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diff --git a/22737.txt b/22737.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3f91e66 --- /dev/null +++ b/22737.txt @@ -0,0 +1,10656 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Gayther's Garden and the Stories Told +Therein, by Frank R. Stockton + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: John Gayther's Garden and the Stories Told Therein + +Author: Frank R. Stockton + +Release Date: September 23, 2007 [EBook #22737] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN *** + + + + +Produced by Alexander Bauer, Suzanne Shell and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + + + + John Gayther's Garden and + the Stories Told Therein + + + + +[Illustration: "Are you going to ask me to marry your husband if +you should happen to die?"] + + + + + John Gayther's Garden and + the Stories Told Therein + By Frank R. Stockton + + + _ILLUSTRATED_ + + + Charles Scribner's Sons + + New York 1902 + + + Copyright, 1902, by + Charles Scribner's Sons + + _Published November, 1902_ + + + THE DEVINNE PRESS + + + + + CONTENTS + + + PAGE + + John Gayther's Garden 3 + + I What I Found in the Sea 9 + Told by John Gayther + + II The Bushwhacker Nurse 39 + Told by the Daughter of the House + + III The Lady in the Box 71 + Told by John Gayther + + IV The Cot and the Rill 109 + Told by the Mistress of the House + + V The Gilded Idol and the King Conch-shell 155 + Told by the Master of the House + + VI My Balloon Hunt 201 + Told by the Frenchman + + VII The Foreign Prince and the Hermit's Daughter 223 + Told by Pomona and Jonas + +VIII The Conscious Amanda 249 + Told by the Daughter of the House + + IX My Translatophone 279 + Told by the Old Professor + + X The Vice-consort 307 + Told by the Next Neighbor + + XI Blackgum ag'in' Thunder 341 + Told by John Gayther + + + + + ILLUSTRATIONS + + +"Are you going to ask me to marry your husband +if you should happen to die?" Frontispiece + + FACING PAGE + +The gardener began promptly 74 + +"I made him dig up whole beds of things" 148 + +The great beast was drawing up his hind legs +and was climbing into the car 214 + +Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and +overpowering attention 258 + +And dreamed waking dreams of blessedness 294 + +"Do you mean," I cried, "that you would make +him a better wife than I do?" 336 + +"Abner, did you ever hear about the eggs of the +great auk?" 356 + + + + + JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN + + + + +JOHN GAYTHER'S GARDEN + + +The garden did not belong to John Gayther; he merely had charge of it. +At certain busy seasons he had some men to help him in his work, but for +the greater part of the year he preferred doing everything himself. + +It was a very fine garden over which John Gayther had charge. It +extended this way and that for long distances. It was difficult to see +how far it did extend, there were so many old-fashioned box hedges; +so many paths overshadowed by venerable grape-arbors; and so many +far-stretching rows of peach, plum, and pear trees. Fruit, bushes, and +vines there were of which the roll need not be called; and flowers grew +everywhere. It was one of the fancies of the Mistress of the House--and +she inherited it from her mother--to have flowers in great abundance, so +that wherever she might walk through the garden she would always find +them. + +Often when she found them massed too thickly she would go in among them +and thin them out with apparent recklessness, pulling them up by the +roots and throwing them on the path, where John Gayther would come and +find them and take them away. This heroic action on the part of the +Mistress of the House pleased John very much. He respected the fearless +spirit which did not hesitate to make sacrifices for the greater good, +no matter how many beautiful blossoms she scattered on the garden path. +John Gayther might have thinned out all this superfluous growth himself, +but he knew the Mistress liked to do it, and he left for her gloved +hands many tangled jungles of luxuriant bloom. + +The garden was old, and rich, and aristocratic. It acted generously in +the way of fruit, flowers, and vegetables, as if that were something it +was expected to do, an action to which it was obliged by its nobility. +It would be impossible for it to forget that it belonged to a fine old +house and a fine old family. + +John Gayther could not boast of lines of long descent, as could the +garden and the family. He was comparatively a new-comer, and had not +lived in that garden more than seven or eight years; but in that time he +had so identified himself with the place, and all who dwelt upon it, +that there were times when a stranger might have supposed him to be the +common ancestor to the whole estate. + +John understood well the mysterious problems of the tillable earth, and +he knew, as well as anybody could know, what answers to expect when he +consulted the oracles of nature. He was an elderly man, and the gentle +exercises of the garden were suited to the disposition of his mind and +body. In days gone by he had been a sailor, a soldier, a miner, a +ranchman, and a good many other things besides. In those earlier days, +according to his own account, John had had many surprising adventures +and experiences; but in these later times his memory was by far the +most active and vigorous of all his moving forces. This memory was like +a hazel wand in the hands of a man who is searching for hidden springs +of water. Whenever he wished it to turn and point in any particular +place or direction, it so turned and pointed. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + JOHN GAYTHER + + AND IS CALLED + + WHAT I FOUND IN THE SEA + + + + +I + +WHAT I FOUND IN THE SEA + + +It was on a morning in June that John Gayther was hoeing peas, drawing +the fine earth up about their tender little stems as a mother would tuck +the clothes about her little sleeping baby, when, happening to glance +across several beds, and rows of box, he saw approaching the Daughter of +the House. Probably she was looking for him, but he did not think she +had yet seen him. He put down his hoe, feeling, as he did, that this +June morning was getting very warm; and he gathered up an armful of +pea-sticks which were lying near by. With these he made his way toward a +little house almost in the middle of the garden, which was his fortress, +his palace, his studio, or his workshop, as the case might be. + +It was a low building with a far-outreaching roof, and under the shade +of this roof, outside of the little building, John liked to do his +rainy-day and very-hot-weather work. From the cool interior came a smell +of dried plants and herbs and bulbs and potted earth. + +When John reached this garden-house, the young lady was already there. +She was not tall; her face was very white, but not pale; and her light +hair fluffed itself all about her head, under her wide hat. She wore +gold spectacles which greatly enhanced the effect of her large blue +eyes. John thought she was the prettiest flower which had ever showed +itself in that garden. + +"Good morning, John," she said. "I came here to ask you about plants +suitable for goldfishes in a vase. My fishes do not seem to be satisfied +with the knowledge that the plants through which they swim were put +there to purify the water; they are all the time trying to eat them. +Now it strikes me that there ought to be some plants which would be +purifiers and yet good for the poor things to eat." + +John put down his bundle of pea-sticks by the side of a small stool. +"Won't you sit down, miss?" pointing to a garden-bench near by, "and I +will see what I can do for you." Then he seated himself upon the stool, +took out his knife, and picked up a pea-stick. + +"The best thing for me to do," he said, "is to look over a book I have +which will tell me just the kind of water plants which your goldfish +ought to have. I will do that this evening, and then I will see to it +that you shall have those plants, whatever they may be. I do not pretend +to be much of a water gardener myself, but it's easy for me to find out +what other people know." John now began to trim some of the lower twigs +from a pea-stick. + +"Talking about water gardens, miss," he said, "I wish you could have +seen some of the beautiful ones that I have come across!--more beautiful +and lovely than anything on the top of the earth; you may be sure of +that. I was reminded of them the moment you spoke to me about your +goldfish and their plants." + +"Where were those gardens?" asked the young lady; "and what were they +like?" + +"They were all on the bottom of the sea, in the tropics," said John +Gayther, "where the water is so clear that with a little help you can +see everything just as if it were out in the open air--bushes and vines +and hedges; all sorts of tender waving plants, all made of seaweed and +coral, growing in the white sand; and instead of birds flying about +among their branches there were little fishes of every color: +canary-colored fishes, fishes like robin-redbreasts, and others which +you might have thought were blue jays if they had been up in the air +instead of down in the water." + +"Where did you say all this is to be seen?" asked the Daughter of the +House, who loved all lovely things. + +"Oh, in a good many places in warm climates," said John. "But, now I +come to think of it, there was one place where I saw more beautiful +sights, more grand and wonderful sights, under the water than I believe +anybody ever saw before! Would you like me to tell you about it?" + +"Indeed--I--would!" said she, taking off her hat. + +John now began to sharpen the end of his pea-stick. "It was a good many +years ago," said he, "more than twenty--and I was then a seafaring man. +I was on board a brig, cruising in the West Indies, and we were off +Porto Rico, about twenty miles northward, I should say, when we ran into +something in the night,--we never could find out what it was,--and we +stove a big hole in that brig which soon began to let in a good deal +more water than we could pump out. The captain he was a man that knew +all about that part of the world, and he told us all that we must work +as hard as we could at the pumps, and if we could keep her afloat until +he could run her ashore on a little sandy island he knew of not far from +St. Thomas, we might be saved. There was a fresh breeze from the west, +and he thought he could make the island before we sank. + +"I was mighty glad to hear him say this, for I had always been nervous +when I was cruising off Porto Rico. Do you know, miss, that those waters +are the very deepest in the whole world?" + +"No," said she; "I never heard that." + +"Well, they are," said John. "If you should take the very tallest +mountain there is in any part of the earth and put it down north of +Porto Rico, so that the bottom of it shall rest on the bottom of the +sea, the top of that mountain would be sunk clean out of sight, so that +ships could sail over it just as safely as they sail in any part of the +ocean. + +"Of course a man would drown just as easily in a couple of fathoms of +water as in this deep place; but it is perfectly horrible to think of +sinking down, down, down into the very deepest water-hole on the face of +the whole earth." + +"Didn't you have any boats?" asked the young lady. + +"We hadn't any," said John. "We had sold all of them about two months +before to a British merchantman who had lost her boats in a cyclone. One +of the things our captain wanted to get to St. Thomas for was to buy +some more boats. He heard he could get some cheap ones there. + +"Well, we pumped and sailed as well as we could, but we hadn't got +anywhere near that sandy island the captain was making for, when, one +morning after breakfast, our brig, which was pretty low in the water by +this time, gave a little hitch and a grind, and stuck fast on something; +and if we hadn't been lively in taking in all sail there would have been +trouble. But the weather was fine, and the sea was smooth, and when we +had time to think about what had happened we were resting on the surface +of the sea, just as quiet and tranquil as if we had been a toy ship in a +shop-window. + +"What we had stuck on was a puzzle indeed! As I said before, our captain +knew all about that part of the sea, and, although he knew we were in +shallow soundings, he was certain that there wasn't any shoal or rock +thereabout that we could get stuck on. + +"We sounded all around the brig, and found lots of water at the stern, +but not so much forward. We were stuck fast on something, but nobody +could imagine what it was. However, we were not sinking any deeper, and +that was a comfort; and the captain he believed that if we had had boats +we could row to St. Thomas; but we didn't have any boats, so we had to +make the best of it. He put up a flag of distress, and waited till some +craft should come along and take us off. + +"The captain and the crew didn't seem to be much troubled about what +had happened, for so long as the sea did not get up they could make +themselves very comfortable as they were. But there were two men on +board who didn't take things easy. They wanted to know what had +happened, and they wanted to know what was likely to happen next. I was +one of these men, and a stock-broker from New York was the other. He was +an awful nervous, fidgety, meddling sort of a man, who was on this +cruise for the benefit of his health, which must have been pretty well +worn out with howling, and yelling, and trying to catch profits like a +lively boy catches flies. He was always poking his nose into all sorts +of things that didn't concern him, and spent about half of his time +trying to talk the captain into selling his brig and putting the money +into Pacific Lard--or it might have been Mexican Balloon stock, as well +as I remember. This man was tingling all over with anxiety to find out +what we had stuck on; but as he could not stick his nose into the water +and find out, and as there was nobody to tell him, he had to keep on +tingling. + +"I was just as wild to know what it was the brig was resting on as the +stock-broker was; but I had the advantage of him, for I believed that I +could find out, and, at any rate, I determined to try. Did you ever hear +of a water-glass, miss?" + +"No, I never did," said the Daughter of the House, who was listening +with great interest. + +"Well, I will try to describe one to you," said John Gayther. "You make +a light box about twenty inches high and a foot square, and with both +ends open. Then you get a pane of glass and fasten it securely in one +end of this box. Then you've got your water-glass--a tall box with a +glass bottom. + +"The way that you use it is this: You get in a boat, and put the box in +the water, glass bottom down. Then you lean over and put your head into +the open end, and if you will lay something over the back of your head +as a man does when he is taking photographs, so as to keep out the light +from above, it will be all the better. Then, miss, you'd be perfectly +amazed at what you could see through that glass at the bottom of the +box! Even in northern regions, where the water is heavy and murky, you +can see a good way down; but all about the tropics, where the water is +often so thin and clear that you can see the bottom in some places with +nothing but your naked eyes, it is perfectly amazing what you can see +with a water-glass! It doesn't seem a bit as if you were looking down +into the sea; it is just like gazing about in the upper air. If it isn't +too deep, things on the bottom--fishes swimming about, everything--is +just as plain and distinct as if there wasn't any water under you and +you were just looking down from the top of a house. + +"Well, I made up my mind that the only way for me to find out what it +was that was under the brig was to make a water-glass and look down into +the sea; and so I made one, taking care not to let the stock-broker know +anything about it, for I didn't want any of his meddling in my business. +I had to tell the captain, but he said he would keep his mouth shut, for +he didn't like the stock-broker any more than I did. + +"Well, miss, I made that water-glass. And when the stock-broker was +taking a nap, for he was clean tired out poking about and asking +questions and trying to find out what he might get out of the business +if he helped to save the brig, the captain and I, with a few men, +quietly let down into the water the aft hatch, one of those big doors +they cover the hatchways with, and when that was resting on the water +it made a very good raft for one man. And I got down on it, with my +water-glass and an oar. + +"The first thing I did, of course, was to paddle around the brig to the +place where she had been stove in. She wasn't leaking any more, because +the water inside of her was just as high as the water outside; so, if we +could do anything, this was the time to do it. I looked down into the +water on our starboard bow, and I soon found the place where the brig +had been stove in, probably by some water-logged piece of wreckage. I +located the hole exactly, and I reported to the captain, who was leaning +over the side. Then I paddled around the brig to see if I could find out +what we were resting on. + +"When I had sunk my water-glass well into the water, and had got my +head into the top of it, I looked down on a scene which seemed like +fairyland. The corals and water plants of different colors, and the +white glistening sand, and the fishes, big and little, red, yellow, +pink, and blue, swimming about among the branches just as if they had +wings instead of fins, that I told you of just now, were all there; and +the light down under the water seemed so clear and bright that I could +see everything under me that was as big as a pea." + +"That must have been an entrancing vision!" said the Daughter of the +House. + +"Indeed it was," replied John Gayther. "But, would you believe me, miss? +I didn't look at it for more than half a minute; for when I turned my +water-glass so that I could look under the brig, I could not give a +thought to anything else in the world except the astonishing objects +our brig was resting on. + +"At first I could not believe my eyes. I paddled around and around, and +I put down my water-glass, and I stared and I stared, until I felt as if +my eyes were coming out of my head! At last I had to believe what I saw. +There was no use trying to think that my eyes had made a mistake. It was +all just as plain to me as you are now. + +"Down in the water, resting on the bottom of this shallow part of the +sea, were two great ships--ships of the olden time, with enormously high +poops, which were the stern part of old-fashioned vessels, built 'way up +high like a four-story house. These two antiquated vessels were lying +side by side and close together, with their tall poops reaching far up +toward the surface of the sea; and right on top of them, resting partly +on one ship and partly on the other, was our brig, just as firmly fixed +as if she had been on the stocks in a shipyard! + +"The whole thing was so wonderful that it nearly took away my breath. I +got around to the stern of the brig, and then I stared down at the two +vessels under her until I forgot there was anything else in this whole +world than those two great old-fashioned ships and myself. The more I +looked the more certain I became that no such vessels had floated on the +top of the sea for at least two hundred years. From what I had read +about old-time ships, and from the pictures I had seen of them, I made +up my mind that one of those vessels was an old Spanish galleon; and the +other one looked to me very much as if it were an English-built ship." + +"And how did they ever happen to be wrecked there, side by side?" almost +gasped the young lady. + +"Oh, they had been fighting," said John. "There could be no mistake +about that. They had been fighting each other to the death, and they had +gone down together, side by side. And there was our brig, two hundred +years afterwards, resting quietly on top of both of them. + +"I was still wrapped up, body and soul, in this wonderful discovery, +when I heard a hail from the stern of the brig, and there was that +stock-broker, shouting to me to know what I was looking at. Of course +that put an end to my observations, and I paddled to the side and got on +board. + +"'Lend me that box,' said the stock-broker, 'and let me get down on your +raft. What is it you've been looking at, and what did you see in that +box?' + +"But he had got hold of the wrong man. 'No, sir,' said I. 'Find a box +for yourself, if you want one.' And I held mine so that he could not see +that the bottom of it was glass. Then the captain came along and told +him not to try to get down on that hatch, for if he did he would topple +into the water and get himself drowned, which would have been certain to +happen, for he could not swim. Then the hatch was hauled on deck, and I +went below with the captain to his cabin to tell him what I had seen. +The stock-broker tried awfully hard to come with us, but we wouldn't let +him. + +"When the captain had heard all I had to tell him, he wasn't struck +sentimentally the least bit, as I had been. It did not make any more +difference to him whether those two ships had been down there two +hundred years or two years; but there was another part to the affair +that was very interesting to him. + +"'Gayther,' said he, 'it's ten to one that them ships has got treasure +aboard, and what we've got to do is to form a company and go to work and +get it.' + +"'And how would you do that?' said I. + +"The captain was from Provincetown, Cape Cod, and it didn't take him two +seconds to work out his whole plan. + +"'It's this way,' said he. 'The first thing to do is to form a company. +I am president and you can be the other officers. When that is all fixed +we can go to work, and we'll mend that hole in our bow. Now if you know +just where it is, we'll work day and night in that hold, water or no +water, and we'll stop it up. Then we'll pump the brig out, and I believe +she'll float. Then we'll mark this place with a buoy, and we'll sail +away as fast as we can, with our company all formed and everything fixed +and settled. Then we'll come back with the vessels and machines, and +we'll get out that treasure. We'll divide it into three parts. One part +will be mine; one part will be yours; and the other part will go to the +crew.' + +"'And how about the stock-broker?' said I. 'Going to let him in the +company?' + +"'No, sir,' said the captain, bringing his fist down on the table. +'Whatever else happens, he is to be kept out.' + +"This was a very fine plan, but it didn't altogether suit me. I didn't +want to sail away from that spot and perhaps never see those two ships +again. There was no knowing what more I might find out with my +water-glass if that stock-broker could be kept from bothering me. + +"I told the captain this, and he looked hard at me and he said: 'It will +take a couple of days to mend that leak and to pump out the brig. If +this fine weather keeps on I think we can do it in that time. And if +while we are working at it you choose to try to find out more about them +two ships, you can do it.' + +"'And how can I do it?' said I. + +"'If you can go down in a diver's suit you can do it,' said he. 'I don't +know whether you know anything about that business, but if you want to +try, I have got a whole kit on board, air-pump, armor, and everything. +It belongs to a diver that was out with me about a year ago in the Gulf +of Mexico. He had to go North to attend to some business, and he told me +he would let me know when he would come back and get his diving-kit. But +he hasn't come back yet, and the whole business is stowed away here on +board. Do you know anything about going down in a diving-suit?' + +"Now I had never done anything in the way of diving, but I had heard a +good deal about it, and I had seen divers at work, and my whole soul was +so jumping and shouting inside of me at the very idea of going down and +searching into the secrets of those two old ships that I told the +captain I was ready to undertake the diving business just the minute he +could get things in shape. + +"Well, miss, early the next morning--and I can tell you I didn't sleep +much that night--everything was ready for me to go down, and two of the +crew who had done that sort of thing before were detailed to attend to +the air-pumps and all the other business. The stock-broker he was like a +bee on a window-pane; he was buzzing, and kicking, and bumping his head +trying to find out what we expected to do. But the captain wouldn't tell +him anything; you may be sure I wouldn't; and nobody else knew. + +"As soon as we could get things straightened out I was lowered over the +side of the brig, and sunk out of sight into the water. The captain and +all the crew, except the men who were attending to me, then went to work +to mend the hole in the side of the brig. And the last thing I heard as +I went under the water was the stock-broker howling and yelling and +rampaging around the deck. + +"As I told you before, miss, I had never been down in a diving-suit; but +I paid the greatest attention to everything I knew, and I got down to +the bottom all right, having a hard time to keep from being scratched to +pieces by the barnacles on the sterns of the big ships. + +"I clumped about for a while on the sandy bottom so as to get familiar +with the air-tubes, signal-cords, and all that, and then I signalled to +be hauled up a bit; and, after a good deal of trouble, I got on board +the vessel which I was sure was a Spanish galleon. As I stood on her +upper deck, looking around, I felt as if I was in a world of wonders. +There was water everywhere, of course--in and around and about +everything. But I could see so plainly that I forgot that I was not +moving about in the open air. + +"I can't tell you, miss, everything I saw on that great ship, for it +would take too long; but as soon as I could, I set to work to see if I +could find the treasure that I hoped was on board of her. Here and there +about the decks I saw swords and pistols and old cannon, but not a sign +of any of the brave fellows that had fought the ship, for the fish had +eaten them up long ago, bones and all. + +"While hunting about, and being careful to keep my air-tube from +fouling, I looked into a cabin with the door open; and you will believe +me, miss, when I tell you that a cold chill ran down my back when I saw +something moving inside, just as if it was a man getting up to see what +I wanted. It turned out to be a big fish, about half my size, and he did +not ask any questions, but just swam through the open door, almost +brushing me, and went his way." + +"I wonder you weren't frightened to death!" said the Daughter of the +House. + +"It would be hard to kill me with fright," said John Gayther, "and I'll +prove that to you, miss. As I moved on, still looking for the treasure, +I came to the door of another cabin, and this was shut and bolted on the +outside. I had a hatchet with me, and with this I knocked back the bolts +and forced open the door; and there I saw something to make anybody +jump. Sitting on a locker, right in front of the door, was the skeleton +of a man. The room had been shut up so tight that no fish big enough to +eat bones could get in; but the little things that live in the water and +can get through any crack had eaten all of that man except his bones, +his gold buttons, that were lying about on the floor, the golden +embroidery of his uniform, that was still hanging about on his skeleton, +and the iron fetters on his hands and feet. He was most likely a +prisoner of rank who was being taken back to Spain, and he had been shut +up there through all the fight. + +"The first thought that came into my mind when I looked at him was that +he might be Columbus, and that the Spaniards had made up the story about +their really getting him back to Spain at the time when he was to be +brought home in irons. But thinking more about it, I knew that this +could not be true, and so I shut the door so as to keep the poor fellow +from any intrusions so long as he might happen to stay there. + +"Then I went to work in real earnest to find the treasure, and I tell +you, miss, I did find it." + +"What!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. "You really found the +treasure on that Spanish galleon?" + +"Indeed I did," replied John Gayther. "It was in boxes stowed away in a +big room in the stern. I smashed the door, and there were the boxes. I +went to work at one of them with my hatchet; and I had just forced up +one corner of the lid, and had seen that it was filled with big gold +pieces, when I felt a pull on my signal-rope, and knew that they wanted +me to come up. So I put my fingers into the crack and got out a few of +the coins. I could not take a whole box; it would have been too heavy. +And then I went out of that room, and signalled that I was ready to go +up. It was time, I can tell you, miss, for I was getting mighty nervous +and excited, and I needed rest and something to eat. + +"When I was safe on the deck of the brig, I found everybody gathered +there, waiting to hear what I had to tell. They had stopped work for +dinner, and that is the reason I had been signalled. + +"But I didn't say anything to anybody. As soon as my helmet was +unscrewed and I was out of my diving-suit I went below with the +captain; and although the stock-broker followed us close and nearly +pushed himself into the cabin, we shut the door on him and kept him out. +Then I told the captain everything, and I showed him the three gold +coins, which I had kept all the time tightly clinched in my right hand. +I can tell you the eyes of both of us were wide open when we looked at +those coins. Two of them were dated sixteen hundred and something, and +one of them fifteen hundred. They were big fellows, worth about ten +dollars apiece. The captain took them and locked them up. + +"'Now,' said he, 'do you think you will be able to go down again to-day? +If you want to see what's in the other ship you've got to be lively +about it, for I think we can get the brig pumped out in twenty-four +hours; and if a stiff breeze should spring up to-morrow afternoon--and I +am inclined to think it will--we don't want to be caught here. If the +other ship's a treasure-ship,' he went on to say, 'you know it would be +a good deal better for our company; and so it might be well to find +out.' + +"I didn't need any spurring to make me go down again, for I was all on +fire to know what was on board the other ship, which I was sure was +English, having had a good opportunity of looking at it while I was down +there. + +"So as soon as I had taken a rest and had had my dinner, I went on deck +to get ready for another diving expedition. There was the stock-broker, +watching me like a snake watching a bird. He didn't stamp around and ask +any more questions: he just kept his venomous eye on me as if he would +like to kill me because I knew more than he did. But I didn't concern +myself about him, and down I went, and this time I got myself aboard the +English vessel just as soon as I could. + +"It wasn't as interesting as the old Spanish vessel, but still I saw +enough to fill up a book if I had time to tell it. There were more signs +of fighting than there had been on the other ship. Muskets and swords +were scattered about everywhere, and, although she was plainly a +merchant-vessel, she had a lot of the small cannon used in those days. + +"I looked about a great deal, and it struck me that she had been a +merchantman trading with the West Indies, but glad enough to fight a +Spanish treasure-ship if she happened to come across one. It was more +than likely that her crew had been a regular set of half-buccaneers, +willing to trade if there was trade, and fight if there was any fighting +on hand. Anyway, the two vessels had had a tough time of it, and each +of them had met her match. I could see the grappling-irons which had +fastened them together. They had blown so many holes in each other's +sides that they had gone to the bottom as peaceably as a pair of twins +holding each other by the hands. + +"I worked hard on that English ship, and I went everywhere where I dared +to go, but I couldn't find any signs that she had carried treasure. I +hadn't the least doubt that she was on an outward voyage, and that the +Spaniard was homeward bound. + +"At last I got down into the hold, and there I found a great number of +big hogsheads, that were packed in so well under the deck that they had +never moved in all these years. Of course I wanted to know what was in +them, for, although it would not be gold or silver, it might be +something almost as precious if it happened to be spirits of the olden +time. + +"After banging and working for some time I got out the bung of one of +these hogsheads, and immediately air began to bubble up, and I could +hear the water running in. It was plain the hogshead was empty, and I +clapped the bung in again as quick as I could. I wasn't accustomed to +sounding barrels or hogsheads under water, but as I knew this was an +empty one I sounded it with my hatchet; and then I went around and got +the same kind of a sound from each of the others that I hammered on. +They were all empty, every blessed one of them. + +"Now I was certain that this vessel had been outward bound; she had been +taking out empty hogsheads, and had expected to carry them back full of +West Indian rum, which was a mighty profitable article of commerce in +those days. But she had fallen into temptation, and had gone to the +bottom; and here were her hogsheads just as tight and just as empty as +on the day she set sail from England. + +"As I stood looking at the great wall of empty hogsheads in front of me, +wondering if it would not be better to give up searching any more on +this vessel, which evidently had not been laden with anything valuable, +and go again on board the Spanish ship and make some sort of a plan for +fastening lines to those treasure-boxes so that they might be hauled up +on board the brig, I began to feel a sort of trouble with my breath, as +if I might suffocate if I did not get out soon. I knew, of course, that +something was the matter with my air-supply, and I signalled for them to +pump lively. But it was of no use; my supply of fresh air seemed to be +cut off. I began to gasp. I was terribly frightened, you may be sure; +for, with air gone and no answer to my signals, I must perish. I jerked +savagely at my signal-cord to let them know that I wanted to be pulled +up,--it was possible that I might reach the surface before being +suffocated,--but the cord offered no resistance; I pulled it toward me +as I jerked. It had been cut or broken. + +"Then I took hold of my air-tube and pulled it. It, too, was unattached +at the other end; it had no connection with the air-pump. + +"Breathing with great difficulty, and with my legs trembling under me, a +thought flashed through my mind. As rapidly as possible I drew in the +india-rubber air-tube. Presently I had the loose end of it in my hand. +Then I caught hold of the bung of the hogshead which I had opened and +which was just in front of me, and the instant I pulled it out I thrust +in the end of the air-tube. To my great delight, it fitted tightly in +the bung-hole. And now in an instant I felt as if I was sitting upon the +pinnacles of Paradise. Air, fresh air, came to me through the tube! Not +in abundance, not freely, for there was some water in the tube and there +was a good deal of gurgling. But it was air, fresh air; and every time +an exhaled breath escaped through the valve in my helmet, a little air +from the hogshead came in to take its place. + +"I stood for a while, weak with happiness. I did not know what had +happened; I did not care. I could breathe; that was everything in the +world to me. + +"By gradually raising the tube a few feet at a time I managed to empty +the water it contained into the hogshead, and then I breathed more +easily. As I did not wish to wait until the air in the hogshead had +been exhausted, I went to work on the bung in the next one, and soon +transferred the end of my tube to that, which would probably last me a +good while, for it was almost entirely free from water. + +"Now I began to cogitate and wonder. I pulled in the end of the +signal-cord, and I found it had not been rubbed and torn by barnacles; +the end of it had been clean cut with a knife. I remembered that this +was the case with the air-tube; as I placed it into the bung-hole of the +first hogshead I had noticed how smoothly it had been severed. + +"Now I felt a tug at the rope by which I was raised and lowered. I +didn't like this. If I should be pulled up I might be jerked away from +my air-supply and suffocate before I got to the surface. So I took a +turn of the rope around a stick of timber near by, and they might pull +as much as they chose without disturbing me. There I stood, and thought, +and wondered. But, above everything, I could not help feeling all the +time how good that air was! It seemed to go through every part of me. It +was better than wine; it was better than anything I had ever breathed or +tasted. A little while ago I was on the point of perishing. Now before +me there were tiers of hogsheads full of air! If it had not been that I +would be obliged to eat, I might have stayed down there as long as I +pleased. + +"I had stayed a long time, and I was at work on the air in a third +hogshead--not having half used up the contents of the other two--before +I really made up my mind as to what had happened. I was sure that there +had been foul play, and I felt quite as sure that the stock-broker was +at the bottom of it. Except that man, there was no one on board the brig +who would wish to do me a harm. The stock-broker he hated me; I had seen +that in his face as plainly as if it had been painted on a sign-board. I +knew something which he did not know; I was trying to get something +which was to be kept a secret from him. If I could be put out of the way +he probably thought he might have some sort of a chance. I could not +fathom the man's mind, but that's the way it looked to me. + +"I had been down there a long time, and it must have been getting toward +the end of the afternoon; so I prepared to leave my watery retirement. +I had made a plan, and it worked very well. I placed the end of my +air-tube far into the bung-hole of the hogshead, so that I might not +accidentally pull it out; I loosened myself from the bit of timber; and +then I made my way to the bow of the vessel on which I was. Looking +upward, I found that our brig, which was resting on the tall poops of +the two sunken vessels, was so suspended above me that her fore chains, +which ran under her bowsprit, were almost over my head. + +"Now I stood and took some long, deep breaths; then, having made +everything ready, I jerked myself out of that diving-suit in a very few +seconds, and, standing free, I gave a great leap upward, and went +straight to the surface. I am a good swimmer, and with a few strokes I +caught the chains. Stealthily I clambered up, making not the least +noise, and peeped over the rail. There was nobody forward. The whole +ship's company seemed to be crowded aft, where there was a great stir +and confusion. I slipped quietly over the rail and, without being seen +by anybody, made my way into the forecastle. I hurried to my sea-chest. +I took off my wet things and dressed myself in an almost new suit of +shore clothes which I had never worn on the brig. I did not lose any +more time than I could help, but I took unusual care in dressing myself. +I put on a new pair of yellow shoes, and turned up the bottom of my +trousers so as to show my red socks. I had a big felt hat which I had +bought in Mexico, with a little feather in it; and this I put on, +pulling it rakishly over on one side. I put around my neck a long blue +silk cravat with white spots, which I tied in the biggest bow I could +make. Then, feeling that I ought to have something in my hands, I picked +up a capstan-bar, and laying it across my arm after the manner of a +cutlass, I went boldly on deck. + +"Making as much noise as possible, and advancing with what you might +call a majestic tread, I strode to the stern of that brig. At first my +approach was not noticed, for there was still a great hubbub, and +everybody seemed to be shouting or swearing or shaking his fist. The +stock-broker stood on one side, and his tongue was going as fast as +anybody's; but I noticed that his hands were tied behind him, and there +was a rope around his neck. + +"The captain was the first to see me. He gave me just one look; he +turned pale; and then, with a sort of a scared grunt, down he went on +his knees. + +"When the rest of the men laid eyes on me, you never saw such a scared +lot in your life. Their mouths and their eyes went open, and their +swarthy faces were as white as you could wash a dirty sail. Some of +them shook so that their caps fell off, and one or two began to pray. + +"As to the stock-broker, he at first seemed greatly startled; but he +recovered himself in a moment. There was nothing superstitious about +him, and he knew well enough that I was no spirit risen from the deep, +but a living man. + +"'Ha, ha!' he shouted. 'Here you are, after trying to rob and cheat us, +and making believe to be dead, you water thief!--hiding safe and sound +on deck while such a row is being raised here about your death, and all +sorts of threats being made against me on account of it. Look at him, my +brave men!' said he, turning to the crew; 'look at the fellow who has +been trying to rob us! And he is the man you ought to hang to the +yard-arm!' + +"Then he turned again to me. 'You are a fool of a thief, anyway. After +you had gone down under this vessel I found your box with the glass in +the bottom of it. I got down close to the water and I watched you. I saw +you going about in that big sunken ship looking after treasure, and, no +doubt, finding it; filling your pockets with gold and telling nobody. I +didn't want to kill you when I cut your air-tube, as I have told these +good sailors; but I wanted to make you stop stealing and come up, and I +did it. The treasure under this vessel belongs to us all, and you have +no right to make a secret business out of it, and keep it for yourself +and the captain. Now, my good men,' he shouted to the crew, 'there is +the fellow you ought to hang! Look at him, dressed up in fine clothes, +while you thought he was soaked and dead at the bottom of the sea! Hang +him up, I say! Then we'll get the treasure, and we'll divide it among +us fair and even.' + +"This was a dangerous moment for me. The men had recovered from their +fright. They saw I was no spirit, and they believed that I had been +trying to deceive and defraud them. A good many of them drew their +knives and came toward me, the stock-broker urging them on. The captain +tried to restrain the men who were near him, but they pushed him aside. + +"I now stepped forward; I pulled my great hat still further over my +face; I glared at the men before me; and I brought my capstan-bar with a +tremendous thump upon the deck. + +"'Sirrah, varlets!' I roared. 'What mean ye? Stop where ye are, and if +one man of ye comes nearer I'll cleave him to the chine! Caitiffs! +varlets! hounds! dare ye threaten me? Ods-bodikins, I like it well! By +our lady, ye are a merry set of mariners who draw your blades upon a man +who is come upon this deck to tell ye how to fill your pockets with old +gold! Back there, every man of ye, and put up your knives, ere I split +your heads and toss ye into the sea!' + +"As I spoke these words my voice and tones were so loud and terrible +that I almost frightened myself. The crew fell back as I advanced a step +or two, and every man of them sheathed his knife. Even the stock-broker +seemed to be overawed by my tremendous voice and my fierce appearance." + +"John Gayther," said the Daughter of the House, who had been listening +very eagerly, "what made you talk like that, and strut about, and pound +the deck? That's not like you. I would not have supposed that you ever +could have acted so." + +"You will understand it all, miss," said the gardener, "when you +remember that for nearly two hours I had been breathing the atmosphere +of the sixteenth century. That atmosphere was the air which for two +hundred years had been fastened up in those empty hogsheads. I had drawn +it into my lungs; it had gone into my blood, my nerves, my brain. I was +as a man who swash-buckles--a reckless mariner of the olden time. I +longed to take my cutlass in my teeth and board a Spaniard. As I looked +upon the villainous stock-broker before me, I felt as if I could take +him by the throat, plunge down with him to the deck of the Spanish +galleon, and shut him up fast and tight in the room with that manacled +Spaniard who could not have been Columbus. I thrilled with a fierce +longing for combat. It was the air of the sixteenth century which had +permeated my every pore. + +"Now I fixed upon the stock-broker a terrible glare and stepped toward +him. 'Money miscreant!' I yelled, 'you it was who tried first to murder +me, and then to turn the hearts of all these good men against me!' I +raised my capstan-bar in the air. 'Aroint thee, fiend!' I yelled. 'Get +thee below; and if anon I see thee I will break thy dastardly skull!' + +"At this the stock-broker, frightened nearly out of his wits, and with +his hands still tied and the rope around his neck, made a dive for the +companionway, and disappeared below. I stood up very bold; I threw out +my chest, and gazed around in triumph. The air of the sixteenth century +had saved me! Those men would have no more dared to attack me, as I +stood roaring out my defiance and my threat, than they would have +ventured to give battle to the boldest and the blackest of all bloody +buccaneers. + +"I now called the men around me, and I told them all my story. You may +imagine that they opened their eyes and mouths so wide that I thought +some of them would never get them shut again. But the captain--he was +from Provincetown, Cape Cod, and he went straight to business. + +"'We've mended the leak,' said he, 'and we'll pump all night, and it may +be to-morrow we shall float free. Then we'll form a company for the +recovery of the treasure on that Spanish galleon. I will take one third +of it; Mr. Gayther shall have one third; and one third shall be divided +among the crew. Then we'll anchor a buoy near this spot and sail away, +to come back again as soon as may be.' + +"Everybody agreed to this, and we all went to supper. Early the next +morning a breeze blew very fresh from the southwest; then it increased +to a gale; and before ten o'clock the waves began to run so high that +one of them lifted the brig clean off the sunken ships on which she had +been resting, and we were afloat. In ten seconds more we were lying +broadside to the wind. Then indeed we had to skip around lively, get up +some sails, and put her properly on the wind. Before we had time to draw +an easy breath we were scudding along, far from the spot which we had +intended to mark with an anchored buoy. There was a good deal of water +in the hold, but the brig went merrily on as if glad to get away from +those two old sea spectres of the past with which she had been keeping +such close company. + +"Of course it was impossible to beat up against such a wind, and so we +kept on toward St. Thomas. The captain had carefully taken the longitude +and latitude of the spot where we had been stranded on the ancient +ships, and he was sure he could find the place again by sounding in fair +weather. + +"Before we reached port, he came on deck with the three gold pieces +which I had brought up from the Spanish galleon. One of these he put +into his own pocket; one he gave to me; and the other he gave to the +crew to be changed into small coin and divided. The stock-broker got +nothing, and I saw him no more on that voyage. I had sworn to break his +head if my eyes ever fell upon him, and he was wise enough to keep out +of my sight." + +"And that is all the money you ever got from the galleon?" asked the +Daughter of the House. + +"Yes," said John Gayther, "that was all. I have the ancient gold piece +in my room now, and some day I will show it to you. + +"As soon as we could do it, we all went with the captain to New York, +and there we organized our company, and sold a lot of stock, and +chartered a good steamer with derricks and everything necessary for +raising sunken treasure. But, although the weather was fair, and we +sounded and sounded day after day at the very point of longitude and +latitude where we had left the two great ships of the olden time, we +never could find them. + +"One day, just before we had concluded to give up the search, we saw +another vessel not far away, also sounding. This we afterwards heard +belonged to the stock-broker. He had chartered a steamer, and he had on +board of her a president, a secretary, a treasurer, a board of trustees, +and four derricks. We steamed away and soon left him, and I am very sure +that if his company had ever declared any dividends I should have heard +of it." + +"And that is the end of your story, John Gayther?" said the Daughter of +the House, as she rose from her seat. + +"Yes, miss; that is the end of it," replied the gardener. + +The young lady said no more, but walked away in quiet reflection, while +John Gayther picked up the only pea-stick on which he had been at work +that morning. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE DAUGHTER OF THE HOUSE + + AND IS CALLED + + THE BUSHWHACKER NURSE + + + + +II + +THE BUSHWHACKER NURSE + + +The Daughter of the House, her fair cheeks a little flushed, walked +rapidly down the broad centre path of the garden, looking for John +Gayther, the gardener. She soon saw him at work in a bed of +tomato-plants. + +"John," said she, "I have just finished composing a story, and I came +out to tell it to you before I write it. I want to do this because you +compose stories yourself which in some ways are a good deal like this +of mine. But I can't tell it to you out here in the sun. Isn't there +something you can do in your little house? Haven't you some pea-sticks +to sharpen?" + +"Oh, yes, miss," said John Gayther, with great alacrity; "and if you +will go and make yourself comfortable under the shed I will be there in +a few minutes." + +It was rather difficult for John Gayther to find any pea-sticks which +had not already been stuck into the ground or which wanted sharpening, +but he succeeded in getting a small armful of them, and with these he +came to where the young lady was seated. He drew up a stool and took out +a big knife. + +"Now," said she, gazing through her gold-rimmed spectacles far out into +the sunlit garden, "this is the story of a girl." + +John Gayther nodded approvingly. The story of a girl was exactly what he +would like to hear, provided it was told by the young lady who sat in +front of him. + +"She was of an independent turn of mind," said the Daughter of the +House, "and there were a great many things in this world which bored +her, not because they were uninteresting in themselves, but because she +could not enjoy them in the way which suited her. She had thought of +hundreds of things she would like to do if she only could do them in her +own way and without control by other people. She was very anxious to +perform deeds, noble deeds if possible, but she could not endure the +everlasting control which seems to be thought necessary in this +world--at least, for girls. The consequence of this was that she spent a +great deal of her time in doing things which made no imprint whatever +upon the progress of the world or upon the elevation of her own +character. + +"Now it happened that at the time of my story there was a war in the +land, and a great many people with whom my heroine was acquainted went +forth to do battle for their country and their principles, or to act +patriotically in some other way than fighting. I forgot to say that my +heroine is named Almia--" + +"De Ponsett, I suppose," interrupted John Gayther. "Almia de Ponsett is +the name of a beautiful new white tea-rose." + +"Not at all," said the young lady, drawing her eyebrows slightly +together; "there is no 'de Ponsett' about it, and her name has nothing +to do with tea-roses. It is simply Almia. She grew more and more +dissatisfied every day the war went on. Everybody who was worth anything +was doing something, and here she was doing nothing. What was there she +could do? This became the great question of her life. If I were about to +write out this story I would say something here about the workings of +her mind; but that is not necessary now. But her mind worked a great +deal, and the end of it was that she determined to be a nurse. Nursing, +indeed, is the only thing a young woman can do in a war. + +"But when she began to make inquiries about army nurses--what they ought +to do, how they ought to do it, and all that--she ran up against that +terrible bugbear of control. Everywhere was control, control, control; +and she really began to despair. There were examinations, and training, +and applications to the surgeon-general, and to the assistant surgeon, +and to special heads of departments and districts and States and +counties, for all I know. There was positively no end to the things she +would have to do to get a regular appointment to go forth and do her +duty to her country. So she threw up the whole business of regular army +nursing, and made up her mind to go out into the field of duty to which +she had appointed herself, and do the things she ought to do in the way +she thought they ought to be done. She likened herself to the knights of +old who used to go forth to fight for their ladies and for the upholding +of chivalry. She wanted to be a sort of a free-lance, but she did not +want to hire herself to anybody. She did not fancy being anything like a +guerilla, and then it suddenly struck her that if she did just as she +wanted to do she would resemble a bushwhacker more than anything else. A +bushwhacker is an honest man. When there is no war he whacks bushes, +that is, he cuts them down; and when there is a war--" + +"He whacks the enemy," suggested John Gayther. + +The Daughter of the House smiled a little. "Yes," she said; "he tries to +do that. But he is entirely independent; he is under nobody; and that +suited Almia. A bushwhacker nurse was exactly what she wanted to be, and +as soon as this was settled she made all her preparations to go to the +war." + +"Of course," said John Gayther, "the young lady's parents--or perhaps +she did not have any parents?" + +The Daughter of the House frowned. "Now, John," said she, "I don't want +anything said about parents. There were no parents in this case, at +least none to be considered. I don't say whether they were dead or not, +but the story has nothing to do with them. Parents would be very +embarrassing, and I don't want to stop to bother with them." + +John Gayther nodded his head as if he thought she was quite right, and +she went on: + +"The first thing Almia did was to fit herself out after the fashion she +thought best adapted to a bushwhacker nurse. She wore heavy boots, and a +bicycle-skirt which just came to the top of the boots; and in this skirt +she put ever so many pockets. She wore a little cap with a strap to go +under the chin; and from her belt on the left side she hung a very +little cask, which she happened to have, something like those carried by +the St. Bernard dogs in Switzerland when they go to look for lost +travellers; and this she filled with brandy. In her pockets she put +every kind of thing that wounded men might want: adhesive plaster, raw +cotton, bandages, some pieces of heavy pasteboard to make splints, +needles and fine silk for sewing up cuts, and a good many other things +suitable for wounded people. And in the right-hand pocket of her skirt +she carried a pistol with five barrels." + +"My conscience!" exclaimed John Gayther, "that was dangerous. And then, +you know, nurses hardly ever carry pistols." + +"But this was necessary," said she, "as you will see as the story goes +on. Then, when she put on a long waterproof cloak which covered +everything, she was ready to go to the war." + +John Gayther looked at the Daughter of the House steadfastly and +wondered if the Almia of the story had cut off her beautiful hair. He +was sure she had had an abundance of light silvery-golden hair which +fluffed itself all about her head under her wide hat, and it would be a +sort of shock to think of its being cut off. But he asked no questions; +he did not want to interrupt too much. + +"Almia knew by the papers," continued the Daughter of the House, "that +a great battle was expected to take place not far from a town at some +distance from her home; and she went to this town by rail, carrying +only a small hand-bag in addition to the things she wore under her +waterproof. She took lodgings at a hotel, and, after an early breakfast +the next morning, she hired a cab to take her out to the battle-field. +The cabman drove her several miles into the country, but when he heard +the booming of the preliminary cannon with which the battle was then +opening, he refused to go any farther, and she was obliged to get out +at the corner of a lane and the highroad. She paid the man his fare and +gave him five dollars extra, and then she engaged him to call at that +place for her at eight o'clock that evening. She was sure the battle +would be over by that time, as it would be beginning to get dark. The +cabman was sorry to leave her there to walk the rest of the way, but his +horse was afraid of cannon, and he did not dare to go any farther. + +"Almia took off her waterproof and left it in the cab, and the cabman +was a good deal astonished when he saw her without it. He said he +supposed she was a reporter and that the little cask was full of ink; +he had driven lady reporters about before this. But Almia told him she +was a nurse, and that he must not fail to call for her at the time +appointed. Then he drove away; and she walked rapidly along the lane, +which seemed to lead toward the battle-field. The lane soon began to +curve, and she left it and walked across several fields. Soon she came +to some outposts, where the sentries wanted to know where she was going. +Of course the sentries behind an army are not as strict as those in +front of it, and so when she informed them she was a nurse they told her +how to get to the field-hospital, which was a mile or more away. + +"But Almia did not intend to go to any hospital. She knew if she did she +would immediately be put under orders; and now her blood was up, and she +could stand no orders. She thought she perceived a faint smell of powder +in the air. This made her feel wonderfully independent, and she strode +onward with a light and fearless step. But when she came to a bosky +copse which concealed her from the sentries, she turned away from the +direction of the hospital, and pressed onward toward the point from +which came the heaviest sound of cannon. + +"Now you must understand, John Gayther," remarked the Daughter of the +House, taking off her broad hat, that the breeze might more freely blow +through the masses of her silvery-golden hair, "that when people who are +really in earnest, especially people in fiction, go forth to find things +they want, they generally find them. And if it is highly desirable that +these things should be out of the common they are out of the common. A +great deal of what happens in real life, and almost everything in +literature, depends on this principle. You, of course, comprehend this, +because you compose stories yourself." + +"Oh, yes," said the gardener; "I comprehend it perfectly." + +"I say all this on account of what is about to happen in this story, and +also because I don't want you to make any objection in your mind on +account of its not being exactly according to present usages. Almia was +pushing steadily through the clump of bushes when she heard, not far +away, the clash of arms. Greatly excited, she silently moved on, and +peeping out from behind some foliage, she saw in a small open space in +the woods two men engaged in single combat. How her heart did beat! She +was frightened nearly to death. But she did not think of flight; her +eyes were glued upon the fascinating spectacle before her. Often had she +heard of two brave swordsmen fighting each other to the bitter end, and +often had she dreamed of these noble contests; but her eyes were all +unfamiliar with such inspiring sights. This truly was war. + +"The combatants were both moderately young men, athletic and active, one +with brown hair and the other with black. They had thrown aside their +coats and vests, and each wore a broad leathern belt. Fiercely and +swiftly their long swords clashed. Sparks flew, and the ring of the +steel sounded far into the woods; but there was none to hear save Almia +only, and her soul tingled with admiration and terror as the bright +blades flashed against the background of semi-gloom which pervaded the +woods. She scarcely breathed. Her whole soul was in her eyes." + +"I have seen it there before," thought John Gayther, but he said +nothing. + +"Now there was a tremendous onset from each swordsman, and the ground +echoed beneath their rapid footfalls as they stamped around. Then there +was a lunge and a sharp nerve-tingling scrape as one blade ran along the +other; and then, without a groan, down fell one of these brave warriors +flat upon his back upon the grass, the wild flowers, and bits of bark. +Instantly the impulses of a woman flashed through every vein and nerve +of that onlooking girl. Scarcely had the tall form of the soldier +touched the sod when she became a nurse. Springing out from her leafy +concealment, she knelt beside the vanquished form of the fallen man. The +other soldier, who was about to rest himself by leaning on his sword, +sprang back; it seemed as though there had suddenly appeared before him +a being from another world." + +"Where they wear bicycle-skirts," thought John Gayther. + +"Every trace of enthusiastic excitement had passed away from Almia, who +now had something in this world to do, and who set about doing it +without loss of a second. The man was only wounded, for he opened his +eyes and said so, and drawing up his shirt-sleeve he showed Almia that +the cut was in the lower part of his left arm. Instantly despatching the +other soldier to a neighboring spring for water, she cleansed the wound, +and, finding it was not very deep, she drew the edges of the cut +together and held them in place with strips of adhesive plaster. When +this had been done she wrapped the arm in several folds of bandage, and +the man having risen to a sitting posture, she gave him a small draught +of brandy from her cask. + +"Almia now explained how she happened to appear upon the scene, and, +addressing the wounded man, she said she hoped she could soon find some +way of conveying him to a hospital. 'Hospital!' he cried, springing to +his feet under the revivifying influence of the brandy. 'No hospital for +me! I can walk as well as anybody. And now, sir,' he said, speaking to +his former opponent, 'am I to consider myself vanquished, and am I to go +with you as your prisoner?' The other regarded him without answering, +and for the moment Almia, too, was lost in reflection." + +At this point John Gayther, who had been in wars, began to wonder, even +if soldiers in these days should engage in single combat with long +swords, how one of them could be wounded in the left arm; but he did not +interrupt the story. + +"The first thing that shaped itself clearly in Almia's mind was the fear +of being left alone in these woods. Now that she was so near the edge of +the battle, there was no knowing what she might meet with next. The +soldier who had conquered now spoke. 'Yes, sir,' said he; 'you are my +prisoner, and it is my duty to take you to my regiment and deliver you +to my officers. I am sorry to do so, but such are the laws of war.' The +other soldier bowed his head, simply remarking, 'Proceed; I will follow +you.'" + +"If I should take a prisoner," thought John Gayther, "I should make him +walk in front of me." + +"Then Almia stepped forward; she had made up her mind, and she was very +resolute. 'Gentlemen,' said she, 'this cannot be. We are nearing the +contending forces; there may be stragglers; and I do not wish to be left +alone. You are both my prisoners.' The two soldiers looked at her in +utter amazement. 'Yes,' said Almia, firmly; 'I mean what I say. I am, it +is true, a nurse; but I am a bushwhacker nurse, perfectly independent, +and free to act according to the dictates of my judgment. You are my +prisoners; and if one of you attempts to escape it will be the duty of +the other to assist in arresting his enemy. Do not smile; I am armed.' +And with this she took from her pocket the pistol with the five barrels. +The two soldiers stopped smiling. 'Yes,' continued Almia; 'I would not +wish to do anything of the kind, but if either of you attempts to escape +I will call upon him to halt, and if he does not do it I will fire upon +his legs while the other soldier attacks him with his sword. You are +enemies, and each one of you is bound by his soldiery oaths to prevent +the escape of the other. I am absolutely impartial. If either of you +should be wounded I would dress his wounds and nurse him carefully +without asking to which side he belongs. But if either of you attempts +to escape I will, as I said, fire at his legs without asking to which +side he belongs.' + +"The soldier with the brown hair looked at the one with the black hair. +'If I should attempt to escape,' said he, 'would you assist this lady in +restraining me?' 'I would,' answered the other. 'Then I would do the +same by you,' said the first speaker. 'Miss, I am your prisoner.' 'And I +also,' said the black-haired soldier." + +"Well, well," said John Gayther, who had not cut a pea-stick for the +last fifteen minutes; "I suppose you could not tell by their uniforms +which one of them belonged to your side--I mean the young lady could not +tell?" + +"Almia had no side," replied the Daughter of the House, "and the +soldiers wore no coats, for they had thrown them aside in the heat of +the combat; and she purposely took no note whatever of their trousers. +She was determined to be absolutely impartial. 'Now, then,' said Almia +to her prisoners, 'I am going to get just as close to the battle as I +can. I am delighted to have you with me, not only because you can remove +wounded prisoners to shady places where I can nurse them, but because +you will be a protection to me. Should an unruly soldier appear from +either army he will always be met by an enemy and by me.' + +"The three now pressed on, for there was no time to lose. The roar of +the battle was increasing; reports of musketry as well as cannon rent +the air, and the sharp whistling of rifle-balls could frequently be +heard. Reaching a wood road, they followed this for some distance, Almia +in advance, when suddenly they came upon a man sitting on the trunk of a +fallen tree. He had a little blank-book in his hand, and apparently he +was making calculations in it with a lead-pencil. At the sound of +approaching footsteps he rose to his feet, still holding the open book +in his hand. He was a moderately tall man, a little round-shouldered, +and about fifty years old. He wore a soldier's hat and coat, but his +clothes were so covered with dust it was impossible to perceive to which +army he belonged. He had a bushy beard, and that was also very dusty. He +wore spectacles, and had a very pleasant smile, and looked from one to +the other of the new-comers with much interest. 'I hope,' said he, +speaking to the soldiers, 'that this young woman is not your prisoner.' +'No, sir,' said Almia, before the others had time to reply; 'they are my +prisoners.' The dusty man looked at her in amazement. 'Yes,' said the +man with the black hair; 'she speaks the truth. We are her prisoners.' + +"Rapidly Almia explained the situation, and when she had finished, the +stranger nodded his head three or four times, and put his blank-book in +his pocket. 'Well, well, well,' said he, 'this is what might be expected +from the tendency of the times! There are sixteen thousand two hundred +and forty more women than men in this State, and many of them are single +and have to do something. But a bushwhacker nurse! Truly I never thought +of anything like that!' + +"'And you?' asked Almia. 'I think it is right that you should give some +account of yourself. I do not ask your name, nor do I wish to know which +cause you have espoused. But as you appear to be a soldier I am curious +to know how you happen to be sitting by the roadside making +calculations.' 'I am a soldier,' answered the dusty man, 'but, under +the circumstances,'--regarding very closely the trousers of Almia's two +companions,--'I am very glad you do not want to know to which side I +belong. The facts of the case are these: I am an Exceptional Pedestrian. +I am also a very earnest student of social aspects considered in their +relation to topography. Yesterday, when my army halted at noon, I set +out to make some investigations in connection with my favorite research, +and when I returned, much later than I expected, my army had gone on, +and I have not yet been able to come up to it, although I have walked a +great many miles.' + +"'I should say,' remarked the soldier with the black hair, 'that you are +a deserter.' 'No,' replied the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'I did not desert +my army; it deserted me. And now I wish to say that I have become very +much interested in you all, and, if there is no objection, I should like +to join your company for the present.' 'I have no objection myself,' +said Almia, 'but what do you say?' she asked, addressing the two +soldiers. 'I am afraid, miss,' replied the man with the brown hair, who +had recognized some peculiarities in the fashion of the stranger's dusty +clothes, 'that if he attempted to leave us I would be obliged to shoot +him as a deserter.' 'And I,' said the other, 'would be obliged to do the +same thing, because he is my enemy.' 'Under these circumstances,' said +the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'I beg to insist that I be allowed to attach +myself to your party.' + +"Almia felt she had reason to be proud. Here were three military men who +were in her power, and who could not get away from her. They were like +three mice tied together by the tails, each pulling in a different +direction and all remaining in the place where they had been dropped. + +"The party now pushed forward toward the battle's edge. 'If glory is +your object,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian to Almia, 'it would have +been better if you had joined a regular corps of nurses. Then any +meritorious action on your part would have been noted and reported to +the authorities, and your good conduct would have been recognized. But +now you can expect nothing of the kind.' 'I did not come for the sake of +glory,' said Almia, flushing slightly; 'I came to succor the suffering, +and to do it without trammels.' + +"'Trammels are often very desirable,' said he; 'they enable us to +proceed to a greater distance along the path of duty than we would be +apt to go if we could wander as we please from side to side.' + +"Almia was about to reply somewhat sharply to this remark when, +suddenly, they heard a sound which made their nerves tingle. It was the +clang of sabres and the thunder of countless hoofs. They were in a mass +of tangled underbrush, and they peeped out into a wide roadway and +beheld the approach of a regiment of cavalry. On came this tidal wave of +noble horsemen; it reached the spot where Almia's burning eyes glowed +through the crevices of the foliage. Wildly galloping, cavalryman after +cavalryman passed her by. The eyes of the horses flashed fire, and their +nostrils were widely distended as if they smelt the battle from afar. +Their powerful necks were curved; their hoofs spurned the echoing earth; +and their riders, with flashing blades waved high above their heads, +shouted aloud their battle-cry, while their tall plumes floated madly +in the surging air. And, above the thunder of the hoofs, and the +clinking and the clanking of the bits and chains, and the creaking of +their leathern saddles, rose high the clarion voice of their leader, +urging them on to victory or to death. + +"Almia had never been so excited in her life; she could scarcely +breathe. This was the grandeur of glorious war! Oh, how willingly would +she have mounted a fleet steed and have followed those valiant horsemen +as they thundered away into the distance!" + +John Gayther had seen many a body of cavalry on the march, but he had +never beheld anything like this. + +"After her excitement Almia felt somewhat weak; she needed food; and +when they had crossed the roadway they stopped to rest under the shade +of a spreading oak. Unfortunately the soldiers had brought no rations +with them, and Almia had only some Albert biscuit, which she did not +wish to eat because she had brought them to relieve the faintness of +some wounded soldier. 'If you will permit us,' said the soldier with the +black hair, 'we two will go out and forage. Each of us will see to it +that the other returns.' + +"While they were gone the Exceptional Pedestrian conversed with Almia. +'During my investigations of the social aspects of this region,' he +said, 'I put many miles between myself and the army to which I belong, +but by closely adhering to certain geological and topographical +principles I knew I should eventually find it. In fact, when you met +with me I was making some final calculations which would not fail to +show me where I should find my comrades. There is no better way to +discover the position of an army than by observing the inclination of +the geological strata. In this section, for instance, the general trend +of the beds of limestone and quartz indicates the direction of the +running streams, and these naturally flow into the valleys and plains, +and the land, being well watered, is more fertile; consequently it was +soonest cleared by the settlers, while the higher ground surrounding it +is still encumbered by timber growth. An army naturally desires open +ground for its operations, for large bodies of cavalry and artillery +cannot deploy to advantage through wooded districts. Therefore, if we +follow this roadway, which, as you see, slightly descends to the +northeast, we shall soon come within sight of the opposing forces.' + +"'But,' said Almia, 'the roar of the battle comes over from that way, +which must be the northwest.' + +"'That may be,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'but the principle +remains.' + +"The two soldiers now returned, bearing two large apple-pies resting +upon two palm-leaf fans. 'These were all we could procure,' said the +brown-haired soldier, 'and the woman would not sell her plates.' The +pies were rapidly divided into quarters, and the hungry party began to +eat. 'It is true,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'that the character +of the apple indicates the elevation above sea-level of the soil in +which it grew. The people who grew these apples would have done much +better if they had devoted themselves to the cultivation of the +huckleberry. These they could have sold, and then have bought much +better apples grown in the plains. I also notice that the flour of which +this pastry is made was ground from the wheat of this region, which is +always largely mixed with cockle. If the people would give up growing +wheat for three or four years, cockle would probably disappear, and they +would then have flour of a much higher grade.' Almia and the two +soldiers could not help smiling when they perceived that while the +Exceptional Pedestrian was making these criticisms he ate three quarters +of a pie, which was more than his share. + +"When the pies had been consumed the little party pressed forward, but +not to the northeast, for the two soldiers insisted that the battle +raged in the northwest, and they would not go in any other direction, +although the Exceptional Pedestrian endeavored to overwhelm them with +arguments to prove that he was right. The din of the battle, however, +soon proved that he was wrong. Penetrating an extensive thicket, they +reached its outer edge, and there gazed upon a far-stretching +battle-field. + +"Now this would be the place," said the Daughter of the House, "for a +fine description, not only of the battle-field, but of the battle which +was raging upon it; and, if I ever write this story, I shall tell how +one army was posted on one side of a wide valley, while the other army +was posted on the other, and how regiments and battalions and +detachments from each side came down into the beautiful plain and fought +and fired and struggled until the grass was stained with blood; and how +the cannon roared from the hills and mowed down whole battalions of +infantry below; how brave soldiers fell on every side, wounded and dead, +while men with stretchers hurried to carry them away from beneath the +hoofs of the charging cavalry. I would tell how the carnage increased +every moment; how the yells of fury grew louder; and how the roar of +the cannon became more and more terrible. + +"But all I can say now is that it was a spectacle to freeze the blood. +Poor Almia could scarcely retain consciousness as she gazed upon the +awful scenes of woe and suffering which spread out beneath her. And she +could do nothing! Her labors would be useful only in cases of isolated +woundings. If she were to mingle in the fray she would perish in the +general slaughter; and if she were to go and offer assistance in the +hospitals she would find herself but as a drop in the bucket, her +efforts unrecognized, even if she were not driven away as an interloper. +Besides, she did not know where the hospitals were. + +"As she gazed upon this scene of horror she perceived an officer, +mounted upon a noble charger and followed by several horsemen, take +a position upon a hillock not far from the spot where she and her +companions were concealed. From this point of vantage the officer, who +was evidently a general, could perceive the whole battle-field." + +"And get himself picked off by a sharp-shooter," thought John Gayther, +but he did not interrupt. + +"The brown-haired soldier trembled with emotion, and whispered to Almia, +'That is my Commander-in-Chief.' Even without this information Almia +would have known that the stalwart figure upon the pawing steed was an +officer in high command; for, after speaking a few words to one of his +companions, the latter galloped away into the valley toward the right, +and very soon the battle raged more fiercely in that direction, and +the booming of the cannon and the cracking of the rifles was more +continuous. Then another officer was sent galloping to the left, and in +this direction, too, the battle grew fiercer and the carnage increased. +Courier after courier was sent away, here and there, until, at last, the +commander remained with but one faithful adherent. Since his arrival +upon the hillock the horrors of the bloody contest had doubled, and +Almia could scarcely endure to look into the valley. + +"'Is there no way,' she said in a gasping whisper, 'of stopping this? +These two armies are like hordes of demons! Humanity should not permit +it!' + +"'Humanity has nothing to do with it,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian. +'A declaration of war eliminates humanity as a social factor. Such is +the usage of nations.' + +"'I don't care for the usage of nations,' said Almia. 'It is vile!' + +"Now something very important happened in the battle-field. The +Commander-in-Chief rose in his stirrups and peered afar. Then, suddenly +turning, he sent his only remaining follower with clattering hoofs to +carry a message. 'He is making it worse!' declared Almia. 'Now more +brave men will fall; more blood will flow.' + +"'Of course,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian. 'He gives no thought to +the falling of brave men or the flowing of blood. Upon his commands +depends the fate of the battle!' + +"'And without his commands?' asked Almia, trembling in every fibre. + +"The Exceptional Pedestrian shrugged his shoulders and slightly smiled. +'Without them,' he said, 'there would soon be an end to the battle. He +is the soul, the directing spirit, of his army. Unless he directs, the +contest cannot be carried on.' + +"Almia sprang to her feet, not caring whether she was seen or not. She +looked over the battle-field, and her heart was sick within her. Not +only did she see the carnage which desecrated the beautiful plain, but +she saw, far, far away, the mothers and sisters of those who were dead, +dying, and wounded; she saw the whiteness of their faces when their +feverish eyes should scan the list of dead and wounded; she saw them +groan and fall senseless when they read the names of loved ones. She +could bear no more. + +"Suddenly she turned. 'Gentlemen,' she said, 'follow me.' And without +another word she stepped out into the open field and walked rapidly +toward the Commander-in-Chief, whose eyes were fixed so steadfastly on +the battle that he did not notice her approach. The three soldiers gazed +at her in amazement, and then they followed her. They could not +understand her mad action, but they could not desert her. + +"Almia stopped at the horse's head. With her left hand she seized his +bridle, and in a clear, loud voice she exclaimed, 'Commander-in-Chief, +you are my prisoner!' There was no trembling, no nervousness now; body +and soul, she was as hard as steel. The general looked down upon her in +petrified bewilderment. He gazed at the three soldiers, and again looked +down at her. 'Girl!' he thundered, 'what do you mean? Let go my horse!' +As he said these words he gave his bridle a jerk; but the noble steed +paid no attention to his master. He was not afraid of girls. In former +days he had learned to like them; to him a girl meant sugar and savory +clover-tops. He bent his head toward Almia, and instantly her hand was +in her pocket and she drew forth an Albert biscuit. The horse, which had +not tasted food since morning, eagerly took it from her hand, and +crunched it in delight. + +"The Commander-in-Chief now became furious, and his hand sought the hilt +of his sword. If Almia had been a man he would have cut her down. +'Girl!' he cried, 'what do you mean? Are you insane? You men, remove her +instantly.' + +"Then Almia spoke up bravely, never loosening her hold upon the bridle +of the horse. 'I am not insane,' she said. 'I am a nurse, but not a +common one; I am a bushwhacker nurse, and that means I am entirely +independent. These men are under my control. They are from the opposing +armies, and compel each other to obey my commands. I have determined to +stop this blood and slaughter. If you do not quietly surrender to me I +will fire at one of your legs, and call upon the soldier who is your +enemy to attack you with his sword. His duty to his country will compel +him to do so.' + +"The general, who was now so infuriated he could not speak, jerked +savagely at the reins; but Almia had just given the noble animal another +biscuit, and his nose was seeking the pocket from which it came. The +horse was conquered! + +"At this moment a rifle-ball shrieked wildly overhead. The enemy had +perceived the little party upon the hillock. The three soldiers, who +stood a little below, shouted to Almia to come down or she would be +killed. She instantly obeyed this warning, but she did not release her +hold upon the general's bridle. She started down the hillock away from +the battle, and the horse, who willingly subjected himself to her +guidance, trotted beside her. The general did not attempt to restrain +him, for he had been startled by the rifle-shots. + +"A little below the edge of the hill Almia stopped, and, turning toward +the Commander-in-Chief, she said, 'You might as well surrender. I do not +wish to injure you, but if you compel me to do so, I must.' And with +this she drew the pistol from her pocket. + +"'Is that thing loaded?' exclaimed the general. + +"'It is,' answered Almia, 'and with five balls.' + +"'Please put it back in your pocket,' said the officer, who, for the +first time during the terrible battle, showed signs of fear. 'A girl +with a pistol,' said he, 'makes me shudder. Why do you stand there?' he +shouted to the three men. 'Come here and take her away.' + +"But they did not obey, and the black-haired soldier stepped forward. +'You are my enemy, sir,' he said, 'and I am bound to assist in your +capture if I can. There are two of your own men here, but only one of +them is armed.' + +"As he spoke these words a great shell struck the top of the hillock and +blew the earth and little stones in every direction. Without a word the +whole party retired rapidly to an open space behind a large overhanging +rock. The general was very much disturbed. The enemy must be getting +nearer. He almost forgot Almia. + +"'Look here,' he cried to the brown-haired soldier; 'creep back to the +top of the hillock and tell me how the battle goes.' With furrowed brows +he waited, while Almia fed his horse. The brown-haired soldier came +quickly back. 'Tell me,' cried the general, without waiting for the +other to speak, 'has my cavalry made its grand charge, and cut off the +approach of the left wing of the enemy?' + +"'No, sir,' replied the soldier, touching his cap; 'it did not charge in +time, and it is now all mixed up with the artillery, which is rapidly +retiring.' + +"'What!' cried the general, 'retiring?' + +"'Yes, sir,' said the soldier; 'I am sorry to say that our whole army is +retreating, pell-mell, as fast as it can go. The enemy is in active +pursuit, and its left wing is now advancing up this side of the valley. +In less than twenty minutes the retreat of our cavalry and artillery +will be cut off by the hills, and the infantry is already scattering +itself far and wide.' + +"'I must go!' shouted the general, drawing his sword from its scabbard. +'I must rally my forces! I must--' + +"'No, general,' said the brown-haired soldier; 'that is impossible. If +you were now to attempt to approach our army you would throw yourself +into the ranks of the enemy.' + +"The Commander-in-Chief dropped the bridle from his listless hands, and +bowed his head. 'Lost!' he murmured. 'Lost! And this was the decisive +battle of the war! If I had been able to order my cavalry to charge, +the enemy's left wing would have been cut from their main body. But +for you,' he continued, fixing his eyes upon Almia with a look of +unutterable sadness, 'I should have done it. You have caused me to lose +this battle.' + +"Almia drew herself up, her heart swelling with emotion. This was the +proudest moment of her life--prouder by far than she had ever expected +any moment of her existence to be. 'Yes,' she said; 'that is what I did. +And if this was the decisive battle of the war, then will follow peace; +blood will cease to flow, widows and orphans will cease to suffer, and +men who have been fighting one another like tigers without really +understanding why they sought one another's lives will again meet as +friends.' + +"'There is a great deal of sense in what you say,' exclaimed the +Exceptional Pedestrian. 'I admit I am a soldier, but I do not approve of +war. The statistics of social aspects prove--' + +"He was interrupted by the brown-haired soldier, who remarked: 'It would +be well for us to retire, for doubtless the enemy will soon occupy the +ridge.' + +"The general took no notice; apparently he was lost in thought. + +"'Excuse me, sir,' said the brown-haired man, 'but you must seek a place +of safety.' + +"The general raised his head. 'Is there a road to the west?' he asked. +'I must take a roundabout way, and join my army, and share its fortunes, +whatever they may be.' + +"'Yes, sir,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian; 'if you skirt these woods, +and follow the upward trend of the limestone- and quartz-beds, and then +keep along the crest of the mountain for about eight miles, you will +come to the village of Kirksville, where our retreating army will no +doubt halt for the night.' + +"The general said no more. He turned his horse, whose bridle Almia had +now released, and, casting another look of sadness upon the erect form +of the bushwhacker nurse, he sped away. + +"I will not say anything more of the general, except that after +following for half an hour the directions given to him by the +Exceptional Pedestrian, he rode at full speed into the ranks of the +enemy, and was obliged to surrender. No evil happened to him, however, +for the war was soon ended, and he was released. + +"'Now,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, who was in no way a traitor, +but only a person accustomed to making mistakes, 'the day is drawing to +a close, and we must hurry away.' + +"No one objected, and the three soldiers accompanied Almia back over the +way she had taken when she walked to the battle-field. A little after +eight o'clock they arrived at the main road, and there Almia found her +cab waiting for her. + +"'I will probably not see you again,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, +shaking her very cordially by the hand; 'for as the war is now +practically over, and my regiment probably scattered, I shall go West. +There are many features of our social aspects out there which I wish to +study. But before I leave you, miss, I wish to thank you for having made +yourself so highly instrumental in bringing this terrible and inhuman +war to a close.' + +"'Good-by,' said Almia. 'But I think it may be said that it was an +Albert biscuit which gave us peace. If that horse had not been used to +being fed by girls, my efforts might have come to nothing.' + +"When the two younger soldiers bade good-by to Almia they did not say +much, but it seemed to her they felt a good deal. At any rate, she knew +she felt a good deal. She had known them but a little while, but they +had come into her life in such a strange way; for a time she had ruled +their destinies, and they had been so good to her! They had stood by +her, regardless of everything but her wishes; and then, they were both +so handsome, such gallant soldiers. She took their hands, she gazed into +their honest faces, a few words of farewell were spoken, and then they +helped her into the cab, the door was shut, and she drove away. + +"As she turned and looked out of the little window in the back of the +cab she saw one of them gazing after her; but the dusk of the evening +had come on so rapidly she could not be certain which one of them it +was. At a turn in the road she sank into her seat. She was tired; she +was faint; and, instinctively thrusting her hand into her pocket, she +found there one Albert biscuit which had been left. She drew it out, +but when she looked at it, it seemed to her as though it would be a +sacrilege to eat it; its companions had done so much for humanity. But +she did eat it, and felt stronger. + +"For the rest of the drive she sat and wondered and wondered which it +was who had looked back, the brown-haired soldier or the black-haired +one. Then she tried to think which she would like it to be, but she +could not make up her mind. + +"Before parting with the soldiers Almia had exchanged cards with them, +and they had assured her they would let her know how fortune should +treat them. Day after day she watched and waited for the letter-carrier; +but a fortnight passed, and he brought her nothing--at least, nothing +she cared for. + +"At last a letter came. It was from one of the soldiers; she knew that +by the address and its general appearance, but of course she did not +know the handwriting. She held it in her hand and gazed upon it, and her +heart beat fast as she asked herself the question, 'Which one has +written first?' + +"Presently she opened it. It was from the brown-haired soldier. Her face +flushed and her heart said to her, 'This is right; this is what you +hoped for.' Then she read the letter, which was long. It told of many +things; and, among others, it informed Almia how grateful were the +writer's wife and two little girls for the kindness she had shown the +husband and father. She had dressed his wounds; she had saved him from +being made a prisoner. For the rest of their lives they would never +forget her. + +"The letter dropped from Almia's hand; she had received a shock, and for +a time she could not recover from it. She sat still, looking out into +the nothingness of the distant sky. Then her face flushed again, and her +heart told her it had made a mistake. She was well pleased that this was +the one who had written that he was married. + +"Hour after hour and day after day Almia became more and more convinced +that she was right. It was the black-haired soldier on whom her thoughts +were constantly fixed. And no wonder. In the first place, he was the +better soldier of the two. She hated war; but, if men must fight, it is +glorious to conquer, and she had seen his quick and practised blade lay +low his enemy. The thought of his power made her heart swell. Moreover, +he had stood by her in the moment of greatest peril; he it was who had +said to the Commander-in-Chief, armed and mounted though he was, that +he would attack him if her commands were not obeyed. Then, too, he was +a little taller than the other, and handsomer; his chest was broad, he +stood erect. + +"Day after day she watched and waited, but no letter came. At last, +however, there was a ring at the bell, and the black-haired soldier was +announced. By a supreme effort Almia controlled herself; she bade her +heart be still, and she went down to meet him. She was dressed in white; +there were flowers in her hair and in her belt. She could not help +wondering what he would think of the difference between her and the girl +he had known as a bushwhacker nurse. + +"When her eyes fell upon him and their hands met she was the one who had +the right to be the more amazed. She had thought him handsome before; he +was glorious now. Arrayed in fashionable, well-fitting clothes, wearing +only a mustache, and with his hair properly cut, he was a vision of +manly beauty. Instantly, without any volition on her part, her heart +went out to him; she knew that it belonged to him. + +"For twenty minutes, perhaps a little longer, Almia sat with the man she +loved; and as she listened to him, saying but little herself, colder and +colder grew the heart she had given him. Soon she discovered that he +looked upon her as a young lady in whom he took an interest on account +of the adventures they had had together, but still as a chance +acquaintance. He had come to see her because he had happened to be in +the town in which she lived. When he went away she did not ask him to +come again, and it was plain that he did not expect such an invitation. +The few remarks he made about his future plans precluded the +supposition that they might meet again. He was pleasant, he was polite, +he was even kind; but when he departed he left her with a heart of +stone. There was now nothing in the world for which she cared to live. +She despised herself for such a feeling, but existence was a blank. She +had loved; perhaps, unwittingly, she had shown her love; and now by day +and by night she moaned and mourned that the bushwhacker nurse had ever +met the two brave soldiers with their glittering swords--that she had +not passed them by and gone out into the battle-field to be laid low by +some chance bullet." + +For some little time the Daughter of the House had been speaking in a +voice which grew lower and lower, and now she stopped. There were tears +in her eyes, brought there by the story she herself was telling. John +Gayther dropped his pea-stick and leaned forward. + +"Now miss," said he, "I really think your story is not quite right. You +must have forgotten something--a good many things. Think it over, and I +am sure you will agree with me that that is not the true ending." + +She looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?" she asked. + +"I mean this," replied the gardener. "If you will put your mind to it, +and seriously consider the whole situation, I believe you will see, just +as well as I do, that it really turned out very differently from the way +you have just told it. That black-haired soldier did not go away in +twenty minutes. It must have been somebody else at some other time who +went away so soon. It would have been simply impossible for him to have +done it. The longer he sat and looked at Miss Almia, the more he gazed +into her beautiful eyes, the more fervently he must have thought that if +it depended upon him he would never leave her, never, never again. And +she, as she gazed into his handsome features, thrilling with the emotion +he could not hide, must have known what was passing in his heart. It did +not even need the words he soon spoke to make her understand she was the +one thing in the world he loved, and that, in spite of sickness and +obstacles of all sorts, he had come that day to tell her so. And when +they had sat together for hours, and at last he was obliged to go, and +they stood together, his impassioned eyes looking down into her orbs of +heavenly blue, you know what must have happened, miss, now, don't you, +really? And isn't this the true, true end of the story?" + +The eyes of the Daughter of the House were sparkling; a little flush had +come upon her cheeks, and a smile upon her lips. + +"I do really believe that is the true ending, John," said she; "but how +did you ever come to know so much about such things?" + +"I can't tell you that, miss," said the gardener; "but sometimes I +notice things I cannot see, as when I look upon a flower bud not yet +open and know exactly what is inside of it." + +With the smile still on her lips and the flush still on her cheeks, the +Daughter of the House walked away through the garden. She had determined +to make her story end sadly, but John Gayther had known her heart better +than she knew it herself. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + JOHN GAYTHER + + AND IS CALLED + + THE LADY IN THE BOX + + + + +III + +THE LADY IN THE BOX + + +John Gayther was busy putting the finishing touches to a bed in which he +intended to sow his latest planting of bush-beans, or string-beans, or +snaps, as they are called in different parts of the country. These were +very choice seeds which had been sent to him by a friend abroad, and, +consequently, John wanted to get them into the ground as soon as +possible. But when he saw entering the garden not only the Daughter of +the House but also her mother, the Mistress of the House, a sudden +conviction shot through him that there would be no beans planted that +morning. + +The elder of these two ladies was not very elderly, and she was +handsomer than her daughter. She was pleasant to look upon and pleasant +to talk to, but she had a mind of her own; John Gayther had found that +out long before. She was very fond of flowers, and there were many beds +of them which were planted and treated according to her directions and +fancies. These beds did not, in fact, form part of the gardener's +garden; they belonged to her, and nobody else had anything to say about +them. Many things grew there which were not often found in gardens: +weeds, for instance, from foreign countries, and some from near-by +regions, which the Mistress of the House thought might be made to grow +into comely blossoms if they were given the chance. Here she picked and +planted, and put in and pulled out, according to her own will; and her +pulling out was often done after a fashion which would have discouraged +any other gardener but John Gayther, who had long since learned that +the Mistress of the House knew what she wanted, and that it would be +entirely useless for him to trouble himself about her methods. + +The gardener was not altogether happy when he saw these two ladies +coming toward him. He felt sure that they were coming for a story, for +when the elder lady came to the garden it was not her habit to bring +her daughter with her; and neither of them was likely, on ordinary +occasions, to walk along in a straightforward way, loitering neither +here nor there. Their manner and their pace denoted a purpose. + +John Gayther had never dug into a garden-bed as earnestly and anxiously +as he now dug into his mind. These ladies were coming for a story. The +younger one had doubtless told her mother that there had been stories +told in the garden, and now another one was wanted, and it was more than +likely that he was expected to tell it. But he did not feel at all easy +about telling a story to the Mistress of the House. He knew her so well, +and the habits of her mind, that he was fully assured if his fancies +should blossom too luxuriantly she would ruthlessly pull them up and +throw them on the path. Still he believed she would like fancies, and +highly colored ones; but he must be very careful about them. They must +be harmonious; they must not interfere with each other; they might be +rare and wonderful, but he must not give them long Latin names which +meant nothing. + +One thing which troubled him was the difficulty of using the first +person when telling a story to the Mistress of the House. He could tell +his stories best in that fashion, but he did not believe that this +hearer would be satisfied with them; she would not be likely to give +them enough belief to make them interesting. He had a story all ready to +tell to the Daughter of the House, for he had been sure she would want +one some day soon, and this one, told in a manner which would please +him, he thought would please her; but it was very different with her +mother. He must be careful. + +When the two ladies came to the bed where the beans were to be planted, +the gardener found that he had not mistaken their errand. + +"John," said the Mistress of the House, "I hear you tell a very good +story, and I want you to tell me one. Let us find a shady place." + +There was a pretty summer-house on the upper terrace, a shady place +where the air was cool and the view was fine; and there they went: but +there was no need of John Gayther's making any pretence of trimming up +pea-sticks this time. + +"I have a story," said he, his stool at a respectful distance from the +two ladies, who were seated on a bench outside the little house. + +"Is it about yourself?" asked the Daughter of the House. + +"No, miss, not this time," he answered. + +"I am sorry for that," she said, "for I like to think of people doing +the things they tell about. But I suppose we can't have that every +time." + +"Oh, no," said her mother; "and if John has an interesting story about +anybody else, let him tell it." + +The gardener began promptly. "The name of this story is 'The Lady in the +Box,'" said he, "and, with the exception of the lady, the principal +personage in it was a young man who lived in Florence toward the end of +the last century." + +"And how did you come to know the story?" asked the Daughter of the +House. "Has it ever been told before?" + +Now there was need to assert himself, if John Gayther did not wish to +lose grace with his hearers, and he was equal to the occasion. "It has +never been printed," said he, quietly but boldly. "It came to me in the +most straightforward way, step by step." + +"Very good," said the Mistress of the House; "I like a story to come in +that way." + +"The young man, whose name was Jaqui," continued John Gayther, "was of +good parts, but not in very good circumstances. He was a student of +medicine, and was the assistant of a doctor, which means that he did +all the hard work, such as attending to the shop, mixing the drugs, and +even going out to see very poor patients in bad weather. Jaqui's +employer--master, in fact--was Dr. Torquino, an elderly man of much +reputation in his town. The doctor expected Jaqui to be his successor, +and as the years went on the younger man began to visit patients in good +circumstances who fell sick in fine weather. At last Dr. Torquino made a +bargain with Jaqui by which the latter was to pay certain sums of money +to the old man's heirs, and then the stock and good-will of the +establishment were formally made over to him; and, shortly afterwards, +the old doctor died. But before his death he told Jaqui everything that +it was necessary for him to know in regard to the property and the +business to which he had succeeded. + +[Illustration: The gardener began promptly.] + +"Torquino's house was a very good one, consisting of three floors. On the +ground floor were the shop, the private office, and the living-rooms. The +old doctor and Jaqui lodged on the third floor. The second floor was very +handsomely furnished, but was not then occupied--at least, not in the +ordinary way. It belonged to Dr. Paltravi, the old doctor's former +partner; a somewhat younger man, and married. He had been greatly +attached to his wife, and had furnished these rooms to suit her fancy. He +was a scientific man, and much more devoted to making curious experiments +than he was to the ordinary practice of medicine and surgery. In a small +room on this floor, at the very back of the house, was Donna Paltravi, in +a box." + +"Was she dead?" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. + +"It was believed by Dr. Torquino that she was not, but he could not be +sure of it." + +"And her husband?" asked the elder lady. "Was he dead?" + +"No," replied the gardener; "at least, there was no reason to suppose +so. About forty years before the time of this story he had left +Florence, and this was the way of it: Donna Paltravi was a young and +handsome woman, but her health was not as satisfactory as it might have +been, for she had a tendency to fall into swoons, and to remain in +them, sometimes for many hours, coming out of a trance as lively as +before she went into it. Now this disposition had a powerful effect upon +her husband, and he studied her very closely, with an interest which +almost devoured the other powers of his mind. He experimented upon her, +and became so expert that he not only could bring her out of her trances +whenever he chose, but he could keep her in them; and this he did, +sometimes as long as a week, in order to prove to himself that he could +do it." + +"Shame upon him!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. + +"Never mind," said her mother; "let John go on." + +"Well," continued the gardener, "the old doctor told Jaqui a great many +things about Paltravi and his wife, and how she came to be at that time +in the box. Paltravi had conceived a great scheme, one which he had +believed might have immense influence on the happiness of the world. He +determined that when his wife next went into a trance he would try to +keep her so for fifty years, and then revive her, in the midst of her +youth and beauty, to enjoy the world as she should find it." + +"There was nothing new about that," said the Mistress of the House. +"That is a very old story, and the thing has been written about again +and again and again." + +"That is very true, madam," answered John Gayther, "and Dr. Paltravi had +heard many such stories, but most of them were founded upon traditions +and myths and the vaguest kind of hearsay, and some were no more than +the fancies of story-tellers. But the doctor wanted to work on solid +and substantial ground, and he believed that his wife's exceptional +opportunities should not be sacrificed." + +"Sacrificed!" exclaimed the Daughter of the House. "I like that!" + +"Of course I will not attempt to explain the doctor's motives, or try +to excuse him," said the gardener. "I can only tell what he did. He +protracted one of his wife's trances, and when it had continued for a +month he determined to keep it up for half a century, if it could be +done; and he went earnestly to work for the purpose. The old doctor had +not altogether approved of his partner's action, but I don't believe he +disapproved very much, for he also possessed a good deal of the spirit +of scientific investigation. When everything had been arranged, and the +lady had been placed in a large and handsome box which had been designed +with great care by her husband and constructed under his careful +supervision, she was carried into the little room which had been her +boudoir; and there her husband watched and guarded her for nearly a +year. In all that time there was not the slightest change in her so far +as mortal eye could see, but there came a change over her husband. He +grew uneasy and restless, and could not sleep at night; and, at last, he +told Dr. Torquino he would have to go away; he could not stay any longer +and see his beautiful wife lying motionless before him. The desire to +revive her had become so great he found it impossible to withstand it, +and therefore, in the interest of science and for the advantage of the +world, he must put it out of his power to interfere with the success of +his own great experiment. + +"He wrote down on parchment everything that was necessary for the person +to know who had charge of this great treasure, and he made Dr. Torquino +swear to guard and to protect Donna Paltravi for forty-nine years, if +he should live so long, and, if he did not, that he would deliver his +charge into the hands of some worthy and reliable person. If, at the end +of the lady's half-century of inanimation, Paltravi should not make his +appearance, on account of having died, (for nothing else would keep him +away), then the person in charge of the lady was to animate her in the +manner which was fully and minutely described on the parchment. Paltravi +then departed, and since that time nothing had been heard of him. + +"When Jaqui came into possession of Dr. Torquino's house, he felt he +owned the contents of only two floors, and that the second floor, +especially the little room in the rear, was a great responsibility which +he did not desire at all, and of which he would have rid himself if +Dr. Torquino had not made him swear that he would guard it sacredly +for the ten years which still remained of the intended period of +inanimation. + +"He had seen the lady in the box, for the old doctor had taken him into +her room, and they had removed the top of the box and had looked at +her through the great plate of glass which covered her. She was very +beautiful and richly dressed, and seemed as if she were merely asleep. +But, in spite of her beauty and the interest which attached to her, he +wished very much somebody else had her to take care of. Such thoughts, +however, were of no use; she went with the business and the property, +and he had nothing to say about it. + +"Jaqui did not have a very good time after the old doctor's death," +continued John Gayther. "It was not even as good as he had expected it +to be. For nearly fifteen years he had been living in that house with +Dr. Torquino, and in all that time the lady in the box had never +troubled him; but now she did trouble him. Various legal persons came +to attend to the transfer of the property, and, although they found +everything all straight and right so far as the old doctor's possessions +were concerned, they were not so well satisfied in regard to the +contents of the second floor, some of them thinking the government +should have something to say in regard to the property of a man who had +been away for forty years; but as Paltravi had made Torquino his heir +when he left Florence, and Jaqui had the papers to show, this matter was +settled. But, for all that, Jaqui was troubled, and it was about the box +of the lady. It was such a peculiar-looking box that several questions +were asked as to its contents; and when Jaqui boldly asserted that it +contained anatomical preparations, he was asked why it happened to be in +that handsome little room. But by the help of money and his generally +good reputation Jaqui got rid of the legal people. + +"But after this he had to face the neighbors. These heard of the box, +and it revived memories, in the minds of some of the elders, of strange +stories about Dr. Paltravi. His wife had died several times, according +to some of them, and she had at last been carried to her native town in +Lombardy for burial. But nobody knew the name of that town, and there +were one or two persons who said she never had been buried, but that her +husband had preserved her skeleton, and had had it gilded, he was so +very fond of her. Jaqui had a good deal of trouble with these people, +who had never dared to trouble old Dr. Torquino with their idle +curiosity, for he was a man with a high temper and would stand no +meddling. + +"But when the neighbors had ceased to talk, at least to him, there came +a third class of troublers, worse than either of the others. These were +some scientific people who long ago had heard of the experiment +Dr. Paltravi had been making with his wife. Several of these wrote to +Jaqui, and two of them came to see him. These insisted on looking at the +lady in the box, and Jaqui was obliged to show her. The two scientists +were very much interested--extremely so; but they did not in the least +believe the lady was alive. They considered the beautiful figure the +most admirable specimen of the preservation of the human body after +death that they had ever seen, and that Paltravi was entitled to the +greatest credit for the success of his experiment. They were anxious to +be informed of the methods by which this wonderful result had been +obtained. But this, Jaqui firmly informed them, was now his secret and +his property, and he would not divulge it. The scientists acknowledged +the justice of this position, and did not urge their point; but each of +them, when he went away, resolved that in the course of a few years he +would come back, and if the body of the lady was still in good +preservation, he would buy it if he could. Jaqui might be poor by that +time, or dead. + +"Jaqui now thought his troubles were over; but he was mistaken. A new +persecutor appeared, who belonged to a fourth class, fortunately not a +very large one. This person was a young man who was not only a fool but +a poet." + +"Unfortunate creature!" exclaimed the Mistress of the House. + +"I don't know, madam," said John Gayther. "He was very happy. It was the +people with whom he associated in this world who were unfortunate. This +young man, whose name was Florino, lived in Milan, and it would have +been much better for Jaqui if he had lived in Patagonia. By great bad +luck he had overheard one of the scientists who had visited Jaqui +talking about what he had seen at his house, and the poet instantly +became greatly interested in the story. He plied the learned man with +all manner of questions, and very soon made up his mind that he would go +to Florence to see the lady in the box. He believed she would make a +most admirable subject for a poem from his pen. + +"When Florino presented himself to Jaqui he came as the general of an +army who settles down before a town to invest it and capture it, if he +shall live long enough. At first Jaqui tried to turn him away in the +usual manner; but the poet was not to be turned away. He had no feelings +which could be hurt, and Jaqui was afraid to hurt his body on account of +the police. The young man begged, he argued, he insisted, he persisted. +All he wanted was to see, just once, the face of the beautiful lady who +had been so wonderfully preserved. He visited the unfortunate Jaqui by +day and by night; and at last, when Florino solemnly promised that if he +should be given one opportunity of seeing the lady he would go away and +never trouble Dr. Jaqui any more, the latter concluded that to agree to +this proposition would be the best way to get rid of the youth, and so +consented to allow him to gaze upon the face which forty years before +had been animated by the soul of Donna Paltravi. + +"When the upper part of the lid of the box had been removed and the face +of the lady appeared under the plate of glass, the soul of the young +poet who tremblingly bent over it was filled with rapturous delight. +Never in his life had he seen anything so beautiful, and, more than +this, he declared he had never dreamed of features so lovely. For a +time it interested Jaqui to listen to the rhapsodies and observe the +exaltation of the fool-poet, but he soon had enough of this amorous +insanity, and prepared to close the box. Then Florino burst into wild +entreaties--only ten minutes more, five minutes, three minutes, +anything! So it went on until the poet had been feasting his eyes on the +lady for nearly half an hour. Then Jaqui forcibly put him out of the +room, closed the box, and locked the door. + +"Florino had no more idea of keeping his word than he had of becoming a +blacksmith. He persecuted Jaqui more than he had before, and when his +solicitations to see the lady again were refused he went so far as to +attempt to climb up to her window. Of course Jaqui could have called in +the aid of the police, but it would have made it very unpleasant for him +to bring the whole affair into court, and Florino knew this as well as +he did. After a short time the poet tried a new line of tactics, and +endeavored to persuade Jaqui that it was his duty to revive the lady; +when this idea once got well into the head of the young man he became +a worse lunatic than before. Jaqui attempted to reason with him; but +Florino would listen to nothing he had to say, and went on being a +fool, and a poet, and a lover, at the same time; and Jaqui began to be +afraid that some day he would get into the room by foul means, break +open the box, seize upon the sealed parchment which lay under the lid, +and try to revive the lady himself. + +"It is quite possible this might have happened had not something very +unexpected occurred. Dr. Paltravi came back to his old home. Jaqui +recognized him immediately from the description which Torquino had given +of him. He was now nearly seventy years old, but he was in good health +and vigor; his tall form was still upright, and the dark eyes, which the +old doctor had particularly described, were as bright and as piercing as +ever they had been. + +"He told Jaqui he had hoped to postpone the revival of his wife until +the expiration of the fifty years, but that of late his resolution had +been weakening. It had become very hard for him to think he must wait +ten years more before he came back to his home and his wife. Science was +a great thing, but the love of a man for a woman such as he loved was +still greater; and when he heard of the death of Dr. Torquino he had +instantly made up his mind he would not leave his wife in the custody of +any one but his old friend and partner. So here he was, fully resolved +to lose no time in reviving his wife and in spending his life here with +her in their old home so long as they might survive. + +"Jaqui was now a happy man. Here was the owner of the lady, ready to +take her off his hands and relieve him of all the perplexing +responsibility and misery which her possession had caused him. As he +looked at the stalwart figure of the returned husband it made him laugh +to think of the fool-poet. + +"Dr. Paltravi and Jaqui were both practical men, and that evening they +laid out the whole plan for the revivification of the lady in the box. +Jaqui was so glad to be rid of her that he willingly undertook to do +anything to assist Paltravi in starting out on his new career of +domestic happiness. + +"It was agreed that it was most important that when she woke again to +life Donna Paltravi should not be too much surprised, and her husband +did everything he could to prevent anything of the kind. He had her old +bedroom swept and garnished and made to look as much as possible as it +had been when she last saw it. Then he went out into the town, and was +fortunate enough to engage as maid a young girl who was the daughter of +the woman who had been his wife's maid forty years before. Then it was +decided that this girl, having been well instructed as to what was +expected of her, should be the first to see the lady when she should +revive; and that after that, when it should be deemed a suitable moment, +Jaqui should have an interview with her in the capacity of physician, +and explain the state of affairs so that she should not be too greatly +excited and shocked by the change in the appearance of her husband. +Then, when everything had been made plain, Paltravi was to go to her." + +"Those two were a couple of brave men," remarked the Mistress of the +House. + +"They were very fortunate men, I think," said her daughter. "What would +I not give to be the first to talk to a woman who had slept for forty +years!" + +"Perhaps she is going to sleep indefinitely," answered the Mistress of +the House. "But we will let John go on with his story." + +"All these plans were carried out," continued John Gayther. "The next +day the lady was taken out of the box, removed to her own chamber, and +placed upon a couch. The garments she wore were just as fresh and well +preserved as she was, and as Dr. Paltravi stood and looked at her, his +heart swelling with emotion, he could see no reason why she should not +imagine she had fallen asleep forty minutes before instead of forty +years. The two doctors went to work, speaking seldom and in whispers, +their faces pale and their hearts scarcely beating, so intense was their +anxiety regarding the result of this great experiment. Jaqui was almost +as much affected as Dr. Paltravi, and, in fact, his fears were greater, +for he was not supported by the faith of the other. He could not help +thinking of what would follow if everything did not turn out all right. + +"But there was no need of anxiety. In a little while respiration +was established; the heart began to beat gently; the blood slowly +circulated; there was a little quiver about the lips--Donna Paltravi +was alive! Her husband, on his knees beside her, lifted his eyes to +heaven, and then, his head falling forward, he sank upon the floor." + +"Oh," ejaculated the Daughter of the House, "I hope he did not die. That +would have been good tragedy, but how dreadful!" + +"No," answered the gardener, "he did not die; and Jaqui, his excitement +giving him the strength of a giant, took the insensible man in his arms +and carried him out of the room." + +The Mistress of the House gave a little sigh of relief. "I am so glad he +did," said she; "I was actually beginning to be afraid. I really do not +want to be present when she first sees him." + +John Gayther perfectly understood this remark, and took it to heart. It +implied a little lack of faith in his dramatic powers, but it made +things a great deal easier for him. + +"Without reentering the room," continued he, "Jaqui partly closed the +door, and gazed at the lady through a little crack." + +"I do not know about that," said the Mistress of the House; "he should +have gone in boldly." + +"Excuse me," said John Gayther, "but I think not. This was a very +important moment. Nobody knew what would happen. She must not be shocked +by seeing a stranger. At the same time, the eye of a professional man +was absolutely necessary. Donna Paltravi slightly moved and sighed; then +she opened her eyes and gazed for a few minutes at the ceiling; after +which she turned her head upon the cushion of the couch, and in a clear, +soft voice called out, 'Rita!' This was the name of the girl now in +waiting, as it had been the name of her mother, and she instantly +appeared from the adjoining room. She had seen all that had happened, +and was trembling so much she could scarcely stand; but she was a girl +of nerve, and approached and stood by her mistress. 'Rita,' said the +lady, without looking at her, 'I am hungry; bring me some wine and a few +of those cakes you bought yesterday.' + +"Dr. Paltravi had remembered everything that had pleased his wife; he +had thought of the little cakes, and had scoured the town early in the +morning to get some which resembled them; he knew her favorite wine, and +had given Rita her instructions. Without delay the maid brought the +refreshments, and in a few minutes the lady was sitting on the couch, a +glass of wine in her hand. 'Rita,' said she, after eating and drinking +a little, 'you are dressed very awkwardly this morning. Have you been +trying to make your own clothes?' + +"The doctor had searched diligently in his wife's closets for some +garments belonging to her former maid, and he had thought he had +succeeded in getting Rita to dress as her mother had dressed; but he did +not remember these things as accurately as his wife remembered them. +'You know I do not like carelessness in dress,' continued Donna +Paltravi, 'and now that I look at you more closely--' + +"'She is truly alive,' said Jaqui, 'and in full possession of her +senses.' And with this he closed the door. + +"When the doctor recovered, both he and Jaqui were very glad to take +some wine, for they had been under a dreadful strain." + +"_Had been!_" exclaimed the Mistress of the House, who understood the +heart of woman, and knew very well that the great strain had not yet +come. "But what happened next, John?" + +"The next thing happened too soon," replied the gardener. "In less than +fifteen minutes the maid came to the two doctors and told them her lady +demanded to see her husband; and if he were not in the house he must be +sent for immediately. This greatly disturbed Jaqui, and he turned pale +again. If he could have had his own way at that moment he would have put +the lady back in her box and locked the door of the little room. He did +not feel ready to tell the story he had to tell; but there was no help +for it: he must do it, and that immediately. 'Go in, Jaqui,' said +Dr. Paltravi; 'prepare her mind as well as you can, and then I will see +her.' + +"'Hurry, please, sir,' said the maid; 'she is very impatient, and I +cannot explain to her.' + +"Thus reassured, Jaqui followed the maid." + +"The quick temper of Donna Paltravi reminds me of Edmond About's story +of 'The Man with the Broken Ear,'" said the Mistress of the House. "The +hero of that story was a soldier who had been preserved in a dried +condition for many years, and who proved to be a very bad subject when +he had been dampened and revived." + +"I have read that novel," said John Gayther, considerably to the +surprise of both his hearers, "and it belongs to the same class as +mine,--of course you know all stories are arranged in classes,--but the +one I am telling you is much more natural and true to life than the one +written by the Frenchman." + +"I am quite ready to believe that," said the Mistress of the House. "Now +please go on." + +The Daughter of the House did not say anything, but she looked very +earnestly at the gardener; the conviction was forcing itself upon her +that John Gayther himself had a story, and she hoped that some day she +might hear it. + +"Jaqui was very much surprised when he saw Donna Paltravi. He had seen +her face so often that he was perfectly familiar with it, but now he +found it had changed. In color it was not as lifelike as it had been in +the box. She was pale, and somewhat excited. 'My maid tells me you are a +doctor, sir,' said she. 'But why do you come to me? If I need a doctor, +and my husband is away, why is not Dr. Torquino here?' + +"'Madam,' said Jaqui, his voice faltering a little, 'you will excuse the +intrusion of a stranger when I tell you that Dr. Torquino is dead.'" + +"Rather abrupt," said the Mistress of the House. + +"He could not help it, madam," said John Gayther; "it popped out of his +head. But it did not matter; Donna Paltravi had a quick perception. +'Oh,' she exclaimed, 'and I not know it!' Then she stopped and looked +steadfastly at Jaqui. 'I see,' she said slowly; 'I have been in one of +my trances.' Then she grew still paler. 'But my husband, he is not dead? +Tell me he is not dead!' she cried. + +"'Oh, no,' exclaimed Jaqui; 'he is alive and well, and will be with you +very soon.' Donna Paltravi's face lighted with an expression of great +happiness; her color returned; and she looked almost as handsome as when +she had been lying in the box. 'Blessed be the holy Mary!' said she. 'If +he is well it does not matter what has happened. How long have I been in +a trance?' + +"'I cannot say exactly,' replied Jaqui, very much afraid to speak the +truth; 'in fact, I was not here when you went into it: but--' + +"'Oh, never mind, never mind!' she exclaimed. 'My husband will tell +me everything. I would much rather he should do so. But what +ugly-fashioned clothes you are wearing, sir! Does everybody dress in +that way now, or is it only doctors? I am sure I must have been asleep +for a good while, and that I shall see some wonderful things. It is +quite delightful to think of it. I can scarcely wait until my husband +comes. I want him to tell me everything.' + +"When the greatly relieved Jaqui returned with this news he threw +Dr. Paltravi into a state of rapture. His wife knew what had happened; +she had not been shocked; she understood; and, above everything else, +she longed to see him! After all these forty years he was now--this +minute--to be with her again! She was longing to see him! With all the +vigor of youth he bounded up the stairs. + +"Now," said John Gayther, "we will pass over an interval of time." + +"I think that will be very well indeed!" the Mistress of the House said +approvingly. + +"Not a long one, I hope," said her daughter, "for this is a breathless +point in the story. I have worked it out in my own mind in three +different ways already." + +The gardener smiled with pleasure. He had a high regard for the mind of +the Daughter of the House. + +"Well," said he, "the interval is very short; it is really not more than +twenty minutes. At the end of that brief space of time Jaqui was +surprised to see Dr. Paltravi reenter the room he had so recently left +in all the wild excitement of an expectant lover. But what a changed man +he was! Pale, haggard, wild-eyed, aged, he sank into a chair and covered +his face with his hands." + +"I was afraid of that! I was afraid of that!" exclaimed the Mistress of +the House. + +"And I, too," said her daughter, with tears in her eyes; "that was one +of the ways in which I worked it out. But it is too dreadful. John +Gayther, don't you think you have made a mistake? If you were to +consider it all carefully don't you really believe it could not be that, +at least not quite that?" + +"I am sorry," said the gardener, "but I am sure this story could not +have happened in any other way, and I think if you will wait until it is +finished you will agree with me. + +"For a few minutes the distressed husband could not speak, and then in +faltering tones he told Jaqui what had happened. His wife had been so +shocked and horrified at his appearance that she had come near fainting. +What made it worse was that it was evident she did not regard him as +some strange old man. She had recognized him instantly. His form, his +features, his carriage were perfectly familiar to her. She had known +them all in her young dark-haired husband of forty years before; and +here was that same husband gray-headed, gray-bearded, and repulsively +old! She had turned away her head; she would not look at him. As soon as +she could speak she had demanded to know how long she had been in her +trance, and when the matter was explained her anger was unbounded. + +"Dr. Paltravi never told Jaqui all that she said, but she must have used +very severe language. She declared he had used her shamefully and +wickedly in keeping her asleep for so long, and then wakening her to be +the wife of a miserable old man just ready to totter into the grave. But +she would not be his wife. She vowed she would have nothing to do with +him. He had deserted her; he had treated her cruelly; and the holy +father, the Pope, would look upon it in that light, and would separate +her from him. With bitter reproaches she had told him to go away, and +never to let her see him again." + +"She ought to have been ashamed of herself," said the Daughter of the +House. "I have no sympathy with her. Instead of upbraiding him she ought +to have been grateful to him for the wonderful opportunities he had +given her." + +"But, John," said the Mistress of the House, "I do not believe the Pope +could have separated them. The Roman Catholic Church does not sanction +divorce." + +"Not as a rule, madam," replied the gardener; "but I will touch on this +point again. There was a good deal to be said on her side, it is true; +but I am not going to take sides with any of the persons in my story. +She had driven away the poor doctor, and declared she would have nothing +to do with him; and so the unhappy man told Jaqui he was going back to +Milan, where he had been living, and would trouble his wife no more. +Then up jumped Jaqui in a terrible state of mind. Was he never to get +rid of this lady? He declared to Paltravi he could not accept the +responsibility. When she had been in the box it had been bad enough, but +now it was impossible. He would go away to some place unknown. He would +depart utterly and leave everything behind him. + +"But on his knees Dr. Paltravi implored Jaqui to stay where he was, and +to protect his wife for a time at least. He would send money, he would +do everything he could, and perhaps, after a time, some arrangement +could be made; but now he must go. He had been ordered to leave, and he +must do so. It had not been two days since Paltravi and Jaqui had met, +but already it seemed to them that they were old friends. Strange +circumstances had bound them together, and Jaqui now found he could not +refuse the charge which was thrust upon him; and Dr. Paltravi departed. + +"Donna Paltravi did not allow her anger to deprive her of her +opportunities. There were so many new things she wanted to see that she +set about seeing them with great earnestness and industry, and she +enjoyed her new world very much indeed. The news of her revivification +spread abroad rapidly, for such a thing could not be concealed; and many +people came to see her. She was beautiful and popular, and adopted new +fashions as soon as she learned them. Jaqui had nothing to say to all +this; he had no right now to keep people from seeing her. + +"Very soon there came to her the fool-poet. Now Jaqui began to hope. He +had been assured by his priest that, under the circumstances, the church +would dissolve this young lady's marriage with Paltravi, and if Florino +would marry her Jaqui might look forward to a peaceful life. Now whether +the priest had a right to say this I will not take it on myself to say; +but he did say it: and so Jaqui did not feel called upon to interfere +with the courtship of the fool-poet. He decided that as soon as possible +he would go away from that house. He had a dislike for houses with three +floors, and his next habitation should be carefully selected; if so much +as a preserved bug or a butterfly in a box should be found on the +premises, that symbol of evil should be burned and its ashes scattered +afar. + +"Jaqui had every reason to hope. Florino literally threw himself at the +feet of the fair Donna Paltravi; and she was delighted with him. He was +somewhat younger than she was, but that had been the case with her first +lover, and she had not objected. The two young people got on famously +together, although there was now a duenna as well as a maid on the +second floor. Jaqui was greatly comforted. He spent a good deal of his +spare time going about Florence looking for a desirable house with two +floors. The courtship went on merrily, and there was talk of the +wedding; and, while Jaqui could not help pitying the poor old man in +Milan, he could not altogether blame the gay young woman in Florence, +who was now generally looked upon as a lady who had lost her husband. + +"It was nearly three weeks after the lady had come out of her box when a +strange thing happened: four days elapsed without Florino coming to the +house! Jaqui was greatly disturbed and nervous. Suppose the young man +had found some other lady to love, or suppose his parents had shut him +up! Such suspicions were very disquieting, and Jaqui went to see +Florino. He found the fool-poet in a fit of the doleful dumps. At first +the young man refused to talk: but, when Jaqui pressed him, he admitted +that he had not quarrelled with the lady; that she did not know why he +was staying away; that he had received several notes from her, and that +he had not answered them. Then Jaqui grew very angry and half drew his +sword. This was a matter in which he was concerned. The lady's husband +had placed her in his charge, and he would not stand tamely by and see +her deserted by her lover, who had given everybody reason to believe +that he intended to make her his own. + +"But Jaqui put back his sword, for the fool-poet showed no signs of +fight, and then he used argument. Just as earnestly as he had formerly +tried to keep these two apart did he now endeavor to bring them +together. But Florino would listen to no reason, and at last, when +driven to bay, he declared he would not marry an old woman--that Donna +Paltravi had dozens of gray hairs on each temple, and there were several +wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. He was a young man, and wanted a +young woman for his wife. + +"Jaqui was utterly astounded by what he heard. His mind was suddenly +permeated by a conviction which rendered him speechless. He rose, and +without another word he hurried home. As soon as he could he made a +visit to Donna Paltravi. He had not seen her for a week or more, and the +moment his eyes fell upon her he saw that Florino was right. She was +growing old! He spent some time with her, but as she did not allude to +any change in herself, of course he did not; but just as he was leaving +he made a casual remark about Florino. 'Oh, he has not been here for +some time,' said the lady. 'I missed him at first, but now I am glad he +does not come. He is very frivolous, and I have a small opinion of his +poetry. I think most of it is copied, and he shows poor judgment in his +selections.' + +"That evening, sitting in his private room, Jaqui thought he saw through +everything. Up-stairs on the second floor was a lady who was actually +seventy-one years old! Her natural development had been arrested by +artificial influences, but as these influences had ceased to operate, +there could be no reason to doubt that nature was resuming her authority +over the lady, and that she was doing her best to make up for lost time. +Donna Paltravi appeared now to be about forty-five years old." + +"This is getting to be very curious, John," said the Mistress of the +House. "I have often heard of bodies which, on being exhumed, after they +have been buried a long time, presented a perfectly natural appearance, +but which crumbled into dust when exposed to the air and the light. +Would not this lady's apparent youth have crumbled into dust all at once +when it was exposed to light and air?" + +"I cannot say, madam," said the gardener, respectfully, "what might have +happened in other cases, but in this instance the life of youth remained +for a good while, and when it did begin to depart the change was +gradual." + +"You forget, mamma," said the younger lady, "that this is real life, and +that it is a story with one thing coming after another, like steps." + +"I did forget," said the other, "and I beg your pardon, John." + +The gardener bowed his head a little, and went on: "Jaqui was greatly +interested in this new development. He made frequent visits to Donna +Paltravi, and found, to his surprise, that she was not the vain and +frivolous woman he had supposed her to be, but was, in reality, very +sensible and intelligent. She talked very well about many things, and +even took an interest in science. Jaqui lost all desire to put her back +in her box, and spent the greater part of his leisure time in her +company." + +At this the Mistress of the House smiled, but her daughter frowned. + +"Of course," continued the gardener, "he soon fell in love with her." + +"Which was natural enough," said the Mistress of the House. + +"Whether it was natural enough or not," cried her daughter, "it was not +right." + +John Gayther looked upon her with pride. He knew that in her fair young +mind that which ought to be rose high above thoughts of what was likely +to be, which came into the more experienced mind of her mother. + +"But you see, miss," said John Gayther, "Jaqui was human. Here was a +lady very near his own age, still beautiful, very intelligent, living in +the same house with him, glad to see him whenever he chose to visit her. +It was all as clear as daylight, and it was not long before he was in +such a state of mind that he would have fallen upon Florino with a drawn +sword if the fool-poet had dared to renew his addresses to Donna +Paltravi." + +"I must say," remarked the Mistress of the House, "that although his +action was natural enough, he was in great danger of becoming a +prose-fool." + +"You are right, madam," said the gardener, "and Jaqui had some ideas +of that kind himself. But it was of no use. She was an uncommonly +attractive lady now that her mind came to the aid of her body. He knew +that nature was still working hard to make this blooming middle-aged +lady look like the old woman she really was. But love is a powerful +antidote to reason, and this was the first time Jaqui had ever been in +love. When he thought of it at all, he persuaded himself that it did not +matter how old this lady might come to be; he would love her all the +same. In fact, he was sure that if she were to turn young again and +become frivolous and beautiful, his love would not change. It was +getting stronger and stronger every time he saw her." + +"What I am thinking about," exclaimed the Daughter of the House, "is +that poor old gentleman in Milan. No matter what the others were doing, +or what they were thinking, they were treating him shamefully, and Jaqui +was not his friend at all." + +"You may be right," said her mother; "but, don't you see, this is real +life. You must not forget that, my dear." + +John Gayther smiled and went on, and the young lady listened, although +she did not approve. "Jaqui was a handsome man, and could make himself +very agreeable; and it is not surprising that Donna Paltravi became very +much attached to him. He could not fail to see this, and as he was a man +of method, he declared to himself one day that upon the next day, at the +first moment he could find the lady alone, he would propose marriage to +her. He had ceased to think about increase in age and all that. He was +perfectly satisfied with her as she was, and he troubled his mind about +nothing else. + +"But early the next day, before he had a chance to carry out his plans, +he received a letter from Dr. Paltravi urging him to come immediately to +Milan. The poor gentleman was sick in his bed, and greatly longed to +see his friend Jaqui. The letter concluded with the earnest request that +Jaqui should not tell Donna Paltravi where he was going, or that he had +heard from the unfortunate writer. Jaqui set off at once, for fear he +should not find his friend alive, and on the way his emotions were +extremely conflicting." + +"And very wicked, I have no doubt," said the Daughter of the House. "He +hoped that old man would die." + +"There is some truth in what you say, miss," answered John Gayther, with +a proud glance at the Mistress of the House, who was not ashamed to +return it, "for Jaqui could not help thinking that if old Dr. Paltravi, +who could not expect any further happiness in this life, and who must +die before very long anyhow, owing to his age and misfortunes, should +choose to leave the world at this time, it would not only be a good +thing for him, but it would make matters a great deal easier for some +people he would leave behind him. In real life you cannot help such +thoughts as this, miss, unless you are very, very good, far above the +average. + +"Jaqui found the old doctor very sick indeed, and he immediately set +about doing everything he could to make him feel better; but +Dr. Paltravi did not care anything about medical treatment. It was not +for that he had sent for Jaqui. What he desired was to make arrangements +for the future of Donna Paltravi, and he wanted Jaqui to carry out his +wishes. In the first place, he asked him to take charge of the lady's +fortune and administer it to her advantage; and secondly, he desired +that he would marry her. 'If I die knowing that the dear woman who was +once my wife is to marry you,' said the sick man, 'and thus be protected +and cared for, I shall leave this world grateful and happy. I can never +do anything for her myself; but if you will take my place, my +friend,--and I am sure Donna Paltravi will easily learn to like +you,--that will be the next best thing. Now will you promise me?' Jaqui +knelt by the side of the bed, took his friend's hand, and promised. +There were tears in his eyes, but whether they were tears of joy or of +sorrow it is not for me to say." + +"It is for me, though," said the Daughter of the House, very severely. +"I know that man thoroughly." + +The gardener went on with his story: "Jaqui remained several days with +Dr. Paltravi, but he could not do his poor friend any good. The sick man +was nervous and anxious; he was afraid that some one else might get +ahead of Jaqui and marry Donna Paltravi; and he urged his friend not to +stay with him, where he could be of no service, but to go back to +Florence and prepare to marry Donna Paltravi when she should become a +widow. As Jaqui was also getting nervous, being possessed of the same +fears, he at last consented to carry out the old doctor's wishes,--and +his own at the same time,--and he returned to Florence. + +"In the meantime Donna Paltravi had been somewhat anxious about Jaqui. +She had conceived a high regard for him, and she could think of no +satisfactory reason why he should go away without saying anything to +her, and stay away without writing. She hoped nothing had occurred which +would interfere with the very agreeable sentiments which appeared to be +springing up between them. This disturbed state of mind was very bad +for a lady in the physical condition of Donna Paltravi. If I may use the +simile of a clock in connection with her apparent age, I should say that +worrying conjecture, had caused some cogs to slip, and that the clock of +her age had struck a good many years since Jaqui's absence. + +"When he met her she greeted him warmly, plainly delighted to see him; +but for a moment he was startled. This lady was really very much older +than when he had left her; her hair was nearly gray." + +"Served him right!" said the Daughter of the House. + +"But when he began to talk to her," continued John Gayther, "his former +feelings for her returned. She was charming, and he forgot about her +hair. Her conversation greatly interested him; and now that his +conscience came to the assistance of his affection (for he was doing +exactly what Dr. Paltravi desired him to do), he was quite happy and +spent a pleasant evening. But in the morning, as he looked at himself in +the mirror, he remembered her gray hair." + +At the word "conscience" an indication of a sneer had appeared on the +face of the young lady, but she did not interrupt. + +"It was about a week after this that Donna Paltravi sat alone in the +little room on the second floor, and Dr. Jaqui sat alone in the little +room on the first floor. She was waiting for him to come to her, and +he was not intending to go. He believed, with reason, that she was +expecting him to propose marriage to her, and he did not intend to offer +himself. He was very willing to marry a middle-aged lady, but he did +not wish to espouse an old one--at least, an old one who looked her age; +and that Donna Paltravi was going to look her full age in a very short +time Jaqui had now no doubt whatever. Her face was beginning to show a +great many wrinkles, and her hair was not only gray but white in some +places. But these changes did not in the least interfere with her good +looks, for in some ways she was growing more handsome and stately than +she had been before; but our good friend Jaqui--" + +"Not my good friend Jaqui, please," interrupted the Daughter of the +House. + +"Said to himself," continued John Gayther, "that he did not want a +mother, but a wife. A few weeks before he would have supposed such a +thing impossible, but now a certain sympathy for Florino rose in his +heart. So he did not go up-stairs that evening, and the lady was very +much disturbed and did not sleep well. + +"In a few days Jaqui got ready to go away again, and this time he went +to bid the lady good-by. She had heard he was about to take a journey, +and as he greeted her he saw she had been weeping but was quite composed +now. 'Farewell, my friend,' said she. 'I know what is happening to me, +and I know what is happening to you. It will be well for you to stay +away for a time, and when you return you will see that we are to be +very good friends, greatly interested in the progress of science and +civilization.' Then she smiled and shook hands with him. + +"Jaqui went to Rome and to Naples, wandering about in an objectless sort +of way. He dreaded to go to Milan, because he had not heard that +Dr. Paltravi was dead, and it would have been very hard for him to have +to explain to the sick man why he had decided not to carry out his +wishes. Apart from the disappointment he would feel when he heard that +Donna Paltravi was not to have the kind guardianship he had planned for +her, the old doctor would be grieved to the soul when he heard his wife +had lost the youth he had taken from her, but which he had expected to +return in full measure. What made it worse for Jaqui was that he could +administer no comfort with the news. He could not sacrifice himself to +please the old man; promise or no promise, this was impossible. He had +not consented to marry an old lady. Again, from the very bottom of his +heart, did Jaqui wish there never had been a lady in a box. + +"At last, when he could put it off no longer, he went to Milan; and +there he found Dr. Paltravi still alive, but very low and very much +troubled because he had not heard from Jaqui. The latter soon perceived +it would be utterly useless to try to deceive or in any way to mislead +the old man, who, although in sad bodily condition, still preserved his +acuteness of mind. Jaqui had to tell him everything, and he began with +Florino and ended with himself, not omitting to tell how the lady had +recognized the situation, and what she had said. Then, fearing the +consequences of this revelation, he put his hand into his leathern bag +to take out a bottle of cordial. But Dr. Paltravi waved away medicine, +and sat up in bed. + +"'Did you say,' he cried, 'she is growing old, and that you believe she +will continue to do so until she appears to be the lady of threescore +and ten she really is?' + +"'Yes,' said Jaqui; 'that is what I said, and that is what I believe.' + +"'Then, by all the holy angels,' cried Dr. Paltravi, jumping out of bed, +'she shall be my wife, and nobody else need concern himself about her.'" + +"Hurrah!" cried the Daughter of the House, involuntarily springing to +her feet. "I was so afraid you would not come to that." + +"I was bound to come to that, miss," said John Gayther. + +"And did they really marry again?" asked the Mistress of the House. + +"No," was the reply; "they did not. There was no need of it. The priests +assured them most emphatically that there was not the slightest need of +it. And so they came together again after this long interval, which had +been forty years to him, but which she had lived in forty days. If they +had been together all the time they could not have loved each other more +than they did now. To her eyes, so suddenly matured, there appeared a +handsome, stately old gentleman seventy years of age; to his eyes, from +which the visions of youth had been so suddenly removed, there appeared +a beautiful, stately old lady seventy-one years of age. It was just as +natural as if one of them had slept all day while the other had remained +awake; it was all the same to them both in the evening. + +"She soon ceased to think how cruelly she had sent him away from her, +for she had been so young when she did it. And he now gave no thought to +what she had done, remembering how young she was when she did it. They +were as happy as though she had had all the past that rightfully +belonged to her, for he had had enough for both of them." + +"And Jaqui?" asked the Mistress of the House. + +"Oh, Jaqui was the happiest of the three of them, happy himself, and +happy in their happiness. Never again did he wish the lady in her box. +He looked no further for a smaller house which should contain but two +floors; he was as glad to stay where he was as they were to have him. +They were three very happy people, all of them greatly interested in the +progress of scientific investigation." + +"And not one of them deserved to be happy," said the Daughter of the +House. + +"But you must remember, miss, this is a story about realities," said the +gardener. + +She sighed a little sigh; she knew that where realities are concerned +this sort of thing generally happens. + +"That is a very good story, John," said the Mistress of the House, +rising from her seat; "but it seems to me that while you were talking +you sometimes thought of yourself as Jaqui." + +"There is something in that, madam," answered the gardener; "it may have +been that during the story I sometimes did think that I myself might +have been Jaqui." + +"Mamma," said the Daughter of the House, as the two walked out of the +garden, "don't you think that John Gayther is very intelligent?" + +"I have always thought him remarkably intelligent," her mother replied. +"I have noticed that gardeners generally are a thoughtful, intelligent +race of men." + +"I don't think it is so much the garden as because he has travelled so +much," said the young lady, "and I have a strange feeling that he has a +story of his own in the past. I wonder if he will ever tell it to me." + +"If he has such a story," said the elder lady, "he will never tell it to +you." + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE MISTRESS OF THE HOUSE + + AND IS CALLED + + THE COT AND THE RILL + + + + +IV + +THE COT AND THE RILL + + +A week or so later the Daughter of the House came skipping down one of +the broad paths. John Gayther stood still and looked at her, glad to see +her coming, as he always was, no matter on what errand she came. + +"John," she cried, before she reached him, "you are to stop work!" Then, +as she came up to him, she continued: "Yes; there is to be story-telling +this morning. We have told papa about it, and he is coming to what he +calls the story-telling place with us, and mamma feels inspired to tell +the story. So you may take that troubled look out of your face. Please +put the big easy garden-chair in the shade of the summer-house. Papa +does so like to be comfortable. And the view from there is so fine, you +know--a beautiful land view. Papa must be tired of sea views and shore +views, and here he will enjoy the mountains!" + +Having delivered all this very volubly, the Daughter of the House +skipped away. And as John Gayther busied himself in making the +"story-telling place" attractive he felt glad that there were others +besides himself who liked to tell stories. There was such a thing as +overworking a mine. He was that rare thing, a story-teller who is also a +good listener. Moreover, John felt very diffident about telling one of +his stories before the Master of the House, who was a man prone to speak +his mind. Not that John disliked the Master of the House. Far from it. +He, with the family, was pleased when the Master of the House returned +from a long cruise and proceeded immediately to make himself very much +at home. For the Master of the House was a captain in the navy, and as +hearty, bluff, and good-natured as a captain should be. + +The captain had been at home some days, and had been in the garden +several times, and now John Gayther was filled with admiration as he saw +this fine, sturdy figure, clad all in white, approach the summer-house. +With an air of supreme content this figure partly stretched itself in +the big garden-chair, while the two ladies seated themselves on the +bench. John Gayther stood respectfully until the Master of the House +motioned to him to sit on his stool. + +"Good morning, John," he cried heartily. "We've piped all hands to +yarns. I have heard what you can do in this line, and we shall call upon +you before long. This time you are privileged to listen. You can let +somebody else cut your asparagus and dig your potatoes this morning." + +"Papa," said his daughter, "it is too late for asparagus and too early +for potatoes. I am afraid you forget about these things when you are at +sea." + +"Not at all," said her father. "On shipboard we cut our asparagus at any +time of the year. The steward does it with a big knife, which he jabs +through the covers of the tin cans. As for potatoes, they are always +with us." + +The Mistress of the House was now prepared to tell her story. + +"I am going to tell my story in the first person," she began. + +"There is no better person," interrupted the Master of the House. + +"I do not intend to describe my hero who is to tell the story," +continued his wife. "I will only say that he is moderately young and +moderately handsome. Various other things about him you will find out as +the story goes on. Now, then, he begins thus: I was driving my wife in a +buggy in a mountainous region, and when we reached the top of a little +rise in the road, Anita put her hand on my arm. 'Stop,' she said; 'look +down there! That is what I like! It is a cot and a rill. You see that +cot--not much of a house, to be sure, but it would do. And there, just +near enough for the water to tumble over rocks and gurgle over stones to +soothe one to sleep on summer nights, is the rill--not much of a rill, +perhaps, but I think it could be arranged with a shovel. And then, all +the rest is enchanting. I had been looking at it for some time before I +spoke. There is a smooth meadow stretching away to a forest, and behind +that there are hills, and in the distance you can just see the +mountains. Now this is the place where I should like to live. Isn't +there any way of making those horses stand still for a minute?' + +"I tried my persuasive powers on the animals, and succeeded moderately. +'To live?' I asked. 'And for how long?' + +"'Until about the 3d of August,' she replied. 'That will be about three +weeks.' + +"'You mean,' I said in surprise, 'something like this.' + +"'I do not,' answered Anita. 'I mean this very spot. To find something +like it would require months. What I want, as I have told you over and +over again, is a real cot with a real rill, to which we can go now and +live for a little while that unsophisticated life for which my soul is +longing.' + +"Anita and I were taking a summer outing together, and were trying to +get into free nature, away from people we knew, and had been several +days at a mountain hotel, and were driving about the country. My black +cobs now declined to stand any longer. + +"'Drive them down into the valley. There must be a road to that house,' +said Anita. + +"I drove on for a short distance, and soon came to a wagon-track which +descended to the little house. 'Anita,' said I, 'I cannot go down that +road; it is too rough and rocky, and we should break something. But why +do you want to go down there, anyhow? You are not in earnest about +living in such a place as that?' + +"'But I am in earnest,' she answered sweetly but decisively. 'I want to +stay in this region and explore it. We both of us hate hotels, and I +could be very happy in a cot like that (a little arranged, perhaps) +until the 3d of August, when we have to go North. But I won't ask you to +go down that road, of course. Suppose we come again to-morrow with some +quieter horses.' + +"'I am sorry,' said I, 'but I cannot do that. Mr. Baxter comes +to-morrow. You know it was planned that he should always come Tuesdays.' + +"She sighed. 'I suppose everything must give way to business,' she said, +'and I shall have to wait until Wednesday. But one thing must certainly +be agreed upon: when we get to that cot there must be no more Mr. Baxter; +you can certainly plan for that, can't you?' + +"I made no immediate reply, because I was busy turning the horses in +rather an awkward place; but when we were on the smooth highway and were +trotting gayly back to the hotel, I discussed the matter more fully with +Anita, and I found that what she had been talking about was not a mere +fancy. Before coming to this picturesque mountain region she had set her +heart upon some sort of camping out in the midst of real nature, and +this cot-and-rill business seemed to suit her exactly. + +"'I want to go there and live,' she said; 'but I do not mean any Marie +Antoinette business, with milk-pails decked with ribbons, and dainty +little straw hats. I want to live in a cot like a cotter--that is, for +us to live like two cotters. As for myself, I need it; my moral and +physical natures demand it. I must have a change, an absolute change, +and this is just what I want. I would shut out entirely the world I live +in, and it is only in a real and true cot that this can be done as I +want to do it.' + +"She talked a great deal more on the same subject, and then I told her +that if it suited her it suited me, and that on the day after to-morrow +we would drive out again and examine the cot. For the rest of the day +and the greater part of the evening Anita talked of nothing but her +projected life in the valley; and before I went to sleep I was quite as +much in love with it as she was. The next day it rained, but Mr. Baxter +came all the same; weather never interfered with him." + +"Who in the name of common sense is Mr. Baxter?" asked the Master of the +House. "I like to know who people are when I am being told what they +do." + +"I had hoped," said the Mistress of the House, "that I should be able +to tell my story so you would find out for yourselves all about the +characters, just as in real life if you see a man working in a garden +you know he is a gardener." + +"But he may not be," said her husband; "he may be a coachman pulling +carrots for his horses." + +"But, as you wish it," continued the Mistress of the House, "I do not +mind telling you that Mr. Baxter was my hero's right-hand man and +business manager. And now he will go on: + +"After Baxter and I had finished our business I told him about the cot, +for if we carried out Anita's plan it would be necessary for him to know +where we were. Then, putting on waterproof coats, we rode over to the +place which had excited my wife's desire to become a cotter. We found +the house small but in good order, with four rooms and an adjunct at one +end. There were vines growing over it, and at the side of it a garden--a +garden with an irregular hedge around two sides; it was a poor sort of a +garden, mostly weeds, I thought, as I glanced at it. The stream of water +was a pretty little brook, and Baxter, who rode to the head of it, said +he thought it could be made much better. + +"The house was the home of a widow with a grown-up daughter and a son +about fifteen. We talked to them, asking a great many questions about +the surrounding country, and then retired to consult. We did not +consider long; in less than ten minutes I had ordered Baxter to buy the +house and everything in it, if the people were willing to sell; and then +to purchase as much land around it as would be necessary to carry out my +plans, which I then and there imparted to him in a general way, leaving +him to attend to the details." + +"Your nameless hero," said the Master of the House, "must have been in +very comfortable circumstances." + +"I am glad to see that my story is explaining itself," remarked his +wife, and she continued: + +"Baxter looked serious for a moment, and said it was a big piece of +work; but he did not decline it. Baxter never declined anything. + +"'How much time can you give me?' he asked. + +"'My wife will want to look at the place to-morrow,' I replied; 'that +is, if it does not rain: for she says she does not want to see it first +in bad weather.' + +"'That's a help,' said Baxter. 'The Weather Bureau promises east winds +and rains for to-morrow and perhaps the next day. And, anyway, I know +now what you want. I will go back to town by the one-o'clock train and +start things going.' + +"'There is one thing I object to,' said I, when we were on the country +road from which Anita had first seen the cot and the rill: 'the house +is in full view from this road. Before we know it we will be making +ourselves spectacles to parties from the hotel who happen to discover +us and drive out to see how we are getting on.' + +"Baxter reflected. 'Oh, I can arrange that,' said he. 'I know this road; +it turns again into the highway not far below here. It is really a +private road for the benefit of this house and two others nearly a mile +farther on. I will include those places in the purchase, and close up +the road. Then I will make it a private entrance to this place, with a +locked gate. Will that do?' + +"'Very well,' said I, laughing. 'But I suppose people could cut across +the country and come in at the other end of the road if they really +wanted to look into the valley?' + +"'Not after I have finished the job,' said Baxter; and I asked no +further questions." + +"May I inquire," said the captain, "if that Mr. Baxter is in want of a +position?" + +"I am afraid, papa," said the Daughter of the House, "that you would +have to own a navy before you could employ him." + +The gardener smiled. A story built upon these lines interested him. The +Mistress of the House went on without regard to the interruptions: + +"I found Anita in earnest consultation with her maid Maria and the +mistress of the hotel, and it was at least an hour before she could see +me. When I told her I had secured the cot, or at least arranged to do +so, she was pleased and grateful, especially as I had had to go out into +the rain to do it. 'I knew, of course,' she said, 'that Baxter would +settle that all right, and so I have been making my arrangements. But +there is one favor I want you to grant me: I don't want you to ask me +anything about how I am going to manage matters. I don't want to deceive +you in any possible way, and so if you do not ask me any questions it +will make it easier for me.' + +"'Very good,' I replied; 'and I shall ask a similar favor of you.' + +"'All right,' said Anita. 'And now that matter is settled.' + +"The prophecies of the weather were correct. The next day, Wednesday, it +rained, and it also rained on Thursday and Friday; but on Saturday it +looked as if it might clear in the afternoon. + +"'I am not going to-day,' said Anita. 'I have been working very hard +lately, and to-morrow I will take a good rest, and we will start in on +Monday.' + +"Baxter was very glad of the four days of delay occasioned by the stormy +weather, and said that without working on Sunday he could finish +everything to his satisfaction. I went down to the cot the next day to +see how he was getting on; but Anita asked me no questions, and I asked +none of her. I had never known her to be so continuously occupied. As I +stood with Baxter in front of the cottage, where there was a fine view +of the surrounding country, I asked him how much land he had thought it +desirable to purchase. + +"'Over there,' he said, 'I bought just beyond that range of trees, about +half a mile, I should say. But to the west a little more, just skirting +the highroad. To the north I bought to the river, which is three +quarters of a mile. But over there to the south I included that stretch +of forest-land which extends to the foot-hills of the mountains; the +line must be about a mile from here.' + +"'That is a very large tract,' said I. 'How did you manage to buy it so +quickly?' + +"'I had nine real-estate agents here on Thursday morning,' he replied, +'and the sales were all consummated this morning. They all went to work +at once, each on a separate owner. We bought for cash, and no one knew +his neighbor was selling.' + +"I laughed, and asked him how he was going to keep this big estate +private for our use. 'We want to wander free, you know, anywhere and +everywhere.' + +"'That is what I thought,' said he, 'and that is why I took in such a +variety of scenery. Nobody will interfere with you. There will be no +inhabited house on the place except your own, and I am putting up a +fence of chicken-yard wire around the whole estate. There is nothing +like chicken-yard wire. It is six feet high and very difficult to climb +over, and it is also troublesome to cut.' + +"I exclaimed in amazement: 'That will take a long time!' + +"'I have contracted to have it done by Saturday morning,' replied +Baxter. 'The train with the wire fence and posts is scheduled to arrive +here at eleven o'clock to-night, and work will begin immediately. Paulo +Montani, the Italian boss who has worked for me before, has taken this +contract, and will put twelve hundred men on.' + +"'The train will arrive here?' said I. 'What do you mean?' + +"'The M. B. & T. line runs within a mile and a half of this place, and +my trains will all be switched off at a convenient place near here.' + +"'I would not have supposed there was a side-track there,' I remarked. + +"'Oh, no,' he replied, 'there was none; but I am now having two built. +All the different gangs of men will sleep on the freight-cars, which +have been fitted up with bunks. The wood-cutters and the landscape-men, +hedgers, sodders, and all that arrived about an hour ago, and I am +expecting the mechanics' train late this afternoon. The gardeners will +not arrive until to-morrow; but if it keeps on raining, that will give +them time enough. They want wet weather for their work.'" + +"Excuse me," said the Master of the House, who had now finished his +cigar and was sitting upright in his chair, "but didn't you omit to +state that your hero was the King of Siam?" + +"I have nothing of the kind to state," answered his wife. "He is merely +an American gentleman. + +"When I heard of the great works that were going on, I exclaimed: 'Look +here, Baxter, you must be careful about what you are doing. If you make +this place look like a vast cemetery, all laid out in smooth grass and +gravelled driveways, my wife won't like it. She wants to live in a cot, +and she wants everything to be cottish and naturally rural.' + +"'That is just what I am going to make it,' said he. 'The highest grade +of true naturalism is what I am aiming at in house and grounds. +To-morrow afternoon you can look at the house. Everything will be done +then, and the furniture will all be in place, and if you want any change +there will be time enough.' + +"The next day I went to the cot; but before I reached it I stopped. +'Baxter,' I said, 'you have done very well with this rill; it is quite a +roaring little torrent.' + +"'Yes,' said he; 'and down below they are working on some waterfalls, +but they are not quite finished.' + +"When I reached the house I did not exactly comprehend what I saw; it +was the same house, and yet it was entirely different. It seemed to have +grown fifty years older than it was when I first saw it. Its color was +that of wood beautifully stained by age. There was a low piazza I had +not noticed, which was covered with vines. Bright-colored old-fashioned +flowers were growing in beds close to the house, and there was a +pathway, bordered by box bushes, which led from the front door to a +gateway in a stone wall which partly surrounded the green little yard. I +had not noticed before the gateway or the stone wall, on which grew +bitter-sweet vines and Virginia creeper. + +"'Now, you see,' said Baxter, 'this grass here is not smooth green turf, +fresh from the lawn-mower. It is natural grass, with wild flowers in it +here and there. Nearly all of it was brought from a meadow about a mile +away from here. But now step inside a minute. Everything there is of the +period of 1849: horsehair, you see, lots of black walnut, color all +toned down, and all the ornaments covered with netting to keep the flies +off.' + +"I was interested and amused; but I told Baxter I did not want to see +everything now; I wished to enjoy the place with my wife when we should +come to it. He was doing admirably, and I would leave everything to him. +As I stood on the little portico and looked over the valley, I saw what +seemed to be a regiment of men coming out of the woods and crossing a +field. + +"'That is the first division of the wire-fence men,' said Baxter, +'going to supper. They are divided into three sections, and one gang +relieves another, so that the work is kept going all night by +torchlight.' + +"As I went away Baxter called my attention to the gate at the entrance +of our road. It was of light iron, and it could be opened into a clump +of bushes where it was not likely to be noticed. 'If this gate is +locked,' said I, 'it might make trouble; it may be necessary for some +one to go in or out.' + +"'Oh,' said Baxter, 'I have provided for all that. You know Baldwin, who +used to superintend your Lake George gardens? I have put him in charge +of this gate, and have lodged him in a tent over there in the woods. He +will know who to let in.' + +"On Monday morning Anita rose very early, and was dressed and ready for +breakfast before I woke. The day was a fine one, and her spirits were +high. 'You have not the slightest idea,' she said, 'how I am going to +surprise you when we get to the cot.' I told her I had no doubt her +surprise would be very pleasant, and there I let the matter drop. Soon +after breakfast we drove over to the cot, this time with a coachman on +the box. When we arrived at the gate, which was open and out of sight, I +proposed to Anita that she should send the carriage back and walk to the +cot. + +"'Good,' said she; 'I do not want to see a carriage for two weeks.' + +"I have not time to speak of Anita's delight at everything she saw. She +was amazed that plain people such as I had told her owned the house +should have lived in such a simple, natural way. 'Everything exactly +suits everything else,' she said. 'And it is all so cheap and plain. +There is absolutely nothing that does not suit a cot.' She was wild with +excitement, and ran about like a girl; and when I followed her into the +garden, which I had not seen, I found her in one of the box-bordered +paths, clapping her hands. The place was indeed very pretty, filled with +old-fashioned flowers and herbs and hop-poles, and all sorts of country +plants and blossoms. + +"At last we returned to the house. 'Now, Anita,' said I, 'we are here in +our little cot--' + +"'Where we are going to be as happy as two kittens,' she interrupted. + +"'And as I want everything to suit you,' I continued, 'I am going to +leave the whole matter of the domestic arrangements in your hands. You +have seen the house, and you will know what will be necessary to do. +Mention what servants you want, and I will send for them.' + +"'First tell me,' said Anita, 'what you did with the people who were +here? You said there were three of them.' + +"I could not very well answer this question, for I did not know exactly +what Baxter had done with them. I was inclined to think, however, that +he had sent them to the hotel until arrangements could be made for them +to go somewhere else. But I was able to assure Anita that they had gone +away. + +"'Good,' said she. 'I have been thinking about them, and I was afraid +they might find some reason or other to stay about the place, and that +would interfere with my plans. And now I will tell you what servants I +want. I don't want any. I am going to do the work of this house myself. +Now don't open your mouth so wide. There is nothing to frighten you in +what I have said. I am thirty-two years old, and although I am not very +large, I am perfectly strong and healthy, and I cannot imagine anything +in this world that would give me more pleasure than to live in this cot +with you for two weeks, and to cook our meals and do everything that is +necessary to be done. There are thousands and hundreds of thousands of +women who do all that and are just as happy as they can be. That is the +kind of happiness I have never had, and I want it now.' + +"I sat upright in my slippery horsehair chair and spoke no word. Surely +Anita had astonished me more than I could possibly astonish her! Before +me sat my beautiful wife: the mistress of my great house in town, with +its butlers and footmen, its maids and its men, its horses, its +carriages, its grand company, and its stately hospitality; the lady of +my famous country estate, with more butlers and footmen and gardeners +and stewards and maids and men and stables and carriages and herds and +flocks, its house-parties of distinguished guests--here was this wife +of mine, so well known in so many fashionable centres; a social star +at home and abroad; a delicately reared being, always surrounded by +servitors of every grade, who had never found it necessary to stoop to +pick up so much as a handkerchief or a rosebud; and here was this +superfine lady of high degree, who had just announced to me that she +intended to cook our meals, to pare our potatoes, to wash our dishes, +and, probably, to sweep our floors. No wonder I opened my mouth. + +"'I hope, now,' said Anita, putting her feet out in front of her to +keep herself from slipping off the horsehair sofa, 'that you thoroughly +understand. I do not want any assistance while we are in this cot. I +have sent away Maria, who has gone to visit her parents, and no woman in +service is to come on this place while I am here. I have been studying +hard with Mrs. Parker at the hotel, who seems to be an excellent +housekeeper and accustomed to homely fare, and I have learned how to +make and to cook a great many things which are simple and nutritious; I +have had appropriate dresses made, and Maria has gone to town and bought +me a great variety of household linen, all good and plain, for our +damask table-cloths would look perfectly ridiculous here. I have also +laid in a great many other things which you will see from time to +time.'" + +"What a wonderful moment this would have been for a great slump in +stocks!" remarked the Master of the House. "Everything swept away but +the cot and the rill and the dear little wife with her coarse linen and +her determination to keep no servant. The husband of your Anita would +have been the luckiest fellow on Wall Street. If I were working on this +story I would have the blackest of Black Fridays just here." + +"'Now, Harold,' said Anita, 'I do not in the least intend to impose upon +you. Because I choose to work is no reason why you should be compelled +to do so.' + +"'I am glad to hear that,' said I. + +"'I knew you would be,' continued Anita. 'But of course neither of us +will want very much done for us if we live a cotter's life with these +simple surroundings, and so I think one man will be quite enough to do +for you all you will want done. But of course if you think it necessary +to have two I shall not object.' + +"'One will be enough,' said I, 'and I will see about sending for him +this afternoon.' + +"'I am so glad,' said Anita, 'that you have not got him now, for we can +have our first meal in the cot all by ourselves. I'll run up-stairs and +dress, and then I will come down and do my first cooking.' + +"In a very short time Anita appeared in a neat dress of coarse blue +stuff, a little short in the skirts, with a white apron over it. + +"'Come, now,' said she, gayly, 'let us go into the kitchen and see what +we shall have for dinner. Shall it be dinner or lunch? Cotters dine +about noon.' + +"'Oh, make it lunch,' said I. 'I am hungry, and I do not want to wait to +get up a dinner.' Anita agreed to this, and we went to work to take the +lid off a hamper which she told me had been packed by Mrs. Parker and +contained everything we should want for several days. + +"'Besides,' she said, 'that widow woman has left no end of things, all +in boxes and cans, labelled. She must have been a very thrifty person, +and it was an excellent piece of business to buy the house just as it +stood, with everything in it.' + +"Anita found it difficult to make a choice of what she should cook for +luncheon. 'Suppose we have some tea?' + +"'Very good,' said I, for I knew that was easy to make. + +"'Then,' said she, on her knees beside the hamper, with her forefinger +against her lips, 'suppose--suppose we have some croquettes. I know how +to make some very plain and simple croquettes out of--' + +"'Oh, don't let us do that,' said I; 'they will take too long, and I am +hungry.' + +"'Very well, then,' said Anita. 'Let us have some boiled eggs; they are +quick.' + +"I agreed to this. + +"'The next thing,' said Anita, 'is bread and butter. Would you like some +hot soda-biscuit?' + +"'No,' said I; 'you would have to make some dough and find the soda, +and--isn't there anything ready baked?' + +"'Oh, yes,' she answered; 'we have Albert biscuit and--' + +"'Albert biscuit will do,' I interrupted. + +"'Now,' said she, 'we will soon have our first meal in the cot.' + +"'This is a very unassuming lunch,' she said, when we were at last +seated at the table, 'but I am going to give you a nice dinner. If you +want more than three eggs I will cook you some in a few minutes. I put +another stick of wood in the fire so as to keep the water hot.' + +"I was in considerable doubt as to what sort of man it would be best +for us to have. I would have been very glad to have my special valet, +because he was an extremely handy man in many ways; but I thought it +better to consider a little before sending for him: he might be +incongruous. I had plenty of time to consider, for Anita occupied nearly +the whole afternoon in getting up our dinner. She was very enthusiastic +about it, and did not want me to help her at all, except to make a fire +in the stove. After that, she said, everything would be easy. The wood +was all in small pieces and piled up conveniently near. As I glanced +around the kitchen I saw that Baxter had had this little room fitted up +with every possible culinary requirement. + +"We had dinner a little before eight. Anita sat down, hot, red, but +radiant with happiness. + +"'Now, then,' said she, 'you will find I have prepared for you a +high-grade cotter's dinner; by which I mean that it is a meal which all +farmers or country people might have every day if they only knew enough, +or were willing to learn. I have looked over several books on the +subject, and Mrs. Parker told me a great deal. Maria told me a great +many things also. They were both poor in early life, and knew what they +were talking about. First we will have soup--a plain vegetable soup. I +went into the garden and picked the vegetables myself.' + +"'I wish you had asked me to do that,' said I. + +"'Oh, no,' she answered; 'I do not intend to be inferior to any +countrywoman. Then there is roast chicken. After that a lettuce salad +with mayonnaise dressing; I do not believe cotters have mayonnaise +dressing, nor shall we every day; but this is an exceptional meal. For +the next course I have made a pie, and then we shall have black coffee. +If you want wine you can get a bottle from the wine-hamper; but I shall +not take any: I intend to live consistently through the whole of this +experience.' + +"There was something a little odd about the soup: it tasted as if a +variety of vegetables had been washed in it and then the vegetables +thrown away. I removed the soup-plates while Anita went out to get the +next course. When she put the dish on the table she said something had +given way while the fowl was cooking, and it had immediately stuck its +legs high in the air. 'It looks funny,' she remarked, 'but in carving +you can cut the legs off first.' + +"I found one side of the fowl much better cooked than the other,--in +fact, I should have called it kiln-dried,--and the other side had +certainly been warmed. The mayonnaise was very peculiar and made me +think of the probable necessity of filling the lamps, and I hoped Baxter +had had this attended to. The pie was made of gooseberry jam, the +easiest pie in the world to make, Anita told me. 'You take the jam just +as it is, and put it between two layers of dough, and then bake it.' The +coffee was very like black writing-ink, and, having been made for a long +time, was barely tepid. + +"Strange as it may appear, however, I ate a hearty dinner. I was very +hungry. + +"'Now,' said Anita, as she folded her napkin, 'I do not believe you have +enjoyed this dinner half as much as I enjoyed the cooking of it, and I +am not going to wash up anything, for I will not deprive myself of the +pleasure of sitting with you while you smoke your after-dinner cigar on +the front porch. These dishes will not be wanted until to-morrow, and if +you will take hold of one end of the table we will set it against the +wall. There is a smaller table which will do for our breakfast.' + +"I drank several glasses of wine as I smoked, but I did not feel any +better. If I had known what was going to happen I should have preferred +to go hungry. I did not tell Anita I was not feeling well, for that +would have made her suffer in mind more than I was suffering in body; +but when I had finished my smoke, and she had gone into the house to +light the parlor lamp, I hurried over to the barn, where Baxter had had +a telephone put up, and I called him up in town, and told him to send me +a chef who could hoe and dig a little in the garden. + +"'I thought you would want a man of that kind,' Baxter telephoned. 'Will +Isadore do? He is at your town house now, and can leave by the +ten-o'clock train.' + +"I knew Isadore. He was the second chef in my town house, a man of much +experience, and good-natured. I told Baxter to make him understand what +sort of place he was coming to, and to send him on without delay. + +"'Do you want him to live in the house?' asked Baxter. And I replied +that I did not. + +"'Very good,' said he; 'I will have a tent put up for him near +Baldwin's.' + +"When I went to the house I told Anita I had engaged a man. + +"'I am glad,' said she; 'but I have just thought of something: I cannot +possibly cook for a man.' + +"'Oh, you won't have to do that,' I answered. 'He will live near here, +just the other side of the road.' + +"'That will do very well,' said she. 'I do not mind being your servant, +Harold, but I cannot be a servant's servant.'" + +"Do you know," said the Master of the House, "as this story goes on I +feel poorer and poorer every minute--I suppose by comparison. In fact, I +do not know that I can afford to light another cigar. But one thought +comforts me," he continued: "if I had been living in that cot with my +wife I would not have had the stomach-ache; so that balances things +somewhat." + +The lady smiled. + +"The next morning a little after eight o'clock I came down to open the +house, and there, standing by the porch, hat in hand, I saw Isadore. +He was a middle-aged man, large and solid, with very flat feet and a +smoothly shaven face, twinkling eyes, and a benevolent smile. I was very +glad to see him, especially before breakfast. I took him away from the +house, so that Anita might not overhear our conversation, and then I +laid the whole case before him. He was an Alsatian, but his English was +perfectly easy to understand. + +"'I know precisely what it is that is wanted,' said he, 'and Mr. Baxter +has made the arrangements with me. It is that madame shall not suppose +anything, but that what she wishes to be done shall be done.' + +"'That is the idea,' said I. 'Don't interfere with her, but have +everything done all right.' + +"'And I am to be man of all work. I like that. You shall see that I am +charmed. Now I will go and change my clothes.' And this well-dressed man +turned away toward Baldwin's tent. + +"When Anita came down the servant I had engaged was at the kitchen door +waiting for orders. He was a plainly dressed man, his whole appearance +neat but humble. 'He looks like a foreigner,' said Anita. + +"'You are right,' I replied; 'he is an Alsatian.' + +"'And his name?' + +"I was about to tell her Isadore, but I stopped myself. It was barely +possible that she might have heard the name of the man who for two years +had composed the peculiar and delicious ices of which she was so fond; +she might even have seen him, and the name might call up some +recollection. 'Did you say your name was Isaac?' I called out to the +man. + +"'Yes, sir,' he answered; 'it is that. I am Isaac.' + +"'I am going to get breakfast,' said Anita. 'Do you suppose he can build +a fire?' + +"'Oh, yes,' I replied; 'that is what he is engaged for--to be the man of +all work.' + +"Prompted by curiosity, I shortly afterwards looked in at the kitchen +door. 'While you prepare the table, madame,' the man of all work was +saying, 'shall I arrange the coffee for the hot water?' + +"'Do you know how to do it?' she asked. + +"'Oh, yes, madame,' the good Isaac replied. 'In a little hut in Alsace, +where I was born, I was obliged to learn to do all things. My father and +my mother had no daughter, and I had to be their daughter as well as +their son. I learn to cook the simple food. I milk the cow, I rub the +horse, I dig in the garden, I pick the berries in the woods.' As he +talked Isaac was not idle; he was busy with the coffee. + +"'That is very interesting,' said Anita to me; 'where there are no +daughters among the poor the sons must learn a great deal.' + +"I remained at the kitchen door to see what would happen next. There was +a piece of dough upon a floury board, and when Anita went to lay the +table the Alsatian fairly flew upon the dough. It was astonishing to see +with what rapidity he manipulated it. When Anita came back she took the +dough and divided it into four portions. 'There will be two rolls apiece +for us,' she said. 'And now, Isaac, will you put them into the stove? +The back part is where we bake things. We are going to have some lamb +chops and an omelet,' she said to me as she approached the hamper. + +"'Ah, madame,' cried the Alsatian, 'allow me to lift the chops. The raw +meat will make your fingers smell.' + +"'That is true,' said Anita; 'you may take them out.' And then she went +back to the dining-room. + +"Isaac knelt by the hamper. Then he lifted his eyes to the skies and +involuntarily exclaimed: '_Oh, tonnerre!_ They were not put by the ice.' +And he gave a melancholy sniff. 'But they will be all right,' he said, +turning to me. 'Have trust.' The man of all work handled the chops, and +offered to beat the omelet; but Anita would not let him do this: she +made it herself, a book open beside her as she did so. Then she told +Isaac to put it on the stove, and asked if I were ready for breakfast. +As she turned to leave the room I saw her assistant whip her omelet off +the stove and slip on it another one. When or where he had made it I had +no idea; it must have been while she was looking for the sugar. + +"'A most excellent breakfast,' said I, when the meal was over; and I +spoke the exact truth. + +"'Yes,' said Anita; 'but I think I shall do better after I have had more +practice. I wonder if that man really can wash dishes.' On being +questioned, Isaac declared that in the humble cot in which he was born +he had been obliged to wash dishes; there were no daughters, and his +mother was infirm. + +"'That is good; and if any of the plates need a little rubbing up +afterwards I can do them,' said Anita. 'Now we will take a walk over the +place, which we have not done yet.' + +"When we returned Isaac was working in the garden. Anita went into the +house, and then the man of all work approached me; he had in his hand a +little piece of red earthenware, which he held up before me in one hand +and touched his cap with the other. 'Sir,' said he, 'is it all pots? +Grass, bushes, everything?' + +"'Oh, no,' said I. 'What is the matter?' + +"'Excuse me,' said he, 'but everywhere I work in the garden I strike +pots, and I broke this one. But I will be more careful; I will not rub +so deep.' + +"For two or three days Anita and I enjoyed ourselves greatly. We walked, +we sat in the shade, we lay in hammocks, we read novels. 'That man,' +said Anita, 'is of the greatest possible assistance to me. The fact is +that, having been taught to do all sorts of things in his infancy, he +does the hard work of the kitchen, and all that is necessary for me to +do is to give the finishing touches.' + +"That afternoon, when I saw the well-known chef Isadore--for some years +head cook to the Duke of Oxminster, and willing to accept a second place +in the culinary department of my town house only on account of +extraordinary privileges and emoluments--when I saw this man of genius +coming down the hill carrying a heavy basket which probably contained +meats packed in ice, I began to wonder about two things: in the first +place, I wondered what exceptional remuneration in addition to his +regular salary Baxter had offered Monsieur Isadore in return for his +exceptional services in our cot; and in the second place, I wondered if +it were exactly fair to practise such a variety of deceptions upon +Anita. But I quieted my conscience by assuring it that I was doing +everything for her benefit and happiness, particularly in regard to this +man of all work, who was probably saving us from chronic dyspepsia. +Besides, it was perfectly fair play, for if she had told me she was +going to do all my cooking I never would have come to this cot. + +"It was that evening, when we were both in a good humor after a good +dinner, that my wife somewhat disturbed my peace of mind. 'Everything is +going on so smoothly and in such a pastoral and delightful way,' said +she, 'that I want some of our friends to visit us. I want them to see +for themselves how enjoyable such a life as this is. I do not believe +any of them know anything about it.' + +"'Friends!' I exclaimed. 'We do not want people here. We cannot +entertain them. Such a thing was never contemplated by either of us, I +am sure.' + +"'That is true,' said Anita; 'but things are different from what I +expected. They are ever and ever so much better. And we can entertain +people. We have a guest-room which is fitted up and furnished as well as +ours is. If we are satisfied, I am sure anybody ought to be. I tell you +who will be a good person to invite for the first one--Mr. Rounders.' + +"'Rounders!' I exclaimed. 'He is the last man in the world for a guest +in this cot.' + +"'No, he is not,' answered Anita. 'He would like it very much indeed. He +would be perfectly willing and glad to do anything you do, and to live +in any way you live. Besides, he told me, not very long ago, that he +often thought of the joys of an humble life, without care, without +anxiety, enough, no more, and a peaceful mind.' + +"'Very well,' said I; 'this is your picnic, and we will have Rounders +and his wife.' + +"'No, indeed,' said Anita, very emphatically. 'She cannot come anyway, +because she is in Europe. But I would not have her if she were here. If +he comes, he is to come alone. Shall I write him a note, or will you? +There is no time to waste.' + +"She wrote the note, and when it was finished Isaac carried it to +Baldwin and told him to have it mailed. + +"The more I thought about this invitation the more interested I became +in it. No one could be more unsuited to a cotter's life than Godfrey +Rounders. He was a rich man of middle age, but he was different from any +other rich man with whom I was acquainted. It was impossible to talk to +him or even to be with him for five minutes without perceiving that he +was completely controlled by the money habit. He knew this, but he could +not help it. In business resorts, in society, and in the clubs he met +great capitalists, millionaires, and men of wealth of all degrees, +who were gentlemen, scholars, kind and deferential in manner, and +unobtrusive in dress, and not to be distinguished, so far as +conversation or appearance could serve as guides, from those high types +of gentlemen which are recognized all over the world. Rounders longed to +be like one of these, but he found it to be impossible. He was too old +to reform, and the money habit had such a hold over him that I believe +even when he slept he was conscious of his wealth. He was not a coarse, +vulgar Dives: he had the instincts of a gentleman; but these were +powerless. The consciousness of money showed itself on him like a +perspiration; wipe his brows as he might, it always reappeared. + +"He had not been poor in his early life; his father was a man of +moderate means, and Rounders had never known privations and hardships; +but, in his intense desire to make people think that his character had +not been affected by his money, he sometimes alluded to straits and +difficulties he had known in early days, of which he was not now in the +least ashamed. But he was so careful to keep these incidents free from +any suspicion of real hardships or poverty that he always failed to make +the impression he desired. I have seen him quite downcast after an +interview with strangers, and I was well aware what was the matter with +him. He knew that, in spite of his attempts to conceal the domination of +his enslaving habit, these people had discovered it. Considering all +this, I came to believe it would please Rounders very much to come to +stay a few days with us. Life in a cot, without any people to wait upon +him, would be a great thing for him to talk about; it might help to make +some people believe that he was getting the better of his money habit. + +"In the middle of the night I happened to wake, then I happened to think +of Rounders, then I happened to think of a story Baxter had told me, and +then I burst out into a loud laugh. Fortunately Anita did not awake; she +merely talked in her sleep, and turned over. The story Baxter had told +me was this: In the past winter I had given a grand dinner, and +Rounders was one of the guests. Isadore's specialty was ices, pastry, +salads, and all sorts of delicate preparations, and he had excelled +himself on this occasion, especially in the matter of sweets. At an +unhappy moment Rounders had said to his neighbor that if she could taste +the sort of thing she was eating as his cook made it she would know what +it really ought to be. An obliging butler carried this remark to +Monsieur Isadore as he was sipping his wine in his dressing-gown and +slippers. The interesting part of this anecdote was Baxter's description +of Isadore's rage. The furious cook took a cab and drove directly to +Baxter's hotel. The wording of Monsieur Isadore's volcanic remarks I +cannot state, but he butchered, cut up, roasted, carved, peppered, and +salted Rounders's moral and social character in such a masterly way that +Baxter laughed himself hoarse. The fiery cook would have left my service +then and there if Baxter had not assured him that if the gilded reptile +ever dined with him again Isadore should be informed beforehand, that he +might have nothing to do with anything that went on the table. In +consequence of this promise, Monsieur Isadore, having withdrawn a +deposit of several thousand dollars from one of the trust companies with +which Rounders was connected, consented to remain in my household. + +"'Now, then,' I asked myself, 'how are we going to get along with +Rounders and my man of all work Isaac?' But the invitation had gone, and +there was no help for it. I concluded, and I think wisely, that it would +be unkind to trouble Anita by telling her anything about this +complication, but I would prepare the mind of the good Isaac. + +"I went into the garden the next morning, where our man of all work was +gathering vegetables, and when I told him that Mr. Godfrey Rounders was +coming to spend a few days with us the face of Isadore--for it was +impossible at that moment to think of him as Isaac--was a wonderful +sight to see: his brows contracted, his countenance darkened, and his +eyes flashed as though they were about to shoot out lightning. Then all +color, even his natural ruddiness, departed from his face. He bowed +gravely. + +"'I have heard it said you have taken some sort of dislike to +Mr. Rounders,' said I; 'and while I have nothing to do with it, and do +not want to know anything about it, I do not wish to force you into an +unpleasant position, and if you would rather go away while Mr. Rounders +is here, I will have some one sent to take your place until he leaves. +Then we shall want you back again. In this unusual position you have +acquitted yourself most admirably.' + +"While I was speaking Isadore had been thinking hard and fast; it was +easy to see this by the varied expressions which swept over his face. +When I had finished he spoke quite blandly: + +"'It is that it would be beneath me, sir, to allow any of the dislike +of mine to interfere with the comfort or the pleasure of yourself and +madame. I beg that you will not believe that I will permit myself even +to think of such a thing. I remain so long as it is that you wish me. Is +it that you intend that your visitor shall know my position in your town +house?' + +"'Oh, no,' said I; 'as I have not told my wife, of course I shall not +tell him. I am much obliged to you for your willingness to stay. It +would be very awkward if you should go.' + +"'I understand that, sir,' said Isaac, 'and I would do not one thing to +discompose madame or yourself.' + +"Rounders arrived according to schedule, and I met him at the gate, and +explained that my wife insisted it would be incongruous for a carriage +to drive up to the cot. 'I like that!' exclaimed Rounders. 'I like to +walk a little.' I took up one of his valises, the good Isaac carried the +two larger ones, while Rounders, with an apologetic look from right to +left, as if there might be some person present to whom this action +should be explained, took up some canes and umbrellas wrapped in a rug, +and we all went down to the cot, where Anita was waiting to receive us. + +"'Oh, I like this,' said Rounders, quite cheerfully. 'I do not know when +I have gone anywhere without some of my people. But I assure you I like +it. At the bottom of our hearts we all like this sort of thing.' + +"Anita showed him everything, and probably bored him dreadfully; but our +guest was determined to be pleased, and never ceased to say how much he +liked everything. There was no foolish pride about him, he said; he +believed in coming close to nature; and although a great many of the +peaceful joys of humanity were denied the man of affairs, still, when +the opportunity came, how gladly our inward natures rose up to welcome +it! 'Your wife tells me,' said he, 'that she is cook, housekeeper, +everything. This is charming! It must be a joy to you to know she is +capable of it. But, my dear friend,' he said, putting his hand on my +shoulder, 'you must not let her overwork herself. She will be very apt +to do it; the temptation is great. I am sure if I were she the +temptation to overwork in these new spheres would be very great.' + +"Rounders certainly did overwork himself, and this was in the line of +trying to make us believe that he thoroughly liked this plan of ours of +living in a cot by a rill, and that he was quite capable of forgetting +his ordinary life of affluence and luxury in the simple joys of our +rural household. He would have produced an impression on both Anita and +me if he had not said so much about it; but I knew what he was trying to +do, and made all the necessary allowances for him. + +"But, say what he might, I knew he was not satisfied. I could see that +he missed his 'people,' by whom he was accustomed to be surrounded and +served; and I soon found out that his meals did not suit him. Anita +visited the kitchen much more frequently than she had done just before +Rounders arrived, and she talked a great deal about the dishes which +were served to us; but, so far as I could judge, she had no more to do +with their preparation than she had previously had. I was thoroughly +well satisfied with everything; and, although Rounders was not, it was +impossible for him to say so when he sat opposite the lady who told him +two or three times at every meal that she presided in the kitchen. Of +course I would have done everything in my power to give Rounders things +to eat that he liked, but I did not know what to do. Our table was just +as good, though not as varied, as it was when we were in town; and that +Rounders was accustomed to living better than we did I could not for one +moment believe. I came to the conclusion that, in spite of his efforts +to subdue his dominating habit, he could not resist the temptation to +let us know that he was not used to humble life, or even the appearance +of it. + +"So I enjoyed our three good meals a day,--Anita would not allow us any +more,--which were prepared by one of the best cooks on the continent +from the choicest materials furnished regularly under Baxter's orders; +and if Rounders chose to think that what was good enough for me was not +good enough for him, he must go his own way and suffer accordingly. In +fortune and in station I was so immeasurably superior to him that it +nettled me a little to see him put on airs at the table to which I had +invited him. But Rounders was Rounders, and I did not allow my +irritation to continue. + +"In two or three days our visitor's overwork began to show on him: his +naturally plump cheeks hung down, his eyes drooped, and, although he +drank a great deal of wine, he was seldom in good spirits. On the fourth +day of his visit, after the morning mail had been brought to us by +Isaac, Rounders came to me and told me he had just received a letter +which would make it necessary for him to go home that afternoon. I +expressed my regret, but did not urge him to stay, for it was obvious +that he wanted to go. 'I have had a most delightful time,' he said, as +he took leave of Anita; 'but business is business, and I cannot put it +aside.' + +"I believed both these statements to be incorrect: I knew that at that +season he was not likely to be called away on business, and he had given +me no reason to suppose he was enjoying himself; and as I walked with +him to the gate I am afraid I was only stiffly polite. Our spirits rose +after his departure. Anita said she had found him an incongruity, and I +was tired of the spectacle of a purse-proud man trying to appear like +other people. But if I were harsh in my judgment of him I was speedily +punished. On the third day after he left I received a message from +Baxter, who wanted to see me at Baldwin's tent. He was not allowed to +come into the grounds, for Anita said that would look too much like +business. + +"I found that Baxter's errand was indeed urgent, and that he was fully +warranted in disturbing our privacy. The members of an English syndicate +were coming down from Canada to make final arrangements with me for the +purchase of a great tract of mining land, and as my presence and +signature were absolutely necessary in the concluding stages of the +transaction, I would be obliged to be in New York on the next day but +one. + +"I was greatly annoyed by this intelligence. The weather was +particularly fine, Anita was reading me a most interesting novel, and I +was settling myself down to a thorough enjoyment of our cottage life, +which I did not wish interfered with by anybody or anything, and I +growlingly asked why the syndicate had chosen such an unsuitable time of +the year to come down from Canada. But Baxter did not know. I continued +to growl, but there was no way out of it. I must go to New York. For the +sake of perhaps half a million dollars, which would not alter our +ordinary manner of living, which would not give us any pleasures, +privileges, or advantages of any kind which we did not now possess, we +must break up our delightful life at the cot and rill, and go back to +the humdrum of ordinary society. + +"Baxter tried to console me. He said we could easily return when this +business had been settled. But I knew that going away would break the +charm; I thoroughly understood Anita's nature, and I was sure if she +left the cot for a time she would not want to go back to it. But when I +told her Baxter's business, and that she would have to have some one +come and pack up for her, she flatly declared that no one should do +anything of the kind. She would stay where she was. + +"'You can't stay here by yourself!' I cried. + +"'Of course not,' she said. 'Who could imagine such an absurdity? But I +shall not be alone. I was thinking this very morning of Fanny Ransmore +and her mother. I want some women guests this time, and they would be +delightful after Mr. Rounders. Fanny is as lively as a cricket, and +Mrs. Ransmore could take care of anybody. You can tell Baxter to have +some one to patrol the grounds at night, and we shall get along +beautifully. I am sure you will not be away long.' + +"'But can you get the Ransmores?' I asked. + +"'Certainly,' said she. 'They are at Newport now; but I will telegraph +immediately, and they can start to-night and get here to-morrow +afternoon. You need not be afraid they cannot come. They would give up +any engagement on earth to be our only guests.' + +"The matter was settled according to Anita's plan, and I was more +willing to go to New York when I reflected that after the Ransmores came +Anita would not be able to read aloud to me." + +"At this point," said the Master of the House, "your hero makes me +angry. Why should he think he could not go away and leave his wife for +three days, when I leave my wife, and daughter too, for three years? His +Anita is not worth one twentieth as much as either my wife or daughter. +Then again, if I were in his place, I would not allow a disadvantageous +half-million to take me away from you two. It is only the absolutely +necessary thousands that make me leave you as I do." + +"Your sentiments are just as nice as they can be, papa," said the +Daughter of the House; "but don't you see if the gentleman did what you +would do it would spoil the story?" + +John Gayther smiled with pleasure. Here was a young lady who never +forgot the principle of the thing, whatever the thing might be. + +"That is true!" exclaimed the captain, stretching himself at full length +in his chair. "I did not think of that. Madam, please proceed; let the +King of Siam recommence his performances." + +"I will merely remark," said the Mistress of the House, "that if the +King of Siam undertook to emulate my hero in all his performances, it +would be a pretty hard thing for his already overtaxed subjects. + +"The Ransmores arrived on time, and were as delighted with the +invitation as Anita had said they would be. According to her orders, +neither of them brought a maid, which must have been pretty hard on the +old lady; but they declared that the fun of waiting on themselves would +be greater than anything Newport could possibly offer them. + +"I went to New York, attended to my business, which occupied me for +three days, and then I thought this would be a good opportunity to take +a trip to Philadelphia to look at a large steam-yacht which was in +course of construction at the shipyards there. I did not feel in such a +hurry to go back to the cot now that the Ransmores were there, and I was +sure also that Anita would like to hear about the new yacht, in which we +hoped to make a Mediterranean voyage during the winter. But early in the +forenoon of my second day in Philadelphia, while I was engaged in a +consultation concerning some of the interior fittings of the yacht, I +received a telegram from Baxter informing me that my wife had returned +from the cot on the previous evening, and was now at our town house. At +this surprising intelligence I dropped the business in hand and went to +New York by the first train. + +"'Of course,' said Anita, when we were alone, 'I will tell you why I +left that precious cot. We had a very good time after you left, and I +showed the Ransmores everything. The next day Fanny and I determined to +go fishing, leaving Mrs. Ransmore to read novels in a hammock, an +occupation she adores. Isaac was just as good as he could be all the +time; he got rods for us, and made us some beautiful bait out of raw +beef, for of course we did not want to handle worms; and we started for +the river. We had just reached a place where we could see the water, +when Fanny called out that somebody had a chicken-yard there, and that +we would have to go around it. We walked ever and ever so far, over all +sorts of stones and bushes, until we made up our minds we were inside a +chicken-yard and not outside, and so we could not get around it. I was +very much put out, and did not like it a bit because we could not reach +the river; but Fanny saw through it all, and said she was sure the fence +had been put there to keep all sorts of things from disturbing us; and +then she proposed fishing in the rill. + +"'We tried this a long time, but not a bite could we get; and then Fanny +went wandering up the stream to see if she could find a spring, because +she said she had heard that trout were often found in cold streams. +After a while she came running back, and said she had found the spring, +and what on earth did I think it was? She had soon come to what seemed +to be the upper end of the rill, and went down on her hands and knees +and looked under the edge of a great flat rock, and there she saw the +end of an iron pipe through which the water was running. When I heard +this I threw down my fishing-rod and would have nothing to do with an +artificial rill. I remembered then that I had thought, two or three +times, it had improved very much since I had first seen it; and when I +asked Mr. Baxter about it last night, he said the original rill had not +water enough in it for the little cataracts and ponds, and all that, and +so he had brought down water from some other stream about half a mile +away. + +"'When we went back to the cot Fanny seemed to have her suspicions +excited, and she pried into everything, and soon told me that the +furniture and all the things in the cot were only imitation of the +things plain country people use, and were, in reality, of the best +materials and wonderfully well made, and that it must have cost a lot of +money to buy all these imitations of old-fashioned, poor-folksy things. +Then she went into the garden and peered about, and told Isaac, who was +working there, that she had never seen so many different kinds of +vegetables all ripe at the same time. He touched his cap, and said that +was a compliment to his gardening. But pretty soon she saw the edge of a +flower-pot sticking above the ground, and showed it to me. I made him +dig up whole beds of things, and there was nothing but pots and pots, in +which everything was growing. + +"'I went back to the house and looked about a good deal more, with Fanny +at my elbow to tell me how poor people would never have this or that or +the other thing. Then I was very angry with myself for not being able to +see things without having them pointed out to me by that Fanny Ransmore, +who was not invited to pry about and make herself disagreeable in that +way.' + +"'And were you angry with me?' I asked. + +"'Yes,' she answered; 'for a little while. But when I remembered the +plans I had made I thought we were about square, and that I had +concealed as much from you as you had from me. I was not angry, but I +was determined I would not stay in that mock-cot any longer. I could not +bear the sight of anything I looked at. I thought the quickest way of +settling the matter was to get rid of the whole business at once, and I +told Isaac to put a crowbar under the kitchen stove, which was full of +burning wood, and turn it over. But he was horrified, and said he might +be arrested and put in prison for doing that; and, besides, it would be +such a shame to waste so many beautiful things. Fanny and her mother +thought so, too. And I asked Isaac where the family lived who used to +own the cot, and he said they were still at the hotel, not being able to +find any suitable quarters. So I sent for the widow and her daughter and +son, and I told them to take the cot just as it was, and to keep it +forever, and I would have Mr. Maxwell make out the law papers. They went +about shouting with delight at everything they saw, very different from +that Fanny! So it was really a very nice thing to do, and I feel a great +deal better. And here I am, and you will find Fanny and her mother +somewhere in the house whenever you want to see them. After this I think +it will be better for us both not to try any affectionate frauds on each +other.' + +"I was very glad the investigating Fanny had not discovered all my +affectionate frauds, and that I was able myself to reveal to Anita the +identity of the useful Isaac. This did amaze her, and for a moment I +thought she was going to cry; but she was not in the habit of doing much +of that sort of thing, and presently she laughed. 'Monsieur Isadore,' +she exclaimed, 'working in the garden and washing pots and pans! Why, +don't you know some people think he is almost as good as our head chef +Leonard?' + +"'As good!' I cried. 'He is infinitely better. Leonard could never have +done for us what our good Isaac did. And now I must tell you a story +about Isadore that Baxter related to me this morning as we drove up from +the station.' I then told her the story of Isadore alias Isaac--of his +dislike for Mr. Rounders, and of the noble manner in which he had +determined to stand by us when he heard that gentleman was about to +visit us. 'After Rounders's arrival,' I remarked, 'things went on +apparently as well as before--' + +[Illustration: "I made him dig up whole beds of things."] + +"'Apparently!' Anita interrupted. 'They went on better than before. I +let Isaac, as we called him, do a great deal more of the cooking than he +did before Mr. Rounders came. I thought our meals were remarkably good, +and if Mr. Rounders did not like them, as I sometimes thought he did +not, I believed it was because he could not help putting on airs even to +us.' + +"I laughed. 'Well,' said I, 'the state of the case was this: during the +whole time Rounders stayed with us, Isadore did not cook one particle of +food for him.' + +"'That was impossible,' cried Anita. 'I noticed nothing of the kind, +and, besides, Mr. Rounders would have found it out immediately.' + +"'Of course neither of us noticed it,' said I, 'for Isadore did not +serve us with any of the things he gave to Rounders. And as for the +latter discovering that he was eating his food raw, he had no idea that +such was the case. He supposed he was eating what we ate, and therefore +did not like to say anything about it.' + +"'But I do not understand!' cried Anita. 'How could any one eat things +and not know they were uncooked?' + +"'You do not understand,' said I, 'because you do not comprehend the +deep and wonderful art of Isadore. Baxter tried to explain some of it to +me as he heard it from the lips of the chef himself, but I do not know +enough of kitchen magic to understand it. As Isadore waited on us, he +was able to bring us well-prepared food, and to give Mr. Rounders +something very different, but which looked just like that we had. Even +his coffee was served in a cup heated hot in the oven, while the coffee +itself had merely been warmed. I cannot explain all these uncooked +meals, and if you want to know more you must ask Isadore himself. But +Baxter told me that spices and condiments must have been used with +wonderful effect, and that the poor man must have lived mostly on +biscuits. Isadore said that all his life he would laugh when he thought +of Mr. Rounders trying to eat a chicken croquette the inside of which +was perfectly raw, while the outside smoked, and looking at the same +time with astonishment at you and me as we quietly ate what seemed to be +exactly like the thing he had on his plate.' + +"'But, Harold,' said Anita, 'that was a shameful way to treat our +guest!' + +"'That is what Baxter said to Isadore; but the cook excused himself by +stating that all this happened in a cot, in a dear little cot, where +everything was different from everything else in the world, and where he +had tried to make you and me happy, and where he himself had been so +happy, especially when he saw Mr. Rounders trying to eat chicken +croquettes. He was also so pleased with the life at the cot that he is +going to have one of his own when he goes back to Alsace, which will be +shortly, as he has made enough to satisfy his wants, and he intends to +retire there and be happy in a cot.' + +"Anita reflected for a few moments, and then she said: 'I think life in +a cot might be very happy indeed--for Isaac.'" + +With this the Mistress of the House rose from her chair. + +"Is that at all?" exclaimed her daughter. "There are several things I +want to know." + +"That is all," replied the story-teller. "Like the good King of Siam, I +consider my already overtaxed subjects." And with this she went into the +house. + +"Do either of you suppose," remarked the Master of the House, "that that +Anita woman gave the whole of that great estate to the widow and her two +children? How much land do you think, John Gayther, was enclosed inside +that chicken wire?" + +"I have been calculating it in my head," replied the gardener, "and it +must have been over a thousand acres. And for my part, sir, I don't +believe it was all given to the widow. When Mr. Baxter came to attend to +the papers I think he made over the cot and about seven acres of land, +which was quite enough to be attended to by a half-grown boy." + +"That is my opinion, too," said the Daughter of the House, "and I think +that the opulent owner of that great estate made a deer-park of the rest +of it, with reindeer, fallow deer, red deer, stags, and all sorts of +deer, and not one of them able to jump over the wire." + +"Ah, me!" said the captain, rising and folding his arms as he leaned his +broad back against a pillar of the summer-house, "these great volcanoes +of wealth, always in eruption, always squirting out town houses, country +houses, butlers, chefs, under-chefs, diamonds, lady's-maids, horses, +carriages, seaside gardens, thousand-acre poultry-yards, private +sidewalks, and clouds of money which obscure the sun, daze my eyes and +amaze my soul! John Gayther, I wish you would send me one of your +turnip-hoers; I want him to take my second-best shoes to be mended." + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE MASTER OF THE HOUSE + + AND IS CALLED + + THE GILDED IDOL AND THE + KING CONCH-SHELL + + + + +V + +THE GILDED IDOL AND THE KING CONCH-SHELL + + +The rose-vines were running riot over the old garden wall, and as it +was now midsummer and the season of their full bloom had passed, John +Gayther set to work one morning to prune and train them. The idea of +doing this was forcibly impressed upon his mind that day by the fact +that the Mistress of the House had returned the evening before, and he +knew that she would notice the untidy appearance of the rose-vines as +soon as it should please her to come into the garden. The family had +been at the sea-shore for nearly two weeks, and the gardener had missed +them sorely, especially the Daughter of the House. They had now all +returned, and the butler had told him that they had brought with them a +visitor, a Frenchman. John Gayther, whose mind was always full of the +Daughter of the House, immediately inquired if he was young; but the +butler's answer was unsatisfactory, as he said the gentleman was neither +young nor old, and talked queer English. As the butler himself--who was +English--talked what seemed to the gardener queer English, John did not +lay much stress upon that statement. + +He was soon to make his own observations, however, for a sweet voice he +knew well called out to him: "We are all back, John, in the dear old +garden!" + +John turned, and found four persons had come up quietly and were +watching his work. He returned the cordial greetings of the family, and +then the Master of the House informally introduced their companion. "We +have a foreign gentleman with us, John; he belongs to the same nation as +your great hero Lafayette, and therefore I know you will be pleased to +have him join our story-telling party. For it has been decided by the +ruling power in this house that a story is to be told this morning; so +leave your vines, and come with us." + +John was obliged to follow as the party took the path to the +summer-house, but he went unwillingly. Lafayette was a great and good +man, but it did not follow that all his countrymen were of that sort; +and, in fact, John knew but little about Frenchmen. He immediately +conceived a dislike to this one as he saw him walking by the side of the +Daughter of the House and evidently pleased with her company. He greatly +disliked the idea of telling a story to this stranger, and determined it +should not be made interesting. + +There was nothing in the Frenchman's appearance to excite this dislike. +There was nothing striking about him. He was a good-looking man verging +on middle age perhaps, with a rather short little figure and an airy +walk. + +"Now," said the Master of the House, when the party were all disposed +to the best advantage, and the Frenchman had gone into an ecstasy over +the view from the summer-house, "John Gayther, you are to listen +carefully to this story, for I am going to tell it myself, being moved +thereto by the story my wife told here." + +John, greatly relieved by this announcement, signified his cordial +approbation, and the captain began his relation: + +"Captain Abner Budlong was a retired sailorman. He was rather small of +stature, with mild blue eyes, and a little gold ring in each of his +ears. He was in the prime of life, and had been so often wet with salted +water and dried by salted winds that he looked as though he might last +forever. + +"He had ceased to sail in ships, because his last vessel, of which he +had been part-owner, had positively declined to sail any longer under +him. When this misguided craft decided to go to the bottom of the sea, +Captain Abner, in a little boat, accompanied by his crew, betook himself +to the surface of the land, and there he determined to stay for the rest +of his life. His home was on the sea-shore. In the summer-time he fished +and took people out to sail in his boat; and in the cold weather he +generally devoted himself to putting things into his house, or arranging +or rearranging the things already there. He himself was his family, and +therefore there was no difference of opinion as to the ordering of that +household. + +"The house was divided through the middle by a narrow hallway; that part +to the right as one entered the front door was called by Captain Abner +the 'bachelor side,' while the portion to the left he designated as the +'married side.' The right half might have suggested a forecastle, and +was neat and clean, with sanded floors and everything coiled up and +stowed away in true shipshape fashion. But the other half was viewed by +Captain Abner as something in the quarter-deck style. Exactly half the +hall was carpeted, and the little parlor opening from it was also +carpeted, painted, and papered, and filled with a great variety of +furniture and ornaments which the captain had picked up by sea and land. +Everything was very pretty and tasteful, according to the captain's +ideas of taste and art, and everything was sacred; no collector could +have bought anything out of that little parlor, no matter how much money +he might offer. + +"This parlor and the room above had been furnished, decorated, and +ornamented for the future mistress of Captain Abner's household, and he +was ready to dedicate them to her services whenever he should be so +lucky as to find her. So far, as he sometimes expressed himself, he had +not had a chance to sing out, 'There she blows!' + +"One afternoon, when Captain Abner was engaged in dusting the ornaments +in the parlor, his good friend Samuel Twitty stood in the doorway and +accosted him. Sam Twitty had been mate to Captain Abner, and as he had +always been accustomed to stand by his captain, he stood by him when he +left the sea for the land; although they did not live in the same house, +they were great cronies, and were always ready to stand by each other, +no matter what happened. Sam's face and figure were distinguished by a +pleasant plumpness; he was two or three years the junior of Captain +Abner, and his slippered feet were very flat upon the ground. He held +his pipe behind his back in such a position that it hung over the +uncarpeted part of the hallway. A pipe in the married part of the house +was never allowed. + +"'Sam,' said Captain Abner, 'you've hove in sight jes at the right +minute, for I'm kind o' puzzled. Here's this conch-shell, which is the +biggest I ever seed, and a king conch-shell at that, and I can't make up +my mind whether she'd like it here in the middle of the mantelpiece, or +whether she'd like to have the gilded idol here, where it would be the +fust thing she'd see when she came into the room. Sometimes I'm inclined +in the way of the heathen idol, and sometimes in the way of the king +conch-shell. And how am I to know which she likes? What do you think +about it?' + +"'Well, now, Cap'n Abner,' said Sam, his head cocked a little to one +side, 'that's a pretty hard question to answer, considerin' I don't know +who she is and what kind o' taste she's got. But I'll tell you what I'd +do if I was you. I'd put that king conch-shell on the mantelpiece, or I +would put the gilded idol there, it wouldn't matter much which, and then +I'd put the other one handy, so that when she fust come in, and you +could see she didn't like whatever it was that was in the middle of the +mantelpiece, you could whip it off and put the other thing there almost +afore she knowed it.' + +"'Sam,' said Captain Abner, 'that's a real good rule to go by, and it +looks to me as if it might fit other things besides gilded idols and +conch-shells. And now that you're here I'd like you to stay and take +supper with me. I've got something to tell you.' + +"After the evening meal, which was prepared by Captain Abner and his +guest, who were both expert maritime cooks and housekeepers, these two +old friends sat down to smoke their pipes, the parlor door having been +carefully shut. + +"'Sam,' said the captain, 'I've got everything ready for her that I can +think of. There isn't anything more she'd be likely to want. So now I'm +goin' after her, and I'm goin' to start on Monday mornin'.' + +"Sam Twitty was astonished. He had had an idea that Captain Abner would +go on preparing for her to the end of his days, and it was a shock to +him to hear that the work of preparation, in which he had been +interested for so many years, and in which he had so frequently +assisted, should now be brought suddenly to a close. + +"'Ready!' he ejaculated. 'I wouldn't have believed it if ye hadn't told +me yourself. And yet, come to think of it, I can't see for the life of +me what else you can do for her.' + +"'There ain't nothin' else,' said Abner, 'and on Monday mornin' I'm +settin' out to look for her.' + +"'Do you go by land or by water?' asked Sam. + +"'Land,' was the answer. 'There ain't no chance of runnin' across her by +sea.' + +"'And how are you goin'? Walkin'?' + +"'No, sir,' said Abner. 'I'm goin' to hire a horse and a buggy. That's +how I'm goin'.' + +"'And where are you goin' to steer fust?' asked Sam. + +"'I'm goin' fust to Thompsontown, and after I've took my observations +there I'll fetch a compass and sail every which way, if need be. There's +lots of people of all sorts in Thompsontown, and I don't see why she +shouldn't be one of them.' + +"'No more do I,' said Sam Twitty. 'I think it's more'n likely she'll be +one of them.' + +"Very early the next morning, almost before the first streaks of dawn, +Captain Abner was awakened by a voice under his window. + +"'Shipmate ahoy!' said the voice, which was Sam Twitty's. In a moment +Abner's head was out of the window. + +"'Cap'n Abner,' said Sam, 'I'm goin' with you.' + +"Abner did not immediately answer, but presently he replied: 'Look here, +Sam Twitty; you come around after breakfast and tell me that ag'in.' + +"Promptly after breakfast Sam appeared. + +"'Look a' here,' said Captain Abner, when they had lighted their morning +pipes, 'that ain't a bad notion of yours. Somethin' might turn up when +I'd want advice, and you might give me some like you gave me about the +king conch-shell and the gilded idol. It ain't a bad idea, and, as you +say so, I'd like you to come along.' + +"Sam did not reply with the alacrity that might have been expected of +him. He puffed silently at his pipe and gazed upon the ground. 'You said +you was a-goin' in a buggy,' he remarked. + +"'Yes; that's what I'm expectin' to do.' + +"'Then how am I to get back?' inquired Sam. + +"'That's so,' said Abner. 'I never thought of that.' + +"'Look a' here, cap'n,' said Abner; 'what do you say to a spring-wagon +with seats for four, two in front, and two behind?' + +"This suited Captain Abner, and Sam went on to say: 'There'll be +another good thing about that; if you get her and bring her back--' + +"'Which is what I'm goin' for and intend to do.' + +"'Then,' continued Sam, 'you two could sit on the back seat, and I could +sit in front and drive.' + +"'Did you ever drive, Sam?' asked Captain Abner. + +"'Not yet; but I wouldn't mind l'arnin'.' + +"'But you won't l'arn with me and her,' said Captain Abner. + +"'How are you goin' to manage it, then?' asked Sam. 'You won't want me +and her to sit on the back seat, and it wouldn't look jes right for you +an' her to be in front, and me behind all by myself, as if I was +company.' + +"'Don't know,' said Captain Abner. 'We'll get her fust, and then let her +sit where she wants to.' + +"'There's one thing I wouldn't like to see,' said Sam Twitty, 'and +that's you and me sittin' behind, and her a-drivin'.' + +"'There won't be none of that,' said Captain Abner; 'that ain't my +way.'" + +"Is that a good beginning?" asked the Master of the House, suddenly +addressing his wife. + +"Yes," she replied, "very good; and I see this is to be a real man's +story." + +"And so it should be, mamma," said the Daughter of the House. "Men know +more about men than they do about women." + +"Don't be too sure of that," said her father. "But no matter. The two +friends started out on Monday morning after breakfast for Thompsontown. +Considerable delay was occasioned at the livery-stable by certain pieces +of advice which Sam Twitty offered to Captain Abner. In the first +place, he objected to a good black horse which had been attached to +the wagon, giving it as his opinion that that looked too much like a +funeral, and that a cheerful-colored horse would be much better adapted +to a matrimonial expedition. A gray horse, slower than the black one, +was substituted, and Sam was quite satisfied. Then a great many things +in the way of provisions and conveniences came into his mind which he +thought would be well to take on the voyage, and he even insisted upon +rigging up an extension at the back of the wagon on which her trunk +could be carried on the home journey. + +"At last they got away, and as they drove slowly out of the little +village not one of the inhabitants thereof knew anything about their +intended journey, except that they were going to Thompsontown; for +Captain Abner and Sam Twitty would have as soon thought of boring a hole +in the bottom of a boat in which they were to sail as of telling their +neighbors they were going to look for her and to bring her back in that +spring-wagon. + +"The old gray horse jogged very comfortably over the smooth road until a +toll-gate was perceived near by. + +"'Now, then, cap'n,' said Sam, as they drew up in front of the little +house by the roadside, 'whatever you pay here you ought to charge to the +expense of gettin' her.' + +"'That's so,' said his companion; 'but if she's all right I ain't goin' +to mind no tolls.' + +"A pleasant-faced woman now came to the door of the little house and +stood expectant, while Captain Abner thrust his hand into his pocket. + +"'How much is it?' said he. + +"'It's ten cents,' said she. + +"Then Sam Twitty, who did not wish to sit silent, remarked that it was a +fine day, and the toll-gate woman said that indeed it was. Captain Abner +was now looking at some small change in the palm of his hand. + +"'I ain't got ten cents,' said he. 'Here's only six, and I can't scrape +up another copper. Sam, can you lend me four cents?' + +"Sam searched his pockets. 'Haven't got it,' said he. 'Them little +things we bought jes afore we started cleaned me out of change.' + +"'The same thing's happened to me, too,' said Abner; 'and, madam, I'll +have to ask you to change a five-dollar note, which is the smallest I've +got.' + +"The toll-gate woman said she was very sorry, but indeed she had not +five dollars in change, either at the toll-gate or in the house where +she lived just behind in a little garden. The day before she had had a +good deal of change, but she had paid it all into the company. + +"'Then what are we goin' to do?' asked Sam. 'I suppose you won't let us +go through without payin'?' + +"The woman smiled and shook her head. 'I couldn't do that; it's against +the rules. Sometimes when people come along and find they have nothin' +to pay toll with they go back and get the money somewhere. It's our +rules, and if I broke them I might lose my place.' + +"'Which we wouldn't think of makin' you do,' remarked Sam. + +"'But that's one thing I can't do,' said Captain Abner. 'I can't turn +round and go back. If the folks knew I was turned back because I +couldn't pay toll I'd never hear the end of it.' + +"'That's so,' agreed Sam. 'It would never do to go back.' + +"The toll woman stood and looked at them and smiled. She was a pleasant +personage, not inclined to worry over the misfortunes of her +fellow-beings. + +"'Isn't there a place somewhere near here where I could get a note +changed?' asked Abner. + +"'I can't say,' answered the toll woman. 'I don't believe any of the +houses along the road has got five dollars in change inside of them, and +even if you went across the country to any of the farm-houses, you +wouldn't be likely to find that much. But if you are not in a hurry and +wouldn't mind waitin', it's as like as not that somebody will be along +that's got five dollars in change. You don't seem to know this part of +the country,' she added. + +"'No,' said Abner; 'when me and my mate travels we generally take the +public conveyances. This is the fust time we've druv on this road.' + +"Then up spoke Sam Twitty: 'Does you and your husband live here and keep +the toll-gate, ma'am?' + +"The woman looked as though she thought the plump person a little +inquisitive, but she smiled and answered, 'My husband used to keep the +toll-gate, but since he died I've kept it.' + +"Captain Abner looked troubled. 'I don't mind so much waitin' myself,' +said he, 'but it's the horse I'm thinkin' about. I promised I'd have him +fed at twelve o'clock sharp every day I have him. He's used to it, and +I don't want him givin' out afore I'm through with him.' + +"'When horses is used to bein' fed at regular times,' said the toll-gate +woman, 'they do show it if they don't get fed. But, if you don't mind, +I've got a little stable back there, and some corn, and if you choose to +drive your horse into the yard and give him a feed I'll charge you jes +what anybody else would. And while he's a-feedin' most likely +somebody'll come along that's got five dollars in change.' + +"For some minutes Sam Twitty had not said a word, but now he most +earnestly advised his friend to accept this offer, and, jumping to the +ground, he hurried to open the gate so that Captain Abner might drive +in. Abner had not yet made up his mind upon the subject, but, as Sam +stood there by the open gate, he drove in. + +"'Look a' here!' said Sam, as they stood by the stable door. 'This is a +jolly good go! Did you take notice of that toll-gate woman? She's tiptop +to look at. Did you see how clean she is, and what a nice way of +smilin', an' a good deal of red in her cheeks, too, and jes about old +enough, I should say, if I was called upon. And, more than that, I +should say, judgin' from what I've seen of her, she's as likely to be as +accommodatin' as any person I ever did see that I had seed for so short +a time. I jes put her into my mind a-goin' into your parlor and sayin' +that conch-shells was jes what she liked on mantelpieces. And I could +put her in jes as well with the gilded idol.' + +"'You seem to do a lot of thinkin' in a mighty short time,' said Abner. +'But what's all that got to do with anything?' + +"'Do!' exclaimed Sam. 'It's got lots to do. Why wouldn't she be a good +one for _her_? I don't believe you'd find a better one in Thompsontown.' + +"'Sam Twitty!' exclaimed Abner, rather testily, 'what are you talkin' +about? Do you suppose I'd paint and paper and clean up and furnish one +side of my house for her, and then start out on a week's cruise to look +for her, and then take and put in her place and give everything I've +been gettin' for her for so many years to the fust woman I meet, and she +a toll-gate woman at that?'" + +The Frenchman, who had been listening with great apparent interest, now +looked so inquiringly at the Master of the House that he paused in his +story. + +"Excuse my interrupt," he said apologetically; "but what is toll-gate +woman?" + +"My conscience!" exclaimed the captain, "you haven't understood a word +of my story!" He then proceeded to explain a toll-gate and its office +and emoluments; but it was at once evident that the Frenchman knew all +about the thing--he did not know the English words which expressed it; +and he had a clear comprehension of the narrative. + +"Those two men pull two ways," he said gleefully; "ought to make a good +story." + +"It is a good story if my papa tells it," spoke up the Daughter of the +House. And John Gayther was pleased to note a sharpness in her voice. + +"Yes, miss; that is just what I say--a very much good story. I long for +the end to come." + +"Not exactly the compliment intended," remarked the Mistress of the +House, with a smile. + +"How do you think it will end?" asked the Daughter of the House, +impulsively, addressing the Frenchman. + +"It is not polite to imagine," he replied. + +"But I want to know," she persisted. "It is not impolite to guess." + +"Well, then, miss, he marry nobody. Too many women in that Villa +Thompson. But we sadly interrupt! Beg pardon, captain." + +"The captain I am telling about in my story," said the Master of the +House, resuming his narrative, "could not silence Sam Twitty. + +"'Now I tell you, cap'n,' he said, as he assisted in taking the horse +out of the wagon, 'don't you go and miss a chance. Here's a fust-rate +woman, with red cheeks and mighty pretty hair, and a widow, too. Even if +you don't take her now, it's my advice that you look at her sharp with +the idea that if things don't turn out in Thompsontown as you'd like +them to, it would be mighty comfortin' to you to pick her up on your way +back.' + +"When Captain Abner and Sam returned from the stable they looked up and +down the far-stretching road, and then, at the invitation of the +toll-gate woman, they seated themselves on a bench at the back of the +toll-house. + +"''Tisn't a very good time for people to be passin',' said she. 'Not +many folks is on the road between twelve and one. They're generally +feedin' themselves and their horses. But if you can make yourselves +comfortable here in the shade, I don't think you'll have to wait very +long. I'll jes step in and see if my dinner ain't cooked. There ain't +nobody in sight.' + +"Sam Twitty rubbed his hands together. 'In my opinion,' said he, 'that +woman is a fust-class housekeeper.' + +"In a very few minutes she returned. 'If you gentlemen don't mind,' said +she, 'I can give you your dinner here at the same price you'd have to +pay anywhere else. I always cook a lot on Mondays, so's I can have +something cold for the rest of the week. It's on the table now, and you +can go in and wait on yourselves.' + +"Sam gave a quick glance at Abner. 'You go in with her,' said he, 'and +eat your dinner. I'm not hungry, and I'll wait out here and keep the +toll-gate. Afterwards I'll get a bite.' + +"The toll-gate woman smiled. 'Perhaps it would be better for me to go in +and wait on one of you at a time; but I don't think it's likely there'll +be anybody passin'.' + +"Abner did not object--he was hungry; and he followed the toll-gate +woman into her house. Sam Twitty made a motion as if he would dance a +little in his slippered feet. + +"'That's jes like runnin' across a dead whale what's jes expired of too +much fat. All you've got to do is to cut it up and try it down. The fust +thing Cap'n Abner does is to run into a widow woman that'll suit him, I +believe, better than anybody he'll meet, if he cruises around +Thompsontown for a week.' + +"Sam sat down on the bench and pictured things in his mind: he took the +toll-gate woman all over Captain Abner's house, even into the unmarried +part, and everywhere he saw her the same bright-cheeked, pleasantly +smiling woman she was here in her own house. The picture pleased him so +much that he withdrew his senses from the consideration of everything +else, and therefore it was he did not hear wheels on the road, and was +awakened from his pleasant dreams by a voice outside the door. He +bounced to his slippered feet, and entered the toll-house. + +"On the roadway was a buggy and a horse, and in the buggy sat a smiling +young woman. Why she smiled Sam could not imagine; but then, he could +not see the comical expression on his own face on being thus suddenly +aroused to a sense of his duty. + +"'How much is the toll?' said the young woman, still smiling. + +"Sam looked at her; she was a good-looking young person, and he liked +her smile, for it betokened a sense of humor, and that pleased him. 'How +much?' he repeated. 'A vehicle, a man, and a horse--' + +"'But this is a girl and a mare,' she interrupted. 'How much is that?' + +"Sam looked up and smiled. This young person certainly had a sense of +humor. 'I wonder how much that would be,' he said. 'I guess I'll have to +get a pencil and paper and work it out.' + +"The girl laughed. 'You are not the toll-gate keeper?' she asked. + +"'No,' replied Sam. 'I'm keepin' it for her. She's eatin' her dinner. +Don't you know the toll yourself? You've paid it before, haven't you?' + +"'No, I haven't,' she replied. 'I am visiting in the neighborhood. But I +won't haggle about being a girl. I'll pay the price for a man, if you +will let me know what it is.' + +"An idea came suddenly into Sam Twitty's head: this was a very bright +girl, a very attractive girl, who was visiting in the neighborhood, and +he determined to keep her at the toll-gate a few minutes if he could. + +"'I don't want to make any mistake,' he said quickly. 'I'll jes pop into +the house and see what the toll really'll be for you.' + +"'Oh, you needn't do that,' said the young woman. 'Of course it is the +same--' + +"But Sam was gone; and she laughed and said to herself that the deputy +toll-gate keeper was a very funny person. Sam ran to the house, panting. +He beckoned to Captain Abner to step outside. + +"'Look a' here,' he said; 'you hurry out to the gate and take a good +long look at the girl that's there. She's a-visitin' in the +neighborhood. Now mind you take a good look at her, and I'll be there in +a minute.' + +"Without exactly understanding the reason for this earnest injunction, +Abner went to the gate. He was accustomed to taking Sam's advice if he +saw no good reason against it. + +"The toll-gate woman was on her feet, but Sam detained her, and said +something about the relation between sex and toll. + +"'Well, well,' said the woman, 'she must be a queer one. I'll go out to +her.' + +"'Oh, no,' cried Sam. 'Sit here and finish your dinner. He's comin' +right back, and I'll collect the toll.' Half-way to the toll-house Sam +met Abner. 'What do you think of her?' he asked hurriedly. 'Did you take +a good look at her?' + +"'Yes, I did,' replied his friend, 'and I don't think nothin' of her. +What is there to think about her?' + +"'Go back to your dinner,' cried Sam. 'I've got to collect her toll.' + +"'I want you to tell me,' said the girl, not smiling now, 'do you keep a +detective here? Do you think I want to cheat the road out of its toll? I +am ready to pay the charge, whatever it is.' + +"'Detective!' exclaimed Sam. + +"'Yes,' said she; 'that little brown man who came out here and looked at +me as if he were determined to know me the next time he saw me.' + +"'Oh, him!' said Sam. 'That's a friend of mine, Cap'n Abner Budlong. +He's no detective, nor nothin' like one. He jes came out to see who was +passin' while I was findin' out about the toll. He's always fond of +seein' people.' + +"'I should think he was,' said the young woman. 'In fact, I think you +are a funny lot, toll-gate woman and all. Now here is a quarter; please +take the toll and give me the change, that is, if you know how to +calculate.' + +"Sam took the money, but he did not immediately make the change. 'I +don't want you to think hard of any of us,' said he, 'on account of your +bein' kept here a little longer than common. But specially I don't want +you to think hard of my friend Cap'n Abner Budlong, the gentleman who +stepped out here to see who was passin'. Bless your soul, he's no +detective! He's one of the finest fellows I know, and you jes ought to +see his house at Shamrick. It's filled with more things that's nice to +look at and things that's comfortable to use than any other house in +that region. Everything's jes as clean and shipshape--' + +"'He must have a good wife,' the young woman interrupted. + +"'He hasn't got no wife at all,' said Sam, delighted to get in this +piece of information. 'Never had one.' + +"The girl looked at him, and then she laughed merrily. 'I really must go +on,' she said. 'You truly are a funny lot, all of you.' And as she drove +on she looked back, still laughing. + +"Sam Twitty rubbed his hands together quite cheerfully, and went into +the house to get his dinner. + +"'Did that woman change your five-dollar note?' asked the keeper of the +toll-gate. + +"'Bless my soul!' exclaimed Sam. 'I never thought to ask her.' + +"'What did you ask her?' cried the woman. 'She was out there for the +longest time, and I thought of course you was gettin' your note +changed.' + +"Sam smiled. 'She was very interesting,' said he." + +"What a treasure Sam Twitty would be in a matrimonial bureau!" exclaimed +the Mistress of the House. + +"Provided he exercised a little more caution in the selection of his +specimens," suggested John Gayther, respectfully. "Some might be too +green and some the other way, you know; he didn't seem over-particular." + +"Three travellers passed through," continued the Master of the House, +"but not one of them could change a five-dollar note; and Abner chafed +at the delay. + +"'I don't like wastin' time like this,' said he to Sam, as the two +smoked their after-dinner pipes. + +"'Wastin'!' exclaimed Sam. 'I don't call this wastin' time. We didn't +start till late this mornin', and here we've got sight of two of her +a'ready. Here's this one, as red-cheeked and sociable as anybody could +expect, and then there's that gal in the buggy.' + +"'Gal in the buggy!' exclaimed Abner. 'What on earth are you talkin' +about her for?' + +"'Why shouldn't I?' asked Sam. 'I tell you, Cap'n Abner, she's the +prettiest and the liveliest young woman you'd be likely to meet if you +cruised for a year, and she's visitin' right in the neighborhood, and +can't be far from Shamrick.' + +"'Codwollops!' said Abner, contemptuously. + +"In the course of an hour old Joshua Asbury drove up in his farm-wagon, +and changed the five-dollar note, and was glad to do it, for he did not +like to carry so much inconvenient silver and copper in his pocket. The +two friends now made ready to depart. + +"'Let's hurry up,' said Sam. 'We've done fust-rate so far, and maybe +we'll sight one or two more afore bedtime.' + +"'When you come back,' said the woman, 'I'd be glad to have you stop and +rest, and give your horse a feed if you want to.' + +"Sam Twitty assured her most earnestly that they certainly would stop, +whether they wanted rest and a feed or not; and he thanked her warmly as +he paid for the kind entertainment she had given them. + +"'Sam,' said Abner, when they were on the road, 'the trouble with you +is, you're too quick. If you was at the tiller you'd run into the fust +port you come to, and there wouldn't be no v'yage at all.' + +"'There's no knowin' when a fellow may want to run into port,' replied +Sam, 'and it's a good thing to find out all about them as you're +coastin' along.' + +"A few miles from the toll-gate they came to the bottom of a long hill, +and half-way up it they saw, going in the same direction as themselves, +a man walking vigorously. + +"'By the general cut of his clothes,' said Sam, 'I'd say he is a +minister.' + +"'I expect you're right,' said Abner. 'Most likely fillin' some fishin' +minister's pulpit Sunday, and walkin' home Monday.' + +"The pedestrian clergyman walked more slowly as he neared the top of the +hill, and the gray horse gradually overhauled him. + +"'Look a' here,' said Sam, nudging his companion, 'let's give him a +lift. He must be dreadfully hot. And then, by George, Cap'n Abner, jes +think what a jolly thing it'll be--goin' after her, and takin' a +minister along, sittin' comfortable on the back seat! That's like +holdin' a landin'-net ready to scoop her up the minute you get her to +the top of the water.' + +"They stopped and asked the clergyman if he were going to Thompsontown, +and when he said he was, they invited him to get in and take the +unoccupied seat. He proved to be an agreeable companion; he was young +and very grateful. Sam soon fell into a very friendly conversation with +him, and two or three times, when Abner thought that his friend was on +the point of saying something that bore too directly on the object of +their journey, he pressed his port boot gently upon Sam's starboard +slipper. + +"Toward the middle of the afternoon they reached Thompsontown, where the +young clergyman said he was going to stop for the night, and go on by +train the next day. Sam Twitty was glad to hear this, and advised him to +stop at the Spinnaker Boom, where he and Captain Abner intended to stay +until they finished the business which brought them to Thompsontown. + +"Thompsontown was a seaside resort, and rather a lively place in the +season. There was a large hotel for summer visitors who could afford to +pay good prices, and several smaller houses of entertainment, such as +the Spinnaker Boom, where people of moderate means were made very +comfortable. + +"It was much too early for supper, and Captain Abner and Sam took a long +walk on the beach, and at their invitation the young clergyman joined +them. This gentleman, who did not seem to know any one in Thompsontown, +proved to be a thorough landsman; but as he was chatty and glad to +acquire knowledge, it gave Captain Abner and Sam a great deal of +pleasure to talk to him on nautical points and thereby improve his mind. +On their return, Sam stopped with a start, and almost dropped his pipe. + +"'What's the matter?' cried Captain Abner. 'Did you see her spout?' + +"Sam made no answer, but stood with his mouth open. He had remarkably +good vision. The clergyman stopped and looked at him inquiringly. + +"'They are coming, both of them!' said Sam. + +"'Both of who?' asked Abner. + +"'The gal in the buggy, and the toll-gate woman.'" + +"If I were telling this story," here interrupted the Daughter of the +House, excitedly, "I really do not know which one I would marry to +Captain Abner!" + +"Thank you for the compliment, my dear," said her father. + +"Well, there they both were: side by side they were walking along the +smooth beach and approaching our three men. Sam's eyes sparkled. The +toll-gate woman appeared much more comely and attractive than when +engaged in her professional duties earlier in the day. She was now +attired in fresh-looking summer clothes, and wore a pretty straw hat. As +for the girl of the buggy, she was quite another person. It would have +been impossible for any one who had merely seen her within the limited +confines of a small vehicle to form any idea of the buoyant air and the +lively step of this handsome young woman. + +"'Upon my word!' exclaimed Sam Twitty, advancing toward them. 'Who would +have expected to meet you two here!' + +"At this meeting all our characters were variously affected. The +toll-gate woman beamed with pleasure; the young woman of the buggy +looked as if she were about to laugh; the young minister looked very +much interested, although he could have given no good reason why he +should be; the countenance of Captain Abner Budlong betrayed no interest +whatever; and Sam Twitty was in a glow of delight. + +"'I suppose you are surprised to meet me here,' said the toll-gate +woman, 'but this is the way of it: a neighbor and his wife came along +soon after you left, and offered to bring me to Thompsontown; and of +course I jumped at the chance, and left the toll-gate in charge of my +brother, who lives hard by. And in the town, at the house of a friend, I +met this young lady, and--' glancing at her companion, she added: 'I +really did not catch the name.' + +"'Miss Denby,' stated the young person referred to. + +"The three men here bowed to Miss Denby; then, stepping nearer to Sam, +the toll-gate woman asked in a low voice, 'Who is the minister?' + +"'I don't know his name,' said Sam, 'but I'll find out in a minute.' And +then he approached the girl of the buggy. 'I am so glad to see you,' he +said. + +"She laughed outright. 'It is awfully funny,' answered she, 'that you +care whether you see me or not.' + +"'I don't think it's funny at all,' said Sam. 'But jes let me ask you +one thing: what's the name of the toll-gate woman?' + +"'Well, I declare!' she exclaimed. 'From the way she talked about you I +thought you were old friends. Her name is Mrs. Sickles.' + +"Sam skipped over to the young clergyman and put his question: +'Mr-r-r.?' + +"'Rippledean,' said the young man. + +"In an instant the quick-slippered Sam had joined the party in the bonds +of conventional acquaintanceship, having added to the rest of his +information the fact that he was Samuel Twitty of Shamrick. + +"'You are the funniest people I ever met,' exclaimed the lively Denby +girl. 'None of you seems to know the rest.' + +"'It is very pleasant to know each other, I am sure,' remarked the +toll-gate woman; 'and if I had anything to say about what would be +agreeable on such a breezy afternoon as this, now that there's a party +of us, I would say it would be to get a boat and take a sail on this +sparkling water.' + +"'A sail!' cried Sam. 'Why, that will be the best thing in the world, +and if you'll wait ten minutes I'll get a boat. Cap'n Silas Peck is a +friend of mine, and has got two boats that ain't likely to be out. I'll +run down and get one, and have it here in no time.' + +"In less than a quarter of an hour the party was seated in Captain +Peck's sail-boat, Captain Abner at the tiller, and Sam Twitty in charge +of the sheet. They decided to sail out to an island about three miles +from shore. A stiff breeze was blowing, and Captain Abner was in his +glory. The wind was much too high for ordinary pleasure-boats, and there +were no other sails upon the bay; but summer visitors and seafaring men +stood along the beach and watched the admirable manner in which that +little craft was handled. Word was passed from one to another that it +was Captain Abner Budlong of Shamrick who was at the tiller; many of the +watchers had heard of Captain Abner and what he had done in days gone +by, and they were proud to see what their neighbor of Shamrick was doing +now. + +"Mrs. Sickles sat beaming, both hands grasping the rail and her feet +firmly braced, but with an expression of perfect trust, as she gazed +from Captain Abner to Sam Twitty, which would have been edifying to any +one of weak habits of faith. The younger woman's hat was off, and her +hair was flying like a streamer from a masthead. She drank in the salt +breeze with delight, and her eyes sparkled as the boat dipped at the +turn of Captain Abner's tiller until the rail cut under the surface of +the water as if it were skimming a pan of milk. She looked upon the +bright-eyed sailor at the helm as though he were some sort of a +salt-water deity whom it was suitable to worship. It was better than +sparkling wine to her to dash over the sparkling water. + +"The island shore drew near; the little boat bore bravely down upon it, +and then with a beautiful sweep fell into the wind; her great wing +dropped and hung listless, and her keel gently grazed the sand." + +"Very beautiful! Oh, so fine a turn to words!" exclaimed the Frenchman, +who was very intent upon the story. + +"My papa is a sailor," said the Daughter of the House, proudly. "You +should see him bring around a great vessel with a grand sweep, so +quietly and so gracefully!" + +"You never saw me do anything of the kind," said her father, in +surprise. + +"I have never seen you," she admitted reluctantly, "but I know just how +you would do it." + +Her father smiled and laid a hand on her head. + +"Well, my dear," he said, "what Sam Twitty told the inmates of the boat +was this: 'If there was an egg-shell 'twixt her bow and the beach, Cap'n +Abner wouldn't have smashed it.' + +"The captain stemmed the praises which now poured upon him, with a jerk +of the head. 'That's all very well,' said he, 'but I'm goin' to give Sam +Twitty a chance; he'll sail you back.' + +"When the party was on shore and the boat safely moored, Sam Twitty +began to jump about like a collie dog in charge of a flock of sheep. He +had said little in the boat, but his mind had been busily at work with +the contemplation of great possibilities. There was much to be done, and +but little time to do it in, but Sam's soul warmed up to its work. +Casting a rapid glance around, he singled out Captain Abner, and, +dashing into the little party, cut him off from his companions, and +drove him out of ear-shot. + +"'Now, Cap'n Abner,' said he, 'your time's come, and the quicker you get +to work the better.' + +"'Work!' cried Abner. 'What work have I got to do!' + +"'Do!' exclaimed Sam. 'You've got lots to do. Look at that sun. It's +settin' jes as steady as if it was bein' towed into port, and you'll +never get another chance like this. Here's two women to pop your +question to; here is a minister on hand; here's me and the young woman +what don't get chosen, for witnesses; here's all them white caps +skippin' over the water; and here's this clean stretch of sand. There +couldn't be a better place for a sailor to be married in than jes here.' + +"'But I tell you, Sam,' said Abner, a little querulously, 'I didn't come +here to marry one of them women. I didn't start on this trip to make +fast to the fust female person I might fall in with. I set out on a +week's cruise, and I want to see a lot of them afore I make a ch'ice.' + +"'I tell you, cap'n,' said Sam, very earnestly, 'it won't do. You might +hang round Thompsontown for a year, and you wouldn't find any two such +women as them two. Here they are, two kinds to pick from: one of them as +ripe as a peach, and the other like a cross between a cricket and a +blossom. And you've got no time to fool away. When the sun goes down +you've got to sail back to Thompsontown, and then one will go one way +and the other another, and where the minister will go to, nobody knows. +They'll all be scattered and out of sight, and this glorious chance +you've got might as well be at the bottom of the sea. Now, cap'n, I tell +you, this thing that's right afore you is what you come for. Jes you +listen to what I say to you: you go to that Mrs. Sickles and let her see +how you're standin' and what your course is. She's no fool, and she can +see the sense of gettin' over a sandbar at high tide jes as well as you +can.' + +"Captain Abner hesitated a moment. 'She's a mighty fine woman, Sam,' +said he, 'but if I go and set the case afore her, and she agrees to ship +with me, then I can't ask the other one, and there might as well be no +other one; and she's as pert a little clipper as ever I seed, Sam, and +she likes sailin', that she does.' + +"'Now don't you worry about that,' said Sam. 'You jes say all you've got +to say to her, and hear all she's got to say, but don't sign no papers +and take her aboard until you talk to that other girl. Now hurry up, and +walk along the beach a little further off.' + +"Without waiting for an answer, Sam Twitty galloped away, or that was +what he would have done had he been a sheep-dog. He darted in between +Mrs. Sickles and her companions; he turned her down the beach; he talked +to her in rapid snaps about the sea, the sky, the sand, and before she +knew it he had driven her alongside of Captain Abner. Then, with what +might have been compared to a bark of satisfaction, he bounced away to +join the others, who were looking for shells. + +"In about ten minutes Sam Twitty's port eye told him that Captain Abner +and the toll-gate woman were approaching, but in Abner there were signs +of a disposition to fall back. In an instant he had bounded between them +and was showing shells to the widow. Then, letting her go on by herself, +he turned sharply upon Abner. + +"'Well,' said he, their heads close together, 'what did she say? Is she +all right?' + +"Captain Abner threw a glance over the water as if his soul were +yearning for the fancied possibilities of Thompsontown. 'Oh, it's all +right enough, so far as she counts,' said he. 'I went straight at it, +and put the whole thing afore her. I told her about the house and the +two parts to it and what they was for, and she said that was charmin'. +And I told her about the king conch-shell and the gilded idol, and she +said she thought either one of them would be jes lovely, and nothin', +she thought, could be better on mantelpieces than gilded idols and king +conch-shells. And everything else was jes as slick and smooth as if she +was slidin' off the stocks. She's good-lookin' enough, Sam, but she +ain't got no mind, and I didn't fix up that house, and bother myself +year in and year out a-gettin' it all right, to take it and give it to a +woman what's got no mind. She'd be jes as well satisfied to see me +a-settin' up on the mantelpiece as if the gilded idol or the king +conch-shell was there.' + +"'And she don't suit you?' asked Sam, eagerly. + +"'No, sir,' replied the other; 'she don't suit.' + +"'All right!' exclaimed the ever-ready Sam; 'jes you wait where you are +one minute.' In less than that time the agile Sam had rounded up Miss +Denby and had her walking along the beach by the side of Captain Abner, +and whether she thought that skilful skipper was going to show her some +rare seaweed or the state of his mind, Sam considered not for one +minute. He had brought the two together, and that was all he cared +about. + +"The good Mrs. Sickles was standing alone, reflectively gazing upon the +little waves, so Sam had no trouble in carrying off the minister to a +little distance for confidential remarks. + +"'I want you to tell me, sir,' said he, 'if there is any law ag'in' your +marryin' a party on the sea-shore, especially when one of them is a +sailor?' + +"Mr. Rippledean laughed. 'As I am a regularly ordained minister, I can +perform a marriage anywhere,' said he, 'provided the parties are of +legal age, and there are no objections. But what are you talking about? +Who wants to be married?' + +"'I can't say jes now,' answered Sam; 'matters isn't settled yet: but +everything is goin' ahead lively with a stiff breeze, and I guess we'll +get into soundin's pretty soon. I only spoke to you to know if you'd be +all right when the couple's ready.' + +"'There is nothing the matter with me,' said the young man; 'but I would +like to know--' + +"'Jes you lay to for a while,' said Sam, 'and I'll tell you all about +it.' And then, noticing that Mrs. Sickles was glancing toward the +captain and his companion as if she thought to join them, he dashed out +upon her to cut her off. + +"Meanwhile Miss Denby, with glowing eyes, was saying: 'Yes, I do love to +sail, and to sail in a small boat, close to the water, almost as if I +were in it, skimming like a bird with my wings dipping. Oh, it is grand! +And you have a sail-boat?' + +"And the captain answered: 'Indeed I have, and there's none better, +either for sailing on the wind, or before the wind, or with next to no +wind at all.' + +"'How wonderfully you must sail it! I could not keep my eyes off you as +you brought us over here. It was grand! You made her do anything you +pleased.' + +"The captain smiled and nodded. 'But I think of my house as much as I do +of my boat, miss,' said he. 'I've got a mighty nice parlor that's as +good as any ship's cabin. And now let me put this p'int to you: if you +had a big king conch-shell, the prettiest you ever seed, and it was on +the middle of the mantelpiece, and you had a gilded idol in another +place, would you put the idol where the conch-shell was, and the +conch-shell where the idol was, or would you leave 'em both jes where +they was afore?' + +"The young woman laughed merrily. 'What kind of an idol would it be?' +she asked. 'A beautiful piece of carving?' + +"''Tain't that,' said Captain Abner; 'it's jes a piece of wood whittled +out by a heathen; but it used to be in a temple, and it's gilded all +over.' + +"'Oh, dear!' said she, 'I don't think much of that sort of an idol. I +might like to be a gilded idol myself, if I had the right person to +worship me. But as for a wooden idol, I wouldn't put that on the +mantelpiece, and I am of the same opinion as to the conch-shell.' + +"'But it's a king conch-shell,' said the captain. + +"'I don't care,' said she; 'king or queen, it would be all the same to +me. But if I were you I think I'd be most of the time in the boat. What +is a house, no matter what it has in it, compared to a boat dancing +over the waves and speeding before the wind?' + +"Captain Abner looked at her. 'I expect you'd like to learn to steer, +wouldn't you?' + +"'Indeed I would,' she answered. 'There is nothing I would like better.' + +"Captain Abner put his hands into his pockets and gently whistled, and, +leaving him, Miss Denby ran to join the toll-gate woman. Down swooped +Sam Twitty. + +"'Is it all right?' he whispered to Abner. + +"'All up,' the other answered, 'and I'm glad of it. She don't want no +gilded idol, and she don't want no king conch-shell. She wants her hand +on the tiller, that's what she wants. She's got too much mind for me. +After I've been workin' year in and year out a-gettin' my affairs the +way I wants them, I don't fancy anybody comin' down on me and takin' the +tiller out of my hands.' + +"Sam made two or three steps forward, and then he stood gazing in the +direction of the setting sun. Resting on one slippered foot and +extending the other before him, he folded his arms and remained a few +moments wrapped in thought. Suddenly he turned. + +"'Cap'n Abner,' he cried, 'it won't do to sink this chance! It'll never +pop up ag'in. You must have spoke pretty plain to that toll-gate woman, +considerin' the way she's been turnin' it over in her mind.' + +"'Yes, I did,' said Captain Abner, 'and that's the way I found out what +she was. But I didn't ask her to ship with me.' + +"'And you don't want her to?' said Sam. + +"'No, I don't.' + +"'And you don't want the other one, nuther?' + +"'No, I don't,' replied Captain Abner, doggedly. 'I don't want nuther of +'em. And I say, Sam, the sun's gettin' down and it's about time for us +to be settin' sail.' + +"'There's a good stretch of sky under that sun yet,' said Sam, 'and jes +you wait a bit, cap'n.' + +"Sam Twitty walked slowly along the sandy beach; he looked as a +sheep-dog might look who was wondering within himself whether or not he +had brought back from the fields as many sheep as he had taken out. He +stopped, and looked about at the party. Captain Abner was walking toward +the boat; the minister and the Denby girl were standing together, +comparing shells; the toll-gate woman was strolling by herself a little +higher up the beach, still in a reflective mood. Sam gazed from his +companions to the sky, the water, the beautiful glistening sands. + +"'It's a shame to lose all this,' he said to himself; 'it's a burnin' +shame to sink it all.' Then suddenly, as if his master had whistled, he +sped to the side of Mrs. Sickles. Backward and forward these two walked, +Sam talking earnestly and the toll-gate woman listening with great +interest. Captain Abner now and then gave them an impatient glance, but +the other couple did not regard them at all. + +"'But, Mr. Twitty,' said Mrs. Sickles, 'this is so unexpected. I had +an idea of the kind about Cap'n Abner, for I could not help it, but +you--really! I've heard of you often, Mr. Twitty, but I never saw you +until to-day.' + +"'Now, Mrs. Sickles,' said Sam, 'you couldn't have had a better day to +see me in, if you'd waited a year; and a-speakin' quick and sharp as +I've got to do, for the sun's keepin' on goin' down, there couldn't be a +better day to marry me in.' + +"'Oh, Mr. Twitty!' cried Mrs. Sickles, with flushed face. + +"'There couldn't be a better time or a better place,' said Sam, 'and a +minister right here, and two witnesses.' + +"'But, Mr. Twitty,' said she, 'I really thought that Cap'n Budlong--and +from what he told me about his house and his things--' + +"'Cap'n Abner is one of the finest men in this world,' interrupted Sam, +'and he's got a fust-class house, and I ain't got none, and he's got all +sorts of things from all parts of the world that he's put in it. But I +can get a house and things to put in it, and I can do without gilded +idols and king conch-shells, and, what's still more to the p'int, +Mrs. Sickles, I wants you, and he don't.' + +"'There's something in that,' said the toll-gate woman, and then she +added: 'but as to marryin' you here and now, Mr. Twitty, it's not to be +thought of.' + +"Sam walked slowly away; one might have thought his head drooped under a +rebuke. He approached the young minister and the girl of the buggy. + +"'Look a' here,' said he to the former; 'you don't mean to say, sir, +that you'd back out of marryin' a couple right here and now, that was +growed up and of full age, and nothin' to hinder.' + +"'Marry!' cried Miss Denby. 'A wedding right here on this beautiful +island! Oh, that would be glorious! Who wants to be married?' + +"'I do,' said Sam. + +"They both laughed. 'But the other person?' asked Mr. Rippledean. 'There +must be a bride if you want a wedding.' + +"'Oh, the bride'll be Mrs. Sickles,' said Sam. 'But the trouble is she +ain't altogether willin'.' + +"'I told you,' said the merry Miss Denby--'you know I told you that you +are the funniest people I ever met, and you truly are. People generally +come to an agreement between themselves before they speak to the +clergyman.' + +"'Mr. Twitty,' said the clergyman, 'I strongly advise you to give up +your present notions of immediate matrimony, and wait at least until all +parties agree upon time and place and upon the other circumstances of +this union for which you seem so impatient.' + +"'Hello, Sam!' shouted Captain Abner from the water's edge, 'ain't you +comin' along?' + +"Sam made no answer to any one. He walked silently down toward the boat. +Everything seemed to be breaking loose from him, and slipping away. His +old friend, who had so long wanted her, and who had prepared his house +for her, and had set out to look for her, had declined to take her when +he saw her; and he, Sam, who had so thoroughly understood the +opportunities which had been spread before the little party that +afternoon, and who knew what would happen if these opportunities were +allowed to slip out of sight, had been set aside by one woman, laughed +at by another, had been advised by a clergyman, and had been scolded by +Captain Abner. His soul resented all this, and he saw that the edge of +the sun was nearly touching the rim of the distant sea. With a great +slap upon his thigh, he sprang to the side of the boat, and turned and +faced the others, all of whom were now approaching him. + +"'I am to sail this boat back to Thompsontown,' he cried. 'It's been +agreed I'm to do it, and I'm goin' to do it; but one thing I'll tell +you--the sun can go down, the night can come on, and you can all stay +here till mornin' if you like, but this boat don't leave this island +with me at the helm till I'm a married man!' With this he skipped on +board, sat down in the stern, and clapped his broad hands on the tiller. + +"There was a burst of astonishment from the rest of the party as Sam +thus seated himself at bay. Even the girl of the buggy did not laugh. + +"'But I must go home,' she cried, 'before it is any later. My friends +will be waiting supper for me.' + +"'Don't matter,' said Sam. 'Supper can wait.' + +"'Look a' here,' said Captain Abner. + +"'I don't want to look a' here,' said Sam. 'I'm a-lookin' a different +way, and it's Mrs. Sickles I'm lookin' at. And you needn't none of you +look cross at me. I'm to steer this boat home, that's settled, and I +don't steer her an inch till I'm a married man.' + +"The others gathered together on the beach and gazed with varied +emotions upon the determined figure of Sam as he sat in the stern, his +arm resting upon the tiller and one leg crossed leisurely over the +other, his protruding slipper lighted up by the rays of the setting sun. + +"'What is the matter with him?' asked Mr. Rippledean. 'Is he crazy? Does +he really think of forcing us to remain here until he shall be married? +I never heard anything--' + +"'So delightfully absurd,' interrupted Miss Denby. + +"'There's nothin' crazy about Sam Twitty,' said Captain Abner. 'He's as +sound as a nut, body and soul. But when Sam makes up his mind he sticks +to it. Now sometimes when I make up my mind I don't stick to it. He's a +good man all around, and he's got enough to live on, though he never was +a cap'n; but you couldn't find a better fust mate than him, or a better +sailor, except perhaps somebody what's had a leetle more experience. +Sam made up his mind that we was all comin' out here for a weddin', +everything fallin' together exactly to suit, wind and tide and +everything else. But Sam ain't goin' to force nobody to do nothin'; he +ain't that kind. All he's goin' to do is to stay here till he's +married.' + +"The girl of the buggy clapped her hands. 'Oh, that is fine!' she cried. +'It is like lifting you up on a horse and dashing away with you. Oh, +dear Mrs. Sickles, take pity on him and on all of us. If you do not, I +shall have to talk to him myself and see if I--' + +"Mrs. Sickles was not inclined to give attention to any such idle words +as these, and she stepped up to Captain Abner. + +"'You seem to think very well of Mr. Twitty, sir,' she said. + +"'Indeed I do,' he answered. 'There ain't nobody I think more of, on +watch or below, in storm or fine weather, take him as you find him, than +I do of him.' + +"Sam Twitty had not heard any of the remarks which had been made on +shore; he had been communing with himself: but now his active mind would +no longer permit him to sit still. Springing to his feet, he stepped +forward and stood up in the bow of the boat, and cast his eye over the +little party in front of him. Then he spoke: + +"'Mrs. Sickles, I want to put a p'int to you that's been put to you +afore, but I want to put it a little different. If there was a gilded +idol and a king conch-shell that you knowed of, and you was asked which +of them you would like to have for your own, and you only could have +one--' + +"'Oh, dear!' exclaimed Miss Denby, 'here is that delightful gilded idol +and conch-shell again! I wonder what they will do now!' + +"The toll-gate woman was paling and flushing, and these changes of +countenance, combined with her becoming summer dress and her straw hat, +made her very attractive to the eye. Without waiting for Sam to finish +his remarks, she spoke: + +"'I am very sure, Mr. Twitty, that both the things you mention, from +what I have heard of them, would be very nice and pleasant; but you see, +Mr. Twitty, I don't--' + +"Sam suddenly stepped upon the rail, steadying himself by the mast. +'Mrs. Sickles,' he cried, 'I'll put it plainer to you: supposing you +couldn't get the gilded idol?' + +"Mrs. Sickles now saw very clearly that there was no more time for +hesitation. She stepped a little forward. + +"'In that case,' she said, 'I'd take the conch-shell.' + +"With a bound, Sam Twitty sprang from the shore, and the next moment he +had seized the blushing Mrs. Sickles by the hand. For a moment he gazed +proudly around, the sunset light casting a ruddy glow upon his +countenance which made it almost as rosy as that of his companion. Then +he tucked her under his arm and turned toward the minister. + +"'Please step this way, Mr. Rippledean,' he said. 'That little bluff +there, with grass on it, is the place I've picked out for the ceremony. +And, Cap'n Abner, I'll ask you and that young woman to follow along +after us and stand up for witnesses.' + +"Just as the upper edge of the sun disappeared beneath the glowing sea, +the name of Sickles departed from observation and recognition on that +line of longitude. But in the glow upon the faces of Mr. and Mrs. Twitty +there was nothing to remind one of a sunset sky. It might have been +supposed, rather, that they were gazing eastward, and that the morn was +glorious. + +"Having gravely saluted his bride, Sam lifted up his voice. He was used +to that sort of thing, for he had been a boatswain. 'Cap'n Abner +Budlong,' he exclaimed, 'step aft and kiss the bride!' + +"When this command had been obeyed with urbane alacrity, Sam called out +again, very much as if he were piping all hands to osculation: +'Rev. Mr. Rippledean, step aft and kiss the bride!' + +"When the minister had retired from the performance of his duty, Sam +cast a speaking glance in the direction of Miss Denby. He looked as if +he would say that on this occasion it was a great pity that any one +should be left out. The girl of the buggy understood his glance, and +lifted up her voice in laughter. + +"'Oh, no, Mr. Twitty,' said she, 'it is not the custom to kiss +witnesses.' + +"'Oh, no,' answered Mrs. Twitty, in tones of approbation; and these +were the first words she spoke after she had ceased to be Sickles. + +"As that boat of blissfulness sped across the bay, speeding along under +a strong breeze from the west, under a sky full of orange-colored +clouds, Sam Twitty's strong hand grasped the tiller with an energy which +would have been sufficient for the guidance of a ship of the line. As +the thin sheets of water curled over the lee scuppers of the boat, the +right hand which held Sam's left never trembled nor tightened its hold; +and when the clergyman, sitting by Miss Denby, asked her if she felt at +all afraid, she cheerily replied: + +"'Not with the gilded idol and the king conch-shell both on board--no, +not I!' + + * * * * * + +"The honeymoon of Mr. and Mrs. Twitty was spent in Thompsontown, and +lasted three days; for at the end of that time the bride's brother +demanded to be released from the care of the toll-gate, having other +duties which were incumbent upon him. But when Sam and his wife spoke of +leaving the Spinnaker Boom, Captain Abner was perfectly willing to go +with them. His face bore an expression of contented resignation. + +"'I will drive you two back, Sam,' said he. ''Tain't no more use for me +to stay here. I don't believe I'll find her, and I give it up.' + +"On the way home the happy Mr. Twitty burst out laughing. 'It do seem +awful comical, Cap'n Abner,' said he, 'that, after all we said about +comin' home, that me and her should be a-settin' on the back seat and +you a-drivin' in front alone.' And when this remark was explained to +Mrs. Twitty she laughed very heartily indeed. + +"Sam did not go directly back to Shamrick. His wife had a good house, +and could not, without due notice, give up her public office, and so he +determined to remain, for the present, in the very pleasant quarters +thus afforded him. But he vowed with considerable vehemence that +Mrs. Twitty should keep the toll-gate no more; this duty, so long as it +had to be performed, he would take upon himself, and he found it a most +congenial and interesting occupation. + +"'Like it!' he exclaimed to his wife, after his first day's experience. +'It's as interestin' as readin' the weekly paper. Everybody that comes +along seems ready for some different kind of chat. And when that young +woman with the buggy happens to be drivin' this way, she don't pay no +toll. I'll pay for her myself, every time, on account of her services as +witness.' + +"'No, you don't, Sam Twitty,' remarked his consort; 'that young woman +pays her own toll, every time. While I'm here I don't want no changes in +the customs of this toll-gate.' + + * * * * * + +"It was about a fortnight after Sam Twitty's wedding that that +well-satisfied individual, being called to the gate by the sound of +wheels, beheld a buggy, and Miss Denby sitting therein. In answer to +Sam's cheerful greeting, she did not laugh, nor even smile. + +"'I saw your friend Captain Abner about a week ago,' she said, 'as I +drove through Shamrick, and he looked dreadfully solemn. I think his +disappointment is wearing on him. It is a great pity that a man who can +sail a boat as he can should have a moment's sorrow on this earth. It +almost made me feel sorry he found out I wanted to learn to steer. I +think that was the only barrier between us. And he would have taken me +out sailing every fine day!' + +"'Oh, no, no,' said Sam; 'that would never have done. You could never +have kept your hands off the tiller. If he had known what was good for +him he would have married her.' These words he spoke in a confidential +tone, and pointed with his thumb behind him. 'But he had the chance, and +he didn't take it, and now I don't wonder he's doleful.' + +"'You ought to go and try to cheer him up,' said Miss Denby, gathering +up the reins. 'Do you expect to go on keeping this toll-gate, +Mr. Twitty?' + +"'I'd like to,' said Sam, 'if you're goin' to keep on travellin' this +way.' + +"'Oh!' said Miss Denby, with a reproving smile. + +"'Yes, indeed,' said Sam; 'for it reminds me of such a happy day.' + +"'Oh!' said Miss Denby, as she drove away with her nose in the air. + +"A few days after this Sam did go to Shamrick, and walking on the street +he met Captain Abner; but, to his surprise, that individual did not look +at all doleful. There was a half-smile on his lips, and his step was +buoyant. The two old friends clasped hands with much heartiness. + +"'You are as gay as a pot of red paint,' said Sam. 'You must be feelin' +well.' + +"'I should say so,' said Abner; and then, after a portentous pause, he +added: 'I've got her.' + +"'Got her!' exclaimed Sam, in amazement. 'Where did you get her?' + +"'Got her here.' + +"'And who is it you've got?' + +"'Susan Shellbark.' + +"'Susan Shellbark!' cried Sam. 'You don't mean to say that!' + +"'It's Susan Shellbark, and I do mean to say that.' + +"'Why, you've known her all your life,' said Sam. + +"'All my life,' was the answer. + +"'Then why didn't you take her afore?' asked his friend. + +"'Because I hadn't been to Thompsontown to see what I could get there. +Of course I didn't want to take anybody here until I found out what +there was in Thompsontown. Now I know there ain't nothin' for me there.' + +"'And so you take Susan Shellbark!' interrupted Sam. + +"'And so I take Susan Shellbark.' + +"Sam looked at his friend for a moment, and then burst out laughing. +'Give me your hand,' he cried. 'I'm mighty glad you've got Susan +Shellbark, and I'm mighty glad you went to Thompsontown.' + +"'So am I,' said Captain Abner. 'If I hadn't gone to Thompsontown I'd +never have got Susan Shellbark.' + +"'That's so,' cried Sam. 'And if you hadn't made up your mind to go to +Thompsontown, you and me'd never got stuck at the toll-gate with nothin' +but a five-dollar note. I'm mighty glad we was stuck, Cap'n Abner; I'm +mighty glad we was stuck!' + +"Thereupon the two friends shook hands again. + +"'But there is one thing I want to ask,' said Sam. 'What about the +gilded idol and the king conch-shell?' + +"'Oh, that's all right,' said Captain Abner; 'they're both to go on to +the mantelpiece, one on one end, and t'other on the other. That's to be +the way with everything we've got. You've knowed Susan Shellbark as long +as I have, Sam, and you know she'll stick to that bargain.' + +"'That's so,' said Sam; 'she'll stick to that bargain. Both of you'll be +on the mantelpiece, one on one end, and the other on t'other.'" + +"And what became of the girl in the buggy?" asked the Mistress of the +House. + +"Her later history is unknown to me," said the Master of the House. + +"I have not made up my mind about that story, papa," said the Daughter +of the House. "It is not altogether satisfactory." + +"But very much what usually happens," said John Gayther, in an +undertone. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE FRENCHMAN + + AND IS CALLED + + MY BALLOON HUNT + + + + +VI + +MY BALLOON HUNT + + +The next morning, after breakfast, the Mistress of the House and John +Gayther were walking through the garden together, for her quick eye had +detected much that needed attention. Some things she had already decided +upon, but there were others in which she thought it best to ask John's +advice. They did not always agree; in fact, they were seldom in exact +accord: but both were sensible, and he reasoned that, as mistress, she +ought to do as she pleased; and she reasoned that, as he had learned the +business and she had not, it was just to him and to herself that he +should, on many points, be allowed his own way. + +The orchard was really a continuation of the lower terrace of the +garden, but the Mistress had not been there for some time. "A great many +pears, John," she commented as they strolled under the trees; "a fair +show of apples: but there are no plums at all." + +"Plums have their seasons," said John, sententiously. "They are not +always falling in one's way; and these are choice plums and don't come +promiscuous--sorter scattered like." + +"I wonder if John means that for philosophy," thought the Mistress. +Then aloud: "My daughter brought me a luscious one yesterday, and, +really, it looks as if she had gathered the only one." + +"Bless her heart!" said John, fervently, "I hope she's goin' to pick +them up all along the way she goes." + +"That is too much to hope for any one, John," said the Mistress, as they +turned to go up into the garden; but in her heart she had the very same +hope. + +They walked through two terraces filled with luxuriant vegetables and +bordered by small fruits, now out of season; then on to the third +terrace, bordered by currant-bushes, beautiful now to look upon, hung as +they were with a profusion of red tassels. And here there came to them +an almost overpowering fragrance; for on the terrace above were great +beds of lilies, now in their glory--lilies from many climes, lilies of +many hues: great white spikes, small pink clusters, spotted, striped, +variegated, white with borders of all colors, even black (or purple so +dark it looked black), all standing proudly in the sunshine, and sending +to heaven their incense of gratitude. + +It was a gorgeous sight, and the two looked at it with delight and a +good deal of pride, for it was the design and the handiwork of both. + +Then they saw, behind all this glory, a group of people disposed in +various comfortable positions about the little summer-house on the upper +terrace, where the view was finest. + +There was the Master of the House in the big garden-chair; there was the +Frenchman, seated on a low grassy knoll; there was the Daughter of the +House on the bench she liked; and beside her was the Next Neighbor, who +was an intimate friend of the Daughter of the House, and, therefore, a +frequent visitor. The nearest house was not in sight, but it could be +reached in a moderate walk. Its mistress was a young married woman, very +pretty to look at and of a lively turn of mind. She waved her hand to +the Mistress, while the Master called out: "Come up here, you two! We +are waiting for you." When the two complied with the command, the Master +continued: "Now make yourselves comfortable and listen to a story our +guest has promised us." + +The Mistress of the House willingly took the rustic chair the Frenchman +brought forward, but John Gayther had no wish to hear the Frenchman's +story. He had no fancy for the man, and he did not believe he would +fancy his story. "Excuse me," he said to the Master of the House, "but I +see that boy Jacob coming through the gate, and I must go with him to +weed the melon-bed." + +"You will do nothing of the kind," said the Master of the House; "let +the boy weed it alone." + +"Never!" cried John, in horror. "He will trample on all the vines!" + +"Then tell him to do something else." And, without waiting for John to +give the order, he called out: "Ahoy, there, boy! Clear out of this +garden!" + +The boy vanished with celerity, and John Gayther sank upon his stool +with an air of resignation. But no sooner had the Frenchman uttered a +few sentences than he brightened up, and not only listened attentively +but put aside the disagreeable feeling he had had for him. The beginning +of the narrative lifted a load from his mind. + +The Frenchman, having again betaken himself to the grassy mound, began +in an easy, airy way: + +"I am a sportsman as well as a Frenchman. It seems hardly necessary to +mention both of these things at once, for in my mind they naturally go +together. I am expert in many kinds of sports, and it pleases me much, +when engaged in such recreations, to employ my mind as well as my body, +and in so doing I frequently devise methods of pursuing my favorite +sports which are never made use of by ordinary and unimaginative +persons. + +"My Irene--she is my wife--is also addicted to sport. It was partly for +this reason that I married her. It is not always by sharing my dangers +and my glories that my dear Irene shows her passion for the outdoor +sports which are so fascinating to me; it is often that she does this +merely by sympathy. She can remain at home and think of me in the field +or on the stream, and be happy. When I return she welcomes, she +appreciates. If I overstay my time I do not give myself worry--I know +that she will understand that there are contingencies. When she greets +me there are no reproaches. She is the wife for a sportsman! + +"But it is not always that I rely simply upon the sympathy of my Irene. +It was not so when I went in a balloon to hunt tigers. She was then at +my side, for there was no other place where she would have been +satisfied, or where I would have had her. There are vicissitudes which +should be faced together by those who love. + +"I had long wished to hunt tigers, and it had come into my head that +it would be a grand and novel idea, and also extremely practicable, +to shoot at these savage creatures from a balloon. This would be an +exhilarating sensation, and it would be safe. In no other way would I +take my Irene with me when tiger-hunting; and in no other way, I freely +admit, would I be very desirous of going myself. + +"I have heard that one of my countrymen had himself shut up in a stout +cage and conveyed to a region infested by tigers. There, with his rifle, +he sat comfortably in a chair, with a lantern on a table near by. When, +at night, the tigers crowded round his cage, he shot them. But this +would not have suited me. Suppose a bar of the cage should have been +broken! + +"But in a balloon it would be different. Poised in the air a moderate +distance above the ground, I could shoot at tigers beneath me and laugh +at their efforts to reach my height. Therefore it was that I determined +to hunt my tigers in a balloon. Irene screamed when I mentioned this +plan, but she did not refuse to go with me. She had been in balloons, +but she had never seen an unrestricted tiger. Now she could enjoy these +two pleasures at once, and be with me. + +"This happened in French Tonkin. We were in a little outlying town where +there was a garrison, and some engineers who made military observations +in a balloon. This was a captive balloon not employed for independent +ascensions, and from some of the officers, who were my friends, I +procured it for my projected tiger hunt. They were all much interested +in my expedition, for if it succeeded there would be a new variety of +sport in this monotonous region. + +"The balloon was supplied with gas sufficient to carry myself and my +Irene, with rifles, provisions, and various necessities, and its lifting +power was so proportioned to the weight it carried as to keep it at the +height of an ordinary church steeple above the earth. + +"About ten miles from the town there was a long stretch of desert and +barren land, extending for about a quarter of a mile from a jungle and +forest to a river; and here, I was told, tigers were often to be found, +sometimes crossing the open country to slake their thirst at the stream, +but more frequently to prevent antelopes and other tender animals from +slaking their thirst. There could be no better spot than this for my +experiment. + +"Our journey to the hunting-ground was most delightful. Seating +ourselves in the commodious car which hung beneath the balloon, we rose +to the height of the rope which restrained its ascent. The lower end of +this rope was then seized by natives, active and strong, who ran along, +pulling the balloon above them. It was the most comfortable method of +progression that I had ever known. There were no jars, scarcely any +sense of motion. The great overhanging balloon sheltered us from the +sun; we leaned over the side of the car, surveyed the landscape, and +breathed the fresh morning air. Then we breakfasted and smoked our +cigarettes. I was happy; my Irene was happy. We could have journeyed +thus for days. + +"But when we came to the appointed place we prepared for business. We +had with us a machine for anchoring the balloon, and the natives +immediately went to work to drive this deeply into the soil, about +half-way between the water and the jungle, so that we might be moored +at a proper distance above the ground. There was no wind; the balloon +hung almost motionless. It had been arranged that when it should be +properly attached the natives should leave us, and return in the evening +to pull us back to the town, and to carry away the skins of the tigers +we had killed. + +"It was truly luxurious hunting! The rifle of my Irene was light and +suitable for a lady; mine was of the most improved pattern. We had +another one in case of emergencies. We sat and looked down upon the men, +urging them to hasten their work and be gone; we were longing for our +sport. + +"Suddenly there was a cry from one of the natives. Gazing toward the +jungle, he yelled: 'A tiger! a tiger!' Instantly our hearts stopped +beating and our eyes were turned toward the jungle. There, against the +matted leaves and stalks, was a mass of yellow and black--half a tiger. +In the bright sunlight we could see it plainly. It had been roused by +the noise of the pounding, and was gazing out to see what was the +matter. With one united scream, the natives shot away. They scattered; +they disappeared utterly and at once. Where they went I know not. We +never saw them again. We did not even think of them. Our eyes were set +fast upon the black and yellow stripes and the great head. Without +volition I grasped my rifle. Irene put her hand upon her weapon, but I +whispered to her not to move. + +"The tiger came slowly out of the jungle so that we could see him +clearly; then he walked toward us. I clutched my rifle still more +tightly. + +"Suddenly Irene whispered to me: 'We are not fastened; those men did +not attach the rope; and we may drift away from him, perhaps across the +river, and so lose him. Is it too far for a shot?' + +"'Entirely, entirely,' I answered; 'we must wait: and if we do drift +across the river we may find some other game there. Be quiet!' + +"So we both were quiet; but the balloon did not drift: there was no +wind. + +"The tiger moved gently toward us; it was dreadful to remain thus +motionless and see him come on. He had paid no attention to the escaping +natives: he was giving his mind entirely to our balloon. He looked up at +us, and he looked down at the end of the rope, a yard or two of which +was moving about like a snake as the balloon veered a little this way +and that. + +"This seemed to interest the tiger. He stopped for a few moments and +looked at it. He was now near enough for us to observe him closely. We +did so with breathless interest. He was a long tiger, and very thin; his +flabby flanks seemed to indicate that he was hungry. Suddenly he gave a +quick bound; he ceased to regard the balloon; his eyes were fixed upon +the end of the rope. With great leaps he reached it. He arched his back +and looked at it as it moved, then he put one paw upon it. We leaned +over the edge of the car and watched him. + +"The rope was so attached that by putting out her arm Irene could reach +it. She seized it and made the lower end of it move more quickly on the +ground. The tiger gave a jump, with his eyes on the rope. Then he leaped +forward, and over and over again he put his foot upon it and quickly +jerked it away. + +"'What are you doing?' I whispered. 'Are you mad? You may enrage him. +Do not touch the rope! Do not touch it again!' Oh, the recklessness, the +unthinking playfulness of woman! How can we guard against it? How can we +be safe from it? + +"The rope was now still for a moment. It ceased to interest the tiger, +and he looked upward. Suddenly an idea came into his head. He seized the +rope in his great jaws, and gave a powerful jump backward. Oh, what a +jerk, what a shock! It was worse than an earthquake. It was like a great +throb from the heart of the tiger to the heart of the man. I must have +turned pale. Did he intend to haul us down? This fearsome thought vented +itself in smothered ejaculations, and Irene turned to me and spoke in +her usual voice: + +"'He cannot do that, for it is impossible for him to haul us down hand +over hand or paw over paw. He is only playing. The rope amuses him. And +we need not speak in whispers; even if he hears us he cannot understand +us. Is it not time to shoot?' + +"She is so precipitate, my Irene. I love her, but she lacks that prudent +hesitancy which so often gives a man his power over circumstances. + +"Still I considered the case: if I were going to shoot at all, this was +surely a good time. Everything had come so suddenly that I had not had +time to collect myself, to prepare for action. + +"I looked steadfastly down at the beast, and so did my Irene. I was +becoming calmer. He looked up at us with an air of concentration; he +paid no more attention to the rope. + +"I lifted my rifle; I scrutinized its every portion; it was in order. +Then I leaned over the edge of the car and pointed it downward. I aimed +it between his great, earnest eyes, into the very middle of his +thoughtful and observant countenance. I pulled the trigger; the +explosion shook the car. + +"Up from the ground there came a sudden, startling roar. At first I +could not see the tiger, but when the smoke moved away I found myself +gazing down into his savage, blazing eyes. Roar after roar came up; he +sprang from side to side; his tail stiffened and curled, and when he +opened his vast mouth, showing the cavern of his throat, his red tongue, +and his long white teeth, a shiver ran through me. Instinctively I +grasped my Irene by the arm. + +"'I do not believe you hit him,' said she. 'See how he bounds! He cannot +be hurt. It must be difficult to aim directly downward, but let me try.' + +"I did not forbid her. Even by chance she might strike that awful beast +in some vital part. She took a long, deliberate aim, and as she fired +the tiger gave a veritable scream. + +"'Ah, ha!' I cried, 'you hit him. Truly, my Irene, you hit him.' + +"'But it was only in the toe,' she said. 'See how he has stopped to lick +it with his tongue. I think it is his littlest toe. It is not much.' + +"Large toe or small one, that tiger was now an angry beast. Hopping +backward a little way, he now crouched to the ground, and then gave a +wild spring upward. It was heart-sickening as his great form, with its +yellow skin and black stripes, his blazing eyes, his flashing teeth, and +his outspread claws, rose toward us through the air. Of course he could +not hurt us; we were too high up. Irene's face flushed. 'That was a +great leap,' she said. + +"I took up my rifle again. It comforted me to see what a small jump the +beast had made compared to our distance from the ground. Again I fired, +and this time also I did not hit him. I had never practised shooting at +things almost beneath me; the slightest motion of Irene disturbed my +aim. The report seemed to infuriate the tiger until he was on the verge +of madness. He jumped from side to side, he roared, he gnashed his +teeth, and it seemed to me that I could smell his horrid breath coming +up toward us. + +"Suddenly he ceased all motion; he crouched upon the ground; he made no +sound; he shut his mouth; he partly shut his eyes, but they were fixed +upon me immovably, and they were green as emerald. + +"'Now,' said Irene, 'is a good time to take another shot. Shall I try?' + +"I raised my hand that she might not move. There was a change coming +over the sun. At first I thought my sight was affected and I did not see +well, but it was not that. Instinctively I gazed upward. A wandering +cloud was slowly moving under the sun. Then I looked down. The tiger's +yellow was not so bright, his black stripes were not so clear and +sharp-cut, and, more than that, he was coming nearer. The balloon was +slowly descending. The truth flashed upon me. Deprived of the direct +rays of the sun, the gas was condensing. We were going down, down, +slowly but surely down! + +"A chill ran through me, an awful premonitory chill. I knew what to do, +but there was little I could do. We carried no ballast, for this was a +captive balloon. What could I throw out? The extra rifle! Out it went, +and fell not far from the tiger; but he did not move; with his green +eyes fixed upon the car, he watched it slowly descend. The rifle had +relieved it of a little of its weight, but the middle of the cloud was +thicker than its edge. The gas was still condensing, the balloon was +slowly descending. I became almost frantic. If my Irene had been any one +else I believe I would have thrown her out. But I could not throw out my +Irene. Besides, she was so vigorous. + +"It was awful, this steady, this merciless descent. It was like entering +a tomb with a red tongue and flashing teeth waiting within. The green +eyes gleamed with the malice of a waiting devil biding his time and +knowing that it was drawing near. + +"Down, down we went, and the smell of his horrid breath came up like the +forerunner of a cruel death. Now a tremor ran through the whole body of +the crouching beast; even his tail trembled like a feather in the wind. +He seemed to press himself nearer and nearer to the earth. His eyes were +fixed steadily upon the car. + +"I knew what this meant. He was about to spring. The moment that we +should descend sufficiently low, he would hurl himself into the car; he +would not wait for it to touch the ground. + +"My thoughts raced through my brain. If anything could be done, it must +be done in the next half-minute. I spoke quickly to Irene. + +"'Do not lose a second,' I said. 'Get out on the outside of the car; +rest lightly upon its edge; hold by the ropes. I will do the same. At +the moment I give the word you must jump. Both together; do not +hesitate. It will not be much of a fall. We cannot stay here and have +him--' + +"At this instant the tiger gave a tremendous bound upward, his fore +paws, bristling with claws, stretched over the edge of the car. In that +instant I jumped! + +"It was a great leap, and as my feet struck the ground and my eyes +glanced rapidly about me a feeling of great joy filled my breast. I was +on the earth again, master of myself, and the tiger was not there. I +looked upward. The great beast was drawing up his hind legs and was +climbing into the car, and there was Irene, my Irene, outside of the +car, sitting on the edge and holding on to the ropes. I had forgotten to +give her the word! How my heart sank! It was terrible! + +"I now perceived something that almost paralyzed my every faculty. That +balloon was rising. I was a large man and I was heavier than the tiger; +with its reduced weight the balloon was slowly going upward. I clasped +my hands, I gasped for breath. If I should call to Irene to jump now she +would be dashed to pieces, the car was already so high. And then the +great truth flashed upon me: 'What matters it? If she leaps she will be +killed; if she does not leap--' I could not think of it! + +"To be sure, I might seize the rope and pull her down low enough so that +she might safely drop; but if I did that the tiger might also jump. Oh, +what a position to be in, for one who loves! + +"It was now absolutely impossible for either of them safely to leap from +the car unless I pulled it down, and my mind was not capable of even +considering such an alternative. To meet him here upon the ground, in +this awful solitude! To die together, but not in each other's arms; to +perish from this bright earth; to reach out to my Irene; to call to her +as she reached out and called to me, when the terrible monster-- It was +too much! + +"But even in my despair I remembered to be humane. I seized the end of +the rope. I would not let my Irene float away altogether. I could not. +The soul of the husband asserted itself. The cloud had now passed from +the face of the sun. The balloon was rising with considerable force, but +I could hold it; I was very heavy. I would not desert my Irene. + +"As I stood thus, looking upward and holding fast to all that was dear +to me in life, I saw Irene, still sitting on the edge of the car, raise +one hand and put it to her head. I could see that she was feeling faint; +the strain of her position was beginning to tell upon her; at any moment +she might fall. Then my quick glance sought the tiger. He was in the +car, his great head and two front paws hanging over the edge; his green +eyes were steadily fixed on me. Just then Irene, evidently unable to +hold any longer to the ropes, gave herself a dexterous twist, and in an +instant she was inside the car, her head sinking down out of sight. Oh, +noble, most beloved Irene! Sooner than let herself drop and fall at my +feet a mangled corpse, she would do anything. She well understood my too +sensitive soul, this dear Irene! + +"In spite of my emotion I still held firmly to the rope, and the tiger +still glared down upon me. It was too far for him to jump; he knew that +if he did he would be dashed to pieces. This gave me strength and +courage. + +"Irene now raised herself and looked over the edge of the car; the tiger +by her side did not regard her. I have often read of wild animals, of +different kinds and degrees of fierceness, who, having fallen into a pit +together, did not attack each other, but remained as gentle as sheep, +being cowed by their fear. Plainly this tiger was cowed. He had never +been so far above the earth; he knew that he would die if he leaped; but +he kept his sinister green eyes steadily fixed on me. + +[Illustration: The great beast was drawing up his hind legs and was +climbing into the car.] + +"Now Irene called down to me. I could not hear what she said, I was in +such terrible agitation. And besides, I think she was afraid to speak +too loudly, for fear she might startle the black-and-yellow beast. How I +longed to hear her dear words, perhaps her last! Mayhap she was bidding +me a fond farewell; perhaps she was trying to encourage me and uphold my +heart in this terrible trial. It would be like her; she knows my love +for her, my dear Irene! + +"And then, ah yes! it might be that she was asking my permission to +throw herself from the car: that she was beseeching me to turn away my +head that she might leap to the ground, and thus end her anxieties and +her miseries--I might say our miseries; for if the tiger should follow +her he, too, would be killed. I should be left to weep over my dearest, +the joy of my life and my heart. The tiger would be dead. In her last +breath Irene would know that I was safe. That would be like Irene, my +dear Irene! But I would not suffer it. I could not speak, but I shook my +head. + +"She did not try to say anything more, but she looked down upon me, and +so did the tiger. The two heads were not far from each other; they were +both regarding me. I grew almost crazy. Never was man placed in more +terrible straits than this. + +"Suddenly a thought struck me. I seized more tightly the end of the +rope, and I ran. I ran to the river. I plunged, I bounded, I made such +great haste that sometimes I stumbled over obstacles, and sometimes the +balloon seemed to lift me from the ground; but on, on I went, on to the +river! + +"When I reached the edge of the water I took courage to stop and look +up. They were both still gazing over the edge of the car, both with +their eyes strained upon me. + +"Then boldly and fearlessly I walked into the river. I walked until the +water was up to my knees; until it reached my waist. I walked until the +surface of the water lapped my shoulders. I was not afraid; I am a good +swimmer. Irene now called down to me. It was plain she was becoming +reckless; she would know what I was going to do, no matter what effect +her words would have upon the tiger. If she thought I was about to +commit suicide, not daring to bear up under her coming fate, she would +dissuade me. It would be like her, that dear Irene! + +"'What are you going to do?' she cried. And as I looked upward her eyes +and those of the tiger were steadily fixed on me. + +"'You must get on the outside of the car again,' I cried. 'Do it +quickly, without disturbing him. Then I will pull you down, down, a +little at a time. When you are far enough down--and I will be the judge +of that--I will give you the word; then you must jump. It will not hurt +you; the water will break your fall, and I will save you. Think of +nothing else but your trust in me, and jump. The moment you leave the +car I let go the rope; then it will instantly be too far for him to +jump. Quick! Be ready when I give the word.' And as I spoke I hauled +steadily upon the rope. + +"Irene looked at me for an instant, and then she stood up in the car. I +saw her put one foot upon the seat which surrounds it; then quickly +appeared the other foot upon the edge of the car. She raised both arms +and joined her hands above her head; she pushed herself between the +ropes and leaped. It was all the work of a second. + +"She came down beautifully, head foremost. It was a splendid dive. +Relieved of her weight, the balloon gave a great jerk, and I let go the +rope. + +"Irene went down into the water as cleanly and smoothly as if she had +been a diving duck. She scarcely made a splash. She was a magnificent +swimmer. + +"As my dear Irene disappeared beneath the surface of the water I made +use of the rapid moments in which I could not expect to see her in +glancing upward. The tiger was rising rapidly. His head was stretched +out over the edge of the car; I could see his wild and frightened eyes. +He was afraid to jump. + +"Then I turned to the water. The head of Irene had risen above it; she +was striking out bravely for the shore. She did not need my help. She is +a grand woman! In a few moments we stood beside each other on the shore. +I would have thrown myself into her arms; I would have embraced this +dear one, now my own again: but she was so wet; I was so wet. We seized +each other by the hands. It is impossible to say whether she wept or +not, her face was so wet. + +"Then by a sudden instinct we looked upward. The balloon was high above +us, rising steadily. We could see the head of the tiger projecting from +the car--now such a little head, but I knew that he was gazing at me. +Then we heard a sound which came down from above. It was the tiger's +roar, but it was such a little roar! I clasped more tightly the hand of +my Irene; we did not speak, but gazed steadily upward at the balloon, +which had reached a current of air which was carrying it across the +country. The sun was now very hot; the gas was expanding; the balloon +was rising higher and higher and higher. + +"We stood holding each other's hands and gazing. At last there was but a +little black spot in the sky; then it faded and shivered, and was gone. +Side by side we moved away. We were very wet, but the sun was hot. + +"Suddenly I spoke. I could not restrain my burning desire to look deep +into the soul of Irene. I owed it to my love of her to know the extent +of her love for me. Those words which she called down from the car, +which might have been her last words on earth, what were they? I asked +her. + +"'I said,' she answered, 'that if you would pick up that rifle you threw +out, and stand ready, I would jerk open the safety-valve. I would then +take up my rifle, and when the car came down we would both shoot him. +But you shook your head, and I said no more.' + +"I did not answer, but in my heart I said: 'O woman! What art thou, +and of what strange feelings art thou made! Thou hast the beauty +of the flower and the intellect of the leaf. To let that awful +black-and-yellow fiend descend to the earth! To call up to a cruel +death and ask it to come down-stairs and meet you on the lowest step! +Skies! How can the mind of man conceive of it?' + +"And leaving the shores of the river, we toiled homeward over the dreary +wastes." + +The company were all much interested in this narrative--almost painfully +interested. They said as much to the Frenchman, and he was pleased at +the impression he had felt sure he would make, and which he always did +make, when he told that story. They talked of hunts and wild beasts, but +there were no comments upon the story itself. Each one had his or her +own thought, however. The Master of the House thought: "What a clever +woman!" The Mistress of the House thought: "Just like a Frenchman!" The +Next Neighbor wished she had been in the balloon to pitch the tiger on +him. The Daughter of the House was fascinated at the idea of the +vicinity of the beautiful, ferocious tiger. And John Gayther thought, as +he looked wistfully at the Daughter of the House: "I am glad he has a +wife!" + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + POMONA AND JONAS + + AND IS CALLED + + THE FOREIGN PRINCE AND THE + HERMIT'S DAUGHTER + + + + +VII + +THE FOREIGN PRINCE AND THE HERMIT'S DAUGHTER + + +The Frenchman went away; and after him there was a succession of +visitors to the house who were not interested in gardens and were +therefore not introduced within the sacred precincts of the summer-house +on the upper terrace. The young people took a fancy to a pretty rustic +arbor in a secluded spot; but whether it was because they especially +admired that part of the garden did not transpire. + +But the guests left, one after another; and finally there came to visit +the family Euphemia and her Husband. They were old and intimate friends +of the family, and the very morning after their arrival they all +repaired to the summer-house which overlooked the garden. There was some +conversation about the garden,--its beautiful things, and its useful +products, and its antiquity,--for Euphemia loved the old garden and its +traditions. + +The two gentlemen, provided with comfortable chairs, smoked their cigars +in peacefulness and content, and the Daughter of the House seemed +absorbed in some fancy work. But after some time the Master of the +House, turning suddenly to Euphemia's Husband, asked: "What has become +of Jonas and Pomona?" + +"Here they are to answer for themselves!" cried the Daughter of the +House, springing up, as John Gayther ushered into the garden the Next +Neighbor, followed by Pomona and Jonas. The Next Neighbor was also +on intimate terms with Euphemia and her Husband, and a devoted and +rapturous admirer of Pomona. The couple had descended upon her the night +before in a most unexpected fashion, but she gave them a hearty welcome, +and rejoiced in them, even after she discovered that she owed the visit +to a desire on the part of her guests to see Euphemia's Husband. They +knew where he was visiting, but had thought it wiser to go to the Next +Neighbor to pay their little visit. And so the explanation of this +apparently strange meeting of so many old friends was simple enough. + +Chairs and benches were found, and John Gayther brought his stool +unasked and joined the party. He had no idea of missing that +conversation. + +It was soon evident that, while Jonas was as tranquil as usual, Pomona +had something on her mind--that she had come with a purpose; and as soon +as the inquiries and explanations were over, she addressed the Husband +of Euphemia with great earnestness: + +"Jone and me came to see you, sir, about something particular; and as we +are all friends here, I may as well say it right out." + +"The more you say the better we shall be pleased!" the Master of the +House exclaimed. + +Pomona nodded to him, but turned again to the Husband of Euphemia. + +"We've been told, sir, that some editors have been asking you to get us +to enter fiction again; and what we want to say is that we don't want to +enter it no more. What we did when we was in it was all very well, but +that's past and gone, although I've said to Jone a good many more times +than once that if I had to do this or that thing now, that's set down in +the book, I'd do it different. But then he always answers that if I'd +done that I'd have spoiled the story, and so there was no more to say on +that subject. What we've done we gladly did, and we're more than glad we +did it for you, sir. But as for doing it again, we can't do it, for it +ain't in us. Even if we tried to do the best we could for you, all you'd +get would be something like skim-milk--good enough for cottage cheese +and bonnyclabber, but nothing like good fresh milk with the cream on +it." + +"I think you are perfectly right," said Euphemia. "If you don't want to +go into fiction again you ought not to be made to do it." + +"I would not do such a wicked thing as to put anybody in fiction who did +not want to go there," gravely replied the Husband of Euphemia. + +At these words the load that was on Pomona's mind dropped from it +entirely. + +"Now, sir," said she, "we've got another thing to say; and it will seem +queer to you after what we've said already. We do want to go into +fiction, but not the way we was in it before. The fact is that between +us we've written a story, and we've brought it with us, hoping you +wouldn't mind letting Jone read it to you. Of course we was expecting to +read it to only two; but as we've got to go back to-day, if the rest of +the folks don't mind, Jone can read it anyway." + +"I should like it above all things!" exclaimed the Next Neighbor. + +"We will not let you go away until it is read," said the Mistress of the +House. + +"Oh, I do want to hear it!" cried the Daughter of the House. + +"Of course Jonas must read it," was Euphemia's quiet comment. + +"Heave ahead!" called out the Master of the House. + +Pomona smiled gratefully. "It isn't a very long story, but we've been a +long time working at it, and we wouldn't think of such a thing as +calling it finished until our friends has heard it." + +The quiet and good-natured Jonas now drew a manuscript from his pocket +and began. + +"The name of my story," said he, "is 'The Foreign Prince and the +Hermit's Daughter.'" + +"We thought of a good many other names for it," said Pomona, "and I +wanted to call it 'The Groundless Prince'; but Jone he said that +groundless applies to things there is no reason for, and as so many +princes are of that kind, somebody's feelings might be hurt. And so I +gave in." + +"Now this is the way the story begins," said Jonas. "In that period of +time which is not modern, and yet is not too far back, and in which a +great many out-of-the-way things have happened, a certain young Prince +went travelling in foreign parts of the world with the general purpose +of broadening his mind. He wanted to study the manners and customs of +other nations in order that he might better know how to govern his own +people. + +"But when, after several years' absence, he came back to the place of +his nativity, he found that neighboring nations had made war upon his +country--that they had conquered his army and subjugated his people, and +had partitioned his principality among themselves. Consequently he found +himself in a strange position: he had gone forth to visit foreign lands, +and now he returned to find himself a foreigner on the very spot where +he was born. In fact, his nationality had been swept away; his country +had disappeared. + +"But he was still a prince. Nothing could deprive him of his noble +birth. But to all the world, save to one person, he was an alien prince, +and must always so continue. The exception was a Single Adherent, who +had followed him when he began his travels, and whose loyal spirit would +not suffer him to leave his master now. + +"Slowly, with crossed arms and head bent low, the Prince strode away +from the place that had once been his home, his Single Adherent +following his footsteps. + +"After a long day's journey they came to a little valley chiefly +remarkable for streams and rocks. Here, at the entrance of a commodious +cave, he beheld an elderly hermit seated upon a stone, calmly surveying +the sunset sky. The hermit looked up with a pleasant smile, for it had +been long since a traveller had passed that way; and, perceiving that +the stranger was not only well-bred but tired, invited him to take a +seat upon a stone near by his own, at the same time motioning the +Adherent to a smaller stone at a little distance. + +"In reply to the numerous questions of the hermit, the Prince soon told +his story. + +"'Well, well!' exclaimed the hermit. 'Then you are the Prince Ferrando. +I might have known it, for you so closely resemble your father.' + +"'You knew him, then?' inquired the Prince. + +"'I have often seen him,' the hermit replied. 'The likeness is +wonderful. And so you have come back to find that your principality does +not exist. It is a strange condition of things; but believe me--I +mingled a great deal with the world before I came to this cave, and I +know what I am talking about--when I tell you that there are many +potentates who would be glad to come back from a journey and to find +that their dominions had ceased to exist, and that with them had +disappeared all the trials, responsibilities, and dangers of +sovereignty.' + +"'But I am not that sort of person,' said Ferrando. 'I do not allow care +to oppress me; I do not shrink from responsibility; I am not afraid of +danger. I travelled far to broaden my mind; I came back prepared to +reign wisely over my subjects. But I have no subjects, and therefore I +cannot exercise that enlightened rule for which I have, with so much +toil and study, prepared myself. Wherever I go I must always be an +absolute alien, and as such I must try to learn to consider myself.' + +"'Cheer up, my friend,' said the hermit. 'You are too young to give up +things in that way. And now allow me, sir, to introduce you to my +daughter.' + +"Ferrando sprang up quickly, and beheld standing near him a very +handsome young woman carrying a large basket filled with water-cress. +The Prince bowed low. 'It is very unusual, I think,' said he, 'for a +hermit to have a daughter.' + +"The hermit smiled. 'Yes,' said he; 'it is rather out of the common; but +when I came here to seek rest and peace within these rocky walls, my +daughter could not be dissuaded from accompanying me.' + +"'It is plain that she possesses a noble soul,' said the Prince, again +bowing low. + +"'I wonder if he ever thinks that of me?' the Single Adherent asked +himself, as he stood respectfully by his low stone. + +"When the hermit's daughter had been made aware of Ferrando's former +station and his misfortunes, she went away to prepare supper. The meal +was soon ready, and consisted of cress fresh from the spring, fried +cress, and toasted cress, with cress tea, and also freshly drawn water +from a spring." + +"Poor young man!" exclaimed the Next Neighbor. "So tired and hungry! Was +that all they had to give him?" + +"Of course," explained Pomona; "hermits never eat anything but +water-cress." + +"After supper," continued Jonas, "the hermit filled a pipe with dried +water-cress, and offered another to his guest, and the three sat at the +entrance of the cave and discussed the Prince's affairs, in which the +hermit and his daughter seemed to take a lively interest. At a little +distance on the small stone sat the Single Adherent, also smoking a pipe +of water-cress, and his inability to enjoy this novel sensation was +plainly evident in the radiant beams of the full moon. In the course of +an hour the Prince and his Adherent retired to a guest-cave near by; but +the hermit and his daughter sat up far into the night discussing the +Prince and the peculiar circumstances in which he found himself. + +"The next morning after breakfast, the principal dish of which was a +salmi of water-cress, the hermit, his daughter, and their guest held +council together; while the Adherent stood at a respectful distance, and +listened with earnest attention to all that was said. + +"'My daughter and I,' said the hermit, 'agree that it is a lamentable +thing that a prince such as yourself, so eminently qualified to rule, +should have no opportunity to exercise his abilities for sovereignty; +therefore we think the best thing you can do is to rent a principality +for a term of years. In some ways this would be better than inheriting +one, for if you do not like it you can give it up at the end of the +term.' + +"'But where could I find a principality to let?' exclaimed the Prince. +'I never heard of anything like that!' + +"'Very likely,' said the hermit; 'but if you were to look around I think +you might find something to suit you which the reigning potentate might +be willing to lease.' + +"'I am of my father's opinion,' said the hermit's daughter; 'and if you +will take my advice you will investigate the country north of this +valley. There are several principalities in that direction, and it would +not at all surprise me if, before the end of a day's journey, you were +to find something that could be rented.' + +"The Prince was very much pleased with the interest taken in his affairs +by the hermit and his daughter, and he decided to follow their advice. +As he and his Single Adherent were about to depart, the hermit said to +him: 'I shall be very glad to hear from you, and, if you should succeed +in renting a principality, I will willingly give you any advice and +assistance in my power. When I mingled with the general world I saw a +great deal of governing and all that sort of thing, and it may be I can +give you some points which will be of advantage to you.' + +"The Prince accepted with thankfulness the kind offer of his host, and +when he approached the daughter to take leave of her, she graciously +stuck a sprig of water-cress in his buttonhole. + +"After walking a few miles the Prince and his Adherent stopped at a +roadside inn, where they ate an abnormal breakfast, and then, with +invigorated bodies, they continued their journey. + +"Late in the afternoon the Prince became a little tired, and suggested +that they stop at a farm-house which stood near the road, and sojourn +there for the night. The Adherent, however, was of the opinion that they +should go on until they reached the crest of a hill before them; they +would then be able to survey the country. He placed a high opinion on +the statement of the hermit's daughter that they would be likely to find +what they wanted before nightfall. + +"When they reached the crest of the hill they were delighted to see +before them, at no great distance, a small city. When they had +approached it nearer they perceived by the side of the great gate a +sign-board which bore the inscription: + + PRINCIPALITY TO LET--FURNISHED + APPLY TO DOWAGER AT THE PALACE + +"The Single Adherent nodded his head as he said to himself: 'This is +just about what I expected.' + +"'That hermit's daughter,' said the Prince, 'is a remarkable young +woman, and her suppositions should not be disregarded.' + +"After passing the night at an inn near the gate, the Prince and his +Single Adherent repaired to the palace to make inquiries regarding the +principality. + +"The Dowager was a middle-aged woman dressed in rusty black, with a +quick eye and an eager expression. Having demanded references of +Ferrando, she declared herself perfectly satisfied with his statements, +for she had met his father, and the likeness was unmistakable. She told +him she would be very much pleased to have him for a tenant, and that +she was quite sure the principality would suit him exactly. She then +showed him all over the palace, the Adherent following and taking notice +of everything. + +"The furniture and appointments of the princely mansion were somewhat +time-worn and shabby, and the Dowager, noticing the scrutinizing glances +of the Adherent, thought it wise to state that during the life of her +late husband everything in the palace had been kept in the most +admirable order; but of course it could not be supposed that she, by +herself, could go to the expense of new carpets and furniture-coverings. +She assured the Prince, however, that a very little expenditure of money +would make the palace look as bright and clean as if it had been +recently furnished. + +"'Of course you have an army,' remarked the Prince. + +"'Oh, yes,' said the Dowager; 'an excellent army--that is, considering +the size of my principality. The infantry is very good indeed. In fact, +I heard my late husband say, on an occasion when the infantry corps had +just been furnished with new uniforms, that he never saw a finer-looking +set of men. The cavalry is also in excellent condition. Of course in +time of peace it is not necessary to keep these men supplied with +horses, but in an agricultural country it is not difficult to obtain +horses whenever they are really needed.' + +"'And the artillery?' inquired the Prince. + +"'I am sorry to say,' replied the Dowager, 'that the artillery is not +yet supplied with cannon. It was the intention of my late husband to +furnish them with the necessary cannon, ammunition, horses, and all +that, but he never did so. And of course, being a woman, I could not be +expected to attend to such things. But I have no doubt whatever that you +can easily and inexpensively put this branch of the army on a proper +footing; that is, if you care for artillery.' + +"The Prince asked no further questions about the army, but inquired if +the principality was furnished with a navy. + +"'Oh, no,' said the Dowager; 'we have no waterfront, and my late husband +used often to say that this impossibility of having a navy saved him a +great deal of expense, to say nothing of the trouble warships might get +him into when they are out of sight in distant parts of the world.' + +"At this point the Dowager was called out by a servant, who in a whisper +asked her if the visitors were going to stay to dinner. The Adherent +seized this opportunity to say in a low voice: + +"'If your Royal Highness will excuse me, I will suggest that you ask if +there is a legislative body, and a judiciary.' + +"The Dowager, having shaken her head at the servant, returned to the +Prince. + +"'Have you a legislature?' asked the Prince. + +"'Certainly,' she said. 'I cannot say that I think it is a very good +one, for I have more trouble with it than with anything else in the +principality; but it has now less than a year to run, and my advice +would be that you should not convene it again. My experience has taught +me that one can get along a great deal better without a legislative body +than with one. For my part, I do not approve of them at all.' + +"'And a judiciary?' remarked the Prince. 'I suppose you have that.' + +"The Dowager hesitated a moment as if she did not exactly understand; +but she recovered herself, and answered quickly: 'Oh, yes, we have one; +but I have so little to do with it that for the moment I forgot it. It +has been a very good one indeed, but it has been little used of late, +and it may be out of order. I have found that plain, straightforward +decrees from the throne are a great deal cheaper and a great deal +quicker in their operation than a judicial decision. But if you desire a +regularly organized judiciary, it will not cost you much to establish +one, if you do not employ your judges by the month or year. I find +piece-work a great deal more satisfactory, and you can get so much law +for nothing in this country that it is not worth while giving much for +it when you have to pay.' + +"The countenance of the Single Adherent had been growing darker and +darker, and he now stepped up to the Prince. + +"'Your Royal Highness,' said he, 'it might be well to speak of the +rent.' + +"When the Prince asked the Dowager how much she wanted per year for her +principality, she did not immediately answer, but reflected, with her +chin in her hand; and then, turning to the Prince, she stated the +amount. + +"'You must understand,' she added, 'that I would not rent this +principality to every one for such a sum as that; but as I know you +to be a regular prince who will appreciate the advantages and +responsibilities of a place like this, and, as you are unmarried, +without encumbrances of any sort, I presume, I would much prefer to +let it to you, even at a lower price, than to rent it to a perfect +stranger.' + +"When the Adherent heard the sum mentioned by the Dowager his +countenance grew almost black, and Prince Ferrando stood in silent +amazement. + +"'It would be impossible for me to pay such a sum as that,' he said at +last. 'I have studied political economy, and am familiar with the +principles of internal revenue, and the income to be derived from +ordinary taxes and imposts in a principality of this size would not +enable me to pay that sum.' + +"'Oh, you are very much mistaken!' cried the Dowager. 'Of course, as a +woman, I have not been able to make the principality pay me what it +ought to; but my late husband received a very good revenue from it, and +I am sure you could do the same, if not a great deal better: for my late +husband was not a good business man; he thought too much of other +people and not enough of his family.' + +"The Prince looked at his Adherent, and the latter shook his head +violently. + +"'It is impossible,' said Prince Ferrando; 'I cannot pay such a sum as +that'; and he rose to go. + +"'Of course,' said the Dowager, hastily, 'if you think that is too much, +and that you would not be able to pay it, I might take off something in +your case. I would not do this for everybody, but as it is you, I will +take off one per cent. of the amount I have named.' + +"For a moment Ferrando stood undecided. He greatly wanted the +principality; he would be homeless and forlorn without one; and yet this +Dowager was asking him a most outrageous price. + +"'I will consider this matter,' said he, 'and if you will give me the +refusal of the principality for twenty-four hours I will see you again +to-morrow.' + +"The Dowager considered this request as favorable to her interests, and, +fearing that she had asked him too little, she added: 'Of course, in +case of a reduction like this, it must be stipulated in the lease that I +reserve some rooms in the palace where I shall board at your expense. +You cannot expect me to accept a reduced rent, and to be turned out of +my house besides.' + +"The Prince bowed; and, without reply, he and his Adherent left the +palace, followed by the eager, wistful glances of the Dowager. When they +reached the inn the Prince said to his Single Adherent: + +"'I am greatly troubled, and I wish I had the advice of that good +hermit. I will write a letter to him, and you shall take it. But you +must not walk that long distance; to-morrow you will hire a vehicle and +go to the hermit.' + +"The Prince wrote his letter, and the Adherent took it to the hermit. +The good man and his daughter read it with the greatest interest, and +retired to the back of the cave to consider it. Presently the hermit +approached the Single Adherent. 'Is there room in your vehicle for three +persons?' said he. Receiving an affirmative answer, he continued: 'Then +my daughter and I will go back with you. We think the Prince is in +danger of making a very bad bargain; and as we know a great deal about +these things, we believe that our presence and advice will be of great +advantage to him.' + +"So, after the horse had all the water-cress it could eat, the little +party started back to the city." + +"They must have been the first real-estate agents," remarked the Master +of the House. + +Pomona was about to reply, but Jonas gave no time: + +"When the Prince heard the sound of the wheels, and came down to the +door of the inn, he was amazed and delighted to see the hermit and his +daughter, and welcomed them with unusual ardor. + +"'Of all the people in the world,' he exclaimed, 'I am most happy to see +you! I am in great trouble and difficulty, and I want your advice and +counsel.' + +"'Which is what we came to give you,' said the good hermit, as he warmly +pressed the hand of the Prince. + +"After supper the Prince and his guests retired to an inner room for +consultation, while the Adherent stood in the background. After some +discussion it was decided that early in the morning the Prince should +go to the palace, and should agree to lease the principality for five +years, provided the Dowager would accept one half the sum she had +originally asked; and that he should also absolutely refuse to board the +Dowager, or to allow her to reserve any part of the palace for her own +use. He would promise to pay one quarter's rent in advance if these +terms were agreed upon on the spot. + +"It was nearly high noon on the following day that the Dowager left the +palace, taking with her all her belongings. As she departed she turned +and cast a black look at the Adherent. + +"'It is to his advice,' she said to herself, 'that I owe this very bad +bargain that I have made. If that young fellow had been left to himself +he would have agreed to everything I demanded.' + +"For an hour or two before she left the Prince had been wandering around +the premises, impatiently waiting for her departure. As soon as she was +gone, he called to his Adherent, and sent him to the inn to summon the +hermit and his daughter to his presence. He wished to be grateful to +these good friends, but, as he had a respect to appearances, he did not +desire the Dowager to know that these humble persons were to be his +first guests in the palace. + +"When the hermit and his daughter arrived at the palace they received a +princely welcome, and Ferrando informed them that he wished them to make +him a visit of at least a week. + +"'You have been so good to me that I wish to do the best for you; and so +I have arranged that you shall occupy the state suite in the right +wing.' + +"'We are thankful for this great honor,' said the hermit; 'but, if it +would please your Royal Highness, we should prefer the corresponding +rooms in the left wing. We think they will suit us better.' + +"The Prince raised his eyebrows in surprise, but he gave orders that his +guests' wishes should be gratified. The Adherent, who was standing in +the background, raised his eyebrows also; but he was not surprised. + +"In about half an hour the hermit and his daughter rejoined the Prince +in the grand hall. To his utter amazement, Ferrando beheld his guests +dressed in rich and handsome garments. + +"'Did they bring any trunks with them?' he whispered to his Adherent, as +they approached. + +"'No, your Royal Highness,' was the answer. 'They brought nothing but a +basket of water-cress, which the lady said had been freshly picked and +ought not to be wasted.' + +"With great dignity the hermit advanced to the Prince, and by his side +walked his daughter, who was so beautiful in her silks and laces that +the Prince found it impossible to remove his eyes from her. + +"'In order to explain this change in our appearance,' said the hermit, +'I will state that the Dowager from whom you rented this principality is +my brother's widow. Before he died he arranged that the Dowager should +reign over the principality as long as she lived, and that my daughter +should then succeed her. At the same time, knowing that his wife did not +understand the governing of principalities, he appointed me Assistant +Prince, with a salary. This seemed like a very good plan, but it did +not work. The Dowager soon showed such a disposition to meddle with +everything that was going on that my position gradually became so +intolerable that I determined to retire to a hermit's cell, to which my +daughter accompanied me.' + +"With his mind scarcely able to grasp the situation, the Prince gazed +from the one to the other of his guests. 'Can it be possible,' he said +presently, 'that in renting this principality I have interfered with +your prospects?' + +"'Oh, not at all, not at all,' replied the hermit. 'In the first place, +you have given us the great honor of visiting you and of occupying our +old suite of apartments. I cannot describe to your Royal Highness the +pleasure I felt when I saw my dressing-gown hanging on its accustomed +hook, with my favorite slippers beneath it.' + +"'I take back my invitation for a week!' cried the Prince. 'Now that I +know who you are, you must stay with me for a long time. I wish you +could stay always,' he added, his eyes still fixed upon the beautiful +young woman. Then, as if to explain this outburst of interest, he said: +'You know, I rely so much on your advice and counsel, and there is no +knowing what that Dowager may do next.' + +"'You are right,' said the ex-hermit; 'there is no possible way of +knowing. But a plan has suggested itself to me which I think may relieve +you of any possible annoyance or molestation. My idea is that you shall +marry my daughter. Then, in virtue of your lease, you will reign over +the principality, and she will be your consort. After a time, when the +Dowager departs this life, my daughter, by virtue of inheritance, will +reign over the principality, and you will be her consort. Thus you see +the Dowager will have no show at all.' + +"The countenance of the Prince shone like the sun. 'A heaven-born plan!' +he cried. 'From the moment I saw your daughter with the basket of +water-cress, I loved her. By your permission, I will embrace her.' + +"The permission was given, and he embraced her. She might have said +that, from the moment she had understood the peculiar circumstances in +which the Prince had found himself, her heart had gone out to him like a +dove seeking the nest of its partner; but she did not think it needful +to occupy the time with unnecessary statements. + +"'Your Royal Highness,' said the Adherent, approaching with a bow, 'I +think it is only right to inform you that the Dowager, when she left, +said to me that she would return early in the afternoon to superintend +the removal of her parrots.' + +"'What!' cried the Prince. 'Haven't those beastly birds gone yet? Send +them after her without the loss of a minute. I don't want to see her +back here again.' + +"The ex-hermit, who had drawn his daughter aside for a few words of +consultation, now advanced with uplifted hands. 'Nay,' said he; 'if you +will excuse me, I think I can suggest a better plan than that. The old +lady is bound to come back, and the sooner she comes and goes, the +better; but we should be prepared for her. I suggest that a priest be +summoned, and that you and my daughter be married immediately. Our +position in the palace will then be assured, and the Dowager will have +nothing to say, either about our presence here or about anything else. +How does my plan suit your Royal Highness?' + +"Ferrando did not answer, but, turning to the Adherent, he ordered him +to summon a priest without delay, and to order the assemblage in the +great hall of all the courtiers and servants who could be found. The +Adherent sped away on his errand, and as he did so he smiled and said to +himself: 'She is a better manager than the old woman! And her views are +broader!' + +"When the marriage ceremony had been concluded, the Prince ordered a +sumptuous wedding-feast to be spread. But he was soon informed that +there was nothing to eat in the house, for the Dowager had not thought +it at all incumbent upon her to provide eatables for her tenant. + +"'It matters not!' cried the ex-hermit, his face glowing with pleasure. +'There will be time enough to provide a good supper. And, in the +meantime, what could be more appropriate for a wedding-repast than the +basket of cress which my daughter brought with her?' + +"A table was spread, with a great dish of water-cress in the centre. And +it may be remarked that the Prince was so wild with delight that if this +had been suddenly changed to one containing fried chicken with cream +gravy he would not have perceived the difference. + +"Early in the afternoon the Dowager returned to the palace to +superintend the removal of her parrots. As she entered the great hall +she perceived the wedding-party waiting to receive her; and her +amazement was such that her toes turned upward and she sat down with +great suddenness in a chair which the Adherent thoughtfully placed +behind her. + +"'How do you do, my dear sister-in-law?' said the ex-hermit. 'I do not +wonder you are surprised to see us here, and in order to relieve your +mind I will instantly explain the state of affairs.' Whereupon he +explained them. + +"The Dowager then found her voice and her strength. Springing to her +feet, she cried: 'This is a plot! I have been deceived, and the lease is +void. Not one of you has any right in this palace, and I hereby order +you out.' + +"The ex-hermit smiled, and drew a paper from his pocket. 'Before we obey +your orders, my dear sister-in-law,' he remarked, 'I wish to call your +attention to a little business matter. You will remember that when I was +here with you, acting as your assistant, you found great difficulty in +paying me my salary. The first year you told me to take it out of the +customs duties. The sum I received was not equal to the amount due me, +but I made no complaint. The second year I was obliged to rely on the +taxes on internal production; but as you required most of the income +from this source, I found myself very short of money at the end of the +year. The third year I was obliged to rely upon the taxes on pew-rents; +and that, as you are aware, yielded me almost nothing. After that you +paid me no salary at all. Here is my bill for the money due me. But if +you cannot conveniently pay me, I will agree, in the presence of these +good friends, to postpone the settlement until the next time I lay my +eyes upon you. If you do not then pay me, I shall then levy upon your +personal possessions.' + +"The Dowager glared at the Princess Ferrando, and, having shaken her +long forefinger at that beautiful young lady, she departed, and was +never seen in the palace again." + +Here Jonas folded the paper. + +"Is that the end?" asked the Daughter of the House. + +"That is all there is of it," said Jonas, sententiously. + +"I thought," said the Daughter of the House, "that the story would tell +how he governed his rented principality, and if he ever got his own. I +worked it out in my mind like a flash that he would govern so well that +his own people would go to him and beg him to govern them." + +"I think," said the Next Neighbor, "that if that principality was +governed at all, it was by that scheming wife." + +"There's two ways of ending a story," said Pomona. "One is to wind it +up, and the other is to let it run down. Now when a story is running +down as if it was a clock, it's often a good deal longer than you think +before it stops; so we thought we would wind this one up right there." + +Euphemia laughed. "But if you wind it up," she said, "you help it to +keep on going." + +For a moment Pomona looked embarrassed; but she quickly recovered +herself. "I don't mean to wind it up like a clock," she said, "but to +wind it up like an old-fashioned clothes-line which isn't wanted again +until you have some more things to hang on it." + +The Husband of Euphemia stated it as his opinion that that was an +excellent way to stop a story; but Euphemia did not agree with him. "I +think," she said, "that a story of that kind ought to end with a moral. +They nearly always do." + +Pomona now looked at Jonas, and Jonas looked at Pomona. + +"Several times, when we was writing the story," said Pomona, "I had a +notion that Jone was trying to squeeze a moral into it here and there; +but he didn't say nothing about it, and I didn't ask him, and if there's +anything more to say about it, it's for him to do it." + +Jonas smiled. "My opinion about morals to stories is that the people who +read them ought to work them out for themselves," said he. "Some people +work out one kind of moral, and others work out another kind. It was a +pretty big job to write that story, which I had to do the most of, and I +don't think I ought to be called on to put in any moral, which is a good +deal like being asked to make bread for the man who buys my wheat." + +Pomona looked down at the ground, then up to the sky, and then she +remarked: + +"If you wouldn't mind hearing a little bit of a story, I'd like to tell +you one." No one had any wish to object, and she began: "Once there was +a young married man who went to his business in a canoe; every morning +he paddled himself down to his business, and every afternoon he paddled +himself back. About half-way down the beautiful stream on which he lived +there was a little point of rocks projecting out into the water, and the +young man was obliged to paddle his canoe very near the opposite shore +in order to get out of the way. This was troublesome, and after a while +he got tired of it. It would be very much pleasanter, he thought, if he +could paddle along the middle of the stream, without thinking about the +rocks. So when, one morning, he was in a great hurry, he said to himself +that he would steer his canoe right straight against that point of rocks +and break it off. After that he would have a clear passage up and down +the stream. So as soon as he got near enough he carried out his plan. +That young man did not go to his office that morning, and the fragments +of his canoe was picked up by a poor family and used for kindling-wood. +Now," she added, looking deliberately at Jonas, "if you can find a good +moral to that story we'd be glad to hear it." + +It was very evident to the listeners that Pomona had given a shrewd +guess as to the moral of the story Jonas had read, if, indeed, he had +had in his mind any moral at all--and that her own was an offset to it, +or so intended. So the Next Neighbor came to the rescue. + +"I have a great dislike," she announced, "to morals of all sorts. I +prefer never to think of morals. They are very perplexing, and often +worse than useless. But if there are any morals to those two stories, I +should say that the first story has something to do with women who +manage too much; and the second, in some occult manner, deals with men +who try to reform their wives." + +Here every one laughed. And then there followed a lively criticism of +the story Jonas had read; but they all agreed that it was worthy of +Pomona and Jonas, and should be published. When they had reached this +conclusion they were summoned to luncheon. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE DAUGHTER OF THE HOUSE + + AND IS CALLED + + THE CONSCIOUS AMANDA + + + + +VIII + +THE CONSCIOUS AMANDA + + +One morning, as John Gayther was working in the melon-bed, the Daughter +of the House came to him, and greeted him with such a glow on her face +that John knew she had something pleasant to tell him. + +"Yes, miss," John replied to her greeting; "it is a beautiful morning, +and I know of something more beautiful than the morning." + +"I do not see any very great beauty in muskmelons," said the Daughter of +the House, demurely. + +"Muskmelons are not in my mind at this minute," John replied, letting +the hoe fall upon the ground as he looked at her pretty face, all aglow. + +"I have something in my mind, John--a very original story. Papa said +yesterday I must tell a story, and I have one all ready. I do not +believe you ever heard one like it. Come to the summer-house; mamma and +papa are already there." + +She tripped away, and John followed her, stopping on the way to pick up +a basket of seed-pods. He had just established himself on his stool, +facing the family group, and had taken some pods to shell as he +listened, when his hand was arrested and all the party silenced by a +burst of song from the tall lilac-bushes near the hedge. They could not +see the bird, but it was evident that he was enjoying his own melody. +Such pure, sweet notes--now rippling softly, now with a gay little +quiver of joy, now a tender prolonged note, now a succession of trills, +high and low, that set the air throbbing, and every now and then a great +burst of seraphic music, as if his little heart was so full of happiness +he was compelled to pour it forth to all who chose to listen. Our party +would gladly have listened for a long time, and have omitted the story +altogether; but after some minutes of delicious song the strains +suddenly ceased, and a little whirring noise in the lilacs indicated +that the bird had flown away. + +The Daughter of the House gave a deep sigh. "I was afraid to breathe," +she said, "lest he might fly away." + +"I have heard nothing like that this summer," said the Mistress of the +House. + +"It is the red thrush," said John Gayther, who had listened rapturously. +"A pair of them were here in the early spring. I wonder why this one has +come back." + +"Perhaps," said the Daughter of the House, "it is one of the young ones +come back to visit his birthplace. I am afraid, after that ravishing +performance, that my story will sound tame enough." + +"It will be a different sort of melody," said the Mistress of the House, +looking fondly at her daughter. + +"My heroine," began the young lady, "cannot appear in the first person, +as if she were telling the story; nor in the second person, as if she +were listening to one; nor in the third person, as if she were +somewhere else; for, in fact, she was not anywhere. And as there is no +such thing as a fourth person in grammar, she cannot be put into any +class at all." + +The captain turned and looked at his daughter. "There seems to be +something very foggy about this statement," said he. "I hope the weather +will soon clear up, so we can get our bearings." + +"We shall see about that," said the young lady. "This heroine of mine, +Miss Amanda, never went to sleep. To be sure, she sank into slumber +about as often as most people; but when she spoke of having done so +she always said she had 'lost consciousness.' She was very methodical +about going to sleep and waking up; and at night, just as she was +about to lose consciousness, she always said to herself, 'Seven +o'clock, seven o'clock, seven o'clock,' over and over again until she +was really asleep; and in the morning she woke up at seven precisely. +She was not married, and so she was able to live her own life much +more independently than if the case had been different. She liked to +be independent; and she liked to know as much as she could about +everything. In these two things she was generally very successful. But +you must not think she was prying or too inquisitive; she was really a +very good woman, and very fond of her family, which was composed +entirely of brothers and sisters and nephews and nieces. + +"She was a very active person, but she was not very strong; and when she +was nearly forty years old something happened to her lungs, and her +health gave way more and more, until at last there was no hope for her, +and she knew she must die." + +"Oh, this is an awful way to begin a story!" said the captain. "I don't +like it. You ought not to kill your heroine just as you begin." + +"If you want to make any remarks about this story, papa," said the +Daughter of the House, "which shall be worth anything, you ought to wait +until you hear more of it and begin to understand it. When Miss Amanda +found she had a very little while to live, she composed herself +comfortably, and began to repeat to herself the words, 'Fifty years, +fifty years, fifty years,' over and over again. This she did until at +last she died; and then there was her funeral; and she was buried; and +there was a stone put up over her head with her name on it." + +John Gayther smiled with approbation. He felt sure he was going to hear +a story to his liking. The captain smoked steadily. As he had been +advised, he would wait until he felt firm ground beneath him before he +made any further remarks. As for the Mistress of the House, she looked +at her daughter, and wondered. The story continued: + +"All this happened a few years before the middle of a century, and a few +years before the end of a century Miss Amanda regained consciousness. +That is to say, she woke up at the end of fifty years, exactly as she +had been in the habit of waking up at seven o'clock in the morning. But +although she was conscious she did not understand how it was possible +she should be so. She did not see; she did not hear; she did not feel. +She had no body; no hands or feet; no eyes or ears: she had nothing; and +she knew she had nothing. She simply was conscious, and that was all +there was about it. She was not surprised; she seemed to take her state +and condition as a matter of course, and, to a certain degree, she +comprehended it. She remembered perfectly well that she had lost +consciousness as she was saying 'Fifty years, fifty years, fifty years' +over and over again; and now she knew that, as she had regained +consciousness, the fifty years must have passed; so, instead of +wondering how things had come to be as they were, she, or rather her +consciousness, set itself to work to observe everything around it and +about it. This had always been Miss Amanda's habit of mind. + +"Now I want to explain," said the young lady, "that in one way it will +be troublesome for me to express myself exactly as I tell this story. Of +course Miss Amanda did not exist; it was only her consciousness which +observed things: but I think it will be a great deal less awkward for me +if I speak of that consciousness as Miss Amanda. None of us really +understands consciousnesses with their outsides all hulled off as John +is doing with those seeds which he drops into the basin. Each one of +those little seeds has within it a power which we do not understand. And +that is the way with Miss Amanda's consciousness." + +"There," said the captain; "I agree with you. Nobody can object to +that." + +"The first thing of which Miss Amanda became conscious was the smell of +sweet peas. She had always been very fond of these flowers. The air was +soft and warm, and that, too, was pleasant to her. She observed a good +many other things, such as trees and grass; but she did not know where +she was, and she did not see anything she could recognize. You must not +forget that when I say she saw anything, I mean she became conscious of +it. Presently, however, she did perceive something that was familiar, +and if such a thing had been possible her face would have flushed with +pleasure. This familiar object was a sun-dial in the middle of a wide +grass-mound. The sun-dial was of brass. It was very old, and some of the +figures on the round plate were nearly obliterated by time and weather; +but Miss Amanda recognized it. It was the same sun-dial she had always +known in the home where she had been born. But it was not mounted on a +round brick pillar, as when she had known it: now it rested on a +handsome stone pedestal; but it was the same sun-dial. She could see the +place where the upright part had been mended after her nephew John, then +only fourteen, had thrown a stone at it, being jealous of it because it +would never do any work in bad weather, whereas he had to go to school, +rain or shine. + +"'Now,' thought Miss Amanda, 'if this is the old sun-dial, and if this +is the mound in front of our house, although it is so much smaller than +I remember it, the dear old house must be just behind it.' But when she +became conscious in that direction, the dear old house was not there. +There was a house, but it looked new and handsome. It had marble steps, +with railings and a portico, but it was another house altogether, and +everything seemed to be something else except the sun-dial, and even +that did not rest on the old brick pillar with projections at the +bottom, on which she used to stand, when she was a little girl, in order +to see what time it was. + +"Now Miss Amanda felt lonely, and a little frightened. She had never +been accustomed to finding herself in places entirely strange to her. +She felt, too, that she was there in that place, and could not be +anywhere else even if she wanted to, and this produced in her a +condition which, half a century before, would have been nervousness. But +suddenly she perceived something which, although strange, was very +pleasant. It was a young girl upon a bicycle coming swiftly toward her +over a wide, smooth driveway. Miss Amanda had never been conscious of a +bicycle; and as the girl swept rapidly on, it seemed as if she were +skimming over the earth without support. At the foot of the marble steps +the girl stopped and seemed to fall to the ground; but she had not +fallen: she had only stepped lightly from the machine, which she leaned +against a post, and then walked rapidly toward the place where the sweet +peas grew. + +"Miss Amanda greatly admired this girl. She was dressed in an extremely +pretty fashion, with a straw hat and short skirts, something like the +peasants in southern Europe. She began to pick the sweet-pea blossoms, +and soon had a large bunch of them. Now steps were heard coming round +the house, and the girl, turning her head, called out: 'Oh, grandpa, +wait a minute. I am picking these flowers for you.' From around one end +of the house, which was a large one, Miss Amanda saw approaching an +elderly gentleman who was small, with short gray hair and a round, ruddy +face. He walked briskly, and with a light switch, which he carried in +his hand, he made strokes at the heads of a few fluffy dandelions which +appeared here and there; but he never hit any of them. + +"Instantly Miss Amanda knew him: it was her nephew John--the same boy +who had broken the sun-dial! No matter what his age might happen to be, +he had the same bright eyes, and the same habit of striking at things +without hitting them. Yes, it was John. There could be no possible +mistake about it. It was that harum-scarum young scapegrace John. If +Miss Amanda had had a heart, it would have gone out to that dear old +boy; if she had had eyes they would have been filled with tears of +affection as she gazed on him. Of all her family he had been most dear +to her, although, as he had often told her, there was no one in the +world who found so much fault with him. + +"The old gentleman sat down on a rustic seat beneath a walnut-tree, and +his granddaughter came running to him, filling the air with the odor of +sweet peas. She seated herself at the other end of the bench, and let +the flowers drop into her lap. 'Grandpa,' said she, 'these are for you, +but I am only going to give you one of them now for your buttonhole. The +rest I will put in a vase in your study. But I wanted you to stop here +anyway, for I have something to tell you.' + +"'Tell on,' said he, when the girl had put a spray bearing three +blossoms into his buttonhole. 'Is it anything you want me to do this +afternoon?' + +"'It isn't anything I want you to do ever,' she said. 'It is about +something I must do, and it is just this: grandpa, there are two +gentlemen who are about to propose to me, and I think they will do it +very soon.' + +"'How in the world do you know that?' he exclaimed. 'Have they sent you +printed notices?' + +"'How is it that anybody knows such a thing?' she answered. 'We feel +it, and we can't be expected to explain it. You must have felt such +things when you were young, for I have been told you were often in +love.' + +"'Never in my life,' said her grandfather, 'have I felt that a young +woman was about to propose to me.' + +"'Oh, nonsense!' said the girl, laughing. 'But you could feel that she +would like you to propose to her. That's the way it would be in your +case.' + +"Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and overpowering attention. +Often in love! That young scapegrace John! But she had no doubt of it. +When she had last known him he was not yet eighteen, and he had had +several love-scrapes. Of course he must have married, for here was his +granddaughter; and who in the world could he have taken to wife? Could +it have been that Rebecca Hendricks--that bold, black-eyed girl, who, as +everybody knew, had tried so hard to get him? With all the strength of +her consciousness Miss Amanda hoped it had not been Rebecca. There was +another girl, Mildred Winchester, a sweet young thing, and in every way +desirable, whom Miss Amanda had picked out for him when he should be old +enough to think about such things, which at that time he wasn't. Rebecca +Hendricks ought to have been ashamed of herself. Now she did hope most +earnestly that she would hear something which would let her know he had +married Mildred Winchester. + +"'Well,' said the old gentleman, 'if they do propose, as you seem to +have some occult reason for suspecting, have you made up your mind which +of them you are going to take?' + +"'That is the trouble,' said the girl, a very serious look coming over +her face. 'I have not made up my mind what I ought to do. I know I ought +to be prepared to give the proper answer to the one who speaks first, +whichever one he may be; but I cannot come to a decision which satisfies +me, and that is the reason, grandpa, I wanted to talk to you about it. +Of course you know who they are--George and Mr. Berkeley.' + +"'My dear Mildred,' said the old gentleman, turning quickly around so +that he could face her, 'just listen to me.' + +"'Mildred, Mildred!' thought Miss Amanda, and her consciousness was +pervaded by a joyful thankfulness which knew no limits. 'She must have +been named after her grandmother. He surely married Mildred.' And Miss +Amanda gazed on the scapegrace John with more affection than she had +ever known before. But in the midst of her joy she could not help +wondering who it was that that Rebecca Hendricks had finally succeeded +in getting. That she got somebody Miss Amanda had not the slightest +doubt. + +"'Mildred,' said the old gentleman, 'just listen to me. This is a most +important thing you have told me, and I have only this to say about it: +if you can't make up your mind which one of those young men you will +take when they propose, make up your mind now, this minute, not to have +either of them. If you love either one of them as you ought to love the +man who shall be your husband, you will have no difficulty in deciding. +Therefore, if you have a difficulty, you do not really love either of +them.' + +"For a few minutes the girl sat quietly looking down at the flowers +in her lap, and then she said: 'But, grandpa, suppose I do not +understand myself properly? Perhaps after a while I might come to a--' + +[Illustration: Miss Amanda listened with the most eager and overpowering +attention.] + +"'After a while,' interrupted her grandfather. 'That will not do. You +want to understand yourself before a lover proposes to you, not +afterwards.'" + +The captain sat up straight in his chair. "Now look here," he said; +but he addressed the Mistress of the House, not the story-teller. "How +does this daughter of ours come to know all these things about lovers, +and the weather-signs which indicate proposals of marriage, and all +that? Has she been going about in society, making investigations into +the rudiments of matrimony, during my last cruise? And would you +mind telling me if any young men have been giving her lessons in +love-affairs? John Gayther, have you seen any stray lovers prowling +about your garden of late?" + +The gardener smiled, and said he had seen no such persons. But he said +nothing about a very true friend of the Daughter of the House, who lived +in a small house in the garden, and who would have been very well +pleased to break the head of any stray lover who should wander into his +precincts. + +"You don't know girls, my dear," said the Mistress of the House, "and +you don't know what comes to them naturally, and how much they have to +learn. So please let the story go on." + +"'Of course,' said the old gentleman, 'I know who they are. Considering +how often they have been here of late, I could not well make a mistake +about that; and although I am not in favor of anything of the sort, +and feel very much inclined to put up a sign, "No lovering on these +premises," still, I am a reasonable person' ('You must have changed +very much if you are, you dear boy!' thought Miss Amanda), 'and know +what is due to young people, and I am obliged to admit that these young +men are good enough as young men go. But the making a choice! That is +what I object to. I would advise you, my dear, not to think anything +more about it until the time shall come when you feel there is no need +of making a choice because the thing has settled itself.' + +"'But, grandpa,' she said, 'what am I to say if they ask me? I am bound +to say something.' + +"The old gentleman did not reply, but began switching at some invisible +dandelions. 'What you tell me,' he said presently, 'reminds me of my +Aunt Amanda. She was a fine woman, and she had two lovers.' ('You little +round-faced scamp!' thought Miss Amanda. 'Are you going to tell that +child all my love-affairs? And what do you know about them, anyway? I +never confided in you. You were nothing but a boy, although you were a +very inquisitive one, always wanting to know things, and what you have +found out is beyond me to imagine.') + +"'Your Aunt Amanda,' said Mildred. 'That's the one in the oval frame in +the parlor. She must have been very pretty.' + +"'Indeed she was,' said the old gentleman. 'That portrait was painted +when she was quite a young girl; but she was pretty until the day of her +death. I used to be very fond of her, and thought her the most beautiful +being on earth. She always dressed well, and wore curls. Even when she +was scolding me I used to sit and look at her, and think that if such a +lady, a little bit younger perhaps, but not much, were shut up in a +castle with a window to it, I would be delighted to be a knight in +armor, and to fight with retainers at the door of that castle until I +got her out and rode away with her sitting on the crupper of my saddle, +the horse being always, as I well remember, a gray one dappled with dark +spots, with powerful haunches and a black tail.' ('You dear boy,' +murmured Miss Amanda, 'if I had known that I could not have scolded!') +'Well, as I said before, she had two lovers. One was a handsome young +fellow named Garrett Bridges.' + +"'It seems to me I have heard that name,' said Mildred. + +"'Very likely, very likely,' said her grandfather. 'It has been +mentioned a great many times in our family. Garrett had been intended for +the army, but he did not get through West Point, and at the time he was +making love to my Aunt Amanda his only business was that of expecting an +inheritance. But he was so brave and gay and self-confident, and was so +handsome and dashing, that everybody said he would be sure to get along, +no matter what line of life he undertook.' ('I wonder,' thought Miss +Amanda, 'what he did do, after all. I hope I shall hear that.') 'Her +other lover,' said the old gentleman, 'was Randolph Castine, a very +different sort of young man.' ('You unmitigated little story-teller!' +ejaculated Miss Amanda. 'He never made love to me for one minute in his +whole life. I wish I could speak to John--oh, I wish I could speak to +John!') 'So, then,' continued the old gentleman, 'here were the two young +men, both loving my Aunt Amanda; and here was I, intensely jealous of +them both.' + +"'Oh, grandfather,' laughed Mildred, 'how could you be that?' + +"'Easily enough,' said he. 'I was very impressionable and of a very +affectionate turn of mind.' ('You had very queer ways of showing it, you +young scamp!' said Miss Amanda.) 'And I remember, when I was about ten +years old, I once asked my mother if it were wicked to marry aunts; and +when she told me it would not do, I said I was very sorry, for I would +like to marry Aunt Amanda. I liked her better than anybody else except +my mother, and I was sure there was no other person who would take more +from me, and slap back less, than Aunt Amanda.' ('I remember that very +well,' thought the happy consciousness; 'and when your mother told me +about it, how we both laughed!') + +"'Well, the better I liked my Aunt Amanda, the less I liked anybody who +made love to her; and one night, as I was sitting on the edge of my +bed,--it must have been nearly eleven o'clock,--I vowed a vow, which I +vowed I would never break, that no presumptuous interloper, especially +Garrett Bridges, should ever marry my Aunt Amanda. As to Randolph +Castine or any other suitor, I did not think them really worthy of +consideration. Garrett Bridges was the dangerous man. He was at our +house nearly every day, and, apart from his special obnoxiousness as a +suitor to my Aunt Amanda, I hated him on my own account, for he treated +me as if I were nothing but a boy.' ('And why shouldn't he?' murmured +Miss Amanda. 'You were nearly grown up at that time, but you really +behaved more like a boy than a man, and that was one reason I was so +fond of you.') + +"'I had a good many plans for freeing my Aunt Amanda from the clutches +of Mr. Bridges; but the best of them, and the one I finally determined +upon, pleased me very much because it was romantic and adventurous. It +seemed to me the best way to prevent Mr. Bridges from marrying my Aunt +Amanda was to make him marry some one else, and I thought I could do +this. There was a girl named Rebecca Hendricks, who lived about a mile +from our house, with whom I was very well acquainted. She was a +first-class girl in many ways.' ('I would like to know what they were!' +exclaimed Miss Amanda. 'I think she was about sixth-class, no matter how +you looked at her.') 'For one thing, she was very plucky, and ready for +any kind of fun. I knew she liked Mr. Bridges, because I had heard her +say so, and her praise of him had frequently annoyed me very much; for +I did not want a friend of mine, as she professed to be, to think +favorably in any way of such a man as Garrett Bridges. But things were +now getting serious, and I did not hesitate to sacrifice my feelings for +the sake of my Aunt Amanda. I was always ready to do that.' ('Not +always, my boy,' thought Miss Amanda; 'not always, I am afraid.') 'So I +resolved to get up a match between Rebecca and Garrett Bridges. As I +thought over the matter, it seemed to me that they were exactly suited +to each other.' ('That's queer!' thought Miss Amanda. 'I always supposed +you thought she was exactly suited to you.') 'Of course I could not say +anything to Bridges about the matter, but I went over to Rebecca, and +told her the whole plan. She laughed at me, and said it was all pure +nonsense, and that if she were going to marry at all she would a great +deal rather marry me than Mr. Bridges. But I told her seriously it was +of no use to think of me. In the first place, I was four years younger +than she was; and then, I had made up my mind never to marry, no, never, +as long as my Aunt Amanda lived. I was going to take care of her when +she grew elderly, and I wanted nobody to interfere with that purpose.' +('You dear boy!' said Miss Amanda, with a sort of choke in her +affectionate consciousness. 'That is so like you--so like you! And yet I +thought you were in love with that Rebecca.') 'Of course I did not give +up my plan because she talked in that way,' continued the old gentleman. +'I knew her; I had studied her carefully. Like most boys of my age, I +was a deep-minded student of human nature, and could see through and +through people.' + +"'Of course,' laughed Mildred. 'I have known boys just like that.' + +"'But I was about right in regard to Rebecca,' said her grandfather. 'I +kept on talking to her, and it was not long before she agreed to let me +bring Mr. Bridges to see her--they were not acquainted. I had no trouble +with him, for he was always glad to know pretty girls, and he had seen +Rebecca. There never was a piece of match-making which succeeded better +than that, and it delighted me to act as prompter of the play, while +those two were the actors, and I was also the author of the piece.' + +"'Grandpa,' said Mildred, 'don't you think all that was rather wrong?' + +"'I did not think so then,' he answered, 'and I am not sure I think so +now; for really they were very well suited to each other, and there did +seem to be danger that the man might marry my Aunt Amanda, and that, as +it seemed to me then, and seems to me now, would have been a deplorable +thing.' ('If you had known a little more, you scheming youngster,' said +Miss Amanda, 'you would have understood that there was not the least +danger of anything of the kind--that is to say, I am not _sure_ there +was any danger.') 'It was not long after these two people became +acquainted before I had additional cause for congratulating myself that +I had done a wise and prudent thing. Bridges came to see my Aunt Amanda +every afternoon, just the same as he had been in the habit of doing, and +yet he spent nearly every evening with Rebecca; and that proved to me he +was not a fit lover for my Aunt Amanda, no matter how you looked at it.' + +"'But the young girl,' said Mildred. 'Didn't you think he was also too +fickle for her?' + +"'Oh, no,' said the old gentleman; 'I was quite positive that Rebecca +could manage him when she got him. She would make him walk straight. I +knew her; she was a great girl. Every morning I went to see her to +inquire how things were coming on, and she told me one day that +Mr. Bridges had proposed to her, and that she had accepted him, and +that it was of no use to say anything about it to her father, because +he would be sure to be dead set against it. Her mother was not living, +and she kept house for her father, who was a doctor, and he had often +said he would not let her marry anybody who would not come there and +live with him; and, judging from what she had heard him say of Garrett +Bridges on one or two occasions, she did not feel encouraged to +propose this arrangement for him. + +"'So the plan they agreed upon--which, in fact, I suggested, although +Rebecca would never have admitted it--was to go off quietly and get +married. Then she could write to her father and tell him all about it, +and when his anger had cooled down they could make him a visit, and it +would depend on him what they should do next. I worked out the whole +plan of operation, which Rebecca afterwards laid before Mr. Bridges as +the result of her own ingenuity, for which he commended her very much. +They both agreed--and you may be sure I did not disagree with them--that +the sooner they were married the better. The equinoctial storms were +expected before very long, and then a wedding-trip would be unpleasant +and sloppy. So they fixed on a certain Wednesday, which suited me very +well because my father and mother would then be away from home on a +visit, and that would make it easier for me to do my part.' ('You little +schemer!' said Miss Amanda. 'Of course you suggested that Wednesday.') + +"'This place was quite in the country then, and eight miles from a +station, and there was only one train to town, at seven o'clock in the +morning. If they could get to the village where the station was at +quarter-past six, they would have time to get married before the train +came. Old Mr. Lawrence, the Methodist minister, was always up at six +o'clock, and he could easily marry them in twenty minutes, and that +would give them lots of time to catch the train. I would furnish the +conveyance to take them to the village, and would also attend to +Rebecca's baggage. Mr. Bridges could have his trunk taken to the station +without exciting suspicion. At five o'clock in the morning, I told +Rebecca, I would have a horse and buggy tied to a tree by the roadside +at a little distance from the doctor's house where the lovers were to +meet. + +"'The night before, Rebecca was to put all the clothes she wanted to +take with her in a pillow-case, which she was to carry to a woodshed +near the house. Soon after they started in the buggy I would arrive with +a spring-wagon and an empty trunk. I would then get the pillow-case, put +it into the trunk, and drive to the station by another road. + +"'Mr. Bridges approved of this plan, and thought she was very clever to +devise it. So everything was settled, and I went to the stable the day +before, and told Peter I wanted him to get up very early the next +morning, and put old Ripstaver in the buggy, and drive him over to +Dr. Hendricks's. I told him he must be there before five o'clock, and +that he was to tie the horse to a maple-tree this side of the front +yard. I said one of the doctor's family had to get to the village very +early because there were some things to be done before the train came, +and it had been agreed we should lend our buggy. Peter was not quite +pleased with the arrangement, and asked why we did not send the old +mare--we only kept two horses; but I said she was too slow, and it had +been specially arranged that the buggy, with Ripstaver, should be sent. +Peter was a great friend of mine, so he agreed to do what I asked, and +said he did not mind walking back.' ('I never would have believed,' said +Miss Amanda, 'that the boy had such a mind. If I had only known what he +was planning to do! If I had only known! But even if I had, it is so +hard to tell what is right.') + +"'My Aunt Amanda was not in the habit of meddling with anything about +the barn or stable; but that afternoon--and I never knew why--she went +to the barn, and found Peter dusting off the buggy. He told me she asked +if anybody was going to use the buggy that evening, and he replied he +was getting it ready to take over to the Hendrickses' in the morning, as +some one there wanted to go to the village before the train started for +the city. Then she asked what horse he was going to put to it, and he +told her old Ripstaver. Then she said she did not think that was a good +plan, because Ripstaver was hard to drive, and it would be a great deal +better to send the old mare. Peter agreed to this, and so it happened +that when I went to the barn the next morning, as soon as I had seen +Peter drive away in the buggy, I found the only horse in the stable was +old Ripstaver. I was mad enough, I can tell you; for if Rebecca made any +noise and woke her father he could overtake that old mare long before +she could get to the village. I never did understand how my Aunt Amanda +happened to meddle that afternoon.' + +"('Of course you couldn't,' said Miss Amanda. 'You were a fine little +manager; but when I looked out of my window that afternoon and saw a boy +carrying a trunk to the barn I was very likely to suspect something; and +when I went down to the barn myself and found Peter getting the buggy +ready to go away early the next morning, I suspected a great deal more. +I did not know what to do, for I did not want to make a scandal by +letting Peter know anything was out of the way, and all I could think of +was to have a slow horse put in the buggy instead of a fast one. I +thought that might help, anyway.') + +"'Well,' continued the old gentleman, 'there was nothing for me to do +but to take Ripstaver and the spring-wagon and go after Rebecca's +baggage. When I reached the doctor's house, and found the buggy had +gone, I got the pillow-case, put it into the trunk, and started off on a +back road which joined the turnpike a couple of miles farther on. Near +the junction of the two roads was a high hill from which I hoped I might +be able to see the buggy, and, if so, I would follow it at a safe +distance. As soon as I got to the top of this hill I did see the buggy; +but I saw more than that--I saw another buggy not far behind it. There +was a roan horse in this one which I knew to belong to the doctor. +Bridges was whipping our old mare like everything, and she was doing her +best, and galloping; but the doctor's roan was a good one, and he was +gaining on them very fast. It was a beautiful race, and I felt like +clapping and cheering the doctor, for, although he was spoiling my game, +it was a splendid thing to see him driving his roan so fast and so +steadily, never letting him break out of a regular trot, and I hated +Bridges so much I was glad to see anybody getting the better of him. + +"'It was not long before the doctor's buggy caught up with the other +one, and then they both stopped; everybody got out, and there must have +been a grand talk, but of course I could not hear any of it. The doctor +shook his fist, and I could see they were having a lively time. After a +bit they stopped talking, the doctor took Rebecca into his buggy and +drove back, and Garrett Bridges got into our buggy and went slowly +toward the station--to see about his trunk, I suppose. I did not lose +any time after that, but drove to the doctor's as fast as old Ripstaver +could travel, and I had Rebecca's pillow-case in the woodshed before the +doctor arrived. Now I never was able to imagine how the doctor found out +that Rebecca had gone. She did not know herself. She said she got out of +the house without making any more noise than a cat; and as for her +father waking up at the sound of wheels in the public road, that was +ridiculous; if he had heard them he would not have paid any attention to +them. That was one of the queer things neither of us ever found out.' + +"Miss Amanda was amused. ('Of course you didn't; it was not intended +that you should. How could you know that, being greatly troubled, I woke +up very early that morning, and when I found you were not in your room I +put on my overshoes and walked across the fields to Dr. Hendricks's. I +did not get there as soon as I hoped I would; but when I rang the +door-bell, and the doctor himself came to the door, and I told him I did +not want to see him but Rebecca, and he went to look for her and found +her gone, and I confided to him as a great secret what I was sure had +happened, it did not take him long to get his horse and buggy and go +after her. And how glad I was she had our old mare, and not Ripstaver! +But I thought all the time it was you she had run away with, and I never +knew until now that it wasn't. The doctor told me afterwards that he and +his daughter had agreed not to say anything about it, and he advised me +to do the same; but the sly old fellow never told me it was Mr. Bridges +and not you. But if I had only known who really was running away with +her, I would not have walked across those wet pasture-fields that +chilly morning--that is, I do not think I would have done it.') + +"'But one thing I did know,' said the old gentleman, 'which I often +regretted; and that was that if my Aunt Amanda had not meddled with the +horses and so spoiled my plan, Rebecca Hendricks would have married +Mr. Bridges, and several evil consequences would have been avoided.' ('I +wonder what they were?' thought Miss Amanda.) 'Well, things went on +pretty much as they had been going on, and that Garrett Bridges came +every day, just as bold as brass, to see my Aunt Amanda, who, of course, +knew nothing of his trying to run away with Rebecca. Sometimes I thought +of telling her, but that would have made a dreadful mess, and I was +bound in honor not to say a word about Rebecca. + +"'Mr. Randolph Castine sometimes came to our house, but not often, and I +began to wish he would court my Aunt Amanda and marry her. If she had to +marry, he would be a thousand times better than Garrett Bridges, and I +thought I could go to his house--which was a beautiful one, with hunting +and fishing--to see her, and perhaps make long stays in the summer-time, +which would have been utterly impossible in the case of Garrett +Bridges.' ('You would have been welcome enough in any home of mine,' +said Miss Amanda. 'But you are utterly mistaken about Mr. Castine. Alas! +he was no lover at all.') 'But although Mr. Castine was a splendid man +in every way, he was not a bold lover like Garrett Bridges, and after a +while he seemed to get tired and went off to travel. Not very long after +that Bridges went off, too. I think perhaps he had received part of the +inheritance he was expecting; but I am not sure about that. Anyway, he +went. And then my Aunt Amanda had no lover but me. + +"'Very soon her health began to fail, and this went on for some time, +and nothing did her any good. At last she took to her bed. It seemed to +me the weaker and thinner she got the more beautiful she became, and I +did everything I could for her, which, of course, was not any good. I +remember very well that at this time she never lectured me about +anything; but she sometimes mentioned Rebecca Hendricks, always to the +effect that she was a very strange girl, and that she could not help +thinking her husband, if she ever got one, would be a man who ought to +be pitied. I think she was afraid I might marry her; but she need not +have worried herself about that--I never had the slightest idea of any +such nonsense.' ('But I had every reason to suppose you had such an +idea,' said Miss Amanda, 'considering I thought you had tried to run +away with her.') + +"'Well,' said the old gentleman, 'there is not much more of the story. +My Aunt Amanda died, and our family was in great grief for a long time; +but none of them grieved as much as I did.' (If Miss Amanda could have +embraced her dear nephew John, she would have done so that minute.) +'Then, greatly to our surprise, Randolph Castine suddenly came home. He +had heard of my Aunt Amanda's dangerous condition, and he had hurried +back to see her and to tell her something before she died. He told my +mother, to whom he confided everything, that he had been passionately in +love with my Aunt Amanda for a long time, but that he had been so sure +she was going to marry Mr. Bridges that he had never given her any +reason to suppose he cared for her, which I said then, and I say now, +was a very poor way of managing love business. If he had spoken, +everything would have been all right, and my Aunt Amanda might have been +living now; there are plenty of people who live to be ninety. I am +positively sure, now, that she was just as much in love with him as he +was with her.' + +"Miss Amanda now suffered a great and sudden pain: she seemed to exist +only in her memory of her great love for Randolph Castine, and in this +present knowledge that he had loved her. Oh, why had she been told that +in life she had been dreaming, and that only now she had come to know +what had been real! Nothing that was said, nothing that was visible, +impressed her consciousness just then; but presently some words of her +nephew John forced themselves upon her attention. + +"'So she never knew, and he never knew, and two lives were ruined; and +she died,' the old gentleman continued, 'my mother thought, as much from +disappointed love as from anything else.' + +"'And what became of Mr. Castine?' asked Mildred, who had been listening +with tears in her eyes. + +"'He went away again,' said her grandfather, 'and stayed away a long +time; and at last he married a very pleasant lady because he thought it +was his duty, having such a fine estate, which ought to be lived on and +enjoyed.' + +"'Did he have any children?' asked Mildred. + +"'Yes; one daughter, who married a Mr. Berkeley of Queen Mary County. It +was considered a good match.' + +"'Berkeley!' exclaimed the young girl, moving so suddenly toward her +grandfather that all the sweet peas in her lap fell suddenly to the +ground. 'Berkeley! Why, Arthur Berkeley comes from Queen Mary County! Do +you mean he is the grandson of Mr. Castine?' + +"'Exactly; that is who he is,' said the old gentleman. + +"Mildred sat for a few minutes without saying a word, looking at the +ground. 'Grandpa,' she said presently, 'do you know I believe all the +time my mind was made up, and I did not know it. And after what you have +told me of Arthur Berkeley, grandpa, and your Aunt Amanda, I really +think I know myself a great deal better than I did before; and if Arthur +should ask me--that is, if he ever does--' + +"'And he surely will,' said her grandfather, 'for he came to me this +morning, like the honorable fellow he is, and obtained permission to do +so.' + +"'Grandpa!' exclaimed Mildred; and as she looked up at him there was no +beauty in any sweet-pea blossom, or in any other flower on earth, which +could equal the brightness and the beauty of her face. + +"The pain faded out of the consciousness of Miss Amanda. 'And this is +the way it ends!' she murmured. 'This is the way it ends. John's +granddaughter and his grandson.' And now it was not pain, but a quiet +happiness, which pervaded her consciousness. + +"The grandfather and granddaughter rose from the rustic bench and walked +slowly toward the house. Miss Amanda looked after them, and blessed +them; then she gazed upon the sweet peas on the ground; then she looked +once more upon the old dial, still bravely marking each sunny hour; and +then, slowly and gradually, Miss Amanda lost consciousness, without +saying to herself, 'Seven o'clock' or 'Fifty years' or any other period +of time. + +"That is the end," said the young lady. + +"And quite time!" exclaimed the Master of the House. "Madam," he said, +turning to his wife, "did you know of all this knowledge of which your +daughter seems possessed--of boy's nature, and woman's love, and the +human heart, and all the rest of it? I can't fathom her with my longest +line!" + +"You may as well give up all idea of that sort of sounding," said the +Mistress of the House. "There is no line long enough to fathom the human +heart." + +"I am thinking," said John Gayther, as he rattled the seeds in the pan, +"whether it was worth while for Amanda to become conscious for so short +a time, and just to hear a tale like that." + +"Was it worth while to learn that the man she had wanted to love her had +really loved her?" asked the Daughter of the House, eagerly. + +"It doesn't seem the sort of love to wait fifty years to hear about," +said John. "I don't like the way they have in novels of making folks +keep back things that men and women couldn't help telling." + +"Then you don't like my story, John," said the Daughter of the House, in +a disappointed tone. + +"Indeed, but I do, miss," he replied quickly. "As a story it is just +perfect; but as real doings it doesn't pan out square. But then, it is +meant for a story, and it couldn't be better or more unlike other +stories told here. Nobody could have thought that out that hadn't a deep +mind." + +The young lady looked critically at John, but she saw he really meant +what he said, and she was satisfied. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE OLD PROFESSOR + + AND IS CALLED + + MY TRANSLATOPHONE + + + + +IX + +MY TRANSLATOPHONE + + +The Professor was very old, but he was well preserved--always spoken of +as "hale and hearty." He still held his position in his college, and +still took a good part in teaching mathematics, but he had an assistant +who did the heavy work. He had been principal of the school where the +Mistress of the House received her education, and she was much attached +to him, and he always spent some part of his summer vacation at her +house. The Master of the House, of course, was not there every summer, +and so this season the Old Professor had a special treat, for there were +many things he liked to talk about in which he knew the two ladies could +take no interest. + +It rained for two days after his arrival at the house, but the third +morning was bright and clear, and the Master of the House conducted his +visitor to the favorite resort of the family--a spot the Old Professor +knew well and loved. They conversed for a while on some deep subjects, +and then they were joined by the two ladies and the Next Neighbor, and +the serious discourse changed into light talk; and John Gayther coming +up to pay his respects to the Old Professor, the Next Neighbor was +seized with an inspiration. + +"John," she said, "you must tell us a story. Sit right down and begin +'Once upon a time--' know I haven't heard a story for a long time." + +"Madam," said John, respectfully, "I always do what the ladies tell me +to do; and I am more sorry than I can say, but I have to know beforehand +when I am to tell a story, and indeed I haven't one ready." + +"Oh, you are clever and can make up as you go along, as the children +say." + +"John never tells an impromptu story," said the Mistress of the House. +"But, my dear Professor," and she turned to the old gentleman, "we are +all friends here, and I should so like you to tell us how you got your +wife. You once told it to me, and I should like to know what this +company will think of the way you won her." + +The Old Professor smiled. "I know what you think about it, and I know +what I think about it; and, as you say, we are all old friends, and I am +rather curious to know what this company will think about it. I will +tell my little story." When they were all ready, he began in a clear +voice: + +"If my Mary were living this story would never have been told; but she +has been a blessed spirit now these many years, and has doubtless long +known it, and has judged my conduct righteously. Such is my belief." +Here he made a reverent pause, and then began again: + +"In my early youth I left, for some two or three years, the beaten +track--so to speak--of mathematics; or, more properly, mechanics. For I +interested myself in inventing, with more or less success, certain +scientific machines. + +"One of the most successful of these various contrivances, and the one, +indeed, in which I was most deeply interested, was a small machine very +much resembling in appearance the tube, with a mouth-piece at one end +and an ear-piece at the other, frequently used by deaf persons, but very +different in its construction and action. In the ordinary instrument the +words spoken into the mouth-piece are carried through the tube to the +ear, and are then heard exactly as they are spoken. When I used my +instrument the person spoke into the mouth-piece exactly as if it were +an ordinary tube, but the result was very different, for the great +feature of my invention was that, no matter what language was spoken by +the person at the mouth-piece, be it Greek, Choctaw, or Chinese, the +words came to the ear in perfect English. + +"This translation was accomplished by means of certain delicate +machinery contained in the end of the mouth-piece, which was longer and +larger than that of the ordinary ear-tube, but the outward appearance of +which did not indicate that it held anything extraordinary. It would +take too long to explain this mechanism to you, and you would not be +interested; nor is it necessary to my story. + +"When, after countless experiments and disappointments, and days and +nights of hard study and hard work, I finished my little machine, which +I called a translatophone, I was naturally anxious to see how it would +work with some other person than myself at the mouth-piece. In the +course of its construction I had frequently tried the machine by putting +the ear-piece into my ear and speaking into the mouth-piece such scraps +of foreign languages as I was able to command. These experiments were +generally satisfactory, but I could not be satisfied that the machine +was a success until some one else should speak into it in some foreign +tongue of which I knew positively nothing, so that it would be +impossible for me to translate it unconsciously. + +"This was not an easy thing, and I had determined I would not explain my +invention to the public until I had assured myself that it worked +perfectly, and until I had had my property in the invention secured to +me by patent right. To go to a foreigner and ask him to speak into my +instrument, using a language he could readily assure himself I did not +speak or understand, would be the same thing as an avowal of what the +translatophone was intended to do. I thought of several plans, but none +suited me. I did not want to pretend to be deaf, and, even if I did so, +I could not explain why I wished to be spoken to in a language I did not +use myself. + +"In the midst of my cogitations and uncertainties, I received a note +from Mary Armat which, for a time, drove from my mind all thought of +translatophone and everything concerning it. + +"Miss Mary Armat and I had been friends since the days in which we went +to school together. I had always liked her above the other girls of my +acquaintance, and about three years previous to the time of this story I +had almost made up my mind that I was in love with her, and that I would +tell her so. This, however, I had not done. At that time I had become +intensely interested in some of my inventions, and, although my feelings +toward Mary Armat had not in the least changed, I did not visit her as +often as had been my custom, and when I did see her I am afraid I told +her more about mechanical combinations than she cared to hear. But so +engrossed was I that I stupidly failed to notice this, and I did not +perceive that I had been neglecting the most favorable opportunities of +declaring the state of my affections until she informed me, not in a +private interview, but in the midst of her family circle, that she had +made up her mind to become a missionary and go to India to work among +the heathen. I was greatly shocked, but I could say nothing then, and +afterwards had no opportunity to say anything. + +"I did not write to Mary, because she was a most independent and +high-spirited girl, and I knew it must be spoken words and not written +ones which would satisfy her that I had had good reasons for postponing +a declaration of love to her until she had left the country. + +"So she went to Burma. I frequently heard of her, but we did not +correspond. She had gone into her new work with great zeal. She had +learned the Burmese tongue, and had even translated a little English +book into that language. For some time she had seemed well satisfied; +but I heard through her family that she was getting tired of her Eastern +life. The rainy seasons were disagreeable to her, the dry seasons did +not agree with her; her school duties were becoming very monotonous; and +she had found out that in her heart she did not care for the heathen, +especially for heathen children. Therefore she had resigned her position +and was on her way home. The note I received from her informed me that +she had arrived in New York the day before, and that she would be very +glad if I would come to see her." + +"_She_ did a sensible thing, anyway," commented the Master of the House. + +The Daughter of the House opened her mouth to say: "I do not like her. +She had no enthusiasm, or real goodness, to give up her work so soon and +for such reasons." But she suddenly reflected that Mary had been the +speaker's wife, and she shut her mouth with a little vicious snap. + +"I went to the Armat house that evening, and I found there a very lively +girl awaiting me. Her parents and her two sisters had gone out, and we +had the parlor to ourselves. Life in Burma may not have suited Mary +Armat, but it certainly had improved her, for she was much more charming +than when I had last seen her. Moreover, she was so very friendly, and +without doubt so glad to see me, she was so bright and full of high +spirits, that it might have been supposed she had arranged matters so +that we could have the evening to ourselves, and was eminently pleased +with her success. + +"I admired her more and more every time I looked at her, and I +determined that, as soon as the proper time should come, I would make +earnest love to her, and tell her what, perhaps, I should have told her +long ago. But just now I had other matters on my mind. + +"Above all things I wanted Mary to talk into my translatophone, and to +speak in Burmese. I knew nothing whatever of that language, and if she +should speak it, and the words should come to my ears in pure English, +then no further experiment would be necessary, no doubts could possibly +exist. But until I had made this test I did not want her to know what +the instrument was intended to do; it was barely possible she might play +a trick on me and speak in English. But if the thing succeeded I would +tell her everything. We two should be the sole owners of the secret of +my great invention--an invention which would not only benefit the +English-speaking world, but which might be adapted to the language of +any nation, and which would make us rich beyond all ordinary +probabilities. + +"As soon as I had the opportunity I began to speak of the work I had +been engaged upon during Mary's absence; and when I approached the +subject I thought I saw on her face an expression which seemed to say, +'Oh, dear! are you going to begin on that tiresome business again?' But +I was not to be turned from my purpose. Such an opportunity as this was +too valuable, too important, to be slighted or set aside for anything +else. In a few minutes I might discover whether this invention of mine +was a success or a failure. I took my translatophone from my pocket, and +laid it on the table beside us. + +"'What's that?' she exclaimed. 'You don't mean to tell me you have +become hard of hearing?' + +"'Oh, no,' said I; 'my hearing is just as good as it ever was.' + +"'But that is a thing deaf people use,' she said. + +"'Well, yes,' I answered; 'it could be used by deaf people, I suppose, +although I have never tried it in that way. It is my latest and, I +think, my most important invention. It would take too long to explain +its mechanism just now--' + +"'Indeed it would,' she interrupted quickly. + +"'But what I want to do,' I continued, 'is to make a little trial of it +with you.' + +"'If you mean you want me to speak into that thing,' she said, 'I do not +want to do it. I should hate to think you are deaf and needed anything +of the sort. Please put it away; I do not even like the looks of it.' + +"But I persisted; I told her that I greatly desired that she should +speak a few sentences in Burmese into my instrument. I had a certain +reason for this which I would explain afterwards. + +"'But you do not understand Burmese,' she said in surprise. + +"'Not a word of it,' I answered. 'I do not know how it sounds when it is +spoken, nor how it looks when it is written. But there are certain tones +and chords, and all that sort of thing, in the foreign languages which +are very interesting, no matter whether you understand the language or +not.' + +"'Oh, it is a sort of musical thing, then,' she said. + +"'I will not say it is exactly that,' I replied. 'But if you will simply +speak to me in Burmese for a minute or two, that is all I ask of you, +and afterwards we can talk about its construction and object.' + +"'Oh, I do not want to talk any more about it,' said she; 'but if it +will satisfy you, I will say a few words to you in Burmese. Do you speak +into this hole?' she said as she took up the instrument. + +"I arranged the ear-piece very carefully, and covered my other ear with +my hand. Immediately she began to speak to me, and every word came to me +in clear and beautiful English! But I knew, as well as I knew that I +lived, that the words she spoke were Burmese, or belonged to some other +language which she knew I did not understand. The proof of this was in +the words themselves. + +"'I think you are perfectly horrid,' she said, 'and I am glad to have +an opportunity to tell you so, even though you do not understand me. I +cannot imagine how anybody can be so stupid as to want to talk about +horrible ear-trumpets the first time he meets a girl whom he has not +seen for years, and who used to like him so much, and who likes him +still in spite of his cruel stupidity. I wonder why you thought I wanted +to see you the minute I got home? I am awfully disappointed in you, for +I did think you would talk to me in a very different way the first time +you saw me. And now I am going to tell you something--and I would rather +cut my tongue out than say it in English, but it gives me a wicked +delight to say it in Burmese: I love you, John Howard. I have loved you +for a long time; and that is the reason I went to Burma; and now that I +have come back I am obliged to say that I love you still. If you could +invent some sort of a tube that would make you see better with your eyes +and understand better with your mind, it would be a great deal more +suitable than this horrid, snake-like thing for your ear. I do not +suppose you will ever hear me speak this way in English, but I tell you +again, John Howard, that I love you, and it makes me sick to think what +a goose you are.' + +"'Now, then,' she said, putting down the tube, 'was there anything +peculiar in the tones and chords of that bit of foreign language?' + +"Fortunately the only light in the room was behind me, and therefore +I had reason to hope that she did not observe the expression of my +countenance. Moreover, as soon as she had finished speaking she had +turned her face away from me, and was now leaning back in her chair, +her mouth tightly shut and her wide-open eyes directed on the opposite +wall. She looked like a woman who had taken a peculiar revenge, and +who, in the taking of it, had aroused her soul in its utmost recesses. + +"For some moments I did not answer her question. In fact, I could not +speak at all. My thoughts were in a mad whirl. Not only had I discovered +that my invention, the hope of my life, was an absolute success, but I +was most powerfully impressed by the conviction that now I could never +tell Mary what my invention was intended to do, for then she would know +what it had done. + +"'Yes,' I answered, speaking slowly; 'there was a sort of accord, a kind +of--' + +"I was interrupted in what would have been a very labored sentence by +the ringing of the door-bell. Mary instantly rose. It was plain she was +laboring under suppressed excitement, for there was no other reason why +she should have jumped up in that way. She looked as if she were anxious +to see some one, no matter who it was. I, too, felt relieved by the +interruption. In my state of wildly conflicting emotions any third +person would be a relief. + +"The door opened, and Miss Sarah Castle walked in. 'Oh, Mary,' she +exclaimed, 'I am so glad to find you at home! As it isn't late and the +moon is so bright, I thought I would run over to see you for a few +minutes. Oh, Mr. Howard!' + +"Sarah Castle was a young woman for whom I had no fancy. Active in mind +and body, and apparently constructed of thoroughly well-seasoned +material, she was quick to notice, eager to know, and ready at all times +to display an interest in the affairs of her friends, with which, in +most cases, said friends would willingly have dispensed. As she took a +seat she exclaimed: + +"'You don't mean to say, Mary, that you went deaf in Burma?' + +"Unfortunately I had forgotten to put my translatophone into my pocket, +and it was lying in full view on the table. Mary gave a scornful glance +toward the innocent tube. + +"'Oh, that?' she said. 'That is not mine. It belongs to Mr. Howard.' + +"The words 'Mr. Howard' grated upon my nerves. Up to this moment, except +through the translatophone, she had not addressed me by my name in any +form; and every tentative lover knows that when his lady addresses him +as though he had no name it means that she does not wish to use his +formal title and that the time has not arrived for her to call him by +his Christian name. + +"'You deaf?' cried Sarah, turning to me. 'I have never heard anything of +that. When did it come on? It must have been very recent.' + +"'Oh, he isn't deaf,' said Mary, impatiently. 'It is only one of his +inventions. But tell me something of your brothers. I have not heard a +word about them yet.' + +"But the knowledge-loving Sarah was not to be bluffed off in this way. + +"'Oh, they are all right,' said she. 'They are both in college now. But +Mr. Howard deaf! I am truly amazed. Do you have to talk to him through +this, Mary?' + +"Mary Armat was not an ill-natured girl, but, as I said before, she was +a high-spirited one, and was at the time in a state of justifiable +irritation. + +"'Oh, bother that thing!' she answered. 'I told you it is only one of +his inventions, and I wish he would put it in his pocket.' + +"'Not just yet,' said Sarah. 'I am really anxious to know about it. Why +do you use it, Mr. Howard, if you are not deaf?' + +"My face must have displayed my extreme embarrassment at this +unanswerable question, for Mary came to my relief. + +"'Oh, it is a kind of musical instrument,' she said. 'But don't let us +talk any more about it. This is the second time I have seen you, but we +have not really had a good chance to say anything to each other.' + +"I took advantage of this very strong hint, and rose. + +"'Musical!' exclaimed the irrepressible Sarah. 'Oh, Mr. Howard, please +play on it just the least little bit!' + +"Mary allowed herself an expression of extreme disgust. 'Please not +while I am present,' she said; 'I could not abide it.' + +"I now advanced to take my leave. + +"'Do not go just now,' said Sarah; 'I merely ran over for a minute to +ask Mary about the Wilmer reception; but as you are going, Mr. Howard, +you might as well see me home. It is later now.' + +"I retired to a book-table at the other end of the parlor, and it was a +good deal later when the two young ladies had finished talking about +the Wilmer reception. + +"'I do not understand it at all,' said Miss Castle, when we were on the +sidewalk. 'You are not deaf, Mr. Howard, and yet you use an ear-trumpet. +What does it mean?' + +"Of course I did not know what to say, but I had to say something, and, +moreover, that something must not be wholly inconsistent with my +explanation to Mary. + +"'Oh, it is a thing,' I answered, 'that is intended to be used in +connection with foreign languages.' Then I made a bold stroke: 'It shows +the difference in their resonant rhythms.' + +"'Well, I am sure I do not understand that,' said Miss Castle. 'But what +is the good of it? Does it make them any pleasanter to listen to?' + +"I admitted that it did. + +"'Whether you understand them or not?' she asked. + +"If this young woman had at this moment fallen down a coal-hole I cannot +truthfully say that I should have regretted it. + +"'I cannot explain that, Miss Castle,' I said, 'for it would take a long +time, and here we are at your door.' + +"'Come in and let me try it,' said Sarah. + +"'Thank you very much,' I replied, 'but I really cannot. I have an +engagement at my club. In fact, I was just going to take leave of Miss +Armat when you came in.' + +"She looked at me scrutinizingly. 'You used to call her Mary Armat +when you spoke of her,' said she, 'but I suppose her having been a +missionary makes a difference in that way. I do not believe much in club +engagements, but of course we have to recognize them. And if you cannot +come in now I wish you would call on me soon. If your invention has +anything to do with foreign languages I truly want to try it. I am +studying German now, and if it will put any resonant rhythm into that +language it will be very interesting.' + +"I made a hasty and indefinite promise, and gladly saw the front door +shut behind Miss Sarah Castle. + +"That night I did not sleep; in fact, I did not go to bed. The words +Mary Armat had spoken to me in Burmese should have completely engrossed +my every thought, but they did not. For one moment my mind was filled +with rapture by the knowledge that I was loved by this lovely girl; and +in the next I was overwhelmed by anxiety as to what should be done to +make it impossible for her to know that I knew she had spoken those +words. But whether my thoughts made me happy or distressed me, there +seemed to be but one way out of my troubles; I must be content with +Mary's love, that is, if I should be so fortunate as to secure it. There +might be doubts about this; women are fickle creatures, and Mary had +been very much provoked with me when I parted from her." + +"I see what is coming," here interrupted the Next Neighbor, "and I don't +approve of it at all!" + +"It would be hard," continued the Old Professor, after pausing for +further remarks, "to turn my back upon the golden future which my +invention would give to Mary and me; but I must win her, golden future +or not. I sat before my study fire, and planned out my future actions. +As soon as I could see Mary alone I would tell her my love, and I would +explain to her why I had not spoken when I first saw her. But in order +to do this I should have to be very careful. I would say nothing but the +truth, but I would be very guarded in telling that truth. She must not +imagine that anything she had said had made me speak. She must not +imagine that I thought she expected me to speak. + +"I would begin by asking her pardon for worrying her with my invention +when I knew she disliked problematic mechanics. Then I would tell her, +in as few words as possible, that I had expected this little instrument +to give me fame and fortune, and therefore I wanted her to know all +about it; and then, before she could ask me why I wanted her to know +this, I would tell her it was because I wished to lay that fame and +fortune at her feet. After that, in the best way my ardent feelings +should dictate, I would offer myself to her without fortune, without +fame, just the plain John Howard who loved her with all his heart. If +she accepted me, I would tell her that the invention had not worked as I +had intended it should, and therefore I should put it behind me +forever." + +"Oh, dear!" cried the Next Neighbor. "I knew it was coming!" + +"Maybe it didn't," said the Master of the House. + +"Having come to a decision," the Old Professor went on, with more +animation, "upon this most important matter, my mind grew easier and I +became happier. What was anything a black tube could do for me--what, +indeed, was anything in the world--compared to the love of that dear +girl? And so I sat and gazed into the fire, and dreamed waking dreams +of blessedness. + +"After a time, however, it came to me that I must make up my mind what I +was going to do about the translatophone. I might as well take it apart +and throw it into the fire at once, and then there would be an end to +that danger to the future of which I had been dreaming. Yes; there would +be an end to that. But there would also be an end to the great boon I +was about to bestow upon the world, a boon the value of which I had not +half understood. It truly was a wonderful thing--a most wonderful thing. +An American or an Englishman, or any one speaking English, could take +with him a translatophone and travel around the world, understanding the +language of every nation, of every people--the polished tongues of +civilization, the speech of the scholars of the Orient, and even the +jabber of the wild savages of Africa. To be sure, he could not expect to +answer those who spoke to him, but what of that? He would not wish to +speak; he would merely desire to hear. All he would have to do would be +to pretend that he was deaf and dumb, and my simple translatophone might +put him into communication with the minds of every grade and variety of +humanity. + +"Then a new thought flashed into my mind. Why only humanity? If I should +attach a wide mouth-piece to my instrument, why should I not gather in +the songs and cries of the birds? Why should I not hear in plain English +what they say to each other? Why should not all creation speak to me so +that I could understand? Why should I not know what the dog says when he +barks--what words the hen addresses to her chicks when she clucks to +them to follow? Why should I not know the secrets of what is now to us a +tongue-tied world of nature? + +[Illustration: And dreamed waking dreams of blessedness.] + +"Then I had another idea, that made me jump from my chair and walk the +floor. I might know what the monkeys say when they chatter to each +other! What discovery in all natural history could be so great as this? +The thought that these little creatures, so nearly allied to man, might +disclose to me their dispositions, their hopes, their ambitions, their +hates, their reflections upon mankind, had such a sudden and powerful +influence on me that I felt like seizing my translatophone and rushing +off to the Zooelogical Gardens. It was now daybreak. I might obtain +admission! + +"But I speedily dismissed this idea. If I should ever hear in English +what the monkeys might say to me, I must give up Mary. I should be the +slave of my discovery. It would be impossible then to destroy the +translatophone. I sat down again before the fire. 'Shall I put an end to +it now?' I said to myself. Nothing would be easier than to take its +delicate movements and smash them on the hearth. Now a prudent thought +came to me: suppose Mary should not accept me? Then, with this great +invention lost,--for I never should have the heart to make another,--I +should have nothing left in the world. No; I would be cautious, lest in +every way my future life should be overcast with disappointment. The sun +had risen, and I felt I must go out; I must have air. Before I opened +the front door, however, I said to myself, 'Remember it is all settled. +It is Mary you must have--that is, if you can get her.' + +"Of all things in this world, the mind of man is the most independent, +the most headstrong. It will work at your bidding as long as it pleases, +and then it will strike out at its own pace and go where it chooses. +During a walk of a couple of miles I thought nearly all the time of what +the monkeys might say to me if I should attach a wide mouth-piece to my +translatophone and place it against the bars of their cage. Over and +over again I stopped these thoughts and said to myself: 'But all this is +nothing to me. I must consider Mary and nothing else.' Then in a very +few minutes I was wondering if the monkeys would ask me questions--if +they have as strong a desire to know about us as we have to know about +them. From such questions how much I might learn in regard to the mental +distance between us and them! But again I put all this away from me and +began to plan anew what I should say to Mary. And then again it was not +very long before I found myself thinking how intensely interesting it +would be to know what the tree-toads say, and what the frogs talk about +when they sit calling to each other all night. It might be a little +difficult to get near enough to tree-toads and frogs, but I believed I +could manage it. + +"However, when I returned home I was thinking of Mary. + +"It was early in the afternoon, and I was trying to decide what would +be the best time to visit the Armat house. The monkeys had not ceased to +worry me dreadfully, and I had begun to think that when bees buzz around +their hives they must certainly say something interesting to each other. +Then a note was brought to me from Mary. I tore it open and read: + + "'I want you to come to see me this afternoon. If you possibly can, + come about four o'clock, and bring that speaking-tube with you. Miss + Castle has been here nearly all the morning, and some things she has + said to me have worried me very much. Please come, and do not forget + the ear-trumpet.' + +"This she signed merely with her initials. + +"Mary's note drove to the winds monkeys, bees, and the rest of the +world. What had that wretched mischief-maker, that Castle girl, been +saying to her? I did not believe that the mind of Mary Armat was +capable of originating an unfounded suspicion of me; but the mind of +Sarah Castle was capable of originating anything. She had doubtless +suspected that there must be some extraordinary reason for my desire +to have people talk to me through a tube in a language I did not +understand. She had been too impatient to wait until she could try her +German upon me, and she had gone to Mary and had filled her mind with +horrible conjectures. One thing was certain: no matter what else +happened, I must not take that translatophone to Mary. After what +Sarah had said to her there could be no doubt that she would make me +speak to her in a foreign language through the tube. It would be easy +enough: she could give me a French book and tell me to read a few +pages. No matter how badly I should pronounce the words, they would +reach her ears in pure English! + +"And then! + +"I took my translatophone from the cabinet in which I kept it. The +easiest way to destroy it was to throw it at once into the fire; but +that would fill the house with the smell of burning rubber. No; it was +only necessary to destroy the internal movements. I unscrewed the long +mouth-piece, and gently withdrew from it the little membrane-covered +cylinder, not six inches in length, which formed the soul of my +invention. I took it in my hand and gazed upon it. Through its thin, +flexible, and almost transparent outer envelope I could see, as I held +it to the light, its framework, fine as the thread-like bones of a fish, +its elastic chords, its quivering diaphragms, and all the delicate +organs of its inner life. It seemed as if I could feel the palpitations +of its heart as I breathed upon it. For how many days and months had I +been working on this subtle invention--working, and thinking, and +dreaming! Here it lay, perfect, finished, ready to tell me more than any +man ever has known--a thing almost of life, and ready to be brought to +life by the voice of man or beast or bird, or perhaps of any living +thing. Could I have the heart to destroy it? Could I have the heart to +turn my back upon the gate of the world of wonders which was just +opening to me? + +"'Yes,' said I to myself; 'I have the heart to do anything that will +prevent my losing the love of Mary Armat.' + +"Then an evil thought came to me, and tempted me: 'If you choose you can +hear the monkeys talk and have Mary too. Everything you want is in your +own hands. Don't put that little machine back into the tube. Lock it up +safely out of sight, and then go to Mary with your instrument, and you +can talk into it and she can listen, and she may talk and you may +listen. Yes, you may have your Mary--and she need never know that you +understand what the monkeys may say to you, or what she has said to +you.' + +"I am proud that I entertained this evil thought for but a very short +time. I turned upon it and stormed at it. 'No!' I exclaimed. 'I shall +never win Mary by cheating her! Whether I get her or not, I will be +worthy of her.' + +"Then there came another thought, apparently innocent and certainly +persuasive. 'Do not destroy the translatophone. Then, if things do not +turn out well between you and Mary, you will still have the monkeys.' + +"'No,' I said to myself; 'I must have Mary. I will have nothing to fall +back upon. I will allow nothing to exist that might draw me back.' + +"There was another thing I might do: I might take my translatophone to +her, and explain everything. But would there be any possibility, even if +she did not fly from me in shame and never see me again, that I could +make her believe in a love which had been so spurred on, even aroused, +as she might well imagine mine had been? No; that would never do. Apart +from anything else, it would be impossible for me to be so cruel as to +let Mary know I had understood the Burmese words she had spoken to me. + +"I looked at the clock; it was half-past three. Whatever was to be done +must be done now. I cast one more look of longing affection upon the +quivering, throbbing little creature, which to me was as much alive as +if it had been a tired bird panting in my hand; and then I gently laid +it on the hearth. I lifted my left foot and let it hang for an instant +over the hopes, the fears, the anxieties, the happy day-dreams those +early years of my life had given me, and then, with relentless cruelty, +not only to that quivering object but to myself, I brought down my foot +with all my strength! + +"There was a slight struggle for an instant, during which there came to +me quick, muffled sounds, which to my agitated brain sounded like the +moans of despair from that vast world of animal intelligence which does +not speak to man. From my own heart there came a groan. All was over! +From the mysterious inner courts of the animal kingdom no revelations +would ever come to me! The thick curtain between the intelligence of man +and the intelligence of beast and bird which I had raised for a brief +moment had now been dropped forever! I should never make another +translatophone. + +"I cast no glance upon the hearth, but put on my hat and coat and went to +Mary. As I walked there rose behind me a cloud of misty disappointment, +while before me there was nothing but dark uncertainty. What would Mary +have to say to me? And how should I explain what would seem to her to be +a cowardly evasion of her plainly expressed request? + +"When I entered the Armat parlor I found Mary alone. This encouraged me +a little. I had feared that the yearningly inquisitive Sarah might also +be there. In that case how might I hope to preserve one atom of my +secret? + +"Mary came forward with a smile, and held out her hand; I was so +astonished I could not speak. + +"'Now don't be cross,' said she. 'As I told you in my note, Sarah Castle +was here this morning, and she greatly troubled my mind about you. She +told me I was actually snappish with you when she was here last night. +She had never heard me speak to any one in such an ill-natured way. She +knew very well that I do not care for inventions and machines, but she +did not consider this any reason for my treating you in such a manner. +She said I ought to have known that your whole soul is wrapped up in the +queer things you invent, and that I should have made some allowance for +you, even if I did not care about such things myself. Now when she told +me this I knew that every word was true, and I was utterly ashamed of +myself; and as soon as she left I sent you that note because I wanted +you to let me beg your pardon--which you may consider has been done. And +now please let me see your speaking-tube. I want you to explain it to +me; I want to know how it is made, and what is its object. For I know +very well that even if your inventions are not successful they always +have very good objects. Please forgive me, and let us sit on the sofa +and have a nice talk together such as we should have had last night.' + +"My soul shouted with joy within me, and I said to myself: 'We shall +have the nice talk we should have had last night, but it shall be the +talk you wanted then, and not the one you ask for now.' + +"'Now, then,' said she, when we had seated ourselves, 'let us go to work +to make experiments with your tube. I am so glad you do not feel about +it as I thought you would.' + +"'I did not bring it,' I said. + +"'Oh, what a pity!' interrupted Mary. + +"'No,' said I; 'it is not a pity. It did not work as I expected it +would, and there is no use in talking any more about it. I placed great +hopes in it, and I had a particular reason for wanting to tell you all +about it.' Then I began and bravely told her all about it, that is, all +that justice and kindness would permit me to tell. In the conversation +which ensued, which was a very happy exchange of sentiment, it was +wonderful how that translatophone was put into the background. + +"A great deal of what Mary said in answer to my passionate avowals +she had already said to me in Burmese. But the fact that those +straightforward, honest words, fresh from a true woman's heart, and +spoken only for the satisfaction of her own frank and impetuous nature, +had come to me before in plain English she did not imagine, nor did I +ever allow her to imagine. This secret of her soul I always regarded as +something that came to me in involuntary confidence, and I always +respected that confidence." + +"Were you never sorry?" asked the Daughter of the House, when the Old +Professor ceased. + +"No," he said thoughtfully; "I have never been sorry for what I did. I +had a very happy life with my Mary--a life far happier than any +wonder-exciting invention could have given me." + +"Was it fair to the world to destroy an instrument that might have been +of great advantage to science?" ventured John Gayther, hesitatingly. + +"It is not easy," said the Old Professor, "to decide between what we owe +to the world and science, and what we owe to ourselves. You see, I +decided in favor of myself. Possibly another man would have decided in +favor of the invention." + +"Not if he were desperately in love," said the Master of the House. + +"All those fine-spun feelings were unnecessary," said the Next Neighbor. +"If you had not confused your mind with them you would have seen clearly +enough that the first idea which came into your head was the proper one +to act upon. It would have been no terrible deception if you had taken +the instrument to Mary without the little machine and talked English +with her. Later you could have told her you had the invention and you +could use it. By that time she would have forgotten that she ever had +made that Burmese speech, and would have been glad of the fame and +fortune the machine would surely have brought." + +The Old Professor looked pained. "I do not deny that some such +after-thoughts troubled my mind occasionally for some years. But who can +say anything of the 'might have been'? The instrument might have failed, +after all; or the information gained have proved not worth the hearing; +or--" + +Here there was an unlooked-for interruption. The red thrush suddenly +burst into song from the midst of the lilac-bushes, and the whole +company listened spellbound with delight while the little creature +filled the air with melody and sweetness. + +When the song ceased, the Professor remarked: "My translatophone would +have been worse than useless here. If I could have heard those words I +should have lost that delicious melody. Doubtless the words were +commonplace enough, but the melody was divine. And it was easy to +interpret the spirit of it. It was a song of joy for all that is +pleasant, and bright, and happy in this world." + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + THE NEXT NEIGHBOR + + AND IS CALLED + + THE VICE-CONSORT + + + + +X + +THE VICE-CONSORT + + +The red thrush seemed now to be part of the pleasantness of the garden. +Whether he was drawn to the lilac-bushes by the sweet memory of his +former home, or whether he was keeping a tryst with his mate of the +nesting season and was calling her to come to him, or whether his coming +was pure caprice, of course John Gayther could not know. But every day +he came; and when the sky was clear he sang his merry song; and even +when the clouds were overshadowing he could not help uttering little +trills of melody. After a time he would fly away; but he left a note of +gladness in John's heart that stayed there all day. + +The bird did not seem in the least disturbed by the talk on the terrace. +If the sound of the voices reached him at all it must have been as a low +murmur, and perhaps he liked it. The family now timed their visits to +the summer-house, when they were able to go there, by the red thrush; +and he seldom disappointed them. It so happened, however, one morning +when they were all there, that the lilacs gave forth no sound. They +waited for the accustomed music, and a hush fell upon them. They were +silent for some time, and then the Old Professor spoke: + +"I see John Gayther below the terrace. Can't we have a story, if we +cannot have a song?" + +John was called up at once, and the Next Neighbor accosted him gayly: +"If you had known that I am going to tell a story you would have walked +faster." + +John answered her with a pleasant smile. He liked the Next Neighbor. He +liked the kind of mind she had, for it was thoroughly imbued with an +anxious desire to do her duty in this world in the manner in which that +duty showed itself to her. He liked her because she was fond of the +Daughter of the House. He liked her because she considered her husband +to be the handsomest, best, and cleverest man in the world. Perhaps John +would have liked this trait best of all if he had not clearly seen that +she held in reserve an opinion that this husband would move on a still +higher plane if he would place more value on her opinions and +statements. + +"This is the first time you have favored us," he said courteously. + +"Well," she said, "I knew the time would come when I would be called +upon, and I could tell many a story about things that have happened to +me. I am not exactly the heroine of this tale, but I am intimately +concerned in its happenings, and shall tell it in my own way. + +"Before I was married I used to feel that all we have to do in this +world is to grow up like grass or clover-blossoms, and to perform our +parts by being just as green or as sweet-smelling as our natures allow. +But I do not think that way now. Along comes a cow, and our careers are +ended. Of course we cannot get out of the way of our fate any more than +grass can get out of the way of a cow; but it often happens that we can +accommodate ourselves to our misfortunes. We can be content to being +nibbled close; we can spring up again from the roots; or we can +patiently wait until we blossom again the next summer. + +"It was about a year after I was married that I began to think about +such things. We were spending a fortnight at the country house of one of +my old friends, Mrs. Cheston; and although Bernard, my husband, was away +most of the time, fishing with Mr. Cheston, we were enjoying ourselves +very much. There was a village not far away where there were some very +nice people, so that we had a good deal of pleasant social life, and it +was not long before I became quite well acquainted with some of the +village families. + +"One day Mrs. Cheston gave me a luncheon, to which she invited a good +many of the village ladies; and, after they were all gone, we two sat on +the piazza and talked about them. Two or three of our guests I had not +met before, and in the course of our talk Emily mentioned the name of +Margaret Temple. + +"'Temple?' said I. 'Which one was that? I do not recall her.' + +"'You were talking to her some time,' she replied. 'I think she was +telling you about the mountains.' + +"'Oh, yes,' said I; 'she was pointing out those passes through which +people go into the next county. She sat at the other end of the table, +didn't she? She was dressed in black.' + +"'Oh, no,' said Emily, 'she was not dressed in black. She never wears +black. I think she wore a brown dress with some sort of light trimming.' + +"'Oh, well,' said I, 'I did not notice her dress, and when I do not +notice people's clothes I nearly always think they dress in black. Is +she nice?' + +"'She is very nice indeed,' said Emily; 'everybody thinks that.' + +"'I wish I had seen more of her,' said I. + +"Emily did not answer this remark, but a smile came on her face which +presently grew into a little laugh. I looked at her in surprise. + +"'What is there funny about Miss Temple?' I asked. + +"'Really there is nothing funny about her,' she replied, 'but I often +laugh to myself when I think of her.' + +"I suddenly became very much interested in Miss Temple. 'Tell me why you +do that,' I said. 'I always like to know why people laugh at other +people.' + +"Emily now became very sober. 'You must not think,' she said, 'that +there is anything ridiculous about Margaret Temple. There is not a finer +woman to be found anywhere, and I do not believe there is anybody who +laughs at her except myself. You know I am very apt to see the funny +side of things.' + +"'And so am I!' I exclaimed. 'Do tell me about Miss Temple. It is so +seldom there is anything amusing about a really nice person.' + +"Emily was silent for a moment, and then she said: 'Well, I do not know +that there is any real harm in telling you what makes me laugh. A good +many people know all about it; but I would not, for the world, have +Margaret Temple find out that I told you.' + +"I assured her with great earnestness that if she would tell me, I would +never breathe it to any living soul. + +"'Very well,' said Emily; 'I will trust you. As I said, it really isn't +funny, but it is just this. It is a positive fact that five married +ladies (I am certain of this number, and it may be more) have gone to +Margaret Temple, during the past few years, and each one has asked her +to become her husband's second wife in case she should die.' + +"I did not laugh; I exclaimed in amazement: 'Why did they all ask her? I +did not notice anything particularly attractive about her.' + +"'I think that is the point,' said Emily. 'I do not think a woman is +likely to want her husband to take an attractive woman for his second +wife. If she had the chance to choose her successor, she would like her +husband to have a really nice person, good in every way, but not one +with whom he would be likely to fall violently in love. Don't you see +the point of that?' + +"I replied that it was easy enough to see the point, but that there was +another one. 'You must remember,' said I, 'that husbands are generally +very particular; if one has had a young and handsome wife he would not +be likely to be satisfied with anything less.' + +"Emily shook her head. 'I am older than you, Rosa, and have had more +opportunities of noticing widowers. There are a great many things for +them to think about when they marry a second time: their children, their +positions, and all that. I believe that if a man and his wife discussed +it, which they would not be likely to do, they would be very apt to be +of the same mind in regard to the sort of person who ought to come in as +number two. For my part, I do not wonder at all that so many women have +cast their eyes on Margaret Temple as a person they would like to have +take their places when they are gone. For one thing, you know they would +not be jealous of her; this is very important. Then, they would be as +certain as anything can be certain in this world that their children, if +they had any, as well as their husbands, would be in most excellent +hands. Often, when I have been thinking about her, I have called +Margaret Temple the Vice-consort; but I have never told any one this. +Please remember.' + +"So far I had not seen a thing to laugh at, but I was deeply interested. +'How came all this to be known?' I asked. 'Has Miss Temple gone about +telling people?' + +"'Oh, no, indeed; she is not that sort of person. A good many of the +village ladies know it, and I think they always have heard it from those +prudent ladies who were providing for their husbands' futures. People +talk about it, of course, but they are very careful that nothing they +say shall reach Margaret Temple's ears.' + +"'Tell me about some of the people,' I said, 'who want to secure Miss +Temple as a successor. Do they all feel as though they are likely to +die?' + +"'Not all of them,' answered Emily. 'There is Mrs. Hendrickson, who was +obliged to go to Arizona on account of her father's property. He was +very rich, and died not long ago. Her husband has to stay at home to +attend to his business, and she could not take her little baby; and +although she is just as healthy as anybody, she knew all the dangers of +railroad travelling, and all sorts of things in that far-away place; +and, before she packed her trunk, she went to Margaret Temple and asked +her to promise that if she died out there, she, Margaret, would marry +Mr. Hendrickson. This I know for certain, for Mrs. Hendrickson told me +herself.' + +"'Did Miss Temple promise?' + +"'That I did not hear,' replied Emily. 'Mrs. Hendrickson was in a great +hurry, and perhaps she did not intend to tell me, anyway. But I do not +believe Margaret absolutely refused; at least, it would not have been +prudent for her to do so. The Hendricksons are rich, and he is a fine +man. There would be nothing in the way of such a match.' + +"'Except the return of the wife,' I remarked. + +"Emily smiled. 'And then there was poor Mrs. Windham,' she continued. +'Everybody knew she asked Margaret. She left a son about eight years old +who is very delicate. The poor woman has not been dead long enough for +anything to come of that, but I do not believe anything ever will. There +are people who say that Mr. Windham drinks; but I have seen no signs of +it. Then there is another one--and no matter what you may hear people +say about these things, you must never mention that I told you this. +Mrs. Barnes, the rector's wife, has spoken to Margaret on the subject. +She looks very well, so far as I can judge; but there is consumption in +her family. She is almost bigoted in regard to the duties of a rector's +wife. She tries just as hard as she can to fill the position properly +herself, and she knows Mr. Barnes would never be satisfied with any one +who did not agree with him as she does about the responsibilities of a +rector's wife.' + +"'Does Margaret Temple agree with him?' I asked. + +"'I do not know, for I never talked with her on the subject,' replied +Emily, 'but she is very apt to think what is right. Besides, it is +believed that Mrs. Barnes has not only spoken to Margaret, but to +the rector himself; and if he had not thought the plan a good one, +Mrs. Barnes would have dropped it; and, from things I have heard her +say, I know she has not dropped it.' + +"Emily looked as though she were about to rise, and I quickly exclaimed: +'But that is only three. Who are the others?' + +"'One of them,' said she, 'is Mrs. Clinton. There is nothing the matter +with her physically, but she is very rich, and is prudent and careful +about everything that belongs to her, while her husband is not a +business man at all and never has anything to do with money matters of +importance. There are three children, and she has reason to feel anxious +about them should they and their property be left in the charge of +Mr. Clinton, or to the tender mercies of some woman who would marry him +for the sake of his wealth. You can see for yourself that it is no +wonder she casts her eyes upon Margaret. I believe Mrs. Clinton could +die happy if she could see her husband and Margaret Temple promise +themselves to each other at her bedside.' + +"'That seems to me to be horrid,' said I; 'but of course it would be +extremely sensible. And the other one?' + +"'Oh, that matter does not amount to much,' said Emily. 'Old +Mrs. Gloucester lives at the other end of the village, and she does not +visit much, so you have not seen her. Her husband is old enough, dear +knows, but not quite so old as she is. She is very much afraid that she +will die and leave him with nobody to take care of him, for they have no +children. They are very well off, and I dare say she thinks it would be +a good thing for Margaret as well as for the old gentleman.' + +"'That is shameful,' said I; 'it would be the same thing as engaging a +trained nurse.' + +"Emily laughed. 'I never heard how Margaret received this remarkable +proposition,' she said, 'but I hope she was angry.' + +"'But, at any rate, it could never come to anything,' said I. + +"'Of course not,' answered Mrs. Cheston. + +"It is not surprising that after this conversation I took a great +interest in Margaret Temple; and when she called the next morning I had +a long and undisturbed talk with her, Mrs. Cheston being out. I am very +fond of analyzing human character, and I often do it while I am riding +in the street-cars; and it was not long before I had made up my mind as +to what sort of woman Margaret Temple was. I set her down as what may be +called a balanced person. In fact, I thought at the time she was a +little too well balanced; if some of her characteristics had been a +little more pronounced I think she would have been more interesting. But +I liked her very much, and I remember I was almost as well pleased when +she was talking to me as when she was listening, and I am sure there +are very few persons, men or women, of whom I can say this." + +Here a smile came upon the faces of the company, but they were too +polite to make any comment on what had called forth the smile. The +Master of the House asked permission to light a cigar, and the Old +Professor, who never smoked, remarked: "There is deep philosophy in all +this." + +"I don't know about the philosophy," said the Next Neighbor, "but it is +absolute truth. Well, after a time I began to wish that Miss Temple +lived near our home, because she would be such an admirable person for a +friend and neighbor. Then, suddenly, without any warning, there flashed +through me the strangest feeling I ever had in my life. I must have +turned pale, for Miss Temple asked me if I did not feel ill. I soon +recovered from the effects of this strange feeling, and went on talking; +but I was very glad when Mrs. Cheston came home, and took the +conversation out of my hands. + +"For two or three days after this my mind was very much troubled, and +Bernard thought that the air of that part of the country did not agree +with me, and that we ought to go to the sea-shore. But this I positively +refused to consider. There could be no sea-shore for me until a good +many things had been settled. It was at this time that I first began to +think that we cannot grow up fresh and green and blossom undisturbed, +and that we must consider untimely cows coming along. + +"To make the state of my mind clearly understood, I must say that there +is an hereditary disease in my family. I had never thought anything +about it, for there had been no reason why I should; but now I did +think about it, and there did seem to be reason. My grandfather had had +this disease, and had died of it. To be sure, he was very old; but that +did not matter: he died of it, all the same. It never troubled my +father, but this made no difference, so far as I was concerned, for I +have always heard that hereditary diseases are apt to skip a generation, +and if this one had skipped, there was nobody for it to skip to but me; +for I have no brothers or sisters. + +"The more I thought on this subject, the more troubled my mind became, +and at last I believed it to be my duty to speak to Bernard, although I +did not tell him all my thoughts; for I had had a good many that were +not necessarily connected with hereditary diseases. I was positively +amazed at the way my husband received what I told him. I had expected +that perhaps he might pooh-pooh the whole thing, but he did nothing of +the kind. He became very serious, and talked to me in the most earnest +way. + +"'Now, Rosa,' said he, 'I am glad you told me about this, and I want to +impress it upon your mind that you must be very careful. In the first +place, you must totally give up hot spirits and water. You must not +drink more than two glasses of wine, or three at the utmost, at any of +your meals. When you get up in the morning you must totally abstain from +drinking those mixtures that are taken by some people to give appetite +for breakfast. At night you must try to do without any sort of punch or +toddy to make you sleep. If you will take this advice, and restrict +yourself to water and milk, and not over-rich food, I think you may +reasonably expect to live longer than your grandfather did, although I +cannot imagine why any one should want to live that long.' + +"Of course I was angry at all this, for I saw then that he was making +fun of me; and I said no more to him, for he was not in the right frame +of mind to listen to me. But I did not stop thinking. + +"I now became very intimate with Miss Temple. I began to like her very +much, and I think she liked me. I continued to study her, and I became +convinced that she was a woman to whom a very fastidious man might be +attracted--I do not mean that he would fall in love with her, but that +he would be perfectly satisfied with her. In fact, I summed up her +character by assuring myself that in every way she was perfectly +satisfactory. I have known other women who were more charming, but they +all had faults; and I do not see how any one could have found fault with +Miss Temple. + +"One day we had taken a long walk, and were on our way home when I began +to talk to her about my own affairs. I thought I knew her so well in a +general way that the time had come for me to find out some things more +definitely. I began in an offhand but cautious manner to talk about +Bernard. I alluded to his love of outdoor sports, and mentioned that I +thought it my duty frequently to speak to him in regard to the terrible +consequences which might follow a false step when he was out fishing, +and that I thought it necessary to repeat this advice very often, for it +was my opinion he paid very little attention to it. I also made several +other allusions to his indisposition to take care of himself, and +remarked how very necessary it was for me to look after his health. I +mentioned his great carelessness in regard to flannel, and told her that +it was often quite late in the autumn before he would make any change in +his clothing. + +"Then I spoke of his domestic habits; and, as I saw Miss Temple seemed +much interested, I talked a good deal about them. He was the most loving +husband in the world, I said, and was always anxious to know what he +could do for me more than he was already doing; but when we were in the +city he did like to go out in the evenings, and I thought he went to his +club too often. Of course, I said, I did not say anything to him about +it, for I would not want him to think that I desired him to deny himself +the company of other gentlemen; but the habit of club attendance was one +that might grow on a man, especially a young one, and there were a good +many other things that might result from it, such as excessive smoking. +So I had thought it well to offer him additional inducements for +spending his evenings at home, and I had begun a regular system of +reading aloud. It had proved very beneficial to both of us, for I chose +good, standard books; and although he sometimes went to sleep, that was +to be expected, for Bernard was a hard-working man. As for myself, I +liked this reading aloud very much, although at first it was rather +tiresome, as I had never been used to it. Then I asked her if she liked +reading aloud--it is such a good way of giving pleasure to others at the +same time that you are pleasing yourself. She smiled, and said she was +very fond of reading aloud. + +"Then I changed the subject to churches and preachers, for I did not +want her to think I was saying too much about my husband, and asked +her who was the best preacher in the village. When she said it was +Mr. Barnes, I asked her if she went to his church. She answered that she +did, and then I told her that I was also an Episcopalian, but that +Bernard's parents were Methodists. I did not think, however, that this +would make much difference, for when he began to go regularly to church, +I was sure he would rather go with me than to travel off somewhere by +himself. + +"I did not suppose that Miss Temple would care so much about what I was +saying, but she did seem to care, and listened attentively to every +word. + +"'You must not think I am talking too much about my family affairs,' I +remarked, 'but doesn't it strike you that a really good wife ought to +try just as hard as she can to be on good terms with her husband's +family, no matter how queer they may be? I mean the women in it; for +they are more likely to be queer than the men. For if she does not do +this,' I continued, 'the worst of the trouble, if there is any, will +come on him. He will have to take sides either with his wife or his +sisters,--and mother too, if he happens to have one,--and that would be +sure to make him unhappy if he is a good-hearted man, such as Bernard +is.' + +"At this Miss Temple burst out laughing, and it was the first time I +had ever heard her laugh so heartily. As soon as she could speak she +exclaimed: 'Are you going to ask me to marry your husband if you should +happen to die?' + +"I must have turned as red as the most scarlet poppy, for I felt my face +burn. I hesitated a little, but I was obliged to tell the truth, and so +I stammered out that I had been thinking of something of the kind. + +"'Oh, please don't look so troubled,' said she. 'Several persons have +spoken to me on the same subject; but I never should have dreamed that +such an idea would come into your head. I think it is the funniest thing +in the world!' And then she laughed again. + +"I was greatly embarrassed, and all I could say was that I hoped I had +not offended her. + +"'Oh, not in the least,' she said. 'I am getting used to this sort of +thing, and I can bear it.' + +"This remark helped me very much, for I resented it. 'I do not see what +there is to bear,' I said. 'Such a man as Bernard--and then I have +special reasons--' + +"'Oh, yes,' she interrupted quickly; 'each one has a special reason. But +there is one general reason that is common to all. Now tell me, my +dear,'--and as she spoke she took both my hands and looked steadily into +my face,--'were you not about to ask me to marry your husband, in case +of your death, because you could think of it without being jealous of +me, and because you are afraid he might marry some one of whom you would +probably be jealous if you knew of it?' + +"She looked at me in such a kind, strong way that I was obliged to +confess that this was my reason for speaking to her about Bernard. 'I +cannot exactly explain,' I added, and my face burned again, 'why I +should think about you in this way; but I hope you will not imagine--' + +"'Oh, I shall not imagine anything that will be disagreeable to you,' +she said; and she looked just as good-humored as possible." + +"Does that lady live in any place where my wife can get at her?" asked +the Master of the House, as the Next Neighbor paused to take breath. + +"I have not yet developed a disease," said the Mistress of the House. + +"Well, when you do, please find that woman. She is a very good sort." + +"I shall have an opinion on that subject, papa," said the Daughter of +the House. + +"You little minx!" he replied. "I shall see that you are provided for +before that." + +"It is not well to joke about so serious a matter," said the Next +Neighbor, "as you will see when I finish my story. + +"For a little while Miss Temple walked on in silence, and I tried hard +to think of what would be proper for me to say next, when suddenly she +stopped. + +"'We are not far from the house now,' she said, 'and before we get there +I want to set your mind at rest by telling you that if you should die +before your husband, and if nothing should happen at any time or in any +way to interfere with such a plan, I will marry your Bernard and take +good care of him. I have never made such a positive promise to any one, +but I do not mind making it to you. I am sure I need not ask you to say +nothing about this compact to your husband.' + +"I was stunned, but I managed to stammer: 'Oh, no, indeed!' + +"Fortunately for me, Miss Temple did not stay to supper. I do not think +I could have borne to see her and Bernard together. It was bad enough +as it was. I felt greatly humiliated; I could not understand how I could +have done such a thing. It was worse than selling a birthright--it was +giving away the dearest thing on earth. I trembled from head to foot +when Bernard came home from fishing. I do not believe I ever before +greeted him so affectionately. My emotion troubled him, and he asked me +if I were ill, and if I had been lonely and bored while he was away. He +was just as good as good could be, and began to talk again about going +to the sea-shore. I did not object this time, for I could not know what +would be best to do. + +"In the evening, after every one else had gone indoors, I begged him to +sit longer on the piazza, and to smoke another cigar. He was quite +surprised, because, as he said, I had never asked him to do such a thing +before, but had rather discouraged his smoking. But I declared I wanted +to sit with him in the moonlight all by ourselves. And so we did until +his cigar was finished. + +"For the first hour of that night I did not sleep a wink, my mind was so +troubled. I felt as though I were not really Bernard's wife, but some +sort of a guardian angel who was watching over him to see that somebody +else made him happy. After I had thus been in the depths of grief for a +long while, I became angry. + +"'She shall never have him!' I said to myself. 'I will make it the +object of my life to live longer than he does. My grandfather lived to +be much older than ordinary men, and why should not I have as long a +life? Perhaps it was the things he ate and drank, and his jovial +disposition, that gave him such longevity. If I were sure of this I +would be willing to take hot drinks at night, and wine at dinner. No; +Bernard must not be left behind.' It was while making up my mind very +firmly about this that I fell asleep. + +"The next morning I was possessed with an overwhelming desire to go to +see Miss Temple. Why I should do so I could not tell myself. I certainly +did not want to see her; I did not wish to speak to her; I did not want +her to say anything to me: but I felt that I must go; and I went. She +received me very pleasantly, and did not say one word about our +conversation of the day before. There were a good many things I should +have liked to say, but I did not know how, unless she gave me the +opportunity. But she did not, and so it happened that we talked only +about something she was sewing--I do not know whether it was a +shirt-waist or an army blanket. In fact, I did not hear one word she +said about her stupid work, whatever it was, I was so busy re-studying +her face, her character, and everything about her. I now found she was +much more than satisfactory--she was really good-looking. Her eyes were +not very large, but they were soft and dark. Her voice was clear and +sweet. I had noticed this before, but, until now, I had not thought of +it as an objection. There were a good many other things that might be +very effective to a man, especially to one with half-healed sorrows. I +acknowledged to myself that I had been mistaken in her, and I did not +doubt she had deceived a good many other people in that neighborhood. + +"When I rose to leave, she stood for a moment, looking at me as though +she expected me to say something on the subject which was certainly +interesting to her as well as to me. But now I did not want to talk, and +I gave her no chance to say anything. I walked rapidly home, feeling as +jealous of Margaret Temple as any woman could feel of another. + +"I was glad that day that Bernard liked to go fishing, for my mind was +in such a condition that I did not think of anything that might happen +to him--at least, anything but just one thing, and that was awful. Emily +Cheston supposed I had a headache, and I let her think so, for it gave +me more time to myself. I looked at the thing that threatened to crush +all my happiness, on every possible side. Early in the morning a ray of +relief had come to my troubled mind, and this was that I did not believe +he would have her, anyway. But I had seen her since, and no such ray +comforted me now. + +"I knew, as I had not known before, what a power she might have over a +man. Widowers, I thought, are generally ready enough to marry again; +but, no matter what they think about it, they mostly wait a good while, +for the sake of appearances. But this would be different. When a man +knows that his wife had selected some one as her successor--and he would +be sure to know this, the woman would see to that--he would not feel it +necessary to wait. He would be carrying out his dead wife's wishes, and +of course in this there should be no delay. Oh, horrible! When I thought +of myself as Bernard's dead wife, and that woman living, I actually +kicked the stool my feet were resting on. I vowed in my mind the thing +should never be. I felt better after I had made this vow, although I had +not thought of any way by which I could carry it out. Certainly I was +not going to say anything to Bernard about it, one way or another." + +Here the Next Neighbor paused again. And at that moment the red thrush +gave a little low trill, as much as to say: "Listen to me now." Then he +twittered and chirped in a tentative way as if he had not made up his +mind about singing, and the party on the terrace felt like clapping to +encourage him. + +"I wonder if he knows he has an audience," said the Daughter of the +House, in a very low tone. + +"He knows it is impolite to interrupt the story," said her father. "No; +there he goes!" + +And, sure enough, the bird, having decided that on the whole it would +help matters in whatever direction he wished them to be helped, sang +out, clear and loud, what seemed to his audience the most delightful +song he had yet given them. + +When he had finished, the Next Neighbor said: "That was so full of soul +I hate to go on with my very material story." + +"It strikes me," said the Old Professor, "that there is a good deal of +soul in your story." + +"Thank you," said the Next Neighbor, as she again took up the thread of +her narrative. + +"That evening, prompted by a sudden impulse, I went up to Bernard, and, +looking into his face, I declared that I would never leave him. + +"'What!' he exclaimed. 'Has any one been asking you to leave me?' + +"'Of course not,' said I, a little irritated--he has such queer ways of +taking what I say. 'I mean I am not going to die before you do. I am not +going to leave you in this world to take care of yourself.' + +"He looked at me as though he did not understand me, and I do not +suppose he did, although he only said: 'I am delighted to hear that, my +dear girl. But how are you going to manage it? How about that hereditary +disease you were talking of the other day?' + +"'I have nothing to say about that,' I answered; 'but if I live as long +as my grandfather did, I do not believe that your being a little older +than I am would--I mean that you would not be left alone. Don't you +understand?' + +"Bernard did not laugh. 'You are the dearest little woman in the world,' +he said, 'and I believe you would do anything to make me happy--you +would even be willing to survive me, so that I should never lose you. +But don't let us talk any more about such doleful things. We are both +going to live to be a great deal older than your grandfather. Now I will +tell you something pleasant: I had a letter this morning, just as I was +starting out. I put it in my pocket, and did not have time to open it +until we were eating our lunch. It is from my brother George, who is +going to England next month, you know; and as he wants to see something +of us before he starts, he intends to spend a few days in the village, +so that he can be with us. He is coming to-morrow.' + +"A ray of hope shot into my heart so bright that I could almost feel it +burn. + +"'Well,' said Bernard, 'what have you to say to this? Aren't you glad +that George is coming?' + +"'Glad!' I replied. 'I am more than delighted.' + +"Bernard looked as though he did not understand this extraordinary +ecstasy; but as he was used to not understanding me, I do not suppose +he thought it worth while to bother himself about it. + +"George was a fine young fellow, and, next to Bernard, I thought he was +the best man in the world. It will be remembered that I had no brother, +and George was always as kind and brotherly as he could be. I was fond +of him even before I was married; in fact, I knew him quite well before +I became acquainted with Bernard; and I was always glad to see him. But +I had never been so delighted to think he was coming as I was then. My +face must have shown this, for Bernard laughingly said: + +"'You must be awfully glad to see George.' + +"'I am glad,' I answered; and as I spoke I thought that if he knew +everything he would understand why my eyes glistened, as I am sure they +did. + +"The reason of my great joy was that a plan had suddenly come into my +mind. George had spoken to me several times about marrying, and he had +told me just what kind of a wife he wanted; and now, as I remembered +what he had said on the subject, it seemed to me he had been describing +Margaret Temple. He wanted a wife who was good-looking but not a belle, +and she must be sensible and practical, a good housekeeper, and a +charming hostess. Besides, she must be intellectual, and fond of books, +and appreciate art, and all that. Moreover, he had said he would like +her to be just about a year older than himself, because he thought that +was a good proportion in a young couple. It was apt to make the man look +up to his wife a little, which might not be the case if he were the +elder. I remembered this, because when he told me I wished very much +that I were a year older than Bernard. + +"Now, as I said before, all this seemed as though he had been talking of +Miss Temple; and I, knowing her so well, could see other points than +those he mentioned in which she would suit him as no other woman could. +If George would fall in love with Miss Temple,--and there was no earthly +reason why he should not, for Bernard told me he was going to make him +stay a week,--then everything would be all right; all my anxieties, my +forebodings, and my jealousies would be gone, and I should be as happy +as I was before I met that dear girl, Miss Temple. + +"This was not all idle fancy. My plan was founded on good, practical +ideas. If George married Margaret everything would be settled in an +absolutely perfect way. If I should die Bernard would not need to marry +anybody; in fact, I did not believe that in this case he would want to. +He would go to live with George and Margaret; their home would be his +home, and he would always have both of them to take care of him and to +make him happy in every possible way in which anybody could make him +happy. In my mind's eye I could see him in the best room in the house, +with all sorts of comforts and luxuries about him--our present comforts +and luxuries would make a great show gathered together in one room; and +then I saw Margaret and George standing at the open door, asking if +there were anything he would like, and what they could do for him. As +this mental picture came before me my eyes involuntarily went around +that room to see if there were a picture of me on the wall; and there it +was, and no portrait of any other woman anywhere about. + +"In a flash the whole thing became so horrible to me that I threw myself +on the bed and began to cry convulsively. Bernard heard me, and came +up-stairs, and I was obliged to tell him I had a sudden pain. He does +not like sudden pains, and sat down and talked to me a good while about +what I had been eating. Before long, however, I grew calm, and was able +to think about my plans in a common-sense, practical way. Truly there +could be nothing better for my present comfort and Bernard's future +happiness: Margaret and George to take care of him, and my image +undimmed in his heart. I felt like one who has insured his life for the +benefit of a loved one, so, no matter what might happen to him, he would +have, as long as he lived, the joy of knowing what he had done for the +loved one. + +"When George came the next day he was just the same splendid old George, +and I do not believe any one ever received a warmer welcome from a +sister-in-law than I gave him. Bernard made a little fun of me, as +usual, and said he believed I would rather see George than him. + +"'Nonsense,' said I; 'I am always glad to see you, but I am especially +glad to see George.' + +"Bernard whistled, and looked at me in the same queer way that he looked +at me when he once had said laughingly that he believed if I had never +met him I would have married George, and I had answered that if I had +been sure he did not exist it might have been a good thing for me to +marry George. + +"Miss Temple did not come to the house that morning, as she so often +did, but I asked Emily to send over and invite her to tea; for I did not +wish to lose any time in the carrying out of my plans. It was about the +middle of the afternoon when Bernard and his brother came in from a +walk. I had been anxious to see George, because I wanted to talk with +him about Margaret before he met her. I was going to speak very +guardedly, of course; but I knew it would be well to prepare his mind, +and I had made up my mind exactly what I was going to say. + +"I artfully managed so that George and I walked over the lawn to a bench +in the shade of a big tree where there was something or other--I +entirely forget what it was--which I said I would show him. Mr. and +Mrs. Cheston and Bernard were on the piazza, but I did not ask them to +join us. + +"We sat down on the bench, and, in a general sort of way, I asked him +what he had been doing, meaning presently to bring up the subject of +Margaret, for I did not know what time she might drop in. But George was +just as anxious to talk as I was, and, being a man, he was a little more +pushing, and he said: + +"'Now, little Rosa, I am so glad you came down here with me, for I have +something on my mind I want to tell you, and I want to do it myself, +before anybody else interferes. It is just this: I am engaged to be +married, and as soon as I get back from England I am going to--' And +then he opened his eyes very wide and looked hard at me. 'What is the +matter, Rosa?' he exclaimed. 'Don't you feel well?' + +"In one instant all my plans and hopes and happy dreams of the future +had dropped to the ground, and had been crushed into atoms. + +"'Well!' said I, and I think I spoke in a queer voice. 'I am very well. +There is nothing the matter with me. What is her name?' + +"He told me; but I had never heard it before, and it was of no more +importance to me than the buzzing of a bee. + +"'It will be very nice,' I said; 'and now let us go up to the house and +tell the others.' + +"I think that for a woman who had just received such a blow as had been +dealt to me I behaved very well indeed. But I was cold and, I suspect, +pale. I listened as the others talked, but I did not say much myself; +and, as soon as I could make some excuse, I went up to my room. There I +threw myself into a great chair, and gently cried myself to sleep. I did +not sob loudly, because I did not want Bernard to come up again. When I +awoke I had a dreadful headache, and I made up my mind I would not go +down to tea. I could do no good by going down, and, so far as I was +concerned, it did not matter in the least whether Margaret was there or +not. In fact, I did not care about anything. Let George marry whoever he +pleased. If I should die Margaret Temple had promised to take care of +Bernard. Everything was settled, and there was no sense in making any +more plans. So I got ready for another nap, and when Bernard came up I +told him I had a headache, and did not want any tea. + +"That evening Bernard sat and looked at me without speaking, as was +sometimes his habit, and then he said: + +"'Rosa, I do not understand this at all, and I want you to tell me why +you were so extravagantly glad when you found my brother George was +coming here, and why you were so overcome by your emotions when you +heard of his engagement.' + +"'Oh, Bernard,' I cried, 'if it were anybody else I might tell +everything, but I cannot tell you--I cannot tell you!' And I am sure I +spoke truly, for how could I have told that dear man what I had said to +Margaret Temple; and how jealous I had been of her afterwards; and how I +had planned for her to marry George; and that, after my funeral, he +should go to live with them; and about my picture on the wall; and all +the rest of it? It was simply impossible. And if he did not know all +this, how could he understand my feelings when I heard that George was +engaged? + +"I could not answer him; I could only sob, and repeat what I had said +before--that if it were anybody else I might speak, but that I could +never tell him. Soon after that he went down-stairs, and I went to +sleep. + +"Bernard was never cross with me,--I do not believe he could be if he +tried,--but the next morning he was very quiet, and soon after breakfast +he and Mr. Cheston and George went fishing. If the incidents of the day +before had not occurred I suppose they would have done something in +which Emily and I could have joined; but some sort of change had come +over things, and it was plain enough that even George did not want me. +So I sat alone under the tree where George had told me of his +engagement, feeling very much troubled and very lonely. I wanted to tell +everything to somebody, but there was no one to tell. It would be +impossible to speak to Emily; she would have no sympathy with me; and if +I should tell her everything I had planned, I knew she would laugh at me +unmercifully. I think it would have pleased me better to speak to George +than to any one else; he had always been so sympathetic and kind; but +now things were changed, and he would not care to interest himself in +the affairs of any woman except the one to whom he was engaged. It was +terrible to sit there and think that there was not a person in the +world, not even my husband, to whom I could look for sympathy and +comfort. If I had not been out in the open air, where people could have +seen me, I should have cried. + +"Happening to look up, I saw some one on the piazza. It was that +horrible Margaret Temple; and when she gazed about from side to side she +saw me under the tree, and as I, apparently, took no notice of her, she +stepped down from the piazza and came walking across the lawn toward me. +If I had been a man I should have cursed my fate; not only was I +deprived of every comfort, but here came the disturber of my peace to +make me still more unhappy. + +"I do not remember what she said when she reached me, but I know she +spoke very pleasantly; nor do I remember what I replied, but I am sure I +did not speak pleasantly. I was out of humor with the whole world, and +particularly with her. She brought a little chair that was near by, and +sat down by me. She was a very straightforward person about speaking, +and so she said, without any preface: + +"'Have you told your husband of that arrangement you made with me if he +should survive you?' + +"'Of course I have not!' I exclaimed. 'Do you think I would tell him a +thing like that, especially when I said I would not? The fact is,' I +continued,--and it was very hard for me to keep from crying as I +spoke,--'I am just loaded down with trouble, and I cannot tell anybody.' + +"'I knew you were troubled,' she replied, 'and that is the reason I came +this morning. Why can't you tell me what is the matter?' + +"At first this made me angry, and I felt like bouncing off to the house +and never speaking to her again; but in the next instant I changed my +mind. It would serve her right if I told her everything; and so I did. +I made her feel exactly how I had felt when I had thought of her in my +place, and how I had determined that it should never be. Then I went on +and told her all my plans about George and herself; and how Bernard was +to board with them if I died. I made the story a good deal longer than +I have made it here. Then I finished by telling her of George's +engagement, and how nothing had come of the whole thing except that +Bernard had supposed that I thought too much of George, and had gone +away that morning as cold as a common acquaintance; and that I felt as +though my whole life had been wrecked, and that she had done it. + +"It was easy to see that she was not affected as she should have been by +what I said. In fact, she looked as though she wanted to laugh; but her +respect for me prevented that. + +"'I do not see,' she said, 'how I have wrecked your life.' + +"'That may be so,' I answered, 'but it is because you do not want to see +it. I should think that even you would admit that it is enough to drive +me crazy to see any woman waiting and longing for the day which would +give her that which I prize more than anything else in the world. And to +think what you are aspiring to! None of the old left-overs that other +people have offered to you, but my Bernard, the very prince of men! I do +not wonder you were so quick to promise me you would take him!' + +"She jumped up, and I thought she was going away; but she did not go, +and turned again toward me, and remarked, just as coolly as anybody +could speak: 'Well, I do not wonder, either. Your Bernard is a most +estimable man, and if nothing should happen in any way or at any time to +interfere in the case of his surviving you I shall be happy to marry +him. I think I would make him a very good wife.' + +"At this I sprang to my feet, and I am sure my eyes and cheeks were +blazing. 'Do you mean,' I cried, 'that you would make him a better wife +than I do?' + +"'That is a question,' she said, 'that is not easy to answer, and needs +a good deal of consideration.' And she spoke with as much deliberation +as if she were trying to decide whether it would be better to cover a +floor with matting or carpet. 'For one thing, I do not believe I would +nag him.' + +"'Nag!' I exclaimed. 'What do you mean by that? Do you suppose I nag +him?' + +"'I do not know anything about it,' she answered, 'except what you told +me yourself; and what you said was my reason for agreeing so quickly to +your proposition.' + +"'Nag!' I cried. But then I stopped. I thought it would be better to +wait until I could think over what I had said to her before I pursued +this subject. 'But I can tell you one thing,' I continued, 'and that is +that you need not have any hopes in the direction of my husband. I am +going to tell him everything just as soon as he comes home, even about +you and George; and I am going to make him promise that, no matter what +happens, he will never marry you.' + +[Illustration: "Do you mean," I cried, "that you would make him a better +wife than I do?"] + +"I think these words made some impression on her, for she answered very +quickly: 'I am not sure that it will be wise to tell him everything; but +if you are determined to do so, I must insist that you will tell him +something more; and that is that I am engaged to be married, and have +been for nearly a year.' + +"'And you have been deceiving all these anxious wives?' I cried. + +"'I never made promises to any one but to you,' she answered; 'and I +would not have done that if I had not liked you so much.' + +"'You have a funny way of liking,' I remarked. + +"She merely smiled, and went on: 'And I should not have told you of my +engagement if I had not thought it would be safer to do so, considering +the story you are going to tell your husband.' + +"'And it is because I consider it safer that I am going to tell him that +story,' I replied. + + * * * * * + +"That afternoon, as soon as I was alone with Bernard,--I did not give +him any time to show me any of his common-acquaintance coolness,--I told +him the whole thing from beginning to end. He listened so earnestly that +one might have thought he was in church; but when I came to the part +about his boarding with George and Miss Temple he could not help +laughing. He excused himself, however, and told me to go on. He looked +very happy when I had told him my story, and no one would have supposed +that he had ever assumed the air of a mere common acquaintance. + +"'You are such a good little wife!' he exclaimed. 'And you are always +trying to do things to make me happy. But you must not take so much +labor and anxiety upon yourself. I want to help you in every way that I +can, and in such a case you ought to let me do it.' + +"'But how could you help me in the trouble I have been telling you +about?' I asked. + +"'Easily enough,' he answered. 'Now, if you had taken me into your +confidence, I would have told you that I consider Miss Temple too tall a +woman for my fancy.' + +"'She is,' I said. 'I did not think so at first, but I can see it +plainly now.' + +"'Then, again, she is too practical-minded.' + +"'Entirely too much so,' I agreed. + +"'And in other respects she is not up to my standard,' continued +Bernard. 'So I think, Rosa, that if you should ever take up such a +scheme again we should act together. I am sure my opinion would be of +great advantage to you in helping you to select some one who should take +up the work of making me happy--' + +"'You are perfectly horrid!' I exclaimed; and I stopped his mouth. + +"That was the end of the matter; but I never learned to like Margaret +Temple. To be sure, I thought seriously of some things she had said; but +then, people can consider things people say without liking the people +who say them. I pity her husband." + +Just then came the summons to luncheon, and this story was not commented +upon. + + + + + THIS STORY IS TOLD BY + + JOHN GAYTHER + + AND IS CALLED + + BLACKGUM AG'IN' THUNDER + + + + +XI + +BLACKGUM AG'IN' THUNDER + + +John Gayther and the Daughter of the House walked in the garden. The +melons were ripe now, and it was a pleasure to push aside the coarse +leaves and find beneath them the tropical-looking fruit with the pretty +network tracery covering the gray-green rind. The grape-vines, too, were +things of beauty, hanging full of great white, yellow, red, and purple +clusters. The tomatoes gleamed scarlet and purple-red thickly among the +plants. The cabbages had curled themselves up into compact heads that +looked like big folded roses set in an open cluster of leaves. There +were rows of green-leaved turnips, red-leaved beets, and feathery-leaved +carrots. The ears were standing stiff in the corn rows. + +In the orchard the peaches were rosy and downy, the plums ready to drop +with lusciousness; ruddy-cheeked pears were crowded on the drooping +branches; the apples, not so plentiful, were taking on the colors that +proclaimed their near fruition; and even the knotty quinces were growing +fair and golden. On the upper terrace the stately, delicate cosmos was +waving in the wind; great beds of low marigolds were flaunting their +rich colors in the bright sunlight; the dahlias lifted into the air, +stiffly and proudly, their great blossoms of varying forms; the +clove-pinks, lowly and delicate in color, gave forth the fragrance of +the springtime which they had held stored up in their tender blossoms; +and the early chrysanthemums were unfolding their plumes. + +"I love the late August-time," said John Gayther, as the two sat down to +rest in the summer-house after a long stay in the garden. "I have a +singular feeling, which I hope is not irreverent, that the great Creator +is pleased with me for having brought this work to perfection, and the +thought gives me great peace of mind." + +"It does sound a little presumptuous, John," said the young lady. + +"Not in the way I mean it," replied John. "We are told that God gives +abundantly of the fruits and blossoms that gladden our hearts and eyes. +But this is only partly true. There may be some lands where nothing need +be done to these God-given fruits and vegetables and flowers. I do not +know. But in this happy land, although he does abundantly give us the +material to work upon, he expects us to do the work. Else what would be +the use of gardens? And if there were no need of gardens there would be +no gardens; and how desolate would life be without gardens!" + +"I see what you mean, John," said the young lady. "We could not go into +the woods, or on to the plains, and find the fruits and vegetables that +grow so well in this garden. If they were there at all they would be +poor and undeveloped." + +"Exactly so," said John. "And in my garden I garner up God's gifts; and +I select the best, and then the best of the best, and so on and on; and +I watch, oh, so carefully, for everything hurtful; and I water; and I +prune off the dead branches; and enrich the ground. And so I work and +work, with God's help of the sunshine and the rain; and at last, when it +all comes to what we see to-day, I cannot but feel that God is pleased +with me for bringing about the fruition he knew I could accomplish with +the material given by what some people call nature and I call God. That +is what a garden is for, and in that way it glorifies him." + +They were both silent for some time. The young girl was thinking that +while all that John had said was true, she could not, like him, love +this season best of all. Its very perfection and full fruition were +saddening, for that must inevitably be followed by decay. The old man +was thinking that while youth and its promise for the future was +beautiful, the resignation and peacefulness of an accomplished life was +far more beautiful. + +The red thrush broke into song and startled them both. The old man +listened to it as if it were a paean of thanksgiving for the garden and +all that it had given, and wished he were able to join his voice with +the music of the bird. As the young girl listened it seemed to her that +the song was as clear and sweet and happy as it had been in the spring. +And she marvelled. + +"What a pity! We have missed the bird!" A voice broke into the stillness +that had followed the song. It was the Mistress of the House who was +approaching, followed by the Master of the House, the Next Neighbor, and +the Old Professor. + +"I was wondering why you were not all here some time ago," said the +Daughter of the House. + +"Kept by company," said the Master of the House, as they all came +forward and took their accustomed places. "Not half as agreeable as the +bird, nor as interesting as the story John promised to tell. I hope it +will not be as solemn as your countenance, John." + +Nobody was ever solemn long when the Master of the House was present, +and John Gayther's countenance immediately was lighted up by a smile. "I +could not think of telling you a solemn story," he said, "and this one +is about a peculiar character I knew. His name was Abner Batterfield, +and he was a farmer. One day he was forty-five years old. He was also +tired. Having finished hoeing his last row of corn, he sat down on a +bench at his front door, took off his wide and dilapidated straw hat, +and wiped his brow. Presently his wife came out. She was a little more +than forty-five years old, and of phenomenal physical and mental +endurance. She had lived seventeen years with Abner, and her natural +vigor was not impaired. + +"'Supper's ready,' said she. + +"Her husband heaved a sigh, and stretched out his weary legs in unison. + +"'Supper,' he repeated; 'it's allus eat, and work, and sleep!' + +"'Perhaps you'd like to leave out the eatin',' said Mrs. Batterfield; +'that would save lots.' + +"Her husband ignored this remark. His farm was small, but it was too big +for him. He had no family except himself and wife, but the support of +that family taxed his energies. There was a certain monotony connected +with coming out short at the end of the year which was wearisome to his +soul. + +"'Mrs. B.,' said he, 'I've made up my mind to start over again.' + +"'Goin' back to the corn-field?' she asked. 'You'd better have your +supper first.' + +"'No,' said he; 'it's different. I've been thinkin' about it all day, +and I'm goin' to begin life over ag'in.' + +"'At your age it would be more fit fer you to consider the proper endin' +of it,' said she. + +"'I knew you'd say that, Mrs. B.; I knew you'd say that! You never do +agree with me in any of my plans and undertakin's.' + +"'Which accounts fer our still havin' a roof over our heads,' said she. + +"'But, I can tell you, this time I'm a-goin' ahead. I don't care what +people say; I don't care what they do, or what they don't do; I'm goin' +ahead. It'll be blackgum ag'in' thunder this time, and I'm blackgum. +You've heard about the thunder and lightnin' tacklin' a blackgum-tree?' + +"'Ever since I was born,' said she. + +"'Well, there's a awful scatterin' of dust and chips when that sort of a +fight is on; but nobody ever yet heard of thunder gettin' the better of +a blackgum-tree. And I'm goin' to be a blackgum!' + +"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply to this remark, but in her heart she +said: 'And I'm goin' to be thunder.' + +"The next morning, Abner Batterfield put on his best clothes, and walked +to the little town about two miles distant. He didn't enter the business +part of the place, but turned into a shady side street where stood a +small one-story building, almost by itself. This was the village +library, and the librarian was sitting in the doorway, reading a book. +He was an elderly man of comfortable contour, and wore no glasses, even +for the finest print. + +"'Mornin', Abner,' said the librarian; 'have you brought back that +book?' + +"Abner seated himself on the door-step. 'No, I haven't, Mr. Brownsill,' +said he; 'I forgot it. I forgot it, but I remember some things that's in +it, and I've come to talk about 'em.' + +"'Very good,' said the librarian, closing the volume of Salmon's +Geographical Grammar with his finger at page 35, treating of paradoxes, +and remarked: 'Well, Abner, what is it?' + +"Then Abner Batterfield told his tale. He was going to make a fresh +start; he was going to spend the rest of his life in some manner worthy +of him. He hadn't read much of the book he had taken out of the library, +for in his present way of spending his life there didn't seem to be any +very good time for reading, but he had read enough of it to make him +feel that it was time for him to make a fresh start, and he was going to +do it. + +"'And I may have a tough time,' said Abner; 'but it'll be blackgum +ag'in' thunder, and I'm blackgum!' + +"The librarian smiled. 'What are you going to do?' said he. + +"'That's a thing,' said Abner, 'I'm not so certain about. I've been +thinkin' of enterin' the ministry; but the bother about that is, I can't +make up my mind which particular denomination to enter. There's such a +difference in 'em.' + +"'That's true,' said Mr. Brownsill; 'that's very true! But haven't you a +leaning for some one of them in particular?' + +"'In thinkin' it over,' said Abner, 'I've been drawn to the Quakers. So +far's I kin find out, there's nothin' a Quaker preacher has to do if he +don't want to.' + +"'But then, on the other hand,' said the librarian, 'there's no pay.' + +"'Which won't work at all,' said Abner, 'so that's got to be dropped. As +to the Methodists, there's too much work. A man might as well stick to +hoein' corn.' + +"'What do you think of the Catholics?' asked the librarian, +meditatively. 'I should think a monk in a cell might suit you. I don't +believe you'd be expected to do much work in a cell.' + +"Abner cogitated. 'But there ain't no pay to that, no more'n if I was a +Quaker. And there's Mrs. B. to be considered. I tell you, Mr. Brownsill, +it's awful hard makin' a ch'ice.' + +"The librarian opened his book and took a good look at the number of the +page on which paradoxes were treated, so that he might remember it; then +he rose and put the book upon the table, and, turning to Abner, he +looked at him steadfastly. + +"'Abner Batterfield,' said he, 'I understand the state of your mind, and +it is plain enough that it's pretty hard for you to make a choice of a +new path in life; but perhaps I can help you. How would you like to be a +librarian?' + +"'Me!' exclaimed Abner, amazed. + +"'I don't mean,' said Mr. Brownsill, 'that you should take up this +business for life without knowing whether you like it or not, but I can +offer you what might be called a sample situation. I want to go away for +a couple of weeks to visit my relations, and if you will come and +attend to the library while I am gone, it might be a good thing for both +of us. Then, if you don't like the business of a librarian, you might +sample some other calling or profession.' + +"Abner rose from the door-step, and, entering the room, stood before +Mr. Brownsill. 'That's the most sensible thing,' said he, 'that I ever +heard said in all my life. Sample first, and go into afterwards; that's +sound reason. Mr. Brownsill, I will do it.' + +"'Good!' said the librarian. 'And the duties are not difficult.' + +"'And the pay?' asked Abner. + +"'Just what I get,' said Mr. Brownsill. + +"The bargain was made, and Abner immediately began taking lessons in the +duties of a librarian. + +"When he went home he told his tale to Mrs. B. 'I have hoed my last row +of corn,' said he, 'and when it's fit to cut and shock we'll hire a man. +There's librarians, Mrs. B., so Mr. Brownsill told me, that gets +thousands a year. Think of that, Mrs. B.--thousands a year!' + +"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply to this remark, but in her heart she +said: 'And I am thunder.' + +"Early the next morning, long before the ordinary time for opening the +library, Abner was at his post. He took the key from the concealed nail +where Mr. Brownsill was wont to hang it. He opened the door and windows, +as the librarian told him he must do; he swept the floor; he dusted the +books; and then he took the water-pail, and proceeded to the pump hard +by. He filled it, then he sat down and wiped his brow. He had done so +much sitting down and brow-wiping in his life that it had become a +habit with him, even when he was neither hot nor tired. + +"This little library was certainly a very pleasant place in which to +earn one's living--ten thousand times more to his taste than the richest +corn-field. Around the walls were book-shelves, some of them nearly +filled with books, most of which, judging from their bindings, were of a +sober if not a sombre turn of mind. + +"'Some of these days,' said Abner, 'I am goin' to read those books; I +never did have time to read books.' + +"From the ceiling there hung, too high to be conveniently dusted, a few +stuffed birds, and one small alligator. 'Some of these days,' said Abner +to himself, 'I am goin' to get on a step-ladder and look at them birds +and things; I never did properly know what they was.' + +"Now footsteps were heard on the sidewalk, and Abner jumped up quickly +and redusted a book upon the table. There entered two little girls, the +elder one with her hair plaited down her back. They looked in surprise +at Abner, who smiled. + +"'I guess you want to see Mr. Brownsill,' he said. 'Well, I am in his +place now, and all you got to do is to tell me what book you want.' + +"'Please, sir,' said the one with plaits, 'mother wants to know if you +can change a quarter of a dollar.' + +"This proposed transaction seemed to Abner to be a little outside of a +librarian's business, but he put his hand in his pocket and said he +would see. When he had extracted all the change that pocket contained he +found that he was the owner of three nickels and five copper cents. He +tried some other pockets, but there was no money in any of them. He was +disappointed; he did not want to begin his intercourse with the +townspeople by failing to do the first favor asked of him. He looked +around the room; he rubbed his nose. In a moment an idea struck him. + +"'How much do you want to get out of this quarter?' said he. + +"'Ten cents, sir,' said the girl with the plaits. 'The woman's waitin' +fer it now.' + +"'I'll tell you,' said Abner, 'what I can do. All I have got is twenty +cents. Two of these nickels will do for the woman, and then for the +other five cents you can take out a book for a week. A duodecimo volume +for a week is five cents. Is there any duodecimo volume you would like?' + +"The girl with the plaits said she didn't know, and that all she wanted +was change for a quarter. + +"'Which this will be,' said Abner. + +"Asking the little girls to follow him, he approached the book-shelves. +'Now here's something,' said he, presently, taking down a book. 'It's +Buck's Theological Dictionary, and it's got a lot of different things in +it. Some of them your mother might like to read to you, and some of them +she might like to read to herself. I once read one piece in that book +myself. It is about the Inquisition, and when I began it I couldn't stop +until I got to the end of it. I guess your mother might like to read +that, even if she don't read it to you.' + +"The little girl said she didn't know whether her mother would like it +or not, but what she had been sent for was change for a quarter. + +"'This will be the same thing,' said Abner; 'twenty cents in money, and +five cents for a duodecimo for one week. So take the money and the book, +my dear, and tell your mother that if she keeps it out longer than one +week there'll be a fine.' + +"The child and the duodecimo departed, and Abner sat down again, and +wiped his brow. 'There's one customer,' said he, 'and that's the way to +do business. They come to get you to do somethin' for them, and before +they know it they're doin' business with you, payin' cash in advance. +But there's one thing I forgot. I oughter asked them young ones what +their mother's name was. But I'll remember 'em, specially the one with +the plaited hair, so it's all the same.' + +"The little girls went home. 'It's a new man at the library,' said the +one with the plaits, 'and he hadn't got no more'n twenty cents in money; +but he sent you a book for the other five cents.' + +"The mother, with her baby in her lap, sent the ten cents to the woman +who was waiting, and then took the book, which opened quite naturally at +the article on the Inquisition, and began to read. And, although the +baby grew restless and began to cry, she didn't stop reading until she +had finished that article. 'It's fully worth five cents,' she said to +herself, as she put it on the shelf for future perusal. + +"It was not long before the thought struck Abner that he was losing +opportunities which spread themselves around him, so he jumped up and +took down a book. The volume proved to be one of 'Elegant Extracts'; but +after reading certain reflections 'Upon Seeing Mr. Pope's House at +Binfield' he thought he would like something more in the nature of a +story, and took up a thinner volume entitled 'Dick's Future State.' He +turned over the leaves, hoping to meet with some of the adventures of +Dick; but his attention was arrested by a passage which asserted that +arithmetic would be one of the occupations to be followed in heaven. He +was about to put away the book in disgust--for to him there was no need +of a man's being good in this world if he were to be condemned to +arithmetic in the next--when the light from the open door was darkened +by a large body who approached in carpet slippers, making no noise. This +proved to be a round and doleful negro woman, a greater part of her face +wrapped up in a red-and-green handkerchief. Her attire was somewhat +nondescript, and entirely unsuggestive of literary inclinations. She +groaned as she entered the room. + +"'Whar Mr. Bro'nsill?' she asked, with one hand to her face. + +"Abner was amazed. Was it possible that this woman could read, and that +she cared for books? He explained the situation, and assured her that he +could attend to her just as well as the regular librarian. + +"'I's mighty glad to hear dat,' said the woman, 'I's mighty glad to hear +dat, for I hasn't slep' one wink for dis tooth. Mr. Bro'nsill he allus +pulls my teeth, and dey nebber has been one what ached as bad as dis.' + +"With this she began to unwrap her swollen face. + +"'You needn't do that,' cried Abner. 'I can't pull teeth. You must go to +the dentist.' + +"'That'll be fifty cents,' said the woman, 'and Mr. Bro'nsill he don' +charge nothin'. I know whar he keeps his pinchers. Dey's in dat drawer +in de table. And you kin pull it out jes as well as anudder pusson. I'd +pull hit out ef I wuz anudder pusson.' + +"Abner shook his head. 'I never pulled a tooth,' he said. 'I don't know +nothin' about it.' + +"'Don' dey tell somethin' about pullin' teeth in dese here books?' said +the woman. + +"Abner shook his head. 'There may be,' he said, 'but I don't know where +to find it.' + +"'And you's de librarian,' said she, in a tone of supreme contempt, 'and +don' know how to fin' what's in de books!' And with this she re-wrapped +her face and wabbled away. + +"'I hope the next one will want a book,' said Abner to himself, 'and +won't want nothin' else. If I'm to be librarian I want to fork out +books.' + +"The morning passed, and no one else appeared. The forenoon was not the +time when people generally came for books in that town. + +"After he had eaten the dinner he had brought, Abner sat down to +meditate a little. He was not sure that the life of a librarian would +suit him. It was almost as lonesome as hoeing corn. + +"Some time after these reflections--it might have been a minute, it +might have been an hour--he was awakened by a man's voice, and suddenly +started upright in his chair. + +"'Hello!' said the voice. 'You keepin' library for old Brownsill?' + +"'That's what I'm doin',' said Abner; 'he's away for his holiday.' + +"The new-comer, Joe Pearson, was an odd creature. I remember him well. +He had been assistant to the town clerk, but was now out of a position. +He was a stout man with little eyes, and wore a shiny black coat, and +no collar. + +"'I am glad to hear it,' he said. 'Mr. Brownsill's a little too sharp +for my fancy; I'd rather do business with you. Have you got any books on +eggs?' + +"'I don't know,' said Abner, 'but I can look. What kind of eggs?' + +"'I don't suppose there's a different book for every kind of egg,' said +Joe; 'I guess they're lumped.' + +"'All right,' said Abner; 'step up to the shelves, and we'll take a +look. Now here's one that I've just been glancin' over myself. It seems +to have a lot of different things in it: it's called "Elegant +Extracts."' + +"'"Elegant Extracts" won't do,' said Joe; 'they ain't eggs.' + +"'E, E, E,' said Abner, looking along the line, and anxious to make a +good show in the eyes of his acquaintance, who had the reputation of +being a man of considerable learning. '"Experimental Christianity"--but +that won't do.' + +"After fifteen or twenty minutes occupied in scrutiny of backs of books, +Joe Pearson gave up the search. 'I don't believe there's a book on eggs +in the whole darned place,' said he. 'That's just like Brownsill; he +hasn't got no fancy for nothin' practical.' + +"'What do you want to know about eggs?' said Abner. + +"Mr. Pearson did not immediately answer, but after a few moments of +silent consideration he walked to the door and closed it. Then he sat +down, and invited Abner to sit by him. 'Look here, Abner Batterfield,' +said he; 'I've got a idee that's goin' to make my fortune. I want +somebody to help me, and I don't see why you couldn't do it as well as +anybody else. For one thing, you've got a farm.' + +"As he said this Abner started back. 'Confound the farm!' he said. 'I've +given up farmin', and I don't want nothin' more to do with it.' + +"'Yes, you will,' said Pearson, 'when I've told you what I'm goin' to +do. But it won't be common farmin': it'll be mighty different. There's +money in this kind of farmin', and no work, nuther, to mention.' + +"Abner now became interested. + +"'It concerns eggs,' said Pearson. 'Abner, did you ever hear about the +eggs of the great auk?' + +"'Great hawk!' said Abner. + +"'Not _hawk_! Auk--a-u-k.' + +"'Never seen the bird,' said Abner. + +"'I reckon not,' said the other. 'They say they disappeared some time +before the war; but I don't believe that. I've been readin' a piece +about 'em, Abner, and I tell you it just roused me up, and that's the +reason I've come here s'posin' I might find a book that might give me +some new p'ints. But I reckon I know enough to work on.' + +"'Is there anything uncommon about 'em?' asked Abner. + +"'Uncommon!' exclaimed the other. 'Do you know what a great auk's egg is +wuth? It's one thousand eight hundred dollars!' + +"'A car-load?' asked Abner. + +"'Stuff!' ejaculated Mr. Pearson. 'It's that much for _one_; and that +one blowed--nothin' but a shell--not a thing inside. And eighteen +hundred dollars!' + +"'By George!' exclaimed Abner. 'Eighteen hundred dollars!' + +"'And that's the lowest figure. Great auk eggs is wuth twenty-one +thousand and six hundred dollars a dozen!' + +"Abner rose from his chair. 'Joe Pearson,' he said, 'what are you +talkin' about?' + +"'I'm talkin' about makin' the biggest kind of money, and if you choose +to go in with me you can make big money too. I'm all correct, and I can +show you the figures.' + +"Abner now sat down and leaned over toward Pearson. 'Whar's it likely to +fin' nests?' said he. + +"'Nests!' exclaimed Pearson, in disdain. 'If I could find two of +'em--fresh ones--I'd call my fortune made.' + +"'I should say so,' said Abner, 'sellin' for thirty-six hundred dollars! +But what is there so all-fired good about 'em to make 'em sell like +that?' + +"'Scerceness,' said Joe. 'Apart from scerceness they ain't no better'n +any other egg. But there's mighty few of 'em in market now, and all of +them's blowed.' + +"'And no good?' said Abner. + +"'They say not,' said the other. 'For scerceness they're better blowed +than stale, which they're bound to be if they're kept.' + +"'But what's your idea about 'em?' said Abner. + +"'That's what I'm goin' to tell you,' replied Pearson. 'There's a +general notion that there ain't no more great auks, specially hen great +auks, and that's why their eggs are so scerce. But I don't see the p'int +of that. It don't stand to reason; for now and then somebody gets a +great auk egg. If you find 'em they've got to be laid; and if they're +laid there's got to be hen great auks somewhere. Now the p'int is to +find out where them great auks lay. It may be a awful job to do it, but +if I can do it, and get just two eggs, my fortune's made, and yourn +too.' + +[Illustration: "Abner, did you ever hear about the eggs of the great +auk?"] + +"'Would you divide the thirty-six hundred dollars even?'--now very much +interested. + +"'Divide!' sneered Pearson. 'Do you suppose I'd sell 'em? No, sir; I'd +set 'em under a turkey, or perhaps a big hen. Then, sir, I'd go into the +great auk business. I'd sell auk eggs, and make my fortune, and yourn +too.' + +"'And young ones, if we get a lot?' + +"'No, sir!' exclaimed Pearson. 'Nobody'd own no auks but me. You can't +catch 'em alive. And I wouldn't sell no eggs at all till they'd first +been blowed. I'd keep the business all in my own hands. Abner, I've been +thinkin' a great deal about this thing. You've heard about the lively +sixpence and the slow dollar? Well, sir, I'm goin' to sell them auk eggs +for sixteen hundred dollars, two for three thousand.'" + +"John Gayther," said the Master of the House, "you will not make me +believe that you ever knew two such fools." + +"In the course of my life," said the Old Professor, "I have known +several of them." + +"Not looking for auks' eggs?" inquired the Next Neighbor. + +"Something just as impracticable," he said. + +"The North Pole, for instance," suggested the Mistress of the House. + +"I think," said John, "they are more likely to find that than my friends +were to find what they sought. But we shall see. Abner looked at his +companion. 'That would be better than 'most any other kind of business,' +said he. 'Where do you go to get them eggs?' + +"''Way up north,' said Pearson; 'and the furder north you go the more +likely you are to find 'em.' + +"'I don't know about goin' north,' said Abner, reflectively; 'there's +Mrs. B. to consider.' + +"'But I don't want you to go,' said Pearson. 'I'm goin' north. And when +I've found a couple o' auk eggs, I'll pack 'em up nice and warm in +cotton, and send 'em down to you, and have 'em hatched. That's where +your farm'll come in. You've got to have a farm and turkeys or big hens +if you want to raise auks. Then I'll go on lookin', and, most likely, +I'll get a couple more.' + +"'That'll be a good thing,' said Abner; 'the more the merrier. I'll go +in with you, Joe Pearson. That's the sort of business that'll just suit +me. But I'll tell you one thing, Joe: I wouldn't put the price of them +eggs down at first; I'd wait until a couple of dozen had been laid and +blowed, and then, perhaps, I'd put the price down.' + +"'No, sir,' said Joe; 'I'll put the price down at the very beginning. +Sixteen hundred dollars, or three thousand for two, is enough for any +eggs, and we oughter be satisfied with it.' + +"'And when are you goin' to start north?' asked Abner. + +"'That's the p'int,' said Pearson, 'that's the p'int. You see, Abner, I +ain't got no family, and I can start north whenever I please, as far as +that's concerned. But there's obstacles. For one thing, I ain't got the +right kind of clothes; and then there's other things. It's awful hard +lines startin' out on a business like this, and the more money there is +in it the harder the lines.' + +"'But you can do it, Joe,' said Abner. 'I feel in my bones you can do +it. It'll be blackgum ag'in' thunder, but you'll be blackgum, and you'll +come out all right.' + +"'I can't be blackgum nor nothin' else,' said Pearson, 'if I don't get +no help; specially if I don't get no help from the party what's goin' to +get a lot of the money.' + +"Abner reflected. 'If we was to set any auk eggs next month, it'll be +well on into next summer before we'd have eggs to sell.' + +"Pearson also reflected. 'Yes,' he said; 'and it might be a little later +than that. You've got to leave a margin. I allus leave a margin. Then +I'm safe.' + +"'Yes,' said Abner; 'then you're safe.' + +"Joe Pearson was a man of resourceful discretion. He rose now. 'Abner,' +said he, 'I've got to go; I've got a lot of things on my hands. And I +want you to remember that what I've said to you I said to you, and I +wouldn't have no other man know nothin' about it. If anybody else should +hear of this thing, and go north, and get ahead of me, it would +be--well, I don't know what to say it would be, I've such feelin's about +it. I've offered to take you in because you've got a farm, and because I +think you're a good man, and would know how to take care of auks when +they was hatched. But there's a lot for me to do. There's maps to look +over, and time-tables; and I must be off. But I'll stop in to-morrer, +Abner, and we'll talk this over again.' + +"When Pearson had gone, Abner sat and stared steadily at a knot-hole in +the floor. 'Mrs. B.,' he said to himself, 'has allus been a great one on +eggs. She's the greatest one on eggs I ever knowed. If she'd go in, now, +the thing 'u'd be just as good as done. When she knows what's ahead of +us she oughter go in. That's all I've got to say about it.' + +"The significance of these reflections depended upon the fact that +Mrs. Batterfield had a small income. It was upon this fact that there +depended the other fact that there were three meals a day in the +Batterfield household. It was this fact, also, which was the cause of +Mr. Joe Pearson's visit to the library. He was very well acquainted with +Abner, although he knew Mrs. Batterfield but slightly; but he was aware +of her income. + +"After reflecting for about twenty minutes or half an hour upon the +exciting proposition which had been made to him, Abner grew very +impatient. 'No use of my stayin' here,' he said; 'there's nobody goin' +to get out books in this hot weather; so I'll just shut up shop and go +home. I never did want to see Mrs. Batterfield as much as I want to see +her now.' + +"'Libraries seem to shut up early,' said Mrs. Batterfield, as her +husband walked into the front yard. + +"'Yes, they do,' said Abner, 'in summer-time.' + +"All the way from town he had been rehearsing to himself the story he +was going to tell; but he hadn't finished it yet, and he wanted to get +it all straight before he began, so he walked over to the barn and sat +down on an inverted horse-bucket to get his story all straight before he +began. When he got it all straight he concluded not to tell it until +after supper. But when that meal was finished, and everything had been +cleared away, and Mrs. Batterfield had gone to sit on the front porch, +as was her evening custom, he sat down by her and told his story. + +"He made the tale as attractive as he possibly could make it. He even +omitted the fact that Joe Pearson intended to sell his first eggs for +sixteen hundred dollars instead of eighteen hundred, and he diminished +by very many hundred miles the length of Joe Pearson's probable journey +to the north. In fact, had his suppositions been nearly correct, the +remaining specimens of the great auk would have been birds of very +temperate dispositions, so far as latitude was concerned. + +"Mrs. Batterfield listened with great attention. She was engaged upon +some sewing on which her eyes were fixed, but her ears drank in every +word that Abner said. When he had finished, she laid down her sewing, +for it was beginning to get a little dark for even her sharp eyes, and +remarked: 'And he wants some warm clothes? Furs, I suppose?' + +"'Yes,' said Abner; 'I expect they'd be furs.' + +"'And travelling expenses?' she asked. + +"'Yes; I suppose he'd want help in that way. Of course, since he's +makin' me such a big offer, he'll expect me to put in somethin'.' + +"Mrs. Batterfield made no reply, but folded up her sewing and went +indoors. He waited until she had time to retire, then he closed the +house and went up himself. + +"'She'll want to sleep on that,' said he; 'it'll be a good thing for her +to sleep on it. She mayn't like it at first, but I'll go at her ag'in +to-morrer, and I'm goin' to stick to it. I reckon it'll be the worst +rassle we ever had; but it's blackgum ag'in' thunder, and I'm +blackgum.' + +"When Abner reached his chamber he found his wife sitting quietly by the +table, on which burned a lamp. + +"'Hello!' said he. 'I thought you'd be abed and asleep!' + +"'I didn't want to do my talkin' out front,' said she, 'for there might +be people passin' along the road. I think you said this was to be a case +of blackgum ag'in' thunder!' + +"'Yes,' said Abner, in a somewhat uncertain tone. + +"'Well, then,' said Mrs. Batterfield, 'I'm thunder.' + +"It was very late when that couple went to bed, but it was very early +the next morning when Abner rose. He split a great deal of fire-wood +before breakfast, and very soon after that meal he put his hoe on his +shoulder and went to his corn-field. He remembered that there were three +rows of corn which he had hoed upon only one side. + +"The library was not opened that day, and it remained closed until +Mr. Brownsill returned. The failure in the supply of books did not +occasion very much comment in the town, for everybody agreed that +Mr. Brownsill was a good man and ought to have a holiday. There were +four persons in the place--a little girl with plaited hair and a sister; +a colored woman with a bad tooth; and Joe Pearson--who knew that Abner +Batterfield had held, for a time, the office of librarian. + +"When his vacation had expired, Mr. Brownsill came home, and on the +second morning after his arrival, Abner Batterfield appeared before +him. + +"'I had to come in town,' said Abner, 'and so I thought I'd step in here +and see about my pay.' + +"The librarian looked at him. 'How long were you here?' he asked. 'I've +been told that the library was shut up for two weeks.' + +"'I was here for three quarters of a day,' said Abner. 'That's about as +near as I can calculate.' + +"The librarian took up a pencil and made a calculation. + +"'By the way,' said he, 'you must have done some business. I miss our +copy of Buck's Theological Dictionary; but I find no entry about it.' + +"'That was took out as change,' said Abner. 'Five cents for a duodecimo +for a week, and the rest in change. If the woman hasn't brought it back +she owes a week's fine.' + +"'Who was the woman?' asked the librarian. + +"'I don't know,' said Abner; 'but she has a daughter with plaited hair +and a small sister. While I'm in town I'll try to look 'em up.' + +"'In the meantime,' said Mr. Brownsill, 'I'll have to charge you for the +book; and, deducting your pay for three quarters of a day, you now owe +me seventy-five cents. I don't suppose there's any use talking about the +fines I have got down against you?' + +"'I don't believe there is,' said Abner. + +"The librarian could not help smiling, so dejected was the tone in which +these last words were spoken. + +"'By the way,' said he, 'how about your great fight you were talking +about--blackgum ag'in' thunder? How did that turn out?' + +"Abner in his turn smiled. + +"'Blackgum was split as fine as matches,' said he." + +"I can't help feeling sorry for the old fellow," said the Next Neighbor, +when John had concluded his story. "I always have sympathy with great +ambitions." + +"And if Joe Pearson had got far enough north," said the Mistress of the +House, "he would have found no eggs, but he might have stumbled over the +North Pole." + +"It is a pity the old fellow had to tell his wife," said the Master of +the House. "Women ruin great ambitions by too much common-sense. A great +many of the inventions we now consider necessary would have been utterly +lost to us if some men's brains had not been a little addled. A woman +would have set them straight, and that would have been the end. That is +the reason so few women are inventors; they have too much sense." + +"That is a very left-handed compliment," said the Daughter of the House. +"You are always decrying inventions, which is strange. How would you +like to sail a ship without steam?" + +"It would be a great deal pleasanter, my dear, and much cleaner." + +"There are patent contrivances for garden-work," said John Gayther, "and +I don't say that they don't help, especially in planting-time; but, like +the captain, I prefer the old ways that bring the gardener and the earth +close together. The old, simple instruments seem like friends. I feel as +if something went from me through the hoe-handle to the plants; and when +the seed drops from my hands instead of from a seeder, it seems to me it +takes a message direct from me to the earth that receives it." + + * * * * * + +The stories are all told. The winter has come. The orchard is stripped +of its leaves, and, sere and brown, they cover the garden paths and are +strewn over the box borders. The fruits are all garnered. The bare vines +that cover the summer-house are like dead memories of what has been. The +vegetable-beds are empty. The black frost has settled upon bloom and +foliage on the upper terrace. The sweet, blithe song of the red thrush +has ceased. The family have gone to a sunnier clime. And John Gayther +walks alone in his garden. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Gayther's Garden and the Stories +Told Therein, by Frank R. 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