Michael Bond - Paddington at Large

CONTENTS

I know I keep on saying it, exclaimed Mrs. Brown as she placed an extremely large vegetable marrow on the kitchen scales, but Im sure Paddington must have been born with green paws. Have you seen this one? Hes beaten his best by over half a pound.

Hmm, said Mrs. Bird. Well, Ill grant you one thing; green paws are better than idle ones, and at least gardening keeps him busy. We havent had an upset for weeks now.

The Browns housekeeper hastily touched wood as her eyes followed the progress of a small brown figure clad in a shapeless hat and an equally disreputable-looking duffle coat as it made its way down the garden path before disappearing into a potting shed behind the raspberry canes.

Mrs. Bird was never very happy about any of Paddingtons activities which took him out of her sight for too long a time, and Paddingtons interest in gardening had lasted much too long for her peace of mind.

All the same, even Mrs. Bird had to admit that for some time past things had been remarkably peaceful at Number thirty-two Windsor Gardens.

It had all started when Paddington arrived home from the market one day carrying a giant packet of assorted seeds which hed bought for the bargain price of five pence. At the time it had seemed such good value for money that Mr. Brown had been only too pleased to let him have a corner of the garden, and for several evenings afterwards Paddington had been kept very busy counting the seeds, making sure none of them were stuck to his paws as he sorted them into separate piles in order of size before he planted them.

Only Mrs. Bird had been full of forebodings. Woe betide the man in the shop if they dont all come up, she remarked when she noticed the seed packet had been marked down from fifteen pence. I can see therell be some nasty scenes.

But despite Mrs. Birds misgivings, within a week or two the first of the seeds began to sprout, and in no time at all Paddingtons Patch was such a blaze of color it soon put the rest of the garden to shame.

From that moment on Paddington spent most of his spare time out of doors, and when he began supplying the household with vegetables as well as flowers, everyone had to agree with Mrs. Brown that he must have been born with green paws.

I must say, the garden is a picture at the moment, she continued as she turned to help Mrs. Bird with the washing-up. Even Mr. Curry called out this morning and said how nice it looks.

If I know Mr. Curry, said Mrs. Bird darkly, he was probably after something. He doesnt say things like that without a very good reason.

Perhaps he wants some cheap vegetables, said Mrs. Brown. You know how mean he is.

Hell be lucky with that bear, replied Mrs. Bird. And quite right, too, seeing the state his own gardens in. Its a disgrace.

Mr. Currys lawn was very overgrown with weeds, and Mrs. Bird held strong views about the way the seeds blew over the fence whenever there was a strong wind.

Funnily enough, said Mrs. Brown, I think he was just getting his lawn mower out when he spoke to me. Perhaps hes going to make a start.

Not before time, snorted Mrs. Bird. And I shall believe it when I see it. Hes much more likely to give the job to some poor bob-a-job-week scout than do it himself.

Mrs. Bird gave the washing-up several nasty jabs with her mop; but if she had been able to see Mr. Curry as she spoke, she would probably have snorted even louder, for at that moment the Browns neighbor was peering over the fence at Paddington with a very cunning expression on his face.

Unaware of the danger he was in, Paddington was sitting on a patch of ground behind the raspberry canes busy with his accounts. Mrs. Bird paid him strict market rates for all his vegetables; and although she kept a careful note of all his sales, Paddington wasnt the sort of bear to take chances, and he liked to make doubly sure by keeping his own record. He had just finished entering the words MARROWSVERRY LARGEONE in his notebook when Mr. Currys voice shattered the morning air.

Bear! he roared. What are you doing, bear? Resting on your laurels?

Paddington jumped up in alarm at the sound of Mr. Currys voice. Oh, no, Mr. Curry, he exclaimed when he had recovered from the shock. I was only sitting on my begonias.

Mr. Curry looked at him suspiciously, but Paddington returned his gaze very earnestly.

The cunning expression returned to Mr. Currys face as he looked round Paddingtons garden. Im glad to see youre all up to date, bear, he said. I was wondering if you would like to earn yourself five pence if youve a few moments to spare.

Er... yes, please, Mr. Curry, said Paddington doubtfully. From past experience he felt sure that any job for which Mr. Curry was willing to pay five pence would take far longer than a few minutes, but he was much too polite to say so.

Are you any good at climbing trees? asked Mr. Curry.

Oh, yes, said Paddington importantly. Bears are good at climbing things.

Thats good, said Mr. Curry, waving a hand in the direction of a large tree near his house. In that case perhaps youd like to pick a few apples for me.

Thank you very much, Mr. Curry, said Paddington, looking most surprised at the thought of being paid five pence just for picking a few apples.

Oh, and while youre up there, said Mr. Curry casually, theres a dangerous branch that needs cutting down. Im afraid I have to go out, but its very kind of you to offer, bear. Very kind indeed.

Before Paddington had time to open his mouth, Mr. Curry produced a saw and a length of rope from behind his back and pointed to the branch in question.

Now dont forget, he said as he handed the bits and pieces over the fence, you tie one end of this rope to the branch then you loop the other end over the top of the tree and tie it back down to something heavy on the ground. Thats most important, otherwise the branch might fall down too quickly and cause a nasty accident. I dont want to come back and find any broken windows.

And if you finish before I get back, continued Mr. Curry, perhaps youd like to cut my grass. Ive put the mower all ready, and if you make a good job of it, there might even be another five pence.

With that Mr. Curry turned on his heels and disappeared in the direction of the house, leaving Paddington anxiously holding the rope between his paws. He felt sure he hadnt said anything to Mr. Curry about cutting down his branches, let alone uttered a word about mowing the grass. But the Browns neighbor had a way of twisting things so that other people were never quite sure what they had said.

If it had simply been a matter of cutting the grass, Paddington might have pretended that hed got something stuck in his ear by mistake and hadnt heard properly; but as he studied Mr. Currys tree, he began to look more and more thoughtful.

A few moments later he jumped up and began hurrying around as he made his preparations. Paddington liked climbing trees, and he was also very keen on sawing. To be able to do both at the same time seemed a very good idea indeed, especially when it was in someone elses garden.

All the same, as he looked around for something heavy to tie the rope to, he soon decided that it was easier said than done. The nearest object was Mr. Currys fence, and that was so rickety, a piece of it came away in his paw when he tested it with one of his special knots.