“Will that be all to-day, Mrs. Snifkins?” asked Grocer Huntley, when Sue had put the things in her basket.

“Yes, that’s all,” Sue answered, placing two large black buttons on the ironing board counter and getting back in change a small white button.

Sue went out with her “groceries,” and soon came back for more.  After her third trip, by which time she had bought nearly everything in the store, she said: 

“Now I want to be storekeeper.”

“All right,” agreed Bunny.

Sue brought back the things she had pretended to buy, they were put on the shelves again, and Bunny became a purchaser while Sue waited on him.

Outside it still rained hard, as Bunny saw when he looked from the window.  But it was fun in the house, keeping store.  The children kept on taking turns, first one being the keeper of the store and then the other, until Bunny suddenly had a new idea.

“Oh, I know what we can do!” cried the little boy.

“What?” asked Sue.

“We’ll play hardware store,” Bunny said.  “I’m tired of having a grocery.  We’ll keep hammers and nails and things like that.”

“I think a grocery is more fun,” said Sue.

“Nope!  A hardware store is better,” Bunny insisted.  “I’ll sell you washboilers, basins, tin pans and things like that, and knives and forks.  We can have ever so many more of those things than we can have groceries.”

“Well, maybe we can,” Sue agreed, doubtfully.

“I’ll make a high-up shelf, like those in the hardware store down town,” went on Bunny.  “I’ll have things high up on the shelf, and I’ll climb up on a ladder to get ’em, as they do down town.”

“What you going to climb up on?” Sue asked.

“The stepladder.”

“What you going to make a high shelf of?” Sue inquired.

“There’s another ironing board down in the laundry,” Bunny answered.  “And I can get the washboiler and a lot of things.  I’ll put the other ironing board away up there, across the top of the two doors.”

“That’ll be awful high,” said Sue, looking to where Bunny pointed.  The pantry door and the one leading from the kitchen into the hall were close together on one side of the room.  By opening these doors half way a board could be placed across their tops, making a high shelf.  This was soon done, and on this shelf the big tin washboiler was placed, and also some tin pans from the pantry.  Bunny climbed up on the stepladder to put the shelf and things in place.

Other articles for a hardware play-store were placed on the lower ironing board shelf, and then Bunny was ready for “Mrs. Snifkins” to come again.  Sue had her button money all ready, the store was in order, and new fun was about to begin, when Mary, coming suddenly in from the hall and not knowing what the children were doing, pushed wider open the hall door.

Instantly there was a grand crash!  Down came the upper shelf from the tops of the doors.  Down came the washboiler and a lot of tin pans.  My, what a racket there was!