Hi,
This is Stefania,
And Buster Bumblebee is back with Season 2.
When we last left Buster,
He was a bit lazy and he found it a bit difficult to avoid his family of 200 or more bees.
It was very crowded.
So Buster decided,
Let's go somewhere else where there's no work going on and no worker bees and I can be perfectly happy and lazy.
Our story begins.
And so,
One fine August day,
Buster left the family home never to set foot inside it again.
But he often passed that way and lingered just outside the door to listen to the music and the sound of dancing within.
That was the thing he missed most,
For like all his family,
He was fond of music.
And he was forever humming to himself as he sipped nectar from the clover tops or the flowers in Farmer Green's garden.
The Carpenter Bee,
Chapter 12 After Buster Bumblebee left the old house in the meadow where Mrs.
Fieldmouse had once lived,
He had no real home.
Like that quarrelsome rascal Peter Mink,
He would crawl into any good place that he happened to find.
Sometimes Buster chose a hole in a fence rail and sometimes a crack in the side of one of the farm buildings.
He didn't really much care where he spent the night,
Provided it was not too far from the flower garden or the clover field.
Not being one of the worrying kind,
Buster was quite contented with his lot,
And it would never have occurred to him to live in any different style had it not been for a remark that little Mrs.
Ladybug made to him one day.
I should think,
She said,
I should think,
That the son of a queen ought to have a house of his own instead of sleeping like a tramp wherever night overtakes him.
Now Mrs.
Ladybug's words did not offend Buster Bumblebee in the least.
No doubt you know best,
He told her,
But how can I build a house?
I've never worked in all my life and I don't intend to begin now.
Why not get someone to build a house for you,
She asked him.
I never thought of that,
He cried.
Whom do you suggest?
I know the very person,
Mrs.
Ladybug told him.
He's a carpenter bee and he lives in the big poplar tree by the brook.
Perhaps you know him?
Johnny Green,
The boy,
The farmer's son,
Calls him Whiteface,
She said.
They do say he's a very skilled workman.
Buster Bumblebee replied that he had never met the carpenter,
But that he would go and see him at once.
So over to the big poplar he flew,
And soon he was knocking boldly at the door of the carpenter's house.
Pretty soon a mild-appearing person who looked not a little like Buster himself stepped through the doorway.
He wore a white patch across his front and his clothes needed brushing sadly,
For they showed many marks of sawdust.
Are you the carpenter?
Buster Bumblebee inquired.
The mild stranger said he was.
How would you like to build a house for me?
Buster asked him.
The carpenter seemed greatly surprised at the suggestion.
I don't think I'd like it very well,
He said timidly.
Why not?
Buster demanded.
Well,
I'm busy building an addition to my house,
The carpenter explained,
And besides,
You're a total stranger.
I've never seen you before,
And we might quarrel if I did any work for you.
Oh,
No,
Buster Bumblebee assured him,
You couldn't quarrel with me,
Because I'm the most peace-loving person in Pleasant Valley.
There,
The carpenter cried.
I knew,
As soon as I set eyes on you,
That we were bound not to agree.
I've always claimed that there is no peace-fuller person than I am in this whole neighborhood.
So here we are quarreling already.
Maybe you're right,
Buster said then.
I'll agree that you'd like peace more than I do.
But remember,
Next to you,
There's no one that hates a fight the way I do,
And hates work too.
Chapter 13 The Carpenter's Promise When Buster Bumblebee told Whiteface,
The carpenter bee,
That he hated to work,
That honest artisan stared at his caller in astonishment.
You're a queer one,
He said at last,
But there's something about you that I can't help liking,
Though it would be hard for me to say just what it is.
So please,
Don't ask me.
Then you'll make me a house after all?
Buster cried joyfully.
I will,
The carpenter promised,
Just as soon as I finish the addition I'm building to my own home.
Good,
Said Buster,
And wishing the carpenter bee a hasty good afternoon,
He flew off to find little Mrs.
Ladybug and tell her that he was going to have a house of his own,
Just as she had suggested.
After that,
The news spread quickly,
For Mrs.
Ladybug was somewhat of a gossip,
In a pleasant enough way.
Being much interested in her neighbors,
She liked to talk about their affairs,
And now she told everyone that Buster Bumblebee was going to have a fine new house,
And that the carpenter bee was going to build it for him.
Naturally,
Buster's friends all told him that they were glad to hear of his good fortune,
And whenever anyone mentioned the matter,
Buster promptly invited him to come to a party that he intended to give as soon as his new home was ready to move into.
Mrs.
Ladybug tells me that I ought to have a house warming,
Buster explained,
And though some of his neighbors didn't know what he meant by that,
They said,
Of course,
And tried to look wise.
There was only one thing about the whole affair that annoyed Buster.
When people asked him when his new house would be finished,
He was unable to tell them.
Well,
When is the carpenter going to start building,
They would ask,
And he could only reply that as soon as the carpenter completed the addition to his own home,
He had promised to begin to build Buster's.
Now,
Many people were satisfied with that answer.
But there were some,
They were the curious ones,
That insisted on knowing exactly when that would be.
And then there was nothing that Buster Bumblebee could do except to admit that he didn't know.
Why don't you find out about it?
Asked the most curious person in all of Pleasant Valley,
And that,
Of course,
Was old Mr.
Crowe.
If I were you,
I'd go to the carpenter and insist on his telling me.
So Buster Bumblebee began calling at the carpenter's house every day.
Some days he even went there two or three times.
It must have been annoying for anybody as busy as the carpenter to be interrupted so often,
And always for the same reason.
But he never once thought of being angry,
Though he did wish that Buster would let him work in peace.
His answer to Buster's question was always the same.
I'm afraid my house won't be finished tomorrow.
Chapter 14 Bad News It is not surprising that the carpenter's answer failed to satisfy Buster Bumblebee.
I really must know when my house will be ready,
He cried at last.
I've invited all my friends to a housewarming,
And how can I have one unless I have a house to warm?
The carpenter slowly shook his head.
Don't ask me,
He said,
Weryly.
I've enough trouble right here at home without answering any riddles for strangers.
I suppose you'll get your house finished sometime,
Buster ventured.
I hope to,
Said the carpenter,
Though it certainly won't be tomorrow,
On account of all the interruptions I'm having to-day.
Now,
That honest workman meant his remark to be a hint.
But the idea never occurred to Buster that the carpenter had him in mind when he mentioned interruptions.
And Buster went right on talking.
I suggest that you work nights as well as in the daytime,
He said.
I'll think about it,
The carpenter promised.
And now,
He added,
Now I must go back to my carpentering,
If you'll excuse me.
And before Buster could say another word,
The carpenter slipped through his doorway and vanished.
I hope he'll do as I suggested,
Buster Bumblebee said to himself as he moved aimlessly away from the big poplar tree where the carpenter lived.
If I shouldn't get my house until cold weather comes,
I don't see how I could have a house warming and then all my friends would be disappointed.
The more he thought about the matter,
The more disturbed he became until at last,
On the following day,
He felt that he simply must go back and speak to the carpenter again.
Buster noticed as he drew near to the carpenter's house once more that there was a crowd in the carpenter's doorway.
And looked so sorrowful that Buster was sure something dreadful had happened.
What's the matter?
He asked little Miss Ladybug,
Who was wiping her eyes with a lace pocket handkerchief.
It's the carpenter,
She answered,
As soon as she could speak.
He's disappeared and now we've just heard what's become of him.
Johnny Green caught him yesterday and has made him a prisoner.
That was bad news indeed for Buster Bumblebee.
He was so sorry that he swallowed hard three or four times before he could say a word.
And then he began to groan.
This is terrible!
He moaned at last.
And all the carpenter's neighbors gathered around him and said what a kind-hearted young gentleman Bee he was.
But that it was no more than you might expect of the Queen's son.
The carpenter must have been a dear friend of yours,
Quavered old Daddy Longlegs,
Tottering up to Buster and peering in his face.
Oh no,
Said Buster Bumblebee,
But he promised to build a house for me as soon as he had finished working on his own.
So his being a prisoner is pretty hard on me,
For I've invited all my friends to a housewarming and I don't know what to do.
Chapter 15 The Prisoner Buster Bumblebee did not stay long in the door-yard of the missing carpenter.
Saying a mournful goodbye to the sad company,
He flew away towards Farmer Green's house.
It was there that the carpenter was a prisoner,
And Buster could only hope that he might find some way of setting the wood-worker free.
Luckily,
Buster Bumblebee did not have to look long for what he was seeking.
On the porch of the farmhouse he soon discovered a honey-box with glass sides.
And whom should he see inside it,
Sitting on a little heap of wild rose leaves and looking forlorn and unhappy?
Whom should Buster see?
But the carpenter.
Buster crowded close against the glass and began to call so loud that the carpenter couldn't help hearing him.
And then the poor fellow came and stood on the other side of the glass barrier as near Buster as he could get.
Why don't you come out?
Buster said.
How can I?
Said the carpenter.
Don't you see that I'm a prisoner?
Yes,
But why don't you cut your way out?
Buster Bumblebee asked him.
Well,
I've tried,
The carpenter confessed,
But this glass is so hard that I can't even dent it.
But you're a wood-worker,
Not a glass-worker,
Exclaimed Buster Bumblebee.
And if you're as skillful as people say you are,
You ought to be able to bore a hole through one of the wooden ends of your prison.
At that suggestion,
The carpenter looked decidedly happier.
That's so?
He exclaimed.
I wish I had thought of that before.
Of course,
It was Buster that thought of the plan then,
But he didn't say so to the carpenter.
Instead,
Buster shouted through the glass,
Get to work at once and I'll wait for you.
So the carpenter began to cut away at the end of the honey box.
And unluckily for him,
He had hardly begun his task when Johnny Green came dancing out onto the porch,
Followed by two strange boys.
Here he is,
Cried Johnny,
Kneeling beside the carpenter's prison.
See him?
Do you know what he is?
The two strange boys did not wear overalls like Johnny Green,
But they did not seem to mind that.
They knelt right down beside him in their spick and span,
Clean velvet suits and stared curiously at the carpenter.
He's a bumblebee,
One of them exclaimed,
And the other echoed immediately.
He's a bumblebee.
Being twins and looking just alike,
They always tried to do and say the same things.
Johnny Green did not tell them their mistake.
With an odd smile,
He slid aside one of the glass doors of the carpenter's prison and picked the frightened captive up with his fingers.
Oh,
Cried the two guests,
Won't he sting you?
Nah,
Said Johnny Green scornfully,
He won't sting me,
He knows me.
For a few minutes,
The two city boys,
For that is what they were,
For a few minutes,
They watched Johnny Green expectantly.
They seemed to be waiting for something,
And they were.
They were waiting for Johnny Green to be stung,
But nothing of the sort happened.
And soon,
One of them said,
I wish I had a pet bumblebee.
So do I,
Said the other twin.
Do you,
Asked Johnny Green,
Well,
I'll tell you what I'll do.
I'll give you each a honey box,
And maybe you can catch some bumblebees if you want to.
Of course,
The twins were delighted,
And Johnny Green was pleased too.
Perhaps he should have told his little friends that his pet was not a bumblebee at all,
But a carpenter bee,
And that carpenter bees never sting people,
Unlike bumblebees who do.
But Johnny Green did not always do exactly as he should have done.
And that's the end of this episode of Buster Bumblebee.
We'll be back soon with the next chapter.
Bye for now.
