Yoo-hoo, Miss Sayer. I’m locking up now.”
    Peggy clicked the padlock. “She must be somewhere else. I wish she would park in the area for the guests.”
    Soon they came to a small red and white cottage.
    “Oh,” Violet said when Peggy let the children inside Shepherd’s Cottage. “It’s like my room at home, with flowered wallpaper.”
    “Aw!” Benny said. “It doesn’t look like where a shepherd would live. Couldn’t we sleep in the hayloft like real shepherds?”
    Peggy chuckled. “Taf and Midnight are our shepherds. If there’s time, you’re welcome to play in the hayloft. Just be careful climbing up. We keep the ladder outside so we can load the hay directly from the wagon. But it wouldn’t be safe to sleep up there—you might roll off!”
    “Here are some real beds.” Violet put Mister B. down on one of them. His head flopped onto his chest.
    “After you drop off Mister B. at the toy hospital tomorrow, I hope you can help us with the sheep shearing,” Peggy said. “How does that sound?”
    “Like fun!” Henry said. “Work is the best fun of all.”
    Peggy stepped onto the porch. “See you in the morning,” she said.
    Benny looked down at the lamb. “Hey, what do I do with this little guy? I don’t want to wake him up.”
    Peggy pointed to a small wooden crate just inside the doorway. It was filled with clouds of fleece. “Just lay him down there. He can spend the night in here. If he wakes up crying, give him this.” Peggy pulled a baby bottle from her jacket pocket. “Just make sure to keep him inside. It’s still cold at night, and he needs to stay warm. And one other thing.”
    “What?” Benny asked.
    “He needs a name,” Peggy answered. “Your grandfather said you were good at naming things.”
    Benny stroked the lamb’s black forehead for a minute. “Smudge. I’d like to call him Smudge.”

CHAPTER 2
Baa, Baa, Bad Day
    “Smudge was better than an alarm clock,” Benny said the next morning when the children walked into Old Mills. “He woke me up a bunch of times, so I gave him his bottle and he drank the whole thing. He’s just like a baby.”
    Jessie chuckled. “When you were a baby Henry and I used to give you a bottle when you woke us up. You always drank the whole thing, too.”
    As the Aldens walked along, Miss Sayer’s van went by. The children waved, but the van didn’t slow down. The children could see Chatter Bear’s large red