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- float: left; - margin-right: 1em } - -.align-right { clear: right; - float: right; - margin-left: 1em } - -.align-center { margin-left: auto; - margin-right: auto } - -div.shrinkwrap { display: table; } - -/* SECTIONS */ - -body { margin: 5% 10% 5% 10% } - -/* compact list items containing just one p */ -li p.pfirst { margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0 } - -.first { margin-top: 0 !important; - text-indent: 0 !important } -.last { margin-bottom: 0 !important } - -span.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.1em 0 0; line-height: 1 } -img.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.5em 0 0; max-width: 25% } -span.dropspan { font-variant: small-caps } - -.no-page-break { page-break-before: avoid !important } - -/* PAGINATION */ - -@media screen { - .coverpage, .frontispiece, .titlepage, .verso, .dedication, .plainpage - { margin: 10% 0; } - - div.clearpage, div.cleardoublepage - { margin: 10% 0; border: none; border-top: 1px solid gray; } - - .vfill { margin: 5% 10% } -} - -@media print { - div.clearpage { page-break-before: always; padding-top: 10% } - div.cleardoublepage { page-break-before: right; padding-top: 10% } - - .vfill { margin-top: 20% } - h2.title { margin-top: 20% } -} - -</style> -<title>A DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</title> -<meta name="PG.Rights" content="Public Domain" /> -<meta name="PG.Title" content="A Daughter of the Rich" /> -<meta name="PG.Producer" content="Al Haines" /> -<meta name="PG.Reposted" content="2012-10-06 minor corrections" /> -<link rel="coverpage" href="images/img-cover.jpg" /> -<meta name="DC.Creator" content="M. E. Waller" /> -<meta name="DC.Created" content="1903" /> -<meta name="MARCREL.ill" content="Ellen Bernard Thompson" /> -<meta name="PG.Id" content="40661" /> -<meta name="PG.Released" content="2012-09-04" /> -<meta name="DC.Language" content="en" /> -<meta name="DC.Title" content="A Daughter of the Rich" /> - -<link href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" rel="schema.DCTERMS" /> -<link href="http://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/relators" rel="schema.MARCREL" /> -<meta content="A Daughter of the Rich" name="DCTERMS.title" /> -<meta content="daughter.rst" name="DCTERMS.source" /> -<meta content="en" scheme="DCTERMS.RFC4646" name="DCTERMS.language" /> -<meta content="2012-10-07T05:13:46.637435+00:00" scheme="DCTERMS.W3CDTF" name="DCTERMS.modified" /> -<meta content="Project Gutenberg" name="DCTERMS.publisher" /> -<meta content="Public Domain in the USA." name="DCTERMS.rights" /> -<link href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/40661" rel="DCTERMS.isFormatOf" /> -<meta content="\M. \E. Waller" name="DCTERMS.creator" /> -<meta content="Ellen Bernard Thompson" name="MARCREL.ill" /> -<meta content="2012-09-04" scheme="DCTERMS.W3CDTF" name="DCTERMS.created" /> -<meta content="width=device-width" name="viewport" /> -<meta content="EpubMaker 0.3.19b4 by Marcello Perathoner <webmaster@gutenberg.org>" name="generator" /> -<style type="text/css"> -.pageno { position: absolute; right: 95%; font: medium sans-serif; text-indent: 0 } -.pageno:after { color: gray; content: '[' attr(title) ']' } -.lineno { position: absolute; left: 95%; font: medium sans-serif; text-indent: 0 } -.lineno:after { color: gray; content: '[' attr(title) ']' } -.toc-pageref { float: right } -pre { font-family: monospace; font-size: 0.9em; white-space: pre-wrap } -</style> -</head> -<body> -<div class="document" id="a-daughter-of-the-rich"> -<h1 class="document-title level-1 pfirst title">A DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</h1> - -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="clearpage"> -</div> -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="align-None container language-en noindent pgheader" id="pg-header" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<p class="noindent pfirst">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 <a class="reference internal" href="#project-gutenberg-license">Project Gutenberg License</a> -included with this eBook or online at -<a class="reference external" href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license">http://www.gutenberg.org/license</a>.</p> -<p class="noindent pnext"></p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<div class="align-None container noindent white-space-pre-line" id="pg-machine-header"> -<p class="noindent pfirst white-space-pre-line"><span class="white-space-pre-line">Title: A Daughter of the Rich<br /> -<br /> -Author: M. E. Waller<br /> -<br /> -Release Date: September 04, 2012 [EBook #40661]<br /> -Reposted: October 06, 2012 [minor corrections]<br /> -<br /> -Language: English<br /> -<br /> -Character set encoding: UTF-8</span></p> -</div> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-start-line">*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK <span>A DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</span> ***</p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-produced-by"><span>Produced by Al Haines.</span></p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst"><span></span></p> -</div> -<div class="align-None container coverpage"> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 59%" id="figure-36"> -<span id="cover"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-cover.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -Cover</div> -</div> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None container frontispiece"> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 61%" id="figure-37"> -<span id="hazel"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-front.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -Hazel</div> -</div> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None center container titlepage white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="pfirst white-space-pre-line x-large">A<br /> -Daughter of the Rich</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">BY</p> -<p class="large pnext white-space-pre-line">M. E. WALLER</p> -<p class="pnext small white-space-pre-line">AUTHOR OF "THE LITTLE CITIZEN"</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<p class="medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">ILLUSTRATED BY<br /> -ELLEN BERNARD THOMPSON</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<p class="medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">BOSTON<br /> -LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY<br /> -1903</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None center container verso white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="pfirst small white-space-pre-line"><em class="italics white-space-pre-line">Copyright, 1903,</em><br /> -BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst small white-space-pre-line"><em class="italics white-space-pre-line">All rights reserved</em></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst small white-space-pre-line">Published October, 1903</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst small white-space-pre-line">UNIVERSITY PRESS<br /> -JOHN WILSON AND SON<br /> -CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None center container dedication white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">To<br /> -"MARTIE"</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None container plainpage white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="center large pfirst white-space-pre-line">CONTENTS</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<ol class="left medium upperroman simple white-space-pre-line"> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#molasses-tea">Molasses Tea</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#mrs-blossom-s-valentine">Mrs. Blossom's Valentine</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-curious-case">A Curious Case</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-little-millionaire">A Little Millionaire</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#transplanted">Transplanted</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#malachi">Malachi</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-n-b-b-o-o-society">The N.B.B.O.O. Society</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-lively-correspondence">A Lively Correspondence</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-prize-chicken">The Prize Chicken</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#an-unexpected-meeting">An Unexpected Meeting</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#jack">Jack</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#results">Results</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-social-addition">A Social Addition</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-lost-nation">The Lost Nation</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#wishing-tree-secrets">Wishing-Tree Secrets</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-christmas-prelude">A Christmas Prelude</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#hunger-ford">Hunger-Ford</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#budd-s-proposal">Budd's Proposal</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-year-and-a-day">A Year And A Day</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#snow-bound">Snow-Bound</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#a-little-daughter-of-the-rich">A Little Daughter of the Rich</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#rose">Rose</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#behold-how-great-a-matter-a-little-fire-kindles">"Behold how great a Matter a Little Fire Kindles"</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#old-put">"Old Put"</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#san-juan">San Juan</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#maria-ann-s-crusade">Maria-Ann's Crusade</a></p> -</li> -<li class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-stars-above-shine-ever-on-love">"--The stars above, Shine ever on Love--"</a></p> -</li> -</ol> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None container plainpage white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="center large pfirst white-space-pre-line">LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#hazel">Hazel</a> . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frontispiece</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#you-can-begin-to-drop-that-corn-this-very-afternoon">"'You can begin to drop that corn this very afternoon'"</a></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#rose-was-at-the-kitchen-table-patting-out-the-dough-for-the-rolls">"Rose was at the kitchen table, patting out the dough for the rolls"</a></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#hazel-flung-both-arms-around-mrs-blossom-s-neck">"Hazel flung both arms around Mrs. Blossom's neck"</a></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#i-want-to-tell-you-why-i-came-up-here">"'I want to tell you why I came up here'"</a></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="left medium pfirst white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-two-girls-leaned-over-the-box-as-hazel-took-off-the-wrapper">"The two girls leaned over the box as Hazel took off the wrapper"</a></p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<p class="center pfirst x-large" id="molasses-tea">A DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst">I</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">MOLASSES TEA</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Good-night, Martie," called a sweet voice down the -stairway.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Rose dear; I thought you were asleep."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Martie," duetted the twins, in the shrillest -of treble and falsetto.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, you rogues; go to sleep; you 'll wake -baby."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Dood-night, mummy," chirped a little voice from the -adjoining room.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a shout of laughter from the twins.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Shut up," growled March from the attic over the -kitchen. "Good-night, mother." His growl ended in a -squeak, for March was at that interesting period of his life -indicated by a change of voice. At the sound, a prolonged -snicker from somewhere was answered by a corresponding -giggle from another-where.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, children," said Mrs. Blossom, speaking up the -stairway, "do be quiet, or baby will be wide awake."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tum tiss me, mummy," piped the little voice a second -time, with no sound of sleep in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, darling, I 'll come;" as she turned to go into the -bedroom adjoining the kitchen, there was the sound of a -jump overhead, a patter of bare feet, a squabble on the -stairs, and Budd and Cherry, the irrepressible ten-year-old -twins, tumbled into the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll haul those kids back to bed for you, mother," -shouted March, and flung himself out of bed to join the -fray, while Rose was not behindhand in making her -appearance.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom came in with little May in her arms, and -that was the signal for a wholesale kissing-party in which -May was hostess.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Children, children, you 'll smother me!" laughed their -mother. "Here, sit down on the rug and warm your -toes,--coming over those bare stairs this cold night!" And -down they sat, Rose and March, Budd and Cherry and -little May, in thick white and red flannel night-dresses -and gray flannel pajamas.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd coughed consumptively, and Cherry followed suit. -March shivered and shook like a small earthquake, and -Rose looked up laughingly at her mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We know what that means, don't we, Martie," she -said. "Shall I help?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, no, dear,--in your bare feet!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom took a lamp from the shelf over the fireplace, -and, leaving the five with their fifty toes turned -and wriggling before the cheering warmth of the blazing -hickory logs, disappeared in the pantry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, bully," said Budd, rubbing his flannel pajamas -just over his stomach; "I wish 't was a cold night every -day, then we could have molasses tea all the time, don't -you, Cherry?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mm," said Cherry, too full of the anticipated treat for -articulate speech.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There 's nothing like it to warm up your insides," said -March; "mother 's a brick to let us get up for it. She -would n't, you know, if father were at home."</p> -<p class="pnext">"My tummy's told," piped May, frantically patting her -chest in imitation of Budd, and all the children shouted to -see the wee four-year-old maiden trying to manufacture a -shiver in the glow of the cheerful fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom had never told her recipe for her "hot -molasses tea;" but it had been famed in the family for -more than a generation. She had it from her mother. -The treat was always reserved for a bitterly cold night, and -the good things in it of which one had a taste--molasses, -white sugar, lemon-peel, butter, peppermint, boiled raisins, -and mysterious unknowns--were compounded with hot -water into a palate-tickling beverage.</p> -<p class="pnext">When Mrs. Blossom reappeared, with a kettle sending -forth a small cloud of fragrant steam in one hand and a -tray filled with tin cups in the other, the delighted "Ohs" -and "Ahs" repaid her for all her extra work at the close -of a busy, weary day.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd rolled over on the rug in his ecstasy, and Cherry -was about to roll on top of him, when March interfered, -and order was restored.</p> -<p class="pnext">As they sat there on the big, braided square of woollen -rag-carpet, sipping and ohing and ahing with supreme -satisfaction, Mrs. Blossom broached the subject of -valentines.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's the first of February, children, and time to begin -to make valentines. You 're not going to forget the Doctor -<em class="italics">this</em> year, are you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, indeed, Martie," said Rose. "He deserves the -prettiest we can make. I 've been thinking about it, and -I 'm going to make him a shaving-case, heart-shaped, with -birch-bark covers, and if March will decorate it for me, I -think it will be lovely; will you, March?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Course I will; the Doctor 's a brick. I 'll tell you -what, Martie, I can pen and ink some of those spruces and -birches that the Doctor was so fond of last summer; -how 'll that do?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just the thing," said his mother; "I know it will -please him. What are you thinking, Cherry?" for the -"other half" of Budd was gazing dreamily into the fire, -forgetting her tea in her revery.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fudge!" said Cherry, shortly. March and Rose -laughed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Keep still making fun of Cherry," said Budd, ruffling -at the sound; and to emphasize his admonishing words, he -dug his sharp elbow so suddenly into March's ribs that -some hot molasses tea flew from the cup which his brother -had just put to his mouth and spattered on his bare -feet.</p> -<p class="pnext">March deliberately set down his tin cup on the hearth -near the fire beside his brother's, and turned upon Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd tried to dodge, but had no room. In a trice, March -had his arms around him, and was hugging him in a -bear-like embrace. "Say you 're sorry!" he demanded.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Au-ow!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Say you 're sorry!" he roared at him, hugging harder.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Au-ow-ee-ow!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Quick, or I 'll squeeze you some more!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd was squirming and twisting like an eel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"O-ee-wau-au-<em class="italics">Au!</em>"</p> -<p class="pnext">"There," said March, releasing him and setting him -down with a thump on the rug; "I 'll teach you to poke -me in the ribs that way and scald my feet.--You 're game, -though, old fellow," he added patronizingly, as he heard a -suspicious sniff from Cherry. "You and Cherry make a -whole team any day."</p> -<p class="pnext">Cherry's sniff changed to a smile, for March did not -condescend to praise either of them very often.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well," she said meditatively, "I suppose it did sound -funny to say that, but I was thinking that if Budd would -make me a little heart-shaped box of birch-bark, I 'd make -some maple-sugar fudge,--you know, Martie, the kind with -butternuts in it,--and that could be my valentine for the -Doctor."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's a bright idea, Cherry," said Mrs. Blossom; -and, "Bully for you, Cherry," said Budd; "we'll begin -to-morrow and crack the butternuts."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What will May do?" asked Mrs. Blossom, lifting the -little girl, who was already showing signs of being -overcome with molasses tea and sleep. May nestled in her -mother's arms, leaned her head, running over with golden -curls, on her mother's breast, and murmured drowsily,--</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Ittle tooties--tut with mummy's -heart-tutter--tutter--tooties--tut--" The -blue-veined eyelids closed over -the lovely eyes; and Mrs. Blossom, holding up her finger -to hush the children's mirth at May's inspired utterance, -carried her back into the bedroom.</p> -<p class="pnext">One after another the children crept noiselessly upstairs, -with a whispered, "Good-night, Martie," and in ten -minutes Mary Blossom knew they were all in the land of -dreams.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="mrs-blossom-s-valentine">II</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">MRS. BLOSSOM'S VALENTINE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was a bitter night. Mrs. Blossom refilled the kitchen -stove, and threw on more hickory in the fireplace in -anticipation of her husband's late return from the village. She -drew her little work-table nearer to the blaze, and sat down -to her sewing. Then she sighed, and, as she bent over the -large willow basket filled with stockings to be darned and -clothes to be mended, a tear rolled down her cheek and -plashed on the edge.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was so much she wanted to do for her children--and -so little with which to do it! There was March, an -artist to his finger-tips, who longed to be an architect; and -Rose, lovely in her young girlhood and giving promise of -a lovelier womanhood, who was willing to work her way -through one of the lesser colleges, if only she could be -prepared for entrance. Mary Blossom saw no prospect of -being able to do anything for either of them.</p> -<p class="pnext">And the father! He must be spared first, if he were to -be their future bread-winner. Mary Blossom could never -forget that day, a year ago this very month, when her -husband was brought home on a stretcher, hurt, as they thought, -unto death, by a tree falling the wrong way in the woods -where he was directing the choppers.</p> -<p class="pnext">What a year it had been! All they had saved had gone -to pay for the extra help hired to carry on the farm and -finish the log-cutting. A surgeon had come from the -nearest city to give his verdict in the case and help if he -could.</p> -<p class="pnext">The farm was mortgaged to enable them to pay the heavy -bills incident to months of sickness and medical attendance; -still the father lay helpless, and Mary Blossom's faith and -courage were put to their severest test, when both doctor -and surgeon pronounced the case hopeless. He might live -for years, they said, but useless, so far as his limbs were -concerned.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was in June; and then it was that Mary Blossom, -leaving Rose in charge of her father and the children, left -her home, and walked bareheaded rapidly up the slope -behind the house, across the upland pastures and over into -the woodlands, from which they had hoped to derive a -sufficient income to provide not only for their necessities, -but for their children's education and the comforts -of life.</p> -<p class="pnext">Deep into the heart of them she made her way; and -there, in the green silence, broken only by the note of a -thrush and the stirring of June leafage above and about -her, she knelt and poured out her sorrow-filled heart before -God, and cast upon Him the intolerable burden that had -rested so long upon her soul.</p> -<p class="pnext">The shadows were lengthening when at last she turned -homewards. Cherry and Budd met her in the pasture, for -Rose had grown anxious and sent them to find her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, where have you been, Martie?" exclaimed the -twins. "We were so frightened about you, because you -didn't come home."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You need n't have been; I 've been talking with a -Friend." And more than that she never said. The children's -curiosity was roused, but when they told Rose and -asked her what mother meant, Rose's eyes filled with tears, -and she kept silence; for she alone knew with Whom her -mother had talked that June afternoon.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Run ahead, Budd, and tell Malachi to harness up Bess. -I want him to take a letter down to the village so that it -may go on the night mail." Budd flew rather than ran; -for there was a look in his mother's face that he had never -seen before, and it awed him.</p> -<p class="pnext">That night a letter went to Doctor Heath, a famous -nerve specialist of New York City. It was a letter from -Mary Blossom, his old-time friend and schoolmate in the -academy at Barton's River. In it she asked him if he -would give her his advice in this case, saying she could -not accept the decision of the physician and surgeon unless -it should be confirmed by him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I cannot pay you now," she wrote, "but it was borne -in upon me this afternoon to write to you, although you -may have forgotten me in these many years, and I have no -claim of present friendship, even, upon your time and -service; but I must heed the inner command to appeal to -you, whatever you may think of me,--if I disobeyed that, -I should be disobeying God's voice in my life,"--and -signed herself, "Yours in childhood's remembrance."</p> -<p class="pnext">The next day a telegram was brought up from the -village; and the day after the Doctor himself followed it.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was an anxious week; but the wonderful skill -conquered. The pressure on a certain nerve was removed, -and for the last six months Benjamin Blossom had been -slowly but surely coming back to his old-time health and -strength. But again this winter the extra help had been -necessary, and it had taxed all Mary Blossom's ingenuity -to make both ends meet; for there was the interest on the -mortgage to be paid every six months, and the ready money -had to go for that.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the midst of her thoughts, her recollections and plans, -she caught the sound of sleigh-bells. The tall clock was -just striking ten. Smoothing every line of care and -banishing all look of sadness from her face, she met her -husband with a cheery smile and a, "I 'm so glad you 've -got home, Ben; it's just twenty below, and the molasses -tea is ready for you and Chi."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi!" called Mr. Blossom towards the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Whoa!" shouted a voice that sounded frosty in spite -of itself. "Whoa, Bess!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come into the kitchen before you turn in; there's -some hot molasses tea waiting for us."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Be there in a minute," he shouted back, and Bess -pranced into the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Mary, this is good," said Mr. Blossom, as he slipped -out of his buffalo-robe coat and into his warm house-jacket, -dropped his boots outside in the shed, and put on his -carpet-slippers that had been waiting for him on the hearth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It is home, Ben," said his wife, bringing out clean tin -cups from the pantry, and putting them to warm beside -the kettle on the hearth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, with you in it, Mary," he said with the smile that -had won him his true-love eighteen years before.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come in, Chi," he called towards the shed, whence -came sounds as if some one were dancing a double-shuffle -in snow-boots.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Fraid I 'll thaw 'n' make a puddle on the hearth, Mis' -Blossom. I 'm as stiff as an icicle: guess I 'll take my tea -perpendic'lar; I ain't fit to sit down."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sit down, sit down, Chi," said Mrs. Blossom. "You 'll -enjoy the tea more; and give yourself a thorough heating -before you go to bed. I 've put the soapstone in it," she -added.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, you beat all, Mis' Blossom; just as if you did n't -find enough to do for yourself, you go to work 'n' make -work." He broke off suddenly, "George Washin'ton!" -he exclaimed, "most forgot to give you this letter that -come on to-night's mail."</p> -<p class="pnext">He handed Mrs. Blossom the letter, which, with some -difficulty, owing to his stiffened fingers, he extracted from -the depths of the tail-pocket of his old overcoat. Then he -helped himself to a brimming cup of the tea, and -apparently swallowed its contents without once taking breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, it's from Doctor Heath!" exclaimed Mrs. Blossom, -recognizing the handwriting. "Is it a valentine, -I wonder?" she said, feigning to laugh, for her heart sank -within her, fearing it might be the bill,--and yet, and yet, -the Doctor had said--she got no further with these -thoughts, so intent was she on the contents of the letter.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, with an eye to prolonging his stay till he should -know the why and wherefore of a letter from the great -Doctor at this season of the year, took another cup of -the tea.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ben, oh, Ben!" cried Mrs. Blossom, in a faint, glad -voice; and therewith, to her husband's amazement, she -handed him the letter, put both arms around his neck, and, -dropping her head on his shoulder, sobbed as if her heart -would break.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi softly put down his half-emptied cup and tiptoed -with creaking boots from the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can't stand that, nohow," he muttered to himself in -the shed; and, forgetting to light his lantern, he felt his -way up the backstairs to his lodging in the room overhead, -blinded by some suspicious drops of water in his eyes, -which he cursed for frost melting from his bushy eyebrows.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Ben, think of it!" she cried, when her husband -had soothed and calmed her. "Twenty-five dollars a -week; that makes a little more than twelve hundred a -year. Why, we can pay off all the mortgage and be free -from that nightmare."</p> -<p class="pnext">For answer her husband drew her closer to him, and late -into the night they sat before the dying fire, talking and -planning for the future.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Children," she said at breakfast next morning, and her -voice sounded so bright and cheery that the room seemed -full of sunshine, although the sky was a hard, cold gray, -"I 've had one valentine already; it came last night from -the Doctor."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi listened with all his ears.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mother!" burst from the children, "where is it?" -"Show it to us." "Why did n't you tell us before -breakfast?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't show it to you yet; it's a live one."</p> -<p class="pnext">"A live one!" chorussed the children.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're fooling us, mother," said March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do I look as if I were?" replied his mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">And March was obliged to confess that she had never -looked more in earnest.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose left her seat and stole to her father's side. "What -does it mean, pater?" she whispered.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ask your mother," was all the satisfaction she received, -and walked, crestfallen, back to her chair; for when had -her father refused her anything?</p> -<p class="pnext">"When will you tell us, anyway?" said Budd, a little -gruffly. He hated a secret.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't tell you that either," said his mother, "and I -don't know that I shall tell you until the very last, if you -ask in that voice."</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd screwed his mouth into a smile, and, unbeknown -to the rest of the family, reached under the cloth for his -mother's hand. He sat next to her, and that had been his -way of saying "Forgive me," ever since he was a tiny boy.</p> -<p class="pnext">He had a squeeze in return and felt happier.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I say, let's guess," said Cherry. "If I don't do -something, I shall burst."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You express my feelings perfectly, Cherry," said March, -gravely, and the guessing began.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A St. Bernard puppy?" said Budd, who coveted one.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A Shetland pony," said Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Doctor's coming up here, himself." That was -Rose's guess.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T ain't likely," growled Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A tunning 'ittle baby," chirped May.</p> -<p class="pnext">March failed to think of any live thing the Doctor was -likely to send unless it might be a Wyandotte blood-rooster, -such as he and the Doctor had talked about last summer.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're all cold, cold as ice," laughed their mother, -using the words of the game she had so often played with -them when they were younger.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother!" they protested. They were almost -indignant.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi rose and left the table. "Beats me," he muttered, -as he took down his axe from a beam in the woodshed. -"What in thunder can it be? I ain't goin' to ask -questions, but I 'll ferret it out,--by George Washin'ton;" -and that was Chi's most solemn oath.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-curious-case">III</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A CURIOUS CASE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"What is it, dear?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Bothered--bothered."</p> -<p class="pnext">"A case?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and I must get it off my mind this evening."</p> -<p class="pnext">The Doctor set down his after-dinner coffee untasted on -the library table, and rose with a half sigh from his easy -chair before the blazing wood-fire. His heavy eyebrows -were drawn together into a straight line over the bridge of -his nose, and that, his wife knew full well, was an ominous -sign.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Must you go to-night? It's such a fearful storm; -just hear it!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I must; just to get it off my mind. I sha'n't be -gone long, and I 'll tell you all about it when I get home." The -Doctor stooped and kissed the detaining hand that his -wife had laid lovingly on his arm; then, turning to the -telephone, he bespoke a cab.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the vehicle made its way up Fifth Avenue in the teeth -of a February, northeast gale that drove the sleet rattling -against the windows, Doctor Heath settled back farther -into his corner, growling to himself, "I wish some people -would let me manage their affairs for them; it would -show their common sense to let me show them some of -mine."</p> -<p class="pnext">A few blocks north of the park entrance, the cab turned -east into a side street, and stopped at Number 4.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mr. Clyde in, Wilkins?" asked the Doctor of the -colored butler, who opened the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, sah; jes' up from dinner, sah, to see Miss Hazel."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tell him I want to see him in the library."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, sah." He took the Doctor's cloak and hat, -hesitating a moment before leaving, then turning, said: "'Scuse -me, sah, but Miss Hazel ain't more discomposed?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, no, Wilkins; Miss Hazel is doing fairly well."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you, sah;" and Wilkins ducked his head and -sprang upstairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Dick," said Mr. Clyde, as he entered the library -hurriedly, "what's wrong?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"The world in general, Johnny, and your world in -particular, old fellow."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is Hazel worse?" The father's anxiety could be -heard in the tone with which he put the question.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm not satisfied, John, and I 'm bothered."</p> -<p class="pnext">When Doctor Heath called his friend "John," Mr. Clyde -knew that the very soul of him was heavily burdened. -The two had been chums at Yale: the one a rich man's -son; the other a country doctor's one boy, to whom had -been bequeathed only a name honored in every county of -his native state, a good constitution, and an ambition to -follow his father's profession. The boy had become one of -the leading physicians of the great city in which he made -his home; his friend one of the most sought-after men in -the whirling gayeties of the great metropolis. As he stood -on the hearth with his back to the mantel waiting for the -physician's next word, he was typical of the best culture of -the city, and the Doctor looked up into the fine face with -a deep affection visible in his eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Going out, as usual, John?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Only to the Pearsells' reception. Don't keep me -waiting, old fellow; speak up."</p> -<p class="pnext">"How the deuce am I to make things plain to you, -John? Here, draw up your chair a little nearer mine, as -you used in college when you knew I had a four A.M. lecture -awaiting you, after one of your larks."</p> -<p class="pnext">The two men helped themselves to cigars; and the -Doctor, resting his head on the back of the chair, slowly -let forth the smoke in curling rings, and watched them -dissolve and disperse.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come, Dick, go ahead; I can stand it if you can."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, then, I 've done all I can for Hazel, and shall -have to give up the case unless you do all you can for -her."</p> -<p class="pnext">Now the Doctor had not intended to make his statement -in such a blunt fashion, and he could not blame Mr. Clyde -for the touch of resentment that was so quick to show in -his answer.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I did n't suppose you went back on your patients in -this way, Richard; much less on a friend. I have done -everything I can for Hazel. If there is anything I've -omitted, just tell me, and I 'll try to make it good."</p> -<p class="pnext">The Doctor nodded penitently. "I know, John, I 've -said it badly; and I don't know but that I shall make it -worse by saying you 've done too much."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Too much! That is not possible. Did n't you order -last year's trip to Florida and the summer yachting -cruise?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Doctor Heath groaned. "I'm getting in deeper and -deeper, John; you can't understand, because you are you; -born and bred as you are-- Look here, John, did it ever -occur to you that Hazel is a little hot-house plant that -needs hardening?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, Richard."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, she is; she needs hardening to make her any -kind of a woman physically and, and--" The Doctor -stopped short. There were some things of which he -rarely spoke.</p> -<p class="pnext">"My Hazel needs hardening!" exclaimed the amazed -father. "Why, Richard, have n't you impressed upon me -again and again that she needs the greatest care?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The Doctor groaned again and smote his friend solidly -on the knee.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, you poor rich--you poor rich! 'Eyes have ye, -and ye see not; ears have ye, and hear not.' John, the -girl must go away from you, who over-indulge her, from -this home-nest of luxury, from this private-school business -and dancing-class dissipation, from her young-grown-up -lunch-parties and matinée-parties, from her violin lessons -and her indoor gymnastics--curse them!"</p> -<p class="pnext">This was a great deal for the usually self-contained -physician, and Mr. Clyde stared at him, but half comprehending.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Go away? Do you mean, Richard, that she must -leave me?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I mean just that."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well,"--it was a long-drawn, thinking "well,"--"I -will ask my sister to take her this summer. She -returns from Egypt soon and has just written me she intends -to open her place, 'The Wyndes,' in June."</p> -<p class="pnext">Again the Doctor groaned: "And kill her with golf -and picnics and coaching among all those fashionable -butterflies! Now, hear to me, John," he laid his hand on -his friend's shoulder, "send her away into the country, -that is country,--something, by the way, which you -know precious little about. Let me find her a place up -among those life-giving Green Hills, and do you do -without her for one year. Let me prescribe for her there; -and I 'll guarantee she returns to you hale and hearty. -Trust her to me, John; you 'll thank me in the end. I -can do no more for her here."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you mean, Richard, to put her away into real -country conditions?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, just that; into a farmer's family, if possible,--and -I know I can make it possible,--and let her be as -one of them, work, play, go barefoot, eat, sleep, be merry--in -fact, be what the Lord intended her to be; and you 'll -find out that is something very different from what she is, -if only you 'll hear to me."</p> -<p class="pnext">The Doctor was pacing the room in his earnestness. -He was not accustomed to beg thus to be allowed to -prescribe for his patients. His one word was law, and he -was not required to explain his motives.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde's eyes followed him; then he broke the -prolonged silence.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Richard, you have asked me the one thing to which -her mother would never have consented. How, then, -can I?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Think it over, John, and let me know."</p> -<p class="pnext">The two men clasped hands.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let me take you along in my cab to the reception; -it's inhuman to take out your horses on such a -night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you, no; I think I 'll give it up; I 'm not in -the mood for it. Good-night, old fellow."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Johnny."</p> -<p class="pnext">The next morning, at breakfast, the Doctor took up a -note that lay beside his plate, and after reading it -beamed joyously while he stirred his coffee vigorously -without drinking it. When, finally, he looked up, his -wife elevated her eyebrows over the top of the coffee urn, -and the Doctor laughed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"To be sure, wifie, read the note." And this is what -she read:--</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAR RICHARD,--I 've had a hard night, trying to look at -things from your point of view and see my own duty towards -Hazel. Things have grown rather misty, looking both -backwards and forwards, and I have concluded I can't do better -than to take you at your word,--trust her to you, and accept -the guarantee of her return to me with her physical condition -such as it should be.</p> -<p class="pnext">This decision will, as you well know, raise a storm of protest -among the relations. The whole swarm will be about my -ears in less than no time. Stand by me. The whole -responsibility rests upon you,--and tell Hazel; I 'm too much -of a coward. This is a confession, but you will understand. -Let me know the details of your plans so soon as possible. -I have never been able to give you such a proof of friendship. -Have you ever asked another man for such? I mistrust you, -old fellow.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Yours,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">JOHN.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-little-millionaire">IV</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A LITTLE MILLIONAIRE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Gabrielle."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oui, mademoiselle Hazel," came in shrill yet muffled -tones from the depths of the dressing-room closet.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Bring me my white silk kimono."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oui, mademoiselle."</p> -<p class="pnext">The order, in French, was given in a weak and slightly -fretful voice that issued from the bed at the farther end of -a large room from which the dressing-room opened. The -apartment was, in truth, what Doctor Heath had called it, -"a nest of luxury."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a bitter Saint Valentine's Day which succeeded the -Doctor's evening visit. The wood-fire, blazing cheerily in -the ample fireplace, sent its warmth and light far out into -the room, flashing red reflections in the curiously twisted -bars of the brass bedstead. At the left of the fireplace -stood a small round tea-table, and upon it a little silver -tea-kettle on a standard of the same metal. Dainty cups -and saucers of egg-shell china were grouped about it; a -miniature silver tray held a sugar-dish and a cream-pot -and a half-dozen gold-lined souvenir spoons.</p> -<p class="pnext">On the richly carved mantel stood an exquisite plate-glass -clock, the chimes of which were just striking nine, -and, keeping it company to right and left, were two dainty -figures of a shepherd and shepherdess in Dresden china. -The remaining mantel space was filled with tiny figures -in bisque,--a dachshund, a cat and kittens, a porcelain -box, heart-shaped, the top covered with china forget-me-nots, -a silver drinking-cup, a small oval portrait on ivory -of a beautiful young woman, framed in richly chased gold, -the inner rim set round with pearls. A blue pitcher of -Cloisonné and a tray of filigree silver heaped with dainty -cotillion favors stood on one end; on the other, a crystal -vase filled with white tulips.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soft blue and white Japanese rugs lay upon the polished -floor; delicate blue and white draperies hung at the -windows. Dressing-case and writing-desk of white curled -maple were each laden with articles for the toilet and for -writing, in solid silver, engraved with the monogram H.C. -A couch, upholstered in blue and white Japanese silk, stood -at the right of the fireplace, and all about the room were -dainty wicker chairs enamelled in white, and cushioned to -match the hangings.</p> -<p class="pnext">The bed was canopied in pale blue covered with white -net and edged with lace, and the coverlet was of silk of -the same delicate color, embroidered with white violets -and edged like the canopy, only with a deeper frill of lace. -The occupant of this couch, fit for a princess royal, was -the little mistress of all she surveyed, as well as the -mansion of which the room formed a small part; and a -woebegone-looking little girl she was, who called again, and -this time impatiently:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Gabrielle, hurry, do."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oui, oui, mademoiselle Hazel;" and Gabrielle tripped -across the room with the white kimono in one hand and -fresh towels in the other. She had just slipped it upon -Hazel when there was a knock at the door. Gabrielle -opened it, and Wilkins asked in a voice intended to be -low, but which proved only husky:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nuss say she mus' jes' speak wif Marse Clyde 'fo' she -come up, an' wan's to know if Miss Hazel will haf her -breffus now or wait till she come up herse'f."</p> -<p class="pnext">Before Gabrielle could answer, Hazel called out, "You -may bring it up now, Wilkins; and has the postman come -yet?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins' broad smile sounded in his voice, as it came out -of its huskiness.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Miss Hazel, ben jes' 'fo' I come up. I ain't seen -no hearts, but dey's thicker 'n spatter by de feel, an' a -heap o' boxes by 'spress!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, bring them up quick, Wilkins, and tell papa to be -sure and come up directly after breakfast."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, for sho', Miss Hazel," said Wilkins, delighted -to have a word with the little daughter of her whom -he had carried in his arms thirty-two years ago up and -down the jasmine-covered porch of an old New Orleans -mansion.</p> -<p class="pnext">In a few minutes, he reappeared with two large silver -trays, on one of which was the tempting breakfast of -Hamburg grapes, a dropped egg, a slice of golden-brown -toast, half of a squab broiled to the melting-point, and a -cup of cocoa. On the other were boxes large and small, -and white envelopes of all sizes.</p> -<p class="pnext">Gabrielle cut the string and opened the boxes, while -Hazel looked on, pleased to be remembered, but finding -nothing unusual in the display; for Christmas and Easter -and birthdays and parties brought just about the same -collection, minus "the hearts," which Wilkins had felt -through the covers. The only fun, after all, was in the -guessing.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then Mr. Clyde entered.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, papa! I 'm so glad you have come; it's no fun -guessing alone." She put up her peaked, sallow little -face for the good-morning kiss; and her father, with the -thought of his last night's struggle, took the face in both -hands and kissed brow and mouth with unusual tenderness.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, papa!" she exclaimed, "that kiss is my best -valentine; you never kissed me that way before."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, it's time I began, Birdie; let's see what you -have for nonsense here. What's this--from Cambridge?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, that's Jack, I 'm sure; he always sends me violets; -but what is that in the middle of the bunch?" With a -smile she drew out a tiny vignette of her Harvard -Sophomore cousin. It was framed in a little gold heart, and on -a slip of paper was written, "For thee, I 'm all 'art."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Jack 's a gay deceiver," laughed her father; "he 's all -''art' for a good many girls, big and little. What's -this?--and this?"</p> -<p class="pnext">One after another he took out the contents of envelopes -and boxes,--candy hearts by the pound in silver bonbon -boxes, silk hearts, paper hearts, a flower heart of real roses -("That's from you, Papa Clyde!" she exclaimed, and her -father did not deny the pleasant accusation), hollow gilt -hearts stuffed with sentiments, a silver chatelaine heart for -change, and last, but not least, an enormous envelope, a -foot square, containing a white paper heart all written over -with "sentiments" from the girls in her class at school.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come now, Birdie," said her father, after the last one -had been opened and guessed over, "eat your breakfast, or -nurse will scold us both for putting play before business."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't think I want any, papa," said Hazel, languidly, -for, after all, the valentines had proved to be almost too -much excitement for the little girl, who was just -recovering from weeks of slow fever; "and, Gabrielle, take the -flowers away, they make my head ache,--and the other -things, too," she added, turning her head wearily on the -pillow.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But you must eat, Hazel dear," said her father, gently -but firmly; and therewith he took a grape and squeezed -the pulp between her lips. Hazel laughed,--a faint -sound.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, papa, if you feed me that way, I shall be a real -Birdie. Yes," she nodded, "that's good; I 'll take -another;" and her father proceeded to feed her slowly, -now coaxing, now urging, then commanding, till a few -grapes and a half egg were disposed of.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There, now, I won't play tyrant any longer," he said, -"for your real tyrant of a doctor is coming soon, and I -must be out of the way."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Are you going to be at home for luncheon to-day, papa?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, dear, I 've promised to go out to Tuxedo with the -Masons, but I shall be at home before dinner, just to look -in upon you. I dine with the Pearsells afterwards. -Good-bye." A kiss,--two, three of them; and the merry, -handsome young father, still but thirty-seven, had gone, -and with him much of the brightness of Hazel's day.</p> -<p class="pnext">But she was used to this. Ever since she could remember -anything, she had been petted and kissed and--left -with her nurse, her governess, or a French maid.</p> -<p class="pnext">Her young mother, a Southern belle, lived more out of -her home than in it, with the round of gayeties in the -winter months interrupted and continued by winter -house-parties at Lenox, a yachting cruise in the Mediterranean, -an early spring-flitting to the mountains of North Carolina, -and the later household moving to Newport.</p> -<p class="pnext">In all these migrations Hazel accompanied her parents; -in fact, was moved about as so much goods and chattels, -from New York to the Berkshires, from the Berkshires to -Malta, from Malta to the Great Smokies, from the -mountains to the sea; her appurtenances, the governess and -French maid, went with her; and the routine of her home -in New York, the study, the promenade, the all-alone -breakfasts and dinners went on with the regularity of -clockwork, whether on the yacht, in the mountains, or in -the villa on the Cliff.</p> -<p class="pnext">So now, although she wished her father would stay and -entertain her, it never occurred to her to tell him so; and -likewise it never occurred to the father that his child -needed or wished him to stay. Nor had it ever occurred -to the young mother that she was not doing her whole -duty by her child; for she never omitted to go upstairs -and kiss her little daughter good-night, whether the child -was awake or asleep, before going out to dinner, theatre, -or reception.</p> -<p class="pnext">She died when Hazel was nine, and it was a lovely -memory of "mamma" that Hazel cherished: a vision of -loveliness in trailing white silk, or velvet, or lace,--her -mother always wore white, it was her Southern -inheritance,--with a single dark-red rose among the folds of -Venetian point of the bertha; always a gleam of white neck -and arms banded with flashing, many-faceted diamonds, -or roped with pearls; always a sense of delicious white -warmth and fragrance, as the vision bent over her and -pressed a light kiss upon her cheek. And if, in her bliss, -she opened her sleepy eyes, she looked always into -laughing brown depths, and putting up her hand caressed -shining masses of brown hair.</p> -<p class="pnext">But it was always a good-night vision. In the morning -mamma did not breakfast until ten, and Hazel was off to -the little private school at half-past nine. At noon -mamma was either out at lunch or giving a lunch-party; -and in the afternoon there was the promenade in the -Park with the governess, and sometimes, as a treat, a drive -with mamma on her round of calls, when Hazel and the -maid sat among the furs in the carriage. Then Hazel -played at being grown up, and longed for the time when -she could wear a reception dress like mamma's, of white -broadcloth and sable, and trip up the steps of the various -houses, and trip down again with a bevy of young girls -laughing and chatting so merrily.</p> -<p class="pnext">All that had ceased when Hazel was nine, and the -young father had made her mistress in her mother's place. -It was such a great house! and there were so many -servants! and the housekeeper was so strict! and it was so -queer to sit at the round table in the big dining-room and -try to look at papa over the silver épergne in the centre!</p> -<p class="pnext">When she was eleven, she entered one of the large -private schools which many of her little mates attended. -Soon it came to be the "girls of our set" with Hazel; -and then there followed music-lessons, and violin-lessons, -and riding-lessons, and dancing-class, and riding-days in -the Park, and lunch-parties with the girls, and -theatre-matinée-parties, and concerts at Carnegie Hall, and birthday -parties, and sales--school and drawing-room affairs--and -Lenten sewing-classes; until gradually her little -society life had become an epitome of her mother's, and -when she began to shoot up like a bean-sprout, lose -her round face and the delicate pink from her cheeks, -uncles and aunt and cousin and friends whispered of her -mother's frail constitution, and that it was time to take -heed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then it was that the physician, who had helped to bring -her into the world, was summoned hastily to prevent her -early departure from it. This was the "curious case" -that so bothered him; and this pale, languid girl of -thirteen in the blue-canopied bed was the one he intended to -transplant into another soil.</p> -<p class="pnext">A short, sharp tap announced his arrival. The nurse -opened the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-morning, little girl--ah, ah! Saint Valentine's -Day? I had forgotten it; all those came this morning?" -he said cheerily, pointing to a table on which Gabrielle -had placed all the remembrances but the flowers.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Doctor Heath; but my best valentine, you know, -is papa, and after him, you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hm, flatterer!" growled the Doctor, feeling her pulse. -"Pretty good, pretty good. Think we can get you up -for half a day. What do you say, nurse?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I think it will do her good, Doctor Heath; she has no -appetite yet, and a little exercise might help her to it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No appetite?" The two eyebrows drew together in a -straight line over the bridge of his nose, and, from under -them, a pair of keen eyes looked at Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 've planned something that will give you a -splendid one, Hazel,--the best kind of a tonic--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I don't want to take any more tonics. I am so -sick of them," said Hazel, in a despairing tone, for although -she adored the Doctor, she despised his medicines.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You won't get sick of this tonic so soon, I 'll -warrant," he said, unbending his brows and letting the full -twinkle of his fine eyes shine forth,--"at least not after -you are used to it. I won't say but that it may cause -a certain kind of sickness at first; in fact, I 'm sure -of it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, will it nauseate me?" cried Hazel, dreading to -suffer any more.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, no, it won't do that, but--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"But what <em class="italics">do</em> you mean, Doctor Heath? Are you joking?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Never was more in earnest in my life," replied the -Doctor, rubbing his hands in glee, much to Hazel's -amazement. "Hazel," he turned abruptly to her, "papa is a -splendid fellow; did you know that?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel laughed aloud, a real girl's laugh,--Doctor Heath -was so queer at times.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Have you just found that out?" she retorted.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, you witch,--don't be impertinent to your elders,--I -have n't; but really he is, take it all in all, just about -the most common-sense fellow in New York City."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What has he done now, that you are praising him so?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just heard to me, my dear, and agreed to do just as I -want him to," said the Doctor, demurely.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why," laughed Hazel, "that's just when I think he is -a most splendid fellow, when he does just what I want him -to. Is n't it funny you and I think just alike!" And she -gave his hand a malicious little pat. The Doctor caught -the five slender digits and held them fast.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now we 're agreed that you have the most splendid, -common-sense father in the world, I want you to prove to -me that your father has the most splendid, common-sense -daughter in it, as well."</p> -<p class="pnext">Again Hazel laughed. She was used to her friend's ways.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That means that you want me to take that old, new -tonic of yours."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, just that," said the Doctor, emphatically; "and -now, as you don't appear to care to hear about it, I 'm going -to make a long call and tell you its entire history."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Have you brought it with you?" asked Hazel, somewhat -mystified.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I can't carry around with me in a cab five children, -a hundred acres of pine woods, a whole mountain-top, and -a few Jersey cows."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What <em class="italics">do</em> you mean? You <em class="italics">are</em> joking."</p> -<p class="pnext">Then the physician clasped the thin hand a little more -closely and told her of the country plan.</p> -<p class="pnext">At first, Hazel failed to comprehend it. She gazed at -the speaker with large, serious eyes, as if she half-feared -he had taken leave of his senses.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did papa know it this morning?" was her first question.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, my dear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Then that is why he kissed me the way he did," she -said thoughtfully. "But," her lip quivered, "I sha'n't -have him to kiss me up there, and--and--oh, dear!" A -wail went up from the canopied bed that made the Doctor -turn sick at heart, and even the nurse hurried away into -the dressing-room.</p> -<p class="pnext">Somehow Doctor Heath could not exhort Hazel, as he -had her father, to use common-sense. He preferred to use -diplomacy.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You see, Hazel, a year won't be so very long, and it -will give your hair time to grow; and perhaps you would -not mind wearing a cap for a time up there, while if you -were here you certainly would not care about going to -dancing-school or parties in that rig; now would you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel sniffed and looked for her handkerchief. As she -failed to find it, the Doctor applied his own huge square of -linen to the dripping, reddened eyes, and tenderly stroked -the smooth-shaven head.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel had her vanities like all girls, and her long dark -braids had been one of them. After the fever, she had -been shorn of what scanty locks had been left to her, and -many a time she had wondered what the girls would say -when they saw her. After all, the new plan might be -endured, for the sake of the hair and her looks.</p> -<p class="pnext">She sniffed again, and this time a good many tears were -drawn up into her nose. The Doctor, taking no notice of -the subsiding flood, proceeded,--</p> -<p class="pnext">"My patients always look so comical when the fuzz is -coming out. It's like chicken-down all over the head--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fuzz!" exclaimed Hazel, with a dismayed, wide-eyed -look; "must I have fuzz for hair?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course, for about five months," was the Doctor's -matter-of-fact reply. "Then," he continued, apparently -unheeding the look of relief that crept over Hazel's -face, "you are apt to have the hair come out curly."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and it really grows very fast--that is," he said, -resorting to wile, "if any one is strong and well; but if -the general health is not good, why--hem!--the hair -is n't apt to grow!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Goodness! I don't want to be bald all my life!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I thought not, and for that very reason it did seem -the best thing for you to get into the country where you can -get well and strong as fast as ever you can."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Shall I have to eat my breakfast and dinner alone up -there?" was her next question.</p> -<p class="pnext">Doctor Heath laughed. "What! With all those five -children! You will never want for company, I can assure -you of that. And now I 'll be off; as it's Saint Valentine's -Day, which I had forgotten, I 'll wager I have five -valentines from those very children waiting for me at home."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Will you show them to me, if you have?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"To be sure I will. Now sit up for half a day, and get -yourself strong enough to let me take you up there by the -middle of March."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, are you going to take me? What fun! Are they -friends of yours?" she added timidly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Every one," said the Doctor, emphatically. He turned -at the door. "You have n't said yet whether you will -honor me with your company up there."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I suppose I must," she said, with something between -a sigh and a laugh. "But I don't know what Gabrielle -will do; she 'll be so homesick."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Gabrielle!" cried the Doctor, in a voice loud with -amazement; "you don't think you are going to take -Gabrielle with you, do you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Before Hazel had time to recover from her astonishment, -Gabrielle, hearing her name called so loudly, came tripping -into the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oui, oui, monsieur le docteur;" and Doctor Heath -beat a hasty retreat to avoid further misunderstandings.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the afternoon, Hazel received a box by messenger, -with, "Please return by bearer," on the wrapper. On -opening it, she found the Doctor's valentines with the -following sentiments appropriately attached.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<!-- --> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">I</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">By Rose-pose made, by March adorned,</div> -<div class="line">'T is not a Heart that one should scorn:</div> -<div class="line">For use each day, the whole year through,</div> -<div class="line">Where find a Valentine so true?</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">II</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">Cherry Blossom made this fudge</div> -<div class="line">(Buddie made the box).</div> -<div class="line">Eat it soon, or you will judge,</div> -<div class="line">She made it all of rocks.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">III</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">Baby May has made this cookie;</div> -<div class="line">Mother baked it--but, by hookey!</div> -<div class="line">I can't find another rhyme</div> -<div class="line">To match with this your valentine.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Your loving Valentines,</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">ROSE, MARCH, "BUDD AND CHERRY," MAY BLOSSOM.</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">(We're one.)</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="line">MOUNT HUNGER, February 14, 1896.</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="transplanted">V</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">TRANSPLANTED</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was the middle of April, yet the drifts still blocked -the ravines, and great patches of snow lay scattered thickly -on the northern and eastern slopes of the mountains.</p> -<p class="pnext">Not a bud had thought of swelling; not a fern dared to -raise its downy ball above the sodden leaves. Day after -day a keen wind from the north chased dark clouds across -a watery blue sky, and now and then a solitary crow -flapped disconsolately over the upland pastures and into -the woods.</p> -<p class="pnext">But in the farmhouse on the mountain, every Blossom -was a-quiver with excitement, for the "live Valentine" -was to arrive that day.</p> -<p class="pnext">According to what Doctor Heath had written first, -Mrs. Blossom had expected Hazel to come the middle of March. -She had told the children about it a week before that -date, and ever since, wild and varied and continuous had -been the speculations concerning the new member of the -family.</p> -<p class="pnext">Both father and mother were much amused at the -different ways in which each one accepted the fact, and -commented upon it. At the same time they were slightly -anxious as to the outcome of such a combination.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 'll work it out for themselves, Mary," said -Mr. Blossom, when his wife was expressing her fears on account -of the attitude of March and Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hope with all my heart they will, without friction or -unpleasantness for the poor child," replied his wife, -thoughtfully, for March's looks and words returned to her, and -they foreboded trouble.</p> -<p class="pnext">Her husband smiled. "Perhaps the 'poor child' will -have her ways of looking at things up here, which may -cause a pretty hard rub now and then for our children. -But let them take it; it will do them good, and show -us what stuff is in them for the future."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom tried to think so, but March's words on -that afternoon she had told the children came back to her.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were dumb at first through sheer surprise. Then -Rose spoke, flinging aside her Virgil she had been studying -by the failing light at the window.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother! we 've been so happy--just by ourselves."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Will you be less happy, Rose, in trying to make -some one else share our happiness?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose said nothing, but leaned her forehead against the -pane, and the tears trickled adown it and froze halfway.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom proceeded, in the silence that followed, to -tell them something of Hazel's life. Then Budd spoke up -like a man.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm awful sorry for her; she 's a little brick to be -willing to come away from her father and live with folks -she don't know. I 'd be a darned coward about leaving -my Popsey."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was no tablecloth handy to hide the squeeze he -wanted to give his mother's hand, and Mrs. Blossom, -knowing how he hated any public demonstration of affection, -reserved her approving kiss for the dark and bedtime. But -she looked at him in a way that sent Budd whistling, "I -won't play in your back-yard," over to the kitchen stove, -where he stared inanely at his own reflection in the polished -pipe.</p> -<p class="pnext">For the first time in her life, Cherry did not echo her -twin's sentiment. She was already insanely jealous of the -new-comer who seemed to claim so much of her mother's -sympathy and affection. And she was n't even here! -What would it be when she was here for good and all?</p> -<p class="pnext">At this miserable thought, and all that it appeared to -involve, Cherry began to cry.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now to see Cherry Blossom cry generally afforded -great fun for the whole family; for there never was a -girl of ten who could cry in quite such a unique manner -as this same round-faced, pug-nosed, brown-eyed Cherry, -whose red hair curled as tightly as corkscrews all over -her head, and bobbed and danced and quivered and shook -with every motion and emotion.</p> -<p class="pnext">First, her nose grew very red at the tip; then, her small -mouth screwed itself around by her left ear; gradually, -her round face wrinkled till it resembled a withered -crabapple; and finally, if one listened intently and watched -closely, one could hear small sniffs and see two -infinitesimal drops of water issue from the nearly closed and -wrinkled eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">But to-day no one noticed, and Cherry sat down in -her mother's lap, and mumbled out her woe between sniffs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't help it if Budd does want her; <em class="italics">I</em> don't, Martie. -Budd will play with her, and you 'll kiss her just as you -do us, and it won't be comfy any more."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That does not sound like mother's Cherry Blossom," -said Mrs. Blossom, smiling in spite of herself. "I think -I 'll tell you all why it comes to mother and father as a -blessing."</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Mrs. Blossom told them of the mortgage on the -farm; how it had been made necessary, and what it meant, -and how it was her duty to accept what had been sent to -her as a means of paying it off.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose came over from the window. "Oh, why did n't -you tell us before, Martie," she cried, sobbing outright this -time, "and let us help you to earn something towards it -during all this dreadful year? To think you have been -bearing all this, and just going about the same, smiling and -cheer--oh, dear!" Rose sat down on the hearth-rug at her -mother's feet, and her sobs mingled with Cherry's sniffs.</p> -<p class="pnext">March, who had listened thus far in silence, rose from -the settle where he had flung himself in disgust, and, going -over to his mother, stood straight and tall before her. His -gray eyes flashed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've been a fool, mother, not to see it all before this. -You ought to have told <em class="italics">me</em>. I 'm your eldest son, and come -next after father in 'home things.'" And with this -assertion he made a mighty resolve, then and there to put away -boyish things and be more of a man. His mother, looking -at him, felt the change, and tears of thankfulness filled her -eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What could you do, children? You were too young -to have your lives burdened with work."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'd have found something to do, mother, if you had -only told me. About the girl--" he hesitated--"of -course I 'll look at it from the money side, but it 'll never -be the same after she comes--never!" And with that he -went off into the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">His mother sighed, for March was looking at the matter -in the very way which, to her, was abhorrent.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't sigh so, Martie," cried Rose; "I 'll take back -what I said, and do everything I can to help you by -making it pleasant for her. Budd has made me ashamed of -myself."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's my own daughter Rose," said Mrs. Blossom, -leaning over to kiss her parting, for Cherry was awkwardly -in the way.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you hear Rose, Cherry?" whispered her mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ye-es," sniffed Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And won't you try to help mother, and make Hazel -happy?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"N-o," said Cherry, still obdurate.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Very well; then I must depend on Rose and Budd and -little May," replied her mother, putting her down from her -knee. By which Cherry knew she was out of favor, and, -not having Budd to flee to for sympathy, ran blindly out -into the woodshed and straight into Chi, who was bringing -in two twelve-quart milk pails filled to overflowing with -their creamy contents.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hi there! Cherry Bounce! Steady, steady--without -you want to mop up this woodshed."</p> -<p class="pnext">"O Chi! I 'm just as miser'ble; a new little girl's -coming to live with us always, and we 'll have no more -good times."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's queer," said Chi, balancing the pails deftly as -Cherry fluttered about, rather uncertain as to where she -should betake herself in the cold. "I should think it -would be the more, the merrier. When's she comin'?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"This very month," said Cherry, opening her eyes a little -wider, and forgetting to sniff in her delight at telling some -news. "She 's a rich little girl, but very poor, too, mother -says, and she's been sick and is coming here to get well. I -suppose she 's lost all her flesh while she 's been sick, like -Aunt Tryphosa; don't you? That's why she 's so poor."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hm!--rich 'n' poor too; that's bad for children," said -Chi, soberly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why?" asked Cherry, surprised into drying her small -tears and forgetting to sniff.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Coz 't is. You see, all you children are rich 'n' poor -too; so she 'll keep you comp'ny, as she 's poor where -you 're rich as Croesus, 'n' you 're poor as Job's turkey -where she's rich."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, what do you mean, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You wait awhile, 'n' you 'll find out." And with that, -Cherry had to be content.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the woodshed was too cold to be long comfortably -mournful in,--Cherry decided to go inside and set the -table for tea, wondering, meanwhile, what Chi meant. -Ordinarily she would have gone straight to her mother to -find out; but just to-night Cherry felt there was an abyss -separating them, and she hated the very thought of the -newcomer having caused this break between her adored -Martie and herself before having stepped foot in the house.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Hazel's arrival had been delayed a whole month: -first, on account of the unusually cold weather of March, -and then on account of the Doctor's pressing engagements. -To-night, however, this long waiting was to be at an end.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Blossom had harnessed Bess and Bob into the two-seated -wagon, and driven down three miles for them to the -"Mill Settlement;" and there he was to meet the stage -from Barton's River, the nearest railway station.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the time approached for the light of the lantern on -the wagon to glimmer on the lower mountain road, which -ran in view of the house, the excitement of Budd and Cherry -grew intense. March intended to be indifferent, yet tolerant, -but even he went twice to the door to listen. As for Rose, -she was thinking almost more of Doctor Heath, with whom -she was a great favorite, than of the coming guest. Chi -had done up the chores early with March's help, and sat -whistling and whittling in the shed door with his eye on -the lower road.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're coming; they 're coming!" screamed the twins, -making a wild dash for the woodshed, that they might have -the first glimpse as the wagon drove up to the kitchen -porch.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi, they 're coming!" they shrieked in his ear, as they -flew past him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I ain't deaf, if they are," said Chi, gathering -himself together, and going out to help unload.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi, how are you?" said the Doctor, in a hearty tone, -grasping the horny hand held out to him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"First-rate, 'n' glad to see you back on the Mountain."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here, lend a hand, will you? and take out a Little -somebody who has to be handled rather gently for a week or -two."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I ain't much used to handlin' chiny," he replied, "but -I 'll be careful."</p> -<p class="pnext">He reached up his long arms and, gently as a woman, -lifted Hazel out of the wagon on to the porch.</p> -<p class="pnext">By this time, Budd had found his bearings and had the -Doctor by the hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Halloo, Budd! here you are handy. Just take Hazel's -bag, and run into the house with her; she must n't stand a -minute in this keen air."</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd's heart was going pretty fast, but he faced the -music.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come along, Hazel; we 've been waiting a month to see you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And I've been waiting longer than that to see you, -Budd." The gentle voice made Budd her vassal forever -after.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here, Martie, here's Hazel!" he shouted quite -unnecessarily, for his mother had come to the door to welcome -her guests. Cherry, hearing the shout, disappeared in the -pantry, and was invisible until called to supper.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the confusion of glad welcome that followed, Hazel -was conscious of stepping into a large, warm, lighted room, -of some one's arms about her, and of a loving voice, saying:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come in, dear; you must be so tired with your long -journey and this cold ride;" and then a kiss that made her -half forget the lonely, strange feeling she had had during -the stage and wagon ride, despite the doctor's cheerfulness -and care of her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then some one untied her brown velvet hood and loosened -her long sealskin coat.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let me take off your things," said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked up and into the loveliest face she ever -remembered to have seen.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm Rose, and this is May. May, this is the valentine -Martie told us of."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I tiss 'oo," said May, winningly, and held up her rosy -bud of a face to Hazel. Hazel stooped to give her, not -one, but a half-dozen kisses. There was no resisting such -a little blossom.</p> -<p class="pnext">May put up her hand and stroked the little silk skull-cap.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What 'oo wear tap for?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh! baby," said Rose, horrified, putting her hand on -May's mouth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, don't do that," said Hazel, "I 'm so used to it now; -I don't mind what people say or think. But I did at first."</p> -<p class="pnext">May's lip began to quiver and roll over; Hazel sat -down on the settle, and, drawing May up beside her, said -gently:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"There, there, little May Blossom, don't you cry, and -I 'll tell you all about it. It's because I have n't any hair. -I lost it all when I was sick so long. Sometime I 'll show -you how funny my head looks, all covered with fuzz. -Doctor Heath says it's like a little chicken's." And May -was comforted and won once and for all to the Valentine, -who gave her the tiny chatelaine watch to play with.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd had been hanging about to get the first glimpse of -Hazel by lamplight, and now rushed off to the barn and -Chi to give vent to his feelings.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I say, Chi, where are you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"In the harness room," replied Chi. "What do you -want?" as he appeared.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I say, Chi, she 's a peach. She is n't a bit stuck up, as -March said she would be."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-lookin'?" queried Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"N-o," said Budd, hesitating, "n-o, but I think she will -be when she gets some hair."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ain't got any hair!" exclaimed Chi. "How does that happen?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"She said she 'd been sick an' lost it all, an' 't was like -chicken fuzz."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Said that, did she?" exclaimed Chi, laughing; then, -with the sudden change from gayety to absolute solemnity -that was peculiar to him, he said:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"She 's no fool, I can tell you that, Budd; 'n' I 'll bet -my last red cent she 'll come out an A Number 1 beauty; -'n' March Blossom had better hold his tongue till he cuts -all his wisdom teeth." And with that Chi went into the -shed room to "wash up."</p> -<p class="pnext">What a supper that was! And what a room in which -to eat it!</p> -<p class="pnext">But for the Doctor's cheery voice, Hazel, as she sat in a -corner of the settle, might have thought herself in another -world, so unaccustomed were her city-bred eyes to all that -was going on before her. The room itself was so queer, -and, in a way new to her, delightful.</p> -<p class="pnext">The farmhouse was an old one, strong of beam and solid -of foundation. It had been divided at first according to -the fashion of the other century in which it was built. But -as his family increased, Mr. Blossom found the need of a -large, general living-room. It was then that he took down -the wall between the front square room and the kitchen, -and threw them into one. It was this arrangement that -made the apartment unique.</p> -<p class="pnext">At one end was the huge fireplace that was originally -in the front room. At the left of the fireplace was the -jog into which the front door opened, formerly the little -entry.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the sitting-room end of the low forty-foot-long -apartment; and it showed to Hazel the fireplace, the -old-fashioned crane, with the hickory back-log glowing warm -welcome, the long red-cushioned settle, a set of shelves -filled with books, a little round work-table, Mrs. Blossom's -special property, a large round table of cherry that had -turned richly red with age, and wooden armchairs and -rockers, with patchwork cushions.</p> -<p class="pnext">The middle portion served for dining-room. In it were -the family table of hard pine, the wooden chairs, and -Mrs. Blossom's grandmother's tall pine dresser.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the kitchen end, next the woodshed, were the sink, -the stove, the kitchen shelves for pots and pans, and -the kitchen table with its bread-trough and pie-board, -all of which Rose kept scoured white with soap and sand.</p> -<p class="pnext">This living-room, sitting-room, dining-room, and kitchen -in one had six windows facing south and east. Every -window had brackets for plants; for this evening Rose -had turned the blossom-side inwards to the room, and the -walls glowed and gleamed with the velvety crimson of -gloxinias, the red of fuchsias, the pink and white and -scarlet of geraniums, the cream of wax-plant and begonia. -Upon all this radiance of color, the lamplight shone and -the fire flashed its crimson shadows. The kettle sang on -the stove, and the delicious odor of baked potatoes came -from the open oven.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, March!" said the Doctor, coming down from the -spare room at the call for supper, "waiting for an -introduction? I did n't know you stood on ceremony in this -fashion. Allow me," he said with mock gravity to Hazel, -and presented March in due form.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel greeted him exactly as she would have greeted a -new boy at dancing-school. "Little Miss Finicky," was -March's scornful thought of her, as he bowed rather -awkwardly and thrust his hands into his pockets, racking his -brains for something to say.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What a handsome boy! As handsome as Jack," was -Hazel's first impression; then, missing the cordiality with -which the other members of the family had welcomed her, -she said in thought, "I 'm sure he does not want me here -by the way he acts; I think he 's horrid."</p> -<p class="pnext">Doctor Heath sat down by Hazel. "I 'm not going to -let you sit down to tea with all these mischiefs, little girl, -not to-night, for you can't eat baked potatoes and the -other good things after that long journey, so I 'll ask Rose -to give you a bite right here on the settle."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll speak to Rose," said March, glad to get away.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you," said the Doctor, looking after him with a -puzzled expression in his keen eyes. Just then Mr. Blossom -and Chi came in, and the whole family sat down at -the table.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, where 's Cherry?" exclaimed the Doctor.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Budd, where 's Cherry?" said his father.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I promised her I would n't tell where she hides till she -was twelve, an' now she 's ten, an' she 's been so mean -about Haz--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Budd," said his father, sternly, "answer me directly."</p> -<p class="pnext">"She 's under the pantry shelf behind the meal-chest," -said Budd, meekly.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a shout of laughter that caused Cherry to -crawl out pretty quickly and open the pantry door,--for -it was hard to hear the fun and not be in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come, Cherry," said her mother, still laughing, and -Cherry slipped into her seat beside Doctor Heath with a -murmured, "How do you do?" and her face bent so low -over her plate that nothing was visible to Hazel but a -round head running over with tight red curls that bobbed -and trembled in a peculiarly funny way.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Cherry," said the Doctor, trying to speak gravely, -with only the red tip of a nose in view, "you seem to be -rather low in your mind. I shall have to prescribe for -you. Chi, suppose you drive me down to the Settlement -to-morrow morning, and on the way to the train I will -send up a cure-all for low spirits. I 've something for -March, too. I think he needs it." He drew his eyebrows -together over the bridge of his nose and cast a sharp -glance at the boy, who felt the doctor had read him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That means you 've got something for us," said Budd, -bluntly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess Budd's hit the nail on the head this time," said -Chi. "Should n't wonder if 't was some pretty lively -stuff."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're right there, Chi," replied the Doctor, laughing. -"There 's plenty of good strong bark in it--"</p> -<p class="pnext">Thereupon there was a shout of joy from Budd which -brought Cherry's head into position at once.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know, I know, it's a St. Bernard puppy!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh--ee," squealed Cherry, in her delight, and -forthwith put her arm through the Doctor's and squeezed it -hard against her ribs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess there's a good deal of crow-foot in the other, -ain't there?" said Chi, with a wink at March, who -deliberately left his seat after saying, "Excuse me" most gravely -to his mother, and turned a somersault in the kitchen end -just to relieve his feelings. Then, with his hands in his -pockets, he went up to Doctor Heath, his usually clear, -pale face flushing with excitement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you mean, Doctor Heath, you 're going to give me -a full-blooded Wyandotte cock?" he demanded.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That is just what I mean, March," replied the Doctor, -with great gravity, "and twelve full-blooded wives are at -this moment looking in vain for a roost beside their lord -and master in the express office down at Barton's River."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, glory!" cried March, wringing the Doctor's hand -with both his, and then going off to execute another -somersault. "You 've done it now!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Done what, March?" asked Doctor Heath, really -touched by the boy's grateful enthusiasm.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Made my fortune," he replied, dropping into his seat -again, breathless with excitement; and to the Doctor's -amazement he saw tears, actual tears, gather in the boy's -eyes, before he looked down in his plate and busied himself -with his baked potato.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel saw them too. "What a strange boy," she thought, -"and how different this is from eating my dinner all alone!" Then -she slipped up to the Doctor's side with her small tray -containing nothing but empty dishes, for the keen air and -the sight of so many others eating and enjoying themselves -had given her a good appetite.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Are you satisfied with me <em class="italics">now</em>?" she said, presenting -her tray.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should think so," he exclaimed. "Two glasses of -milk, two slices of toasted brown bread, one piece of -sponge cake, and a baked apple with cream! I 've gone -out of business with you; my last 'tonic' is going to -work well,--don't you think so?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm sure it is," she said quietly, but there was such a -depth of meaning in the sweet voice and the few words -that the Doctor threw his arm around her as they rose from -the table, and kept her beside him until bedtime.</p> -<p class="pnext">At nine o'clock, Mrs. Blossom helped her to undress, -and then, saying she would come back soon, left her alone -in the little bedroom off the kitchen.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked about her in amazement. This was her -little room! A small single bed, looking like a snow drift, -so white and feathery and high was it; one window -curtained with a square of starched white cotton cloth that -drew over the panes by means of a white cord on which it -was run at the top; a tiny wash-stand with an old-fashioned -bowl and pitcher of green and white stone-ware, and over -it an old-fashioned gilt mirror; a small splint-bottomed -chair and large braided rug of red woollen rags. That -was all, except in one corner, where some cleats had been -nailed to the ceiling and a clothes-press made by hanging -from them full curtains of white cloth.</p> -<p class="pnext">For the first time in her life, Hazel unpacked her own -travelling-bag and took out the silver toilet articles with -the pretty monogram. But where should she put them? -No bureau, no dressing-case, no bath-room!--For a few -minutes Hazel felt bewildered, then, laughing, she put them -back again into her bag, and, leaving her candle in the tin -candlestick on the wash-stand, she gave one leap into the -middle of the high feather-bed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then Mrs. Blossom returned from saying good-night -to her own children. She tucked Hazel in snugly, and to -the young girl's surprise, knelt by the bed saying, "Let us -repeat the Lord's Prayer together, dear;" and together -they said it, Hazel fearing almost the sound of her own -voice. When they had finished, Mary Blossom, still -kneeling, asked that Father to bless the coming of this -one of His little ones into their home, and asked it in such -a loving, trustful way, that Hazel's arm stole out from the -coverlet and around Mrs. Blossom's neck; her head, soft -and silky as a new-born baby's, cuddled to her shoulder: -and when Mrs. Blossom kissed her good-night, she said -suddenly, but half-timidly, "Do you say <em class="italics">this</em> with Rose -every night?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, dear, every night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And how old is Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"She will be seventeen next August."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you with Budd and Cherry, too?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, with all my children, even March and May."</p> -<p class="pnext">"March!" exclaimed Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not?" laughed his mother. "I 'm sure he -needs it, as you 'll find out; now good-night, and don't -get up to our early breakfast to-morrow, for the Doctor -goes on the first morning train, and you 're not quite -strong enough yet to do just as we do. Good-night -again."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night," said Hazel, thinking she could never -have enough of this kind of putting to bed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Meanwhile March and Budd, in their bedroom over the -"long-room," were discussing in half-whispers Wyandotte -cocks, St. Bernard puppies, and the new-comer, for they -were too excited to sleep.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just behind March's bed, near the head, there was a -large knot in the boards of the flooring, which for four -years had served him many a good turn, when Budd and -Cherry were planning, below in the kitchen, how they -could play tricks upon him. March had carefully removed -the knot, and with his eye, or ear, at the hole, he had been -able, entirely to the mystification of the twins, to overthrow -their conspiracies and defeat their flank movements. When -his espionage was over, he replaced the knot, and no one -in the household was the wiser for his private detective -service.</p> -<p class="pnext">To-day, late in the afternoon, he had taken out the knot, -intending to have a view of the new arrival, unbeknown -to the rest of the household; but so interested had he -become in the general welcome and in the anticipation of -the Doctor's gifts, that he had forgotten both to look -through the hole and to replace the knot.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel, too, could not sleep at first. It was all so strange, -and yet she was so happy. Her thoughts were in New -York, and she was already planning for a visit from her -father, when suddenly she remembered that she had left -the little chatelaine watch he had given her on her last -birthday, lying on the settle where May had been playing -with it. She must wind it regularly, that was her father's -stipulation when he gave it to her. She sprang out of -bed, tiptoed to the door, listened; all was still, but not -wholly dark. The embers beneath the ashes in the -fireplace sent a dull glow into the room. Softly she stole -out; found her watch, then, half-way to her own door, -stopped, startled by a voice issuing apparently from the -rafters overhead. It was March, who, forgetting his open -knot-hole, turned over towards the wall with a prolonged -yawn and said, evidently in answer to Budd:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, go to sleep; don't talk about her. I think she 's -a perfect guy."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="malachi">VI</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">MALACHI</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was a month after the eventful day for the Blossoms, -and Saturday morning. Rose, with her sleeves rolled up -above her elbows, was kneading bread and singing, as she -worked:--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Oh, a king would have loved and left thee,</div> -<div class="line">And away thy sweet love cast:</div> -<div class="line">But I am thine</div> -<div class="line">Whilst the stars shall shine,--</div> -<div class="line">To the--last--'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Just here, she gave the round mass of dough a toss up -to the ceiling and caught it deftly on her right fist as it -came down, finishing her octave with high C, while again -the bread spun aloft and dropped in safety on her left -fist--"to the last!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Then she proceeded with her kneading and singing:--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'I told thee when love was hopeless;</div> -<div class="line">But now he is wild and sings--</div> -<div class="line">That the stars above [up went the bread again]--</div> -<div class="line">Shine ever on Love--'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">A peal of merry laughter close behind her made her -jump, and the bread came down kerchunk into the -kneading trough.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Gracious, Hazel! how you frightened me! I thought -you were off with Budd and Cherry."</p> -<p class="pnext">"So I was; but they wanted me to come in and tell you -there is to be a secret meeting of the N.B.B.O.O. Society -in the usual place. They said you would know where it is."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course I do; do you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, they would n't tell. They said it is against the -rules to allow any one in who hasn't been initiated. They -said they 'd initiate me, if I wanted to join."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, do you want to?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course I do, if you belong," said Hazel, eagerly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tell them I 'll be out after I 've put the bread to rise -and cleared up; but be sure and tell them not to do -anything till I come."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," cried Hazel, joyfully, skipping through the -woodshed and encountering Chi with a bag of seed-beans.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where you goin', Lady-bird?" (This was Chi's name -for her from the first day.) "Seems to me you 're gettin' -over the ground pretty fast."</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Buds" (for so Hazel had nicknamed the -children) "are going to have a meeting somewhere of the -N.B.B.O.O. Society, and I'm to be initiated, Chi. What -does that mean?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Initiated, hey? Into a secret society? Well, that -depends.--Sometimes it means being tossed sky-high in -a blanket, and then again you 're dropped lower than the -bottomless pit; and you can't most always tell beforehand -which way you 're goin'."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel's face fairly lost the rich color she had gained in -the past month. This was more than she had bargained for.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi! They would n't do such things to me!" she -exclaimed in dismay.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, no--I don't know as they 'd carry it that far; -but those children mean mischief every time."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But they would n't hurt me, Chi. They would n't be -as mean as that; besides, Rose wouldn't let them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I don't know as she would. But children are -children, and Rose ain't grown any wings yet."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Was Rose initiated?" was Hazel's next rather anxious -question.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, she was," said Chi, taking up a handful of beans -and letting them run through his fingers into the open -bag.</p> -<p class="pnext">"How do you know, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Coz I initiated her myself."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You, Chi? Why, do you belong?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"First member of the N.B.B.O.O. Society."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, that's funny. Who initiated you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi set down the bag of beans, and for a moment shook -with laughter; then, growing perfectly sober, he said -solemnly:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I initiated myself. But they was all on hand when I -did it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did you do, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just hear her!" said Chi to himself, but aloud, he said, -"I 'll tell you this much, if it is a secret society. They -try 'n' see what stuff you 're made of."</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Sugar and spice</div> -<div class="line">And all that's nice,</div> -<div class="line">That's what little girls are made of,'"</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Hazel interrupted, singing merrily.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There was n't much 'sugar 'n' spice' in that Rose -Blossom when she put me to the test. You ain't heard a -screech-owl yet; but when you do, you'll come running -home to find out whose bein' killed in the woods."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked at him half in fear, but Chi went on -stolidly:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N' those children told me I 'd got to go up into the -woods at twelve o'clock at night, when the screech-owls -was yellin' bloody murder, to show I wasn't scairt of -nothin'; 'n' I went."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi, was n't it awful?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kinder scarey; but they gave me the dinner horn 'n' -told me to blow a blast on that when I was up there, so -they 'd hear, 'n' know I was <em class="italics">clear</em> into the woods; for they -was all on hand watchin' from the back attic window--what -they could in a pitch-black night--to see if I 'd -back down."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And you did n't, Chi?" said Hazel, eagerly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You bet I did n't, 'n' I brought home an old screecher -just to prove I was game."</p> -<p class="pnext">"How did you catch him, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi clapped his hands on his knees, and shook with -laughter; then he grew perfectly sober:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I took a dark lantern along with me, just to kind of -feel my way in the woods--but the children did n't -know about that--'n' when an old screecher gave a blood-curdlin' -yell, just as near my right ear as the engine down -on the track when you 're standin' at the depot at Barton's -River,--just then I turned on the light full tilt, and the -feller sat right still on the branch, kind of dazed like, 'n' -I took him just as easy as I 'd take a hen off the roost -after dark, 'n' brought him home. 'N' just as I was goin' -up into the attic in the dark, the shed stairs' way, 'n' the -children was all listenin' at the top in the dark, the -dummed bird gave such a screech that the children all -tumbled over one another tryin' to get back to their beds, -'n' such screamin' 'n' hollerin' you never heard--the bird -was n't in it."</p> -<p class="pnext">Again Chi laughed at the recollection, and Hazel joined him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did they make you do anything more, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"By George Washin'ton! I should think they did," -said Chi, soberly. "That last was March's idea, but -Rose went him one more."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What could Rose think of worse than that?" demanded -Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, she did. She blindfolded my eyes 'n' took me -by the hand, 'n' turned me round 'n' round till I was most -dizzy; 'n' then she gave me a rope, 'n' she took one end -of it 'n' made me take the other, 'n' kept leadin' me 'n' -leadin' me, 'n' the children all caperin' round me, screamin' -'n' laughin'. Pretty soon--I calculated I 'd walked about -a quarter of a mile--the rope grew slack; all of a -sudden the laughin' 'n' screamin' stopped, 'n' I--walked -right off the bank into the big pool down under the pines, -ker--splash! 'n' the children, after they 'd got me in, -was so scairt for fear I 'd lose my breath--I could n't -drown coz there was n't more than five feet of water in -it--that they hauled on the rope with all their might, 'n' -pulled me out; 'n' I let 'em pull," said Chi, grimly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hope they were satisfied after that," said Hazel, -soberly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They appeared to be," said Chi, contentedly, "for they -said I should be president, coz I was so brave. But -there 's other things harder to do than that."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What are they, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 've got to keep the by-laws."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What are those?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rules of the Society. One of 'em 's, you must n't be -afraid to tell the truth. 'N' another is, you must be scairt -to tell a lie."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel grew scarlet at her own thoughts.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Another is, to help other folks all you can; 'n' the -fourth 'n' last is, that no boy or girl as lives in this great, -free country of ours ought to be a coward."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel drew a long breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Those must be hard to keep."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, they ain't always easy, that's a fact; but they re -mighty good to live by," he added, picking up the -bean-bag. "I lived with Ben Blossom's father when I was a -little chap as chore boy, 'n' he gave me my schoolin' 'n' -clothes; 'n' I 've lived with his son ever since he was -married, 'n' he's been the best friend a man could have, 'n' -I 've always got along with him in peace and lovin'-kindness; -'n' those four by-laws his father wrote on my boyhood; -'n' by those four by-laws I 've kept my manhood; -'n' so I think it 'll do anybody good to join the Society."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well," said Hazel, stoutly, "I 'll show them I 'm not -afraid of some things, if I did run away from the turkey-gobbler."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's right," said Chi, heartily, "'n' more than -that--betwixt you 'n' me--you 've no cause to be scairt -<em class="italics">whatever</em> they do; now mark my words, <em class="italics">whatever they do</em>," -repeated Chi, emphatically.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't care what they do so long as you 're there, Chi," -said Hazel, looking up into his weather-roughened, deeply-lined -face with such utter trust in her great eyes that Chi -caught up the bag over his shoulder and hurried out to -the barn, muttering to himself:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"George Washin'ton! How she manages to creep into -the softest corner of a man's heart, I don't know; I -expect it's those great eyes of hers, 'n' that voice just like a -brook winnerin' 'n' gurglin' over its stones in August.--Guess -there's luck come to this house with Lady-bird!" And -he went about his work.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="the-n-b-b-o-o-society">VII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">THE N.B.B.O.O. SOCIETY</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Now, Hazel, we 're ready," said Rose, after the dinner -dishes had been washed and the children's time was -their own. Hazel submitted meekly to the blindfolding -process.</p> -<p class="pnext">She had tried in vain to find out something of what the -children intended to do, but they were too clever for her -to gain the smallest hint as to the initiation. March had -been busy in the ice-house, and Cherry had been ironing -the aprons for the family,--that was her Saturday -morning duty. Budd and the St. Bernard puppy were off with -Chi in the fields.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose led her through the woodshed and out of doors--Hazel -knew that by the rush of soft air that met her -face--and away, somewhither. At last she was helped to -climb a ladder; Chi's hand grasped hers, and she felt the -flooring under her feet. Then she was left without -support of any kind, not daring to move with Chi's story in -her thoughts.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess we 'll have the roll-call first," said Chi, solemnly. -There was not a sound to be heard except now and then -a rush of wings and the twitter of swallows.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Molly Stark."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here," said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Markis de Lafayette."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here," from March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Marthy Washin'ton."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Present," said Cherry, forgetting she was not in school. -Budd snickered, and the president called him to order.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fine of two cents for snickerin' in meetin'." Budd -looked sober.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ethan Allen."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here," said Budd, in a subdued voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Old Put,--Here," said Chi, addressing and answering -himself. "Now, Markis, read the by-laws."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Number One.--We pledge ourselves not to be afraid -to tell the truth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Number Two.--We pledge ourselves to be afraid to -tell a lie.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Number Three.--We pledge ourselves to try to help -others whenever we can, wherever we can, however we -can, as long as ever we can.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Number Four.--We, as American boys and girls, -pledge ourselves never to play the coward nor to disgrace -our country."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Molly Stark, unfurl the flag," said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel heard a rustle as Rose unrolled the banner of soft -red, white, and blue cambric.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Put Old Glory round the candidate's shoulders," commanded -the president, and Hazel felt the soft folds being -draped about her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There now, Lady-bird, you 're dressed as pretty as -you 're ever goin' to be; it don't make a mite of difference -whether you 're the Empress of Rooshy, or just plain -every-day folks; 'n' now you 've got that rig on, we 're -ready to give you the hand of fellowship. Markis, you -have the floor."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What name does the candidate wish to be known by?" -asked March, with due gravity; then, forgetting his role, -he added, "You must take the name of some woman who -has been just as brave as she could be."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel, feeling the folds of the flag about her, suddenly -recalled her favorite poem of Whittier's.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Barbara Frietchie," she said promptly and firmly.</p> -<p class="pnext">The various members shouted and cheered themselves -hoarse before order was restored.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What'd I tell you, Budd?" said Chi, triumphantly; -then there was another shout, for Chi had broken the rules -in speaking thus.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Two cents' fine!" shouted Budd, "for speaking out -of order in meeting."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sho! I forgot," said Chi, humbly; "well, proceed."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you, Barbara Frietchie, pledge yourself to try to -keep these by-laws?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," said Hazel, but rather tremulously.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, then, we 'll put you to the test. Molly Stark -will extend the first hand of fellowship to Barbara -Frietchie--No, hold out your hand, Hazel; way out--don't -you draw it back that way!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I did n't," retorted Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, you did, I saw you!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You didn't, either."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I did."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You did n't."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I did, too."</p> -<p class="pnext">"He did n't, did he, Chi?" said Hazel, furious at this -charge of apparent timidity.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't believe you drew it back even if March does -think he saw you," said Chi, pouring oil both ways on the -troubled waters; "'n' I never thought 't was just the thing -for a boy to tell a girl she was a coward before she'd -proved to be one--specially if he belongs to this Society."</p> -<p class="pnext">The Marquis de Lafayette hung his head at this rebuke; -but in the action his cocked hat of black and gilt paper -lurched forward and drew off with it his white cotton-wool -wig. Budd and Cherry, forgetting all rules, fines, and -sense of propriety, rolled over and over at the sight; Rose -sat down shaking with laughter, and even Chi lost his -dignity.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish you would let me <em class="italics">see</em>, or do something," said -Hazel, plaintively, when she could make herself heard.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T ain't fair to keep Hazel waiting so," declared Budd, -and the president called the meeting to order again.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Put out your hand, Hazel," said Rose. "Now shake."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel grasped a hand, cold, deathly cold, and clammy. -The chill of the rigid fingers sent a corresponding shiver -down the length of her backbone, and the goose-flesh rose -all over her arms and legs. She thought she must shriek; -but she recalled Chi's words, set her teeth hard, and shook -the awful thing with what strength she had, never uttering -a sound.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Bully for you, Hazel! I knew you 'd show lots of -pluck," cried Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Got grit every time," said Chi, proudly. "Now let's -have the other test and get down to business. Guess all -three of you 'll have to have a finger in this pie. Hurry -up, Marthy Washin'ton!" Cherry scuttled down the -ladder, and in a few minutes labored, panting, up again.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did you bring two for?" demanded Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Cause March said 't would balance me better on the -ladder," replied Cherry, innocently. At which explanation -Chi laughed immoderately, much to Cherry's discomfiture.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, Hazel, roll up your sleeve and hold out your bare -arm," said the Marquis. Hazel obeyed, wondering what -would come next.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here, Budd, you hold it; all ready, Cherry?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ye-es--wait a minute; now it's all right."</p> -<p class="pnext">"This we call burning in the Society's brand,--N.B.B.O.O.;" -the voice of the Marquis was solemn, -befitting the occasion.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel drew her breath sharply, uncertain whether to cry -out or not. There was a sharp sting across her arm, as if -a hot curling-iron had been drawn quickly across it; then -a sound of sizzling flesh, and the odor of broiled beefsteak -rose up just under her nostrils.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a diabolical thud of falling flat-irons; Rose -tore the bandage from Hazel's eyes, and the bewildered -candidate for membership, when her eyes grew somewhat -wonted to the dim light, found herself in a corner of the -loft in the barn, with the elegant figure of the Marquis in -cocked hat, white wig, yellow vest, blue coat, and yellow -knee-breeches dancing frantically around her; Ethan Allen -in white woollen shirt, red yarn suspenders, and red, white, -and blue striped trousers, turning back-hand somersaults -on the hay; Chi standing at salute with his -great-great-grandfather's Revolutionary musket, his old straw hat -decorated with a tricolor cockade, and Cherry in a white -cotton-wool wig, a dark calico dress of her mother's and a -white neckerchief, flat on the floor beside two six-pound -flat-irons.</p> -<p class="pnext">A piece of raw beef on a tin pan, some bits of ice, and a -kid glove stuffed with ice and sawdust, lay scattered about. -They told the tale of the initiation.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Three cheers for Barbara Frietchie!" shouted Budd, -as he came right side up. The barn rang with them.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now we 'll give the right hand of true fellowship," said -Chi, rapping with the butt of his musket for order.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose gave Hazel's hand a squeeze. "I 'm so glad you 're -to be one of us," she said heartily; and Hazel squeezed -back.</p> -<p class="pnext">March came forward, bowed low, and said, "I apologize -for my distrust of your pluck," and held out his hand with -a look in the flashing gray eyes that was not one of -mockery; indeed, he looked glad, but never a word of welcome -did he speak.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I could flog that proud feller," muttered Chi to himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel hesitated a moment, then put out her hand a little -reluctantly. March caught the gesture and her look.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, you 're not obliged to," he said haughtily, and -turned on his heel. But Hazel put her hand on his arm.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm afraid we are both breaking some of the by-laws, -March. I do want to shake hands, but I was thinking -just then that you did n't mean the apology--not really -and truly; and if you did mean it, there was something -else you needed to apologize for more than that!"</p> -<p class="pnext">March flushed to the roots of his hair. Then his boy's -honor came to the rescue.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I do want to now, Hazel--and forgive and forget, -won't you?" he said, with the winning smile he inherited -from his father, but which he kept for rare occasions.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel put her hand in his, and felt that this had been -worth waiting for. She knew that at last March had -taken her in.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd gripped with all his might, Cherry shook with two -fingers, and Chi's great hand closed over hers as tenderly -as a woman's would have done.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was Hazel's initiation into the Nobody's Business -But Our Own Society. It was the second meeting of the -year.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, March, I 'll make you chairman and ask you to -state the business of this meetin', as you 've called it. -Must be mighty important?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"It is," replied March, gravely, all the fun dying -out of his face. "You remember, all of you,--don't -you?--what mother told us that night she said Hazel was -coming?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," chorussed the children.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 've been thinking and thinking ever since how -I could help--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"So 've I, March," interrupted Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And I have, too," said Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's all this mean?" said Chi, somewhat astonished, -for he had not known why the meeting had been called.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, you see, Chi, we never knew till then that the -farm had been mortgaged on account of father's sickness, -and that it had been so awful hard for mother all this -year--"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi cleared his throat.</p> -<p class="pnext">"--And we want to do something to help earn. If we -could earn just our own clothes and books and enough to -pay for our schooling, it would be something."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess 't would," said Chi, clearing his throat again. -"Kind of workin' out the third by-law, ain't you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Trying to," answered March, with such sincerity in his -voice that Chi's throat troubled him for full a minute. -"And what I want to find out, without mother's knowing -it, or father either, is how we can earn enough for those -things. If anybody 's got anything to say, just speak up."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What you goin' to do with those Wyandottes?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I knew you 'd ask that, Chi. I 'm going to raise a -fine breed and sell the eggs at a dollar and a half for -thirteen; but I can't get any chicken-money till next fall, -and no egg-money till next spring, and I want to begin -now."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hm--" said Chi, taking off his straw hat and slowly -scratching his head. "Well," he said after a pause -in which all were thinking and no one talking, "why don't -all of you go to work raisin' chickens for next Thanksgivin'?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"By cracky!" said Budd, "we could raise three or four -hundred, an' fat 'em up, an' make a pile, easy as nothing."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know about it's bein' so easy; but children -have the time to tend 'em, and I don't see why it won't -work, seein' it's a good time of year."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But where 'll we get the hens to set, Chi?" said March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, there 's enough of 'em settin' round now on the -bare boards," Chi replied.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can I raise some, too?" asked Hazel, rather timidly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't know what there is to hinder," said Chi, with -a slow smile.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And can I buy some hens for my very own?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course you can; just say the word, 'n' you -'n' I 'll go settin'-hen hunting within a day or so."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, what fun!" cried Hazel, clapping her hands. -"But I want some that will sit and lay too, Chi; then I -can sell the eggs."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a shout of laughter, at which Hazel felt hurt.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There now, Lady-bird, we won't laugh at your city -ways of lookin' at things any more. The hens ain't quite -so accommodatin' as that, but we 'll get some good setters -first, 'n' then see about the layin' afterwards."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, Chi, it will take such a lot of corn to fatten them. -We don't want to ask father for anything."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's right, Rose. Be independent as long as you -can; I thought of that, too. Now, there 's a whole acre -on the south slope I ploughed this spring,--nice, hot land, -just right for corn-raisin'; 'n' if you children 'll drop 'n' -cover, I 'll help you with the hoein' 'n' cuttin' 'n' huskin'; -'n' you 'll have your corn for nothin'."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good for you, Chi; we 'll do it, won't we?" cried March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You bet," said Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can pick berries," said Rose, "and we can always -sell them at the Inn, or at Barton's River."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and we can begin in June," said Cherry; "the -pastures are just red with the wild strawberries, you know, -Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's an awful sight of work to pick 'em," said Budd, -rather dubiously.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, you can't get your money without workin', -Budd; 'n' work don't mean 'take it easy.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm sure we can get twenty-five cents a quart for them -right in the village. I 've heard folks say they make the -best preserve you can get, and you can't buy them for love -nor money," said Rose. "Mother makes beautiful ones."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Was n't that what we had last Sunday night when the -minister was here to tea?" asked Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I never tasted any strawberries like them at home, and -the housekeeper buys lots of jams and jellies in the fall." -Hazel thought hard for a minute. Suddenly she jumped -to her feet, clapped her hands, and spun round and round -like a top, crying out, "I have it! I have it!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The N.B.B.O.O. Society was amazed to see the new -member perform in this lively manner, for Hazel had been -rather quiet during the first month. Now she caught up -her skirts with a dainty tilt, and danced the Highland -Fling just to let her spirits out through her feet. Up and -down the floor of the loft she charged, hands over her head, -hands swinging her skirts, light as a fairy, bending, -swaying, and bowing, till, with a big "cheese," she sat down -almost breathless by Chi. Was this Hazel? The members -of the N.B.B.O.O. looked at one another in amazement, -and March's eyes flashed again, as they had done once -before during the afternoon.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now all listen to me," she said, as if, after a month of -silence, she had found her tongue. "I 've an idea, and -when I have one, papa says it's worth listening to,--which -is n't often, I 'm sure. We 'll pick the strawberries, and -get Mrs. Blossom to show Rose how to do them up; and -I 'll write to papa and Doctor Heath's wife and to our -housekeeper and Cousin Jack, and see if they don't want -some of those delicious preserves that they can't get in the -city. I 'll find out from Mrs. Scott--that's the -housekeeper--how much she pays for a jar in New York, and -then we 'll charge a little more for ours because the -strawberries are a little rarer. Are n't there any other kinds of -berries that grow around here?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess you 'd better stop 'n' take breath, Lady-bird; -there 's a mighty lot of plannin' in all that. What 'd I -tell you, Budd?" Chi asked again.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd looked at Hazel in boyish admiration, but said -nothing.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I think that's splendid, Hazel," said Rose, "if they'll -only want them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know they will; but are there any other berries?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Berries! I should think so; raspberries and blackberries -by the bushel on the Mountain, and they say they 're -the best anywhere round here," said March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, dear!" sighed Cherry, "I wish we could go to -work right now."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, so you can," said Chi, "only you can't go berryin' -just yet. You can begin to drop that corn this very -afternoon: better be inside the ground pretty soon, with all -those four hundred chickens waitin' to join the -Thanksgivin' procession."</p> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 60%" id="figure-38"> -<span id="you-can-begin-to-drop-that-corn-this-very-afternoon"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-073.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -"'You can begin to drop that corn this very afternoon'"</div> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Oh, Chi, you 're making fun of us," laughed Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't you believe it, Rose-pose; never was more in -earnest in my life. Come along, 'n' I 'll show you."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-lively-correspondence">VIII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A LIVELY CORRESPONDENCE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was a trial of patience to have to wait twenty-one -days before the first of the "four hundred" could be -expected to appear.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 'll have to be kind of careful 'bout steppin' round -in the dark, Mis' Blossom, 'n' you, too, Ben," said Chi, -"for you 'll find a settin' hen most anywheres nowadays."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom laughed. "Oh, Chi, what dear children -they are, even if they aren't quite perfect."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can't be beat," replied Chi, earnestly. "Look at them -now, will you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom stepped out on the porch, and looked over -to the south slope and the corn-patch. "What if her -father were to see her now!" She laughed again, both -at her thoughts and the sight.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T would give him kind of a shock at first," Chi -chuckled, "but he 'd get over it as soon as he 'd seen -that face."</p> -<p class="pnext">"It is wonderful how she has improved. I shouldn't -be surprised if he came up here soon to see Hazel."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, he 'll find somethin' worth lookin' at. See there, -now!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The girls had been making scarecrows to protect the -young corn, stuffing old shirts and trousers with hay and -straw, while March and Budd had been getting ready the -cross-tree frames. In dropping and covering the corn that -Saturday afternoon after the initiation, the girls had found -their skirts and petticoats not only in the way as they bent -over their work, but greatly soiled by contact with the -soft, damp loam. So they had begged to wear overalls of -blue denim like Chi's and the boys'. The request had -been gladly granted. "It will save no end of washing," -said Mrs. Blossom, and forthwith made up three pairs on -the machine.</p> -<p class="pnext">The girls found it great fun. They tucked in their -petticoats and buttoned down their shoulder-straps with -right good will. Then Mr. Blossom presented them with -broad, coarse straw hats, such as he and Chi used, and -with these on their heads they rushed off to the -corn-patch. There now they were,--five good-looking boys -with hands joined, dancing and capering around a scarecrow, -that looked like a gentleman tramp gone entirely to -seed, and singing at the top of their voices Budd's favorite, -"I won't play in your back yard."</p> -<p class="pnext">At that very hour, when the gentleman scarecrow of -the corn-patch was looking amiably, although slightly -squint-eyed, out from under his tattered straw hat (for -March had drawn rude features on the white cloth bag -stuffed with cotton-wool which served for a head, and on -it Rose had sewed skeins of brown yarn to imitate hair) -at the antics of the five pairs of blue overalls, Mr. Clyde, -having finished his nine o'clock breakfast, asked for the -mail.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Marse John" (so Wilkins always called Mr. Clyde -when they were alone), "'spect dere 's one from Miss -Hazel by de feel an' de smell."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde smiled. "How can you tell by the 'feel and -the smell,' Wilkins?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Case it's bunchy lake in de middle, an' de vi'lets can't -hide dere bref."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, we 'll see," said Mr. Clyde, willing to indulge -his faithful servant's childish curiosity. Wilkins busied -himself quietly about the breakfast-room.</p> -<p class="pnext">As Mr. Clyde opened the envelope, the crushed blue -and white violets fell out. Suddenly he burst into such -a hearty laugh that Wilkins had hard work to suppress -a sympathetic chuckle.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I shall have to carry this letter over to the Doctor, -Wilkins," he said, still laughing. "I shall be in time to -find him a few minutes alone before office hours." He -rose from the table.</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins followed him out to give his coat a last touch -with the brush; he was fearful Mr. Clyde might leave -without revealing anything of the contents of the letter -from his beloved Miss Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Sense me, Marse John," he said in desperation, as -Mr. Clyde went towards the front door, "but Miss Hazel -ain't no wusser case yo' goin' to de Doctah's?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Wilkins, I forgot; you want to know how Miss -Hazel is. She is doing finely; as happy as a bird, and -sends her love to you in a postscript. I think I 'll run up -and see her soon."</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins ducked and beamed. "'Pears lake dis yere -house ain't de same place wif de little missus gone."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're right, Wilkins," said Mr. Clyde, earnestly. "I -shall not open the Newport cottage this year; it would -be too lonesome without her."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Dick," he said gayly, as he entered the Doctor's -office, "I shall hold you responsible for some of the lives -of the 'Four Hundred.' Here, read this letter."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">MOUNT HUNGER, MILL SETTLEMENT, BARTON'S</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">RIVER, VERMONT, May 19, 1896.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">DEAREST PAPA,--Good-morning! I am answering your -long letter a little sooner than I expected to, because I want -you to do something for me in a business way; that's the way -March says it must be.</p> -<p class="pnext">I don't know how to begin to tell you, but I 've joined the -N.B.B.O.O. Society and one of the by-laws is that we must -help others all we can and just as much as we can. I wish -you'd been at the initiashun. (I don't know about that -spelling, and I 'm in a hurry, or I 'd ask.) I had the hand of -fellowship from a supposed corpse's hand first, and then I was -branded on the arm. And afterwards they all took me in, and -now we 're raising four hundred chickens to help others; I 'll -tell you all about it when you come. Chi, that's the hired -man, but he is really our friend, took me sitting-hen hunting -day before yesterday, for I am to own some myself; and we -drove all over the hills to the farmhouses and found and bought -twelve, or rather Chi did, for I had to borrow the money of -him, as I felt so bad when I kissed you good-bye that I forgot -to tell you my quarterly allowance was all gone, and I know -you won't like my borrowing of Chi, for you have said so -many times never to owe anybody and I've always tried to pay -for everything except when I had to borrow of Gabrielle, or -Mrs. Scott, when I forgot my purse.</p> -<p class="pnext">But truly the hens were in such an awful hurry to sit, that -it did seem too bad to keep them waiting even three days till -I could get some money from you; and then, too, we 've all -of us, March and Rose and Budd and Cherry and me, bet on -which hen would get the first chicken, and that chicken is going -to be a prize chicken and especially fatted, and of course, if I -waited for the money to come from you, I could n't stand a -chance of coming out ahead in our four hundred chicken race, -so I borrowed of Chi. The hens came to just $4 and eighty -cents. I'll pay you back when I earn it, and don't you think -it would have been a pity to lose the chance for the prize -chicken just for that borrow?</p> -<p class="pnext">Please send the money by return mail. I 've other letters -to write, so please excuse my not paragraphing and so little -punctuation, but I 've so much to do and this must go at once.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your loving and devoted daughter,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">P.S. The hens are sitting around everywhere. Give my -love to Wilkins. H.C.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The Doctor shouted; then he stepped to the dining-room -door and called, "Wifie, come here and bring that letter."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Heath came in smiling, with a letter in her hand, -which, after cordially greeting Mr. Clyde, she read to -him,--an amazed and outwitted father.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">MOUNT HUNGER, MILL SETTLEMENT, BARTON'S</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">RIVER, VERMONT, May 19, 1896.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">MY DEAR MRS. HEATH,--Please thank my dear Doctor -Heath for the note he sent me two weeks ago. I ought to -write to him instead of to you, for I don't owe you a letter -(your last one was so sweet I answered it right off), but he -never allows his patients strawberry preserve and jam, so it -would be no use to ask his help just now, as this is pure -business, March says.</p> -<p class="pnext">We are trying to help others, and the strawberries--wild -ones--are as thick as spatter--going to be--all over the -pastures, and we 're going to pick quarts and quarts, and Rose -is going to preserve them, and then we 're going to sell them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Do you think of anybody who would like some of this preserve? -If you do, will you kindly let me know by return mail?</p> -<p class="pnext">I can't tell just the price, and March says that is a great -drawback in real business, and this <em class="italics">is</em> real--but it will not be -more than $1 and twenty-five cents a quart. They will be fine -for luncheon. <em class="italics">I</em> never tasted any half so good at home.</p> -<p class="pnext">My dear love to the Doctor and a large share for yourself from</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your loving friend,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">P.S. Rose says it is n't fair for people to order without -knowing the quality, so we 've done up a little of Mrs. Blossom's -in some Homeepatic (I don't know where that "h" ought to -come in) pellet bottles, and will send you a half-dozen "for -samples," March says, to send to any one to taste you think -would like to order. H.C.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"The cure is working famously," said Doctor Heath, -rubbing his hands in glee.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well," said Mr. Clyde, laughing, "I may as well make -the best of it; but I can't help wondering whether the -wholesale grocers in town have been asked to place orders -with Mount Hunger, or the Washington Market dealers -for prospective chickens! There 's your office-bell; I -won't keep you longer, but if this 'special case' of yours -should develop any new symptoms, just let me know."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll keep you informed," rejoined the Doctor. "Better -run up there pretty soon, Johnny," he called after him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I think it's high time, Dick. Good-bye."</p> -<p class="pnext">At that very moment, a symptom of another sort was -developing in Z---- Hall, Number 9, at Harvard.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack Sherrill and his chum were discussing the last -evening's Club theatricals. "I saw that pretty Maude -Seaton in the third or fourth row, Jack; did she come on -for that,--which, of course, means you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Wish I might think so," said Jack, half in earnest, -half in jest, pulling slowly at his corn-cob pipe.</p> -<p class="pnext">"By Omar Khayyam, Jack! you don't mean to say -you 're hit, at last!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hit,--yes; but it's only a flesh-wound at present,--nothing -dangerous about it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"She 's got the style, though, and the pull. I know a -half-dozen of the fellows got dropped on to-night's cotillion."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kept it for me," said Jack, quietly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, really, though--" and his chum fell to thinking -rather seriously for him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then came the morning's mail,--notes, letters, -special delivery stamps, all the social accessories a -popular Harvard man knows so well. Jack looked over his -carelessly,--invitations to dinner, to theatre parties, -"private views," golf parties, etc. He pushed them aside, -showing little interest. He, like his Cousin Hazel, was -used to it.</p> -<p class="pnext">The morning's mail was an old story, for Sherrill was -worth a fortune in his own right, as several hundred -mothers and daughters in New York and Boston and -Philadelphia knew full well.</p> -<p class="pnext">Moreover, if he had not had a penny in prospect, Jack -Sherrill would have attracted by his own manly qualities -and his exceptionally good looks. His riches, to which he -had been born, had not as yet wholly spoiled him, but they -cheated him of that ambition that makes the best of young -manhood, and Life was out of tune at times--how and -why, he did not know, and there was no one to tell him.</p> -<p class="pnext">He had rather hoped for a note from Maude Seaton, -thanking him, in her own charming way, for the flowers he -had sent her on her arrival from New York the day before. -True, she had worn some in her corsage, but, for all Jack -knew, they might have been another man's; for Maude -Seaton was never known to have less than four or five -strings to her bow. It was just this uncertainty about her -that attracted Jack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hello! Here 's a letter for you by mistake in my pile," -said his chum.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, this is from my little Cousin Hazel, who is -rusticating just now somewhere in the Green Mountains." Jack -opened it hastily and read,--</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">MOUNT HUNGER, MILL SETTLEMENT, BARTON'S</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">RIVER, VERMONT, May 19, 1896.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">DEAREST COUSIN JACK,--It is perfectly lovely up here, and -I 've been inishiated into a Secret Society like your Dicky Club, -and one of the by-laws is to help others all we can and wherever -we can and as long as ever we can, and so I 've thought of that -nice little spread you gave last year after the foot-ball game, -and how nice the table looked and what good things you had, -but I don't remember any strawberry jam or preserves, do you?</p> -<p class="pnext">We 're hatching four hundred chickens to help others,--I -mean we have set 40 sitting hens on 520 eggs, not all the 40 on -the five hundred and twenty at once, you know; but, I mean, -each one of the 40 hens are sitting on 13 eggs apiece, and -March says we must expect to lose 120 eggs--I mean, -chickens,--as the hens are very careless and sit sideways--I 've -seen them myself--and so an extra egg is apt to get chilly, -and the chickens can't stand any chilliness, March says. But -Chi, that's my new friend, says some eggs have a double yolk, -and maybe, there 'll be some twins to make up for the loss.</p> -<p class="pnext">Anyway, we want 400 chickens to sell about Thanksgiving -time, and, of course, we can't get any money till that time. -So now I 've got back to your spread again and the preserves, -and while we 're waiting for the chickens, we are going to -make preserves--<em class="italics">dee</em>-licious ones! I mean we are going to -pick them and Rose is going to preserve them. We 've decided -to ask $1 and a quarter a quart for them; Rose--that's Rose -Blossom--says it is dear, but if you could see my Rose-pose, -as Chi calls her, you 'd think it cheap just to eat them if she -made them. She 's perfectly lovely--prettier than any of the -New York girls, and when she kneads bread and does up -the dishes, she sings like a bird, something about love. I'll -write it down for you, sometime. <em class="italics">I 'm</em> in love with her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Please ask your college friends if they don't want some jam -and wild strawberry preserves. If they do, March says they -had better order soon, as I've written to New York to see -about some other orders.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Yours devotedly,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">P.S. I 've sent you a sample of the strawberry preserve in -a homeepahtic pellet bottle, to taste; Rose says it is n't fair to -ask people to buy without their knowing what they buy. I -saw that Miss Seaton just before I came away; she came to -call on me and brought some flowers. She said I looked like -you--which was an awful whopper because I had my head -shaved, as you know; I asked her if she had heard from -you, and she said she had. She is n't half as lovely as -Rose-pose. H.C.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="the-prize-chicken">IX</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">THE PRIZE CHICKEN</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There was wild excitement, as well as consternation, in -the farmhouse on the Mountain.</p> -<p class="pnext">On the next day but one after Hazel had sent her -letters, Chi had brought up from the Mill Settlement a -telegram which had come on the stage from Barton's. It -was addressed to, "Hazel Clyde, Mill Settlement, Barton's -River, Vermont," and ran thus:--</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">CAMBRIDGE, May 20, 1 P.M.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hope to get in our order ahead of New York time. Seventeen -dozen of each kind. Letter follows.</p> -<p class="pnext">JACK.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Seventeen dozen!" screamed Rose, on hearing the -telegram.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Seventeen dozen of <em class="italics">each kind</em>!" cried Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, quick, March, do see what it comes to!" said -Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then such an arithmetical hubbub broke loose as had -never been heard before on the Mountain.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Seventeen times twelve," said Rose,--"let me see; -seven times two are fourteen, one to carry--do keep still, -March!" But March went on with:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Twelve times four are forty-eight--seventeen times -forty-eight, hm--seven times eight are fifty-six, five to -carry--Shut up, Budd; I can't hear myself think." But -Budd gave no heed, and continued his computation.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Four times seventeen are--four times seven are -twenty-eight, two to carry; four times one are four and -two are--I say, you 've put me all out!" shouted Budd, -and, putting his fingers in his ears, he retired to a corner. -Rose continued to mumble with her eyes shut to concentrate -her mind upon her problem, threatening Cherry impatiently -when she interrupted with her peculiar solution, -which she had just thought out:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"If one quart cost one dollar and twenty-five cents, -twelve quarts will cost twelve times one dollar and -twenty-five cents, which is, er--twelve times one are -twelve; twelve times twenty-five! Oh, gracious, that's -awful! What's twelve times twenty-five, March?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Shut up," growled March; "you 've put me all off the -track."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Me, too," said Rose, in an aggrieved tone.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom had been listening from the bedroom, and -now came in, suppressing her desire to smile at the -reddened and perplexed faces. "Here 's a pencil, March, -suppose you figure it out on paper."</p> -<p class="pnext">A sigh of relief was audible throughout the room, as -March sat down to work out the result. "Eight hundred -and sixteen quarts at one dollar twenty-five a quart," said -March to himself; then, with a bound that shook the -long-room, he shouted, "One thousand and twenty dollars!" and -therewith broke forth into singing:--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"Glory, glory, halleluia!</div> -<div class="line">Glory, glory, halleluia!</div> -<div class="line">Glory, glory, halleluia,</div> -<div class="line">For the N.B.B.O.O.!"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">The rest joined in the singing with such goodwill that -the noise brought in Chi from the barn. When he was -told the reason for the rejoicing, he looked thoughtful, then -sober, then troubled.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's the matter, Chi? Cheer up! You have n't -got to pick them," said March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T ain't that; but I hate to throw cold water on any -such countin'-your-chickens-'fore-they 're-hatched business," -said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T is n't chickens; it's preserves, Chi," laughed Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know that, too," said Chi, gravely. "But suppose you -do a little figuring on the hind-side of the blackboard."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What <em class="italics">do</em> you mean, Chi?" asked Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 'll figure, 'n' see what you think about it. -Seventeen dozen times four, how much, March?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Eight hundred and sixteen."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hm! eight hundred and sixteen glass jars at twelve -and a half cents apiece--let me see: eight into eight -once; eight into one no times 'n' one over. There now, -your jars 'll cost you just one hundred and two dollars."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a universal groan.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N' that ain't all. Sugar 's up to six cents a pound, -'n' to keep preserves as they ought to be kept takes about -a pound to a quart. Hm, eight hundred 'n' sixteen pounds -of sugar at six cents a pound--move up my point 'n' -multiply by six--forty-eight dollars 'n' ninety-six cents; added -to the other--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, don't, Chi!" groaned one and all.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It spoils everything," said Rose, actually ready to cry -with disappointment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Molly Stark, you 've got to look forwards and -backwards before you <em class="italics">promise</em> to do things," said Chi, -serenely; and Rose, hearing the Molly Stark, knew just -what Chi meant.</p> -<p class="pnext">She went straight up to him, and, laying both hands on -his shoulders, looked up smiling into his face. "I 'll be -brave, Chi; we 'll make it work somehow," she said gently; -and Chi was not ashamed to take one of the little hands -and rub it softly against his unshaven cheek.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's my Rose-pose," he said. "Now, don't let's -cross the bridges till we get to them; let's wait till we -hear from New York."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">They had not long to wait. The next day's mail brought -three letters,--from Mrs. Heath, Mr. Clyde, and Jack. -Hazel could not read them fast enough to suit her audience. -There was an order from Mrs. Heath for two dozen of each -kind, and the assurance that she would ask her friends, but -she would like her order filled first.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde wrote that he was coming up very soon and -would advance Hazel's quarterly allowance; at which -Hazel cried, "Oh-ee!" and hugged first herself, then -Mrs. Blossom, but said not a word. She wanted to surprise -them with the glass jars and the sugar. Her father had -enclosed five dollars with which to pay Chi, and he and -Hazel were closeted for full a quarter of an hour in the -pantry, discussing ways and means.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack wrote enthusiastically of the preserves and chickens, -and, like Hazel, added a postscript as follows:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't forget you said you would write down for me -the song about Love that Miss Blossom sings when she is -kneading bread. Miss Seaton is just now visiting in -Boston. I 'm to play in a polo match out at the Longmeadow -grounds next week, and she stays for that." This, -likewise, Hazel kept to herself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Meanwhile, the strawberry blossoms were starring the -pastures, but only here and there a tiny green button -showed itself. It was a discouraging outlook for the other -Blossoms to wait five long weeks before they could begin -to earn money; and the thought of the chickens, especially -the prize chicken, proved a source of comfort as well as -speculation.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the twenty-first day after setting the hens drew near, -the excitement of the race was felt to be increasing. Hazel -had tied a narrow strip of blue flannel about the right -leg of each of her twelve hens, that there might be no -mistake; and the others had followed her example, March -choosing yellow; Cherry, white; Rose, red; and Budd, -green.</p> -<p class="pnext">The barn was near the house, only a grass-plat with one -big elm in the centre separated it from the end of the -woodshed. As Chi said, the hens were sitting all around -everywhere; on the nearly empty hay-mow there were -some twenty-five, and the rest were in vacant stalls and -feed-boxes.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a warm night in early June. Hazel was thinking -over many things as she lay wakeful in her wee bedroom. -To-morrow was the day; somebody would get the prize -chicken. Hazel hoped she might be the winner. Then -she recalled something Chi had said about hens being -curious creatures, set in their ways, and never doing -anything just as they were expected to do it, and that there -was n't any time-table by which chickens could be hatched -to the minute. What if one were to come out to-night! -The more she thought, the more she longed to assure -herself of the condition of things in the barn. She tossed -and turned, but could not settle to sleep. At last she -rose softly; the great clock in the long-room had just -struck eleven. She looked out of her one window and -into the face of a moon that for a moment blinded her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then she quietly put on her white bath-robe, and, -taking her shoes in her hand, stepped noiselessly out into -the kitchen.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was not a sound in the house except the ticking -of the clock. Softly she crept to the woodshed door and -slipped out.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, who had the ears of an Indian, heard the soft -"crush, crush," of the bark and chips underneath his room. -He rose noiselessly, drew on his trousers, and slipped his -suspenders over his shoulders, took his rifle from the rack, -and crept stealthily as an Apache down the stairs. Chi -thought he was on the track of an enormous woodchuck -that had baffled all his efforts to trap, shoot, and decoy -him, as well as his attempts to smoke and drown him out. -But nothing was moving in or about the shed. He stepped -outside, puzzled as to the noise he had heard.</p> -<p class="pnext">"By George Washin'ton!" he exclaimed under his -breath, "what's up now?" for he had caught sight of a -little figure in white fairly scooting over the grass-plat -under the elm towards the barn. In a moment she -disappeared in the opening, for on warm nights the great -doors were not shut.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess I 'd better get out of the way; 't would scare -her to death to see a man 'n' a gun at this time of night. -It's that prize chicken, I 'll bet." And Chi chuckled to -himself. Then he tiptoed as far as the barn door, looked -in cautiously, and, seeing no one, but hearing a creak -overhead, he slipped into a stall and crouched behind a pile of -grass he had cut that afternoon for the cattle.</p> -<p class="pnext">He heard the feet go "pat, pat, pat," overhead. He -knew by the sound that Hazel was examining the nests. -Then another noise--Cherry's familiar giggle--fell upon -his ear. He looked out cautiously from behind the grass. -Sure enough; there were the twins, robed in sheets and -barefooted. Snickering and giggling, they made for the -ladder leading to the loft.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Old Harry 's to pay to-night," said Chi, grimly, to -himself. "When those two get together on a spree, things -generally hum! I 'd better stay where I 'm needed most."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel, too, had caught the sound of the giggle and -snicker, and recognized it at once.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Goodness!" she thought, "if they should see me, -'t would frighten Cherry into fits, she 's so nervous. I 'd -better hide while they 're here. They 've come to see -about that chicken, just as I have!" Hazel had all she -could do to keep from laughing out loud. She lay down -upon a large pile of hay and drew it all over her. "They -can't see me now, and I can watch them," she thought, -with a good deal of satisfaction.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely the proceedings were worth watching. The -moonlight flooded the flooring of the loft, and every detail -could be plainly seen.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nobody can hear us here if we do talk," said Budd. -"You 'll have to hoist them up first, to see if there are -any chickens, and be sure and look at the rag on the -legs; when you come to a green one, it's mine, you know."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Budd! I can't hoist them," said Cherry, in a -distressed voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They do act kinder queer," replied Budd, who was -trying to lift a sleeping hen off her nest, to which she -seemed glued. "I 'll tell you what's better than that; -just put your ear down and listen, and if you hear a -'peep-peep,' it's a chicken."</p> -<p class="pnext">Cherry, the obedient slave of Budd, crawled about over -the flooring on her hands and knees, listening first at one -nest, then at another, for the expected "peep-peep."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't hear anything," said Cherry, in an aggrieved -tone, "but the old hens guggling when I poke under -them. Oh! but here 's a green rag sticking out, Budd."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And a speckled hen?" said Budd, eagerly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, that's the one I 've been looking for; it's dark -over here in this corner. Lemme see."</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd put both hands under the hen and lifted her -gently. "Ak--ok--ork--ach," gasped the hen, as -Budd took her firmly around the throat; but she was -too sleepy to care much what became of her, and so hung -limp and silent.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll hold the hen, Cherry, and you take up those eggs -one at a time and hold them to my ear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What for?" said Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now don't be a loony, but do as I tell you," said Budd, -impatiently. Cherry did as she was bidden; Budd listened -intently.</p> -<p class="pnext">"By cracky! there 's one!" he exclaimed. "Here, -help me set this hen back again, and keep that one out."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What for?" queried Cherry, forgetting her former lesson.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, you ninny!--here, listen, will you?" Budd put -the egg to her ear.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's a chicken peeping inside. I can <em class="italics">hear</em> -him," said Cherry, in an awed voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and I 'm going to let him out," said Budd, -triumphantly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But then you'll have the prize chicken, Budd," -said Cherry, rather dubiously, for she had wanted it -herself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course, you goosey, what do you suppose I came -out here for?" demanded Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, Budd, will it be fair?" said Cherry, timidly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fair!" muttered Budd; "it's fair enough if it's out -first. It's their own fault if they don't know enough to -get ahead of us."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you think it all out yourself, Budd?" queried -Cherry, admiringly, watching Budd's proceeding with -wide-open eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yup," said Budd, shortly.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were not far from Hazel's hiding-place, and, by -raising her head a few inches, she could see the whole -process.</p> -<p class="pnext">First Budd listened intently at one end of the egg, then -at the other. He drew out a large pin from his pajamas -and began very carefully to pick the shell.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, gracious, Budd! what are you doing?" cried Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What you see," said Budd, a little crossly, for his -conscience was not wholly at ease.</p> -<p class="pnext">He picked and picked, and finally made an opening. He -examined it carefully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, thunder!" he exclaimed under his breath, "I 've -picked the wrong end."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What do you mean?" persisted Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wanted to open the 'peep-peep' end first, so he could -breathe," replied Budd, intent upon his work. Cherry -watched breathlessly. At last the other end was opened, -and Budd began to detach the shell from something which -might have been a worm, a fish, a pollywog, or a baby white -mouse, for all it looked like a chicken. It lay in Budd's -hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Budd, you 've killed it!" cried Cherry, beginning -to sniff.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Shut up, Cherry Blossom, or I'll leave you," threatened -Budd. Just then the moon was obscured by a passing -cloud, and the loft became suddenly dark and shadowy. -Cherry screamed under her breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Budd, don't leave me; I can't see you!"</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a soft rapid stride over the flooring; and -before Budd well knew what had happened, he was seized -by the binding of his pajamas, lifted, and shaken with such -vigor that his teeth struck together and he felt the jar in -the top of his head.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the form loomed so unexpectedly before her, Cherry -screamed with fright.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll teach you to play a business trick like this on us, -you mean sneaking little rascal!" roared March. "Do -you think I did n't see you creeping out of the room along -the side of my bed on all fours? You did n't dare to -walk out like a man, and I might have known you were -up to no good!" Another shake followed that for a -moment dazed Budd. Then, as he felt the flooring -beneath his feet, he turned in a towering passion of guilt -and rage on March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're a darned sneak yourself," he howled rather -than cried. "Take that for your trouble!" Raising his -doubled fist, he aimed a quick, hard blow at March's -stomach. But, somehow, before it struck, one strong -hand--not March's--held his as in a vice, and another, -stronger, hoisted him by the waist-band of his pajamas -and held him, squirming and howling, suspended for a -moment; then he felt himself tossed somewhere. He fell -upon the hay under which Hazel had taken refuge, and -landed upon her with almost force enough to knock the -breath from her body. Cherry, meanwhile, had not ceased -screaming under her breath, and, as Budd descended so -unexpectedly upon Hazel, a great groan and a sharp wail -came forth from the hay, to the mortal terror of all but -Chi, who grew white at the thought of what might have -happened to his Lady-bird, and, unintentionally, through -him.</p> -<p class="pnext">That awful groan proved too much for the children. -Gathering themselves together in less time than it takes -to tell it, they fled as well as they could in the -dark,--down the ladder, out through the barn, over the -grass-plat, into the house, and dove into bed, trembling in every -limb.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What on earth is the matter, children?" said Mrs. Blossom, -appearing at the foot of the stairs. "Did one -of you fall out of bed?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd's head was under the bedclothes, his teeth chattering -through fear; likewise Cherry. March assumed as -firm a tone as he could.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Budd had a sort of nightmare, mother, but he 's all -right now." March felt sick at the deception.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, settle down now and go to sleep; it's just -twelve." And Mrs. Blossom went back into the bedroom -where Mr. Blossom was still soundly sleeping.</p> -<p class="pnext">Meanwhile, Chi was testing Hazel to see that no harm -had been done.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I 'm all right," said Hazel, rather breathlessly. -"But it really knocked the breath out of my body." She -laughed. "I never thought of your catching up Budd -that way and plumping him down on top of me!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess my wits had gone wool-gatherin', when I never -thought of your hidin' there," said Chi, recovering from -his fright. "But that boy made me so pesky mad, tryin' -to play such a game on all of us, that I kind of lost my -temper 'n' did n't see straight. Well--" he heaved a -sigh of relief, "he 's got his come-uppance!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where do you suppose that poor little chicken is?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll look him up; the moon 's comin' out again."</p> -<p class="pnext">There, close by the nest, lay the queer something on the -floor. "I 'll tuck it in right under the old hen's breast, -'n' then, if there 's any life in it, it 'll come to by mornin'." He -examined it closely. "I 'll come out 'n' see. Come, -we 'd better be gettin' in 'fore 't is dark again--"</p> -<p class="pnext">He put the poor mite of a would-be chicken carefully -under the old hen, where it was warm and downy, and as -he did so, he caught sight of the rag hanging over the -edge of the nest. He looked at it closely; then slapping -his thigh, he burst into a roar of laughter.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What is it, Chi?" said Hazel, laughing, too, at Chi's -mirth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Look here, Lady-bird! you 've got the Prize Chicken, -after all. That boy could n't tell green from blue in the -moonlight, 'n' he 's hatched out one of yours. By George -Washin'ton! that's a good one,--serves him right," he -said, wiping the tears of mirth from his eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">The chicken lived, but never seemed to belong to any -one in particular; and as Chi said solemnly the next -morning, "The less said on this Mountain about prize -chickens, the better it 'll be for us all."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="an-unexpected-meeting">X</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">AN UNEXPECTED MEETING</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was a busy summer in and about the farmhouse on -Mount Hunger. What with tending the chickens--there -were four hundred and two in all--and strawberry-picking -and preserving, and in due season a repetition of the -process with raspberries and blackberries, the days seemed -hardly long enough to accomplish all the young people -had planned.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde came up for two days in June, and upon his -return told Doctor Heath that he, too, felt as if he needed -that kind of a cure.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel was the picture of health and fast becoming what -Chi had predicted, "an A Number 1" beauty. Her dark -eyes sparkled with the joy of life; on her rounded cheeks -there was the red of the rose; the skull-cap had been -discarded, and a fine crop of soft, silky rings of dark brown -hair had taken its place.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Never, no, never, have I had such good times," she -wrote to her Cousin Jack at Newport. "We eat on the -porch, and make believe camp out in the woods, and we -ride on Bess and Bob all over the Mountain. We've -about finished the preserves and jams, and Rose has only -burnt herself twice. The chickens, Chi says, are going to -be prime ones; it 's awfully funny to see them come flying -and hopping and running towards us the minute they see -us--March says it's the 'Charge of the Light Brigade.'</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish you could be up here and have some of the fun,--but -I 'm afraid you 're too old. I enclose the song -Rose sings which you asked me for. I don't understand -it, but it's perfectly beautiful when she sings it."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel had asked Rose for the words of the song, telling -her that her Cousin Jack at Harvard would like to have -them. Rose looked surprised for a moment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What can he want of them?" she asked in a rather -dignified manner; and Hazel, thinking she was giving -the explanation the most reasonable as well as agreeable, -replied:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know for sure, but I think--you won't tell, -will you, Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course I won't. I don't even know your cousin, to -begin with."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I think he is going to be engaged, or is, to Miss Seaton -of New York. All his friends think she is awfully pretty, -and papa says she is fascinating. I think Jack wanted -them to give to her."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh," said Rose, in a cool voice with a circumflex -inflection, then added in a decidedly toploftical tone, -"I've no objection to his making use of them. I 'll copy -them for you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you, Rose," said Hazel, rather puzzled and a -little hurt at Rose's new manner.</p> -<p class="pnext">This conversation took place the first week in August, -and the verses were duly forwarded to Jack, who read them -over twice, and then, thrusting them into his breast-pocket, -went over to the Casino, whistling softly to himself on the -way. There, meeting his chum and some other friends, he -proposed a riding-trip through the Green Mountain region -for the latter part of August.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Colonel and his wife will go with us, I 'm sure, -and any of the girls who can ride well will jump at the -chance," said his chum. "It's a novelty after so much -coaching."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll go over and see Miss Seaton about it," said Jack, -and walked off singing to himself,--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'--the stars above</div> -<div class="line">Shine ever on Love'--"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">His friend turned to the others. "That's a go; I 've -never seen Sherrill so hard hit before." Then he fell to -discussing the new plan with the rest.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack was wily enough, as he laid the plan before Maude -Seaton, to attempt to kill two birds with one stone. He -had had a desire, ever since the first letter of Hazel's, to -see his little cousin in her new surroundings, and this -desire was immeasurably strengthened by his curiosity to -see a girl who sang Barry Cornwall's love-lyrics on Mount -Hunger. Consequently, in planning the high-roads to be -followed through the Green Mountains, he had not omitted -to include Barton's River, as it boasted a good inn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here 's Woodstock,--just here," he explained to pretty -Maude Seaton, as they sat on the broad morning-porch of -the palatial Newport cottage, with a map of Vermont on -the table between them. "We can stop there a day or -two, and make our next stop at Barton's River; I 've -heard it's a beautiful place, with glorious mountain rides -within easy distance. Suppose we arrange to stop three -or four days there and take it all in? I 've been told -it's the finest river-valley in New England."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, do let's! The whole thing is going to be delightful. -I 'm so tired of coaching; I believe nobody enjoys it -now, unless it's the one who holds the reins, and then all -the others are bored. But with fine horses this will be no -end of fun. We can send on our trunks ahead, can't we?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, yes, that's easily arranged. By the way, what -horse will you take? Remember," he said, looking her -squarely in the eyes with a flattering concern, "it's a -mountain country, and we can't afford to have anything -happen to you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No danger for me," laughed Maude, meeting his look -as squarely. "And I can't worry about you after seeing -the polo game you played yesterday," she added with -frank admiration.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It was a good one, was n't it?" said Jack, his eyes -kindling at the remembrance. "It was my mascot did the -business--see?" He put his hand in his breast-pocket, -expecting to draw forth a ribbon bow of Maude's that she -had given him for "colors;" but, to his amazement, and -to Miss Seaton's private chagrin, he drew forth only the -slip of paper with Barry Cornwall's love-song in Rose -Blossom's handwriting.</p> -<p class="pnext">Where the dickens was that bow? Jack felt the absurdity -of hunting in all his pockets for something he had -intended should express one phase, at least, of his -sentiments. He felt the blood mounting to the roots of his -hair, and, laughing, put a bold face on it.</p> -<p class="pnext">He held out the slip of paper. "It looks innocent, -doesn't it?" he said mischievously, and enjoyed to the -full Maude's look of discomfiture, which, only for a second, -she could not help showing. "She 'll know now how a -fellow feels when he has sent her flowers and sees her -wearing another man's offering," he thought. He turned -to the map again.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, what horse will you ride?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll take Old Jo; he 's safe, and splendid for fences. -Of course you 'll take Little Shaver?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, he and I don't part company very often. So it's -settled, is it?" he asked, feeling cooler than he did.</p> -<p class="pnext">"So far as I am concerned, it is; and I know the Colonel -and Mrs. Fenlick will go; it's just the thing they like."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 'll leave you to speak to the other girls, and -I 'll go over and see Mrs. Fenlick. Good-bye." He held -out his hand, but Miss Seaton chose to be looking down -the avenue at that moment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, there are the Graysons beckoning to me!" she -exclaimed eagerly. "Excuse me, and good-bye--I must -run down to see them." As she walked swiftly and gracefully -over the lawn, she knew Jack Sherrill was watching -her. "Yes, it's settled," she thought, as she hurried on; -"and something else is settled, too, Mr. Sherrill! You 've -been hanging fire long enough--and the idea of his -forgetting that bow!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The Graysons thought they had never seen Maude -Seaton quite so pretty as she was that morning, when she -stood chatting and laughing with all in general, and -fascinating each in particular. The result was, the Graysons -joined the riding-party in a body, and Sam Grayson vowed -he would cut Jack Sherrill out if he had to fight for it.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a glorious first of September when the riding-party, -ten in number, cantered up to the inn at Barton's -River, and it was a merry group in fresh toilets that -gathered after dinner and a rest of an hour or two in their rooms, -on the long, narrow, vine-covered veranda of the inn. It -had been a warm day, and the afternoon shadows were -gratefully cooling.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Will you look at that load coming down the street?" -said Mrs. Fenlick. "I never saw anything so funny!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The whole party burst out laughing, as the vehicle, an -old apple-green cart, apparently filled with bobbing calico -sunbonnets and straw hats, shackled and rattled up to the -side door of the inn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I shall call them the Antediluvians," laughed Maude -Seaton. "Do you know where they come from?" she -said, speaking in at the open office-window to the boy.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I guess they come to sell berries from a place the -folks round here call 'The Lost Nation,'" he replied, -grinning.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'The Lost Nation!' Do you hear that?" said Sam -Grayson. "Let's have a nearer view of the natives." They -all went to the end of the veranda nearest the cart. Sam -Grayson and Jack went out to investigate.</p> -<p class="pnext">Two boys in faded blue overalls and almost brimless -straw hats jumped down before the wagon stopped, and -began lifting out six-quart pails of shining blackberries -from beneath an old buffalo robe. Jack, with his hands -in his pockets, sauntered up to the tail of the cart.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Buy them all, do--do!" cried Miss Seaton, clapping -her hands. "We need them to-morrow for our picnic; -and pay a good price," she added, "for the sake of the -looks. I wouldn't have missed it for anything?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"How do you sell them?" said Jack to the tall boy -who stood with his back to him, busied with the berries.</p> -<p class="pnext">The boy turned at the sound of the pleasant voice, and -lifted his brimless hat by the crown with an air a Harvard -freshman might have envied. Jack, seeing it, was sorry he -was bareheaded, for he hated to be outdone in such courtesy.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ten cents a quart, sir."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What a handsome fellow!" whispered Mrs. Fenlick. -"You rarely see such a face; and where did he get such -manners?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"How many quarts have--halloo, Little Sunbonnet! -Look out!" said Jack, laughing, as he caught the owner -of the yellow sunbonnet, who, perched on the side of the -wagon, suddenly lost her balance because of Bess's uneasy -movements in fly-time.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, you are an armful," he laughed as he set her -down and tried in vain to peer up under the drooping -bonnet and discover a face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Whoa--ah, Bess!" shouted the driver, as Bess reared -and snorted and shuddered and finally rid herself of the -tormenting horse-fly. "All right, Cherry Bounce?" he -said, turning at last when the horse was quieted.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Cherry was dumb with embarrassment, and Jack -answered for her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Little Sunbonnet's all safe, but what--" He got no -further with that sentence. To the amazement of the -group on the veranda and Jack's overwhelming astonishment, -a wild, gleeful "Oh-ee!" issued from the depths -of another sunbonnet in the cart, and the owner thereof -precipitated herself recklessly over the side, and cast -herself upon Jack's neck, hugging and "oh-eeing" with all -her might.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Hazel! Hazel!" Except for that, Jack was -dumb like Cherry, but not with embarrassment. Was -this Hazel? Her sunbonnet had fallen off, and the dark -blue gingham dress set off the wonderful richness of -coloring that helped to make Hazel what she had become, "a -perfect beauty."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Jack, you old darling, why did n't you let us know -you were coming? Chi, Chi!" Hazel was fairly wild -with joy at seeing a dearly loved home-face. "This is my -Cousin Jack we 've talked about. Jack, this is my friend, -Chi."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi put out his horny brown hand, and Jack grasped it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess she 's givin' you away pretty smart, ain't she?" -said Chi, with a twist of his mouth and a motion of his -thumb backwards to the veranda.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, rather," said Jack, laughing, for he felt that -Chi's keen eyes had taken in the whole situation at a -glance. "I meant to surprise her, but she has succeeded -in surprising me." He stood with his arm about Hazel. -"And these are your friends, Hazel?" he inquired; he felt -he must make the best of it now.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Jack, I 'm ashamed of myself; I 'm so glad to see -you I 've forgotten my manners. Rose," she spoke up to -the other sunbonnet that had kept its position straight -towards the horse and never moved during this surprise -party. Then Rose turned. "Rose, this is Cousin Jack."</p> -<p class="pnext">The sunbonnet bowed stiffly, and Jack heard a low laugh -behind him. It was Maude Seaton's. Rose heard it, too; -so did Chi and March. It affected each in the same way. -As Chi said afterwards, he "b'iled" when he heard it. -Then Rose spoke:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm very glad to see you, Mr. Sherrill, we 've heard -so much of you." Her voice rang sweet and clear; every -word was heard on the veranda. "And these berries -are n't to be preserved; but evidently you are going to -buy them just the same,--as well as your friends," she -added, looking towards the veranda.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack bit his lip. "I should like to introduce all my -friends to you," he said, without much enthusiasm, -however. "I know this is March;" he turned pleasantly to -him, but dared not offer his hand, for the look on the -boy's face warned him that March had resented the laugh. -"Will you come?" He held up his hand to Rose to help -her down.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you." Rose sprang down, ignoring the proffered help.</p> -<p class="pnext">She knew just how she looked, and her face burned at -the thought. Her old green and white calico dress was -shrunken and warped with many washings; her shoes -were heavy and patched; fortunately her sunbonnet with -its green calico cape was of a depth to hide her burning -face. But that laugh had been like a challenge to her -pride.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Drive up to the front veranda, Chi," she commanded -rather brusquely; and Chi, muttering to himself, "She's -game, though; I would n't thought it of Rose-pose; but -I glory in her spunk!" drew up to the front door in a -truly rattling style.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Rose and Hazel were introduced to them all; but -in vain did Maude Seaton try to get a look into her face. -It was only a ceremony, and Rose felt it as such; -nevertheless she said very pleasantly, "Hazel, wouldn't you -like to invite your friends up to tea on the porch -to-morrow? that is, if you are to be here?" she added, -addressing Mrs. Fenlick.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Rose, that would be lovely. Then they can see -the chickens!" said Hazel. There was a general laugh.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I fear it will be too much trouble, Miss Blossom," said -Mrs. Fenlick, courteously, for she felt like apologizing for -that laugh of Maude Seaton's; "there are so many of us."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, no, my mother will be glad to meet you," Rose -replied with serene voice; "won't she, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sure," said Chi, addressing the general assembly; "the -more the merrier; 'n' if you come along about four, you 'll -get a view you don't get round here, 'n' a wholesale piazzy -to eat it on. How many do you count up?" Jack winced -at the burst of merriment that followed the question.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We'll line up, and you can count," said Sam Grayson, -the fun getting the better of him. "Here, Miss Seaton, -stand at the head."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Miss Blossom, there are ten of us; are you going to -retract your invitation?" said Mrs. Fenlick, shaking her -head at Sam.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not if you wish to come," said Rose, pleasantly. "We -will have tea at five. Come, Hazel, we must be going: -there are the berries to sell--or shall we leave you here -with your cousin till we come back?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I won't leave you even for Jack," said Hazel, -earnestly; "besides, I 've never had the fun of selling -berries."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm thinkin' you 've lost your fun, anyway," said Chi, -"for Budd says the tavern-keeper has taken all; guess -<em class="italics">he 's</em> goin' into the jam business, too."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll pick some more, then, to-morrow, and you 'll have -to buy some of them, Jack," said Hazel, "for I 'm bound -to sell some berries this summer."</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll take all you can pick, Hazel," said Maude -Seaton, sweetly. Then, as the cart rattled away with -the three sunbonnets held rigid and erect, she turned to -Mrs. Fenlick and the other girls: "What an idea that -was of Doctor Heath's to put Hazel away up here in such -a family--a girl in her position!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"She seems to have thriven wonderfully on it," remarked -Mrs. Fenlick; "she will be the prettiest of her set -when they come out. I am delighted to have a chance to -see Doctor Heath's mountain sanatorium."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I 'm sure it will be amusing," replied Maude, dryly. -Then she shook out her light draperies, pulled down her -belt, and went down the road a bit to meet Jack and Sam -Grayson, who had accompanied the cart for a few rods -along the village street.</p> -<p class="pnext">When they had turned back to the inn, the storm in -the apple-green cart burst forth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you hear that girl laugh?" demanded March, with -suppressed wrath in his voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just as plain as I hear that crow caw," said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't bear her," said Hazel; "telling me she would -buy my berries when I only meant Jack."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kinder sweet on him, ain't she?" asked Chi, carelessly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should think so!" was Hazel's indignant answer. -"I heard Aunt Carrie tell papa she was always sending -him invitations to everything. But is n't Cousin Jack -splendid, Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose's sunbonnet was still very rigid, and Chi knew -that sign; so he spoke up promptly, knowing that she did -not care to answer just then:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"He 's about as handsome as they make 'em, Lady-bird; -if he wears well, I sha'n't have nothin' against him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel felt rather depressed without knowing exactly -why. March returned to the charge.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you hear that laugh, Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I did," said Rose, shortly. March looked at her -in surprise, but Chi managed to give him a nudge, which -March understood, and the subject was dropped on the -homeward way.</p> -<p class="pnext">That the berry-sellers were under a cloud was evident -to Mrs. Blossom as soon as they drove up to the woodshed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you have good luck, children?" she called to -them cheerily.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 've sold all our berries," said Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But March and Rose are cross, Martie," added Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tired 'n' hungry, too, Mis' Blossom," Chi hastened to -say, trying to shield Hazel and the other two. "I wish -you 'd just step out to the barn with a spoonful of your -good lard. Bess has rubbed her shin a little mite, 'n' I -want to grease it good to save the hair." Mrs. Blossom, -reading his face, took the hint.</p> -<p class="pnext">He made his confession in the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know what we 've done, Mis' Blossom; but -Rose has invited 'em all up here to-morrow to supper,--they 're -regular high-flyers, girls 'n' fellers, 'n' the Colonel -and his wife. There 's ten of 'em; 'n' it's a-goin' to make -you an awful sight of work, but, by George Washin'ton! that -pesky girl--Miss Seaver, or somethin' like it--riled -me so, that I ain't got over it yet, 'n' I 'd backed up -Rose if she 'd offered to take the whole of 'em to board -for a week. I just b'iled when I heard her laugh, 'n' she -can't hold a candle to our Rose; 'n' she's that -sassy--although you can't put your finger on anything -special--that you can't sass back; the worst kind every time; 'n' -she 's set her cap for the straightest sort of chap--that's -Hazel's cousin--there is goin', 'n', by George Washin'ton! -I 'm afraid he 's fool enough to catch at that bait.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There!" said Chi, stopping to draw breath, "I 've had -my blow-out 'n' I feel better. Now, what are we goin' to -do about it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll manage it, Chi," said Mrs. Blossom, smiling in -spite of herself at Chi's wrath. "After all, the children -have been carefully guarded in our home up here, and, -sometimes, I think too much,--it won't hurt them to take -a prick now and then. Besides, Chi," she added, laughing -outright as she turned to go into the house, "the children -did look perfectly ridiculous in those old berry-picking -rigs. I laughed myself when I saw you drive off with -them."</p> -<p class="pnext">But she left Chi grumbling.</p> -<p class="pnext">That night, after the children were in bed, and -Mrs. Blossom was sure they were all asleep except Rose, she -went upstairs a second time and spoke softly at the door:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Martie; oh, you 're coming! I 'm so glad." And -as Mrs. Blossom knelt by the bed, whispering, "Now tell -me all about it," Rose threw one arm over her mother's -shoulder and whispered her confession.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They were n't rude to you, dear, were they?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, Martie," whispered Rose, "it was n't that, but I -just <em class="italics">hated</em> them far a minute,--Hazel's cousin and all."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That is n't like you, Rose dear, to hate anyone without -reason."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie, I 'm ashamed to tell you--" the arm came -close about her mother's neck, "I 'm too old to have such -feelings, but I could n't bear them because I looked as I -did. I was ashamed of my looks and the children's; and -I was ashamed even of Chi--dear, old Chi!--" there -was a smothered sob and an effort to go on. "And they -were all dressed so beautifully, and Hazel's cousin had on -a lovely white flannel suit, and I was just a little rude to -him; but it was nothing but my dreadful pride! I did n't -know I had it till to-day,--oh, dear!" The head went -under the counterpane to smother the sound of the sobs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, my dear little girl--" (When Rose cried, which -was seldom, Mrs. Blossom called her daughter who was as -tall as herself, "little girl," and nothing comforted Rose -more than that.) So now, hearing the loving words, the -head emerged from the bedclothes, and a tear-wet face was -meekly held over the side of the bed for a kiss.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, my dear little girl," Mrs. Blossom went on after -the interruption, "surely you were courteous and thoughtful -of Hazel's happiness, at least, to ask them all up here -to tea. You have n't that to regret."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a fresh burst, smothered quickly under the -sheet. "Oh, Martie, that's the worst part of it! I did n't -ask them for Hazel's sake, but just for myself, because I -knew--I knew--" Rose smothered the rising sob; "that -if they came, I could have on my one pretty dress, and -they 'd see that I--that I--" Rose was unable to finish.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Could look as well as they did?" said Mrs. Blossom, -completing the sentence.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," sighed Rose, "and I feel like a perfect hypocrite -towards every one of them;--and, oh, Martie! the truth -is, I was ashamed of being poor and selling berries--" -again the head went under the coverlet, and Mrs. Blossom -caught only broken phrases:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I am so proud of--of you and Popsey--poor Chi -made it worse--they laughed--March was mad, too,--and -Miss Seaton 's so pretty--clothes--Hazel's cousin -tried to be polite--Hazel--just her dear own self--but -she 's rich--and Cherry f-fell into his arms--and I -know--and I know--I know he wanted to be out of the -whole thing--oh dear!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom patted the bunch under the clothes whence -came the smothered, broken sentences, and smiled while a -tear rolled down her cheek. After all, this was real grief, -and she wished she might have shielded her Rose from -just this kind of contact with the world. But she was -wise enough not to say so.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Rose dear, let's look on the other side now the -invitation has been given. I, for my part, shall be glad -to see what they are like. I know you looked queer in -those old clothes, but, after all, would n't it have been just -as queer to have been all dressed up selling berries?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I think it would, Martie," said Rose, emerging -from her retreat. "I 'm not such a goose as not to realize -we must have looked perfectly comical."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, now comfort yourself with the thought, that -to-morrow you need only look just as nice as you can in -honor of our guests. I 'm sure I shall," said Mrs. Blossom, -laughing softly. "I 'm not going to be outdone by -all those 'high-flyers,' as dear, old Chi calls them. We 'll -put on our prettiest--and there is n't much choice, you -know, for we have just one apiece--and we 'll set the -table with grandmother's old china out on the porch, and -we 'll give them of our best, and queens, Rose-pose, can -do no more. That's <em class="italics">our</em> duty; we'll let the others look -out for theirs. Now, what will be nice for tea?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not preserves, Martie, for Chi said--" Her mother -interrupted her,--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Never mind what Chi said now, dear, but plan for the -tea. We shall have to work as hard as we can jump -to-morrow forenoon to get ready. I 'm sorry father can't -be at home."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Could n't we have blackberries and those late garden -raspberries Chi has been saving?" said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, those will look pretty and taste good; and then -hot rolls, and fresh sponge and plum cake, and tea, and -cold chicken moulded in its jelly, the way we tried it last -month--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, that will be lovely, Martie," whispered Rose, -eagerly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And if Chi and March have the time," went on Mrs. Blossom, -entering heart and soul into the hospitable plan, -"I 'll ask them to go trout-fishing and bring us home two -strings of the speckled beauties, and if those served hot -don't make them respect old clothes--then nothing on -earth will," concluded Mrs. Blossom, with mock solemnity.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie Blossom, you're an angel!" cried Rose, -softly, rising in bed and throwing both arms about her -mother's neck--"there!"--a squeeze, "and there--" another -squeeze and a kiss, "and now you won't have to -complain of me to-morrow."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's mother's own daughter Rose," said Mrs. Blossom, -smoothing the sheet under the round chin. "Now, -good-night--sleep well, for I depend upon you to make -those rolls to-morrow forenoon."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="jack">XI</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">JACK</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Jack Sherrill had always had a particularly warm -interest in his Cousin Hazel. He, too, was motherless. -The fifteen-year-old lad had gone into one of the great -preparatory schools with the terrible mother-want in his -heart and life. Like Hazel, he, too, was an only child, -and consequently without the guidance and help of an -elder brother or sister. His father was all that a man, -absorbed in large business interests, could be to the son -whom he saw in vacation time only.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You are born a gentleman, Jack," he had said to him -when he was about to enter Harvard; "remember to -conduct yourself as such. You 'll not find it an easy -matter at times--I did n't--but you will find it pays; -and--and remember your mother." Then Mr. Sherrill -had wrung his boy's hand, and hurried away.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was the only time in the three years since she had -been lost to him, that his father had borne to mention the -lad's mother to him. To Jack it was like a last will and -testament, and he wrote it not only in his memory, but on -his heart.</p> -<p class="pnext">He had tried, yes, honestly, amid the manifold temptations -of his life and his "set," to live up to a certain ideal -of his own, but it had been slow work; and the last three -months of his sophomore year had been far from -satisfactory to himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">He was thinking this over as he rode slowly up the -steep road to Mount Hunger. He had come up that morning -to call on Mrs. Blossom, for he knew that the social -law of hospitality demanded that he should pay his -respects to Rose Blossom's mother and Hazel's guardian -before his friends should break bread in the house.</p> -<p class="pnext">That tall girl in the sunbonnet was a disappointment--but -then, he had been a fool to expect anything else just -because she happened to sing one of Barry Cornwall's -love-songs. He rode out of the leafy woods'-road, and -came unexpectedly upon the farmhouse. Chi saw him -from the barn, and came out to meet him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is Mrs. Blossom at home?" asked Jack, lifting his cap.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi patted Little Shaver's neck, shining like polished -mahogany. "Yes, she 's home, 'n' she 'll be glad to see -you. You 'll find her right in the kitchen, 'n' I 'll tend to -this little chap--what's his name?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Little Shaver, he 's my polo pony."</p> -<p class="pnext">"George Washington! He knows a thing or two. -He most winked at me," laughed Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, he knows a stable when he sees it," said Jack, -smiling; "but where 's the kitchen?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Right off the porch.--There 's Rose singing now; -guess that 'll be as good a guide-post as you could have. -Come along, Little Shaver,--a good name for you."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack went up on the porch, but stopped short at the -open door. Rose was at the kitchen table, patting out the -dough for the rolls. Her sleeves were turned up above -the elbows, and the round, yet delicate, white arms and the -pretty hands were working energetically with the rolling-pin. -She was singing from pure lightheartedness, and -she emphasized the rhythm by substantial thumps with -the culinary utensil.</p> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 60%" id="figure-39"> -<span id="rose-was-at-the-kitchen-table-patting-out-the-dough-for-the-rolls"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-118.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -"Rose was at the kitchen table, patting out the dough for the rolls"</div> -<div class="legend"> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'I told thee when love was hopeless; (thump)</div> -<div class="line">But now he is wild and sings--(thump)</div> -<div class="line">That the stars above (thump! thump!!)</div> -<div class="line">Shine ever on Love--(thump--)'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Jack knocked rather loudly, and Rose turned with a little -"Oh!" and an attitude that made Jack long for a -button-hole kodak.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come in, Mr. Sherrill," she said, cordially, but thinking -to herself, "Caught again! well, I don't care."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hope I have n't come too early this morning to be -received," said Jack, extending his hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't shake, Mr. Sherrill," laughed Rose, "and if I -stop to wash them, you won't have any rolls for tea."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do go on then," said Jack, eagerly, "only don't let me -be a bother. I was afraid it might be too early and -inconvenience you, but--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not a bit," said Rose as she turned to the kneading-board -again. "If you don't mind, I 'm sure I don't; only -these rolls must be attended to."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're very good to let me stay and watch the process," -said Jack, humbly, deferentially taking his stand by -the table. "I hope I shall not interfere so much with -Mrs. Blossom; I forgot that--that--" Jack grew red and -confused.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That we did our own work?" Rose supplied the rest -of his thought with such winning frankness, that Jack -succumbed then and there to the delight of a novel -experience.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll be out in a few minutes, Mr. Sherrill," called a -cheery voice from the pantry behind him. Jack -started,--then laughed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Am I interrupting you, too, Mrs. Blossom?" he said, -addressing a crack in the pantry door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't mean to let you, or you will have no sponge -cakes for tea; I 'm beating eggs and can't leave them or -they 'll go down."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can't I help, Mrs. Blossom? I 've no end of unused -muscle," said Jack, entering into the fun of the situation.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, thank you, I shall be but a few minutes. Rose -dear, just feel the oven, will you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack began to think himself a nonentity in all this -domesticity. "'Feel the oven,'" he said to himself. "Do -girls do that often, I wonder." He watched Rose's every -movement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, confess, Mr. Sherrill, have you ever seen anyone -make biscuit before?" said Rose, cutting off a piece of -dough, flouring it, patting it, cuddling it in both hands, -folding it over with a little slap to hold a bit of butter, and -tucking it into the large, shallow pan.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--" Jack drew a long breath, "I never have. You -see I have always thought it a kind of drudgery, but -this--" Jack sought for a word that should express his -feelings in regard to the process as performed by Rose--"this -is, why--it's poetry!" he exclaimed with a flashing -smile that became his expressive face wonderfully, and -caused Rose to fail absolutely in making a shapely poem -of the next roll.</p> -<p class="pnext">She laughed merrily. "There now, they 'll soon be -done--in good shape too, if you don't compliment them -too much."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll eat a dozen of them, I warn you now." Jack was -waxing dangerous, for he was already possessed with an -insane desire to become a piece of dough for the sake of -having those pretty hands pat him into shape.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you hear that, Martie?" cried Rose, flushing with -pleasure.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes. That's the best compliment you can pay them, -Mr. Sherrill. I hope my cakes will fare as well," she said, -coming from the pantry with extended hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was strange! But when Jack Sherrill returned the -cordial pressure of that same hand, small, shapely, but worn -and hardened with toil, his eyes suddenly filled with tears. -This, truly, was a home, with what makes the home--a -mother in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom saw the tears, the struggle for composure, -and, knowing from Hazel he was motherless, read his -thought;--then all her sweet motherhood came to the -surface.</p> -<p class="pnext">"My dear boy," she said with quivering lip, "it is very -thoughtful of you to come up and pioneer the way over the -Mountain for all your city friends."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack found his voice. "Mrs. Fenlick wanted to come, -too, Mrs. Blossom, but I managed to put it so she thought -it would be better to wait until afternoon. They are all -looking forward to it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm sorry Hazel is n't here; she is out picking berries -with the children. If Rose had n't so much to do, I 'd send -her to hunt them up."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack protested. He had come to call on Mrs. Blossom -and had detained them altogether too long.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't want to go," he said laughingly, "but I know -I ought. It seems almost an imposition for so many of us -to come up here and put you to all this trouble. Why did -you ask us, Miss Blossom?" At which question, Rose did -not belie her name, for a sudden wave of color surged into -her face, and she looked helplessly and appealingly at her -mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've put my foot into it now," was Jack's thought, as -Mrs. Blossom responded quickly, "For more reasons than -one, Mr. Sherrill."</p> -<p class="pnext">They were out on the porch; Chi was bringing up -Little Shaver.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It will be a regular stampede this afternoon," said -Jack, gayly, as he vaulted into the saddle. "Have -you room enough for so many horses?" He turned -to Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Plenty 'n' to spare, 'n' I 'm goin' to give 'em a piazzy -tea of their own. Little Shaver knows all about it: I 've -told him. I never saw but one horse before that could -most talk, 'n' that's Fleet."</p> -<p class="pnext">Little Shaver whinnied, and with a downward thrust -and twist of his head tried to get it under Chi's arm.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did n't I tell you?" said Chi, delightedly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can I get on to the main road by going over the -Mountain?" Jack asked him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, you can get over, if you ain't particular how you -get," said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No road?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kind of a trail;--over the pasture 'n' through the -woods, an acre or two of brush, 'n' then some pretty steep -slidin' down the other side, 'n' a dozen rods of swimmin', -'n' a tough old clamber up the bank--'n' there you are on -the river road as neat as a pin."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack laughed. "Just what Little Shaver glories in; -I 'll try it, and much obliged to you, Mr.--" he hesitated.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Call me, Chi."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi," said Jack, in such a tone of good comradeship -that it brought the horny hand up to his in a second's time.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack grasped it; "Good-bye till this afternoon." He -spoke to Little Shaver, who ducked his head and fairly -scuttled across the mowing, scrambled up the pasture, took -the three-rail fence at the top in a sort of double bow-knot -of a jump, and then disappeared in the woods, leaving the -three gazing after him in admiration.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That feller's got the right ring," said Chi, emphatically; -"but if he had n't come up here this mornin', first -thing, after that invite of Rose-pose's, I 'd have set him -down alongside of that Miss Seaver--'n' a pretty low -seat that would be!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll put up some lunch, Chi, for you and March, and, -if you can find him, you would do well to start now for -the trout."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom turned to Rose. "Come, dear, we 've -a hundred and one things to do to be ready in time. You -may set the table on the porch, and we 'll all picnic for -dinner to-day; I 've no time to get a regular one, and -father is n't at home."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a perfect afternoon on that second of September. -At a quarter of five Mrs. Blossom and Rose and Hazel -were on the porch, looking down upon the lower road for -the first glimpse of the party.</p> -<p class="pnext">The table was set on the huge rough veranda that -Mr. Blossom and Chi had built just off the kitchen long-room. -Clematis and maiden-hair ferns, which abounded on the -Mountain, were the decorations, and set off to good -advantage Mrs. Blossom's mother's old-fashioned tea-set of -delicate green and white china.</p> -<p class="pnext">On one end was a large china bowl heaped with blackberries, -on the other stood a common glass one filled with -luscious, red raspberries. The sponge cakes gleamed, -appetizingly golden, from plates covered with grape-vine -leaves for doilies.</p> -<p class="pnext">The chicken quivered in its own jelly on a platter -wreathed with clematis. The delicious odor of fried trout -floated out from the long-room, and the rolls were steaming -hot in snow-white napkins.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, dear!" moaned Rose. "Everything will get cold, -it's so late."</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then there was a shout from the advance-guard of -the twins, and the cavalcade came into view; Jack on -Little Shaver, who, after his thirty-mile morning ride, was -as fresh as a pastured colt--riding beside Maude Seaton -on Old Jo.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a general dismounting, assisted by Chi; a -gathering and looping up of riding habits; a bit of general -brushing down among the men; then, with one accord -they turned to the broad step of the porch.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Fenlick, telling of it afterwards, said that, for a -moment, she did nothing but look with all her eyes; for -there on the porch step stood a woman still in the prime -of life and beautiful. She was dressed in an India mull of -the fashion of a quarter of a century ago, with a lace -kerchief folded in a V about the open neck, and fastened -with an old-fashioned brooch.</p> -<p class="pnext">"At her side," said Mrs. Fenlick, "stood one of the -loveliest girls off of canvas I have ever seen. She had on -a gown of old-fashioned lawn--pale blue with a rose-bud -border. She was tall and straight, and the skirt was a -little skimpy, and so plain that had she designed it to set -off the grace of her figure she could n't have succeeded -better. And the face and head!" Mrs. Fenlick used to -wax eloquent at this point--"were simply ideal. Hazel, -of course, looked as handsome as a picture in her full, dark -blue frock of wash silk trimmed with Irish lace, and with -that rich color in her cheeks--but that girl's face was -simply divine! Just imagine a complexion of pure white, -and dark blue eyes--real violet color--black almost in -her pretty excitement of welcoming us, and the loveliest -golden brown hair just plaited and puffed a little at the -temples, and a braid, that big--" Mrs. Fenlick generally put -her two delicate wrists together at this point,--"that fell -below her waist fully half a yard! I never saw such hair!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Fenlick used to pause for breath at this point, and -then add, "Well, the whole thing was too lovely to be -described. Of course, we ate--lots; for that ride and the -air were enough to make a saint hungry in Lent, but I was -only dimly conscious of ever so many good things I was -eating, for that face fascinated me. And manners! Just -as if those two women had had nothing to do all their -lives but entertain royalty!</p> -<p class="pnext">"I had sense enough, however, to notice that Jack -Sherrill said very little and ate a great deal. I counted -twelve rolls--of course they were small--for one thing; -and I don't blame him,--I wanted more. Well, the whole -thing was perfect--the valley and the great mountains -were just in front of the porch, and everything harmonized. -Even that lovely girl had a bunch of purple-blue pansies -at her belt and a few in the bit of cotton lace at her throat; -and the sunset and the mountains matched them--as if -she had had the whole thing made to order."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Fenlick always ended with, "I 've got one bone -to pick with that dear Doctor Heath--a mountain -sanatorium! I 'd be willing, almost, to get nervous -prostration to be sent up there.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But oh! you should have seen Maude Seaton!" And -thereupon, Mrs. Fenlick would go off into a fit of laughter -at the remembrance. "She was looking about for the -'rigid sunbonnet,' as she called it, of the day before, and -did n't hear when Rose Blossom spoke to her; and when -she did realize that the two were one and the same, her -look was the kind 'Life' likes to get hold of, you know.</p> -<p class="pnext">"As for Jack Sherrill," Mrs. Fenlick concluded in her -most serious manner, "I have my own thoughts about -some things." More than that she would not say, for -fear it might get back to Maude Seaton's ears.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack, too, had his own thoughts about some things--and -kept them to himself.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="results">XII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">RESULTS</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was the middle of November. A wild, cold wind -was sweeping over the Mountain, and driving black clouds -in quick succession across the tops of the woodlands. It -howled around the farmhouse and, as now and again a -more furious blast hurled itself against doors and windows, -the children drew nearer together on the rug before the -huge fireplace with a delightful sense of safety and -cosiness.</p> -<p class="pnext">A kettle of molasses was simmering on the stove, and -Chi was wielding the corn-popper with truly professional -skill before the open fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was such fun to see the hurry, and scurry, and hustle, -and rattle, and pop, and sudden white transformation of -the heated kernels! A huge, wooden bowl received the -contents of the popper, and March salted them. Oh, how -good it smelt! And Rose was going to make molasses -corn-balls to put aside for the next evening.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's just like having a party every night, there -are so many of us," said Hazel, clapping her hands in -delight.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should think you 'd miss some of your real parties, -Hazel," said Rose, thoughtfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Miss them! Not a bit; why, they are n't half so nice -as this, and at home it's so lonesome when papa isn't -there. Is n't it lovely to think he 's coming up Christmas? -Even up here, you know, it would n't be quite Christmas -for me without him. That makes me think, I must write -him very soon about some things." Hazel looked mysterious.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We hung up our stockings last year, but we did n't -get what we wanted," said Cherry rather mournfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not?" asked Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Coz Popsey was so sick he could n't go out to the -Wishing-Tree, and so he did n't know."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What is the Wishing-Tree?" said Hazel, consumed -with curiosity.</p> -<p class="pnext">Cherry's mouth was full of corn, so Budd carried on the -conversation between mouthfuls.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll show you to-morrow. It's a big butternut up in -the corner of the pasture, an' there 's a little hollow in the -trunk where the squirrels used to hide beech-nuts, but -March has made a door to it with a hinge and put a -little padlock on it--that's the key hanging up on the -clock."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel saw a tiny key suspended by a string from one of -the pointed knobs that ornamented the tall clock.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N' nobody touches it till All-hallow-e'en," said Cherry, -when the sound of her munching had somewhat diminished, -although her articulation was by no means clear. -"'N' then Chi goes up with us in the dark, 'n' we put in -our wishes, 'n'--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let me tell Hazel," said Budd. "You 've begun at -the wrong end. You see, we write what we want for -Christmas down on paper, an' seal it with beeswax, an' -then don't tell anybody what we 've written; an' then -Chi goes up there with us after dark, an' we 're all dressed -up like Injuns--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Indians, Budd," corrected March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Old Pertic'lar, Indians, then," said Budd, a -little crossly, "an' then--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, you 've forgot the dish-pan and the little tub," -Cherry's voice came muffled through the corn. "We -take the dish-pan, Hazel, 'n' the little wash-tub, me 'n' -Budd between us, 'n' beat on them with the iron spoon -'n' the dish-mop handle, 'n' play 'tom-toms'--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, an' March gives an awful war-whoop--" Budd, -in his earnestness, had risen and gone over to Chi's side, -and now sat down by the big bowl, but, unfortunately, on -the popper which Chi had just emptied. There was a -smell of scorched wool, and, simultaneously, a wild, "Oh, -gee-whiz!!" from Budd, who leaped as if shot, and stood -ruefully rubbing the seat of his well-patched knicker-bockers, -while the rest rolled over on the rug in their -merriment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, do go on, Budd!" cried Hazel, wiping the tears -of mirth from her eyes. Cherry had laughed so hard that -she was hiccoughing with outrageous rapidity; and -March--forgetting May--chose that opportune moment to give -forth a specimen of his best war-whoop, for the purpose, as -he explained afterwards, of frightening her out of them.</p> -<p class="pnext">By the time order had been restored, Cherry was able -to take up the thread of the story;</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N' we join hands--Chi 'n' all of us--'n' sing as loud -as we can sing:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Intery, mintery, cutery corn,</div> -<div class="line">Apple seed, apple thorn;</div> -<div class="line">Wire, briar, limber lock,</div> -<div class="line">Five geese in a flock--</div> -<div class="line">Sit and sing by the spring;</div> -<div class="line">You are OUT.'</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Then we all give a great shout and grunt like In-di-ans--," -said Cherry, emphatically, looking at March; and March -nodded approval.</p> -<p class="pnext">"How's that?" asked Hazel, who was listening with -all her ears.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A hánnah--a hánnah--a hánnah," grunted the children -as well as they could, hampered by mouths full of -corn. "An' then," went on Budd, "we drop the wishes -into the hollow in the tree-trunk, an' Chi locks the door -an' keeps it, an'--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N' each of us ties two feathers from a rooster's tail to -different colored strings, 'n' fastens them on to a branch -of the tree, 'n' that brings us good luck; March calls -it 'winging the wishes.' That's the way we get our -presents."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, what fun!" cried Hazel. "May I do it this year?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Course," replied Budd, "but how will your father -know anything about it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I never thought of that," said Hazel, all her Christmas -castles toppling over suddenly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll fix it somehow, Lady-bird," said Chi, who, -having finished his labors, had seated himself in a chair -behind the children and provided himself with a private -bowl of his own.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But now, speakin' of roosters, I 'd like to know how -you 're comin' out about chicken money. I sold the last -lot but one down in Barton's to-day. There 's been a lot -of express to pay, 'n' I thought I 'd better pay dividends -to-night, 'n' get it off my mind, seein' it's most -Wishin'-Tree time."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose took her little account book from her pocket. -"We cleared one hundred and ten dollars on our preserves -and jams after we 'd paid Hazel what we had borrowed -for the jars and sugar, and paid for the express and boxes. -I 'm awfully sorry we could n't fill all the orders, but we 'll -try to next year. I 'll go and get the money. I like to -look at it, knowing it means so much to us all."</p> -<p class="pnext">She ran upstairs and came back with a little wooden -box that Chi had made for her years ago. The children -crowded about her. "There," said Rose, proudly, as she -took out the money and smoothed it, one crisp bill after -another, on her knees; "they 're all in ones, so it will -seem as if we had more when we divide. Now we 've -agreed to divide this equally, so that 'll make just -twenty-two apiece."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let's play 'Hold-fast-all-I-give-you' in earnest," said -Cherry, sitting down again on the rug and holding out -her hands. "That 'll be twenty-two times round and -make it seem a lot more."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good for you, Cherry," said March, approvingly, and -they all followed her example. With a gravity befitting -the occasion, the "truly-bruly" game, as Budd called it, -went on to the supreme satisfaction of those interested as -well as the enjoyment of father and mother and Chi; for -to the two former the money-making had long been, of -necessity, an open secret.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, after watching them a little while, left the room. -When he reappeared a few minutes later, he was greeted -with a prolonged "Ah!" of satisfaction; for in one hand -he held his old account-book, and in the other a long, dark -blue woollen stocking which bulged fearfully from the toe -halfway up the leg, where it was tied with a stout piece -of leather whip-lash.</p> -<p class="pnext">The whole business of disposing of the chickens had -been intrusted to Chi, and the members of the -N.B.B.O.O. Society had pledged themselves not to ask him any -questions in regard to the sale of them until he should -tell them of his own accord. This pledge they had kept, -and now they were to have their rewards.</p> -<p class="pnext">"If this is going to be a meeting of the N.B.B.O.O. Society, -I move we ask those who aren't members to -adjourn to the bedroom," said March, looking significantly -at his mother and father. Mr. and Mrs. Blossom -took the hint, and, without waiting for anyone to "second -the motion," betook themselves, laughing, into the other -room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess we 'll sit up to the table 'n' count it out," said -Chi, "coz we don't want any of it to fly up chimney. We -should never find it again in this gale."</p> -<p class="pnext">He emptied the stocking of its contents--bills, pennies, -and silver pieces of all denominations--upon the table, and -the children drew up their chairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now we 'll sort," said Chi. "You take the bills, Rose, -'n' the rest take the other pieces, 'n' make little piles before -you of a dollar each. Then we can reckon up easy. I 'll -take the pennies and the nickels."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I choose the ten-cent pieces," said Cherry, "an' you -take the quarters, Budd." March and Hazel took the rest.</p> -<p class="pnext">"This is a kind of stockholders' meetin'," said Chi, as -the piles were completed. "We 'll divide the proceeds -accordin' the number of hens each set; coz I could n't -keep run of so many chicks after they'd struck out for -themselves."</p> -<p class="pnext">He opened his book.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here 's some items you better hear, before you find any -fault with the management:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. July. 15 chicks killed by hen-hawks.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. August. 21 chicks died of the pip.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. September. Skunks stole ten.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. October. 2 can't find.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There 's a dead loss to all the stockholders, share 'n' -share alike. Now for expenses:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. Corn for feed till October--7 bushels.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mem. November. Express, $5.50. Crates -expressin'--$1.10. Now for the profits!" said Chi, with a -ring of triumph in his voice. "Count up your piles."</p> -<p class="pnext">How the cheeks flushed and the eyes grew dark with -excitement as the counting proceeded: "One hundred--one -hundred and thirty-two--one hundred and -seventy-seven--two hundred!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh-ee!" cried Hazel, as March fairly thundered "Two -hundred!" "There 's more, there 's more!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Go on, go on!" she cried again, almost beside herself -with excitement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Two hundred and seven--TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN!!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi!" exclaimed Rose, almost breathless, "How <em class="italics">did</em> -you make all that?" and thereupon, without waiting for -his answer, she sprang up from her chair, and, to Chi's -amazement, took his weather-worn face between her two -hands, and popped a kiss upon his forehead.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi cleared his throat and attempted to make his explanation, -but was interrupted by March, who got hold of his -right hand and wrung it without speaking. Chi saw the -boy turn a little white about the mouth and his gray eyes -flash through tears; words were not needed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd and Cherry did not realize all this meant to the -elder brother and sister, but they did not wish to be -outdone by the others in expressing their appreciation of Chi. -So Budd thumped him unmercifully on the back, saying, -"You 're a trump, Chi; tell us how you did it," in a most -patronizing tone, and Cherry danced around the table, -singing; "I love my Love with a big, big C!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked on, rejoicing in their joy, but wondering -why such a little sum, less than her yearly allowance, -should create all that happiness.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But tell us how you did it, Chi," said Rose again.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I sold most of them for broilers, they bring a -pretty good price; 'n' then I sold the feathers; 'n' you -forget all those forty hens have been layin' the last two -months, 'n' I sold the eggs. Then, too,--" a slow smile -wrinkled Chi's eyes--"I was n't interfered with, 'n' that -made a great difference in the business. How much have -you got altogether?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Three hundred and twenty-seven dollars," said March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What you goin' to do with it? that's the next question. -You can't let your money lay round in wooden boxes 'n' -old stockin's. It ought to be bringing you in interest."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm going to give my share to Rose, to prepare for -college with," said Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Indeed, I sha'n't take your money, Hazel; you 've -earned it fairly for yourself. I should be ashamed to -accept it, but it's lovely of you to think of it-- Why, -Hazel!" she cried, throwing her arm around her, for the -tears were rolling down Hazel's cheeks, and her chest -heaving with a bona fide sob.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Hazel flung off the encircling arm and threw herself -full length upon the settle in an abandonment of woe.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't care anything about your old money," she -sobbed. "I did n't want it for myself, and I 've worked so -hard picking berries and all--and you said you 'd keep -the by-law--and I 've been so happy working to help -others, and I never would have believed it of you, Rose -Blossom, that you 'd go back on your word--you promised--you -promised to help others--a regular solemn pl-pledge, -Chi says, and now--and the only way you could help me--was -to let--to let me help y-ou-oo-oo!"</p> -<p class="pnext">March and Rose looked at each other aghast at this -unwonted outburst from Hazel, and Mrs. Blossom, hearing -the wail, made her appearance from the bedroom.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Hazel dear, what is the matter?" she said.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 've spoiled all my good times," sobbed Hazel, -refusing to be comforted even when Mrs. Blossom, sitting -down by her, stroked her head and begged her to sit up -and tell her all about it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother!" cried Rose, holding back the tears as -well as she could, "it's all my fault. It's my old pride -that keeps coming up at every little thing, somehow, -and I know it 'll be the death of me! March has it, -too; and between us we have made it just horrid for -Hazel."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Rose, what do you mean?" asked her mother, -gravely.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Things that we 've kept from you, Martie. Hazel -wanted to give us the jars and the sugar, and we would n't -let her; and she wanted to give me a blue wash silk like -hers, because I said I wished I could afford one like -it,--and I--and I was a little angry, and showed it; and -March spoke up and said we would n't be patronized if we -were poor--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, March Blossom!" was all his mother said.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," broke in Budd, ready to place himself on the -side of righteousness, "an' Cherry told her that March -called her 'a perfect guy,' an' that meant she was homely; -an' that Chi said she was awful poor, an' we were a great -deal richer than she was, an' that you would n't have had -her here if you had n't pitied her--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Children!" Not one of them ever remembered to -have heard their mother speak with such stern anger in -her voice. "I 'm ashamed of you; you have disgraced -your parents' name." Then she turned to Hazel, drew -her up into her arms, and said, tenderly:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel, my dear little girl, why did n't you come to -me with this trouble?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Because--because you were n't <em class="italics">my mother</em>, you were -theirs; but, oh! I wish you were mine! I love you -so--" Hazel flung both arms around Mrs. Blossom's neck and -sobbed out,--"I 've wanted to call you Mother Blossom -and hug and kiss you like the rest--but Cherry was so -jealous--the first time I did it--that she--she stuck -burrs in my bed and led me through the nettle-patch when -we were raspberrying, because she knew I did n't know -nettles; and Chi told me we 'd got to be brave if we -joined the N.B.B.O.O., and I knew I ought to bear it--for -I <em class="italics">do</em> love to be here--and I love them all, for most -of the time they 're lovely to me;--and I don't think -you 've been horrid, Rose, only you did hurt my feelings -when you would n't let me give you the blue silk--and--and -it is n't my fault if I <em class="italics">am</em> rich, and it is n't fair not to -like me for it!"</p> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 62%" id="figure-40"> -<span id="hazel-flung-both-arms-around-mrs-blossom-s-neck"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-137.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -"Hazel flung both arms around Mrs. Blossom's neck"</div> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"No more it ain't, Lady-bird," said Chi, who, after -drawing the back of his hand across his eyes, was -apparently the only dry-eyed one in the room. March had -flung himself on the other end of the settle and buried his -face deep among the patch-work cushions. Rose was -sobbing outright with her head on her arms as she sat at -the dining-room table.</p> -<p class="pnext">Cherry, in her shame and misery--for she had come to -love Hazel dearly without wholly conquering her jealousy--softly -opened the pantry door and slipped inside where -she sniffed to her heart's content. As for Budd, he stood -over the wood-box, repiling its contents while the tears -ran off his nose so fast that he saw all the sticks double -through them.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You may go to bed, children," said Mrs. Blossom, still -holding Hazel in her arms. At this fiat, there was a -general increase in the humidity of the atmosphere; and, -knowing perfectly well when their mother spoke in that -tone, that words, tears, or prayers would not avail, they, -one and all,--for Cherry had been listening at the pantry -door,--made a rush for the stairs and stumbled up, blinded -by their tears.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom led Hazel still sobbing into her own little -bedroom, and shut the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, president of the vanished N.B.B.O.O. Society, -was left alone. He gazed meditatively awhile at the little -piles of money and the vacant chairs opposite each. Then -he gathered them up carefully and placed them in orderly -rows in the wooden box. His next move was to the shed -door. As he opened it, a gust of wind extinguished the -lamp on the table.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess I 'll go to bed, too," said Chi to himself, coming -back for the box, which the firelight showed plainly -enough. "The barometer's dropped, 'n' it always makes -me feel low in my mind."</p> -<p class="pnext">He heaved a prodigious sigh and went out into the shed -and up the back stairs. The wooden box he put under -the head of the mattress; he barricaded the door and -placed his rifle beside it against the wall. Then he turned -in and drew the coverlet up over his head with another -sigh, so long, so profound, that it mingled with the wind -as it swept through the cracks of the shed beneath, and -made a part of the dismality of the night.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom returned to the long-room, and, sitting -down in her low rocker before the fire, waited. She knew -her children.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soon, it might have been within half an hour, she heard -Rose call softly at the top of the stairs:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Martie."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">"May I come?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, dear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"O Martie! may I, too?" wailed Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm coming, mother," said March, speaking in a low, -determined voice through the knot-hole.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Very well, March."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come along, Budd," said March, and Budd was only -too glad to grip his brother's pajamas and follow after.</p> -<p class="pnext">Down they came, tiptoeing in their bare feet, Rose -heading the penitential procession. She knelt by her -mother's side, and March and Budd and Cherry knelt, too.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then, to their mother's, "Are you <em class="italics">truly</em> ready, -children?" they answered heartily, "Yes, Martie."</p> -<p class="pnext">Together they said in subdued but earnest tones, "Our -Father;" together they prayed, "'Forgive us our -trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us'"--and -after the heart-felt, "Amen," each received a kiss by -way of absolution; and together, until the clock struck -ten, they talked the whole matter over and resolved to -fight their Apollyons daily and hourly, and, with God's -grace, conquer them.</p> -<p class="pnext">These were the rare hours, the memory of which held -March Blossom in the way of right and honor when he -went out to battle for himself in the world. These were -the hours, the memory of which kept him in his college -days unspotted from the world. It was such an hour -that ripened Rose Blossom into a thinking, feeling woman, -and made Budd into a knight of the Twentieth Century.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was for such an hour that Jack Sherrill would have -given his entire fortune.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-social-addition">XIII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A SOCIAL ADDITION</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was a chastened household that gathered about the -breakfast table the next morning; and for a week -afterwards, every one was so thoughtful and considerate of -everybody else that Mrs. Blossom said, laughing, to her -husband; "They 're so angelic, Ben, I 'm afraid they are -all going to be ill. I declare, I miss their little -naughtinesses."</p> -<p class="pnext">Several things had been settled during the week and, -apparently, to everyone's satisfaction. At a very -serious-minded meeting of the N.B.B.O.O., it had been decided -to keep the larger part of the money in order to start -March on his career. Not without protest, however, on -March's part. But he was overruled. Rose argued that -if he were going to college, he must begin to prepare that -very winter, and if their earnings were divided among -the five, no one would reap any special benefit from them, -least of all, March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can wait well enough another year, perhaps two," -she said; "and, meanwhile, we 'll be earning more. But -you, March, ought to be in the academy at Barton's this -very minute."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know it," said March, dejectedly; "but I do hate -to take girls' money; somehow, it does not seem -quite--quite manly."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Better remember what your mother talked to you 'bout -last Sunday, 'bout its bein' more of a blessin' to give than -to get," said Chi, sententiously.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I do remember, and there 's nobody in the world I 'd -be more willing to take it from than from you, all of you, -but--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Me, too?" interrupted Hazel, leaning nearer with -great, eager, questioning eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, you, too, Hazel," March replied gently, with such -unwonted humility of spirit shining through his rare, -sweet smile, that Hazel bounced up from her seat at the -table, and, going behind March's chair, clasped both arms -tightly around his neck, laid the dark, curly head down -upon the top of his golden one, exclaiming delightedly:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, March, you are the dearest fellow in the world. -I never thought you 'd give in so--and I love you for it! -There now,"--with a big squeeze of the golden head--"you 've -made me superfluously happy." Hazel took her -seat, flushed rosy red in pleasurable anticipation of being -allowed, at last, to give to those she loved, and wholly -unmindful of her slip of the tongue.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now that's settled, I move that each of you keep three -dollars of that money 'gainst the Wishin'-Tree business. -Chris'mus 'll be here 'fore you can say 'Jack Robinson.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Second the motion," said Budd and Cherry in the -same breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a unanimous vote.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There is just one thing I want to say," said March, -who, in a bewilderment of happy emotions, had been -unable to reply one word to Hazel, "and that is, that I -want you to consider that you have lent it to me and -let me have the pleasure of paying back, sometime, when -I am a man."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's fair enough," said Chi. "I glory in your -independence, Markis. That's the right kind to have. -Put it to vote."</p> -<p class="pnext">Again there was a unanimous vote of approval, for they -all knew that to one of March's proud spirit it meant -much to accept the money, from the girls especially; and -they felt it would make him happier if he were to accept -it as a loan.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can save a lot by not boarding down at Barton's, -and by working for my board at the tavern, or in some -family," said March, thoughtfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No you don't," said Chi, emphatically. "'T ain't no -way for a boy to be doin' chores before he goes to school -in the mornin' 'n' tendin' horses after he gets out in the -afternoon. If you 're goin' to try for college in two years, -you 've got to buckle right down to it--'n' not waste time -workin' for other folks that ain't your own. Here comes -Mis' Blossom, we 'll ask her what she has to say about it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Martie, where have you been all this afternoon? -I saw you and father driving off in such a sly sort of way, -I knew you did n't want us to know where you were -going. Now, 'fess!" laughed Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Fess, 'fess, Martie!" cried Budd and Cherry, -hilariously breaking up the meeting. "We 've got you -now!" And without more ado they anchored her to the settle, -each linked to an arm, while Hazel took off her hood, -March drew off her rubbers, and Rose unpinned her shawl.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom laughed. "No, you guess," she replied.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Down to the Mill Settlement?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Wrong."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Over to Aunt Tryphosa's?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Down to see the Spillkinses?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Wrong again."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Over eastwards to the Morris farm," said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Right," said Mrs. Blossom, smiling. "How did you -know, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I didn't, just guessed it; coz I knew the new folks -was goin' to move in this week."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What new folks?" chorussed the children in surprise.</p> -<p class="pnext">"An addition to the Lost Nation," replied their mother, -"and a very charming one. Now there are five families -on our Mountain."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Who are they, Martie?"--"Are you going to ask -them to Thanksgiving, too?"--"What's their name?"--"How -many are there of them?"--"Any boys?" They -were all talking together.</p> -<p class="pnext">"One at a time, please," laughed Mrs. Blossom, putting -her hands over her ears. "I never heard such mill-clappers!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">Do</em> hurry up, mother," said March, appealingly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A young man from New Haven has taken the lease of -the farm for three years. He has his mother and sister -with him. He was in the law school at Yale until last -spring; then his father died, and his sister, a little older -than you, Rose, was injured in some accident--I don't -know what it was--and now she is very delicate. The -doctor says if she can live in this mountain country for a -few years, she may recover her health. The brother and -mother are perfectly devoted to her. She calls herself -a 'Shut-in'--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Then she can't come over for Thanksgiving dinner," -said Rose, interrupting.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not this year, but I hope she may next."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did he give up college for his sister's sake?" asked -March.</p> -<p class="pnext">"He gave up the last year of his law course; they could -not afford to travel so many years for the benefit of her -health, so they came up here. I do pity them; it must be -such a change. But, oh, March! how you will enjoy that -house! They have been there only a week, yet it looks -as if they had lived there always. They have such -beautiful framed photographs of places they visited when they -were in Europe with their father, and cases of books, and -a grand piano--I don't see how they ever got it up the -Mountain. The young man and his mother both play, and -he plays the violin, too."</p> -<p class="pnext">The children and Chi were listening open-eyed as -Mrs. Blossom went on enthusiastically:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's just like a fairy story, only it's all true. Just -two weeks ago, when your father and I drove by there, -that long, rambling house looked so bleak and bare and -desolate--your father and I always call it the 'House of -the Seven Gables,' for there are just seven--and the -spruce woods behind it looked fairly black, and the wind -drew through the pines by the south door with such an -eerie sound, that I shivered. And to-day, what a change! -All the shutters were open, and muslin curtains at the -windows, and the sun was streaming into the four windows -of the great south room that they have made their living-room. -There was a roaring big fire in the hall fireplace, -and plants--oh, Rose, you should see them! palms and -rubber trees and sword ferns,--and lovely rugs, and--I -can't begin to tell you about it; you must go and see for -yourselves." Mrs. Blossom paused for breath, with a glad -light in her eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It sounds too good to be true," said Rose, "and you -look as if you had been to a real party, Martie."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I have, my dear. Just to see such people and -such a house is a party for me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And you can keep having it, too, can't you, Martie? because -they 're going to be neighbors," cried Cherry, -every individual curl dancing and bobbing with excitement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is the young man good-looking?" asked Hazel, earnestly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Very," replied Mrs. Blossom, smiling.</p> -<p class="pnext">"As handsome as Jack?" said Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Very different looking, Hazel; quiet and grave, but -genial. Not so tall as Mr. Sherrill, I should say; talks -but little, but what he says is well worth listening -to--and when he smiled! I did n't hear him laugh, but I know -he can enjoy fun. He has a fine saddle horse, Chi, and -he wants you to come and give him some advice about -selecting stock."</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Fraid he 's too high-toned for me," said Chi, modestly; -"but if I can help him anyway, I 'd like to. Seems a -likely young man from all you say."</p> -<p class="pnext">"He 's more than 'likely,' Chi," returned Mrs. Blossom, -with a twinkle in her eye that only Chi caught.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Speakin' of horses, Mis' Blossom, we 've decided to -send March to the Academy at Barton's, 'n' if I let him -have Fleet, he could come 'n' go, a matter of sixteen miles -a day, without bein' from home nights. I don't approve -of that for boys."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, indeed, neither his father nor I would think of -such a thing for a moment. But how kind of you, Chi, to -let March have Fleet."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I want to help on the college education all I can; 'n' -if our boy wants to go, he 's goin' to have the best to get -him there so far as I 'm concerned."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know how to thank you, Chi," said March, -"but I 'll treat Fleet like a lady and I 'll study like -a--like a house on fire. I don't envy that other fellow his -saddle horse if I can have Fleet. What's his name, -mother? you haven't told us yet."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, so I have n't--Ford, Alan Ford, and his sister's -name is Ruth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"When can we go over and see them, Martie?" said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I thought two or three days after Thanksgiving, and -then you can take a little neighborly thank-offering with -you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What can we take?" queried Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, a mince pie or two, some raspberry preserves, a -comb of last summer's honey, a pat of butter, a nice bunch -of our white-plume celery, and, perhaps, Chi could find a -brace of partridges."</p> -<p class="pnext">"M-m--does n't that sound good-tasting!" said Cherry, -patting her chest ecstatically.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Who 's coming for Thanksgiving, Martie?" asked Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"All the Lost Nation--the Spillkinses and Aunt -Tryphosa and Maria-Ann, Lemuel and his wife and--who -else? Guess."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's all."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not this year, you forget your new teacher, Budd. -She boards around, and it's the Mountain's year, so she -is at Lemuel's now."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, good!" cried Budd enthusiastically. "She 's a -daisy. I know you 'll like her, Hazel. All the fellows -are awfully soft on her, though--bring her butternut -candy, an' sharpen her pencils, an' black the stove, an' -wash off the black-board; an' I saw Billy Nye sneak out -the other day and wipe the mud off her rubbers with his -paper lunch-bag! Catch me doing it, though," he added, -his chest swelling rather pompously as he straightened -himself and thrust his hands deep into the pockets of his -knickerbockers.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not?" his mother asked with an amused smile.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, coz," was Budd's rather sheepish reply, and thereupon -he followed Chi out to the barn, whistling "Dixie" -with might and main.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="the-lost-nation">XIV</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">THE LOST NATION</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The four families on Mount Hunger were known to -the towns about as The Lost Nation. Two of them, the -Blossoms and the Spillkinses, were, in reality, -lumber-dealers rather than farmers. The third, Lemuel Wood, -had a sheep farm, and Aunt Tryphosa Little with her -granddaughter, Maria-Ann, was the fourth. The two -women owned a spruce wood-lot and let it out to men who -cut the bark. They cultivated a small garden-patch of -corn, beans, and squash, kept a cow and a few hens, and -eked out their scanty income with a day's work here and -there in fine weather.</p> -<p class="pnext">Every two weeks they did the washing and ironing for -the Blossom family, as Mrs. Blossom's cares were too -heavy for her, and she felt that not only could she afford -it this year, but that in putting it out she was giving a -little help to her poorer neighbors.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi or March took the huge basket of linen over on the -wagon or sledge, and always left with it a neighborly gift--a -peck of fine russets or greenings, a bunch of celery, a -pound or two of salt pork, a bunch of delicious parsnips, -or a dozen eggs when the old dame's hens were moulting. -Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann were not to be outdone -in neighborly kindnesses, and, regularly, the willow basket, -full to overflowing with snow-white clothes, was returned -with something tucked away under the square covering -of oil-cloth--a tiny bunch of sage or summer savory, an -ironing-holder made of bits of bright calico or woollen -rags, a little paper-bag of spruce gum, a pair of woollen -wristers for Mr. Blossom or Chi, a new recipe for spring -bitters with a sample of the herbs--sassafras, dockroot, -thoroughwort, wintergreen, and dandelion--gathered by -Aunt Tryphosa herself.</p> -<p class="pnext">They had one cow which they regarded as the third -member of their family. She had been named Dorcas, -after Aunt Tryphosa's mother, and proved a model animal -of her kind. She gave a more than ordinary amount of -creamy milk; presented her mistress with a sturdy calf -each year; never hooked or kicked; never, during the -bitter winter weather, grew restless in her small shed -which adjoined the woodshed, and never broke from -pasture in the sweet-smelling summer-time.</p> -<p class="pnext">Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann vied with each other in -petting her. They brushed her coat as regularly as they -did up their own back hair. They gave her a weekly -scrubbing as conscientiously as they took their Saturday -bath. For cold nights Aunt Tryphosa had made for her -a nightdress of red flannel (although she had never heard -of "Cranford"), which she and Maria-Ann had planned to -fit the cow-anatomy, and it had proved a great success.</p> -<p class="pnext">For the midsummer fly-time they had contrived a -wonderfully fashioned garment of coarse fish-netting, into -which they had knotted a cotton fringe. They claimed, -and rightly, that freedom from chill and irritation, incident -upon zero weather and August dog-days, affected the milk -most favorably, both in quantity and quality; and, as it -all went to make delicious small cheeses, which sold at -Barton's River for twenty-five cents apiece and were -renowned throughout the county, people had ceased to -laugh at the cow's appearance.</p> -<p class="pnext">It had become one of Hazel's great treats to be permitted -to go with March or Chi to the little house--not much -more than a cabin--on the east side of the Mountain; and -when she knew that the two were to be guests for Thanksgiving, -but not for Christmas, she began to lay plans -accordingly.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Spillkinses were an aged set, not one was under -seventy.</p> -<p class="pnext">There were the Captain and his wife, who had -celebrated their Golden Wedding, and his wife's two maiden -sisters, Melissa and Elvira, of whom he always spoke as -the "girls." They were funny old maidens of seventy one -and two, who did up their hair in curl-papers, precisely as -they did a half a century ago; wore black cotton mitts when -they went to church, and white silk ones when they went -out to tea; called each other "Lissy" and "Elly," and -were still sensitive in regard to their ages.</p> -<p class="pnext">In addition to these, the old, gray-shingled, vine-covered -farmhouse on the lower mountain-road, sheltered the -Captain's elder brother, Israel, who was just turned -ninety-three, hale and hearty, and Israel's eldest son, Reuben, -a youth of seventy, who in our North Country parlance -"was not all there," but harmless, kindly, and generally -helpful.</p> -<p class="pnext">All these, together with Lemuel Wood and his wife, and -the new teacher, were to be Thanksgiving guests, and -wonderful preparations went on for days beforehand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such a sorting and paring and chopping of apples! -Such a seeding of raisins, and whipping of eggs, and -compounding of cakes! Such a tucking away of chickens -beneath the flaky crust of the huge pie! Such a moulding -of cranberry jelly, so deeply, darkly, richly red! Such a -cracking of butternuts, and a melting of maple sugar! -Such a stuffing of an eighteen-pound turkey, and such a -trussing of thin-linked sausages! Such a making of goodly -pies, pumpkin, mince, and apple! Such a quartering of -small cheeses contributed by Aunt Tryphosa! Such an -unbottling of sweet pickles, and unbarrelling of sweet -cider;--and, on the final day, such a general boiling, and -baking, and roasting, and basting, and mashing, and -grinding, and seasoning, and whipping, and cutting, and -kneading, and rolling, as can occur only once a year in an -old-fashioned, New England farmhouse.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel was in her glory. Arrayed in a checked gingham -apron, which she had made herself, she beat eggs, whipped -cream, helped Rose set the table, wiped the dishes and -baking-pans, basted the noble Thanksgiving bird once, as -a great privilege, although in so doing, she burned her -fingers with the sputtering fat, scorched her apron, and -parboiled her already flushed face with the escaping steam. -But she was happy!</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Oh, papa!" she wrote the day after the party, "I never -had such a good time in my life! If only you could see the -things we made!--apple and lemon tarts, and mince and -cranberry 'turnovers,' and doughnuts all twisted into a sort of -French bow-knot such as Gabrielle used to make of her back -hair, and a queer kind of cake they call 'marble,' all streaky -with chocolate and white, and butternut candy made with maple -sugar, and an <em class="italics">Indian</em> pudding, and little bits of nut-cakes with -a small piece of currant jelly inside and all powdered sugar out; -and--oh, I can't begin to tell you, for this is only a part of the -dessert.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll try to paragraph this letter in the right places so you 'll -understand about the party.</p> -<p class="pnext">"All the Lost Nation was invited; Captain and Mrs. Spillkins, -Miss Melissa and Miss Elvira, Uncle Israel and Poor Reub, -Mr. Lemuel Wood and his wife, and Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann, -and-- Oh, I forgot Miss Alton. She 's awfully sweet; -she is Budd and Cherry's teacher in the district school at the -Mill Settlement. She's more like a city person than the others. -I wish you 'd been here! for I can't tell it half as nice as it was; -but I 'll do my best because you wrote you wanted me to tell -you everything.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We were already for the party at eleven o'clock--in the -morning, I mean--(I can't remember the sign for forenoon). -We don't have any lunch up here, as you know, but the dinner -comes between 12 and 1, so everything was ready then. I got -up at five o'clock! and worked hard till it was time to change -my gown.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It was awfully cold. Chi said the thermometer was shivering -when he looked at it just after breakfast; he means by that, -it's below zero--a good deal; and I couldn't help thinking -how cosy and warm and deliciously smelly it would be for the -Lost Nation when they came in out of the cold into the -long-room and saw the table (it looked beautiful, with baskets of -red apples, and nuts and raisins, and a big centre-piece of -red geranium) just loaded with goodies.</p> -<p class="pnext">"March had driven over for Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann, -and they arrived first--Mrs. Blossom says they always do. -(I want you to go over and call on them when you are up here -Christmas; it's just like a story in Hans Andersen; they keep -a cow, Dorcas, who wears a kimono on very cold nights.)</p> -<p class="pnext">"March helped Aunt Tryphosa out just as if she had been -Queen Victoria. (I forgot to tell you she and Maria-Ann do our -laundry work.) March is perfectly splendid about such things--and -Maria-Ann sort of bounced out, although Chi held out -his hand to help her. It's so funny to see them together! -Aunt Tryphosa is so small and wrinkled and thin that, -sometimes, Chi says he has known a good wind to knock her right -over; and Maria-Ann is almost as tall as Chi, and stout and -rosy-cheeked, with nice brown eyes that talk to you.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And, oh, papa!--I'll tell you, but it's a confidence--I -saw Aunt Tryphosa shiver hard when she came into the house, -and I 'm afraid she did not have enough warm things on. I -know her shawl was n't <em class="italics">very</em> thick, for I went into the bedroom -afterwards and felt of it; and she had no furs at all! Think -of that with the thermometer way down below zero, papa! -I 'll tell you all about it when you come.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, after Mrs. Blossom had given the old lady a cup of -hot tea, she felt better and began to talk; and, honestly, papa, -she never stopped talking all day long! March said he timed -her. She lives away over on the east side of the Mountain -away from everybody, and yet she knows everything that is -going on, on the Mountain, and at the Mill Settlement, and at -Barton's River, and that, as you know, is quite a large place.</p> -<p class="pnext">"She told us all about the new neighbors in the seven-gabled-house; -how they had their dinner at bed-time, and what 'help' -they have, and whom they are going to have for hired man, and -how they have music every night after dinner, and how the -lights were n't put out in the north-east chamber till one o'clock. -She even knew the pattern of lace on the underclothes that -were hung out to dry! and Maria-Ann was trying to crochet -some in imitation; I saw it myself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And she said that one of the chambers was all lined with -books, and another just covered, floor and walls, with -pictures--what can she mean, papa? and that down stairs off the -living-room in what used to be old Mrs. Morris's milk-room, -there were ropes, and weights, and pulleys, and a stretcher, -and iron balls, and that every one said it did n't have the right -look. But she said she meant to stand up for them, because -the young man had come over to call just two or three days -ago and said, as she was his nearest neighbor, they ought to -become acquainted before winter set in; and he ordered a half -a dozen cheeses and brought word from his mother that she -would like them to come over and see her daughter, for she -thought Maria-Ann might be able to do something for her. -Now, what do you suppose it all means?</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course, it makes us all wild to go over there, and I hope -we shall go soon.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, oh! if you could see the Spillkinses! I had to go off -up stairs and bury my face in Rose's feather bed so I could -laugh without being heard. They 're the funniest lot of people -I ever saw. They all came over in a big wagon filled with -straw, and before they came in sight, Chi said, 'They 're -coming, I know by the cackle;' and, papa, that is just what -it was.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They are all awfully aged, but they act just like young -people, and Mrs. Blossom says it's their young hearts that -keep them so young.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Uncle Israel, he's ninety-three, but he wears a dark brown -wig and looks younger than his son, Poor Reub, who is seventy -and has snow-white hair. Mrs. Spillkins wears what they call -up here a 'false front;' it's just the color of Uncle Israel's, -so she looks more like his sister. But her two sisters, Miss -Melissa and Miss Elvira, are perfectly comical. They're just -as small as Aunt Tryphosa, but they don't talk; only nod and -smile and bow as if they were talking. They have little -corkscrew curls, three on each temple, and they bob and shake -when they nod and smile and sort of chirrup; it's the Captain -and his wife and Uncle Israel who cackle so when they laugh. -Poor Reuben does n't say much either, only he looks perfectly -happy, and always sits by his father when he can get a chance. -Chi was just lovely to him all the afternoon.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, after Mr. Wood and his wife and the new teacher -came, we all sat down to dinner, and Mr. Blossom said 'grace,' -and all the Spillkinses said 'Amen,' which surprised us all -very much.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We don't have courses up here, because there is nobody to -serve us; so everything is put on your plate at once, except, -of course, dessert, and papa!--I would n't say it to any one -but you, but I never saw any one eat so much as Aunt Tryphosa -for all she is so small and thin. Mr. Blossom piled her -plate up twice with turkey, and squash, and onion, and potato, -and turnip, and then she helped herself to cranberry jelly and -sweet pickles three times; and yet she managed to talk all the -time; and the queer part of it was that she did n't cut herself -once, they all eat with their knives--except, of course, our -family and Miss Alton.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose and Cherry and I removed the dinner plates, and that -was all the waiting there was.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We sat till half-past three at the table; then Uncle Israel -said another 'grace'--'after-grace,' he called it,--and -Mr. Blossom and Chi took the--the gentlemen part out to see the -horses and cows, and all the rest went to work to clear off -the table and do up the dishes. There were so many of us it -did n't take long, and then we lighted the lamps, and all -the--the ladies took out their knitting and began to work as fast as -they could.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Then in a little while all the--the gentlemen came in, and -the ladies put up their work, and they all sat round the room -and sang Auld Lang Syne. Rose led, and Miss Alton sang a -lovely alto. It was lovely, and I longed to have you with me. -Then Captain Spillkins said it was time to hitch up, and Chi -said it was time to be going as it was very dark and cold. He -drove Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann home, and Mrs. Blossom -filled a large basket with all sorts of goodies, and Mr. Blossom -set it in behind in the apple-green cart without their knowing -it; so now they can have a surprise party of their own and -Thanksgiving for a whole week.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There! This is the longest letter I ever wrote in all my -life. I 've written it at different times during the day. I ate -so much yesterday, that I don't feel very bright to-day, so you -must excuse any mistakes, although I've used the dictionery as -you wanted me to.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">"Always your loving, and now your dreadfully sleepy</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">"DAUGHTER HAZEL.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">"P.S. I think I shall feel better, if I tell you that we all had -a very unhappy time two weeks ago. I had a really dreadful -heartache, papa, and, for the first time, was homesick for you.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You see, March and Rose are very proud of spirit, and I -don't think they liked it in me because we are rich--but you -and I understand each other, don't we? and know that being -rich does n't mean anything to us, does it? and then, too, Chi -says we 're poor because we have n't so much family to love as -the Blossoms have, and that's true, too, is n't it?--and I think -that kind of poorness ought to balance our riches, don't you? -And--well, I can't explain how it all came about, but now -they are willing to let me give them things when I want to, -and that makes me very happy, and we are all a great deal -happier than we were before, and I'm going to call -Mrs. Blossom, 'Mother Blossom,' after this, she says she wants me -to, and she takes me in her arms just as she does Rose and -Cherry, and we talk things over together; so everything is all -right now.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Please send up my violin by express when you receive this. -There is a very good-looking young man, the new neighbor at -the seven-gabled-house, and he plays the violin, too, and his -mother the piano. Love to Wilkins and Minna-Lu. I 'll send -him a present from here--Oh, I forgot! don't forget to write -Chi within a week sure, to inform you about the Wishing-Tree, -and don't buy any presents for anybody till you hear from -him. H.C."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">When Mr. Clyde read this long letter at the breakfast -table, his face was the despair of Wilkins, who hovered -about, seeking, ineffectually, for an excuse to ask about -Miss Hazel.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Doan know what kin' er news Marse John get from -little Missy," he told Minna-Lu, the cook; "but he laffed -pow'ful part de time, an' den he grow pow'ful sober, an' -de fust ting I know, de tears come splashin' onto de paper, -an' he speak up rale sharp, 'Wha' fo' yo' hyar, Wilkins?' -an' sayin' nuffin', I jes' makes tracks, case I see he wan's -nobuddy see dem tears.-- Fo' Gawd, I 'se be glad when -little Missy come home."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde took this manuscript, as he called it, over to -the Doctor.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There, Dick, read that," was all he said.</p> -<p class="pnext">After the Doctor had read it, he whisked out his -handkerchief in a remarkably suspicious manner, and Mr. Clyde -busied himself with a medical journal without reading one -word, till the Doctor spoke:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I say, Johnny, let's get up a theatre party of us two -for the Old Homestead to-night; it's the nearest thing -we can get to this of Hazel's."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You always hit the right thing, Dick, I 'll call for you -at eight."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="wishing-tree-secrets">XV</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">WISHING-TREE SECRETS</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en had come.</p> -<p class="pnext">The exercises about the tree had been carried out with -great success--tom-toms, war-whoop, song and dance. -After supper, the apples had been roasted, and the whole -family "bobbed" for them in the wash-tub; father, mother, -Chi, and even little May joining heartily in the fun. Then -they had melted lead, sailed nutshells freighted with wishes, -and finally "loved their Loves" with all the letters of the -alphabet.</p> -<p class="pnext">When all were off to bed and sound asleep, Chi took his -lantern, and went up again to the old butternut tree in -the corner of the pasture.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was preparing to snow. A chill wind drew through -the bare branches, and caused a wild commotion among -the roosters' tail feathers that dangled from one of the -lower ones.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi unlocked the little door, and from the hollow took -out a handful of notes. He thrust them into the side -pocket of his coat, relocked the door, and went back to -his room over the shed. There, by the light of the -lantern, he read them and rejoiced over them; re-read them -and cried a little over them, nor was he ashamed of his -tears; for in the precious missives, Rose and Hazel, March -and Budd and Cherry, had shown, as in a mirror, the -workings of their loving hearts.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallo w-e'en.</p> -<p class="pnext">MY DEAR MOTHER,--I have a great favor to ask of you and -father. Will you hang up <em class="italics">your</em> stockings this year and let us -children fill them instead of your filling ours? I don't want -you to take one cent of the money you are earning by having -Hazel here to buy me anything. I want every penny of it to -go to pay off that mortgage you told us of--for I feel just as -you do about it, and only wish I had known it last Hallow-e'en -when I asked for the paints and brushes. It makes me sick -just to think of all we asked for, and you not having any money -to buy them with--and never telling us! Oh, mother!</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your devoted son,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">MARCH BLOSSOM.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en.</p> -<p class="pnext">MY DEAR POPSEY,--Me and Cherry want to help you and -Martie pay off that morgige she told us about. March says -it is a dreadfull thing that we must get rid of just as soon as -we can. So Cherry and me are going to give you 2 dollars -apeace out of our $3 we saved for ourselves out of the jam and -the chickens as we voted in the N.B.B.O.O. That will make -four dollars and March says it will be just 1/300 of what you -owe and will help a great deal. I think the other $1 we have -left will be enough to buy presents for the rest of the famly, -don't you?</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your Son,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">BUDD BLOSSOM.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">P.S. I meant to say I don't expect anything this year 'cause -last year I asked for a double-runner and a bat and a new cap -with fir on the edges like the boys at Barton's and 20 cents to -buy marbles with and I didn't get them 'cause you were sick -and I 'm sorry I asked for so much to bother you when you -were sick. B.B.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAR FRIEND CHI,--Do you think you can find out in some -way what March and Budd would like for Christmas? And if -you know anything special that Rose wants very <em class="italics">specially</em>, -please let me know at your earliest convenience so I can send -to New York for it. I should like to consult you about some -gifts for Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann, and if you could get -a chance to take me down to the Barton's River shops all alone -by myself, I should esteem it a great favor.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your true friend,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en.</p> -<p class="pnext">P. S. I 'm rather anxious about the note I put in the -Wishing-Tree for papa.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en.</p> -<p class="pnext">DARLING PATER NOSTER,--When I think of last year, my -heart aches for you and my precious Martie. Oh, why did n't -she tell us before! I never should have asked for that dress -and the French grammar and dictionary and the cheap set of -Dickens', if I had only known.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Do</em>, Pater dear, let us know in the future if you are in -trouble, and let us help share it. Would n't that make it easier -for you?</p> -<p class="pnext">Now a favor; I want you and Martie to play boy and girl -again this year and hang up <em class="italics">your</em> stockings for a change; and -please, <em class="italics">please</em>, father dear, don't give us anything this -year--we don't want anything but you and Martie, and besides, we -have money of our <em class="italics">own</em>! Chi calls us "bloated bond-holders," -and says we have formed a "combine."</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your loving daughter,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">ROSE BLOSSOM.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAREST COUSIN JACK,--I have n't answered your letter -because I 've been having too good a time. This is only a -Wishing-Tree note; I want you to do me a favor, please; find -out what I can buy nice for papa with a dollar. I 've earned -it myself (and a great deal more, Jack, you would be surprised -if you knew how much the preserves and chickens came to) -and want him to have a present out of it. Then, I would like -to buy something for Doctor Heath, about fifty cents' worth, -and another fifty cents' worth for Mrs. Heath. I want to give -Aunt Carrie a little something, too, <em class="italics">out of my own earnings</em>; -(I've all my two quarterly allowances besides,) I can afford -fifty cents for her; and then I would like to remember Wilkins -with a little gift out of <em class="italics">my earnings</em> for mamma's sake as well -as my own, and then I shall have twenty-five cents left of the -money I worked for. The rest we all voted to put aside for -March to help him through college. He wants to be an -architect, you know, and he draws beautifully. I shall be glad of -your advice.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">In haste, yours devotedly,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en, MOUNT HUNGER.</p> -<p class="pnext">DEAR CHI,--May wants a doll the kind she saw last summer -down at Barton's River. I ve got only a doller to spend for -all the famly, so will you plese ask the pris for me as I am -afrade it will be to high. There is a big french one in the right -hand window at Smith's store with a libel on it 7$, and I play -it's mine when I am down there and you are buying horse-feed. -I have named her Emilie Angelique. Rose spelt it for me.</p> -<p class="left pnext white-space-pre-line">Your loving CHERRY BOUNCE.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAR OLD CHI,--If you can find out what Hazel would -like specially for Christmas, just let me know.</p> -<p class="pnext">MARCH.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAR CHI,--Can you manage to get us all down to Barton's -some Saturday to do some Christmas shopping?</p> -<p class="pnext">Your ROSE-POSE.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All-hallow-e'en.</p> -<p class="pnext">DEAREST PAPA,--Will you please ask Aunt Carrie to please -help you buy these Christmas things? I enclose fifty dollars; -(your check.)</p> -<p class="pnext">A white serge dress pattern, like mine.</p> -<p class="pnext">A book of lovely foreign photographs of buildings and -pictures for March.</p> -<p class="pnext">2 pairs of white kid gloves, number 6.</p> -<p class="pnext">2 pairs of tan kid gloves, number 6-¼.</p> -<p class="pnext">1 pair fur-lined gloves for March.</p> -<p class="pnext">1 pair ditto for Mr. Blossom.</p> -<p class="pnext">A year's subscription for the Woman's Hearthstone Journal -for Maria-Ann.</p> -<p class="pnext">A small shirt waist ironing-board for Aunt Tryphosa.</p> -<p class="pnext">1 pair brown woolen gloves and one pair of those fleece-lined -beaver gauntlet driving gloves like those of yours, for Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">1 blue Kardigan jacket for Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">The other things I think I can get at Barton's River.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Your devoted daughter,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Well," said Chi, thoughtfully, as he finished reading -them a second time, "I 've got more than one string to -my bow this year. Beats all, how Chris'mus limbers up -a man's feelin's! Guess 't was meant for all of us children -of a lovin' Father." So saying, Chi knelt beside his bed, -and, dropping his face in his hands, remained there motionless -for a few minutes, while his loving, gentle, manly -"soul was on its knees."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-christmas-prelude">XVI</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A CHRISTMAS PRELUDE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"It 's goin' to be an awful cold night, grandmarm," -said Maria-Ann as she stepped to the door just after sunset -on Christmas eve. The old dame followed her and looked -out over her shoulder.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know 't is; my fingers stuck to the latch when I went -out to see after Dorcas. While your gettin' supper, I 'm -goin' to bundle up the rooster and the hens, or they 'll -freeze their combs, sure's your name's Maria-Ann; looks -kinder Chris'musy, don't it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I was just thinkin' of that, grandmarm; just look at -that star in the east!" She pointed to a shoulder of the -Mountain, where a serene planet was ascending the dark -blue heavens. "An' there 's been just enough snow to -make all the spruces look like the Sunday School tree, all -roped over with pop-corn. Do you remember that last one, -grandmarm?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I ain't never forgot it, Maria-Ann; that's ten year ago, -an' I sha'n't never see another?" She shivered, and drew -back out of the keen air.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nor I," said Maria-Ann, shutting the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know why not," snapped Aunt Tryphosa, who -always contradicted Maria-Ann when she could. "I guess -we can have a Chris'mus tree same's other folks; we 've got -trees enough."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's so," replied Maria-Ann, laughing. "Let's have -one to-morrow, grandmarm. I don't see why we can't -have a tree just as well as we can have wreaths--see what -beauties I 've made! I 've saved the four handsomest for -Mis' Blossom an' Mis' Ford."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You do beat all, Maria-Ann, making wreaths with them -greens and bitter-sweet; I wish you 'd hang 'em up -to-night; 'twould make the room seem kinder Chris'musy."</p> -<p class="pnext">"To be sure I will." And Maria-Ann bustled about, -hanging the beautiful rounds of green and red in each of the -kitchen windows, on the panes of which the frost was -already sparkling; then, throwing her shawl over her head, -she stepped out into the night and hung one on the outside -of the narrow, weather-blackened door. Again within, she -set the small, square kitchen table with two plates, two -cups and saucers of brown and white crockery, the pewter -spoons and horn-handled knives and forks that her -grandmother had had when she was first married. Finally, she -put on one of the pots of red geranium in the centre and -stood back to admire the effect.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess we 'll have a treat to-night, seein' it's night -before Chris'mus--fried apples an' pork, an' some toast; -an' I 'll cut a cheese to-night, I declare I will, even if -grandmarm does scold; she 'll eat it fast enough if I don't -say nothin' about it beforehand."</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann had formed the habit of thinking aloud, for -she had been much alone, and, as she said, "she was a good -deal of company for herself."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, hum!" she sighed, as she cut the pork and sliced -the apples, "a cup of tea would be about the right thing this -cold night, but there ain't a mite in the house." Then she -laughed: "What you talkin' 'bout luxuries for, Maria-Ann -Simmons? You be thankful you 've got a livin'. I can -make some good cambric-tea, and put a little spearmint in -it; that 'll be warmin' as anything." She began to sing in -a shrill soprano as she busied herself with the preparations -for the supper, while the kettle sang, too, and the pork -sizzled in the spider:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Must I be carried to the skies</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">On flowery beds of ease,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">While others fought to win the prize</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And sailed through bloody seas?'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Meanwhile, Aunt Tryphosa, with her lantern in one hand -and a bundle of red something in the other, had repaired to -the hen-house which was partitioned off from the woodshed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Had either one of them happened to look out down the -Mountain-road just at this time, they would have seen a -strange sight.</p> -<p class="pnext">Along the white roadway, sparkling in the light of the -rising moon, came six silent forms in Indian file. Two -were harnessed to small loaded sledges. Sometimes, all -six gesticulated wildly; at others, the two who brought -up the rear of the file silently danced and capered back -and forth across the narrow way. They drew near the -house on the woodshed side; the first two freed themselves -from the sledges, and left them under one of the unlighted -windows. Then all six, attracted by the glimmer of the -lantern shining from the one small aperture of the -hen-house, stole up noiselessly and looked in.</p> -<p class="pnext">What they saw proved too much for their risibles, and -suppressed giggles and snickers and choking laughter -nearly betrayed their presence to the old dame within.</p> -<p class="pnext">On the low roost sat Aunt Tryphosa's noble Plymouth -Rock rooster, and beside him, in an orderly row, her ten -hens. Every hen had on her head a tiny flannel hood--some -were red, some were white--the strings knotted -firmly under their bills by Aunt Tryphosa's old fingers -trembling with the cold.</p> -<p class="pnext">She was just blanketing the rooster, who submitted with -a meekness which proved undeniably that he was under -petticoat government, for all the airs he gave himself with -his wives. The funny, little, hooded heads twisting and -turning, the "aks" and "oks" which accompanied Aunt -Tryphosa in her labor of love, the wild stretching and -flapping of wings, all furnished a scene never to be -forgotten by the six pairs of laughing eyes that beheld it.</p> -<p class="pnext">The moment the old dame took up her lantern, the -spectators sped around the corner. Under the dark -windows they noiselessly unloaded the wood-sleds, and silently -carried bundles, baskets, and burlap-bags around to the -front door.</p> -<p class="pnext">At last they had fairly barricaded it, and the tallest of -the party, after fastening a piece of paper in the Christmas -wreath that Maria-Ann had hung up only a half-hour -before, motioned to the others to step up to the kitchen -window.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just one glimpse they had through the thickening frost -and the wreathing green: a glimpse of the kitchen table, -the steaming apples, the pot of red geranium, the two cups -of smoking spearmint tea, and of two heads--the one -white, the other brown--bent low over folded, toil-worn -hands in the reverent attitude for the evening "grace."</p> -<p class="pnext">"For what we are now about to receive, may the Lord -make us truly thankful," said Aunt Tryphosa, in a -quavering voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Amen," said Maria-Ann, heartily--"Land sakes, -grandmarm! how you scairt me, looking up so sudden!" -she exclaimed, almost in the same breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thought I heerd somethin'," said the old dame, holding -her head in a listening attitude--"Hark!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't hear nothin', grandmarm. Now, just eat your -apples while they 're hot. What did you think you heard?" -she continued, dishing the apples.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I thought I heerd it when I was out in the shed, too."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should n't wonder if 't was a deer. I saw one come -into the clearing this afternoon, an' seein' 't was Christmas -evening, I put a good bundle of hay out to the south door -of the cow-shed."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess 't was that, then," said Aunt Tryphosa. "You -clear up, Maria-Ann, an' I 'll keep up a good fire, for I -want to finish off them stockings for Ben Blossom an' Chi. -I s'pose you 've got your things ready in case we see a -team go by to-morrow?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, they 're all ready," said her granddaughter, rather -absently, and set about washing the few dishes.</p> -<p class="pnext">When all was done, neatly and quickly as Maria-Ann so -well knew how, she flung on her shawl, saying:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm goin' out a minute to see if the bundle of hay is -gone, and besides, I want to look at the moon on the snow; -it's the first time I 've seen it so this year." She opened -the door--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Luddy!" she screamed, as bundle, and basket, and -bag toppled over into the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Land sakes alive!" quavered Aunt Tryphosa, hurrying -to the rescue. "Did n't I tell you I heerd somethin'? -What be they?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Presents!" cried Maria-Ann, pulling, and hauling, -and gathering up, and finally getting the door shut.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Seems to me I see somethin' white catched onto the -door 'fore you shut it," said Aunt Tryphosa. "Better -look an' see." Again her granddaughter opened the door, -and found the strip of paper on which was written;</p> -<p class="left pnext white-space-pre-line">"Merry Christmas! with best wishes of<br /> -Benjamin and Mary Blossom and May,<br /> -Malachi Graham and Rose Eleanor Blossom,<br /> -March Blossom and Hazel Clyde,<br /> -Benjamin Budd Blossom and Cherry Elizabeth Blossom of<br /> -the N.B.B.O.O., and of<br /> -John Curtis Clyde of New York; U.S.A.; N.A.; W.H."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Oh, grandmarm! It's just like a romantic novel!" -cried Maria-Ann, who was as full of sentiment as an egg -is full of yolk. "It makes me feel kinder queer, comin' -just now right after we was talkin' 'bout our tree. You -open first, an' then we 'll take turns." Aunt Tryphosa, -who was winking very hard behind her spectacles, was not -loath to begin.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let's haul 'em up to the stove; it's so awful cold," -she said, shivering.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, you 've let the fire go down; that's the reason. -Don't you remember you was goin' to put on the wood just -as the things fell in?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"So I was," said her grandmother, making good her -forgetfulness; in a few minutes there was a roaring fire, -and the room was filled with a genial warmth. Then they -sat down to their delightful task, Maria-Ann kneeling on -the square of rag carpet before the stove.</p> -<p class="pnext">"My land!" cried Aunt Tryphosa, clapping her hands -together as she opened the largest burlap bag; "if that -boy ain't stuffed this two-bushel bag chock full of birch -bark! Look a-here, Maria-Ann, you read this slip of -paper for me; my specs get so dim come night-time."</p> -<p class="pnext">The truth was, the tears were running down Aunt -Tryphosa's wrinkled cheeks and filming her eyes to such -an extent that she saw the birch bark through all the -colors of the rainbow.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'For Aunt Tryphosa from Budd Blossom to make -her fires quick with cold mornings.' Did you ever?" -said Maria-Ann, untying another large burlap bundle--"What's -this? 'Made by Rose Blossom and Hazel Clyde -to keep Aunt Tryphosa snug and warm o' nights when the -mercury is below zero.' O grandmarm, look at this!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann unrolled a coverlet made of silk patch-work -(bright bits and pieces that Hazel had begged of Aunt -Carrie and Mrs. Heath and others of her New York -friends) lined with thin flannel and filled with feathers.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Aunt Tryphosa was speechless for the first time in -her life; and, seeing this, Maria-Ann took advantage of it -to do a little talking on her own account.</p> -<p class="pnext">"She don't seem like a city girl in her ways; she ain't -a bit stuck up--Oh, what's <em class="italics">this</em>!" She poked, and -fingered, and pinched, but failed to guess. Aunt Tryphosa -grew impatient.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let me <em class="italics">see</em>, you 've done nothin' but feel," she said, -reaching for the package, and Maria-Ann handed it over -to her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Again Mrs. Tryphosa Little was nearly dumb, as the -miscellaneous contents of the queer, knobby parcel were -brought to light.</p> -<p class="pnext">"These are for you, Maria-Ann," she said in an awed -voice, laying them on the kitchen table one after the -other:--A copy of the Woman's Hearthstone Journal, with the -receipt for a year's subscription pinned to it;--A small shirt -waist ironing-board;--A pair of fleece-lined Arctics that -buttoned half-way up Maria-Ann's sturdy legs when, an -hour later, she tried them on;--Six paper-covered novels -of the Chimney Corner Library including Lorna Doone -(Hazel had discovered in her frequent visits, that Aunt -Tryphosa's granddaughter at twenty-nine was as romantic -as a girl of seventeen);--A box of preserved ginger;--Two -pounds of Old Hyson Tea;--(upon which Maria-Ann -bounced up from the floor, and without more ado made -two cups, much to her grandmother's amazement);--Six -pounds of lump sugar;---A dozen lemons;--A dozen -oranges;--A white Liberty-silk scarf tucked into an -envelope;--Six ounces of scarlet knitting-wool;--All -for "Miss Maria-Ann Simmons, with Hazel Clyde's best -wishes."</p> -<p class="pnext">Then it was Maria-Ann Simmons's turn to break down -and weep, at which Aunt Tryphosa fidgeted, for she had -not seen her granddaughter cry since she was a little girl.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't act like a fool, Maria-Ann," she said, crustily, -to hide her own feelings; "take your things an' enjoy 'em. -I 've seen tears enough for night before Chris'mus," she -added, ignoring the fact that she had established a precedent.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I won't, grandmarm," said her granddaughter, -laughing and crying at the same time; "but I 'm goin' to -have that cup of tea first to kind of strengthen me 'fore I -open the rest," she added decidedly. "Besides, I don't -want to see everything at once; I want it to last."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't mind if I have mine, too. Guess you may put -in two lumps, seein' as we did n't have to pay for it," and -the old dame sipped her Hyson with supreme satisfaction, -as did likewise her granddaughter.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the latter pushed back her chair from the table, her -grandmother cautioned her:--"Look out! you 're settin' -it on another bag!" But it was too late. To Aunt -Tryphosa's amazement and Maria-Ann's horror, the bag -suddenly flopped up and down on the floor, the motion -being accompanied with such an unearthly, -"A--ee--eetsch--ok--ak--ache--eetsch!" that the two women's -faces grew pale, and they jumped as if they had been -shot.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Maria-Ann, with her hand on her thumping heart, -burst into a shrill laugh, and Aunt Tryphosa quavered a -thin accompaniment. How they laughed! till again the -tears rolled down their cheeks.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Scairt of hens!" chuckled the old dame as she undid -the strings of the bag--"at my time of life! Oh, my -stars and garters, Maria-Ann! ain't they beauties?"</p> -<p class="pnext">She drew out by the legs two snow-white Wyandotte -pullets, and held them up admiringly. "They 're from -March, I know; but just to think of this, Maria-Ann!" Again -words and, curiously enough, eyes, too, failed her, -and her granddaughter read the slip of paper tied around -the leg of one of the hens:--"'One for Aunt Tryphosa, -and one for Maria-Ann; have laid three times; last time -day before yesterday; I hope they 'll lay two -Christmas-morning eggs for your breakfast. March Blossom.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm goin' to put 'em on some hay in the clothes-basket, -Maria-Ann, an' keep 'em right under my bed where -it's good an' warm," said Aunt Tryphosa, decidedly. -"They 're kinder quality folks and can't be turned in -among common fowl. Besides, I ain't got another hood, -an' if they <em class="italics">should</em> freeze their combs, I 'd never forgive -myself."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I would, grandmarm," said Maria-Ann, still -laughing, as she untied the last two bundles. "Laws!" -she exclaimed, "Here 's New York style for you." She -read the visiting card:</p> -<p class="pnext">"To Mrs. Tryphosa Little, with the Season's compliments -from John Curtis Clyde. 4 East ----th Street."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 'm dumbfoundered," sighed Mrs. Tryphosa -Little, and more she could not say as she took out of the -large pasteboard box, a white silk neckerchief, a cap of -black net and lace with a "chou" of purple satin -lutestring, a black fur collar and a muff to match, in all of -which she proceeded to array herself with the utmost -despatch, forgetful of the two hens, which, after wandering -aimlessly about the kitchen, had roosted finally on the -back of her wooden rocking-chair, where they balanced -themselves with some difficulty.</p> -<p class="pnext">But suddenly, as she was thrusting her hands into the -new muff, she paused, laid it down on the table, and said, -rather querulously, "Help me off with these things, -Maria-Ann; I 'm all tuckered out. I can stan' a day's washin' -as well as anybody, if I am eighty-one come next June, -but I can't stan' no such night 'fore Chris'mus as this, -an' I 'm goin' to bed, an' take the hens."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I would, grandmarm," said her granddaughter, gently, -taking off the unwonted finery and kissing the wrinkled -face. "You go to bed; I put the soap-stone in two hours -ago, so it's nice an' warm. I 'll clear up, an' don't you -mind me--here, let me take one of those hens."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I can take care of hens anytime," snapped Aunt -Tryphosa, for she was tired out with happiness, "but I -can't stan' so many presents, an' I 'm too old to begin." She -disappeared in the bed-room, the two Wyandotte hens -hanging limply, heads downward, from each hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann picked up the paper and the wraps, and -made all tidy again in the kitchen. She put her hand on -the last bag that was so heavy she had not moved it from -the door. "It's a bag of cracked corn--hen-feed," she -said to herself, "an' it's from Chi, I know as well as if -I'd been told."</p> -<p class="pnext">Then she sat down in the rocker before the stove and -put her feet in the oven to warm. She blew out the light -and sat awhile in silence, thinking happy thoughts.</p> -<p class="pnext">The fire crackled in the stove, and dancing lights, -reflected from the open grate, played on the wall. The -moon shone full upon the frosted window panes, and the -Christmas wreaths were set in masses of encrusted -brilliants. The kettle began to sing, and so did -Maria-Ann--but softly, for fear of waking Aunt Tryphosa:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'My soul, be on thy guard;</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Ten thousand foes arise;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The hosts of sin are pressing hard</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">To draw thee from the skies.'"</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="hunger-ford">XVII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">HUNGER-FORD</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Such a line of communication as was soon established -between Mount Hunger and New York, Mount Hunger -and Cambridge, the Lost Nation and Barton's River, -Hunger-ford--the Fords' new name for the old Morris -farm--and the Blossom homestead on the Mountain!</p> -<p class="pnext">Uncle Sam's post, the Western Union Telegraph Company, -the American Express, a line of freight, saddle -horses, sleds, and the old apple-green cart on runners were -all pressed into service; in all the United States of -America there were no busier young people than those -belonging to the Lost Nation.</p> -<p class="pnext">They wrote notes to one another with an air of great -mystery; they drove singly, in couples, or all together to -Barton's River with Chi; they smuggled in bundles and -express packages of all sorts and sizes; looked guilty if -caught whispering together in the pantry; took many a -sled-ride over to Hunger-ford, and audaciously remained -there three hours at a time without giving Mrs. Blossom -any good reason either for their going or remaining.</p> -<p class="pnext">The acquaintance formed between the Blossoms and the -Fords just after Thanksgiving, was fast ripening into -friendship. March, usually shy with strangers, fairly -adored the tall, quiet son with the wonderful smile, and -expanded at once in his genial presence. With Ruth Ford -he had much in common; and regularly once a week since -Thanksgiving he had drawn and painted with her in her -studio, the room that Aunt Tryphosa had so graphically -described. His gift was far more in that direction than -hers; and Ruth, recognizing it, encouraged him, spurred -his ambition, and placed all her materials at his disposal.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose's sweet voice had proved a delight to them all, and -Hazel's violin was being taught to play a gentle -accompaniment to Alan Ford's, that sang, or wept, or rejoiced -according to the player's mood.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I am so thankful, Ben, that our Rose can have the -advantage of such companions just at this time of her life," -said Mrs. Blossom, on the afternoon before Christmas -when the two eldest, with Hazel, had gone over to Hunger-ford -with joyful secrets written all over their happy faces.</p> -<p class="pnext">"So am I, Mary. When I see young men like Ford, I -realize what I lost in being obliged to give up college on -father's account," said Mr. Blossom, with a sigh.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I do, too, Ben; and what I 've lost in opportunity -when I see that gifted woman, Mrs. Ford. She has -travelled extensively, she reads and speaks both German and -French, she is a really wonderful musician, and keeps up -with every interest of the day, besides being a splendid -housekeeper and devoted to her children."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you regret it, Mary?" said her husband, looking -straight before him into the fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not with you, Ben," was Mary Blossom's answer. -Taking her husband's face in both her hands and turning -it towards her, she looked into his eyes, and received the -smile and kiss that were always ready for her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"If we did n't have all this when we were young people, -Mary, we 'll hope that we may have it in our children," he -said, earnestly.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then Chi came in, and gave a loud preliminary, -"Hem!" for to him, Ben and Mary Blossom would always -be lovers. "Guess 't is 'bout time to hitch up, if you 're -goin' clear down to Barton's to meet the train, Ben; I 've -got to go over eastwards with the children."</p> -<p class="pnext">"All right, Chi, I 'd rather drive down to the station -to-night; it's good sleighing and our Mountain is a fine -sight by moonlight."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can't be beat," said Chi, emphatically. "S'pose you 'll -be back by seven, sharp? I kind of want to time myself, -on account of the s'prise."</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll say seven, and I 'll make it earlier if I can. -You 're off for Aunt Tryphosa's now?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just finished loadin' up--There they are!" and in -rushed the whole troop, hooded and mittened and jacketed -and leggined, ready for their after-sunset raid.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-bye, Martie!" screamed Cherry, wild with excitement, -and made a dash for the door; then she turned back -with another dash that nearly upset May, and, throwing her -arms around her mother's neck, nearly squeezed the breath -from her body. "O Mumpsey, Dumpsey, dear! I 'm -having such an awfully good time; it's so much happier -than last Christmas!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"And, O Popsey, Dopsey, dear!" laughed Rose, mimicking -her, but with a voice full of love, and both mittens -caressing his face, "it's so good to have you well enough -to celebrate this year!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel slipped her hand into Chi's, and whispered, "Oh, -Chi, I wish I had a lot of brothers and sisters like Rose. -Anyway, papa's coming to-night, so I 'll have one of my -own," she added proudly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess we 'd better be gettin' along," said Chi, still -holding Hazel's hand. "It's goin' to be a stinger, 'n' it's -a mile 'n' a half over there."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come on all!" cried March; "we 'll be back before -you are, father."</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 'll see about that," laughed his father, as he caught -the merry twinkle in his wife's eye.</p> -<p class="pnext">But March was right by the margin of only a minute or -two; for just as the merry crowd entered the house on their -return from their errand of "goodwill," they heard -Mr. Blossom drive the sleigh into the barn. In another moment -Hazel had flung wide the door and was caught up into her -father's arms.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the midst of their cordial greetings there was a loud -knock at the door. They all started at the sound, and -Budd, who was nearest, opened it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Please, Budd, may I come in, too?" said a voice -everyone recognized as the Doctor's.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then the whole Blossom household lost their heads where -they had lost their hearts the year before. Rose and Hazel -and Cherry fairly smothered him with kisses; Budd wrung -one hand, March gripped another; May clung to one leg, -and the monster of a puppy contrived to get under foot, -although he stood two feet ten.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack Sherrill, looking in at the window upon all this -loving hominess, felt, somehow, physically and spiritually -left out in the cold. "What a fool I was to come!" he -said to himself. Nevertheless he carried out his part of -the program by stepping up to the door and knocking. -This time Mrs. Blossom opened it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Have you room for one more, Mrs. Blossom?" he said -with an attempt at a smile, but looking sadly wistful, so -wistful and lonely that Mary Blossom put out both hands -without a word, and, somehow,--Jack, in thinking it over -afterwards, never could tell how it happened so naturally--he -was giving her a son's greeting, and receiving a -mother's kiss in return.</p> -<p class="pnext">In a moment Hazel's arms were around his neck;--"Oh, -Jack, Jack! I 've got three of my own now; I 'm -almost as rich as Rose!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose, hearing her name, came forward with frank, cordial -greeting, and May transferred her demonstrations of -affection from the Doctor's trousers to Jack's; Cherry's curls -bobbed and quivered with excitement when Jack claimed a -kiss from "Little Sunbonnet," and received two hearty -smacks in return; March took his travelling bag; Budd -kept close beside him, and the puppy, who had been -christened Tell, nosed his hand, and, sitting down on his -haunches, pawed the air frantically until Jack shook hands -with him, too.</p> -<p class="pnext">By this time the wistful look had disappeared from -Jack's eyes, and his handsome face was filled with such a -glad light that the Doctor noticed it at once. He shook -his head dubiously, with his eyebrows drawn together in a -straight line over the bridge of his nose, and, from -underneath, his keen eyes glanced from Jack to Rose and from -Rose back again to Jack. Then his face cleared, and -explanations were in order.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, you see," the Doctor said to Mrs. Blossom, "my -wife had to go South with her sister, and could not be at -home for Christmas--the first we 've missed celebrating -together since we were married--and when I found John -was coming up to spend it with you, I couldn't resist -giving myself this one good time. But Jack here has -failed to give any satisfactory account of how or why he -came to intrude his long person just at this festive time. -I thought you were off at a Lenox house-party with the -Seatons?" he said, quizzically.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack laughed good-naturedly. "I don't blame you for -wondering at my being here; but I've been here before," -he said, willing to pay back the Doctor in his own coin.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The deuce you have!" exclaimed the Doctor. "I say, -Johnny, are we growing old that these young people get -ahead of us so easily?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know how you feel, Dick, but I 'm as young as -Jack to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That 's right, Papa Clyde," said Hazel, approvingly, -softly patting her father on the head; "and, Jack, you 're -a dear to come up here to see us, for you 've just as much -right as the Doctor."</p> -<p class="pnext">The Doctor pretended to grumble:--"Come to see you, -indeed, you superior young woman--<em class="italics">you</em> indeed! As if -there weren't any other girls in the world or on Mount -Hunger but you and Rose--much you know about it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I 'd like to know who you came to see, if not -us?" laughed Hazel, sure of her ultimate triumph.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, my dear Ruth Ford, to be sure."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ruth Ford!" they exclaimed in amazement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not Ruth Ford? You did n't suppose I would -come away up here into the wilds of Vermont in the dead -of winter, did you? just to see--" But Hazel laid her -hand on his mouth.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Stop teasing, do," she pleaded, "and tell us how you -knew our Ruth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">Our</em> Ruth! Ye men of York, hear her!" said the -Doctor, appealing to Mr. Clyde and Jack. "The next -thing will be 'our Alan Ford,' I suppose. How will you -like that, Jack?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I feel like saying 'confound him,' only it would n't be -polite. You see, Doctor, I thought I had preëmpted the -whole Mountain, and was prepared to make a conquest of -Miss Maria-Ann Simmons even; but if Mr. Ford has -stepped in"--Jack assumed a tragic air--"there is -nothing left for me in honor, but to throw down the -gauntlet and challenge him to single combat--hockey-sticks -and hot lemonade--for her fair hand."</p> -<p class="pnext">At the mention of Maria-Ann, Rose and Hazel, Budd -and Cherry and March went off into fits of laughter. -They laughed so immoderately that it proved infectious -for their elders, and when Chi entered the room Budd -cried out, "Oh, Chi, you tell about the--we can't--the -rooster and the hoods, and--Oh my eye!--" Budd was -apparently on the verge of convulsions.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I stuffed snow into my mouth and made my teeth ache -so as not to laugh out loud," said Cherry; at which there -was another shout, and still another outburst at the table -when Chi described the scene in the hen-house.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, children," said Mrs. Blossom, after the somewhat -hilarious evening meal was over, the table cleared, the -dishes were wiped and put away, "we 're going to do just -for this once as you want us to--hang up our stockings; -but I want all of you to hang up yours, too. If you don't, -I shall miss the sixes and sevens and eights so, that it will -spoil my Christmas."</p> -<p class="pnext">"We will, Martie," they assented, joyfully; for, as -March said, it would not seem like night before Christmas -if they did not hang up their stockings.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and papa, and you," said Hazel, turning to the -Doctor, "must hang up yours, and you, too, Jack."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course," said Mrs. Blossom, "everybody is to -hang up a stocking to-night, even Tell."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie, how funny!" cried Cherry, "but he -has n't a truly stocking."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, but one of Budd's will do for his huge paw--won't -it, old fellow?" she said, patting his great head.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Budd must needs bring out a pair of his pedal -coverings and try one brown woollen one on Tell, much -to his majesty's surprise; for Tell was a most dignified -youth of a dog, as became his nine months and his famous -breed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Early in the evening the stockings were hung up over -the fireplace, all sizes and all colors:--May's little red -one and Chi's coarse blue one; Mr. Clyde's of thick silk, -and Budd's and Tell's of woollen; Hazel's of black -cashmere beside Jack's striped Balbriggan. What an array!</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Mrs. Blossom and May went off into the bedroom, -and Mr. Blossom and his guests were forced to smoke -their after-tea cigars in the guest bedroom upstairs, while -the young people brought out their treasures and stuffed -the grown-up stockings till they were painfully distorted.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't they look lovely!" whispered Hazel, ecstatically -to March, who begged Rose to get another of their mother's -stockings, for the one proved insufficient for the fascinating -little packages that were labelled for her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let's go right to bed now," suggested Budd, "then -mother 'll fill ours--Oh, I forgot," he added, ruefully, -"we are n't going to have presents this year--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, yes, we are, too, Budd," said Rose, "we 're going -to give one another out of our own money."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Cracky! I forgot all about that--" Budd tore upstairs -in the dark, and tore down again and into the bedroom, -crying:--"Now all shut your eyes while I 'm going -through!" which they did most conscientiously.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soon they, too, were invited laughingly to retire, and by -half-past ten the house was quiet.</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, AND ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE,</div> -<div class="line">NOT A CREATURE WAS STIRRING, NOT EVEN A MOUSE;"</div> -<div class="line">Stretched out on the hearth-rug lay Tell snoring loudly,</div> -<div class="line">And above from the mantel the stockings hung proudly;</div> -<div class="line">When down from the stairway there came such a patter</div> -<div class="line">Of stockingless feet--'t was no laughing matter!</div> -<div class="line">As the good Doctor thought, for he sprang out of bed</div> -<div class="line">To see if 't were real, or a dream iii its stead.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">But no! with his eye at a crack of the door</div> -<div class="line">He discovered the truth--'t was the Blossoms, all four,</div> -<div class="line">With Hazel to aid them, tiptoeing about</div> -<div class="line">Like a party of ghosts grown a little too stout.</div> -<div class="line">They pinched and they fingered; they poked and they squeezed</div> -<div class="line">Each plump Christmas stocking--then somebody sneezed!</div> -<div class="line">Consternation and terror!! The tall clock struck one</div> -<div class="line">As the ghosts disappeared on the double-quick run!</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="line">"'T WAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, AND ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE,</div> -<div class="line">NOT A CREATURE WAS STIRRING, NOT EVEN A MOUSE;"</div> -<div class="line">Without in the moonlight, the snow sparkled bright;</div> -<div class="line">The Mountain stood wrapped in a mantle of white,</div> -<div class="line">With a crown of dark firs on his noble old crest</div> -<div class="line">And ermine and diamonds adorning his breast;</div> -<div class="line">And the stars that above him swung true into line</div> -<div class="line">Once shone o'er a manger in far Palestine.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">What a Christmas morning that was!</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi was up at five o'clock, building roaring fires, for it -was ten degrees below zero.</p> -<p class="pnext">With the first glint of the sun on the frosted panes the -household was astir. At precisely seven the order was -given to take down the thirteen stockings. But bless -you! You 're not to think the stockings could hold all -the gifts. In front of each wide jamb were piled the -bundles and packages, three feet high!</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose hesitated a moment when the children sat down on -the rug with their stockings, as was their custom every -Christmas morn; then she plumped down among them, -saying, laughingly:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't care if I <em class="italics">am</em> growing up, Martie--it's Christmas."</p> -<p class="pnext">Upon which Jack, hugging his striped Balbriggan, sat -down beside her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such "Ohs" and "Ahs"! Such thankings and squeezings! -Such somersaults as were turned by March and -Budd at the kitchen end of the long-room! Such -rapturous gurgles from May! Such hand-shakes and kisses! -Such silent bliss on the part of Chi, who, though suffering -as if in a Turkish bath, had donned his new, blue woollen -sweater, drawn on his gauntleted beaver gloves, and -proceeded to investigate his stocking with the air of a man -who has nothing more to wish for. And through all the -chaotic happiness a sentence could be distinguished now -and then.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi, these corn-cob pipes are just what I shall want -after Christmas when I give my Junior Smoker."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie, it can't be for me!" as the lovely white -serge dress, ready made and trimmed with lace, was held -up to Rose's admiring eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd was caressing with approving fingers a regular -"base-ball-nine" bat and admiring the white leather balls.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I say, it's a stunner, Mr. Sherrill; but how did you -know I wanted it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde, who was touched to his very heart's core by -Hazel's gift of a dollar pair of suspenders which she had -earned by her own labor, felt a small hand slipped into his, -and found Cherry Bounce looking up at him with wide, -adoring, brown eyes, which, for the first time, she had -taken from her beautiful Émilie Angélique, whom she -held pressed to her heart:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I want to whisper to you," she said, shyly. Mr. Clyde -bent down to her;--"After I said my prayers to Martie, -I asked God to give me Émilie Angélique--every night," -she nodded--"but I only told Budd, so how <em class="italics">did</em> you know?"</p> -<p class="pnext">March was lost to the world in his volume of foreign -photographs, in his boxes of paints and brushes, and a -whole set of drawing materials. He had not as yet thanked -Hazel for them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Everybody was happy and satisfied. Everybody said he -or she had received just exactly the thing. Tell alone -could not express his gratification in words. He had been -given his woollen stocking, and nosed about till he had -brought forth three fat dog-biscuit, a deliciously -juicy-greasy beef bone, wrapped in white waxed paper and tied -at one end with a blue ribbon, a fine nickelplated dog -collar with a bell attached, and last, from the brown -woollen toe, three lumps of sugar.</p> -<p class="pnext">One by one he took the gifts and laid them down at -Mrs. Blossom's feet; putting one huge paw firmly on the -waxed-paper package, he waved the other wildly until she -took it and spoke a loving word to him. Then, taking up -his beloved bone, he retired with it to the farthest end -of the long-room, under the kitchen sink, and licked it in -peace and joy.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack and Chi in the joyful confusion had slipped from -the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soon there was a commotion in the woodshed, and the -two made their appearance dragging after them a -brand-new double-runner and a real Canadian toboggan, which -Jack had ordered from Montreal for March.</p> -<p class="pnext">Breakfast proved to be a short meal, for the whole family -was wild to try the new toboggan with Jack to engineer -it. Then it was up and down--down and up the steep -mountain road; Jack and Doctor Heath, Mr. Clyde, -Mr. Blossom and Chi, all on together--clinging for dear life, -laughing, whooping, panting, hurrahing like boys let out -from school, while March and Budd and Rose and Hazel -and Cherry flew after them on the double-runner, the keen -air biting rose-red cheeks, and bringing the stinging water -to the eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">But what sport it was!</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, this is something like," panted Jack, drawing -up the hill with Chi, his handsome face aglow with life -and joy.</p> -<p class="pnext">"By George Washin'ton! it's the nearest thing to -shootin' Niagary that I ever come," puffed Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Didn't we take that water-bar neatly?" laughed Jack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'N inch higher, 'n' we 'd all been goners;--I had n't -a minute to think of it, goin' to the rate of a mile a -minute; but if I had--I 'd have dusted! Guess I 'll make -it level before I try it with the children,--'n' I want you -to know there 's no coward about me, but I 'm just -speakin' six for myself this time."</p> -<p class="pnext">So the morning sped. Even Mrs. Blossom and May -were taken down once, and the Doctor stopped only -because he wanted to make a morning call on his patient, -Ruth Ford; for it was by his advice the family had come -to live for three years in this mountain region.</p> -<p class="pnext">The horn for the mid-day meal sounded down the Mountain -before they had thought of finishing the exciting -sport, and one and all brought such keen appetites to the -Christmas dinner, that Mrs. Blossom declared laughingly -that she would give them no supper, for they had eaten -the pantry shelves bare.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such roast goose and barberry jam! Such a noble -plum-pudding set in the midst of Maria-Ann's best wreath, -for she and Aunt Tryphosa had sent over their simple -gifts by an early teamster. Such red Northern Spies and -winter russet pears! And such mirth and shouts and -jests and quips to accompany each course!</p> -<p class="pnext">It was genuine New England Christmas cheer, and the -healths were drunk in the wine of the apple amid great -applause, especially Doctor Heath's:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Health, peace, and long life to the Lost Nation--May -its tribe increase!"</p> -<p class="pnext">And how they laughed at Chi, when he proposed the -health of the Prize Chicken (which, by the way, he had -kept for the next season's mascot,) and recounted the -episode in the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">What shouts greeted Budd, who, rising with great -gravity, his mouth puckered into real, not mock, -seriousness--and that was the comical part of it all--said -earnestly:</p> -<p class="pnext">"To my first wife!" and sat down rather red, but -gratified not only by the prolonged applause, but by the -enthusiasm with which they drank to this unexpected toast from -his unsentimental self.</p> -<p class="pnext">Directly after dinner Mr. Clyde declared that a seven-mile -walk was an actual necessity for him in his present -condition, and invited all who would to accompany him to -call in state on Mrs. Tryphosa Little and Miss Maria-Ann -Simmons. Only Doctor Heath and Jack went with him, -for Mr. Blossom and Chi had matters to attend to at home, -and Rose and Cherry and Hazel were needed to help -Mrs. Blossom. Even March and Budd turned to and wiped -dishes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll set the table now, Martie," said Rose, "then there -will be no confusion to-night--there are so many of us."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No need for that to-night, children," replied Mrs. Blossom, -with a merry smile. "'The last is the best of -all the rest,' for we were all invited a week ago to take -tea and spend Christmas evening at Hunger-ford."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie!" A joyful shout went up from the six, -that was followed by jigs and double-shuffles, pas-seuls -and fancy steps, in which dish-towels were waved wildly, -and tin pans were pounded instead of wiped.</p> -<p class="pnext">When the din had somewhat subsided there were numberless -questions asked; by the time they were all answered, -and Rose and Hazel had donned their white serge dresses, -the gentlemen had returned from their walk, and it was -time to go.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's why Mrs. Ford had us learn all those songs," -said Rose to Hazel. "Don't forget to take your violin."</p> -<p class="pnext">A merrier Christmas party never set forth on a straw-ride. -Mr. and Mrs. Blossom and May went over in the -sleigh, but the rest piled into the apple-green pung, and -when they came in sight of the seven-gabled-house, a -rousing three times three, mingling with the sound of the -sleigh-bells, greeted the pretty sight.</p> -<p class="pnext">Every window was illumined, and adorned with a -Christmas wreath. In the light of the rising moon, then -at the full, the snow that covered the roof sparkled like -frosted silver. The house, with its background of sharply -sloping hill wooded with spruce and pine, its twinkling -lights and the surrounding white expanse, looked like an -illuminated Christmas card.</p> -<p class="pnext">Within, the hall was festooned with ground hemlock -and holly; a roaring fire of hickory logs furnished light -and to spare. In the living-room and dining-room, -Mr. Clyde and Jack Sherrill found, to their amazement, all the -elegance and refinement of a city home combined with -country simplicity. The tea-table shone with the service -of silver and sparkled with the many-faceted crystal of -glass and carafe. For decoration, the rich red of the holly -berries gleamed among the dark green gloss of their leaves.</p> -<p class="pnext">At first, the younger members of the Blossom family -felt constrained and a little awed in such surroundings; -for although they had been several times in the house, -they had never taken tea there. But the Fords and the -other city people soon put them at their ease, and, as -Cherry declared afterwards, "It was like eating in a fairy -story." There was a real pigeon pie at one end and a -Virginia ham at the other, as well as cold, roast duck with -gooseberry jam. There were sparkling jellies, and the -whole family of tea-cakes--orange, cocoanut, sponge, and -chocolate; and, oh, bliss!--strawberry ice-cream in a nest -of spun cinnamon candy, followed by Malaga grapes and -hot chocolate topped with a whip of cream.</p> -<p class="pnext">After tea there was the surprise of a beautiful Christmas -Tree in the library. Ruth Ford had occupied many a -weary hour in making the decorations--roses and lilies -fashioned from tissue paper to closely copy nature; gilded -walnuts; painted paper butterflies; pink sugar hearts, -and cornucopias of gilt and silver paper, in each of which -was a bunch of real flowers--roses, violets, carnations, -and daisies, ordered by Jack Sherrill from New York. On -the topmost branch, there was a waxen Christ-child. The -tree was lighted by dozens of tiny colored candles. When -the door was opened from the living-room, and the children -caught sight of the wonderful tree, they held their breath -and whispered to one another.</p> -<p class="pnext">But more lovely than the tree in the eyes of the older -people were the radiant faces of the young people and the -children. Rose, with clasped hands, stood gazing up at -the Christ-child that crowned the glowing, glittering mass -of dark green. She was wholly unconscious of the many -pairs of eyes that rested upon her in love and admiration. -There was nothing so beautiful in the whole room as the -young girl standing there with earnest blue eyes, raised -reverently to the little waxen figure. Her lips were parted -in a half smile; a flush of excitement was on her cheeks; -the white dress set off the exquisite fairness of her skin; -the shining crown of golden-brown hair, that hung in a -heavy braid to within a foot of the hem of her gown, -caught the soft lights above her and formed almost a halo -about the face.</p> -<p class="pnext">Suddenly there was a burst of admiration from the -children, and, under cover of it, Doctor Heath turned to -Mr. Clyde, who was standing beside him:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"By heavens, John! That girl is too beautiful; she -will make some hearts ache before she is many years older, -as well as your own Hazel--look at <em class="italics">her</em> now!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The father's eyes rested lovingly, but thoughtfully, on -the graceful little figure that was busy distributing the -cornucopias with their fragrant contents. Yes, she, too, -was beautiful, giving promise of still greater beauty. He -turned to the Doctor and held out his hand:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Richard, I have to thank you for this transformation."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--not me," said the Doctor, earnestly, "but," -pointing to Mrs. Blossom, "that woman there, John. Hazel -needed the mother-love, just as much as Jack does at this -moment."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack had turned away when the Doctor began to speak -of Rose, and, joining her, said, "Won't you wear one of my -roses just to-night, Miss Blossom?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Your roses! Why, did you give us all those lovely -flowers?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I wanted to contribute my share, and flowers -seemed the most appropriate offering just for to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're lovely," said Rose, caressing the exquisite -petals of a La France beauty. "Of course I 'll wear -one--" she tucked one into her belt; "but why--why!--has n't -anyone else roses?" She looked about inquiringly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No,--the roses were for their namesake," said Jack, -quietly.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose laughed merrily,--a pleased, girlish laugh. -"Then won't the giver of the roses call their namesake, -'Rose'?--for the sake of the roses?" she added -mischievously.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now Jack Sherrill had seen many girls--silly girls, -flirty girls, sensible girls, charming girls, smart girls, nice -girls, and horrid girls, and flattered himself he knew every -species of the genus, but just this once he was puzzled. -If Rose Blossom had been an arrant flirt, she could not have -answered him more effectively; yet Jack had decided that -she had too earnest a nature to descend to flirting. -Somehow, that word could never be applied to Rose -Blossom--"My Rose," he said to himself, and knew with a kind of -a shock when he said it, that he was very far gone. But -in the next breath, he had to confess to himself that he -had "been very far gone" many a time in his twenty-one -years, so perhaps it did not signify.</p> -<p class="pnext">Indeed, in the next minute, he was sure it did not -signify, for, before he could gather his wits sufficiently to -reply to her, Rose had slipped away to the other side of -the room, where she was busying herself in fastening one -of Jack's roses into the buttonhole of Alan Ford's Tuxedo. -In consequence of which, Jack turned his batteries upon -Ruth Ford with such effect, that she declared afterwards -to her mother he was one of the most fascinating <em class="italics">young</em> -men--for Ruth was twenty-one!--she had ever met.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Ford and Hazel and Mr. Ford had done their best -to persuade Chi to remain with them for the tree. Even -Rose urged--but in vain. True, the girls had insisted -upon his taking one look, then he had begged off, saying, -as he patted Hazel's hand that lay on his arm:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not to-night, Lady-bird. I don't feel to home in there. -I 'll sit out here and hear the music, then I can beat time -with my foot if I want to." He remained in the hall, just -outside the living-room door, enjoying all he heard.</p> -<p class="pnext">First there was a lovely piano duet, an Hungarian waltz -by Brahms, Mrs. Ford and the grave, quiet son playing -with such a perfect understanding of each other, as well as -of the music, that it proved a delight to all present. Then -there was a carol by all the children, Rose leading, and -Mrs. Ford playing the accompaniment:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Cheery old Winter! merry old Winter!</div> -<div class="line">Laugh, while with yule-wreath thy temples are bound;</div> -<div class="line">Drain the spiced bowl now, cheer thy old soul now,</div> -<div class="line">"Christmas <em class="italics">waes hael</em>!" pledge the holy toast round.</div> -<div class="line">Broach butt and barrel, with dance and with carol</div> -<div class="line">Crown we old Winter of revels the king;</div> -<div class="line">And when he is weary of living so merry,</div> -<div class="line">He 'll lie down and die on the green lap of Spring.</div> -<div class="line">Cheery old Winter! merry old Winter!</div> -<div class="line">He 'll lie down and die on the green lap of Spring!'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">This won great applause, and a loud thumping could be -heard in the hall. Jack went out to try his powers of -persuasion with Chi, and found him sitting close to the door -with one knee over the other and a La France rose (!) in -his buttonhole.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come in, Chi, do."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ruther 'd sit here."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, come on."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nope."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack laughed at the decided tone. "Where did you get -this?" he asked, touching the boutonniere.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose-pose," answered Chi, laconically, but with a -happy smile.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Out of her bunch?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nope--took it out of her belt," said Chi, with a -curious twist of his mouth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack went back crestfallen, and Chi smiled.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm afraid I cut him out, just for once; kind of rough -on him, but 't won't hurt him any to have a change. He 's -had his own way a little too much," said Chi to himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Again there was music, a Schubert serenade, with the -two violins, and after that, the children begged Hazel to -dance the Highland Fling as she did once in the barn. -Hazel, nothing loath, borrowed a blue Liberty-silk scarf -from Ruth Ford; the rugs being removed and Alan Ford -tuning his violin, she made her curtsy, and, entering -heart and body into the spirit of the thing, danced like -thistle-down shod with joyousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a pretty sight! and Chi edged into the room, -while the company made believe ignore him in order to -induce him to remain there; but when the singing began, -he slipped out again. Such singing! Everybody joined -in it. They sang everything;--"Oh, where, tell me -where, is your Highland laddie gone?";--"Star-spangled -Banner";--"Marching Along";--"John Anderson, my -Jo";--"Ye banks and braes o' Bonnie Doon";--"Twinkle, -twinkle, little star";--"Annie Laurie";--"A -grasshopper sat on a sweet-potato vine";--"Ben -Bolt";--"Fair Harvard" and, finally, "Old Hundred."</p> -<p class="pnext">It had been arranged that Mr. Blossom should take his -wife and the younger children home in the pung; the rest -were to walk. Chi, meanwhile, had driven home in the -single sleigh.</p> -<p class="pnext">On the walk home Jack tried what he had been apt to -term--of course, to himself--his "confidential scheme" -with Rose. He had tried it before with many another, -and it had never failed to work. The thought of one of -his roses in Alan Ford's buttonhole still rankled, and the -best side of Jack's manhood was not on the surface when -he entered upon the homeward walk.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Miss Blossom,"--somehow Jack had not quite the -courage to say "Rose," although he had been so frankly -invited to--"I want to tell you why I came up here; it -must have seemed almost an intrusion."</p> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 60%" id="figure-41"> -<span id="i-want-to-tell-you-why-i-came-up-here"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-199.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -"'I want to tell you why I came up here'"</div> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Oh, no, indeed," said Rose, earnestly, "and I know -why you came; Hazel told me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, she did," said Jack, rather inanely, and a little -uncertain as to his footing, figuratively speaking; for he -had given her the chance to ask "Why?"--and she had n't -taken it; in which she proved herself different from all -those other girls of his acquaintance. To himself he -thought, "Well, for all the cordial indifference, commend -me to this girl."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I 'm sure it would have seemed like anything but -Christmas to you in New York with your father in Europe; -you must miss him so."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack felt himself blush in the moonlight at the remembrance -that he had seen his father but little in the last -three years, and did not know what it was in reality to -miss him. He never remembered to have missed anything -or anybody but his mother, and that indefinite something -in his life which he had not yet put himself earnestly to -seek.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I suppose you 'll be shocked, Miss Blossom, but I -don't really miss my father. I 'm only awfully glad to -see him when I get the chance--which is n't often. He 's -such a busy man with railroads and syndicates and real -estate interests. I wonder often how he can find time to -write me even twice a month, which he has done regularly -ever since--" he stopped abruptly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Since what?" asked Rose, innocently.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Since my mother died," said Jack, in a hard, dry voice -that served to cover his feeling.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," Rose nodded sympathetically, "Hazel told -me." Then--for Rose's love for her own mother was something -bordering on adoration--she said softly, under her breath, -but with her whole heart in her voice; "Oh, I don't see -how you could bear it--how you can live without her!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't," Jack replied with a break in his voice, "not -really live, you know. I've always felt it, but never -realized it until last night, when I stood out on the -veranda and looked in at the window at you--all. Then I -knew I 'd been hungry for that sort of thing for the last -seven years--"</p> -<p class="pnext">Now Rose's heart was swelling with pity for the loneliness -of the tall, young fellow swinging along beside her, -and at once her inner eyes were opened to see a, to her, -startling fact. She turned suddenly towards him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is that why you kissed Martie last night, and came up -here to us?" she demanded rather breathlessly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes;" Jack had forgotten his scheme, and was in dead -earnest now.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Then," cried Rose, impulsively--but at the same time -thinking, "I don't care if he is engaged to that Miss -Seaton"--"I hope you 'll come to us whenever you feel -like it; for," she added earnestly, "I 'm beginning to -understand what Chi means when he talks about Hazel's -being poor and our being rich, and--and I 'd love to share -mine with you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're awfully good," said Jack, rather awkwardly -for him; for, suddenly, in the presence of this young girl, -as yet unspoiled by the world, he realized that Life was -dependent upon something other than polo and club -theatricals, railroad syndicates and Newport casinos, stocks -and bonds and marketable real estate.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack was young, and the moonlight was transfiguring -the face that, framed in a white, knitted hood, was turned -towards him full of a frank, loving sympathy for him in -his "poverty."---And, seeing it, Jack suddenly braced -himself as if to meet some shock, thinking, as he strode -along in silence, "Oh, I 'm gone!--for good and all this -time."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose, a little surprised at the prolonged silence, -welcomed the sound of sleigh-bells behind them.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's Chi!" she exclaimed. "I thought he -was at home long before this. I 'm sure he left long -before we did. Where have you been, Chi?" she called -so soon as the sleigh was within hailing distance.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've been Chris'musin'," said Chi. "It ain't often -you get just such a night on the Mountain as this, and -I 've made the most of it. Can I give you a lift?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, thank you, Chi, we 're almost home," said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, then I 'd better be gettin' along--it's pretty -near midnight--chk, Bob--" And Chi drove away down -the Mountain, chuckling to himself:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ain't a-goin' to give myself away before no city chap -that has cut me out as he has. George Washin'ton! -When I peeked into the window 'n' saw Marier-Ann sittin' -there in front of that kitchen table with all those presents -on it, 'n' the little spruce set up so perky in the middle of -'em, 'n' she a-wearin' a great handful of those red, spice -pinks in her bosom, 'n' her cheeks to match 'em, 'n' her -eyes a-shinin'--I knew he 'd come it over me; he 'd made -the first call, 'n' given her the first posies. Guess I won't -crow over him after this." Chi undid his greatcoat, and -bent his face until his nose rested upon Jack's rose:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"It ain't touched yet, but it's a stinger; must be twenty -below, now." Suddenly Chi gave a loud exclamation: -"I must be a fool!--I 've broken one of the N.B.B.O.O. rules -not to be afraid of anything, and did n't dare to give -my posy to Marier-Ann!--Anyhow, she don't know I -was goin' to give it to her, so I need n't feel so cheap -about it--Go-long, Bob!"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="budd-s-proposal">XVIII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">BUDD'S PROPOSAL</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Before Mr. Clyde and Jack left the next day, Budd -sought an opportunity to interview the latter on a subject, -that, for a few weeks past, had been occupying many of his -thoughts. The applause, with which his Christmas-day -toast had been greeted, had encouraged him to seek an -occasion for acquiring more definite knowledge on a -subject which lay near his heart. It came when Jack was -packing his dress-suit case in the guest chamber.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a knock on the half-opened door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come in," said Jack, and Budd made his appearance.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Halloo, Budd! What can I do for you? Any commissions -in New York, or Boston?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't know what you mean by commissions," replied -Budd, cautiously, thrusting both hands deep into the -pockets of his knickerbockers, and spreading his sturdy -legs to a wide V.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Anything I can buy with that hen-and-jam money -you helped to earn?--you did well, Budd, on that. I -congratulate you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I have n't any of that money left. You see, we voted -to give it to March to go to college with. But I 've got -two quarters an' a dollar--Christmas presents, you know; -an' that 'll do, won't it?" he asked rather anxiously.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, that depends on what you buy," said Jack, with -due seriousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 'll keep mum, Mr. Sherrill, if I tell you?" said -Budd, inquiringly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mum's the word, if you say so, Budd; out with it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I want two things; one thing to make me feel -grown up, an' I 've wanted it for a year."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's that, Budd?" asked Jack, immensely amused -at Budd's swelling manhood--"A pair of long trousers?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--" Budd hesitated for a moment, then went on in -rather an aggrieved tone; "I hate to wear waists with -buttons; it's just like a baby, an' a fellow can't feel grown -up when he has to button everything on. I want to hitch -things up the way March an' Chi do, an' I want you to buy -me a shirt like that one you 're rolling up--only not -flannel,--with a flap, you know, to tuck in."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, that's it, is it?" said Jack, endeavoring to keep -his face and voice from betraying his inward amusement. -"Well, I think you can get one for seventy-five cents--plain -or striped?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I like those narrow blue striped ones like yours best," -he replied, pointing to one of Jack's.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Like mine it shall be, Budd; but you 'll want a pair of -suspenders, or there 'll be too much hitching to be agreeable -to you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"March has an old pair, an' I 'm going to borrow them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's an idea; now, what's the second thing?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"A ring."</p> -<p class="pnext">"A ring?" Jack looked amazed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd nodded.</p> -<p class="pnext">"For yourself?" Jack questioned further.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--for somebody else."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you mean a finger ring?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd nodded again emphatically.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Engagement?" laughed Jack, at last, the fun getting -the better of him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd's mouth puckered into solemnity; "No--wedding."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack gave up the packing, and sat down, shaken with -laughter, on the first convenient chair.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Pardon me for laughing, Budd, but I can't help it. -What do you want of a wedding ring? Is it for that 'first -wife' of yours you toasted yesterday at dinner?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd nodded again. "I don't see anything to laugh at," -he said, with a reproachful glance. "You would n't if -you was me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I don't think I should; you 're right there, Budd," -he replied, sobering suddenly after his outburst of laughter. -"When is the wedding to be?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd looked thoughtful. "I have n't proposed yet," -was his matter-of-fact answer.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, why don't you?" Jack, sinner that he was, -scented some fun at Budd's expense.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm going to when I know how," said Budd, humbly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why don't you take lessons?" suggested Jack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I have."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of whom?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack shouted. "What did Chi say?" he demanded -when he had regained his breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"He said if he wanted to marry a girl, he 'd say what he -wanted to--tell 'em he was fond of 'em."</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Fond of them'--hm," repeated Jack, thoughtfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What do <em class="italics">you</em> say?" questioned Budd, turning the -tables rather suddenly on Jack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't say--never said," replied Jack, shortly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's what Chi said. He said if I begun early I 'd -find out how."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You seem to be on the right road for it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Would you say 'fond of her'?" persisted Budd.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I think I should," Jack replied with a peculiar -smile; "but, of course, it would depend on the girl."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's just what Chi said!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"He did, did he!" Jack laughed; "Chi knows a thing -or two."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But I thought you 'd know more." Budd's face began -to wear a puzzled look.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then Jack heard Rose's voice in the long-room -asking where Mr. Sherrill was, and the sound brought -home to him a realizing sense of the fact that there was -but an hour before they left for the station, and every -moment too precious to be wasted on Budd. Rising, -and proceeding with his packing, he said with perfect -seriousness:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Budd, all I can say is, that if I were going to -ask a girl to marry me, I should ask her if she thought -enough of me to take me with all my imperfections and--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where are you, Jack?" called Hazel, at the foot of -the stairs; "Chi has to go an hour earlier than he said, -and the sleigh is at the door."</p> -<p class="pnext">In the hurry of Jack's good-byes and departure, the -sentence was never finished, and the ring forgotten by him. -But Budd remembered.</p> -<p class="pnext">He was a sturdy little chap, broad of shoulder, strong -of limb. His sandy red hair bristled straight up from his -full forehead. His pale blue eyes, with thick reddish-brown -lashes, were round and serious. His nose was a -freckled pug, and his small mouth puckered, when he was -very much in earnest, to the size of a buttonhole. From -the time he had championed Hazel's coming to them, nearly -a year ago, he had never wavered in his allegiance to her, -and in his small-boy way showed her his entire devotion. -Hazel had been so grateful to him for his whole-souled -welcome of her, that she took pains to make his boy's -heart happy in every way she could.</p> -<p class="pnext">For Hazel, Budd was never in the way; never asked -too many questions for her patience; never teased her -beyond endurance. He found in her a ready listener, a -good sympathizer, a capital playmate, and a loving girl-friend, -who reproved him sometimes and, at others, praised -him. What wonder that his ten-year-old heart had warmed -towards her with its first boy-love? and that in his manly, -practical way, he made of her an ideal?</p> -<p class="pnext">"I love Hazel, and when I am big enough, I shall marry -her," was what he said to himself whenever he stopped his -play long enough to think about it at all. Naturally it -seemed the wisest thing to tell her this when he should -find the opportunity, and at the same time recall the fact.</p> -<p class="pnext">Fortified by the testimony of Chi and Jack, he bided his -time.</p> -<p class="pnext">One Saturday afternoon in January, Rose said suddenly -to Hazel: "I wish I could do some of the things that you -do, Hazel." Hazel looked up from her book in surprise.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What can I do that you can't do, Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You dance so beautifully, and I 've always wanted to -know how. I feel so awkward when I see you dance the -Highland Fling."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is that all?" Hazel laughed a happy laugh. "I can -teach you to dance as easy as anything, if you 'll let me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let you!" Rose exclaimed, flushing with pleasure; -"just you try me and see. But where can we practise?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, out in the barn," cried Hazel. "It'll be lots of -fun; of course, it's awfully cold, but the skipping about -will keep us warm. I 'll tell you what--I 'll play on the -violin, and you and March and Budd and Cherry can learn -square dances first."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What fun!" said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's the joke?" asked March, coming in at that -moment with Budd and Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We 're going to have a dance in the barn; Hazel's -going to teach us. She says she can do it easy enough."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, bully!" Budd threw up his tam-o'-shanter, and -Cherry, attempting to charge up and down the long-room -as she had seen Hazel at the Fords', tripped on the rug and -fell her length. When March had picked her up she -rubbed her nose, which was growing decidedly pink, and -sniffed a little, then asked suddenly:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Who 's going to be my partner? They always have -partners in the story books."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sure enough," Rose laughed. "Whatever will we do, -Hazel?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I never thought of that," said Hazel, ruefully. "Of -course, it takes eight."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why can't we have chairs for partners?" said Cherry. -"We can bow to them just as if they were alive, and make -them move round, can't we?"</p> -<p class="pnext">They all laughed at Cherry's inspiration.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're a brick, Cherry Bounce?" said March, approvingly. -"All choose your partners!" And, thereupon, he -seized one of the kitchen chairs, and the rest followed his -example. Hazel took her violin, and hooded and mittened -and coated and mufflered, they trooped out to the barn, -each lugging a wooden chair.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now I 'll give you the first four changes," said Hazel, -illustrating, as well as she could in trying to be two couples -at once, the first movements. "Form your square and get -ready."</p> -<p class="pnext">They obeyed with alacrity, and Hazel drew her bow -across the strings.</p> -<p class="pnext">"All curtsy to your partners!" she shouted, and the -chair-partners received a bow, and, in turn, were made to -thump the floor by being laid over on their backs, and -righted suddenly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"First couple forward and back!" shouted Hazel, and -away went Rose dragging her chair after her to meet March -and his chair--thumpity-thump--thumpity-thump.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were in dead earnest, and the chairs were made to -behave in a most human way.</p> -<p class="pnext">All went well until they came to the Grand Right and -Left; then there arose such a medley of shrieks of laughter, -wild wails from the violin, thumps from sixteen chair-legs, -and stampings from eight human ones as was never heard -before. In a few minutes all was inextricable confusion, -and the noise might have been best compared to a Medicine -Dance among the Sioux Indians.</p> -<p class="pnext">Upon this scene Mr. Blossom and Chi, on their return -from the wood, looked with amazement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They seem to be havin' a regular pow-wow," Chi -remarked dryly, as the exhausted dancers and musician sat -down, panting for breath, on their wooden partners. -"Rose-pose is about as young as any of 'em--but it -beats all, how she's shootin' up into womanhood."</p> -<p class="pnext">"She 's no longer my little Rosebud Blossom," said her -father, rather sadly. "I dread the time when the birds -begin to fly from the nest, and I see it coming with March -and Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then Rose caught sight of her father, and ran to -him linking her arm in his. "We 've had such fun, father! -We 're learning to dance; you must be my partner sometime, -for Hazel's going to teach us the schottische next."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose never forgot the look of love her father gave her, -nor the feel of his hand as he laid it on her hooded head: -"Be my little Rose-pose, as long as you can, dear; you 're -growing up too fast."</p> -<p class="pnext">She recalled afterwards that this first dance in the barn -marked the last time that she abandoned herself to the -children's fun with a girl's careless heart.</p> -<p class="pnext">The winter twilight was fast closing about the Mountain -and the children just returning to the house, when -Chi went out to milk. Leaving his lantern, stool, and -pails in the first stall, he entered the third one to tie one -of the cows to a shorter stanchion. Before he had finished -he heard Budd's voice, and, looking over the partition, saw -him standing with Hazel in the circle of light about the -lantern. In another minute he began to feel like an -eavesdropper.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did you want me to come here for, Budd?" said -Hazel, dancing on the barn floor to warm her feet.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I want to tell you something," said Budd, blowing on -his cold fingers.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, hurry up and tell; it's simply freezing here. -Is it a secret?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kinder," replied Budd, blowing harder; then, suddenly -ceasing the bellows movement, he drew a step nearer -to Hazel, and, putting the tips of his pudgy fingers together -to make a triangle, he puckered his mouth solemnly and -said, looking up at her with earnest eyes:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm very fond of you."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel laughed merrily. "Why, of course you are, you -funny boy; you 've always been fond of me, have n't you? -I 'm sure I 've always been fond of you. Is <em class="italics">that</em> what you -kept me out here in the cold to say?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not all;" Budd nodded seriously. "I 'm very fond -of you, an'--an' if you 'll take me with all my perfections--I -think that's the way it goes--if I have n't got the -ring yet, it will be just the same, you know." He paused, -and in the circle of light Chi could see the entire -earnestness of his attitude.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Goodness me, Budd! What do you mean about rings -and things?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I want to marry you when I 'm big--an' I thought -I 'd speak 'fore anyone else did to get ahead of 'em." Budd -hastened to explain, as Hazel showed signs of impatience.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, is that all!" Hazel breathed a sigh of relief. "I -thought something was the matter with you. Why, of -course you 're fond of me, Budd; but I could n't marry -you, for I 'm older than you, you know."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I never thought of that," said Budd, beginning to -blink rather suspiciously, "I thought--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, look here, Budd," said Hazel, in a business-like -way; "I think everything of you, too, and I 'll tell you -what you can be--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"What?" interrupted Budd, eagerly, balancing himself -on the tips of his toes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"My knight!" said Hazel, triumphantly, "and wear my -colors. I 'll give you a bow of crimson ribbon--I 'm -Harvard, you know--and you must wear it till you die. -And I have a white kid party glove I 'll give you, too, -and that will mean I 'm your lady-love, and it will be just -like the days of chivalry, you know we were reading about -them the other day."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And you won't mind about the ring?" queried Budd, -rather wistfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not a bit--a glove is much nicer than a ring, and--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Moo--oo--oo--" came from the next stall.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, goodness gracious! How that made me jump. -I 'm not going to stay out here another minute; so come -along if you 're coming"--and the knight meekly followed -his lady-love into the house.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-year-and-a-day">XIX</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A YEAR AND A DAY</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"It seems queer to settle down the way we have, ever -since Christmas. We had such fun up to that time." Hazel -heaved a long sigh as she wrestled with her Latin -and the Third Conjugation.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose looked up from her Cicero and smiled at the bored -expression on Hazel's face. "I know, Latin is awfully -dull at first, but when you can read it, you 'll like it. If -only you could hear Cicero give this horrid Catiline--the -old traitor--'Hail Columbia' as March says, you could n't -help liking Latin. Then, too, if we had n't settled down, -where would my French have been?"</p> -<p class="pnext">But Hazel still pouted a little. "I wish papa had n't -wanted me to study at all this winter--I don't see why, -when Doctor Heath is always talking about its 'effect on -my health--'"</p> -<p class="pnext">She was interrupted by a merry laugh. Rose threw -down her Cicero, caught away the grammar from Hazel, -and, seizing her by the hand, drew her into the little -bedroom. Then, taking her by the shoulders, she whirled -her about until she faced the small looking-glass.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There!" she exclaimed, still laughing, "look at that -face before you talk about any 'effect on your health.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked at the reflection in the mirror, and smiled -in spite of herself. What a contrast to what she was a -year ago! For to-morrow would be St. Valentine's day. -There were real American Beauty roses on her cheeks; -the dark eyes were full of sparkling life; the chestnut-brown -hair fell in heavy curls upon her shoulders. She -had grown tall, too, but rounded in the process, and the -healthful, bodily exercise had given her grace of carriage--she -was straight as an arrow, and as lithe as a willow wand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Perhaps I shall feel more interest when Miss Alton is -here, for she is a regular teacher. When is she coming, -Rose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"The very last of the month, when the spring term -opens. It's our turn to have the district-school teacher -board with us, and I 've never liked it before. But -now I can't wait for Miss Alton to come. I think she 's -lovely."</p> -<p class="pnext">"She is n't half as lovely as you are, Rose," said Hazel, -turning suddenly from the glass, in which she had been -scrutinizing her reflection, and giving Rose an unexpected -squeeze and a hearty kiss. "I think you are the most -beautiful girl I have ever seen, I heard Doctor Heath say -so; and--I told Jack so on Christmas night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll warrant he did n't agree with you," said Rose, with -a pleased smile. "You forget Miss Seaton."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know." Hazel shook her head dubiously. "He -did n't say a word to me about you--I don't care if he -did n't, Rose-pose, you 're worth all the Maude Seatons in -the world, and I 'd give anything to have you for my real -cousin instead of her, if only Jack--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know what you are talking about, Hazel," said -Rose, interrupting her shortly and sharply.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And I don't know why you are speaking to me in that -tone, Rose Blossom," retorted Hazel, both angry and hurt. -"I 've said nothing I 'm ashamed of, and I shall say it -whenever I choose and to whomever I please, so now." She -flung out of the room, but not before Rose had laid a -firm hand upon her shoulder.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel Clyde, if ever you speak of that again to anyone, -I 'll break friendship with you, see if I don't."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Break then," Hazel twitched her shoulder from under -the detaining hand. "I 'll speak whenever I choose. I -only said I thought you were the most beautiful girl I had -ever seen, and I wished that you were going to be my real -cousin, instead of Miss Seaton, and you need n't get mad -just because Jack does n't happen to think as I do--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel Clyde!" Rose stamped her foot, "don't you -speak another word to me; I 'll not hear it." Rose stuffed -both fingers into her ears, and beat an ignominious retreat -to her own room, where she shut herself in, and was -invisible until tea-time.</p> -<p class="pnext">The family were late in sitting down to the table, for -Mrs. Blossom wanted to wait for Chi, who had driven -down to Barton's River to take Mr. Blossom to the train, -and had arranged to bring March home with him.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was seven already. "We won't wait any longer, -children," said Mrs. Blossom. "Something must have -detained Chi. Budd, you may say 'grace' to-night?" -she added as she took her seat.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd looked up in amazement. "Why, Martie, Rose -is here and you always--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"That will do, Budd," said his mother, quietly, ignoring -the flame that shot up to the roots of Rose's hair, and the -cool look of indifference on Hazel's face. Budd folded -his pudgy hands and repeated reverently the words he had -heard father, or mother, or sister say ever since he could -remember. Scarcely had he finished when Tell's deep -note of welcome sounded somewhere from the road, and -the sleigh-bells rang out on the still air.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There they are!" cried Cherry. "May I go to meet them?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes--but put your cape over you, it's so chilly to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">In a minute Cherry was back again, every single curl -bobbing with excitement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Martie! Chi's bringing in something all done -up in the buffalo robe, and March won't tell me what -it is."</p> -<p class="pnext">She was followed by March, who walked up to his -mother, put both arms about her and gave her a quiet kiss.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There, little Mother Blossom, is my valentine for you," -he said half-shyly, half-proudly, and placed in her hands -his first term's report and a set of books.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, March, my dear boy!" said his mother, rising from -the table and placing both hands on the broad, square -shoulders of her six foot specimen of youth, "I 'm afraid -I 'm getting too proud of you. <em class="italics">Did</em> you get the first -Latin prize?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You bet I did, Martie." March's rare smile illumined -his face. "There is n't another fellow at Barton's, who can -boast of such a mother as I have, and I was n't going to let -any second-class mothers read those books before you did. -By Cicky!" (which was March's favorite name for the -famous orator)--"But I 've worked like a Turk, and -I 'm hungry as a Russian bear. Why, Rose, what's the -matter with you? You look awfully glum, and Hazel, -too. Here comes Chi; he's bringing something that -will cheer you up. The truth is, mother, these girls -miss <em class="italics">me</em>."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Indeed, I do, March?" said Hazel, looking straight up -into his eyes and showing the amazed lad tears trembling -in her own.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess there 'll be some breakin' of hearts, this year, -Mis' Blossom." Chi's cheery voice was welcome to them -all for some unknown reason. He came in loaded with -huge pasteboard boxes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Your arms will break first, Chi," said Mrs. Blossom, -hastening with March to relieve him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It ain't the heft of 'em, it's the bulk. Valentines -are generally pretty light weight. Romancin' 'n' -sentiment don't count for much, nowadays, though they take -up considerable room." He deposited the last box on the -settle. "'N' there's a whole parcel of things come by -mail. I ain't looked at the superscribin's--you read 'em -out, Rose-pose."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose read the addresses; there was more than one -missive for each member of the family.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let's have supper, first, mother," said March, "then, -after the table is cleared, we can sit round and guess who -they 're from."</p> -<p class="pnext">This proposition was welcomed by Budd and Cherry. -Rose and Hazel gave a cordial assent, but there was a -frigidity in the atmosphere which the outside temperature -did not warrant. Chi and March were aware of this so -soon as they entered the room, and Mrs. Blossom had -known it the moment she saw the girls' faces at the table. -She thought it not wise to interfere, but let matters -straighten themselves in good time. She felt she could -trust them both to see things in their right light, without -the aid of her mental glasses.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now let's begin," said Chi, rubbing his hands in glee -as, directly after supper, he piled the boxes on the table -while March laid the envelopes in their proper places -before each member of the family. "This top one says -'Miss Hazel Clyde.' Show us your valentine, Ladybird."</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're violets--from Jack, I know. He always -sends them. What's yours, Rose?" She spoke rather -indifferently.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, roses!" Rose was having the first look all to -herself. "The loveliest things I have ever seen. Look, -Martie!" Rose held up the mass of exquisite bloom, and -the children oh'ed and ah'ed at the sight.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're from Mr. Sherrill," said Rose, trying to speak -in a most common-place tone, but, in her excitement, -failing signally.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They are lovely," Hazel remarked, shooting an indignant -glance at Rose. "They're just like the ones he sent -Miss Seaton last year, only they were formed into a great -heart. Papa gave me one just like it; he got his idea -from Jack."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose suddenly put down the flowers, in which she had -buried her face to inhale their fragrance, as if something -had stung her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mr. Sherrill is very impartial with his favors," she -said in a tone that increased the pervading chill of the -domestic atmosphere.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Rose!" exclaimed Mrs. Blossom. "It is not -like you to receive a favor so ungraciously; you 've never -had flowers sent you before, and I 'm sure you would -never have them again if the donor could witness your -reception of them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't care for them again, thank you." Rose retorted -with flaming cheeks; "I 'd give more for this of yours, -Chi--" she opened a huge yellow envelope, and took from -it a scarlet cardboard heart, with a small, white, artificial -rose glued to the centre and a gilt paper arrow transfixing -both rose and heart.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi hemmed rather awkwardly, thinking: "Beats the -Dutch what's got into Rose-pose to-night. I ain't ever -known her to treat a livin' soul so shabby as that in all -her life. Beats all what gets into women 'n' girls, -sometimes; when a feller thinks he's doin' 'em just the best -turn he knows how, they up 'n' get mad with him, 'n' turn -the cold shoulder, 'n' upset things generally." But aloud -he said:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm glad it pleases you, Rose. Can't most always tell -when it's goin' to please a girl or not. I suppose Jack, -now, thought you 'd be tickled to get those posies just in -the dead of winter. They don't grow round here on our -bushes. What's in the other box?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why!" Hazel exclaimed, laughing rather half-heartedly, -"it's addressed to 'Miss Maria-Ann Simmons'--and -just look, Mother Blossom! See what that dear old Jack -has sent her! He's just too dear for anything." She -added emphatically;--"I 'd like to give him a kiss for -thinking of that poor girl all alone over there on the -Mountain. I don't believe she ever had a valentine before. -Look! Oh, look!"</p> -<p class="pnext">She took out of the many layers of wadding a mass of -yellow tulips, their closed golden cups shining in the -lamp-light as if gilded by sunbeams.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sho!" was all Chi said, leaning nearer to examine the -beautiful blossoms.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 'll take them over in the morning, early, won't -you, Chi?" said Hazel, replacing them.</p> -<p class="pnext">"First thing, Lady-bird; guess you 're right, Rose, -about that young feller's bein' 'n all-round man with his -favors. Don't seem to be much choice between you and -Marier-Ann, 'n' that Miss Seaver. Kind of a toss-up, hey, -Rose-pose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">But Rose was too busy with another package to answer -Chi. She grew wildly enthusiastic over the calla lilies -that Alan Ford had sent her, and caressed their white -envelopes, and praised their pure loveliness, until Hazel, -growing jealous for poor Jack and his discarded gift, rose -to put the neglected beauties in water, saying as she -did so:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm sure, Rose, if Jack had known you cared so much -for lilies, he would have sent you some Easter ones, they 're -out now. I 'll tell him to next time."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel!" Rose burst forth indignantly, "do you mean -to tell me you told Mr. Sherrill to send me these flowers -for a valentine?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Then Hazel, stung by the tone and the words, yielded -to temptation--for it had been the last straw. "What -if I did?" she said with irritating calm, "he 's my cousin. -I suppose I can say what I choose to him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose answered never a word; but, rising, took the La -France roses from the pitcher in which Hazel had just -placed them, and, going over to the fireplace, deliberately -cast the mass of delicate pink bloom into the fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom looked both puzzled and shocked; this was -wholly unlike Rose. What could it mean? The children -were too awed by the proceeding to speak or exclaim. -March looked gravely at Hazel, who burst into tears--it -was such an insult to Jack!--and rushed into her -bedroom and shut the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm going to bed; good-night, Martie," said Rose, -quietly, after she had watched the last leaf shrivel in the -flame, and, kissing her mother, she lighted her candle and -went upstairs. Mrs. Blossom, following her with her -eyes, felt that she had lost her "little Rose" in that -hour.</p> -<p class="pnext">March looked grave, complained of feeling tired, and -said he would go to bed, too, as to-morrow was the last -day of school and there were two more examinations to -take. Budd and Cherry kissed their mother twice, bade -her good-night in suppressed tones and crept upstairs. -"It's just as if somebody was sick in the house," said -Cherry, in an awed voice. Budd's was sepulchral:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's just as if somebody was dead and all the flowers -had come for the funeral."</p> -<p class="pnext">Across the dining-room table, loaded with boxes and -brilliant with valentines, Chi looked at Mrs. Blossom, and -Mrs. Blossom looked at Chi. The whole affair was so -incomprehensible, and the result so painfully disagreeable, -that, for a while, they found no words with which to give -expression to their feelings. Chi broke the silence:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well! I wish I was one of those clairivoyants they -tell about, 'n' could kind of see into the meanin' of this -flare-up of Rose-pose's. Don't seem natural for Rose to -go flyin' off at a tangent that way. What's she got against -him, anyway? He 's about as likely as you 'll find. Beats -me!" Chi leaned both elbows on the table, unmindful -that he was crushing some of the flowers, sank his chin -in the palms of his hands and thought hard for full a -minute.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know Hazel and Rose have had some little trouble -this afternoon--the first quarrel they have had--but -Rose is too old to allow herself to lose her control in that -way. I can't imagine what made her--" Mrs. Blossom -broke off suddenly, for Chi had raised his head and sent -such a look of intelligence across the table, handing her, -as he did so, Jack Sherrill's card, which Rose in her -confusion had neglected to read, that, in a flash, something -of the truth was revealed to Mrs. Blossom.</p> -<p class="pnext">She took the card. On the back was written, enclosed -in quotation marks:--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"For I am thine</div> -<div class="line">Whilst the stars shall shine,</div> -<div class="line">To the last--to the last."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">"O Chi!" was all Mary Blossom said; but the tears -filled her eyes, and, reaching across the table, her hand was -clasped in Chi's strong one.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish Ben was to home," sighed Chi, so lugubriously -that Mrs. Blossom laughed through her tears.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, it is n't so bad as that, Chi. Girls will be girls, and -grow up, and hearts will ache even when we 're young. -We won't make too much of it. I don't understand the -ins and outs of it, but I do know Hazel has said her -family thought he was engaged to Miss Seaton. I 'm sure -I 've thought so all along, and it never occurred to me -there could be any danger for Rose under the circumstances. -The mere fact of his name being connected so -closely with Miss Seaton's would be a safeguard. Then, -too, I fear he is spoiled by women on account of his riches."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know about that Miss Seaver,--but if it's as -you say, I kind of wish Rose could cut her out."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh-sh, Chi!" said Mrs. Blossom, reprovingly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I do," Chi retorted with some warmth. "She -ain't fit to tie Rose's old berryin' shoes, 'n' I saw her -lookin' at her feet that day we was sellin' berries down to -Barton's to the tavern, 'n' snickerin' so mean like, 'n' Rose -just showed her grit--'n' I wish she'd show it again 'n' -cut her out. I <em class="italics">do</em>, by George Washin'ton!" Chi rose -up in his wrath, lighted his lantern, and started for the -shed. At the door he turned:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish Ben was to home," he said again. "There 's -goin' to be the biggest kind of a snow-down before long, -'n' he 'll get blocked on the road, sure as blazes."</p> -<p class="pnext">"He 'll be back in two days, at the most, Chi; I would n't -worry."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I ain't worryin'; I 'm just sayin' I wish he was to -home," repeated Chi, doggedly, and shut the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom smiled. She knew Chi's crotchets. -When there was any disturbance of the family peace, Chi -was apt to be depressed, and sometimes despondent. She -put away the flowers in the cold pantry, smiling as she tied -up Maria-Ann's box:</p> -<p class="pnext">"He <em class="italics">is</em> universal," she said to herself. "I know it -irritated Rose to be classed with her and Miss Seaton; but -things will work around right with time. I can trust -to Rose's common-sense.--Not a prayer to-night!" she -added thoughtfully. "Well, we 'll make it up to-morrow." She -took up the prize books. "That dear March! What -a manly fellow he is getting to be--and so handsome. I -wonder--" here Mary Blossom checked herself, laughing -softly. "Goodness! if Ben were here what a goose he -would think me--a regular old Mother Goose--" And -again she laughed as she put out the light.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="snow-bound">XX</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">SNOW-BOUND</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">They were all on the porch the next morning to see -March off. It was not so very cold, but there was a -marked chill in the air and the sky was leaden.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's my last day, mother, then vacation for two weeks. -Hooray!" He leaped into the saddle, and Fleet reared -gently to show her approval.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't you get out a little earlier to-day, March?" said -his mother, looking up at the leaden sky. "I 'm afraid it's -going to snow heavily. Promise me not to start from -Barton's if the storm is a hard one; you can stay at the -inn or at the principal's. I would rather you remained -away from home two days, or over Sunday, than to have -you attempt the Mountain in too severe a storm."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll be careful, mother."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Better give your promise to your mother, March; she 'll -feel better 'bout you 're not startin' out," said Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I promise, little Mother Blossom." He threw himself -off the horse, and gave her another kiss; "I would n't go -to-day except for the exams.--I can't miss them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good luck, dear," said his mother, and her eyes -followed the horse and rider down the Mountain.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll go over the first thing 'n' give them posies to -Marier-Ann, 'n' then I 'll make tracks for home, 'n' get my -snow-shed up before it begins to come down."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do you think we shall need it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sure 's fate," replied Chi, laconically, and went into the -barn to harness Bess.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was noon before Chi had set up his snow-shed, a long, -low, wooden tunnel, which he had manufactured to -connect the woodshed door with a side door of the barn. By -means of this he was enabled, in unusually heavy storms, -to communicate with the barn and attend to the stock -without "shovelling out."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was about three in the afternoon when the first flakes -began to fall, or rather to "spit," as Chi expressed it, and -the snow fell intermittently and lightly until four, when -there was a sudden change of wind. It veered to the -north-east, and blast after blast, charged with icy particles, -hurled itself against the Mountain. Within half an hour -it was almost as dark as at midnight, and the snow swept -in drifting clouds over woodlands and pasture. When -the wind ceased for a moment, white, soft avalanches -descended upon farmhouse, barn, and mountain-road, until, -by six o'clock, the road was impassable and the drifts at the -back of the house a foot above the bedroom windows. Chi -had made all snug for the night.</p> -<p class="pnext">"This beats anything I ever saw, Mis' Blossom. I 'm -mighty glad Ben ain't comin' home to-day, 'n' that March -gave you the promise to stay at Barton's if it stormed -hard."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You don't think he would venture to start, do you, -Chi?" asked Mrs. Blossom, trying not to appear anxious -for the sake of the others.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Bless you, no;" was Chi's hearty response. "March -has got too level a head to risk himself 'n' Fleet in such a -storm--it's a regular howler of a blizzard. If he did -start," he added, "he 'd go in somewheres on the road--he -couldn't get far."</p> -<p class="pnext">After tea there was no settling down to the cosey -evening pastimes or employments. If such a thing could be, -the storm seemed to increase in severity. The wind -struck the house at times with terrific force; the -intermittent drift of snow and ice against the window panes -startled the inmates of the long-room like the rattle of -small shot. Chi had put out the fire in the fireplace before -supper, for the wind drove flame and ashes out into the -room.</p> -<p class="pnext">Again and again Mrs. Blossom went to the windows--first -one then another, and pressed her face close to the -pane; but they were plastered so thick with snow that -her efforts to see into the night were fruitless. Chi sat -by the kitchen stove, which he had filled with wood. His -boots rested on the fender, and, apparently, he was -indifferent to the storm. But, in reality, not the creak of a -beam, not the springing of a board, not an unwonted -sound within or without the house escaped his notice.</p> -<p class="pnext">In marked contrast to Chi's apparent apathy was Tell's -restlessness. Since six o'clock he had shown signs of -uneasiness. With strides, heavy and long, the huge beast -paced up and down the long-room. Sometimes he followed -Mrs. Blossom to the window, and, sitting down on his -haunches beside her, rested his nose on the window sill -and gazed at the whitened panes. At others he took his -stand beside Chi and looked into his face, their eyes -meeting on a level as the man sat and the dog stood. The -dog looked as if he were questioning him dumbly.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the evening wore on the dog's pace grew more rapid, -more uneven; his tail waved in a jerky, excited manner. -At last he lay down by the shed door, and, placing his -nose on the threshold, gave vent to a long, low, half-stifled -moan. At the sound Chi brought down his heels and the -tipped chair-legs with a thump, and started to his feet. -Mrs. Blossom turned to him with a white face, and Rose -cried out:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi! What is the matter with Tell? He never -acted this way before."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't know," said Chi, shortly; "dumb beasts are -curious creatures. Guess he don't like the storm. I 'll -go out, Mis' Blossom, 'n' see if the stock 's all right. Kind -of looks as if Tell was givin' us a warnin'."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi, don't go through the tunnel now," cried Mrs. Blossom, -all the pent-up anxiety finding expression in her voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi manufactured a laugh: "That's all safe, Mis' -Blossom. I chained it and roped it down, both--it can't -get away, 'n' the snow can't crush it. Don't you worry -about me. I 'll be back inside of fifteen minutes." He -took his lantern from the shelf over the sink:--"Get up, -Tell." The dog rose, but, as Chi opened the door, he tried -to push past him. Chi crowded him with his leg:--"No -you don't, old feller! there ain't room only for just one of -us to-night. Lay down!"</p> -<p class="pnext">And Tell lay down, with his nose on his paws, and both -nose and paws pressed close to the crack on the threshold. -Another long crescendo moan, that, at the last, sounded -like a sharp wail, filled the long-room, and Budd and -Cherry clung to their mother in terror.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You must go to bed, children," said Mrs. Blossom, -her face white as the snow on the window panes, but with -a voice of forced calm. "When you 're asleep, you won't -hear all this trouble the storm is raising to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But I don't want to sleep upstairs alone without March, -Martie," protested Budd, trying to be brave, but showing -his fear.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You can sleep in Hazel's room to-night, Budd, and -Cherry can get into my bed and sleep with me."</p> -<p class="pnext">The twins looked relieved. "Oh, that's different, -Martie," said Budd, with a grateful look. Cherry begged -for a little cotton wool to stuff in her ears:--"Then I -can't hear Tell and this awful noise." A novel idea, which -Budd at once adopted and put into practice. Their mother -looked relieved when they were safely bestowed in their -new quarters.</p> -<p class="pnext">About ten minutes afterwards they heard Chi's steps in -the shed. Then the door opened slowly, as he shoved Tell -aside. When he entered the room Mrs. Blossom gave one -look at his face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi, what has happened!" She cried out as if hurt.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi's face showed grayish white and drawn in the lamplight. -His hand shook a little as he reached for a second -lantern, turning his back on the three terrified faces.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Horse stalled, that's all. Had a tough tussle to get -him round, but he 's all right now." His voice sounded -hoarse.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Was it Bob or Bess?" asked Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, without answering, turned quickly to Tell, who -was pressing him nearly off his feet, and at the same time, -lashing his tail as if in fury.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What ails you, anyway?" said Chi, roughly. "D' you -want to get out?"</p> -<p class="pnext">For answer the dog rushed to the front door that opened -on the porch, rose on his hind legs, stemmed his powerful -forepaws against the panels and, throwing back his massive -head, sent forth from his deep throat a roar that seemed -to shake the rafters.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mis' Blossom," Chi's voice shook and his hand -trembled till the glass globe of the lantern tinkled in the -wire frame, "I 'm goin' to let him out, 'n' I 'm goin' to -follow on--there 's trouble somewhere on the Mountain, -'n' I 'm goin' to find out where 't is."</p> -<p class="pnext">All three cried out, protesting, entreating, praying him -to desist. But Chi shook his head.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I tell you I 've <em class="italics">got</em> to go, Mary Blossom"--Chi had -never called her that but once before, and Mrs. Blossom, -recalling the time, felt her heart as lead within -her--"you're brave,--brave as a woman can be; don't say -nothin', but let me go. Have plenty of hot water 'n' -flannels, 'n' some spirits ready 'gainst I come back--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Lady-bird, give me the dog collar with the bell you -gave Tell last Chris'mus; 'n' Molly Stark, fill your -mother's hot water-bag--'n' hurry up; 'n' Mis' Blossom, -give me Ben's brandy flask, he didn't take it with him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, while issuing these orders, was strapping down his -trousers over his long boots; then he poured out a -brimming cup of hot water, and mixed with it some of the -brandy from the flask. He put the collar on Tell, the bell -ringing loud and clear with every movement. He opened -the door; the dog bounded out into the night. Chi -followed him, a coil of rope around his neck, a shovel over -one shoulder with a lantern suspended from the handle, -and in his hand a second lantern. The hot-water bag he -had put beneath his sweater, and a leathern belt girded him.</p> -<p class="pnext">So equipped he went out into the drifting snows and -the night of storm. The terrified women were left alone.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mother, oh, mother!" cried Rose, wringing her hands, -"I know it's something dreadful; Chi would never look -that way."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mary Blossom could not answer. Her silence was -prayer. It was all of which she was capable at that time.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know what the matter was in the barn, mother," -again cried Rose, in an agony of fear. "Chi did n't tell -us all, I 'm sure. Let me go through the tunnel and find -out, do, mother!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Rose, I can't--I can't!" Mrs. Blossom spoke -under her breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Please, mother. It 's all safe, and the wind has gone -down a little since Chi went; let me go--I can't rest till -I do. You can hold the light at the shed door end and I -won't be gone but a minute or two. I 'll take the dark -lantern with me--Oh, mother! do, do--!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Rose, perhaps it's for the best. I 'll watch you -through."</p> -<p class="pnext">"May I watch, too?" asked Hazel, eagerly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, dear, I want you to stay here in case the children -should wake. Come, Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">They were gone but a few minutes; then Mrs. Blossom -came in followed by her daughter. The girl's teeth were -chattering; she looked blue and pinched.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did you find, Rose?" Her mother's voice was -scarce above a whisper.</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">I found Fleet!</em>"</p> -<p class="pnext">The two women sat down on the settle, holding each -other close; and the wind rose again in its fury.</p> -<p class="pnext">Wrapping a heavy shawl about her Hazel crept away -upstairs to the back garret and the window overlooking -the woods'-road, which formed the approach to the house. -There was a little snow-drift beneath it where the flakes -had sifted through; but the wind was felt less severely on -that side of the house. She opened the window a few -inches, propping it on a corn cob she had stepped upon; -then, kneeling, she put her ear to the opening and strained -her hearing in every lull of the storm.</p> -<p class="pnext">At last--she knew not how long she had listened--she -heard Tell's deep roar. It came muffled, but distinct. -She scarce trusted her ears; but again she heard it, and, -this time, in a dead silence, she caught the sound of the -bell. Surely Tell was nearing the house. She ran downstairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're coming!" she cried, hardly realizing what -she said in her excitement. Mrs. Blossom and Rose leaped -to their feet. They threw open the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi! Chi!" they called out into the night. There -was a joyous bark for answer---then a groan, and Chi -staggered across the snow-laden porch and fell with his -heavy burden on the threshold.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">At midnight the wind went down, but the snow continued -to fall. All the next day it fell steadily, but at -sunset it ceased, and a young moon looked over the -shoulder of Mount Hunger upon an unbroken white coverlet -that, in some places, was drifted to the depth of twenty -feet.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was twilight in Aunt Tryphosa's little cabin -"over eastwards," for the snow was piled to the eaves, -and the tulips furnished their only sunshine for two days.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was consternation at Hunger-ford, for the family -were cut off from their neighbors and the outside world -of letters and papers.</p> -<p class="pnext">There were councils at Lemuel's and the Spillkinses'--for -how could they gather their forces to break out the -Mountain?</p> -<p class="pnext">There were heavy hearts and reddened eyelids in the -farmhouse, for March, rescued by Chi and revived by -vigorous treatment, had succumbed to the exposure and -chill, and lay unconscious in fever--and no help at hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, spent to exhaustion, had rallied at midnight, but -knew that it was beyond human powers to attempt to -reach Barton's or even Lemuel Wood's, their next -neighbor, through the drifts.</p> -<p class="pnext">So they waited, helpless--one day, two days. On the -second day the white expanse showed no tracks. Then -March began to wander, and clutch his breast, where his -mother had found the telegram, which his father had sent -to him from Ogdensburg:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Heavy blizzard. Roads blocked. Tell mother at once. -Don't worry."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi walked the house night and day in his misery of -helplessness. At last, on the third day, looking -eastwards he descried a black blotch on the white,--it was -a four-ox team breaking out from the Fords'. Later in -the day, when the men were within two hundred yards -of the house, he saw another black spot on the lower -road. It was the Mill Settlement road-team, with a full -equipment of men and tools, to cut a way through the -drifts.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soon there was help and to spare. Alan Ford was riding -down the narrow way between high walls of glittering -white to Barton's for aid, and bringing back telegrams of -anxious inquiry from Mr. Blossom and Mr. Clyde. On -the fourth day, the blockade was raised, and the -south-bound express to Barton's River brought Mr. Blossom -from the north, and another train brought Mr. Clyde from -the south. Two days after all the Lost Nation knew that -March would live.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="a-little-daughter-of-the-rich">XXI</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">A LITTLE DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was days before March himself was aware of that fact.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd and Cherry were at the Fords'. May was with -Aunt Tryphosa and Miss Alton at Lemuel Wood's. -Maria-Ann had come over to help Mrs. Blossom with the -work, and Chi had taken care of the stock. Rose and her -mother watched and waited in the sick room, relieved on -alternate nights by Mr. Blossom and Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">The great storm was a thing of the past. The sun shone -in a deep blue heaven, and the white world of the -Mountain showed daily life and movement. The teamsters -were at work loading the sledges with logs, and the -ponderous drags squeaked and grated as they slid down -the crisping highway.</p> -<p class="pnext">A crow cawed loudly on the first of March, and the -hens came out to find a warm nook in the south-east -corner of the barn-yard, where a heap of sodden straw was -thawing.</p> -<p class="pnext">All in the farmhouse were rejoicing, for March had -spoken in his weakness--a few words, but clear, coherent, -for the frost and fever, both, had left his brain. When he -spoke the second time it was to ask for Chi; and Chi had -tiptoed into the room in his stocking-feet and laid his -hand on March's thin, white one, gulped down the tears -and the rising sob that was choking him, and--spoke of -the weather!</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The next day March turned to his mother, who was -sitting by the bed, brooding him with her great love, -and asked suddenly, but in a clear and much stronger -voice:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where 's Hazel?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom hesitated for a moment, then spoke -quietly:--"Hazel is at home with her father for a few -weeks."</p> -<p class="pnext">March turned his face to the wall and was silent for -several hours.</p> -<p class="pnext">When he was stronger Mrs. Blossom gave him the little -note Hazel had left for him, and, with mother-tact, knowing -March's reserve of nature, went out of the room while he -read it. She saw no signs of it when she returned and -asked no questions, but March's gray eyes spoke a -language for which there was but one interpretation. With -his rare smile, he held out his hand for his mother's, and -clasped it closely.</p> -<p class="pnext">Soon he was able to be up and about, and the children -were again at home. Life in the farmhouse resumed its -old course--but with a difference. Just what it was no -one attempted to define. But each felt it in his own way. -March was more gentle with Budd and Cherry, more -often with his mother and Chi, more companionable for -his father. Rose was quieter, but, if possible, more loving -towards all. Budd was at times wholly disconsolate, and -wasted sheets of his best Christmas note-paper in writing -letters to Hazel which were never sent.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi went oftener to the small house "over eastwards," -where he was sure of willing ears and sympathetic hearts -when he unburdened himself in regard to his "Lady-bird."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fact is," he said to Maria-Ann, as she stood with her -apron over her head watching him plough their garden -plot (that was his annual neighborly offering), "she 's left -a great hole in that house, 'n' there is n't one of us that -don't know it 'n' feel it;--kind of empty like in your -heart, you know, just as your stomach feels when you 've -ploughed an acre of sidlin' ground, before breakfast--Get -up, Bess, whoa--back!--you don't hear that laugh of -hers in the barn, nor out in the field, nor up in the -pasture; 'n' you don't see those great eyes lookin' up at you -when you 're harnessin', nor peekin' round the corner of -the stall to see if you 're most through milkin'. 'N' you -don't hear a fiddle makin' it lively after supper, 'n' the -children ain't danced once in the barn this spring." Chi -sighed heavily.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't Mr. Ford go over there pretty often?" queried -Maria-Ann. "I see him gallopin' by two or three times -a week."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, what if you do?" Chi answered grumpily, much -to Maria-Ann's surprise. "He can't fiddle the way Ladybird -does, 'n' they all sit 'n' jabber some kind of lingo--French, -they call it, but I call it, good, straight -Canuck--'n' act as if they were at a party,--Rose, 'n' Miss Alton, -'n' the whole of 'em. 'T ain't much company for me. I -get off to bed about dark. 'N' the worst of it is, when he -isn't to our house, they're all to his--Come around!" Chi -jerked the reins, to Bess's resentful surprise.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They say he's payin' attention to Rose," ventured -Maria-Ann, her eyes following the furrow, which was -running not quite true.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're a parcel of fools," growled Chi, eyeing the -furrow with a dissatisfied air, "Rose need n't look Alan -Ford's way for attention. She can have all she wants -most anywheres.--Get up, Bess! what you backin' that -way for!--'n' folks tongues can be measured by the -furlong 'twixt here and Barton's."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, there ain't any harm in Rose's havin' attention, -Chi," said Maria-Ann with some spirit, and ready to stand -up for her sex.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did n't say there was," retorted Chi, in mollified tones. -"There ain't no more harm in Rose's havin' attention than -in your havin' it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Me!" exclaimed Maria-Ann, pleasantly surprised out -of her momentary resentment. "I ain't had any chance -to have any."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ain't you?" said Chi, busying himself with the plough -preparatory to leaving. "Well, that ain't any sign you -won't have--Get along, Bess!--I 'll leave this plough -here till to-morrow; I ain't drawn those last two furrers -straight, 'n' I 've got too much pride to have any man -see that--Malachi Graham, his mark.--No, sir-ee," said -Chi, emphatically, "straight or starve is my motto every -time, just you remember that, Marier-Ann Simmons."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I will, Chi," laughed Maria-Ann, and went back to -her washing, singing joyfully to her rubbing accompaniment:--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"Come, sinners all, repent in time,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The Judgment Day is dawning;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Sun, moon, and stars to earth incline,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The trumpet sounds a warning."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Meanwhile letters were coming to every member of the -family from Hazel. As March regained his strength there -came as special gifts to him, books and magazines, and from -time to time a beautiful photograph of an old-world -cathedral--Canterbury, or York; a stately castle like -Warwick, or Heidelberg; a peasant's chalet, or an English -cottage to gladden his artist soul and eye, and transform -the walls of his room into dwelling-places for his ideals.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mother," he said rather wistfully to Mrs. Blossom, -on the first May day as they sat together under the old -Wishing-Tree, talking over the plans for his future, "how -can I go to work to make it all come true?"</p> -<p class="pnext">He held in his hand a large photograph of the interior -of Cologne Cathedral, which Hazel had given him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There are many ways, dear, which are most unexpectedly -opened at times. No boy with health and perseverance -has much to fear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, mother, father had both, and he was n't able to -go through college. He told me all about it the other -day, and how he had missed it all through his life."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know, March, father failed in attaining to that which -was his great desire, but he succeeded so immeasurably -in another direction, that I think, sometimes, it must have -been all for the best."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, mother, father is poor now--how do you mean -he has succeeded?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"My dear boy, you are only in your seventeenth year, -and I don't know that I can make it plain to you because -you <em class="italics">are</em> young; but when your father conquered every -selfish tendency in him, put aside what he had striven so -hard for and what was just within his reach, and turned -about and did the duty that the time demanded of him;--when -he took his dead father's place as provider for the -family, and, by his own exertions, placed his mother and -sisters beyond want, before he even allowed himself to tell -me he loved me, he proved himself a successful man; for -he developed, in such hard circumstances, such nobility of -character, that he is rich in love and esteem,--and that, -March, and only <em class="italics">that</em>, is true wealth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I see what you mean, mother, but it does n't help me -to see how I 'm to get through college, and get the -training I need in my profession." March uttered the last -word with pride. "There is so much a man has to have -for that. Look at that now," he continued, holding up -the photograph; "I need all that, and that means Europe, -and Europe means money and time, and where is it all -to come from?"</p> -<p class="pnext">His mother smiled at the despairing tone. "As for -time, March, you are only in your seventeenth year. That -means ten years before you can begin to work in your -profession; and as for the means--" she hesitated--"I -think it is time to tell you something I 've been keeping -and rejoicing over these last two weeks." She drew a -letter from her dress-waist and handed it to him. "Read -this, dear, and tell me what you think of it." Wondering, -March took it and read:--</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="left pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAWKING VALLEY, NORTH CAROLINA,<br /> -April 15, 1897.</p> -<p class="pnext">MY DEAR MRS. BLOSSOM,--Just a year ago to-day I sent -my one child to you, trusting the judgment of my dear friend, -Doctor Heath, in a matter which he felt concerned the future -welfare of my daughter. My home has been very lonely -without her. You, as a parent, can know something of what this -separation has entailed.</p> -<p class="pnext">It seemed wise to me, and I know you concurred in my -opinion, to take her away from the conditions, in which she -has thriven so wonderfully, while you were burdened, both in -heart and hands, by such a critical illness as your son's. The -result confirms the wisdom of my action, for March's convalescence -has been slow and long; I am thankful to be assured it -is sure. The burden of an extra member in your family at this -time would, in the long run, prove too heavy for you.</p> -<p class="pnext">I cannot tell you how I appreciate what you have done for -Hazel. I have no words to express it. She returns to me full -of life and joy, with no apparent unwillingness to take up her -life again with me, which must seem dull to her in contrast to -that which she had with you. Yet I know in her loyal little -heart she belongs to you, is a part of your family henceforth--and -I am glad to know it is so, for she needs, and will need, as -a young girl, your motherly influence at all times.</p> -<p class="pnext">I 'm not taking her away from you for good. Oh, no! That -would be her loss as well as mine; but I am testing her a little. -I have said I had no words with which adequately to express -my gratitude. I am your debtor for my child's physical -well-being--for much else which I do not find it easy to define. -Will you allow me to make some compensation for your year -of devotion? I do not care what form it take, providing you -will permit me to try to discharge something of the debt--the -whole can never be repaid. Will you not let me send that -splendid son of yours through college? and give him two years -of Europe afterwards? That future profession of his has -always been of great interest to me. If the boy is too proud, -as I suspect is the case, to accept the necessary amount other -than as a loan, make it plain to him that I will even yield a -point there--a pretty bad state of affairs for me as a debtor -to find myself in. If he won't do this for me--won't Rose -help me out by permitting me to aid her in cultivating that -voice of hers? I know your magnanimity, and depend upon -you to help me in this.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel does not know I am writing to you, or she would send -loving messages.</p> -<p class="pnext">My kindest regards to Mr. Blossom, with hearty congratulations -for March, and all sorts of neighborly remembrances for -all others of the Lost Nation.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Sincerely your friend,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">JOHN CURTIS CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst"><em class="italics">To Mrs. Benjamin Blossom.</em></p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Oh, mother!"</p> -<p class="pnext">A wave of crimson surged into March's pale face, -and the sensitive nostrils quivered; then two big drops -plashed down upon the letter which he handed to his -mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother! if only I could--but I can't!"</p> -<p class="pnext">He rolled over on the soft pasture turf, face downwards, -his head resting on his arms.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, March dear," said his mother, tenderly, "why -can't you? I think it 's beautiful, so does father."</p> -<p class="pnext">A sob shook the long, thin frame. His mother laid her -hand on the back of the yellow head. "What is it, my -dear boy? Can't you tell me?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The head shook energetically beneath her hand, and -muffled words issued from the grass.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, March, we thought it would please you to have -such an opportunity. You have read what Mr. Clyde -says--you can look upon it as a loan. I hope you won't -have any false pride in this matter--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Tis n't false, mother," came forth from the grass, "and -I would like to accept his offer, if only it were n't just his."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not his, March? Surely, Hazel has been like one -of us--a real little sister--" Another vigorous wagging -of the yellow head arrested his mother in the midst of her -sentence.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel is n't my sister."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course, you can't feel as near to her as to -Rose, but then, you must see how dear she has become to -us all--and Mr. Clyde has put it in such a way, that the -most sensitive person could accept it without injury to -any feeling of true pride. Take time and think it over, -March. It has come upon you rather suddenly, and I have -been thinking about it for two weeks."</p> -<p class="pnext">"It's no use to think it over." Deep tragedy now made -itself audible, as March rolled over and sat up, displaying -eyes bright with excitement, flushed cheeks, and a generally -determined air of having it out with himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I can't understand you, March."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish you could."</p> -<p class="pnext">His mother smiled in spite of the gravity of the situation. -"Can't you tell me? or give me some clue to this -mysterious determination of yours?"</p> -<p class="pnext">March cast a despairing glance at his mother. "Mother, -will you promise never to tell?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not even your father, March?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, father, nor any one--ever, mother."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Very well; I promise, March, for I trust you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother, have n't you seen?--don't you know, -that I--that I love Hazel! And how can I take the -money from her father, when I 'm going to try to make -her love me and marry me sometime, when I get through -studying, and--and--Oh, don't you see?"</p> -<p class="pnext">And Mrs. Blossom did see--at last.</p> -<p class="pnext">She spoke very gently, after a minute's silence, in which -March's ears burned red to their tips, and his fingers were -busy digging up a tiny strawberry-plant by the roots. -"My son, I see, and I honor you for feeling as you do; -but, March, have you thought of the difference between -you and Hazel?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"What difference, mother?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Now Mary Blossom was not a worldly woman, neither -was she a woman of the world--and she found it difficult -to answer.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You know how Hazel is placed in life, although you -do not know with what luxury she is surrounded in her -home. She has beauty, a large circle of friends, immense -wealth. There will be many who will seek her hand in -four years' time, for she has a wonderful charm of her own, -for all who come close to her.--Is it worth while to -attempt, even, to win this little daughter of the rich? -You, a poor boy, with his way to make?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, mother,"--there was strong protest in the voice--"she -did n't have any beauty till she came up here to -us--and if she <em class="italics">was</em> a rich girl, she was n't a healthy one -till she lived up here, and I don't see the good of money -and a lot of things, if you 're sick, and homely, too." March -waxed eloquent in his desire to convince his -mother of the justice of his cause. "And if she hadn't -come up here she would n't have got well, and then she -would n't have grown so beautiful--and she <em class="italics">is</em> beautiful, -mother." (Mrs. Blossom nodded assent.) "And I don't -see why I have n't just as much right to try to make her -love me as any other fellow. You 've told us children, -dozens of times, it's just character that counts, and not -money, and if I try as hard as I can to keep straight and -be a good man like father, I don't see why things would n't -be all right in the end."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom was silenced,--"hoist with her own -petard." "How can I destroy this lovely, young ideal? -I dare not," was her thought. But aloud, she said:--"You 're -right, March. Nothing but character counts. -Make yourself worthy of this little love of yours. We 'll -keep this in our own hearts, and when you are tempted to -wrong-doing--and there are fearful temptations for every -young man to meet, March,--temptations of which you can -form no conception here in the shelter of your home--just -remember this little talk of ours, and keep yourself -unspotted by the world just by the thought of this dear girl -whom you hope some day to win. There is nothing, -March, that will keep a young man in the right way like -his love for just 'the one girl in the world'--if only she -be worthy of his love. And I think Hazel will be--even -of you."</p> -<p class="pnext">March flung his arms about her neck and kissed her -heartily:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Dear, little Mother Blossom, I 'll try, and even if I fail, -just the thought of such a glorious-filorious mother that -does n't laugh at a fellow--I was afraid you would, -though,--will keep me straight enough. Why, Mother Blossom! -I 'd be ashamed to look you in the eyes, if I did a -down-right mean thing."</p> -<p class="pnext">His mother laughed through her tears. "I wonder if -many mothers get such a compliment? Come, dear, the -dew is beginning to fall--it's been such a heavenly -day, I had forgotten it is early spring. Do you feel -chilly?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not I," laughed March, and proceeded to relieve his -feelings after his favorite method--by turning a -double-back somersault down the pasture slope.</p> -<p class="pnext">As Mrs. Blossom leaned over to kiss tired, sleepy Budd -that night, she thought complacently to herself:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, thank fortune, here 's one who is heart-free," and -laughed softly to herself. Chi had not told her of Budd's -proposal.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Wilkins, tell Miss Hazel to come down into the library -when she is dressed for dinner."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Marse Clyde." Wilkins sprang upstairs two -steps at a time, and, knocking at Hazel's door, delivered -his message.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tell papa I 'm going to dress early, for I 've some -things to attend to about the table, Wilkins."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fo' sho', Miss Hazel," said Wilkins, with a broad smile -of delighted surprise.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And tell Mrs. Scott I 'll choose the service, if she will -take out the linen, and I have ordered the flowers. Papa -said I might."</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins skipped downstairs, delivered his message to -the amazed housekeeper, and then flew into the kitchen to -impart his news to the cook, his confidante and co-worker -for years in the Clyde household.</p> -<p class="pnext">Minna-Lu was preparing a confection, and giving her -whole soul to the making, when Wilkins made his -appearance. She looked up grimly, the ebony of her -countenance shining beneath the immaculate white of her -turban:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Wa' fo' yo' hyar?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins slapped both knees with the palms of his hands, -and bent nearly double with noiseless laughter; then, -straightening himself, approached Minna-Lu with boldness, -despite the repelling wave of the cream-whip that she held -suspended over the bowl, and confided to her the change -of régime, to her edification and delight.</p> -<p class="pnext">She put down the bowl and whip, stemmed her fists on -her broad hips, and gurgled long and low. "'F little -missus done take rale hol' er de reins, dere ain't no kin' er -show fo' sech po' trash." She indicated with an upward -movement of her thumb the upper regions where the -housekeeper was supposed to be.</p> -<p class="pnext">"When I wan's a missus, I wan's quality folks, an' little -missus do take de cake. Nebber see sech er chile. Dem -great, shinin' eyes, lookin' at yo' out o' all de do's, an' dat -laff soun'in' jes' like de ol' mocker dat nebber knowed -nuffin' 'bout bedtime--yo' recollecks?" Wilkins nodded -emphatically, but was unprepared for Minna-Lu's next -move:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Git out o' hyar, yo' good-fo'-nuffin' niggah. Huccome -yo' stan'in' roun' wif yo' legs stiffer 'n de whites er dese -yer eggs, an' yo' jaw goin' like de egg-beatah, an' de -comp'ny comin' at rale sharp eight." Minna-Lu took up her -bowl, and Wilkins beat a hasty retreat.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a warm first of May, and just about the hour -when March and his mother were leaving the Wishing-Tree, -that Hazel appeared in the dining-room. Wilkins -gazed at her in a species of adoration. Her orders appeared -to him revolutionary, but he obeyed them implicitly and -unhesitatingly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Take off the candelabra, Wilkins, it is too warm -to-night to have them on; besides, people don't have a -nice time talking when they have to peek around them to -get a glimpse of the people they 're talking to." Wilkins -whisked off the candelabra as if they had been made of -thistledown.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Dat's so, fo' sho', Miss Hazel. I see de folks doan' -talk when dey ain' comf'ble; but I nebber tink ob de -can'les."</p> -<p class="pnext">"When it's dark you can light all the sconces. I want -you to use the pale green, Bohemian dinner set to-night; -and I want just as little silver as possible."</p> -<p class="pnext">Wilkins looked blank, and Hazel laughed. "Oh, we 'll -make it up with some cut glass, I 'll manage it. I want -the table to look cool and simple, just to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">Cool and simple. Wilkins failed to comprehend it, but -such was his faith in "little Missy," that he carried out -her orders to the letter, and the result was, according to -Mrs. Fenlick, "a dream of beauty."</p> -<p class="pnext">When she had made her preparations to her entire -satisfaction, as well as Wilkins's, and the latter had called -Minna-Lu from her culinary tug-of-war to witness "little -Missy's" triumph, Hazel ran into the library.</p> -<p class="pnext">Her father looked at her in amazement. Could this -radiant, young girl be the same Hazel of a year ago? -They had gone directly to North Carolina when Hazel had -left Mount Hunger, and had been at home but two days. -This little dinner was given to Mr. Clyde's intimate -friends as an informal celebration and recognition of his -daughter's return to the New York house.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now, as she ran into the room and linked her arm in his, -her father looked down upon her with such evident pride -and love, that Hazel laughed joyfully, kid her cheek -against his coat-sleeve and patted his hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do I look nice, Papa Clyde?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Nice! that's no word for it, Birdie." And thereupon -he took her in his arms and gave her such a hug and a -kiss, that the pretty dress must have suffered if it had not -been made of the softest of white China-silk.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, my flowers! you 'll crush them!" she cried, -shielding with both hands a bunch of flowers at her belt.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where did you get all this--this style, daughter -mine? It's--why, you 're nothing but a little girl, but -it's 'chic.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel enjoyed her father's admiration to the full. She -drew herself up, straight and tall, graceful and slender--her -head was already above his shoulder--exclaiming:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Little girl! Well, your little girl designed this gown -herself. I would n't have any fuss or frills about it; it's -just plain and full and soft and clingy, and this sash of -soft silk--is n't it a pretty, pale green?--feel--" She -caught up a handful of the delicate fabric and crushed it -in her hand, then smoothed it again, and it showed no -wrinkles. "I 've put it on to match the dinner. I 've -had it all my own way--Wilkins did just as I said--and -it's all cool and green and springy. You 'll see."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Where did you get these flowers?" Mr. Clyde touched -the bunch of arbutus, that showed so delicately pink and -white against the white of her dress and the green of her -sash.</p> -<p class="pnext">A wave of beautiful color shot up to the roots of the -little crinkles of chestnut hair on her temples; she touched -the blossoms caressingly. "I wrote March about this -dinner-party, and how it was the first at which I had been -hostess, and he wrote back and wanted to know what I -was going to wear, and I told him--and this morning -these lovely things came by mail all done up in cotton -wool in a tin cracker-box, the kind Chi uses to put his -worm-bait in, when he goes fishing. Are n't they lovely? -And was n't March lovely to think of them, papa?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"They are n't half as lovely as you are," said Mr. Clyde, -earnestly, replying to half of her question only. "You -are my unspoiled Hazel-blossom--" Then a sudden, -intrusive thought caught and arrested his words. "Hazel -Blossom," he repeated to himself, looking at her -unconscious face as he uttered the last word, "Good heavens! -Could such a thing be?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"De Cun'le an' Mrs. Fenlick," announced Wilkins.</p> -<p class="pnext">And when they were all seated at the table--the -Colonel and Mrs. Fenlick, Doctor and Mrs. Heath, Aunt -Carrie and Uncle Jo, the Masons and the Pearsells--with -no candelabra to interfere with the merry speech and -glances, with the light from the candles in the sconces -shining softly on the exquisite napery, on the low bed of -white tulips in the centre and the grace of the pale, green -porcelain, with the tall Bohemian Romer-glasses before -the plates--what wonder that Mrs. Fenlick pronounced -it a "dream of beauty"?</p> -<p class="pnext">When their guests had gone, Mr. Clyde turned to -Hazel:--"I shall be glad to open the Newport cottage -again, Birdie, with such a little hostess to help me entertain."</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Newport house, papa!" Hazel exclaimed, a -distinct note of disappointment sounding in her voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why not, dear? I thought of getting down there by -the tenth; in fact, gave my orders to Mrs. Scott to begin -packing to-morrow."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel was evidently struggling with herself. She -fingered the arbutus nervously; took them out of her belt; -inhaled their fragrance. Then she looked up with a smile, -although the corners of her mouth drooped and trembled -a little:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course, why not, papa? It's so much pleasanter -there in May, than when everybody is down for the summer."</p> -<p class="pnext">Her father sat down in an easy-chair, put an arm around -his daughter, and drew her down to a seat on the arm of -the chair.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, Hazel, I want you to tell me all about it. Don't -you want to go?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, if you 're there, papa, but--" she turned -suddenly and her arm stole around his neck--"don't leave -me there alone, papa, please don't."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Leave you--I? Why what do you mean, dear?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, it is so lonesome when you are away, papa, when -you go off yachting with the Colonel--and the house is -so big, and there 's nobody to talk to and say good-night -to--and--and, oh, dear!" The tears began to come, but -she struggled bravely for a few minutes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, little girl, you have never told me you were -lonesome without me: indeed, you have never shown -any sign of it, or of wanting me around much. I never -thought--why, Hazel." Down went the curly head on -his shoulder, and the sobs grew loud and frequent.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There, there, Birdie," he said soothingly, stroking her -head, "you 're all tired out; this party has been too much -for you--"</p> -<p class="pnext">An energetic, protesting head-shake was followed by -broken sentences--"It was n't that--I 'm not tired--you -don't know, papa--I didn't know--know I was -lonesome, and that I was--I think I was homesick--dreadfully--but -Barbara Frietchie, you know--I had to be -brave--and, I have tried not to show it to make you feel -unhappy--and I love you so! but, oh, dear! I miss them -so dreadfully, and I hoped--I was a member of the N.B.--B.O.--O., -Oh--dear me,--Society, and the by-law -says--I mean March read it--Oh, papa!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, well, there, there, dear," said the somewhat -mystified father, bending all his efforts to soothe this -evidently perturbed spirit, "why did n't you tell me before?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Because I was Barbara Frietchie."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, Hazel, sit up and look me in the face and tell me -what you mean. I supposed I was holding Hazel Clyde in -my arms and not old Barbara Frietchie. Please explain."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I thought I wrote you, papa," Hazel could not help -smiling through her tears, for it did strike her as rather -funny about papa's holding the patriotic, old lady in his arms.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, you did n't tell me that." So Hazel explained.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde nodded approval. "Very good, I approve -of the N.B.B.O.O. Society, and of the present Barbara -Frietchie's heroism--but no more of it is called for. You -see, I fully intended you should pay your friends--my -friends--a visit this summer, but I thought it would be -much better later in the season when Mrs. Blossom would -be rested from the fatigue of March's illness--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, papa!" A squeeze effectually impeded further -utterance. "I don't care how soon we go to Newport, or -anywhere--of course, if <em class="italics">you</em> are with me--as long as -I can go to Mount Hunger sometime this summer. And, -besides," she added eagerly, "we planned next winter's -visit from Rose, didn't we?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should rather think we did. We shall be very proud -of our beautiful friend, Rose, and delighted to have our -friends meet her, shan't we?" Another squeeze -precluded, for the moment, articulate speech.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," Hazel cried, enthusiastically, "we 'll take her to -concerts and operas--just think, papa, with that lovely -voice she has never heard a concert!--and we 'll take her -to the theatre and--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"And," her father went on, growing enthusiastic himself -at the prospect, for he was the soul of hospitality, -"and we 'll give her a dainty dinner or two, and possibly -a little dance--few and early, you know--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh--ee!" cried Hazel, forgetting her woe, "and Mrs. Heath -will give a lunch-party for her, and, perhaps, Aunt -Carrie a tea, and Mrs. Fenlick a reception--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Heavens!" interrupted her father, "you 'll kill her -with kindness--that fresh, wild rose can't stand all -that--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, yes, she can, papa; she can stand that just -as well as I stood going up there where everything was -so different."</p> -<p class="pnext">"True," said Mr. Clyde, thoughtfully, "it was different."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, it was, papa! I never had to go to bed alone. -Mrs. Blossom always came to say good-night and to kiss -me, and to--to--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"To what?" asked her father.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You won't mind if I tell you?" Hazel asked, half-shyly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Mind! I should say not; I should mind if you did n't -tell me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"--to say 'Our Father' with me, papa; you know no -one ever said it with me before, and it's--it's such a -comfy time to feel sorry and talk over what you 've done -wrong; and it's <em class="italics">that</em> I miss so."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't blame you, Birdie," said her father, quietly. -"But now see how late it is!"--he pointed to the -clock--"Eleven! This will never do for a <em class="italics">débutante</em>. -Good-night, darling. Sweet dreams of Rose and the -N.B.B.O.O. Society."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Papa Clyde; Doctor Heath says you are -the most splendid fellow in the world--but I know you -are the dearest father in the world; good-night, I 've had -a lovely party."</p> -<p class="pnext">She ran upstairs, but, in a moment, her father heard her -tripping down again. Her head parted the portières. "I -just came back to tell you, that this kind of a talk we 've -had is just as good as the Mount Hunger bedtime-talks. -I shan't be homesick any more." And away she ran.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now John Curtis Clyde was a pew-owner--as had been -his father and grandfather before him--in one of the -Fifth Avenue churches, and duly made his appearance in -that pew every Sunday morning. He entered, too, into -the service with hearty voice, and made his responses -without, the while, giving undue thought to the world. -But when he had said "Our Father" with his little -daughter by his side, he had supposed his duty performed -to the extent of his needs--of another's, his child's, he -gave no thought.</p> -<p class="pnext">To-night, however, as he sat in the easy-chair where -Hazel had left him, it began to dawn upon him slowly -that his little daughter, during her fourteen years, might -have had other needs, for which he had not provided, nor, -perhaps, with all his riches was capable of providing.</p> -<p class="pnext">The clock chimed twelve,--one,--two--; John Clyde, -with a sigh, rose and went up to bed--a wiser and a -better man.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="rose">XXII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">ROSE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">What a summer that was! Mr. Clyde sent Hazel up -to the Blossoms for July and again for September, when -he, the Colonel and Mrs. Fenlick, the Pearsells and the -Masons, Aunt Carrie and Uncle Jo took possession of the -entire inn at Barton's River, and for a month coached and -rode throughout the "North Country," all in the cool -September weather. Jack Sherrill joined them for the -last three weeks, and, this time, Maude Seaton was not of -the party.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I just headed her off every time she made a dead set -at any one of us for an invitation," said Mrs. Fenlick one -day in confidence to her intimate, Mrs. Pearsell, as they -sat on the vine-covered veranda of the inn, "but she -proved a regular octopus. She got the Colonel in her -toils one morning at the Casino, and I pretended to be -faint--yes, I did--just to get his attention for a sufficient -time to make a fuss, and get him alone in the carriage; -then, of course, I settled it. Oh, dear! men are so -guileless in spots!"--Mrs. Fenlick gave a weary sigh--"What -I have n't been through with that girl! Anyway, -she's been out two winters, now, and she has n't caught -Jack Sherrill yet. I don't think there is much chance -after the first season for a girl to make a really fine match, -do you?" Then they fell to discussing the pros, and -cons, of the question with evergreen interest.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack Sherrill, for one, had no thought of Miss Seaton. -He had sent the valentine-flowers, and the sentiment from -Barry Cornwall's love-song, with a strange kind of "kill or -cure" feeling.</p> -<p class="pnext">He had communed with himself, at twilight of one -February day, as he lay at full length on the -cushioned window-seat of his room from which he looked -down upon the darkening, snow-covered campus and the -anatomy of the elms showing black against it. His pipe -had gone out, but he derived some satisfaction in pulling -away at it mechanically, while he thought out the -situation for himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's the use of a man's hanging fire when he -<em class="italics">knows</em>?" he thought. "Now, I love her--love her." (Jack's -hand stole into the breast of his jacket and crushed -a bit of paper there; he smiled.) "Of course she does n't -know, and won't know for a while, but it shan't be through -any neglect of mine that she does n't; and when she -knows--there 's the rub!--will she care for me, Jack -Sherrill? I 've never done anything in my life to make a -girl like that care for me.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But there's one thing I 'd stake my life on--she -would n't marry a man for his money. A man 's got to -be loved for himself--not for what he can give a woman, -or do for her, but just for himself, if it's going to be the -real thing, and <em class="italics">last</em>. And what am I that a girl like that -should love me--" Jack was growing very humble. He -pulled himself together: "Anyhow, I'll send the flowers -and the sentiment, <em class="italics">I mean it</em>; I don't care what she -thinks!" Jack's courage rose as he began to feel -something like defiance of Fate.</p> -<p class="pnext">Just then his chum came in.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There's no use, Sherrill," he said, flinging himself -down upon the cushioned seat Jack had just vacated; "we -can't have the theatricals unless you take the girl's part. -It won't put you out any--smooth face and no scrub. -You 've been it once, and it will be a dead failure if you -aren't in it now."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't see how I can," replied Jack, shortly, for this -intrusion on his mood irritated him. "I told you, all of -you, at the Club last year, that I would n't play after I was -a Junior."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, what if you did?" rejoined his chum, a little -crossly. "You 're not so uncompromisingly steadfast in -other things that you can't afford to change your mind in -such a trifle as this."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come, don't be touchy," said Jack, good-humoredly. -"Hit right out from the shoulder, old man, and tell me -what you mean."</p> -<p class="pnext">Dawns smiled, clasped his hands under his head, and -raised his merry blue eyes to Jack, who was lighting up.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They say over at the Club that you have thrown -Maude Seaton over, but Grayson took up the Seaton -cudgels and made the statement that she had thrown you -over, and you won't take the girl's part in the play because -she is coming on for it."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack hesitated. He hated to play at any comedy of love -when his heart was throbbing with the genuine article. -But, after all, it might be the best way to silence the -Club's tongues as well as some others in Boston and New -York.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll help you out this once, Dawns, but I tell you -plainly I won't have anything more to do with the Club -theatricals while I 'm in college," he replied, ignoring both -of Dawns' statements, which omissions his chum noticed, -and made his own thoughts: "Just like Sherrill. You -can't get any hold of him to know what he really feels -and thinks."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack played his part accordingly, repeating the success -of the year before, and scoring new triumphs. He was -glad when it was over, and he could go back to his room -"dead tired," as he said to himself, but with the conviction -that he had settled matters to his own satisfaction if not to -that of one other.</p> -<p class="pnext">The room was in such disorder! Evidently, Dawns had -been having a little spree before Jack's late return, and the -smoke had left the air heavy.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack dropped his paraphernalia in the middle of the -floor--peeling himself as he stood yawning and thanking -his lucky star that he was not born a woman to be -handicapped by such things!--<em class="italics">décolleté</em> white satin waist, -long-trained satin gown, necklace--Jack gave the string a -twitch, for it had knotted, and the Roman pearls rolled -into unreachable places all over the floor. Off flew one -white satin slipper--number ten, broad at the toes!--with -a fine "drop kick" hitting the ceiling and landing on -the book-shelves; the other followed suit. White fan with -chain, white elbow gloves, corsage bouquet--all dropped -in a promiscuous heap. A general stampede loosened silk -under-skirt and dainty muslin petticoat, lace-trimmed. A -wrench,--corset-cover and corsets were torn from their -moorings. Jack groaned--or something worse--at the -flummery, and, leaving everything as it had dropped, -rushed off into his bedroom, only to find that he had -forgotten to take off the blonde wig and wash off the -rouge.</p> -<p class="pnext">At last, however, he was asleep, and slept the sleep of -the justified.</p> -<p class="pnext">He slept both soundly and late, but when he awoke the -next morning his first thought was of the flowers for Mount -Hunger and the appropriate sentiment. Accordingly, having -reckoned the arrival of train, departure of stage, etc., -to a minute, he selected the flowers, wrote the sentiment, -not without forebodings of the usual kind, and despatched -both to Mount Hunger with high hopes, notwithstanding -prescient feelings. Then, metaphorically, he sat down to -await an answer. He waited just two months, and during -that time had turned emotionally black and blue more -than once at the thought of his temerity in sending such -a message.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel had written him at once from North Carolina to -tell him of March's illness, and on the same day she sent -a penitent note to Rose, confessing her shame at her attempt -at deception, and explaining that it was because she loved -her cousin so dearly she could not bear to see his gift -slighted.</p> -<p class="pnext">When March was out of danger, Rose had written to -Hazel a frank, loving letter, blaming herself for her want -of self-control, and begging Hazel's forgiveness for her -harsh words:</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"It's all my old pride, Hazel dear," she wrote, "that I have -to fight very often. It was most kind of Mr. Sherrill to -remember me when he has so many, many other friends whom he has -known longer, and I shall write and tell him so. Now that my -heart is lighter on account of dear March, I can write more -easily.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We miss you so! when are you coming back to us? Chi -looks perfectly disconsolate, and we all feel a great deal more -than we care to say.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish you were here to have the fun of the French -evenings, three times a week. You speak it so beautifully, -Mr. Ford says, and I thank you so much for all the help you gave -me in teaching me. Mr. Ford speaks it very well, too, so Miss -Alton says. We all meet at our house once a week on March's -account, and then one evening in the week, Miss Alton and I -(she 's lovely) go over to the Fords' for music. He has sent -for some lovely songs for me--old English ones, and we're -going to have a little celebration for March's birthday in May. -How I wish you were to be here!</p> -<p class="pnext">"March is lying on the settle, dreaming over that exquisite -photograph of Cologne Cathedral you sent him; I've just -asked him if he had any messages for you, and he smiled--oh, -it's so good to see his dear smile again! You can't think -how tall he's grown since his illness, and he's so thin--and -said, 'I sent one to her this morning myself; she can't have two -a day.' But you know March's ways.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now I must stop; Mr. Ford is coming over on horseback -and I am riding Bob now. I wear an old riding-habit -of Martie's--it fits fine! I have more to tell you, but -will finish after I get back from the ride--there comes -Mr. Ford--"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">This letter Hazel duly forwarded to her cousin. "He 'll -know by what she says in it that she really was pleased, -for all she acted so queer," she said to herself as she -enclosed it in one to Jack, in which she took special pains -to inform him that he had never told her whether he had -given those verses Rose sang to Miss Seaton.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"I told Rose I was sure they were for Miss Seaton, and -Rose said she did n't mind copying them herself for you if you -wished them. Do tell me if you gave them to her. I told -Rose your valentine to her last year was a rose-heart. I hope -you don't mind my telling, for, you know, Jack, all our family -think you are engaged to her--"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Jack dropped Hazel's letter at this point and gave a -decided groan.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What luck!" he muttered. "It's all up with the -whole thing now. No girl of any spirit would stand all -that--and Hazel meddling so! thinking she is doing her -level best to explain matters;--What an ass I was to -send that flower-valentine to Maude--and she thinks I -gave her those verses! and there 's this Ford skulking -round and having it all his own way; he 's just the kind -a girl would care for--those musical cranks are no end -sentimental. Hang it all!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack thrust his hands deep into his pockets, took several -decided turns up and down the room, squared his shoulders, -pursed his lips, cut his two classroom lectures, ordered -up Little Shaver and rode out to the polo grounds, where, -finding himself alone, he put the little fellow through his -best paces, ignoring the fact that snow and ice wore on -the pony's nerves--and had a game out to himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">When just two months had passed, he received a note -from Rose, his first, and it was accorded the reception due -to first notes in particular. After this, Jack developed -certain wiles of diplomacy, he had thus far, in his various -experiences, held in abeyance. He wrote sympathetic -notes to Mrs. Blossom; commissioned Chi to find him -another polo pony--Morgan, if possible--among the -Green Hills; sent March a set of illustrated books on -architecture, and complained to Doctor Heath of a pain -that racked his chest; at which the Doctor's eyes twinkled. -He said he would examine him later, but he was convinced -it was heart trouble, the symptoms were apt to mislead -and confuse. He added gravely: "Too much hard polo -riding, Jack; get away into the country--mountains if -you can, and you 'll recuperate fast enough. I 'll make -an examination in the fall."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack obeyed to the letter, and what a month of September -that was!</p> -<p class="pnext">There were glorious rides with Rose along the beautiful -river valley and over the mountain roads. There were -delightful evenings at the Fords', and silent, beatific walks -with Rose homewards beneath the harvest moon. There -were morning rambles with Rose up over the pastures and -deep into the woodlands for late ferns and hooded -gentians. There were adorable hours of doing nothing but -adore, while Rose was busy about her work, setting the -table for tea (Jack paid his board at the inn, but he lived -at the Blossoms'), or laying the cloth for dinner, or on -Saturday morning even making rolls for the tea to which -the whole party at the inn were invited.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi was in his glory. Little Shaver came trotting -regularly every day up through the woods'-road, and -whinnied "Good-morning" first to Fleet, then to Chi. -There were general coaching-parties to Woodstock and -Brandon, in which Mrs. Blossom was guest, and a grand -tea at the Fords' for all the guests, with a musicale for a -finish, and an informal dance in the Blossoms' barn to -which all the Lost Nation were invited.</p> -<p class="pnext">They accepted, one and all. Captain Spillkins was in -his element, so he said. He and Mrs. Fenlick danced a -two-step in a manner to win the commendation of the -entire assembly. Miss Elvira and Miss Melissa went -through the square dance escorted by Jack and Uncle -Jo. There were round dances and contra dances. Uncle -Israel contributed an "1812" jig, and Mr. Clyde passed -round the hat for his sole benefit. There were waltzes -for those who could waltz, and polkas for those who could -polka, and schottische and minuet. "There never was -such a dance since before the Deluge!" declared -Mrs. Fenlick, when Captain Spillkins escorted her to a seat -on a sap-bucket; and then they all went at it again in -a grand finale, the Virginia Reel--Chi and Hazel, -Mr. Clyde and Aunt Tryphosa for head and foot couple; -Maria-Ann with Jack; Alan Ford with Mrs. Fenlick; the -Colonel with Mrs. Blossom whom he admired greatly; -March and Miss Alton--such a double row of them!</p> -<p class="pnext">Poor Reub sat in one of the empty stalls and watched -the fun with slow, half-understanding smile, and Ruth -Ford reclined in a rocking-chair in the corner, and with -merry laughter and sparkling wit soothed the dull ache in -her heart that the knowledge that she was henceforth to -be a "Shut-out" from all that life had at first given her.</p> -<p class="pnext">The next day after the dance there was a grand dinner -given at the inn by the Newport party to all the Lost -Nation; and, later on, private entertainments for Mr. and -Mrs. Blossom and the Fords. At last, when the first -maple leaves crimsoned and the frost silvered the mullein -leaves in the pasture, Hazel, her father, Jack, and their -friends bade good-bye to the Mountain and all its joys of -acquaintance, and in some cases, friendship, and turned -their faces, not without reluctance on the part of some of -them, city-wards.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, mother! has n't it been too beautiful for anything?" -exclaimed Rose, turning to her mother, as the last of the -riding-party waved his cap in farewell to those on the -porch. It was Jack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"We have had a happy summer, Rose;--I think they -have, too," her mother added, shading her eyes from the -setting sun. "You 'll be very lonely here at home, dear, -after all this gayety."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Lonely! Why, Martie Blossom, how can you think -of such a thing!" said Rose, still scanning the lower road -for a last glimpse of the riders. "See, see, they are all -waving their handkerchiefs!"</p> -<p class="pnext">The whole Blossom family laid hold of what they could--napkins, -towels, a table-cloth, and Chi seized his shirt, -which he had hung on the line to dry, and waved frantically -until the party was no longer to be seen.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Lonesome! the idea," said Rose, turning to her mother. -"Think of all the studying March and I have to do, and -the French evenings, and the Fords, and Thanksgiving -coming, and then Christmas, and then--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Then," said Mrs. Blossom, interrupting her, "my Rose -takes a little plunge into that whirlpool of gay life and -fashion in New York."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," said Rose, with a happy smile that spoke volumes -to her mother, "I do look forward to it, Martie dear; but -the whirlpool shan't suck me under; I shall come home -just your old-fashioned Rose-pose."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hope so, dear," said her mother, a little wistfully, and -called the children in to supper.</p> -<p class="pnext">Indeed, they found little opportunity to miss their friends -in the ensuing months; for there came kindly letters, and -friendly letters, and something very nearly resembling -love-letters. The mail brought papers, books, and -magazines. The express brought to Barton's River many a -box of lovely flowers. At Christmas came more than -one remembrance for them all, including Aunt Tryphosa -and Maria-Ann, and four special invitations for Rose to -visit in New York directly after the holidays. One was -from Mr. Clyde--with an urgent request from Hazel to -say "yes" by telegram and "relieve her misery," so she -put it--; one from Mrs. Heath; one from Aunt Carrie, -and a gushingly cordial one from Mrs. Fenlick! Each -claimed her for a month. But Mrs. Blossom shook her -head.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, no, dear, you would wear your welcome out. I -shall need you at home by the last of February. I think -you can accept only Mr. Clyde's and Mrs. Heath's. You -can accept social courtesies from the other four of course."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, mother," Rose's face was the image of despair, -"what shall I wear? Just hear what Hazel has planned--'lunches, -dinners, theatre, concerts'--why! I can never -go to all those things."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've thought of that, too, Rose; but the little colt -shan't go bare this time--it will take some courage, dear, -to wear the same things over and over again, not to -mention the puzzle of planning for it all."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm not 'Molly Stark' for nothing," laughed Rose, -and the two women began to plan for what Chi called -"Rose's campaign." The pretty white serge was lengthened -and made over to appear more grown up, as Cherry -put it; the dark blue wash silk--Hazel's gift that had -never been made up--was fashioned into a "swell affair"--so -March pronounced it; the old-fashioned blue lawn -was cut over into a dainty full waist, and then -Mrs. Blossom added her surprise--a delicate blue taffeta skirt -to match the waist. Rose went into raptures over it, and -sought the best bedroom regularly three times a day to -feast her girl's eyes on the silken loveliness as it lay in -state on the best bed. A new dark blue serge was to do -duty for a street suit, with a plain felt hat. For best, -there was a turban made of dark blue velvet to match the -wash silk.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And four pairs of gloves! Martie Blossom, you are -an angel, to give me these that Hazel gave you a year ago -last Christmas. Have you been keeping them for me all -this time?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom smiled assent, and was rewarded by a -squeeze that interfered decidedly with her breathing -apparatus.</p> -<p class="pnext">The night before she left, Rose "costumed" for the -benefit of the entire family, who were assembled in the -long-room, together with Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann, -to see Rose in her finery.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll make it a climax," said Rose, laughing -half-shamefacedly, as she slipped upstairs to change her street -suit, which had brought forth admiring "Ohs" and "Ahs" -from the children, and favorable criticism from their elders.</p> -<p class="pnext">Down she came in her white serge; there were nods -and smiles of approval.</p> -<p class="pnext">Her reappearance in the wash silk and velvet turban was -the signal, on March's part, for a burst of applause, and -cries of admiration from Budd and Cherry.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Grand transformation scene!" cried March, as Rose -tripped down in the blue taffeta, looking like a very rose -herself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Beats all!" murmured Chi, who had become nearly -speechless with admiration, "what clothes 'll do for a -good-lookin' woman; but for a ravin', tearin' beauty like -our Rose--George Washin'ton! She 'll open those -high-flyers' eyes."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Cinderella--fifth act!" shouted March as, after a -prolonged wait, he heard Rose on the stairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">But was it Rose?</p> -<p class="pnext">The beautiful India mull of her mother's had been -transformed into a ball-dress. She had drawn on her -long white gloves and tucked into the simple, ribbon belt -three of Jack's Christmas roses.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann gasped, and that broke the, to Rose, -somewhat embarrassing silence.</p> -<p class="pnext">Marshalled by March, the whole family formed a -procession, and Rose was reviewed:--back breadths, front -breadths, flounces, waist, gloves; all were thoroughly -inspected.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi touched the lower flounce of the half-train gingerly -with one work-roughened forefinger, then, straightening -himself suddenly, sighed heavily.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's the matter, Chi?" Rose laughed at the dubious -expression on his face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You ain't Rose Blossom nor Molly Stark any longer. -You 're just a regular Empress of Rooshy, 'n' you don't -look like that girl I took along to sell berries down to -Barton's last summer, 'n' I wish you--" he hesitated.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What, Chi?" said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish you was back again, old sunbonnet, old calico -gown, patched shoes 'n' all--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi, no, you don't," said Rose, laughing merrily; -"you forget, I shall probably see Miss Seaton down there -in New York, and you wouldn't want me to appear a -second time before her in that old rig."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 're right, Rose-pose," replied Chi, his expression -brightening visibly. He drew close to her and whispered -audibly:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just sail right in, Molly Stark, 'n' cut that sassy girl -out right 'n' left. She never could hold a candle to -you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh-sh, Chi!" said Mrs. Blossom, meaningly, but with -a twinkle in her eye.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I mean just what I say, Mis' Blossom. Folks can't -come up here on this Mountain to sass us to our faces, 'n' -she <em class="italics">did</em>;--I've stayed riled ever since, 'n' I hope she'll -get sassed back in a way that 'll make her hair stand just -a little more on end than it did, when she gave that mean, -snickerin' giggle--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi, Chi," Mrs. Blossom interrupted him in an appeasing tone.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You need n't Chi me, Mis' Blossom. These children -are just as near to me as if they was my own, 'n' when -they 're sassed, I 'm sassed too; 'n' my great-grandfather -fought over at Ticonderogy, 'n' I ain't bound to take any -more sass than he took--"</p> -<p class="pnext">By this time the whole family were in fits of laughter -over Chi's persistent use of so much "sass," and, at last, -Chi himself joined in the laugh at his excessive heat:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Over nothin' but a wind-bag, after all," he concluded.</p> -<p class="pnext">On the following morning, Mr. Blossom, Chi, March -and Budd drove down to Barton's to see Rose off. The -old apple-green pung had been fitted with two broad -boards for seats, and covered with buffalo robes and horse -blankets. There was just room in the tail for Rose's -old-fashioned trunk and a small strapped box, which held two -dozen of new-laid eggs, six small, round cheeses, and a -wreath of ground hemlock and bitter-sweet--a neighborly -gift from Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann to Hazel and -Mr. Clyde.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the train moved away from the station, Chi watched -it with brimming eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"She'll never come back the same Rose-pose, livin' -among all those high-flyers--never," he muttered to -himself; but aloud he remarked, with forced cheerfulness, -turning to Mr. Blossom while he dashed the blinding -drops from his eyes with the back of his hand:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Looks mighty like a thaw, Ben; kind of wets down, -don't it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Chi," said Mr. Blossom, busy with conquering his -own heartache, "we 'd better be getting on home;" and the -masculine contingent of the Blossom household climbed -into the pung and took their way homeward in silence.</p> -<p class="pnext">But what a reception that was for the transplanted Rose!</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde met her at the Grand Central Station, and -Rose felt how welcome she was just by the hand-clasp, -and his first words:</p> -<p class="pnext">"We have you at last, Rose; I would n't let Hazel -come because I thought the train might be late, and there's -a cold rain falling. Martin, take this box--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, no; I must carry that myself," laughed Rose, -looking up at the liveried footman with something like -awe. "I promised Aunt Tryphosa and Maria-Ann I -would n't let any one take them till they were safe in the -house; thank you," she bowed courteously to Martin, who -confided to the coachman so soon as they were on the box: -"Hi 'ave n't seen nothink so 'ansome since Hi 've bean in -the States."</p> -<p class="pnext">As the brougham whirled into the Avenue, and the -electric lights shone full into the carriage, Rose could see -the luxuriously upholstered interior, and a sudden thought -of the old apple-green pung and the buffalo robes dimmed -her eyes. But it was only for a moment; Mr. Clyde was -telling her of Hazel's impatience, and how the coachman -had had special orders from her to hurry up so soon as he -should be on the Avenue, and he had hardly finished -before the coachman drew rein, slackening his rapid pace -as he turned a corner, Martin was opening the door, and -Hazel's voice was calling from a wide house entrance -flooded with soft light:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Rose, my Rose! Is it really you, at last?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"And this, I am sure, is Wilkins," said Rose, when -finally Hazel set her arms free. "We 've heard so much -of you, that I feel as if I had known you a long time." -Rose held out her hand with such sincere cordiality that -Wilkins' speech was suddenly reduced to pantomime, and -he could only extend his other hand rather helplessly -towards the box that Rose still carried. But Rose refused -to yield it up.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here, Hazel, I promised Maria-Ann and Aunt Tryphosa -I would n't give it into any hands but yours. Oh! be -careful--they 're eggs!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Eggs!" repeated Hazel, laughing. "Here, Wilkins, -unstrap it for me, quick--Oh, papa, look!" She held out -the box to Mr. Clyde, and, somehow, John Curtis Clyde -for a moment thought with Chi, that there was going to -be a "thaw." Each egg was rolled in white cotton -batting and wrapped in pink tissue paper. The six little -cheeses were enclosed in tin-foil, and cheeses and eggs -were embedded in the Christmas wreath. On a piece of -pasteboard was written in unsteady characters:</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">To Mr. John Curtis Clyde of New York City, with the -season's compliments.</p> -<p class="pnext">MOUNT HUNGER, VERMONT, January 6th, 1898.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"And you 've had such lovely flowers come for you, -five boxes of them, Rose, and piles of invitations. I 'm -sure you 're engaged up to Ash Wednesday."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Come, Chatterbox," said her father, smiling at her -volubility, "Rose has just time to dress for dinner; you -know Aunt Carrie and Uncle Jo are coming to-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I forgot all about them; you 'll have to hurry, -Rose. Wilkins, bring up the flowers. Come on," -Hazel ran up the broad flight of stairs, carpeted with -velvety crimson, to the first landing, from which, through -a lofty arch in the hall, Rose caught a glimpse of softly -lighted rooms, the walls enriched with engravings and -etchings, with here and there a landscape or marine -in watercolors. Rose drew a long breath. This, then, -was what Chi meant when he said "Hazel was rich as -Croesus."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But, Hazel, my trunk has n't come," said Rose, as she -followed her hostess into the spacious bedroom, which was -separated from Hazel's only by a dressing-room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"It 'll be here in a few minutes; papa has a special -man, who always delivers them almost as soon as we get -here."</p> -<p class="pnext">Sure enough, the trunk came in time; and Rose, as she -unpacked, finding evidences of the loving mother-care in -every fold, cried within her heart, looking about at the -exquisite appointments of her room and dressing-room:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Martie, Martie, what would all this be without you!--Oh, -I know now, what dear old Chi meant when he said -Hazel was poor where we are rich--only a housekeeper -to see to all Hazel's things--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose, what flowers are you going to wear?" called -Hazel from her room.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I have n't had time to look," Rose called back, -surveying her white serge with great satisfaction in the -pier-glass.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do look, then, and see who they 're from."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Hazel, do come and see. How kind everybody -has been! Here are cards from Mrs. Heath and Doctor -Heath, and your Aunt Carrie, and Mr. Sherrill, and -Mrs. Fenlick, and even that Mr. Grayson who was up at our -house to tea a year ago!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"They are lovely. Whose are you going to wear?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll make up a bunch of one or two from each, that -will show my appreciation of all their favors."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel looked slightly crestfallen. "I hoped you 'd wear -Jack's--they 're the loveliest with white--" she lifted -the white lilacs--"and they 're so rare just now. I heard -Aunt Carrie say that one of the girls had put off her -wedding for six weeks, just because she couldn't have white -lilacs for it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 'll last with care three days surely, and I can -wear them to-morrow evening," replied Rose, bending to -inhale their delicate fragrance.</p> -<p class="pnext">"So you can, for papa is going to give a dinner for you -to-morrow night, and afterwards, he has promised to take -you to a dance at Mrs. Pearsell's. I can't go, you know, -for I 'm not grown up; but you can tell me all about it. -We 're going to have lots of fun this week, for school does -not begin for several days. Come."</p> -<p class="pnext">Together they went down to the drawing-room, and -Wilkins announced that dinner was served.</p> -<p class="pnext">After it was over he sought Minna-Lu in her own -domains, and gave vent to his long pent emotions.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Minna-Lu," he whispered, mysteriously, "dere 's an -out an' out angel ben hubberin' 'bout de table--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fo' de Lawd!" Minna-Lu turned upon him fiercely, -for she was superstitious to the very marrow. "Wa' fo' -yo' come hyar, skeerin' de bref out a mah bones wif yo' -sp'r'ts! Yo' go long home wha' yo' b'long."</p> -<p class="pnext">But Wilkins was not to be repulsed in this manner. -"Nebber see sech ha'r, an' jes' lillum-white--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, go 'long! Lillum-white ha'r," interrupted Minna-Lu, -with scathing sarcasm. "Huccome yo' know de angels -hab lillum-white ha'r?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Huccome I know?--'Case I see de shine, jes' lake -yo' see in de dror'n-room."</p> -<p class="pnext">"De shine ob lillum-white ha'r in de dror'n-room! -'Pears lake yo' head struck ile--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yo' hol' yo' tongue, Minna-Lu," retorted Wilkins, -irritated at the continued evidence of disbelief on the part -of his coadjutor. "Jes' yo' hide back ob de dumb-waitah -to-morrah ebenin' when de dessert comes on, an' see fo' -yo'se'f!" He departed in high dudgeon, and Minna-Lu -gurgled long and low to herself, but, in her turn, was -interrupted by the sound of tripping steps on the -basement flight.</p> -<p class="pnext">Minna-Lu hastily put her fat hands up to her turban to -see if it were on straight, and smoothed her apron, muttering:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Clar to goodness, ef it ain't jes' mah luck to hab little -Missus come into dis yere hen-roost?" she rapidly surveyed -her immaculate kitchen with anxious eye.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Minna-Lu, this is my friend, Miss Rose; the one who -did up those lovely preserves, and here are some new-laid -eggs and some cheeses that Miss Maria-Ann -Simmons--you know I told you all about her and the hens--has -sent papa."</p> -<p class="pnext">Minna-Lu gazed at Rose in open admiration. The faithful -colored retainer had her thorny side and her blossom -one.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose put out her hand, and Minna-Lu took it in both -hers. "I 'se mighty glad yo' come, Miss Rose, dere ain't -no strawberry-blossom nor no rose-blossom can hol' a can'le -to yo' own honey se'f. Dese yere cheeses is prime." She -examined one with the nose of a connoisseur. "Jes' fill -de bill wif de salad-chips to-morrah." She stemmed her -fists on her hips, and her mellow, contented gurgle caused -Rose and Hazel to laugh, too.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What is it, Minna-Lu?" said Hazel, reading the signs -of the times.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Dat Wilkins done tol' me to git back ob de dumb-waitah, -to-morrah ebenin' to see Missy Rose, but I 'se -gwine to ask rale straight to jes' see her 'fo' de comp'ny -come."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Of course you may. Come up to my room about seven, -and we 'll be ready."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Fo' sho'," said Minna-Lu, with beaming face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night," said Rose, beaming, too, for she found the -black faces and ways irresistibly amusing.</p> -<p class="pnext">"De Lawd bress yo' lily face, Missy Rose."</p> -<p class="pnext">When the two girls were alone, at last, in Hazel's room, -there was no thought of bed for an hour. There were -numberless questions on Hazel's part concerning all the -dear Mount Hunger people, and speechless astonishment -on Rose's at the number of invitations that were waiting -for her. They chatted all the time they were undressing, -calling back and forth to each other as one thing or another -suggested itself. Finally, Hazel made her appearance in -Rose's room. She went up to her, put her arms about -her neck, and, looking up with eyes full of loving trust, -said:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose-pose, won't you come into my room and say 'Our -Father' with me as Mother Blossom used to do on Mount -Hunger? You can't think how I miss it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Hazel darling, of course I will--then I shan't -feel homesick missing that precious Martie."</p> -<p class="pnext">She followed Hazel into her room, and after she was in -bed, Rose knelt by her side, and together they said, "Our -Father." Then Rose bent over to receive Hazel's loving -kiss and whispered, "Oh, Rose, I 'm so happy to have you -here," and whispered back, "And I 'm so happy to be with -you, Hazel--good-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose went back to her room. At last she was alone. -She drew one of the easy-chairs up before the wood-fire -that was dying down, put her bare feet on the warm fender, -and, for a while, dreamed waking dreams. It was all so -strange. The cathedral clock on the mantel chimed twelve. -They were all asleep in the farmhouse on the Mountain--it -was time for her to be. She rose, tiptoed softly into the -dressing-room, took from the bowl the spray of white lilacs -she had worn with the other flowers that evening, shook -off the water, and drew the stem through a buttonhole in -the yoke of her simple night-dress. She tiptoed back again -into her room, looked up at the dainty, canopied bed, then -laid herself down within it, and, almost immediately, fell -asleep--with her hand resting on the white fragrance that -lay upon her heart.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="behold-how-great-a-matter-a-little-fire-kindles">XXIII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">BEHOLD HOW GREAT A MATTER A LITTLE FIRE KINDLETH</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It was so delightful! The weeks were passing all too -quickly, and the letters to Mount Hunger waxed eloquent -in praise of everybody's kindness.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack had come on to lead a cotillion with Rose at Aunt -Carrie's. It was a weighty affair--the selecting of the -flowers for her. White violets they must be, and white -violets were about as rare as white raspberries. Jack gave -the florist his own address.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll see them, myself, before I send them up; for I -won't trust anyone's eyes but my own," he said to himself -as he hurried home to dress for dinner with a friend. "I -wish I had n't promised Grayson to meet him at the Club -before seven. I 'm afraid they won't come in time." He -looked at his watch. "I 'm going to make them a test--and -see what she 'll do. She 's so friendly and frank and -all that, I can't find out even whether she 's beginning to -care."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack's absorption in the theme was such that he put his -latch-key in wrong-side up, and, in consequence, wrestled -with the lock till he had worked himself into a fever of -impatience; finally he touched the button before he -discovered the trouble.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Any packages come for me, Jason?" he inquired of -the butler, whose dignified manner of locomotion had been -rudely shaken by Jack's unceasing pressure on the -electric-bell.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Mr. John. Just taken a box up to the rooms."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack looked relieved, and sprang upstairs two steps at -a time. He opened the box. There they were in all their -exquisite freshness. "Like her," he thought, touching his -lips to them; then, suddenly straightening himself, he felt -the blood surge into his face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I like Dord's way of putting up his flowers, no -tags, nor fol-de-rols. Jason," he said, as he ran down -stairs again, "I shall be back in an hour; tell Thomas -to have everything laid out--I 'm in a hurry. And -have a messenger-boy here when I come back, and -don't forget to order the carriage for quarter of eight, -sharp."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, Mr. John."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Messenger-boy come?" he inquired as Jason opened -the door on his return.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, sir, waiting in the hall."</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack raced up stairs. There was the precious box on -his dressing-table. He hastily took a visiting card, and, -writing on it the sentiment that was uppermost in his -heart, slipped it into the envelope, gave it, together with -the box, to the waiting boy, and bade him hand it to the -man, Wilkins, with the request that it be sent up at once -to the lady to whom it was addressed. Then he made -ready for dinner.</p> -<p class="pnext">An hour later, Rose was dressing for the dance, and -Hazel was watching her, chatting volubly all the while.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's the loveliest dress, Rose, I heard Aunt Carrie -say, you couldn't buy such, nowadays."</p> -<p class="pnext">"It was Martie's wedding-dress. An uncle of her -mother's, who was a sea-captain, brought it from India. -But if I wear it many more times, it will be known -throughout the length of New York. This is my sixth time."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should n't care if it were the hundredth; it's just -lovely. Besides, Jack has n't seen it, you know."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose laughed. "Oh, yes, he has--on Martie; that -night of the tea on the porch."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, well, that's different. What flowers are you -going to wear?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I thought I wouldn't wear any, just for a change." Rose's -face was veiled by the shining hair, which she was -brushing, preparatory to coiling it high on her head; -otherwise, Hazel would have seen the clear flush that warmed -even the roots of the soft waves at the nape of her neck. -Just then there was a knock. The maid opened the door, -and Wilkins' voice was distinctly audible:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Jes' come fo' Miss Rose; dey wuz to come up right -smart, so de boy say."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, more flowers. Who from?" cried Hazel, eagerly, -while Wilkins strained his ears to catch the reply.</p> -<p class="pnext">"From Mr. Sherrill," said Rose, opening the little -envelope.</p> -<p class="pnext">What she read on the card caused the blood to mount -higher and higher, till temples and forehead flushed pink, -then as suddenly to recede.</p> -<p class="pnext">"May I open them, Rose, and won't you wear some if -they 're from Jack?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," said Rose, simply. The two girls leaned over -the box as Hazel took off the wrapper--then the -cover--then the inner tissue papers--then--</p> -<div class="align-center auto-scaled figure" style="width: 60%" id="figure-42"> -<span id="the-two-girls-leaned-over-the-box-as-hazel-took-off-the-wrapper"></span><img class="align-center" style="display: block; width: 100%" alt=" " src="images/img-288.jpg" /> -<div class="caption figure"> -"The two girls leaned over the box as Hazel took off the wrapper"</div> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Suddenly a shriek of laughter, followed by another, -penetrated to Wilkins, who was lingering on the stairs; he -came softly back again. Peal after peal of wild merriment -issued from Rose's room. Within, Rose in her petticoat -and bodice had flung herself on the bed in an ecstasy -of mirth, and Hazel was rolling over on the rug as was -the wont of Budd and Cherry in the old days on Mount -Hunger. The maid looked from one to the other, and, no -longer able to keep from joining in the merriment, although -she did not know the cause, left the room, only to find -Wilkins with perturbed face just outside the door.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Pears lake dere wor sumfin' queah 'bout dat ye re -box--" he began; but the maid only shook with laughter -and laid her finger on her lips, motioning him into the -back hall.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did you ever?" cried Hazel, when she recovered her -breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"No, I never," said Rose, wiping away the tears, for she -had laughed till she cried. "Let's take another look."</p> -<p class="pnext">They bent over the box, and took out its contents; then -went off again into fits of seemingly inextinguishable -laughter; for, neatly folded beneath the tissue paper, lay -four sets of Jack's new light-weight, white silk pajamas, -which he had purchased that afternoon, in order to take -back to Cambridge with him. On the card, which Rose still -held in her hand, was written, "Wear these for my sake."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What will you say to him, Rose?" said Hazel, sitting -up on the rug with her hands clasped about her knees.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't know," said Rose, proceeding to dress. "I -can't <em class="italics">wear</em> them, that's certain." And again the absurdity -of the situation presented itself to her. "And I can't -apologize for not wearing them. Neither can I take it for -granted that he was going to send me flowers, and explain -that he sent me these instead."</p> -<p class="pnext">"How awfully careless," said Hazel, interrupting her; -"he must have had something on his mind not to take the -pains to look, even."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose flushed. "It will be best to let the matter drop, -and say nothing about it," she replied in a cool, toploftical -tone that amazed, as well as mystified, her little hostess.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Rose, I think Jack ought to know about it. -I 'll tell him, if you don't want to."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you, Hazel, but I don't need your good offices -in this matter."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel rose from the rug, and going over to Rose, laid -both hands on her shoulders and looked straight up into -her eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now, Rose Blossom, please don't speak to me in that -way. You 're so queer! First you 're nice about Jack, -and then you 're horrid; and when you 're that way, you -are n't nice to <em class="italics">me</em> a bit--and I don't like it, and I don't -blame Jack for not liking it either," she added -emphatically. "I remember papa said a year ago that Jack was -'all heart' for a good many girls, old and young--but I -can tell you what, he won't have any for you, if you whiff -round so."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel in her earnestness gave Rose a little shake. Rose -smiled, and, bending her head, kissed her, saying, "F. and -F. and you know, Hazel."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I know all about 'forgiving and forgetting,' but -I don't like it just the same. He's my cousin and the -dearest fellow in the world, and I don't like to have him -treated so."</p> -<p class="pnext">"How about his treating me?" said Rose, pointing to -the innocent box of underwear, "forgetting even to look; -or not caring enough, to see if I had the right package?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, that's different--perhaps the florist made a -mistake."</p> -<p class="pnext">"The florist!" Rose laughed merrily. "I never knew -that gentlemen's underwear and roses grew on the same -bush.--There 's Wilkins, and I 'm not ready."</p> -<p class="pnext">"De coachman say it's a pow'f ul col' night, an' Miss -Rose bettah take some mo' wraps."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Thank you, Wilkins," Hazel flew into the dressing-room -for a long fur cloak of her mother's which she had -used to wear to the dancing-classes. She wrapped it -about Rose, who stooped suddenly and kissed her again, -whispering, "Hazel, you 've all spoiled me, that's what's -the matter,--but I 'll be good to Jack, for your sake as -well as for my own."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now you 're what Doctor Heath calls papa, the most -splendid fellow in the world. There now--I won't crush -your gown--" A kiss--"Good-night. You look like -an angel!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Mr. Clyde thought so, too, as he watched her coming -downstairs. She slipped off the cloak as she stood beneath -the soft, but brilliant hall lights. "Do I look all right?" -she asked earnestly, for she had fallen into the habit, before -going anywhere with him or Hazel, of asking for their -criticism.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I should say so--but where are the flowers? I miss them."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I thought I wouldn't wear any to-night, just for a change."</p> -<p class="pnext">"A woman's whim, Rose. But I can't say that you -need them--Now, what's to pay?" he said to himself, -as he helped her into the carriage. "I saw Jack at Dord's -this afternoon, and, evidently, something was in the wind. -I hope it has n't been taken out of his sails."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sumfin' mighty queah 'bout dat yere box," murmured -Wilkins to himself, as he closed the door, "but Miss Rose -doan' need no flow's. Nebber see sech h--Fo' de good -Lawd! Wha' fo' yo' hyar? Yo' Minna-Lu,--skeerin' -mah day-lights out o' mah, shoolin' 'roun' b'hin' dat por' -chair,--jes' lake bug'lahs."</p> -<p class="pnext">Minna-Lu gurgled. "Yo' jes' straight, Wilkins; nebber -see sech ha'r. Huccome I 'se hyar? Jes' to see dat -lillum-white angel--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yo' go 'long, wha' yo' b'long," growled Wilkins, not -yet having recovered from his fright. And Minna-Lu -went, with the radiant vision still before her round, black -eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack felt a queer tightening about his lower jaw, and -one heart-throb, apparently in his throat, as he entered -Aunt Carrie's reception-room. Then, as with one glance -he swept Rose from the crown of her head to the hem of -her dress, a hot, rushing wave of indignant feeling -mastered him--he knew he had staked his all (so a man at -twenty-two is apt to think) and lost. He braced himself, -mentally and physically. He was n't going to show the -white-feather--not he.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Rose--Rose was mystifying, captivating, cordial, -merry, and altogether charming. She knocked out all -Jack's calculations as to life, love, women, girls in general, -and one girl in particular, at one fell swoop. He was -brought, necessarily, into unstable equilibrium, so far as -his feelings were concerned--his head he was obliged -to keep level on account of the various figures. Several -other heads were variously askew, and would have been -turned, likewise, for good and all, had the wearer of her -mother's India-mull wedding-dress been possessed of a -fortune.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose developed social powers that evening that furnished -food for conversation for Aunt Carrie and Mr. Clyde, who -watched her with pride and pleasure. She was evidently -enjoying herself thoroughly, and her enjoyment proved -contagious.</p> -<p class="pnext">"After all," said Jack as, between figures, he found -opportunity for a whispered word or two; "this is n't -half so fine a dance as the one in the barn, last September."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, that's just what I was thinking, myself, that -very minute!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You were?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes."</p> -<p class="pnext">The brown eyes and the blue ones met with such -evidence of a perfect understanding, that Jack failed to see -Maude Seaton, who had approached him for the purpose -of taking him out in the four-in-hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I beg your pardon," said Jack, starting to his feet, -"it's the 'four-in-hand.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, and I think you 'll have to be put into the traces -again," she said, with a meaning smile.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not I," retorted Jack, merrily, "I kicked over them -nearly a year ago."</p> -<p class="pnext">"So I heard," replied Miss Seaton, sweetly; and Jack -wondered what she meant.</p> -<p class="pnext">When Jack found himself again beside Rose, he decided -that, flowers or no flowers, he would ask for an -explanation. But his first attempt was met with such a -bewilderingly merry smile, and such confident assurance that -explanations were not in order, that it proved a successful -failure.</p> -<p class="pnext">When, at last, in the early morning hours he was seated -before the open fire in his bedroom, pulling away reflectively -at his pipe, he had time to think it over. He came -to the conclusion that it was trivial in him to have staked -his all on her wearing those flowers, for she -certainly--certainly had led him to think that she was anything but -indifferent to him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That look now," mused Jack. "I don't believe that -a girl like Rose Blossom would look that way if she -didn't mean it--if she did n't care. No other girl could -look that way." He reached for his watch on the dressing-case. -"I shall get good two hours' sleep before that early -train.--What's that?" He noticed for the first time, -that on the bed lay a familiar-looking box in a brown -paper wrapper. In a trice he had broken the string, -whisked off the cover, scattered the tissue paper right and -left.--There lay the violets, white, and sweet, and almost -as fresh as when he gave them his virgin kiss nearly twelve -hours before.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jack sat down stupefied on the bed. <em class="italics">What had he -given her, anyway</em>? He thought intensely for a full -minute.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Great Scott! the pajamas!" And then Jack Sherrill -rolled over on the bed, ignoring the damage to dress suit -and violets, and, burying his face in the pillow, gave vent -to a smothered yell.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a merry exchange of notes between -Cambridge and New York during the next two weeks, and -Rose had promised to wear any flowers--and only -his--he might send her for the ball at Mrs. Fenlick's the middle -of February, and for which Jack was coming on. It would -occur during the last week of Rose's visit, and Jack -thought that possibly--possibly,--well, he could n't -define just what "possibly;" but it proved to be an infinitely -absorbing one, and Jack felt it was "now or never" with him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Heath had claimed Rose as her guest for the last -three weeks, and the days were filled with pleasures. On -the Saturday before the ball, and a week before Rose was -to return to Mount Hunger, two seats in a box at the -opera had been sent in to Mrs. Heath from a friend.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Look at these, Rose!" Mrs. Heath exclaimed, showing -her the note. "Just exactly what you were wishing to -hear, and we thought we could not arrange it for next -week. That opera has been changed for to-day's matinée, -and now you can hear both Lohengrin and Siegfried."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose clapped her hands. "I 've just longed to hear -Lohengrin; Mrs. Ford and her son have played so much -of it to me. I think it's perfectly beautiful."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm so sorry I can't go, dear; but I made a positive -engagement for this afternoon and it must not be broken. -But I 'll send round for Cousin Anna May. She does n't -care much for the opera, but she will chaperone you. -She 's not much of a talker either, so you can enjoy the -music in peace. People chatter so abominably there."</p> -<p class="pnext">From the moment the orchestra sounded the first notes -of that pathetic and thrillingly appealing fore-word of the -overture, Rose was lost to the world about her. She was -glad of the darkness, glad no one could see or notice her -intense absorption in the opening scene. Even when the -lights were turned on between the acts, and the subdued -murmur in the house rose to a confusing babble, she was -living in the story of Elsa and her lover Knight. Elderly -Cousin Anna May, seeing this, let her alone, thinking to -herself:--"One has to be young to be so enthusiastic -over this wornout theme."</p> -<p class="pnext">The curtain fell; the house was brilliant with lights; -confusion of talk, confusion of merry chat and laughter -were all about Rose; but she sat unheeding, wondering -if the element of evil would be turned into a factor of -good. Her heart was aching with the intensity of feeling -for the two lovers. Suddenly, a few words behind her -arrested her attention. She sat with her back to the -speakers--two girls in the next box, who had annoyed -her more than once by their ceaseless, whispering gabble.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I told Maude I did n't believe it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did she say?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"She said it was gospel truth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Do tell me what it was, I won't tell."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sure?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not a soul."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Promise?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, of course. They say he 's got oceans of money."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Piles--. He 's got his mother's fortune and will have -his father's. Besides, his Uncle Gray is a bachelor, and -so Jack will have that, too. Maude says he 's the best -catch in New York."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I heard Sam say he was in an awfully fast set in college; -but Sam likes him awfully well. Have you seen him?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, yes, lots. Maude let me see him one night -before dinner at Newport. I used to see him playing -polo at the grounds. I think he 's fascinating--just like -Lohengrin."</p> -<p class="pnext">"But what was it? Hurry up, do."</p> -<p class="pnext">"You 'll never tell?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Never."</p> -<p class="pnext">The voice was slightly lowered--confused with the -munching of Huyler's; and Rose, with hypersensitive -hearing, could distinguish only a word or two, or a -detached sentence.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't think that's so awful. Sam does that, too, -and he 's just as nice a brother as I want."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I don't know anything about that; but I know -it's true, for Maude said so." In the increasing confusion -of talk in the house, the voices were suddenly raised, and -Rose caught every word.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll ask Sam--" began the other, dropping her opera -glass and stooping to pick it up.</p> -<p class="pnext">"If you do, Minna Grayson, I 'll never speak to you again."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, I forgot--" laughed the other. "Tell us some -more, it's awfully exciting."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I won't either," said the other, in a huffy tone. -Evidently, they were school-girls in for the matinée.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, <em class="italics">do</em>; what <em class="italics">did</em> Maude say?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"She said, 'No,'" chuckled the other triumphantly.</p> -<p class="pnext">"But think of his money!'</p> -<p class="pnext">"She said she did n't mind; she 's got money enough of -her own, anyway, if she does skimp me on allowance ever -since grandmamma died."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I heard Sara say last Christmas when I was home for -vacation, that he was perfectly devoted to that new girl the -Clydes have taken up."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes. Maude says it's one of his fads. She gives him -six months more to get over it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Everybody says she is a perfect beauty. Sam says -that Mrs. Fenlick says she is the most beautiful creature -off of a canvas she has ever seen."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Maude says Mrs. Fenlick raves over everything -new. She, the girl, I mean, made a dead set at him a year -ago when he happened to meet her up in the mountains. -You know they had a riding-party last August. But now -they say she seems to be setting her cap for Hazel's -father--he has a million or two more than Jack, and she 's as -poor as a church-mouse."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I did n't know that,--poor?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, awfully. Why, Maude says she's seen her selling -berries for a living somewhere up in the mountains--oh, -way back in them. People call them the Lost Nation, -they 're so far back; and Maude says she wore patched -shoes and an old calico dress--Sh!--Now we 're going to -have that bridal march, is n't it dandy? It ought to be a -part of the marriage ceremony, Maude says. I 'm so glad -it's coming;--Tum, tum, ty tum--tum, tum, ty -tum--here 's just one more candied violet--tum, tum, ty tum, -tum, ty tum, ty ty tum, ty tum--Oh, look! Is n't Elsa -just lovely--"</p> -<p class="pnext">A burst of applause greeted the beautiful prima donna. -Upon Rose's ears it fell like the thunder of a cataract, like -the crash and roll of an avalanche. She stared at the -exquisite scene before her with strained eyes. The music -went on with all the troublous-sweet under-tones of love, -and longing, and forever-parting. Not once did Rose -stir until the curtain fell, then she turned to her -companion:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can we get out soon, Mrs. May? The air is a little -close here."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Certainly, my dear;" but to herself she said, "How -intense she is. I 'm thankful I never was so strung up -over music."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="old-put">XXIV</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">"OLD PUT"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Where 's Rose?" said the Doctor as he came in that -Saturday evening, and heard no welcoming voice from the -library or the stairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"She came home from the opera with a frightful -headache and has gone to bed. She said she did n't want any -dinner, but I have insisted upon her having some toast -and tea," replied his wife.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Humph!" growled the Doctor; "Our wild rose can't -stand such hot-house atmosphere. When does the -Fenlicks' ball come off?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Next Wednesday; it will be a superb affair. Rose -showed me her card the other day, and if you will believe -me, it's full, although Jack Sherrill gets the lion's -share."</p> -<p class="pnext">"How do you think things are coming on there, wifie?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, he's devoted to her whenever he can be; you -know what Mrs. Pearsell told us about last summer, -but--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"But what?" said the Doctor, a little impatiently. -"Generally, wifie, you can see prospective wedding-cake -if two young people so much as look twice at each other."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Heath laughed and nodded. "Yes, I know; but -in just this case, I don't know. You can't tell anything -by her--and I fear, hubbie, that Jack Sherrill is n't quite -good enough for her."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Not quite good enough for her!" The Doctor almost -shouted in his earnestness. "Jack Sherrill not quite good -enough for--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh--sh, dear!" His wife held up her hand in warning. -"Someone might hear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Let 'em hear, then," growled the Doctor. "I say Rose -is n't a bit too good for him.--Look here, wifie,--" he drew -her towards him and down upon the arm of his easy-chair, -"Jack's all right every time--do you understand? <em class="italics">All -right!</em>"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Ye-es," admitted his wife rather reluctantly. "I know -he 's a great favorite of yours. But Mrs. Grayson says -he 's in a very fast set at Harvard--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Now look here, wifie, don't you let those women with -their eternal hunger for gossip say anything to you about -Jack. I tell you there is n't another fellow I know, who, -placed as he is, can set up so many white stones to mark -his short life's pathway as John Sherrill's only son. For -heaven's sake, give him the credit for them. I know what -I saw on Mount Hunger a year ago, and I know and believe -what I see."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, I only hope he won't flirt with her--" began -Mrs. Heath. Her husband interrupted her:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Flirt with her!" The Doctor chuckled. "I'll -warrant Jack won't do any flirting with her--it 'll be the -other way round sooner than that! Just say good-night -to Rose for me when you go up stairs, and tell her if she -is n't down bright and early Sunday morning, I 'll prescribe -for her."</p> -<p class="pnext">But there was no need for the Doctor's prescription; for -Rose was down for breakfast, and although white cheeks -and heavy eyes caused the Doctor to draw his eyebrows -together in a straight line over the bridge of his nose, -nothing was said of there being any need for a prescription. -But after breakfast he drew her into the library and -placed her in an easy-chair before the blazing fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">"There now," he said in his own kindliest tones, "sit -there and dream while wifie makes ready for church, and -after that you shall go with me for an official drive. The -air will do you good. I can't send such white roses"--he -patted her cheek--"back to Mount Hunger; what -would mother say?"</p> -<p class="pnext">To his amazement Rose buried her face in both hands; -a half-suppressed sob startled him.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, Rose-pose! What's the matter, little girl? -Headachey--nerves unstrung--too much opera? Here, -come into the office where we shan't be disturbed, and -tell me all about it."</p> -<p class="pnext">But Rose shook her head, lifted it from her hands, and -smiled through the welling tears.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm a perfect goose, but--but--I believe I 'm getting -just a little bit homesick for Mount Hunger, and I 'm not -going to stay for Mrs. Fenlick's ball. I know mother -needs me at home--I can just feel it in her letters, and -I know I want--I want her."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't blame you a bit, Rose,--but is n't this rather -sudden? Any previous attacks?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--and I know it seems dreadfully ungrateful to -you and dear Mrs. Heath to say so, and it is n't that--I 'd -love to be with just you two; but it's this dreadful -feeling comes over me, and I know I ought to go."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And go you shall, Rose," said the Doctor, emphatically, -but oh! so kindly and understandingly. "Go back to -all the dear ones there--and when you come again, don't -give us the tail-end of your visit, will you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Indeed, I won't," answered Rose, earnestly, "and if it -were only you and Mrs. Heath, I 'd love to stay, -but--but--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No need to say anything more, Rose, wifie and I -understand it perfectly--" ("I wish the dickens I did!" -was his thought)--"Tell wifie when she comes down, -and meanwhile I 'll send round for the brougham and -we 'll take a little drive in the Park before office hours."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose patted his hand, and her silence spoke for her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here 's a pretty kettle of fish!" said the Doctor to -himself as he went to the telephone. "I wish I could -get to the bottom of it."</p> -<p class="pnext">And thus it came about that a cool, dignified note, not -expressive of any particular regret, was mailed to -Cambridge on Sunday afternoon, and a long letter to Mount -Hunger telling them to be sure to meet her on Tuesday -at Barton's, and filled with wildly enthusiastic expressions -of delight in anticipation of the home-coming. And on -Tuesday afternoon, as the train sped onwards, following -the curves of the frozen Connecticut, and the snow-covered -mountains on the Vermont side began to crowd its -banks, Rose felt a lightening of the heart and an uplifting -of spirits.</p> -<p class="pnext">The bitterness and shame and shock she had experienced, -in consequence of that one little bite of the fruit of the -Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, seemed to -diminish with every mile that increased the distance between -her and the frothing whirlpool of the great city's gayeties. -All the way up, until the mountains loomed in sight, there -had been hot, indignant protest in her thoughts. At first, -indeed, it had been hatred.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hate it all--hate it, <em class="italics">hate</em> it!" she found herself -saying over and over again after the good-byes had been said -at the station, and Hazel and Mr. Clyde and Doctor Heath -had supplied her with flowers and magazines for the long -day's journey. It was all she could think or feel at the -time; but soon the little pronoun changed, and the thought -grew more bitter:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hate him! How could he--how dared he do as he -did! Because I am poor, I suppose. Oh! I wish I could -make him pay for it. I wish I could make him love me -really and truly, and then just <em class="italics">scorn</em> him! But what a fool -I am--as if he <em class="italics">could</em> love after what I heard--oh, why -did I hear it! I wish I may never see his face again, -and I wish I 'd stayed at home where I belong--I hate -him!"--And so on "da capo" hour after hour, and the -incessant chugetty-chug-chug of the express furnished the -rhythmic, basal tone for the bitter motive.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was long after lunch time, and the train of thought -had not changed, when Rose's eye fell upon the dainty -basket Martin had placed in the rack.</p> -<p class="pnext">"This is a pretty state of mind to go home to Martie -in!" she said to herself, rising and taking down the basket. -"I have n't eaten a good meal since last Saturday at lunch, -and I 'm--why, I believe I 'm hungry!"</p> -<p class="pnext">She opened the basket, and loving evidence of Minna-Lu's -admiration tempted her to pick a little here and there--a -stuffed olive or two, a roast quail, a delicate celery -sandwich, a quince tart, a bunch of Hamburg grapes. -Soon Rose was feasting on all the good things, and her -harsh thoughts began to soften. How kind they all were! -And <em class="italics">they</em> truly loved her--and what had they not done -for her comfort and pleasure! Rose, setting her pretty -teeth deep into a third quince tart, looked out of the -window and almost exclaimed aloud at the sight. The -vanguard of the Green Mountains closed in the upper end of -the river-valley along which they were speeding. It was -home that was behind all that! The thought still further -softened her.</p> -<p class="pnext">What? Carry her bitterness and disappointed pride -back into that dear, peaceful home? Not she! "They -shall never know--never!" she said to herself--"I 'm -not Molly Stark for nothing, and there are others in the -world beside Jack Sherrill." And so she continued to -speak cold comfort to herself for the next four hours -until the brakeman called "Barton's River!"</p> -<p class="pnext">There beyond the platform was the old apple-green -pung!--and yes! father and March and Budd and dear -old Chi anxiously scanning the coaches.</p> -<p class="pnext">Home at last! and such a home-coming! How busy -the tongues were for a week afterwards! How wildly gay -was Rose, who kept them laughing over the many queer -doings of the metropolis, over Wilkins and Minna-Lu and -Martin and Mrs. Scott! And how lovingly she spoke of -Hazel's charming hospitality and of Mr. Clyde's thoughtfulness -for her pleasure, although, as she mentioned his -name, a wave of color mounted to the roots of her hair at -the ugly thought that would intrude. Chi listened with -all his ears, enjoying it with the rest; but once upstairs -in his room over the shed, he would sit down on the side -of his bed to ponder a little the gay doings of his -Rose-pose among the "high-flyers," and then turn in with a -sigh and a muttered:</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T ain't Rose-pose. I knew how 't would be.--There 's -a screw loose somewhere; but she's handsome!--handsome -as a picture, 'n' I 'd give a dollar to know if she 's -cut that other one out."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Valentines seem kind of scarce this year," he remarked -rather grimly, a few days after her arrival, as late in the -afternoon, he returned from Barton's with little mail and -no boxes of flowers. "It's the sixteenth day of February, -but it might be Fast Day for all that handful of mail would -show for it!" He placed the package on Mrs. Blossom's -work-table at which Rose was sitting busy with some -sewing. They were alone in the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose laughed merrily. "Goodness, Chi! you want us -to have more than our share. We had a perfect deluge -last year when Hazel was here; you know it makes a -difference without her. You said yourself that there was -a good deal of bulk, but it was pretty light weight--don't -you remember?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi elevated one bushy eyebrow. "I ain't forgot; but I -don't know about it's bein' any <em class="italics">Deluge</em>--it appeared to -me it was a Shadrach, Meshach, 'n' Abednego kind of a -business--" He gave the back log a kick that sent the -sparks up the chimney in a grand pyrotechnic show. -"Seems as if I could see those posies, now, a-shrivellin' -in the fireplace. Never thought you treated those innocent -things quite on the square, Rose-pose!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose's head was bent low over her work. Chi went on, -bracing himself to the self-imposed task of enlightening -her:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't want to meddle, Rose, in anybody's business, -but it ain't set well with me ever since--the way you -treated those roses; 'n', after all, we 're both members of -the Nobody's Business But Our Own Society, 'n' if -anybody 's goin' to meddle, perhaps I 'm the one. I 've thought -a good many times you would n't have been quite so harsh -with 'em, if you had n't overlooked this in your -flare-up--" He drew out of his breast pocket a card--Jack 's--with -the verse on the back. "Read that, 'n' see if you -ain't dropped a stitch somewhere that you can pick up in -time." He handed her the card.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose looked up surprised, but with burning cheeks. -She took the card, read the verse, turned it over on the -name side, and rose from her chair. Every particle of color -had left her face. She went over to the fireplace, and, -bending, dropped the little piece of pasteboard upon the -glowing back-log.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The sentiment belongs with the roses, Chi; don't let's -have any more Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego business--I 'm -tired of it." She spoke indifferently; then, -resuming her seat, called out in a cheery voice:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Martie, won't you come here a minute, and see if I have -put on this gore right?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll come, dear."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi, nonplussed, irritated, repulsed, set his teeth hard -and abruptly left the room.</p> -<p class="pnext">Outside in the shed he clenched his fist and shook it -vigorously at the closed door of the long-room: "--By -George Washin'ton!" he muttered, "I 'll make you pay -up for that, Rose Blossom. You can't come any of your -high-flyers' games on me-- Just you put that in your -pipe and smoke it! Thunderation! what gets into women -and girls, sometimes?" He seized the milk-pails from the -shelf and hurried to the barn nearly running down Cherry -in his wrathful excitement.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Look out there, Cherry! You 're always getting round -under foot!" he said, harshly, and stumbled on, regaining -his balance, only to be met by Budd in the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just clear out now, Budd! I ain't goin' to stand your -foolin'. Let alone of that stanchion," he roared. -"Always worryin' the cow if she looks once at you sideways. -Get <em class="italics">up</em>, there--" His right boot helped the amazed cow -forwards into the stall, and the milk drummed into the pail -as if the poor creature were being milked by a dummy-engine -with more pressure of steam on than it could well stand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd flew into the woodshed and found Cherry still -standing, in a half-dazed condition, where Chi had left her. -They compared notes immediately to the detriment and -defamation of Chi's character. Then they carried their -budget of woe to their mother.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi is worried, children; you must n't mind if he is a -little cross now and then. He feels dreadfully about the -prospect of this war, as we all do, and that's his way of -showing it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, if he's going to be so cross at us, I wish he 'd -clear out an' go to war!" retorted Budd, smarting under -the unjust treatment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm only afraid he will if we have one," said -Mrs. Blossom, sadly. "But, oh, I hope and pray we may be -spared that!"</p> -<p class="pnext">But Budd continued to grumble, and Cherry to be suspiciously -sniffy, until their father's return; and then at the -supper table they listened greedily to all the talk of their -elders, that had for its absorbing theme the prospective -war.</p> -<p class="pnext">As the spring days lengthened, and the sun drew -northward, the tiny cloud on the country's peaceful horizon grew -larger and darker, until it cast its shadow throughout the -length and breadth of the land, and men's faces grew stern -and troubled and women prayed for peace.</p> -<p class="pnext">With the lengthening days Chi showed signs of increasing -restlessness. "It ain't any use, Ben," he said, one -soft evening in early May, as the family, with the -exception of the younger children, sat on the porch discussing -the latest news, "I 've got to go."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi!" broke from Mrs. Blossom and Rose. They -cried out as if hurt. Mr. Blossom grasped Chi's right -hand, and March wrung the other.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can't stand it," he went on; "we 've been sassed -enough as a nation, 'n' some of us have got to teach those -foreigners we ain't goin' to turn the other cheek just coz -we're slapped on one. When I wasn't higher than Budd, -my great-grandfather--you remember him, Ben, lived the -other side of the Mountain--put his father's old Revolution'ry -musket (the one, you know, Rose-pose, as I 've used -in the N.B.B.O.O.) into my hands, 'n' says: 'Don't -you stand no sass, Malachi Graham, from no -foreigners.--Just shoot away, 'n' holler, "Hands off" every -time, 'n' they 'll learn their lesson easy and early, 'n' -respect you in the end.' And I ain't forgot it."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi," Mrs. Blossom's voice was tremulous, "you won't -go till you 're asked, or needed, will you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I ain't goin' to wait to be asked, Mis' Blossom; I 'd -rather be on hand to be refused. That's my way. So I -thought I 'd be gettin' down along this week--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"This week!" Rose interrupted him with a cry and a -half-sob. "Oh, Chi! dear old Chi! <em class="italics">must</em> you go? What -if--what if--" Rose's voice broke, and Chi gulped down -a big lump, but answered, cheerily:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, Rose-pose, <em class="italics">what if</em>? Ain't I Old Put? 'n' ain't -you Molly Stark? 'n' ain't Lady-bird Barbara -Frietchie?--There, just read that--" he handed a letter to March, -who gave it back to him, saying, in a husky voice, that it -was too dark to read.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Well, then we 'll adjourn into the house, 'n' light -up.--There now," he said, as he lighted the lamp and set it -on the table beside March, "here's your letter, Markis, -read ahead."</p> -<p class="pnext">March read with broken voice:</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="left pfirst white-space-pre-line">4 EAST --TH STREET, NEW YORK,<br /> -May 5, 1898.</p> -<p class="pnext">DEAR FRIEND CHI,--I never thought when I joined the -N.B.B.O.O. Society, that I 'd have to be really brave about -real war;--and now dear old Jack is going off to Cuba with -Little Shaver and all those cow-boys,--and it's dreadful! -Uncle John is about sick over it, for, you know, Jack is all he -has. Papa is going to keep the house open all summer; he -says there is no telling what may happen.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have made no plans for the summer, for our hearts are -so heavy on Jack's account--his last year in Harvard, too! -He told me to tell you he would find out if there is a chance for -you in the new cavalry regiment he has joined. He looked so -pleased when I told him; he read your letter, and I told him -how you wanted to go with him, and he said: "Dear old Chi, -I'd like to have him for my bunkie"--and told me what it -meant. He told me to tell you to be prepared for a telegram -at any moment.</p> -<p class="pnext">I must stop now; papa wants me to go out with him. Give -my love to <em class="italics">all</em>, and tell Mother Blossom and Rose I will write -them more particulars in a few days.</p> -<p class="pnext">If you come to New York, you know a room will be ready -for you in the home of your</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Loving friend,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">HAZEL CLYDE.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There was silence for a while in the room; then -Mr. Blossom spoke:</p> -<p class="pnext">"How are you going, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm goin' to jog along down with Fleet, 'n' take it -kind of easy--thought I 'd cross the Mountain, 'n' strike -in on the old post-road; 'n' follow on down by old -Ticonderogy,--I 've always wanted to see that,--then across to -Saratogy 'n' Albany, 'n' foller the river. You can't go -amiss of New York if you stick to that."</p> -<p class="pnext">Again there was a prolonged silence. Chi hemmed, and -moved uneasily on his chair, while he fumbled about in his -trousers' pocket. He pulled out a piece of crumpled, -yellow paper.</p> -<p class="pnext">"S'pose I might just as well make a clean breast of -it." He tried to laugh, but it was a failure. "Jack's -telegram came along last night, 'n' I thought, maybe I 'd -better be gettin' my duds together to-night, Mis' Blossom, -as 't will be a mighty early start--before any of you are -up," he added, hastily.</p> -<p class="pnext">The two women broke down then, and Mr. Blossom and -March followed Chi out to the barn.</p> -<p class="pnext">The household, save for the younger children, was early -astir--before sunrise. Mrs. Blossom had prepared a hearty -breakfast, and Rose was rolling up a few pairs of her -father's stockings to put in the netted saddle-bag which -Chi was wont to use in hunting.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Tell March to call Chi, Rose," said her mother. "His -breakfast is ready, I hear him in the barn."</p> -<p class="pnext">Rose ran out in the dawning light to find her father -and March just coming towards the house.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, where 's Chi?" she cried.</p> -<p class="pnext">For answer, her father pointed to the woodlands. She -looked just in time to see in the soft gray of the early -morn the horse and rider rise to the three-railed fence that -separated the pasture from the woodlands. He was -following the trail he had indicated to Jack--"through the -woods 'n' acre or two of brush, 'n' then some pretty steep -sliding down the other side, 'n' a dozen rods or so of -swimmin', 'n' a tough old clamber up the bank--"</p> -<p class="pnext">Some ten days afterward, late on a warm afternoon in -May, there rode into New York City by the way of the -Bronx and Harlem, a middle-aged man on a bright bay -horse. The animal's gait was a noticeable one, a long, -loping gallop, that covered the ground in a manner that -roused the admiration of the drivers on the speedway. -The tall, loose-jointed body of the rider apparently loped -along with the horse--their movements were identical. -The saddle was an old-fashioned cavalry one of the early -sixties. A netted saddle-bag and a rolled rubber coat -were fastened to the crupper. A light-weight hunting -rifle was slung on a strap over the man's shoulder. At -the northern entrance to the Park he drew rein beside a -mounted policeman.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can you tell me if I 'm on the right track to this -house?"</p> -<p class="pnext">He took a card from the pocket of his dusty blue -flannel shirt and handed it to the policeman.</p> -<p class="pnext">The city guardian nodded assent. "But you can't take -that gun along with you; you 're inside city limits and -liable to arrest."</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Gainst the law, hey? Well, I 've come from a pretty -law-abiding state, 'n' ain't goin' to get into rows with you -fellers--" He laid a brown, knotty, work-roughened -finger on the policeman's immaculate blue coat--"I 'd -trust that color as far as I could see. Where shall I leave -the rifle?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The city guard unbent as the kindly voice yielded such -undefiant obedience to his demand. "You can leave it -with me now,--I 'm off my beat by seven, and live over -east of this--" he handed back the card--"and I 'll leave -it at the house if you 're going to be there."</p> -<p class="pnext">"All right, that 'll suit me. Yes, I 'm goin' to put up -there for a day or two, maybe."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Off on a hunting trip?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"You bet--goin' on a big, old, U.S.A. hunt for a lot -of darned foreigners in Cuby."</p> -<p class="pnext">The policeman held out his hand and grasped the -stranger's. "You're one of them?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, I come down to join a cavalry regiment. Jack -Sherrill, he belongs, too. Great rider--can't be beat. -Ever seen him round here on Little Shaver?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The policeman smiled. "No, but I 'd like to see you -again--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Maybe you will; but I 'd better be getting along -before sundown,--'gainst the law to ride this horse a piece -through those woods?" He pointed into the Park.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, no, that's all right. Keep along till you come to -Seventieth Street, and inquire; and then turn into Fifth -Avenue--east--and you're there."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Much obliged. Like to show you a trail or two up -in Vermont when you come that way. Get, Fleet." The -animal set forward into a long, loping gallop.</p> -<p class="pnext">The brilliant, light green of the May foliage was -enhanced by the level rays of the setting sun, as the man -turned his horse into Fifth Avenue and drew rein to a -rapid walk. Many a one paused to look at him as he -paced over the asphalt. He was looking up at the -mansions of the Upper East Side. Soon he halted at the -corner of a side street and gazed up at the first house, the -end of which, with the conservatory, was on the Avenue, -but the entrance on the side street. "That's the place," -he spoke to himself,--"don't see a hitchin'-post handy, so -I 'll just have to tie up to this electric light stand. Iron, -by thunder!--Well, there ain't any risk so long as 't isn't -lit, 'n' there ain't a tempest."</p> -<p class="pnext">Leaving his horse firmly tied to the standard he -stepped up on the low, broad stoop of "Number 4," and -looked for the bell. Not finding any he knocked forcibly -on the carved iron grill that protected the plate-glass -doors.</p> -<p class="pnext">The great doors flew open, and a face--"blacker 'n -thunder"--as the man said to himself, scowled on the -interloper.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Wha' fo' yo' come hyar, yo'--" He got no further. -A horny hand was extended, and a cheery voice, that -broke into a laugh, spoke the assuaging words:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess you 're Wilkins, ain't you? I 've heard Lady-bird -tell 'bout you till I feel as if we 'd been pretty well -acquainted goin' on nigh two year now."</p> -<p class="pnext">By this time Wilkins' face was one broad beam. He -slapped his free hand on his knee:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yo 's Mister Chi, for sho'--dere ain't no need yo' -tellin'. Yo' jes' come straight in, Mister Chi; Marse John -an' little Missy jes' gone fo' ah drive in de Park. Dey 'll -be in any minute. Yo' room 's all ready, an' little Missy -put de flow'rs in fresh dis yere mornin'--''Case,' she -say, 'Wilkins, dere ain't no tellin' when Chi's comin'.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sho'," Chi interrupted him, brushing the back of his -hand hastily across his eyes. "I can't come in now, -Wilkins, coz I 've got to stay here 'n' watch my horse--I 'll -sit here on the steps a spell 'n' cool off till Mr. Clyde gets -home, 'n' he 'll help me see to puttin' up Fleet for the -night. His legs are a little mite swollen near the hocks, -'n' I 'm goin' to rub him down myself."</p> -<p class="pnext">"De coachman jes' tend to yo' hoss like 's ef 't wor -yo'se'f, Mister Chi. I 'll jes' call up de stable bo', 'n' he 'll -rub him down wif sp'r'ts, an' shine him up till he look -jes' lake new mahog'ny. Jes' yo' come--dere dey come now!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi was at the curbstone to welcome them.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi! O Chi!" Hazel rose up in the trap at sight of -the well-known figure, and Chi, laying his hand firmly on -Martin's shoulder, put him aside as he sprang to open the -door and let down the steps, reached up both arms, and took -Hazel out as tenderly as on the night of her first arrival -at the farmhouse on the Mountain. And then and there -Hazel gave him a kiss, and Mr. Clyde grasped his hands -in both his, and the wide hall doors that Wilkins had -thrown open to their fullest extent closed upon the -reunited friends.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'E 's a 'ansome 'oss," Martin remarked to the coachman, -as he mounted Fleet to take him to the stable; "Hi -'ave n't seen a 'ansomer since Hi 've bean in the States."</p> -<p class="pnext">A few days after the hall doors were again flung wide, -but not to their fullest extent, and Wilkins' face grew -strangely tremulous when he heard Hazel and Mr. Clyde, -Jack and Chi coming down the broad hall stairs. Martin -was proudly leading Fleet and Little Shaver up and down -in front of the house.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Jack! O Jack! I can't bear to have you go--but I -<em class="italics">will</em> be brave." Hazel smiled through the raining tears. -She clung to him and kissed him. He put her aside, ran -out to Little Shaver, and flung himself on before Chi had -said good-bye.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Take care of Jack, Chi," she whispered, patting his hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I will, Barbara Frietchie." He pointed to the flag that, -in the east wind blowing in from the Sound, was waving -over the entrance, gripped Mr. Clyde's hand, then Wilkins', -and, apparently, stepped into the saddle.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Quick, quick, Wilkins! lower the flag, and let me have -it." Wilkins sprang to obey. Hazel seized it, and rushed -up stairs to the drawing-room, the windows of which -overlooked the Avenue. One of them was open; she leaned -out; and as Fleet and Little Shaver turned the corner, -their riders, looking up, saw the young girl's figure in the -opening. She was waving the symbol of their Country's -life and their manhood's loyalty.</p> -<p class="pnext">They halted, baring their heads for a moment--then -without once looking back, galloped down the Avenue.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="san-juan">XXV</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">SAN JUAN</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Notwithstanding it was a hot day in the first week -of July, Mrs. Spillkins had decided to have a -"quilting-bee." Having made up her mind, after consulting with -Miss Melissa and Miss Elvira, she lost no time in -summoning Uncle Israel from the barn, and making known -her plans. Uncle Israel mildly objected.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kinder hot fer er quiltin'-bee, ain't it, Hannah?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Tis pretty hot," Mrs. Spillkins admitted, wiping the -perspiration from her face with her apron, "but we 'll have -it to-morrow 'long 'bout four. You get the frames and -rollers out, Israel, from the back garret, an' then I want -you to go up to Mis' Blossom's an' ask 'em to come, an' get -word to the other folks on the Mountain."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll go, Hannah, but I dunno 'bout Mis' Blossom 'n' -Rose comin' ter er quiltin'-bee jest 'bout this time. -They 're feelin' pretty low 'bout Chi off thar in Cuby; -news hez come thet ther 's ben fightin'--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I know that, Israel; I 've thought of that, too; but, -mebbe, it 'll do 'em good, just to change the scene a little. -Anyway, you ask 'em."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Jest ez ye say, Hannah."</p> -<p class="pnext">The sun was setting when Uncle Israel made his -appearance on the porch where the whole family was assembled -with Alan Ford. They had but one topic for conversation.</p> -<p class="pnext">Uncle Israel gave his invitation, and added: "Hannah -thought ye 'd better come 'n' change the scene a -leetle--she knowed ye 'd be kinder low-spereted 'bout now."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom held out her hand. "Thank you, Uncle -Israel. Tell Mrs. Spillkins we will both come."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hannah wants your folks ter come, tew, Alan."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Much obliged, Uncle Israel. I 'll tell mother and -Ruth; I 'm sure they will enjoy it. Ruth said the other -day she wished she might have a chance to see a quilting-bee -while we are here. Shall I take your message over to -Aunt Tryphosa?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Much obleeged, Alan. Thank ye, Rose,"--as Rose -brought out the large arm-chair and placed it for him; -"I 'll set a spell 'n' rest me."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a typical northern midsummer night. Across -the valley the mountains loomed, softly luminous, against -the pale green translucent stretch of open sky in the west. -There were no clouds; but high above and around there -swept a long trail of motionless mist, flame-colored over the -mountain tops, but darkening, with the coming of the night, -into gray towards the east. The stars were not yet out. -The veeries were choiring antiphonally in the woodlands.</p> -<p class="pnext">An hour afterwards Alan Ford rose to go, and Uncle -Israel soon followed his example.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll go down the woods'-road a piece with you, Uncle -Israel," said Rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">As she came back up the Mountain a cool breath drew -through the pines, and the spruces gave forth their -resinous fragrance upon the dewless night. The stars were -brilliant in the dark blue deeps.</p> -<p class="pnext">A midsummer night among the mountains of New -England! And far away in the sickening heat and wet, -the fever-laden exhalations of the tropics rose into the -nostrils of a man, who sat motionless in the rude -field-hospital, hastily improvised on the slope of San Juan, -watching, with his knees drawn up to his chin and his -hands clasping them, for some faint tremor in the still -face on the army blanket spread upon the ground.</p> -<p class="pnext">The lantern cast its light full upon that still face. -Suddenly the watcher bent forward; his keen eyes had -detected a twitch of an eyelid--a flutter in the muscles of -the throat. "Don't move him," the surgeon had said; -"the least movement will cause the final hemorrhage."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was a catch of the breath--the eyes opened, -partly filmed.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Jack!" The watcher spoke, bending lower; his ear -over the other's lips.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi--" it was a mere breath, but the man -heard--"I'm--done for."</p> -<p class="pnext">The watcher's hand, muscular, toil-hardened, sought the -nerveless one that was lying on the other's breast, and -closed upon it with a brooding pressure. There was -silence for a few minutes. Then the horny hand felt a -feeble stirring of the fingers beneath the hardened -palm--they were fumbling weakly at a button.</p> -<p class="pnext">The strong hand undid the button, gently--very gently, -without apparent movement. There was a motion of the -nerveless fingers towards the place. Another breath:--</p> -<p class="pnext">"Give--love--"</p> -<p class="pnext">A long silence fell.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Spillkins heaved a sigh of satisfaction: "We 've -done an awful sight of work," she said, surveying the five -quilts "run" and "tacked" and "knotted" in even rows -and mathematically true squares; "but it seems as if -they did n't eat a mite of supper, an' that strawberry -shortcake was enough to melt in your mouth."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What'd I tell ye, Hannah? They're worretin' 'bout -Chi," said Uncle Israel. "They've fit agin; Ben told -me while he wuz waitin' with the team fer the womin-folks. -He hed the mail, 'n' er telegram thet thet young -feller, we see ridin' 'roun' here las' summer, wuz mortal -wounded. He did n't want the womin-folks ter know it -till he got 'em hum. They sot er sight by him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Spillkins threw up her hands: "Dear suz'y me!" -she exclaimed in a distressed voice. "What 'll they do! -I hope an' pray Malachi Graham ain't hurt none. I feel -as if I ought to go right up there, an' see if there 's -anything I can do."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Better wait till the Cap'n comes hum, Hannah; he 'll -hev the papers."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I guess 't would be better," and Mrs. Spillkins -proceeded to fold up her quilts and "clear up" the best -room.</p> -<p class="pnext">The hot July days warmed the breast of the Mountain. -Over in the corn-patch the stalks had spindled and the -swelling ears were ready to tassel. By word or look -Rose had given no sign--and her mother wondered. The -days wore on; the routine of daily work and life went on; -but the younger children's voices were subdued when they -spoke lovingly and longingly of Chi, and Rose sang no -longer when she kneaded bread. They were days of -suspense and heart misery for them all.</p> -<p class="pnext">Two weeks had passed since that evening when -Mr. Blossom had read to them the fatal despatch. No word -had come from anyone save Hazel, who wrote that her -father and Uncle John had started at once for Cuba, and -that she hoped to be with the Blossoms the third week in -July, for by that time they would know the whole truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">They had been making ready Hazel's little bedroom, -for she was expected in a few days. Rose was tacking up -a white muslin curtain at the small window, when she -heard her father call:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Rose, come here a minute."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, father."</p> -<p class="pnext">She went out on the porch with the hammer in her -hand. "What is it, Popsey dear?--Why, father, what--oh -what--!"</p> -<p class="pnext">With shaking hand her father held out a letter to her. -Rose looked once--it was from Chi!</p> -<p class="pnext">"I wish mother were here, daughter--but she'll be -back soon. Let me know how it is with them -all--." Mr. Blossom could say no more, for Malachi Graham was -as near to him as a brother, and he was agonizing for his -child. He went off to the barn, leaving Rose standing on -the porch, staring as if fascinated at the superscription of -the letter:</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">To Miss Rose Blossom,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><dl class="docutils first last white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Mill Settlement,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><dl class="docutils first last white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Barton's River,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">Vermont.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -</dd> -</dl> -</dd> -</dl> -<p class="pfirst">N.B.B.O.O.--To be opened by nobody but her.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Rose laid down the hammer mechanically, opened the -envelope, and unfolded the piece of brown paper from out -of which fluttered to the floor another and thicker slip, -stained almost beyond recognition. With staring eyes and -face as white as driven snow she read the few words -scrawled in pencil on the brown slip:--</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">DEAR ROSE-POSE,--I ain't no wish to meddle with anybody's -business--but I 'm just obeying orders. The last words -I heard Jack Sherrill speak, was "Give--love," and he fumbled -at his breast to get out this enclosed. I ain't read it--but it's -his heart's blood that's on it. Give my love to all.</p> -<dl class="docutils left white-space-pre-line"> -<dt class="white-space-pre-line">Yours forever,</dt> -<dd class="white-space-pre-line"><p class="first last pfirst white-space-pre-line">CHI.</p> -</dd> -</dl> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"His heart's blood!" For a moment the words conveyed -no meaning. She picked up the iron-rusty brown -slip from the floor; unfolded it; read--Barry Cornwall's -love-song in her own handwriting!</p> -<p class="pnext">"His heart's blood!" She pressed one hand hard upon -her own heart, crushing with the other the dark-stained -slip. Then, with one wild look around her as if searching -for help, she ran down the steps, across the mowing, over -into the pasture and up into the woodlands. Deep, deep -into the heart of them she made her way, as her mother, -Mary Blossom, had done before her; but now there was -no kneeling, no prayer, no petition to take from her the -intolerable pain.</p> -<p class="pnext">She was young, and she loved as the young love. It -was not God whom she wanted; it was "Jack! Jack! -Jack!" She cast herself face down upon the ground, and -moaned in her agony: "His heart's blood--his heart's -blood." She pressed the stained paper to her lips, over -and over again. Then she opened her blouse and baring -her bosom, laid the love-song against it--"His heart's -blood--his heart's blood!"</p> -<p class="pnext">So her mother found her.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="maria-ann-s-crusade">XXVI</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">MARIA-ANN'S CRUSADE</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Of late Aunt Tryphosa had been growing suspicious of -Maria-Ann, and the latter felt she was being watched; to -use her own words, "it nettled her."</p> -<p class="pnext">One afternoon, late in August, her grandmother, coming -upon her rather suddenly in the pasture as she sat under -the shade of a patriarchal butternut, ostensibly watching -Dorcas, asked her sharply:</p> -<p class="pnext">"What you doin', Maria-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"'Tendin' to my own business," retorted Maria-Ann, -with an unwonted snap in her voice, and hurriedly folded -something out of sight beneath the Hearthstone Journal -which lay upon her lap.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the signal of open revolt on the part of her -granddaughter, and the like had occurred but once before -in all the time of her up-bringing with Aunt Tryphosa. -The old dame's lips drew to a thinner line than usual, as -she fired the second shot into the hostile camp:</p> -<p class="pnext">"You been cryin', Maria-Ann."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What if I be?" demanded her granddaughter, with a -flash of indignation from beneath her reddened eyelids. -"S'pose I have a right to have feelin's same as other -folks."</p> -<p class="pnext">Suddenly Aunt Tryphosa swooped like a hen-hawk -upon a small piece of bright scarlet flannel, that the -breeze had caught away from the protecting folds of -the Hearthstone Journal, and landed in the covert of -sweet fern just at her feet.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What's that?" She held up the glowing bit of color, -dangling it before Maria-Ann's eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">Upon poor Maria-Ann's inflamed sense of injustice, it -had much the same effect as a red rag waved before the -eyes of an infuriated bull.</p> -<p class="pnext">She sprang to her feet, snatched the bit of cloth from -between her grandmother's thumb and fore-finger, and -thrust it into her dress waist, crying out shrilly in her -unwonted excitement:</p> -<p class="pnext">"You let that be, Grandmarm Little! It's my cross -and I 'm going on a crusade--so now!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Aunt Tryphosa sat down rather suddenly in the middle -of the sweet-fern patch. Was Maria-Ann going crazy? -Her breath came short and sharp; she drew her thin lips -still more tightly, and, although really alarmed, braced -herself for the combat.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What 'd you say you was goin' on, Maria-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I never knew you was growin' deef before, grandmarm; -I said a crusade." She had raised her voice to a still -higher pitch, as she stooped to gather up the Hearthstone -Journal, the bits of red cloth, her scissors, and -thimble which had fallen from her lap as she sprang to -her feet.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Is that the thing you read me about last winter in the -Journal, with the soldiers with crosses on their backs on -hosses startin' out for Jerusalem?" demanded the old -dame, but in a strangely agitated voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes," responded Maria-Ann, promptly, but with less -acerbity of manner.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And is that red rag you hid away a <em class="italics">cross</em>, Maria-Ann -Simmons?" No words can do justice to the old dame's tone -and its implied impiety of her granddaughter's conduct.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann was silent.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Be you a Christian girl, or an idolater, Maria-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Her grandmother's voice shook pitiably. Maria-Ann's -conscience gave a twinge, when she heard it; but she felt -the time was ripe, and she must put in the sickle.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I hope I 'm a Christian, grandmarm, but I 'm an -idolater, too,--" Aunt Tryphosa drew in her breath, as if -hurt. "But, anyway, I guess I was an American 'fore I -was a Christian, an' I jest <em class="italics">idolize</em> my Country--" Maria-Ann's -eyes filled with tears--"an' I can't do anything -for her, nor make sacrifices same as other women do who -can send their husbands--," a sob, "an' lovers--," another -sob, "an' nuss 'em, an' help on their Country's cause livin' -'way up here in an old back paster with an old cow--an' -an old wo--Oh, grandmarm!" Maria-Ann broke -down utterly, laid her head upon her knees, and sobbed -unrestrainedly.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was an unusual sight, and Aunt Tryphosa was -troubled. She felt it necessary to beat a retreat in the -face of such genuine grief, but she was determined that it -should be a dignified one.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I ain't never seen you give way so, Maria-Ann, and -you 're thirty-one year old come next January. I 've done -my best to bring you up right, an' now you 're old enough -to know your own mind, <em class="italics">I hope</em>; so, if you want to leave -me, you can go jest as soon as you can get ready. I come -up for Dorcas, an' now I 'm goin' home." In spite of her -effort her old voice trembled, but her pride sustained her -nobly, and Maria-Ann was all unaware that the tears were -rolling down the wrinkled furrows in the old cheeks as -her grandmother drove Dorcas before her down the -fern-scented pasture slope.</p> -<p class="pnext">Her granddaughter followed her half an hour later, and -after a silent supper, except for Aunt Tryphosa's -murmured "grace," and a faint "amen" from the other side -of the table, Maria-Ann lighted a lamp and shut herself -into her small bedroom.</p> -<p class="pnext">She placed a chair against the door, lest she might be -suddenly raided, and drew the other splint-bottomed one -up to the head of the bed. Lifting the feather-bed she -thrust her hand far under and drew out a square, white -pasteboard box. It was tied with a narrow, white ribbon. -She undid it carefully, and took out a layer of tissue paper. -The lamp-light shone upon a large, gilt heart, some ten by -eight inches, with a thickness of two inches.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann turned the box this way and that, watching -the play of light on it, for the heart was skewered with a -large, silver-gilt arrow, and the shaft, where it penetrated, -held a small, white card with simulated blood-drops in -carmine splashed on in one corner, and the sentiment, -written in the same, straggling diagonally across the other -corner:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"In thy sight</div> -<div class="line">Is my delight."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Maria-Ann shut her eyes and leaned back in her chair. -"Don't seems as if he 'd sent me that if he had n't meant -somethin'," she murmured, and dreamed for a little while. -Then she opened her eyes, prepared for new delights. Raising -the gilt top with tender care, she took out a faded rose:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't seem as if he 'd come back that nex' mornin' -after Chris'mus an' give me that, 'thout he 'd had some -notion." She laid the rose carefully upon the tissue paper, -and began to lift the leaves of the heart-shaped book, until -she had lifted every one of the three hundred and sixty-five! -She smiled to herself.</p> -<p class="pnext">"'T ain't likely he 'd 'a' sent me jest such a cook-book, -'thout he 'd been tryin' to give me a hint." She began to -read the recipes--it was absorbing: puddings, cakes, -preserves. She was lost to time as she read; "An' he took -that pair of socks I knit him last Chris'mus 'long with -him, Rose said--" There was a fumbling at her door. -Maria-Arm blew out the light.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That you, grandmarm?" she called pleasantly.</p> -<p class="pnext">There was no answer, and Maria-Ann laughed softly -to herself as she undressed in the dark, and lay down to -sweet dreams.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'm goin' over to Mis' Blossom's, grandmarm," she -announced the next afternoon, "to see if they 've had any -news. I ain't heard for two days."</p> -<p class="pnext">Her grandmother made no reply, but when her grand-daughter -was well on her way to the Blossoms', Mrs. Tryphosa -Little's conscience deemed it prudent to issue a -private search-warrant and investigate Maria-Ann's -premises--even to the under side of the feather-bed. The -results perfectly justified the search, and upon Maria-Ann's -return just before tea, she was amazed to have her -grandmother offer her a wrinkled cheek to kiss.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, grandmarm!" exclaimed Maria-Ann, in joyful -surprise, "I 'm so glad you ain't laid it up against me--</p> -<p class="pnext">"I can see through a barn-door when 't is wide open, -even at my time of life, Maria-Ann Simmons," said the -old dame, interrupting her.</p> -<p class="pnext">"What did you hear over to Ben's?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Hazel's just had a letter from her father, and he says -they 've got Mr. Sherrill home to New York, an' if nothin' -new sets in, he 'll get over it, but his lungs 'll be weak, -mebbe, for two years. He was shot clean through the -lungs."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What do they hear from Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann's face grew suddenly radiant. "Oh, he 's -been awful sick with the fever, an' ain't left Cuby yet, but -he'll come North jest as soon as he can be transported. -I 've been talking over my plans with Mis' Blossom an' -Rose an' Hazel, an' they 're goin' to do everything they can -for me."</p> -<p class="pnext">"So you 're a-goin' to Cuby, Maria-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Yes, grandmarm, I 've got a call to go an' nuss our -sick an' wounded; I 've been readin' a lot 'bout the Red -Cross misses in the Hearthstone Journal, an' I 'm goin' to -wear a cross, an' Hazel's goin' to pay my fare, an' I 'm -goin' to stop to Mr. Clyde's when I get to New York, -an' he 'll start me all right for Cuby--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Them beets are burnin' on, Maria-Ann; guess you 'd -better stop for jest one more meal on the Mountin, had n't -you?" said her grandmother, dryly.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann laughed merrily. "I know, grandmarm, it -seems kinder queer and foolish to you, but I feel as if I -could go now with nothin' on my mind, for you know -Mandy's girl is comin' to stay all September an' October, -an' she 's grand help. You won't begin to miss me 'fore -I 'll be back--an' I 'll own up, grandmarm, ever since Rose -Blossom went to New York last winter, I 've hankered -after seein' more of the world 'sides Mount Hunger."</p> -<p class="pnext">"When you goin' to start?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"I calc'late 'bout the last of next week, that 'll be into -September--here, let me pare them beets, grandmarm;" -and forthwith she seized the pan, and began peeling the -steaming, deep-red balls, singing heartily the while:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'Must I be carried to the skies</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">On flowery beds of ease,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">While others fought to win the prize,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And sailed through bloody seas?'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">"Now be careful, and change at White River Junction," -were Mr. Blossom's parting words at the station. "After -that you go right through to New York."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll take good care, don't you any of you worry 'bout -me!" She waved her handkerchief from the back platform -of the car to the little group she was leaving,--Mr. and -Mrs. Blossom, Rose, March and Hazel, Captain Spillkins -and Susan Wood, with Elvira and Melissa. She was -inflated with heroic resolve, and felt ennobled to be going -forth to do battle, as she termed it to herself, for her -Country's cause. Moreover she was seeing the world, and even -at the start she found it most interesting, for she had been -but ten miles at most by train, and here she was speeding -towards White River Junction, distant forty miles from -Barton's River.</p> -<p class="pnext">She longed to communicate her enthusiasm to the occupants -of the car, but found only one opportunity. She -offered to hold a baby, one of a family of five, while the -mother fed and watered the other four. She continued to -dandle it recklessly till the woman protested:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess you ain't had a fam'ly," she remarked sternly, -rescuing her child; "a woman of your age ought to know -better 'n to shake a baby up so when he 's teethin'--'t ain't -good for their brains--like enough bring on chol'ry morbis." She -pulled down the small clothes, turned the atom over on -its stomach, and patted its back with a broad hand and a -dove-like settling motion that bespoke the mater-familias.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann looked out of the window. True, she had n't -any family--only Grandmarm Little and Aunt Mandy's -one daughter who had just come to visit them. What was -Aunt Tryphosa doing now? She was dreaming again, and -before she could realize it, the brakeman called, "White -River Junction! Change cars for all points south via -Windsor, Springfield, New York."</p> -<p class="pnext">Hearing that, Maria-Ann felt as if she had already -travelled a thousand miles, so far away seemed Mount Hunger -and its uneventful life.</p> -<p class="pnext">She found herself on the platform. She had been so -confident of taking care of herself--and now! She looked -helplessly about. Trains to the right of her, trains to the -left of her, trains in front of her and behind her switched, -and shifted, and thundered. Engine-bells, dinner-bells, -train-bells; stentorian voices of baggage-men, brakemen, -call-men; frantic women, screaming babies, hurrying -porters, indifferent travellers, fashionable women and city -men; farmers, children, baskets, shawl-straps, dress-suit -cases, golf bags, boys; dogs, yelping and crying, in arms -or in leash; canaries in their wooden cages shrilling over -all; and hither and thither and yon a bustling, and -rustling, and rattling, and roaring, and clanking, and hissing, -and shrieking, and hurrying, and scurrying, and pushing, -and hauling, and prodding, and rushing! For a minute -Maria-Ann was dazed and almost stunned. Then her -courage rose to the occasion. <em class="italics">This</em> was the famous -Junction of which she had heard so much. <em class="italics">This</em> was the great -world. <em class="italics">This</em> was Life!</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll stand stock-still an' wait till it clears up a little. -I 've got an hour here, an' mebbe I 'll see somebody from -Barton's," she said to herself, and had just put down her -valise when a hoarse voice cried in her ear,--"Hi, there! get -out of the way!"</p> -<p class="pnext">She dodged a baggage truck piled high with toppling -trunks, only to be caught in the surging, living stream, -and carried with it up a step into the restaurant of the -station.</p> -<p class="pnext">To Maria-Ann it was a marvellous sight. She set down -her valise by a window and, standing guard in front -of it, gazed about her with intense satisfaction. In truth -this was seeing the great world, of which she had read so -much in the Journal and for which she had longed, at first -hand. Around the counter--a long oval--were perched -on the high, wooden, spring stools "all sorts and conditions -of men," with a sprinkling of women and children. -There was perpetual motion of knives, forks, teaspoons, -arms, hands, mouths,--and a noisy conglomerate beyond -description, accented by the shriek and toot of the -switch-engines.</p> -<p class="pnext">Suddenly the clangor of a gong-like bell and a stentorian -voice rose above the chaos of sound;--there was a momentary -lull in the confusion of masticating utensils, followed -by a general slipping, sliding, and jumping off the round -wooden perches,--and to Maria-Ann's amazement, the -room was nearly vacant.</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">Now 's</em> my time," said Maria-Ann, with considerable -complacency, and forthwith proceeded to hoist herself, by -means of the foot-rail, upon one of the seats, at the same -time placing her valise on another at her right. She looked -at the varied assortment of delectables--an embarrassment -of riches: jelly-roll cakes, pickles, squash pie, baked beans, -frosted tea-cakes, sage cheese, ham sandwiches, lemon pie, -cold, spice-speckled custards, doughnuts, great as to their -circumference, startling as to their cubical contents.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've heard tell of them," said Maria-Ann to herself, as -her eye, ranging the oval marble slab, encountered a -pyramidal pile of New England's doughty cruller. "I 'll have -two of them, I guess," she said to the indifferent attendant, -"an' a cup of coffee; that 'll last me for a spell, and I can -keep my lunch for supper." She expected some response -to her explanation, but there was none forthcoming, save -that a cup of coffee, half-pint size, was shoved over the -counter towards her, and the huge glass dome that -protected the doughnuts was removed with a jerk, and the -towering pile set down in front of her.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann helped herself. It seemed rather tame, -after so much excitement, to be eating a doughnut the -size of a small feather-bed, without company. She looked -around. There were but three or four at the entire counter. -Farther down to the left, his tall, gaunt figure silhouetted -against the blank of the large window, a man was seated, -bestriding the perch as if it were a horse. He wore the -undress uniform of the volunteer cavalry. When -Maria-Ann discovered this, she felt for a moment, to use her -own expression, "flustered." The mere presence of the -uniform brought to her a realizing sense of the importance -of her mission; it seemed to bring her at once into touch -with far-away Cuba, and the feminine knights of the Red -Cross; with--her heart gave a joyful thump--with Chi! -She felt in a way ennobled to be eating her doughnut -within speaking distance of a hero (they were all that in -Maria-Ann's idealizing imagination).</p> -<p class="pnext">She had bitten only halfway into the periphery of the -doughnut, when the man stepped from his seat. She -watched him as he moved slowly towards the door; his -back was turned to her. How feebly he moved! Almost -seeming to drag one foot after the other.</p> -<p class="pnext">A great flood of patriotic pity engulfed Maria-Ann's -whole being. She forgot the doughnuts; she left the -coffee; she forgot even her valise; her one thought was -as she slid from the stool: "I ain't no call to wait till I -get to Cuby; I 'm just as much a Red Cross nuss right -here in White River Junction, Vermont, as if I was a -thousand miles away." The girl at the counter looked -after her in amazement--she hadn't even paid! But -there was her valise.</p> -<p class="pnext">She saw Maria-Ann whisk something out of her dress-waist -and stop halfway down the room to pin it on her -sleeve, and lo and behold!--it was a cross of bright red -flannel. She saw her hurry after the man, who had -dragged himself to the doorway, and stood there leaning -heavily against the jamb.</p> -<p class="pnext">"If you 're goin' to take a train, just you let me help -you aboard," she said, speaking just at his elbow. The -man's head half turned with a jerk. "You ain't fit to -stan' more 'n an eight months baby, an' I 'm a Red Cross -nuss on my way to Cuby--"</p> -<p class="pnext">A gaunt, yellow face with haggard eyes was turned -slowly full upon her, and a hand, shaking, as that of a -man in drink, was laid on her arm:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Don't you know me, Marier-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann sat down suddenly on the doorstep at the -man's feet. There was no strength left in her. Then she -put her head into her hands, and began to cry softly; -there were few to see her, and had the whole world been -there, she would not have cared.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Just help me into the waitin'-room, Marier-Ann, where -we can talk."</p> -<p class="pnext">She bounced to her feet, with streaming, tear-blinded -eyes, and Chi, linking his arm in hers, led her into the -"Ladies' Room."</p> -<p class="pnext">A porter followed them in; he addressed Chi. "She -ain't paid for what she ordered, and she ain't eat it neither, -and she 's left her valise."</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi pulled out a ten-cent piece and put it into his hand. -"Bring 'em all in," he said, "grub 'n' all, 'n' I 'll pay for -'em. We 'll sit here a spell till train time." Maria-Ann -sobbed afresh.</p> -<p class="pnext">The porter brought in the plate with the doughnuts, the -cup of coffee, and the valise, and set them down on the -wooden settee. He pointed to the ten-cent piece that -lay within the inner ring of a doughnut:</p> -<p class="pnext">"I don't take nothin' of that kind from you fellers." He -touched the bit of braid on the cuff of Chi's coat; Chi -smiled, and pocketed the money.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Guess you was n't expectin' to meet an old friend so -soon, was you?" said Chi, gently, setting the plate in her -lap.</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann shook her head vigorously, but she could -not control the sobs. Chi crossed one leg over the other, -and waited.</p> -<p class="pnext">The flies buzzed on the smoke-thickened panes, and an -empty truck rattled down the platform. There were no -other sounds.</p> -<p class="pnext">"When does your train go, Marier-Ann?"</p> -<p class="pnext">There was another sob, but no answer.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Did n't I hear you say you was on your way to Cuby?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann nodded.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Bad place for women--'n' men, too. What you goin' for?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann's answer was only half audible: "To nuss."</p> -<p class="pnext">"To nuss? Ain't there enough nussin' you can do -nearer home?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Maria-Ann looked up with tear-reddened eyes. "I -did n't think so--" a sob--"till I saw you, Chi. I did n't -know you--I thought I 'd begin right now, before I got -there--" her hands covered her eyes again.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi's trembling ones, weak from the fever, drew her -cold ones down from her face.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You did just right, Marier-Ann, to want to begin right -now.--The Barton's River train is due to start from here -in fifteen minutes;--s'posin' you give up Cuby, 'n' come -along home, 'n' try nussin' me. I need it bad enough."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Chi, do you mean it?" Maria-Ann caught her breath.</p> -<p class="pnext">"You bet I do," said Chi, emphatically, "only"--he -paused and took up the plate from her lap, spilling the -coffee, for the trembling of his hand had increased--"if -you 're goin' to undertake it with me, it's got to be a life -job, Marier-Ann."</p> -<p class="pnext">The flies continued to buzz on the smoke-thickened -panes. The train for Barton's River steamed in from the -siding. The couple in the waiting-room boarded it. The -porter watched them with a queer smile. Then he took -up the plate of uneaten doughnuts and the cup of cooled -coffee, and handed them to the girl behind the counter.</p> -<p class="pnext">"She ain't eat 'em, after all," she said. "She acted -kinder queer for a Red Cross nurse."</p> -<p class="pnext">"He's the chap I give the telegram to when he got -here on the up-train last night."</p> -<p class="pnext">"What was it?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Twenty-five cent one from Barton's River--'M.A. starts -for Cuba Thursday stop her at Junction.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">The girl laughed, and the restaurant filled again.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="the-stars-above-shine-ever-on-love">XXVII</p> -<p class="center medium pnext white-space-pre-line">"--The stars above<br /> -Shine ever on Love--"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"I 'm goin' up into the clearin', Mis' Blossom, to see if -there ain't some late blackberries," said Chi, a few days -after his triumphal return with Maria-Ann. "Seems as if -the smell of the sun on that spruce-bush up yonder would -put new life into me--I feel so kind of shif'less."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I would, Chi," said Mrs. Blossom; "you have n't -begun to get your strength back yet, and the more you 're -out in this air, without overworking, the better it will be -for you."</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll go with you, Chi," said Rose, looking up from her -work, as she sat sewing on the lower step of the porch.</p> -<p class="pnext">"That's right, Rose-pose; it 'll seem like old times." Chi -followed her with wistful eyes as she turned to go -up stairs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 'll be down in a few minutes, Chi; we 'd better take -the two-quart pails, had n't we?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Maybe we 'll find enough for one or two messes."</p> -<p class="pnext">He turned to Mrs. Blossom when Rose had left the -room. "Can't there nothin' be done 'bout it, Mis' -Blossom?" He spoke almost wistfully.</p> -<p class="pnext">Mrs. Blossom's eyes filled with tears. She hesitated a -moment before she spoke: "I know Rose so well, Chi, -that I dare <em class="italics">not</em> interfere. I doubt if she would accept -anything, even from me, her mother."</p> -<p class="pnext">"It beats me," Chi sighed heavily. "He 's just a-pinin' -for a word or sign, 'n' there ain't no use talkin'--<em class="italics">she 's</em> -got to give it; I 'd back him up every time, he 's done -enough--"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh--!" Mrs. Blossom held up her finger; she heard -Rose on the stairs. Chi looked up--his old Rose-pose -stood before him: old, faded, green and white calico dress, -old sunbonnet, patched shoes! Chi turned away abruptly -to get his pails; and her mother wondered, but said nothing.</p> -<p class="pnext">They found more than one "patch," where the berries -hung in luscious clusters of shining jet. Chi pummelled -his chest, and drew deep, deep breaths of the balsamic -mountain air. "This sets a man up, Rose-pose; there -ain't nothin' like the air on this Mountain for an all-round -tonic. Let's sit here a spell, right by this sweet fern."</p> -<p class="pnext">She pushed back the sunbonnet as she sat down beside -him. "Tired, Chi?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"No--rests me clear through just to sit 'n' look off -onto those slopes, just about as green as in June."</p> -<p class="pnext">They sat awhile in silence; then Chi turned and picked -up the sunbonnet that had fallen from her head. He -touched it gently.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Remember the first time you sold berries in that rig, -Rose-pose?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The blood surged into Rose's face, and receded, leaving -it strangely white. Chi felt his heart contract at the -change, but he went on:</p> -<p class="pnext">"First time Jack ever saw you was in that rig.--You -ain't changed so much but he 'd know you again if he saw -you in Chiny."</p> -<p class="pnext">Still there was silence. Chi moistened his lips.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Can't say as much for him; never saw such a change; -he 's all fallen away to nothin' but skin and bones. Doctor -Heath told me just before I left--'n' he put me aboard -the train--that nothin' could set him up again but this -Mountain air, 'n' good food, 'n'--" Chi paused; his mouth -was uncomfortably dry. Rose's face was turned from him, -but he saw a contraction of her delicate throat, as if a dry -sob were suddenly suppressed. Then she spoke in a -monotone:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why does n't he come, then?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">Why!</em>--" Chi fairly startled himself with his -thundering "why," and Rose half started from the ground. -The blood leaped to her very temples; seeing which, Chi -took heart--"Coz he 's every inch a man, Rose Blossom; -'n' he's got too much grit of the right sort to ask a girl -twice, he 's about given his heart's blood for.</p> -<p class="pnext">"He ain't a-goin' to come crawlin' up here to ask no -favors of you after he knows that you <em class="italics">know</em>--'n' I glory -in his spunk. But I can tell you, if you don't look out, -you 'll come nearer to bein' a real Molly Stark than you -ever thought you could be when you joined the N.B.B.O.O., -'n' by George Washin'ton! it goes against me to see you -breakin' the by-laws you pledged yourself to stand by, -every minute of your life that you keep so dumb towards -Jack Sherrill;--for you 're provin' yourself a coward in -your love, 'n' you 'll have a widowed heart to pay for it -mighty soon, if you keep on, that'll be worse than Molly -Stark's any day--" A whisper stopped him:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Chi, Chi, tell him to come--I want him so; oh, Chi!"</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi's hand was laid on the bowed head with its crown of -shining, golden-brown braids: "Rose Blossom, may God -Almighty bless you for proving yourself a true woman, -'n' worthy of the mother that bore you. I can't say any -more."</p> -<p class="pnext">An hour later March Blossom, with a telegram in his -hand, was speeding on Fleet to Barton's River; and two -days afterwards Mr. Blossom and Alan Ford in the double -wagon, and Chi alone in the buggy, drove down to Barton's -to meet the up-train. Mrs. Blossom and Rose stood on -the porch straining their eyes in the quickly-falling -September twilight to see any movement on the lower road. -The children had been sent over to Hunger-ford till after -tea, for Jack was not strong enough to bear a too joyful -home-coming.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're coming, Rose," said Mrs. Blossom, in a low -tone; then she turned abruptly, and went into the house, -leaving Rose alone on the step.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here we are, safe 'n' sound," said Chi, in an affectedly -cheery voice, as he drove out of the woods'-road. "Just -wait a minute, Jack, 'n' I 'll give you an arm gettin' out." He -laid the reins on the dasher. Then he assisted the tall, -gaunt figure of the man beside him to alight. Jack half -stumbled, for his eyes were seeking Rose--and Rose?</p> -<p class="pnext">All her womanhood, all the sacred privileges of wifehood, -came to her aid at that moment. She sprang to the -carriage, and, with one hand, put Chi aside; with the other, -she lifted Jack's half-nerveless arm and laid it over her -shoulders; then, encircling him with her own slender one, -she said gently, guiding him to the porch step:</p> -<p class="pnext">"<em class="italics">Lean on me, dearest.</em>"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">On the first of November, one of the short-lived Indian -Summer days, the farmhouse on Mount Hunger literally -blossomed like a rose.</p> -<p class="pnext">A week beforehand there had been an animated discussion -as to what should be the wedding decorations of the -"long-room." Hazel, who had been with them a week -already, settled it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"As if there could be any choice!" she exclaimed. -"It's been great fun to hear you all suggesting this, that, -and the other, from ground hemlock and bitter-sweet, to -everlasting! But Jack and I settled it three weeks -ago--how could there be anything for Rose, but roses? -Anyway, that's what Jack wrote, and our florist looked fairly -dazed when I gave him the order--just bushels of them, -Rose-pose, lovely La France ones, like those you threw -into the--No, I won't tease you, Cousin mine," she said, -with a merry laugh, as Rose looked at her appealingly.</p> -<p class="pnext">And now, on the wedding morning of the first of November, -the great box that Chi had brought up from Barton's -the night before was opened, and in Hazel's skilful fingers -the exquisite pink blooms lent to the "long-room" a -wonderful grace and beauty.</p> -<p class="pnext">She was flitting about in her pale pink cashmere dress--"Made -specially to match the roses," she said to March, -as she dropped him a curtsy preparatory to pinning a rose -into his buttonhole. "We must all wear Rose-pose's badge -to-day. Where are you, Budd?"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Here," said her knight, promptly appearing with Cherry -from the pantry, where they had been counting the -frosting-roses on the wedding-cake. He looked down at the -slender fingers as they pulled the stem of the pink bud -through the buttonhole of his jacket, and thought--of the -ring! Then he looked up at the tall, beautiful girl bending -over him, and, somehow, the day of his proposal seemed -very far away in the Past. Hazel was so grown up!--as -tall as Rose. Still, he was n't going to be afraid, if she -was grown up. Now was his time;--and "Ethan Allan" -always made the most of his opportunities. Budd was in -United States History, this term, and he knew this for a -fact.</p> -<p class="pnext">He drew forth from his breeches' pocket a something -that might once have been white, but, at present, looked -more like a shoe-rag, it was so dingy and soiled.</p> -<p class="pnext">"I 've kept it, you see, Hazel," he said, his small mouth -puckering, his round, light-blue eyes growing rounder, as -he looked up at Hazel, with twelve-year-old earnestness.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Kept what?" said Hazel, mystified, and holding up -the offering gingerly between thumb and forefinger to -examine it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Why, don't you know?--the glove you gave me when -you said you 'd be my Lady-love? don't you remember,--in -the barn?" answered Budd, slightly crestfallen.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hazel laughed merrily. "Oh, you funny boy!" she -said, "to keep an old glove of mine for nearly a year and -a half! Why, it's nearly black and blue. Have you kept -it in your best Sunday-go-to-meeting trousers' pocket all -this time?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Budd nodded, but soberly. Seeing which, Hazel gave -him a pat on the top of his head, and assured him she -would give him one of her cleaned party gloves once a -year till he was twenty-one, if only he would promise not -to keep it in his pocket with spruce-gum, chalk, chestnuts, -lead-pencil sharpenings, top-twine, jack-knives, and ginger -cookie crumbs.</p> -<p class="pnext">"How 'd you know I had all those things in my -pocket?" demanded Budd, in his amazement forgetting -his sentiment.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, a little bird told me," replied Hazel. "Run and -ask Chi to come in, will you? I have his rose ready for -him, and it's most time for them all to come."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a quiet wedding. Only those nearest and dearest -were about them; Mr. Sherrill, Aunt Carrie and Uncle -Jo, Mr. Clyde and Hazel, Doctor and Mrs. Heath, the -Blossoms and Chi.</p> -<p class="pnext">Afterwards all the Lost Nation came in to give their -heart-felt blessings and good wishes. They were all -there--from Maria-Ann, radiant in the realization of her own -romance, to Miss Alton and the Fords, who were to leave -on the night train to remain six weeks in New York, and -had placed Hunger-ford at the disposal of Rose and Jack -during the first weeks of their marriage. They remained -but a little while, for the excitement was almost more than -Jack was able to bear.</p> -<p class="pnext">The moon rose between six and seven, largely luminous -and slightly reddened through the soft, warm haze of the -Indian Summer night. Rose had insisted, that, if the -night were mild, Jack should ride over to Hunger-ford -at a snail's pace on Little Shaver, and that she should lead -him. At first Jack protested, but in the end Rose had -her way. Chi, on Fleet, was to ride on a little ahead to be -within call, if anything should be needed. "Kind of -scoutin' to remind us of Cuby, Jack," he said, laughing, -as he helped him into the saddle.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were all on the porch to see the little cavalcade -set forth, the pony whinnying his delight to find his master -on his back. Rose took the bridle. Suddenly she dropped -it, turned, and came back to the steps where Hazel stood -between Mrs. Blossom and March. She put up her arms, -and clasping the young girl about the waist, drew her -down to kiss her, and whisper:</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh, Hazel! What if you had n't come to us!--All -this happiness is through you."</p> -<p class="pnext">And Hazel, but dimly perceiving Rose's meaning, -whispered back as she kissed her:</p> -<p class="pnext">"And if I had n't come, Rose-pose, <em class="italics">I</em> should never have -been rich as I am now; Chi can't call me 'poor' any -longer--for you 're all mine, now that you are Jack's; -aren't you?"</p> -<p class="pnext">March, hearing those whispered words, found his mother's -hand, somehow,--and Mrs. Blossom understood.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Martie dear," cried Rose, love and tears -and laughter struggling in her voice.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Rose dear."</p> -<p class="pnext">"Good-night, Rose--Good-night, Jack!" cried the twins.</p> -<p class="pnext">A white slipper filled with rice flew after Little Shaver, -and hit him on the left hock. But he was a well-bred polo -pony, and a white satin slipper with a little rice was as -nothing to a swift, long-distance polo ball; so he gave no -sign.</p> -<p class="pnext">Chi stopped at the little house "over eastwards." Maria-Ann -was on the lookout.</p> -<p class="pnext">"They 're comin' along just by the turn of the road," -he spoke low, "can you see 'em?"</p> -<p class="pnext">The road lay white in the moonlight. "Yes, yes," cried -Maria-Ann excitedly, "Oh, Chi, ain't it beautiful!"</p> -<p class="pnext">"Sh--sh!" said Chi, "they 'll hear you. Hark! By -George Washin'ton! she 's singin'--Get, Fleet." The -horse loped along over the moonlit road, and Maria-Ann -went in and shut the door--all but a crack. To that she -put her ear, to hear what the clear, sweet voice was -singing:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line">"'I told thee when love was hopeless;</div> -<div class="line">But now he is wild and sings--</div> -<div class="line">That the stars above</div> -<div class="line">Shine ever on Love,</div> -<div class="line">Though they frown on the fate of kings.'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Mount Hunger stood bathed in white radiance. The -stars came out, but faintly;--still, they were shining.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<!-- clearpage --> -<p class="center pfirst x-large">New Illustrated Editions of -Miss Alcott's Famous Stories</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 3em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">LITTLE MEN: Life at Plumfield with Jo's Boys</p> -<p class="pnext">By LOUISA M. ALCOTT. With fifteen full-page illustrations by Reginald -B. Birch. Crown 8vo. Decorated cloth. $2.00.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Little Men" has never been given to an -admiring public in any form so charming as -this one. All that was needed to make the tale quite -irresistible was such illustrations as -are here supplied, fifteen full-page ones instinct with life -and movement and charm.--<em class="italics">Boston Budget</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">LITTLE WOMEN: or Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy</p> -<p class="pnext">By LOUISA M. ALCOTT. With 15 full-page Illustrations by Alice Barber -Stephens. Crown 8vo. Decorated cloth. $2.00.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Books may come and books may go, -but 'Little Women' still remains the ideal book -for young girls, the best representation of bright, -lovable girlhood," say the <em class="italics">Brooklyn -Eagle</em>; and the <em class="italics">Philadelphia Telegraph</em> speaks -of the pictures as follows: "In drawing -women of the Civil War period, Alice Barber Stephens -is in her element, and her -illustrations are all that can be desired."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">AN OLD-FASHIONED GIRL</p> -<p class="pnext">By LOUISA M. ALCOTT. With 12 full-page pictures by Jessie Willcox -Smith. Crown 8vo. Decorated cloth. $2.00.</p> -<p class="pnext">Of the third book in illustrated edition -of the "Little Women" Series, the <em class="italics">Saturday -Evening Gazette</em>, Boston, says: -"No better portraits of Polly and Tom could be imagined -than those which appear in these pages.... -No book of its lamented author has more -endearing qualities."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">JO'S BOYS, and How They Turned Out</p> -<p class="pnext">A Sequel to "Little Men." By LOUISA M. ALCOTT. With 10 full-page -plates by Ellen Wetherald Ahrens. Crown 8vo. Decorated cloth. $2.00.</p> -<p class="pnext">Those who were fascinated by the story -of the Marsh family in "Little Men" will take a -keen interest in the experiences of Mrs. Jo's boys. -"The boys are as entertaining as -their elders were in their time," says the <em class="italics">Worcester Spy</em>, -"and the story has plenty of life -and incident, fun and pathos; its atmosphere -is fresh, pure, and wholesome."</p> -<p class="pnext">"The young folks who have been charmed -with Miss Alcott's previous stories," says the -<em class="italics">San Francisco Chronicle</em>, "will read 'Jo's Boys' -with avidity." The illustrations by -Charlotte Harding are in keeping with the spirit of the author.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="center medium pfirst">THE FOUR VOLUMES PUT UP IN BOX, $8.00</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst white-space-pre-line">LITTLE, BROWN, & COMPANY<br /> -<em class="italics white-space-pre-line">Publishers</em>, 254 WASHINGTON STREET, BOSTON, MASS.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst">Anna Chapin Ray's "Teddy" Stories</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">TEDDY: HER BOOK. A Story of Sweet Sixteen</p> -<p class="pnext">Illustrated by Vesper L. George. 12mo. $1.50.</p> -<p class="pnext">Miss Ray's work draws instant comparison -with the best of Miss Alcott's: first, -because she has the same genuine sympathy -with boy and girl life; secondly, -because she creates real characters, -individual and natural, like the young people -one knows, actually working out the same kind of problems; -and, finally, because -her style of writing is equally unaffected and -straightforward.--<em class="italics">Christian Register</em>, Boston.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">PHEBE: HER PROFESSION</p> -<p class="pnext">A Sequel to "Teddy: Her Book"</p> -<p class="pnext">Illustrated by Frank T. Merrill. 12mo. $1.50.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is one of the few books written for young people -in which there is to be -found the same vigor and grace that one demands -in a good story for older people.--<em class="italics">Worcester Spy</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">TEDDY: HER DAUGHTER</p> -<p class="pnext">A Sequel to "Teddy: Her Book," and "Phebe: Her Profession"</p> -<p class="pnext">Illustrated by J. B. Graff. 12mo. $1.20 net.</p> -<p class="pnext">Introduces a new generation of girls and boys, -all well bred and gifted with good -manners, takes them through much fun and such -adventures as one may find on a -small sandy island, and gives the girl a page -or two of saving common sense about -her duties to boys and her obligation to be true -and womanly.--<em class="italics">New York Times Saturday Review</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">NATHALIE'S CHUM</p> -<p class="pnext">Illustrated by Ellen Bernard Thompson. 12mo. $1.20 net.</p> -<p class="pnext">A charming story of a courageous fifteen-year-old -girl's effort to help her -older brother support an orphaned family of five. -"Nathalie is the sort -of a young girl whom other girls like to read about," -says the <em class="italics">Hartford Courant</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">URSULA'S FRESHMAN. A Sequel to "Nathalie's Chum"</p> -<p class="pnext">Illustrated by Harriet Roosevelt Richards. 12mo. $1.20 net.</p> -<p class="pnext">A hot-tempered, domineering girl, -yet full of common sense and capable -of loyal love, and Jack, her cousin, -who stoically accepts the loss of his -father's fortune, and begins to earn -his own way through Yale, are the -two principal characters in Miss Ray's new book.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="center pfirst white-space-pre-line">LITTLE, BROWN, & COMPANY, <em class="italics white-space-pre-line">Publishers</em><br /> -254 WASHINGTON ST., BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 6em"> -</div> -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="backmatter"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst" id="pg-end-line">*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK <span>A DAUGHTER OF THE RICH</span> ***</p> -<div class="cleardoublepage"> -</div> -<div class="language-en level-2 pgfooter section" id="a-word-from-project-gutenberg" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<span id="pg-footer"></span><h2 class="level-2 pfirst section-title title">A Word from Project Gutenberg</h2> -<p class="pfirst">We will update this book if we find any errors.</p> -<p class="pnext">This book can be found under: <a class="reference external" href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/40661"><span>http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/40661</span></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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