"And Toby picked it up and he's bringing it to you!" said Bunny. "Oh, Sue! he's just like Splash, isn't he? He brings things back to you!"

The little pony walked as far toward the children as the strap would let him, and there he stood, holding Sue's handkerchief in his teeth.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TOBY WAS HOLDING SUE'S HANDKERCHIEF.

_Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue and Their Shetland Pony. Page 78._]

"It's just like he was handing it to me!" cried Sue.

"I wonder if he did it on purpose," said Bunny.

"We can find out," Sue said. "I could drop it again, and we could see if he picked it up. Shall we do it, Bunny?"

"Oh, yes, let's!" said the little boy.

"What is it you're going to do?" Bunker Blue asked, as he came along just then. "I thought you were going for a ride with me."

"So we are," answered Bunny. "But look! Toby picked up Sue's handkerchief that she dropped, and he started to bring it over to her, but he couldn't go any farther on account of the strap. Do you s'pose he did it on purpose, Bunker?"

The fish boy scratched his head.

"I shouldn't wonder but what he did," he answered. "Didn't Mr. Tallman say Toby was once in a circus?"

"Yes," answered Bunny and Sue together.

"That settles it then!" cried Bunker. "Toby is a trick pony, and picking up handkerchiefs is one of his tricks."

"Honest?" asked Bunny.

"I think so," replied Bunker. "But it's easy to tell for sure."

"How?" asked Sue.

"We'll just loosen the strap, and you can drop your handkerchief again, Sue, and see if he picks it up. Here, Toby," went on Bunker, "I'll just take that handkerchief now, thank you, and we'll see if you can do the trick again--if it _is_ a trick. I'll loosen your strap."

And as he was doing this Bunny Brown and his Sister Sue were wondering what Toby would do. Would he pick up the handkerchief again?

CHAPTER IX

TOBY'S NEW TRICK

"We didn't know we had a trick pony, did we, Bunny?" asked Sue, as Bunker Blue got ready to see what Toby would do next.

"Maybe we haven't," replied Bunny. "He doesn't _look_ like a trick pony."

"But he's terrible nice!" Sue said. "And the way he picked up my handkerchief was nice, too. Maybe he'll do it again."

"Maybe," said Bunny.

By this time Bunker had loosed the strap by which the pony was fastened to the post on the dock. Toby shook his head up and down, as well as sideways, as though showing how glad he was to be free again.

"Now, little pony!" called the fish boy, "let's see if you can really do this trick."

Bunker, who still held Sue's handkerchief, walked back a little way, and dropped the bit of white cloth on the dock. Toby looked at it a moment, as if to make sure what it was, and then he walked over to it, picked it up as he had done before, and then, to the surprise and delight of the children, walked with the handkerchief straight to Bunker Blue.

"Oh, he did it! He did it!" cried Sue, clapping her hands. "He _is_ a trick pony, Bunny!"

"Yes, but didn't he ought to bring the handkerchief to _you_, Sue?"

asked her brother.

"He saw me drop it," explained Bunker, "so he thought it must be mine.

Maybe if you were to drop it, Sue, he would bring it back to you."

"Oh, let me!" she cried.

Bunker gave the little girl her handkerchief, and after Sue had put her arms around Toby, and patted him on the head, at the same time calling him pet names, she backed away and dropped her handkerchief where the Shetland pony could see it on the dock.

For a moment or two Toby did nothing. He stood looking at the white rag and then he shook his head. But he shook it up and down, and not sideways, and, seeing this, Sue cried:

"Oh, he's saying that he'll do it! He says he'll bring me the handkerchief!"

And, whether or not Toby really meant this, or whether it was the way he always did the trick, I don't know, but, anyhow, he stepped out, walked over to the handkerchief, pulling the basket cart after him, and then he picked up the white cloth and walked straight to Sue with it, holding it out to her in his mouth.

"Oh, he did it!" cried the little girl, clapping her hands. "He brought the handkerchief to me, Bunny! Now, isn't he a trick pony?"

"Yes," said Bunny, slowly, "I guess he is. I wonder if he'd bring me my handkerchief?"

"Try him and see," suggested Bunker Blue. "But I thought you wanted to go for a ride."

"So we do," returned Bunny, "but we can ride after we see if Toby does the handkerchief trick for me."

"Yes, I guess we'll have time for that," said Bunker Blue.

So Bunny dropped his handkerchief on the dock, and, surely enough, Toby picked it up and carried it to the little boy.

"Now," said Sue, "we know for sure he's a trick pony. Maybe he did that in a circus, Bunker."

"Maybe he did," agreed the fish boy.

"I wonder if he can do any more tricks," went on Bunny.

"We'll try him after a while," went on Bunker. "If I'm going to take you for a ride, and show you how to drive your little horse, we'd better start, as I don't know when your father may want me back here on the dock. Come on, we'll go out on the road, and, later on, we can try Toby with some more tricks."

So Bunny and Sue climbed into the basket cart, taking seats on either side, and Bunker climbed up after them, to hold the reins. They drove down the wooden dock toward Mr. Brown's office, the feet of Toby, the Shetland pony, going: "Plunk! Plunk! Plunk!" on the boards.