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 LOUISA MAY ALCOTT

Born at Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1832,

the daughter of a schoolmaster and philosopher.
Worked in a hospital during the civil war of
1862-3. She twice visited Europe, 1865 and
1870-1. Died at Boston in 1888.
 LOUISA M. ALCOTT

Little Women
INTRODUCTION BY

GRACE RHYS

DENT: LONDON

EVERYMAN’S LIBRARY
DUTTON: NEW YORK
 All rights reserved
Made in Great Britain
at the
Aldine Press + Letchworth + Herts
for
J. M. DENT & SONS LTD
Aldine House + Bedford Street + London
First included in Everyman’s Library 1908
Last reprinted 1970

This book is sold subject to the con-

dition that it may not be issued on
loan or otherwise except in its original
soft cover.

NO. 2248

ISBN: 0 460 01248 7

 PREFACE

“Go then, my little Book, and show to all

That entertain and bid thee welcome shall,
What thou dost keep close shut up in thy breast;
And wish what thou dost show them may be blest
To them for good, may make them choose to be
Pilgrims better, by far, than thee or me.
Tell them of Mercy; she is one
Who early hath her pilgrimage begun.
Yea, let young damsels learn of her to prize
The world which is to come, and so be wise;
For little tripping maids may follow God
Along the ways which saintly feet have trod.”

Adapted from JoHN BuNYAN.

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 CONTENTS
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LITTLE WOMEN
HAP, Paez
I. PLAYING PILGRIMs -. ues Severs taro aes I
II. A MERRY CHRISTMAS 4 . . fe . e e 4dr
III. THe LAvRENCE Boy ° e ° ® e e e 20
IV. BuRDENS . ° e e 6 ° e e e « 30
V. BrInc NEIGHBOURLY ° ° ° e e e ° 41
VI. BETH FINDS THE PALACE BEAUTIFUL ° e e 52
VII. Amy’s VALLEY OF HUMILIATION 4 -¢ «© «@ “9 58
VIII. Jo meets APOLLYON tag iy Pha Ce eee es
IX. Merc Gors TO VANITY FAIR , . 5 ° ° o 75
MW THELPC. AND PaOsy 3 e e ° e e « 90
XI. EXPERIMENTS . e ° ° ° ° ° ® » 96
XII. Camp LAURENCE , e ° ° ° ° ° a 107
: XIII. CasTLEes IN THE AIR ° . ° ° e ° o 124
XIV. SECRETS . ° ° ° ° e ° oe) 6 e 133
XV. A TELEGRAM , ° ° ° e ° e ° » 142
MVE PLETPERS sha isi fe jet. Wie al <6) 0): enc E5O
XVII. LitTLe FAITHFUL , ° ° e ° e e euiST,
XVIII. Dark Days , Rie Wen heae ° e » 163
XIX. Amy’s WILL «o ° ° ® ° e e ° e I7I
XX. CONFIDENTIAL o ° e ° e e e e. 10 178
_XXI. Lauriz MAKES MISCHIEF, AND JO MAKES PEACE » 185
' XXII. PLeasant MEADows ° a Mahe 627 eee ein 6: -1OO
XXIII. AUNT MARCH SETTLES THE QUESTION « ‘ ° » 202
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 INTRODUCTION

THE life of Louisa May Alcott, the author of “Little Women,”

reads like a fairy-tale—a fairy-tale of everyday life. As in the
fairy-tale, little Cinderella becomes a princess; her wishes become
real Sa and in their realisation take a shape more bright and
astonishing than the most daring of her wishes had ever pictured.
The little Louisa’s early days were full of hardship and denials;
yet they were brightened by one inestimable treasure, and one
which Cinderella had to go without, an unusually strong and
tender family love.
“Little Women” gives a fairly true picture of the Alcott family
life, with Jo for Louisa; but there is one important difference:
delightful and interesting characters though Mrs. Alcott and her
four daughters were, the most interesting of them all was the head
of the family, Mr. Alcott, the beloved friend of Emerson.
Mr. Alcott was an American Froebel of smaller practical ability
but larger outlook; he was a philosopher, a lover of heavenly
wisdom, and he was not content with the love only of this
heavenly wisdom; he strove as very few have done to put all
that he could see or find into practice. He thought it wrong to
kill animals for food, so the children and their mother never
touched meat. Their food was of the poorest and plainest—
boiled rice without sugar, porridge without syrup. Louisa was
often glad to fetch the pies and cakes that a kind old friend saved
for the hungry children. Mr. Alcott thought it wrong to strive
overmuch for money, so there was often no money at all, and
when Louisa was only ten years old she began to have a troubled
mind. In her childish journals we find such entries as: “I rose
at five, and after breakfast washed the dishes, and then helped
mother work.” And alittle later on there is a hint of trouble
which afterwards came: “In the evening father and mother and
Anna and IJ had a long talk. I was very unhappy, and we all
cried, Anna and I cried in bed, and I prayed God to keep us
all together.”
ix
X Introduction
Mr. Alcott believed that all men are brethren, and should live
and work together as equals. Therefore he took all manner of
people into his home, even outcasts, whom his wife and young
daughters served; and this when there was not food or money
fer themselves. ‘More people coming to live with us,” writes the
little girl; “I wish we could be together, and no one else. I
don’t see who is to clothe and feed us all, when we are so poor
now.” It was a wonderful and a hard thing for one man and his
wife and little daughters to fight against the world and its selfish
ways, and very often the world was the stronger, and Mr. Alcott’s
little family came by some very hard knocks. At one time some
foreign refugees were sheltered in the garden, and from them Mr.
and Mrs. Alcott and all the girls caught smallpox, and had te
get well without a doctor. Later on, while nursing a poor family
through scarlet fever, the youngest daughter, the dearly loved
Beth, caught the complaint, and, never recovering, died just as
we read in “ Little Women.”
To fight against such troubles as these, Louisa brought a bright,
sturdy, and self-sacrificing temper. She laughed and lived for
others. She saw the comical side of everything. Once when she
was asked for a definition of a philosopher, she answered, “ My
definition is ofa man up in a balloon with his family and friends
holding the ropes that confine him to earth and trying to haul him
down.” Louisa’s way of hauling upon the ropes was by early
undertaking thé family support. It is nothing short of amazing
to find a mother writing to her little girl of eleven, “I imagined
you might be just such an industrious daughter and I such a
feeble but loving mother, looking to your labour for my daily
bread” —and the little girl responding in touching verses :-—

TO MOTHER,
$*T hope that soon, dear mother,
You and I may be
In the quiet room my fancy
Has so often made for thee—
The pleasant sunny chamber,
The cushioned easy-chair,
The book laid for your reading,
The vase of flowers fair;

While I sit close beside you,

Content at last to see
That you can rest, dear mother,
And I ean eherish thee "
 Introduction xi
Here is the note that Miss Alcott herself added later in life;
“The dream came true, and for the last ten years of her life
Marmee sat in peace with every wish granted, even to the
‘grouping together,’ for she died in my arms.”
Soon, very soon, did the little girl begin the struggle. Born
in 1832, at the age of fifteen she began keeping school in a barn.
It is easy to realise her appearance at this time, already tall, with
a free, majestic walk, a mane of long dark hair, bright dark eyes,
strong, eager, quick, and keen; sometimes moody and sad, but
always recovering her mental balance again through the essential
rightness of her spirit. At seventeen she is keeping school in
Boston and writing plays. At nineteen we actually find her
going out to service, where, although the daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Alcott, she is treated with every kind of indignity. At twenty
her first story is published, and she receives five dollars—an English
pound—for it.
The writing of this story and others represent only a trifling
exercise by the way in the life of this brave girl. Here is her own
astonishing record of her twentieth year. “In January I started
a little school. ... In May when my school closed I went to L.
as second girl. I needed the change, could do the wash, and was
glad to earn my two dollars a week. Home in October, with
thirty-four dollars for my wages. After two days rest, began
school again with ten children... . A hard year. Summer dis-
tasteful and lonely. Winter tiresome with school and people I
didn’t like.” And alittle later: “I earned a good deal by sewing
in the evening when my day’s work was done.” It was charac-
teristic of Miss Alcott that though she might grumble to her
journal, she never grumbled to her friends. It was also charac-
teristic of her that most of this distastefully earned money was
spent in the service of her family. Now it was her pretty sister
May’s need of a new outfit that set her buying and making new
frocks and hats when her own were shabby and needed renewing.
Now it was the thought of her dear people at home that kept her
from spending for herself a hard-earned twenty dollars. “Eight
cold feet on a straw carpet marched to and fro so pathetically
that I locked up the tempting fiend and fell to sewing as a
Saturday treat.”
Is it not a strange picture—philosophy in the person of Mr.
Alcott sitting serenely with cold feet on a matting in winter; on
the other side, the eager loving-hearted daughter painfully over-
working herself to supply the comfort that philosophy was content
to go without?) We may discover here the secret of Miss Alcott’s
xii Introduction
life-work. In her we find the revolt against transcendentalism ;
she did not like Concord and its atmosphere of higher thought,
which had spelt for her, tears and hard labour and boiled rice
witHout syrup. She fled from its cold purity to the warmer atmo-
sphere of human love and the simplicities and actualities of
everyday life.
The first decided sign of the coming change in her fortunes is
found in the journal of her twenty-third year, when we read,
“The principal event of the winter is the appearance of my book
‘Flower Fables.” An edition of sixteen hundred. It has sold
very well, and people seem to like it. I received thirty-two
dollars.”
After this point more and more of hope and pleasure steal into
her life. A gentle courage and consolation came to her from the
beautiful life and early death of her young sister Beth. Her
sister Anna, Meg of ‘Little Women,” is married and happy;
and she herself growing to be the good providence of her dearly
loved mother, of her father, and her art-loving sister May.
The fairy godmother of everyday life sometimes takes the form
of happy chance, sometimes that of a powerful benevolence in
anothers heart, but more often, and particularly so in the case
of Louisa Alcott, the severe though beautiful form of labour and
duty. She sewed continually, and while her busy fingers travelled
as fast and as cleverly as those of a professional needlewoman,
she planned stories and plays and novels without end. She had
a wonderful memory, and was able to plan out a tale and after-
wards write it down, full speed and word for word, when she
found spare time.
Many of the stories written at this time were poor sensational
stuff. From her childhood Louisa Alcott had a passion for acting
and theatricals of all sorts, and later for the theatre itself. She
even wished, as many a clever girl has done, to go upon the
stage. She had a frank taste for melodrama, and her nimble
invention was often busy in wild and impossible scenes. She
had not found her true self yet ; but she was wise enough to know
that this sort of work really was only an inferior means to the
good end of helping her people, and through the writing of such
tales came a lighter pen. The pen that ran so fast in painting
the wild episodes of impossible romance was soon to run equally
fast in painting the true things of life.
A great experience came to Miss Alcott in the year 1862, She
had felt, like all American women of that day, the deepest excite-
ment on the breaking out of the war between North and South.
 Introduction Xill
ceo

In “Little Women” it is the father who goes to the seat ofwar;

in real life it was Miss Alcott herself who went as hospital nurse
to the seat of war. She describes her journey: “I said my
prayers as I went rushing through the country white with tents,
all alive with patriotism, and already red with blood.” And later
on: “ Began my new life by seeing a poor man die at dawn, and
sitting all day between a boy with pneumonia and a man shot
through the lungs. A strange day, but I did my best, and when
I put mother’s little black shawl round the boy while he sat up
panting for breath, he smiled and said, ‘You are real motherly,
ma‘am.’” Miss Alcott gives a terrible picture of the hospital:
“A more perfect pestilence box than this house I never saw, cold,
damp, dirty, full of vile odours.” Her patients she loves and
helps, and observes them so well that she can give a picture of
each favourite in a few brief words. Take that of John Sulie,
the Virginia blacksmith: “About thirty, tall and handsome,
mortally wounded and dying royally without reproach, repining,
or remorse.”
Six weeks of this life, of “doing painful duties all day long
and leading a life of constant excitement, surrounded by three or
four hundred men in all stages of suffering, disease, and death,”
completely broke down Miss Alcott’s health. She became des-
perately ill, and was fetched home a distance of five hundred miles
to lie unconscious for three weeks in fever and delirium. At
length she recovered, but she was never again the strong and
unceasingly active creature that she had been. Active she was,
too active and hard-working, but she had to pay for it in illness,
frequent breakdowns, and severe nervous trouble. She continued
to work her head mercilessly hard. Out of her nursing experi-
ences she wove the book called ‘Hospital Sketches,” a book
which had an immediate and assured success, and made many
friends for her of the best sort and most worth having. So she
is able to write in her journal: “My year closes with a novel
well launched, and about three hundred dollars to pay debts and
make the family happy and comfortable till spring.”
The keep of the family was expensive, and she was soon pushed
to further effort. ‘You ask what I am writing—well, two books
half done, nine stories simmering, and stacks of fairy stories
moulding on the shelf.” All this writing was in addition to heavy
household work—baking, sweeping, washing. As usual all her
money is spent upon others, and, half in fun, she describes her-
self as “a young woman with one dollar, no bonnet, half a gown,
and a discontented mind,”
xiv Introduction
In the year 1865 Miss Alcott visited Europe, and seems par-
ticularly to have enjoyed her stay in London, which was a known
place to her through her love of Dickens.
After her return her life grows more and more full and honoured
and busy, and at last, in May 1868, the publishing firm of Roberts
Bros. ask her to write a story for girls. Though she always
cared more for writing about boys than girls, she fortunately con-
sented to try, and she tried to such good purpose that “ Little
Women” was actually finished in the following July. It was at
once accepted and published, and everywhere took childrens’
hearts by storm. Miss Alcott, through less than two months’
work, became rich, happy, and the beloved idol of American girls.
Her publishers, most honourable men, relieved her of all business
troubles ; every debt of her father’s that vexed her soul was paid;
every dream came true, the realisation often outshining the dream.
Even the little Louisa’s most ambitious dreams can hardly have
whispered to her of a success that would not only render her
famous but also endeared; of a success that would bring her
an income of three or four thousand a year, and a name every-
where known and loved, everywhere powerful for good. “ Little
Women” has been translated into almost every language, and has
won hearts for the author in every land; little Louisa’s early
trials and difficulties have helped unnumbered little American,
English, French, German, Spanish, and Dutch little girls in the
bearing of theirs,
Here is what Miss Alcott herself says of what is true and what
is not true to her own life in “ Little Women” :—
“The early plays and experiences; Beth’s death; Jo’s literary
and Amy’s artistic experiences; Meg’s happy home; John Brooke
and his death ; Demi’s character. Mr. March did not go to the
war, but Jo did. Mrs. March is all true, only not half good
enough.
“ Laurie is not an American boy, though every lad I ever knew
claims the character. He was a Polish boy met abroad in 1865,
Mr. Laurence is my grandfather, Colonel Joseph May. Aunt
March is no one.”
I wish I could say that once success had come Miss Alcott
lived happy ever after, as they say in fairy-tale. But that is not
the way of everyday life, not even of its fairy-tales. There is
nearly always some sorrow mixed with the joy of a realised
dream. Miss Alcott had spent herself too freely; she had
laboured unsparingly and given with both hands; brain and
nerves were overtaxed, and she was very often so suffering as
 Introduction XV
te miss the enjoyment of the happiness she had won. A pas-
sionate lover of her own people, she mourned greatly at the
loss ‘of the noble mother whose favourite child she had ever
been, and also at the early death of her sister May, who died
after two years married happiness abroad, and who left her
baby, “Lulu,” to the care of Miss Alcott. During her last years
of enfeebled health she still devoted herself to her father, whom
she took a pride in dressing and fitting out according to her own
ideas; to the two fine sons of “John Brooke,” who early lost
their father, and to the baby, Lulu. She had always the joy
of being wanted, of feeling that she herself was a centre of help
and comfort, though she was never herself to know the comfort
of resting upon another.
In March 1888 Mr. Alcott began to fail very fast, quietly and
serenely as he had lived. One cold day, with bright sun, Miss
Alcott drove out to see him, and deceived by the sunlight left
a warm fur wrap behind. On her return she became suddenly
seriously ill, and died early on the morning of March 6, 1888,
her father having, unknown to her, already passed away. The
last words she ever wrote were: “I think up my mercies and sing
cheerfully, as dear Marmee used to do, ‘Thus far the Lord hath
led me on !’”
Visitors to the famous town of Concord are shown the pic-
turesque timbered house which was the home of the Alcott family
for twenty-five years. The town which has counted among its
great inhabitants such spirits as Emerson and Hawthorne and
Thoreau, may yet be proud to remember that it can claim
Louisa M. Alcott ; and her brave and bright message to young
girls, which declares for the simple life, and that life without love
is void, is one that may well be associated with the pine-woods
and green places of New England which helped to foster her.
GRACE RHYS
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

works. Dates in parentheses are of first British publication,

Flower Fables. Boston, 1855; Hospital Sketches (letters written to
her mother and sisters while acting as volunteer nurse in the military
hospitals at Washington). Boston, 1863 (1881); Moods. Boston,
¢. 1864 (1866); On Picket Duty, and other tales. Boston, 1864; Little
Women, or, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. Boston, 1868 (1871); Little
Women and Good Wives: being stories for givls. By the Author of ‘An
Old-Fashioned Girl,’ etc. (1871); Morning-Glories, and other stories.
Boston, 1868; An Old-Fashioned Girl. Boston, 1870 (1870); Fiveside
and Camp Stories. By the author of ‘ Little Women’ (1873); Little Men:
life at Plumfield with Jo’s Boys (1871). Boston, 1872; Aunt Jo’s
Scrap Bag, My Boys, Shawl-Stvaps, Cupid and Chow-Chow, and
other stories, My Girls, Jimmy’s Cruise in the ‘Pinafore’ etc., An
Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving, and other stories. Six vols., Boston,
1872-82 (1882, vol. 6); Work: a story of experience. 2 vols. (1873);
Eight Cousins; or, the Aunt-Hill. Boston, 1874 (1875); Rose in Bloom.
A sequel to ‘ Eight Cousins’, etc. Boston, 1876 (1877); Silver Pitchers:
and Independence, a Centennial love story, Boston, 1876 (1876);
Under the lilacs (1877); Jack and Jill. Boston, 1880 (1880); L. M.
Alcott’s Proverb Stories. Kitty’s Class-Day. Aunt Kipp. Psyche’s Art.
Boston, 1868 (1862); Spinning-Wheel Stories. Boston, 1884; Lulu’s
Library Tales, Boston, 1886 [1885]; (1886 [1885]); Jo’s Boys, and how
they turned out. A sequel to ‘Little Men.’ Boston, 1886 (1886); A
Garland for Girls, etc. Boston, 1888 (1888 [1887]);Recollections of my
Childhood’s Days (1890).
BIOGRAPHIES. M. Stern, Louisa May Alcott (1952); Marjorie
Worthington, Miss Alcott of Concord. A biography. New York, 1958.
Catherine O. Peare, Louisa May Alcott (1963); Martha Robinson,
The Young Louisa May Alcott, etc. (1963).
 CHAPTER I »
PLAYING PILGRIMS
“CHRISTMAS won’t be Christmas without any presents,”
grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.
“It’s so dreadful to be poor!” sighed Meg, looking down
at her old dress.
“T don’t think it’s fair for some girls to have plenty of
pretty things, and other girls nothing at all,” added little
Amy, with an injured sniff.
“We've got father and mother and each other,” said Beth
contentedly, from her corner.
The four young faces on which the firelight shone bright-
ened at the cheerful words, but darkened again as Jo said
sadly,—
“We haven’t got father, and shall not have him for a long
time.” She didn’t say “perhaps never,” but each silently
added it, thinking of father far away, where the fighting was.
~ Nobody spoke for a minute; then Meg said in an altered
tone,—
: “You know the reason mother proposed not having any
presents this Christmas was because it is going to be a hard
winter for every one ; and she thinks we ought not to spend
money for pleasure, when our men are suffering so in the
army. We can’t do much, but we can make our little sacri-
fices, and ought to do it gladly. But I am afraid I don’t ;”
and Meg shook her head, as she thought regretfully of all the
pretty things she wanted.
“ But I don’t think the little we should spend would do any
good. We’ve each got a dollar, and the army wouldn’t be
much helped by our giving that. I agree not to expect any-
thing from mother or you, but I do want to buy Undine and
2 Little Women
Sintram for myself; I’ve wanted it so long,” said Jo, who
was a bookworm.
“T planned to spend mine in new music,” said Beth, with a
little sigh, which no one heard but the hearth-brush and
kettle-holder.
“‘T shall get a nice box of Faber’s drawing pencils; I really
need them,” said Amy decidedly.
“Mother didn’t say anything about our money, and she
won’t wish us to give up everything. Let’s each buy what we
want, and have a little fun; I’m sure we work hard enough to
earn it,” cried Jo, examining the heels of her shoes in a
gentlemanly manner.
‘‘T know / do,—teaching those tiresome children nearly all
day, when I’m longing to enjoy myself at home,” began Meg,
in the complaining tone again.
“You don’t have half such a hard time as I do,” said Jo.
** How would you like to be shut up for hours with a nervous,
fussy old lady, who keeps you trotting, is never satisfied, and
worries you till you're ready to fly out of the window or
cry?”
LeTYs naughty to fret; but I do think washing dishes and
keeping things tidy is the worst work in the world. It makes
me cross; and my hands get so stiff, I can’t practise well at
all;” and Beth looked at her rough hands with a sigh that
any one could hear that time.
“*T don’t believe any of you suffer as I do,” cried Amy;
“for you don’t have to go to school with impertinent girls,
who plague you if you don’t know your lessons, and laugh
at your dresses, and label your father if he isn’t rich, and
insult you when your nose isn’t nice.”
“Tf you mean /e/, I’d say so, and not talk about /adels, as
if papa was a pickle-bottle,” advised Jo, laughing.
“T know what I mean, and you needn’t be statirical
about it. It’s proper to use good words, and improve your
vocabilary,” returned Amy, with dignity.
“ Don’t peck at one another, children. Don’t you wish we
had the money papa lost when we were little, Jo? Dear me,
how happy and good we’d be, if we had no worries!” said
Meg, who could remember better times.
“You said the other day, you thought we were a deal
happier than the King children, for they were fighting and
fretting all the time, in spite of their money.”
**So I did, Beth, Well, I think we are; for, though we do
 Playing Pilgrims | 3
have to work, we make fun for ourselves, and are a pretty
Jolly set, as Jo would say.”
“Jo does use such slang words,” observed Amy, with a
reproving look at the long figure stretched on the rug. Jo
immediately sat up, put her hands in her pockets, and began
to whistle.
“Don’t, Jo; it’s so boyish.”
*That’s why I do it.”
*“T detest rude, unlady-like girls!”
“JT hate affected, niminy-piminy chits.”
‘‘* Birds in their little nests agree,’” sang Beth, the peace-
maker, with such a funny face that both sharp voices softened
to a laugh, and the “‘ pecking” ended for that time.
“Really, girls, you are both to be blamed,” said Meg,
beginning to lecture in her elder-sisterly fashion. ‘‘ You are
old enough to leave off boyish tricks, and to behave better,
Josephine. It didn’t matter so much when you were alittle
girl; but now you are so tall, and turn up your hair, you
should remember that you are a young lady.”
“Tm not! and if turning up my hair makes me one, I'll wear
it in two tails till I’m twenty,” cried Jo, pulling off her net and
shaking down achestnut mane. ‘I hate to think I’ve got to
grow up and be Miss March, and wear long gowns, and look
as prim as a China-aster. It’s bad enough to bea girl,
anyway, when I like boys’ games and work and manners. I
can’t get over my disappointment in not being a boy, and it’s
worse than ever now, for I’m dying to go and fight with papa,
and I can only stay at home and knit, like a poky old
woman!” And Jo shook the blue army-sock till the needles
rattled like castanets, and her ball bounded across the room.
‘Poor Jo! It’s too bad, but it can’t be helped; so you
must try to be contented with making your name boyish, and
playing brother to us girls,” said Beth, stroking the rough
head at her knee with a hand that all the dish-washing and
dusting in the world could not make ungentle in its touch.
* As for you, Amy,” continued Meg, “‘ you are altogether too
particular and prim. Your airs are funny now, but you'll grow
up an affected little goose if you don’t take care. I like your
nice manners and refined ways of speaking, when you don’t try
to be elegant; but your absurd words are as bad as Jo’s slang.”
“If Jo is a tomboy and Amy a goose, what am I,
please?” asked Beth, ready to share the lecture.
-* You're a dear, and nothing else,” answered Meg warmly;
 4 Little Women
and no one contradicted her, for the ‘‘ Mouse” was the pet of
the family.
As young readers like to know ‘‘ how people look,” we will
take, this moment to give them a little sketch of the four
sisters, who sat knitting away in the twilight, while the
December snow fell quietly without, and the fire crackled
cheerfully within. It was a comfortable old room, though the
carpet was faded and the furniture very plain; for a good
picture or two hung on the walls, books filled the recesses,
chrysanthemums and Christmas roses bloomed in the windows,
and a pleasant atmosphere of home-peace pervaded it.
Margaret, the eldest of the four, was sixteen, and very
pretty, being plump and fair, with large eyes, plenty of soft,
brown hair, a sweet mouth, and white hands, of which she
was rather vain. Fifteen-year-old Jo was very tall, thin, and
brown, and reminded one of a colt; for she never seemed to
know what to do with her long limbs, which were very much
in her way. She had a decided mouth, a comical nose, and
sharp, grey eyes, which appeared to see everything, and were
by turns fierce, funny, or thoughtful. Her long, thick hair
was her one beauty; but it was usually bundled into a
net to be out of her way. Round shoulders had Jo, big
hands and feet, a fly-away look to her clothes, and the un-
comfortable appearance of a girl who was rapidly shooting up
into a woman, and didn’t like it. Elizabeth—or Beth, as
every one called her—was a rosy, smooth-haired, bright-eyed
girl of thirteen, with a shy manner, a timid voice, and a
peaceful expression, which was seldom disturbed. Her father
called her “Little Tranquillity,” and the name suited her
excellently ; for she seemed to live in a happy world of her
own, only venturing out to meet the few whom she trusted
and loved. Amy, though the youngest, was a most important
person—in her own opinion at least. A regular snow maiden,
with blue eyes, and yellow hair curling on her shoulders; pale
and slender, and always carrying herself like a young lady
mindful of her manners. What the characters of the four
sisters were, we will leave to be found out.
The clock struck six; and, having swept up the hearth,
Beth put a pair of slippers down to warm. Somehow the
sight of the old shoes had a good effect upon the girls; for
mother was coming, and every one brightened to welcome
her. Meg stopped lecturing, and litghted the lamp, Amy got
out of the easy-chair without being asked, and Jo forgot how
 Playing Pilgrims : 5
ae she was as she sat up to hold the slippers nearer to the
aze.
“They are quite worn out ; Marmee must have a new pair.”
“T thought I’d get her some with my dollar,” said Beth.
** No, I shall!” cried Amy.
* 1’m the oldest,” began Meg, but Jo cut in with a decided—
**T’m the man of the family now papa is away, and J shall
provide the slippers, for he told me to take special care of
mother while he was gone.”
**T’1l tell you what we’ll do,” said Beth; “let’s each get her
something for Christmas, and not get anything for ourselves.”
_ That’s like you, dear! What will we get?” exclaimed Jo,
Every one thought soberly for a minute; then Meg an-
- nounced, as if the idea was suggested by the sight of her own
pretty hands, “I shall give her a nice pair of gloves,”
‘“‘ Army shoes, best to be had,” cried Jo.
“Some handkerchiefs, all hemmed,” said Beth.
*T’ll get a little bottle of cologne; she likes it, and it won’t cost
much, so I'll have some left to buy my pencils,” added Amy,
** How will we give the things?” asked Meg. ‘
‘*Put them on the table, and bring her in and see her open
the bundles. Don’t you remember how we used to do on our
birthdays?” answered Jo.
“T used to be so frightened when it was my turn to sit in
the big chair with the crown on, and see you all come marching
round to give the presents, with a kiss. I liked the things
and the kisses, but it was dreadful to have you sit looking at
me while I opened the bundles,” said Beth, who was toasting
her face and the bread for tea, at the same time.
. “Let Marmee think we are getting things for ourselves, and
then surprise her. We must go shopping to-morrow afternoon,
Meg; there is so much to do about the play for Christmas
* night,” said Jo, marching up and down, with her hands behind
her back and her nose in the air.
“1 don’t mean to act any more after this time; I’m getting
too old for such things,” observed Meg, who was as much a
child as ever about “‘ dressing-up” frolics.
“You won’t stop, I know, as long as you can trail round in
a white gown with ‘your hair down, and wear gold-paper
jewelry. You are the best actress we’ve got, and there’ll be
an end of everything if you quit the boards,” said Jo. “We
ought to rehearse to-night. Come here, Amy, and do the
fainting scene, for you are as stiff as a poker in that.”
6 Little Women
“T can’t help it; I never saw any one faint, and I don’t
choose to make myself all black and blue, tumbling flat as
you do. If I can go down easily, I'll drop; if I can’t, I shall
fallsinto a chair and be graceful; I don’t care if Hugo does
come at me with a pistol,” returned Amy, who was not gifted
with dramatic power, but was chosen because she was small
enough to be borne out shrieking by the villain of the piece.
“Do it this way; clasp your hands so, and stagger across
the room, crying frantically, ‘Roderigo! save me! save me!’”
and away went Jo, with a melodramatic scream which was truly
thrilling.
Amy followed, but she poked her hands out stiffly before
her, and jerked herself along as if she went by machinery;
and her “Ow!” was more suggestive of pins being run into
her than of fear and anguish. Jo gave a despairing groan,
and Meg laughed outright, while Beth let her bread burn as
she watched the fun, with interest.
“Tt’s no use! Do the best you can when the time comes,
and if the audience laugh, don’t blame me. Come on, Meg.”
Then things went smoothly, for Don Pedro defied the world
in a speech of two pages without a single break; Hagar,
the witch, chanted an awful incantation over her kettleful of
simmering toads, with weird effect; Roderigo rent his chains
asunder manfully, and Hugo died in agonies of remorse and
arsenic, with a, wild “Ha! ha!”
“It’s the best we’ve had yet,” said Meg, as the dead villain
sat up and rubbed his elbows.
“TJ don’t see how you can write and act such splendid
things, Jo. You're a regular Shakespeare!” exclaimed Beth,
who firmly believed that her sisters were gifted with wonderful
genius in all things.
““Not quite,” replied Jo modestly. “I do think ‘The
Witch’s Curse, an Operatic Tragedy,’ is rather a nice thing;
but I’d like to try Macbeth, if we only had a trap-door for
Banquo. I always wanted to do the killing part. ‘Is that a
dagger that I see before me ?’” muttered Jo, rolling her eyes and
clutching at the air, as she had seen a famous tragedian do.
‘No, it’s the toasting-fork, with mother’s shoe on it instead
of the bread. Beth’s stage-struck!” cried Meg, and the re-
hearsal ended in a general burst of laughter.
“Glad to find you so merry, my girls,” said a cheery voice
at the door, and actors and audience turned to welcome a
tall, motherly lady, with a “can-I-help-you” look about her
 Playing Pilgrims 7
which was truly delightful. She was not elegantly dressed,
but a noble-looking woman, and the girls thought the grey
cloak and unfashionable bonnet covered the most splendid
mother in the world.
“Well, dearies, how have you got on to-day? There was
s0 much to do, getting the boxes ready to go to-morrow, that
I didn’t come home to dinner. Has any one called, Beth?
How is your cold, Meg? Jo, you look tired to death. Come
_and kiss me, baby.”
While making these maternal inquiries, Mrs. March got her
wet things off, her warm slippers on, and, sitting down in the
easy-chair, drew Amy to her lap, preparing to enjoy the
happiest hour of her busy day. ‘The girls flew about, trying
-to make things comfortable, each in her own way. Meg
arranged the tea-table; Jo brought wood, and set chairs,
dropping, overturning, and clattering everything she touched;
Beth trotted to and fro between parlour and kitchen, quiet
and busy; while Amy gave directions to every one, as she
sat with her hands folded.
As they gathered about the table, Mrs. March said, with a
particularly happy face, ‘‘ I’ve got a treat for you after supper.”
A quick, bright smile went round like a streak of sunshine.
Beth clapped her hands, regardless of the biscuit she held,
and Jo tossed up her napkin, crying, “A letter! a letter!
Three cheers for father!”
“‘Yes, a nice long letter. He is well, and thinks he shall
get through the cold season better than we feared. He sends
all sorts of loving wishes for Christmas, and an especial
message to you girls,” said Mrs. March, patting her pocket
as if she had got a treasure there.
‘Hurry and get done! Don’t stop to quirk your little
finger, and simper over your plate, Amy,” cried Jo, choking in
‘her tea, and dropping her bread, butter side down, on the
carpet, in her haste to get at the treat.
Beth ate no more, but crept away, to sit in her shadowy
corner and brood over the delight to come, till the others
were ready.
“T think it was so splendid in father to go as a chaplain
when he was too old to be drafted, and not strong enough
for a soldier,” said Meg warmly.
“Don’t I wish I could go as a drummer, a wivan—what’s
its name? or a nurse, so I could be near him and help him,”
exclaimed Jo, with a groan.
8 Little Women
‘It must be very disagreeable to sleep in a tent, and eat all
sorts of bad-tasting things, and drink out of a tin mug,” sighed
Amy.
“When will he come home, Marmee?” asked Beth, with a
little quiver in her voice.
““ Not for many months, dear, unless he is sick. He will
stay and do his work faithfully as long as he can, and we
won't ask for him back a minute sooner than he can be
spared. Now come and hear the letter.”
They all drew to the fire, mother in the big chair with Beth
at her feet, Meg and Amy perched on either arm of the chair,
and Jo leaning on the back, where no one would see any sign
of emotion if the letter should happen to be touching.
Very few letters were written in those hard times that were
not touching, especially those which fathers sent home. In
this one little was said of the hardships endured, the dangers
faced, or the home-sickness conquered; it was a cheerful,
hopeful letter, full of lively descriptions of camp life, marches,
and military news; and only at the end did the writer’s heart
overflow with fatherly love and longing for the little girls at home.
‘Give them all my dear love anda kiss. Tell them I think
of them by day, pray for them by night, and find my best
comfort in their affection at all times. A year seems very
long to wait before 1 see them, but remind them that while we
wait we may all work, so that these hard days need not be
wasted. I know they will remember all I said to them, that
they will be loving children to you, will do their duty faith-
fully, fight their bosom enemies bravely, and conquer them-
selves so beautifully, that when I come back to them I may
be fonder and prouder than ever of my little women.”
Everybody sniffed when they came to that part; Jo wasn’t
ashamed of the great tear that dropped off the end of her
nose, and Amy never minded the rumpling of her curls as she
hid her face on her mother’s shoulder and sobbed out, “I am
a selfish girl! but I’ll truly try to be better, so he mayn’t be
disappointed in me by-and-by.”
“We all will!” cried Meg. “I think too much of my looks
and hate to work, but won’t any more, if I can help it.”
*‘T’'ll try and be what he loves to call me, ‘a little woman,’
and not be rough and wild; but do my duty here instead of
wanting to be somewhere else,” said Jo, thinking that keeping
her temper at home was a much harder task than facing a
rebel or two down South,
 Playing Pilgrims 9
‘Beth said nothing, but wiped away her tears with the blue
army--sock, and began to knit with all her might, losing no
time in doing the duty that lay nearest her, while she resolved
in her quiet little soul to be all that father hoped to find her
when the year brought round the happy coming home.
Mrs. March broke the silence that followed Jo’s words, by
Saying in her cheery voice, “Do you remember how you used
to play Pilgrim’s Progress when you were little things? Nothing
delighted you more than to have me tie my piece-bags on
' your backs for burdens, give you hats and sticks and rolls
of paper, and let you travel through the house from the cellar,
which was the City of Destruction, up, up, to the house-top,
where you had all the lovely things you could collect to make
_ a Celestial City.”
“What fun it was, especially going by the lions, fighting”
Apollyon, and passing through the Valley where the hob-
goblins were!” said Jo.
*‘T liked the place where the bundles fell off and tumbled
downstairs,” said Meg.
“My favourite part was when we came out on the flat oot
where our flowers and arbours and pretty things were, and alk
stood and sung for joy up there in the sunshine,” said Beth,
smiling, as if that pleasant moment had come back to her.
“IT don’t remember much about it, except that I was afraid
of the cellar and the dark entry, and always liked the cake
and milk we had up at the top. IfI wasn't too old for such
things, I’d rather like to play it over again,” said Amy, who
began to talk of renouncing childish things at the mature age
of twelve.
““We never are too old for this, my dear, because it is a
play we are playing all the time in one way or another. Our
burdens are here, our road is before us, and the longing for
goodness and happiness is the guide that leads us through
many troubles and mistakes to the peace which is a true
Celestial City. Now, my little pilgrims, suppose you begin
again, not in play, but in earnest, and see how far on you can
get before father comes home.”
“ Really, mother? Where are our bundles?” asked aay,
who was a very literal young lady.
“Each of you told what your burden was just now, afeepe
Beth ; I rather think she hasn’t got any,” said her mother.
“Yes, I have; mine is dishes and dusters, and envying
girls with nice pianos, and being afraid of people.”
10 Little Women
Beth’s bundle was such a funny one that everybody wanted
to laugh; but nobody did, for it would have hurt her feelings
very much.
“Tet us do it,” said Meg thoughtfully. ‘It is only another
name for trying to be good, and the story may help us; for
though we do want to be good, it’s hard work, and we forget,
and don’t do our best.”
‘We were in the Slough of Despond to-night, and mother
came and pulled us out as Help did in the book. We ought
to have our roll of directions, like Christian. What shall we
do about that ?” asked Jo, delighted with the fancy which lent
a little romance to the very dull task of doing her duty.
“‘Look under your pillows, Christmas morning, and you
will find your guide-book,” replied Mrs. March.
They talked over the new plan while old Hannah cleared
the table ; then out came the four little work-baskets, and the
needles flew as the girls made sheets for Aunt March. It was
uninteresting sewing, but to-night no one grumbled. They
adopted Jo’s plan of dividing the long seams into four parts,
and calling the quarters Europe, Asia, Africa, and America,
and in that way got on capitally, especially when they talked
about the different countries as they stitched their way through
them.
At nine they stopped work, and sung, as usual, before they
went to bed. No one but Beth could get much music out
of the old piano; but she had a way of softly touching the
yellow keys, and making a pleasant accompaniment to the
simple songs they sung. Meg had a voice like a flute, and
she and her mother led the little choir. Amy chirped like
a cricket, and Jo wandered through the airs at her own sweet
will, always coming out at the wrong place with a croak ora
quaver that spoilt the most pensive tune. ‘They had always
done this from the time they could lisp
* Crinkle, crinkle, ’ittle ’tar,”

and it had become a household custom, for the mother was a

born singer. The first sound in the morning was her voice,
as she went about the house singing like a lark; and the last |
sound at night was the same cheery sound, for the girls never_
grew too old for that familiar lullaby,
 A Miemy?Chtistmas -~ 4

CHAPTER II
A MERRY CHRISTMAS
Jo was the first to wake in the grey dawn of Christmas morn-
ing. No stockings hung at the fireplace, and for a moment
she felt as much disappointed as she did long ago, when her
little sock fell down because it was so crammed with goodies.
Then she remembered her mother’s promise, and slipping her
hand under her pillow, drew out a little crimson-covered book.
She knew it very well, for it was that beautiful old story of the
_ best life ever lived, and Jo felt that it was a true guide-book
for any pilgrim going the long journey. She woke Meg with
a ‘‘ Merry Christmas,” and bade her see what was under her
pillow. A green-covered book appeared, with the same picture
inside, and a few words written by their mother, which made
their one present very precious in their eyes. Presently Beth
and Amy woke, to rummage and find their little books also—
one dove-coloured, the other blue; and all sat looking at and
talking about them, while the east grew rosy with the coming
day.
{n spite of her small vanities, Margaret had a sweet and pious
nature, which unconsciously influenced her sisters, especially
Jo, who loved her very tenderly, and obeyed her because her
advice was so gently given.
‘“‘ Girls,” said Meg seriously, looking from the tumbled
head beside her to the two little night-capped ones in the
room beyond, “ mother wants us to read and love and mind
these books, and we must begin at once. We used to be
faithful about it; but since father went away, and all this war
_ trouble unsettled us, we have neglected many things. You
can do as you please; but / shall keep my book on the table
here, and read a little every morning as soon as I wake, for I
know it will do me good, and help me through the day.”
Then she opened her new book and began to read. Jo put
her arm round her, and, leaning cheek to cheek, read also,
with the quiet expression so seldom seen on her restless face.
“ How good Meg is! Come, Amy, let’s do as they do.
I'll help you with the hard words, and they'll explain things if
' we don’t understand,” whispered Beth, very much impressed
by the pretty books and her sisters’ example.
12 Little Women
‘I’m glad mine is blue,” said Amy; and then the rooms
were very still while the pages were softly turned, and the
winter sunshine crept in to touch the bright heads and serious
faces with a Christmas greeting.
‘‘Where is mother?” asked Meg, as she and Jo ran down
to thank her for their gifts, half-an-hour later.
“Goodness only knows. Some poor creeter come a-beggin’,
and your ma went straight off to see what was needed. ‘Lhere
never was such a woman for givin’ away vittles and drink,
clothes and firin’,” replied Hannah, who had lived with the
family since Meg was born, and was considered by them all
more as a friend than a servant.
“She will be back soon, I think; so fry your cakes, and
have everything ready,” said Meg, looking over the presents
which were collected in a basket and kept under the sofa,
ready to be produced at the proper time. ‘‘ Why, where is
Amy’s bottle of cologne?” she added, as the little flask did
not appear.
“ She took it out a minute ago, and went off with it to put
a ribbon on it, or some such notion,” replied Jo, dancing about
the room to take the first stiffness off the new army-slippers.
“ How nice my handkerchiefs look, don’t they? Hannah
washed and ironed them for me, and I marked them all
myself,” said Beth, looking proudly at the somewhat uneven
letters which had cost her such labour.
“Bless the child! she’s gone and put ‘ Mother’ on them
instead of ‘M. March.’ How funny!” cried Jo, taking up one.
“Tsn’t it right? I thought it was better to do it so, because
Meg’s initials are ‘M. M.,’ and I don’t want any one to use
these but Marmee,” said Beth, looking troubled.
“It’s all right, dear, and a very pretty idea; quite sensible,
too, for no one can ever mistake now. It will please her very
much, I know,” said Meg, with a frown for Jo and a smile
for Beth.
‘“‘There’s mother. Hide the basket, quick!” cried Jo, as a
door slammed, and steps sounded in the hall.
Amy came in hastily, and looked rather abashed when she
saw her sisters all waiting for her.
“Where have you been, and what are you hiding behind
you ?” asked Meg, surprised to see, by her hood and cloak,
that lazy Amy had been out so early.
“Don’t laugh at me, Jo! I didn’t mean any one should
know till the time came. I only meant to change the little
 A Merry Christmas * 8
bottle for a big one, and I gave a// my money to get it, and
I'm truly trying not to be selfish any more.”
As she spoke, Amy showed the handsome flask which re-
placed the cheap one: and looked so earnest and humble in
her little effort to forget herself, that Meg hugged her on the
spot, and Jo pronounced her “‘a trump,” while Beth ran to the
window, and picked her finest rose to ornament the stately bottle.
“You see I felt ashamed of my present, after reading and
talking about being good this morning, so I ran round the
corner and changed it the minute I was up; and I’m so glad,
for mine is the handsomest now.”
Another bang of the street door sent the basket under the
sofa, and the girls to the table, eager for breakfast.
_ “Merry Christmas, Marmee! Many of them! Thank you
for our books; we read some, and mean to every day,” they
cried, in chorus.
‘Merry Christmas, little daughters! I’m glad you began
at once, and hope you will keep on. But I want to say one
word before we sit down. Not far away from here lies a poor
woman with alittle new-born baby. Six children are huddled
into one bed to keep from freezing, for they have no fire.
There is nothing to eat over there; and the oldest boy came
to tell me they were suffering hunger and cold. My girls,
will you give them your breakfast as a Christmas present ?”
They were all unusually hungry, having waited nearly an
hour, and for a minute no one spoke; only a minute, for Jo
exclaimed impetuously,—
“I’m so glad you came before we began!”
“May I-go and help carry the things to the poor little
children?” asked Beth eagerly.
““ 7 shall take the cream and the muffins,” added Amy,
heroically giving up the articles she most liked.
_ Meg was already covering the buckwheats, and piling the
bread into one big plate.
“TJ thought you’d do it,” said Mrs. March, smiling as if
satisfied. “You shall all go and help me, and when we come
back we will have bread and milk for breakfast, and make it
up at dinner time.” ;
They were soon ready, and the procession set out. For-
tunately it was early, and they went through back streets, so
few people saw them, and no one laughed at the queer party.
_ A poor, bare, miserable room it was, with broken windows,
no fire, ragged bed-clothes, a sick mother, wailing baby, and
14 Little Women
a group of pale, hungry children cuddled under one old quilt,
trying to keep warm.
How the big eyes stared, and the blue lips smiled, as the
girks went in!
“Ach, mein Gott! it is good angels come to us!” said
the poor woman, crying for joy.
“Funny angels in hoods and mittens,” said Jo, and set
them laughing.
In a few minutes it really did seem as if kind spirits had
been at work there. Hannah, who had carried wood, made a
fire, and stopped up the broken panes with old hats and her
own cloak. Mrs. March gave the mother tea and gruel, and
comforted her with promises of help, while she dressed the
little baby as tenderly as if it had been her own. The girls,
meantime, spread the table, set the children round the fire,
and fed them like so many hungry birds; laughing, talking,
and trying to understand the funny broken English,
“Das ist gut!” “Die Engel-kinder!” cried the poor
things, as they ate, and warmed their purple hands at the
comfortable blaze.
The girls had never been called angel children before, and
thought it very agreeable, especially Jo, who had been con-
sidered a “Sancho” ever since she was born. That was a
very happy breakfast, though they didn’t get any of it; and
when they went away, leaving comfort behind, I think there
were not in all the city four merrier people than the hungry
little girls who gave away their breakfasts, and contented
themselves with bread and milk on Christmas morning.
“That’s loving our neighbour better than ourselves, and I
like it,” said Meg, as they set out their presents, while their
mother was upstairs collecting clothes for the poor Hummels.
Not a very splendid show, but there was a great deal of
love done up in the few little bundles; and the tall vase of
red roses, white chrysanthemums, and trailing vines, which
stood in the middle, gave quite an elegant air to the table.
“She’s coming! Strike up, Beth! Open the door, Amy!
Three cheers for Marmee!” cried Jo, prancing about, while
Meg went to conduct mother to the seat of honour.
Beth played her gayest march, Amy threw open the door,
and Meg enacted escort with great dignity. Mrs.-March was
both surprised and touched ; and smiled with her eyes full as
she examined her presents, and read the little notes which
accompanied them. The slippers went on at once, a new
 A Merry Christmas 2 a
handkerchief was slipped into her pocket, well scented with
Amy’s cologne, the rose was fastened in her bosom, and the
nice gloves were pronounced a “perfect fit.”
There was a good deal of laughing and kissing and. ex-
plaining, in the simple, loving fashion which makes these
home festivals so pleasant at the time, so sweet to remember
long afterward, and then all fell to work.
The morning charities and ceremonies took so much time,
that the rest of the day was devoted to preparations for the
evening festivities. Being still too young to go often to the
theatre, and not rich enough to afford any great outlay for
private performances, the girls put their wits to work, and—
necessity being the mother of invention—made whatever they
needed. Very clever were some of their productions; paste-
board guitars, antique lamps made of old-fashioned butter-
boats, covered with silver paper, gorgeous robes of old cotton,
glittering with tin spangles from a pickle factory, and armour
covered with the same useful diamond-shaped bits, left in
sheets when the lids of tin preserve-pots were cut out. The
furniture was used to being turned topsy-turvy, and the big
chamber was the scene of many innocent revels.
No gentlemen were admitted; so Jo played male parts to
her heart’s content, and took immense satisfaction in a pair of
russet-leather boots given her by a friend, who knew a lady
who knew an actor. These boots, an old foil, and a slashed
doublet once used by an artist for some picture, were Jo’s
chief treasures, and appeared on all occasions. ‘The smallness
of the company made it necessary for the two principal actors
to take several parts apiece ; and they certainly deserved some
credit for the hard work they did in learning three or four
different parts, whisking in and out of various costumes, and
managing the stage besides. It was excellent drill for their
memories, a harmless amusement, and employed many hours
which otherwise would have been idle, lonely, or spent in less
profitable society.
On Christmas night, a dozen girls piled on to the bed,
which was the dress circle, and sat before the blue and yellow
chintz curtains, in a most flattering state of expectancy. There
was a good deal of rustling and whispering behind the curtain,
a trifle of lamp smoke, and an occasional giggle from Amy,
who was apt to get hysterical in the excitement of the moment.
Presently a bell sounded, the curtains flew apart, and the
Operatic Tragedy began.
 16 Little Women
“A gloomy wood,” according to the one play-bill, was
represented by a few shrubs in pots, green baize on the
floor, and a cave in the distance. This cave was made with
a. clothes-horse for a roof, bureaus for walls; and in it was
a small furnace in full blast, with a black pot on it, and an
old witch bending over it. The stage was dark, and the glow
of the furnace had afine effect, especially as real steam issued
from the kettle when the witch took off the cover. A moment
was allowed for the first thrill to subside; then Hugo, the
villain, stalked in with a clanking sword at his side, a slouched
hat, black beard, mysterious cloak, and the boots. After
pacing to and fro in much agitation, he struck his forehead,
and burst out in a wild strain, singing of his hatred to
Roderigo, his love for Zara, and his pleasing resolution to kill
the one and win the other. The gruff tones of Hugo’s voice,
with an occasional shout when his feelings overcame him,
were very impressive, and the audience applauded the moment
he paused for breath. Bowing with the air of one accustomed
to public praise, he stole to the cavern and ordered Hagar to
come forth with a commanding, “ What ho! minion! I need
thee!”
Out came Meg, with grey horse-hair hanging about her face,
a red and black robe, a staff, and cabalistic signs upon her
cloak. Hugo demanded a potion to make Zara adore him,
and one to destroy Roderigo. Hagar, in a fine dramatic
melody, promised both, and proceeded to call up the spirit
who would bring the love philter :— .
** Hither, hither, from thy home,
Airy sprite, I bid thee come!
Born of roses, fed on dew,
Charms and potions canst thou brew?
Bring me here, with eltin speed,
The fragrant philter which I need;
Make it sweet and swift and strong,
Spirit, answer now my song!”

A soft strain of music sounded, and then at the back of

the cave appeared alittle figure in cloudy white, with glitter-
ing wings, golden hair, and a garland of roses on its head,
Waving a wand, it sang :—
« Hither I come,
From my airy home,
Afar in the silver moon,
Take the magic spell,
And use it well, - .
Or its power will vanish soon {®
 A Merry Christmas 17
And dropping a small gilded bottle at the witch’s feet, the
spirit vanished. Another chant from Hagar produced another
apparition—not a lovely one; for, with a bang, an ugly black
imp appeared, and, having croaked a reply, tossed a dark
bottle at Hugo, and disappeared with a mocking laugh.
Having warbled his thanks, and put the potions in his boots,
Hugo departed; and Hagar informed the audience that, as
he had killed a few of her friends in times past, she has cursed
him, and intends to thwart his plans, and be revenged on
him. Then the curtain fell, and the audience reposed and
ate candy while discussing the merits of the play.
A good deal of hammering went on before the curtain rose
again; but when it became evident what a masterpiece of
stage-carpentering had been got up, no one murmured at the
delay. It was truly superb! A tower rose to the ceiling;
half-way up appeared a window with a lamp burning at it,
and behind the white curtain appeared Zara in a lovely blue
and silver dress, waiting for Roderigo. He came in gorgeous
array, with plumed cap, red cloak, chestnut love-locks, a
guitar, and the boots, of course. Kneeling at the foot of the
tower, he sang a serenade in melting tones. Zara replied,
and, after a musical dialogue, consented to fly. Then came
the grand effect of the play. Roderigo produced a rope-
ladder with five steps to it, threw up one end, and invited
Zara to descend. ‘Timidly she crept from her lattice, put her
hand on Roderigo’s shoulder, and was about to leap gracefully
down, when, “ Alas, alas for Zara!” she forgot her train—it
caught in the window; the tower tottered, leaned forward,
fell with a crash, and buried the unhappy lovers in the ruins!
. A universal shriek arose as the russet boots waved wildly
from the wreck, and a golden head emerged, exclaiming, “I
told you so! I told you so!” With wonderful presence of
mind Don Pedro, the cruel sire, rushed in, dragged out his
daughter with a hasty aside,—
“Don’t laugh! Act as if it was all right!” and ordering
Roderigo up, banished him from the kingdom with wrath and
scorn. Though decidedly shaken by the fall of the tower
upon him, Roderigo defied the old gentleman, and refused
to stir. This dauntless example fired Zara; she also defied
her sire, and he ordered them both to the deepest dungeons
of the castle. A stout little retainer came in with chains, and
led them away, looking very much frightened, and evidently
forgetting the speech he ought to have made.
18 Little Women
Act third was the castle hall; and here Hagar appeared,
having come to free the lovers and finish Hugo. She hears
him coming, and hides; sees him put the potions into two cups
of wine, and bid the timid little servant “ Bear them | to the
captives in their cells, and tell them I shall comeanon.” The
servant takes Hugo aside to tell him something, and Hagar
changes the cups for two others which are harmless. Ferdi-
nando, the “ minion,” carries them away, and Hagar puts back
the cup which holds the poison meant for Roderigo. Hugo,
getting thirsty after a long warble, drinks it, loses his wits,
and, after.a good deal of clutching and stamping, falls flat
and dies; while Hagar informs him what she has done in a
song of exquisite power and melody.
This was a truly thrilling scene, though some persons might
have thought that the sudden tumbling down of a quantity of
long hair rather marred the effect of the villain’s death. He
was called before the curtain, and with great propriety appeared,
leading Hagar, whose singing was considered more wonderful
than all the rest of the performance put together.
Act fourth displayed the despairing Roderigo on the point
of stabbing himself, because he has been told that Zara has
deserted him. Just as the dagger is at his heart, a lovely
song is sung under his window, informing him that Zara is
true, but in danger, and he can save her, if he will. A key
is thrown in, which unlocks the door, and in a spasm of
rapture he tears off his chains, and rushes away to find and
rescue his lady-love.
Act fifth opened with a stormy scene between Zara and Don
Pedro. He wishes her to go into a convent, but she won’t hear
of it; and, after a touching appeal, is about to faint, when
Roderigo dashes in and demands herhand. Don Pedro refuses,
because he is not rich. They shout and gesticulate tremen-
dously, but cannot agree, and Roderigo is about to bear away
the exhausted Zara, when the timid servant enters with a letter
and a bag from Hagar, who has mysteriously disappeared.
The latter informs the party that she bequeaths untold wealth
to the young pair, and an awful doom to Don Pedro if he
doesn’t make them happy. The bag is opened, and several
quarts of tin money shower down upon the stage, till it is quite
glorified with the glitter. This entirely softens the “stern sire ;”
he consents without a murmur, all join in a joyful chorus, and
the curtain falls upon the lovers kneeling to receive Don Pedro’s
blessing in attitudes of the most romantic grace.
 A Merry Christmas 19
Tumultuous applause followed, but received an unexpected
check; for the cot-bed, on which the “dress circle” was built,
suddenly shut up, and extinguished the enthusiastic audience.
Roderigo and Don Pedro flew to the rescue, and all were taken
out unhurt, though many were speechless with laughter. ‘The
excitement had hardly subsided when Hannah appeared, with
“ Mrs. March’s compliments, and would the ladies walk down
to supper?”
This was a surprise, even to the actors ; and when they saw
the table they looked at one another in rapturous amazement.
It was like Marmee to get up a little treat for them; but
anything so fine as this was unheard of since the departed days
of plenty. There was ice-cream—actually two dishes of it,
pink and white—and cake and fruit and distracting French
bonbons, and in the middle of the table four great bouquets of
hothouse flowers!
It quite took their breath away ; and they stared first at the
table and then at their mother, who looked as if she enjoyed it
immensely.
“Ts it fairies?” asked Amy.
*Tt’s Santa Claus,” said Beth.
“Mother did it;” and Meg smiled her sweetest, in spite of
her grey beard and white eyebrows.
“Aunt March had a good fit, and sent the supper,” cried Jo,
with a sudden inspiration.
“ All wrong. Old Mr. Laurence sent it,” replied Mrs. March.
‘The Laurence boy’s grandfather! What in the world put
such a thing into his head? We don’t know him!” exclaimed
Meg.
“ Hannah told one of his servants about your breakfast party.
He is an odd old gentleman, but that pleased him. He knew
my father, years ago, and he sent me a polite note this after-
noon, saying he hoped I would allow him to express his friendly
feeling toward my children by sending them a few trifles in
honour of the day. I could not refuse, and so you have a
little feast at night to make up for the bread and milk
breakfast.”
“That boy put it into his head. I know he did! He’s a
capital fellow, and I wish we could get acquainted. He looks
as if he'd like to know us; but he’s bashful, and Meg is so
prim she won’t let me speak to him when we pass,” said Jo, as
the plates went round, and the ice began to melt out of sight,
with “Ohs!” and “ Ahs!” of satisfaction.
20 Little Women
“You mean the people who live in the big house next door,
don’t you?” asked one of the girls. ‘ My mother knows old
Mr. Laurence, but says he’s very proud, and doesn’t like to mix
with his neighbours. He keeps his grandson shut up when he
isn’t riding or walking with his tutor, and makes him study
very hard. We invited him to our party, but he didn’t
come. Mother says he’s very nice, though he never speaks to
us girls.”
‘Our cat ran away once, and he brought her back, and we
talked over the fence, and were getting on capitally—all about
cricket, and so on—when he saw Meg coming, and walked off.
I mean to know him some day; for he needs fun, I’m sure he
does,” said Jo decidedly.
“T like his manners, and he looks like a little gentleman ; so
I’ve no objection to your knowing him if a proper opportunity
comes. He brought the flowers himself, and I should have
asked him in if I had been sure what was going on upstairs.
He looked so wistful as he went away, hearing the frolic, and
evidently having none of his own.”
“Tt’s a mercy you didn’t, mother!” laughed Jo, looking at
her boots. ‘ But we’ll have another play some time, that he
can see. Perhaps he’ll help act ; wouldn’t that be jolly?”
“T never had such a fine bouquet before! How pretty it
is!” and Meg examined her flowers with great interest.
“They ave lovely! But Beth’s roses are sweeter to me,”
said Mrs. March, smelling the half-dead posy in her belt.
Beth nestled up to her, and whispered softly, “I wish I could
send my bunch to father. I’m afraid he isn’t having such a
merry Christmas as we are.”

CHAPTER III
THE LAURENCE BOY
‘Jo! Jo! where are you?” cried Meg, at the foot of the garret
stairs.
“‘ Here!” answered a husky voice from above; and running
up, Meg found her sister eating apples and crying over the
“ Heir of Redcliffe,” wrapped up in a comforter on an old three-
legged sofa by the sunny window. ‘This was Jo’s favourite
refuge ; and here she loved to retire with half-a-dozen russets
 The Laurence Boy | 21
and a nice book, to enjoy the quiet and the society of a pet
rat who lived near by, and didn’t mind her a particle. As Meg
appeared, Scrabble whisked into his hole. Jo shook the tears
off her cheeks, and waited to hear the news.
“Such fun ! only see! a regular note of invitation from Mrs.
Gardiner for to-morrow night !” cried Meg, waving the precious
paper, and then proceeding to read it, with girlish delight.
“Mrs. Gardiner would be happy to see Miss March and
_ Miss Josephine at a little dance on New Year’s Eve.’ Marmee
is willing we should go; now what sha// we wear?”
‘‘What’s the use of asking that, when you know we shall wear
our poplins, because we haven’t got anything else,” answered
_ Jo, with her mouth full.
“Tf I only had a silk!” sighed Meg. ‘ Mother says I may
when I’m eighteen, perhaps; but two years is an everlasting
time to wait.”
“]’m sure our pops look like silk, and they are nice enough
for us. Yours is as good as new, but I forgot the burn and the
tear in mine. Whatever shall I do? the burn shows badly,
and I can’t take any out.”
“You must sit still all you can, and keep your back out ot
sight; the front is all right. I shall have a new ribbon for my
hair, and Marmee will lend me her little pearl pin, and my new
slippers are lovely, and my gloves will do, though they aren’t as
nice as I’d like.”
“ Mine are spoilt with lemonade, and I can’t get any new
ones, so I shall have to go without,” said Jo, who never troubled
herself much about dress,
_ Vou must have gloves, or I won’t go,” cried Meg decidedly.
“Gloves are more important than anything else ; you can’t
dance without them, and if you don’t I should be so mortified.”
“Then I’ll stay still. I don’t care much for company danc-
ing; it’s no fun to go sailing round; I like to fly about and
cut capers.”
“ You can’t ask mother for new ones, they are so expensive,
and you are so careless. She said, when you spoilt the others,
that she shouldn’t get you any more this winter. Can’t you
make them do?” asked Meg anxiously.
“ J can hold them crumpled up in my hand, so no one will
know how stained they are; that’s all I cando. No! [ll tell
you how we can manage—each wear one good one and carry a
bad one; don’t you see?”
*‘ Your hands are bigger than mine, and you will stretch my
22 Little Women
glove dreadfully,” began Meg, whose gloves were a tender point
with her.
“Then I’ll go without. I don’t care what people say!” cried
Jo, taking up her book.
“You may have it, you may! only don’t stain it, and do
behave nicely. Don’t put your hands behind you, or stare,
or say ‘ Christopher Columbus !’ will you?”
** Don’t worry about me; I’ll be as prim as I can, and not
get into any scrapes, if I can help it. Now go and answer
your note, and let me finish this splendid story.”
So Meg went away to “accept with thanks,” look over her
dress, and sing blithely as she did up her one real lace frill;
while Jo finished her story, her four apples, and had a game
of romps with Scrabble.
On New Year’s Eve the parlour was deserted, for the two
younger girls played dressing-maids, and the two elder were
absorbed in the all-important business of “ getting ready for
the party.” Simple as the toilets were, there was a great deal
of running up and down, laughing and talking, and at one
time a strong smell of burnt hair pervaded the house. Meg
wanted a few curls about her face, and Jo undertook to pinch
the papered locks with a pair of hot tongs.
“ Ought they to smoke like that?” asked Beth, from her
perch on the bed.
“It’s the dampness drying,” » replied Jo.
“What a queer smell! it’s like burnt feathers,” observed
Amy, smoothing her own pretty curls with a superior air.
“There, now I ]l take off the papers and you'll see a cloud
of little ringlets,” said Jo, putting down the tongs.
She did take off the papers, but no cloud of ringlets appeared,
for the hair came with the papers, and the horrified hair-
dresser laid a row of little scorched bundles on the bureau
before her victim.
“Oh. oh, oh! what Aave you done? I’m spoilt! I can’t
go! My hair, oh, my hair!” wailed Meg, looking with despair
at the uneven frizzle on her forehead.
“Just my luck! you shouldn’t have asked me to do it; I
always spoil everything. I’m so sorry, but the tongs were
too hot, and so I’ve made a mess,” groaned poor Jo, regarding
the black pancakes with tears of regret.
“Itisn’t spoilt; just frizzle it, and tie your ribbon so the ends
come on your forehead a bit, and it will look like the last
fashion. I’ve seen many girls do it so,” said Amy consolingly.
 The Laurence Boy | 23
“Serves me right for trying to be fine. I wish I’d let my
hair alone,” cried Meg petulantly.
**So do I, it was so smooth and pretty. But it will soon
grow out again,” said Beth, coming to kiss and comfort the
shorn sheep.
After various lesser mishaps, Meg was finished at last, and
by the united exertions of the family, Jo’s hair was got up,
and her dress on. They looked very well in their simple
- suits— Meg in silvery drab, with a blue velvet snood, lace frills,
and the pearl pin; Jo in maroon, with a stiff, gentlemanly
linen collar, and a white chrysanthemuin or two for her only
Ornament. Each put on one nice light glove, and carried one
_ soiled one, and all pronounced the effect “quite easy and
fine.” Meg’s high-heeled slippers were very tight, and hurt
her, though she would not own it, and Jo’s nineteen hair-
pins all seemed stuck straight into her head, which was not
exactly comfortable; but, dear me, let us be elegant or die!
“Have a good time, dearies,” said Mrs. March, as the
sisters went daintily down the walk. ‘ Don’t eat much supper,
and come away at eleven, when I send Hannah for you.” As
the gate clashed behind them, a voice cried from a window,—
“Girls, girls! ave you both got nice pocket-handkerchiefs?”
“Yes, yes, spandy nice, and Meg has cologne on hers,”
cried Jo, adding, with a laugh, as they went on, ‘I do believe
Marmee would ask that if we were all running away from an
earthquake.”
“It is one of her aristocratic tastes, and quite proper, for a
real lady is always known by neat boots, gloves, and handker-
chief,” replied Meg, who had a good many little “aristocratic
tastes” of her own.
‘““Now don’t forget to keep the bad breadth out of sight, Jo.
‘ Is my sash right? and does my hair look very bad?” said
Meg, as she turned from the glass in Mrs. Gardiner’s dressing-
room, after a prolonged prink.
“T know I shall forget. If you see me doing anything
wrong, just remind me by a wink, will you?” returned Jo,
giving her collar a twitch, and her head a hasty brush.
“No, winking isn’t lady-like; I’ll lift my eyebrows if any-
thing is wrong, and nod if you are all right. Now hold your
shoulders straight, and take short steps, and don’t shake hands
if you are introduced to any one, it isn’t the thing.”
“How do you learn all the proper ways? I never can.
Isn’t that music gay?”
24 Little Women
Down they went, feeling a trifle timid, for they seldom went
to parties, and, informal as this little gathering was, it was an
event to them. Mrs. Gardiner, a stately old lady, greeted
them kindly, and handed them over to the eldest of her six
daughters. Meg knew Sallie, and was at her ease very soon ;
but Jo, who didn’t care much for girls or girlish gossip, stood
about with her back carefully against the wall, and felt as much
out of place as a colt in a flower-garden. Half-a-dozen jovial
lads were talking about skates in another part of the room, and
she longed to go and join them, for skating was one of the
joys of her life. She telegraphed her wish to Meg, but the
eyebrows went up so alarmingly that she dared not stir. No
one came to talk to her, and one by one the group near her
dwindled away, till she was left alone. She could not roam
about and amuse herself, for the burnt breadth would show,
so she stared at people rather forlornly till the dancing began.
Meg was asked at once, and the tight slippers tripped about
so briskly that none would have guessed the pain their wearer
suffered smilingly. Jo saw a big, red-headed youth ap-
proaching her corner, and fearing he meant to engage her,
she slipped into a curtained recess, intending to peep and
enjoy herself in peace. Unfortunately, another bashful person
had chosen the same refuge; for, as the curtain fell behind
her, she found herself face to face with the ‘‘ Laurence boy.”
“Dear me, I didn’t know any one was here!” stammered
Jo, preparing to back out as speedily as she had bounced in.
But the boy laughed, and said pleasantly, though he looked
a little startled,—
“ Don’t mind me; stay if you like.”
“Shan’t I disturb you?”
“Not a bit; I only came here because I don’t know many
people, and felt rather strange at first, you know.”
**So did I. Don’t go away, please, unless you’d rather.”
The boy sat down again and looked at his pumps, till Jo
said, trying to be polite and easy,—
“I think I’ve had the pleasure of seeing you before; you
live near us, don’t you?”
“Next door ;” and he looked up and laughed outright, for
Jo’s prim manner was rather funny when he remembered how
they had chatted about cricket when he brought the cat
home.
That put Jo at her ease; and she laughed too, as she said,
in her heartiest way,—
 The Laurence Boy | 25
“We did have such a good time over your nice Christmas
present.”
“Grandpa sent it.”
‘But you put it into his head, didn’t you, now?”
“ How is your cat, Miss March ?” asked the boy, trying to
look sober, while his black eyes shone with fun.
“Nicely, thank you, Mr. Laurence; but I am not Miss
March, I’m only Jo,” returned the young lady.
‘Vm not Mr. Laurence; I’m only Laurie.”
“ Laurie Laurence—what an odd name.”
“My first name is Theodore, but 1 don’t like it, for the
fellows called me Dora, so I made them say Laurie instead.”
““T hate my name, too—so sentimental! I wish every one
would say Jo, instead of Josephine. How did you make the
boys stop calling you Dora?”
“T thrashed ’em.”
“T can’t thrash Aunt March, so I suppose I shall have to
bear it ;” and Jo resigned herself with a sigh.
“ Don’t you like to dance, Miss Jo?” asked Laurie, looking
as if he thought the name suited her.
“T like it well enough if there is plenty of room, and every
one is lively. In a place like this, I’m sure to upset some-
thing, tread on people’s toes, or do something dreadful, so
I keep out of mischief, and let Meg sail about. Don’t you
dance ?”
‘“* Sometimes ; you see I’ve been abroad a good many years,
and haven’t been into company enough yet to know how
you do things here.”
“ Abroad!” cried Jo. ‘Oh, tell me about it! I love dearly
‘to hear people describe their travels.”
Laurie didn’t seem to know where to begin; but Jo’s eager
questions soon set him going, and he told her how he had
been at school in Vevay, where the boys never wore hats, and
had a fleet of boats on the lake, and for holiday fun went
walking trips about Switzerland with their teachers.
“Don’t I wish I’d been there!” cried Joe. “ Did you go
to Paris?”
“We spent last winter there.”
“Can you talk French?”
“We were not allowed to speak anything else at Vevay.”
“Do say some. I can read it, but can’t pronounce.”
“Quel nom a cette jeune demoiselle en les pantoufles
jolis?” said Laurie good-naturedly.

dG
26 Little Women
“How nicely you do it! Let me see—you said, ‘Who is
the young lady in the pretty slippers,’ didn’t you ?”
“Qui, mademoiselle.”
“JIt’s my sister Margaret, and you knew it was! Do you
think she is pretty ?”
“Yes; she makes me think of the German girls, she looks
so fresh and quiet, and dances like a lady.”
Jo quite glowed with pleasure at this boyish praise of her
sister, and stored it up to repeat to Meg. Both peeped and
criticised and chatted, till they felt like old acquaintances.
Laurie’s bashfulness soon wore off, for Jo’s gentlemanly
demeanour amused and set him at his ease, and Jo was her
merry self again, because her dress was forgotten, and nobody
lifted their eyebrows at her. She liked the ‘Laurence boy”
better than ever, and took several: good looks at him, so that
she might describe him to the girls; for they had no brothers,
very few male cousins, and boys were almost unknown
creatures to them.
“Curly black hair, brown skin, big black eyes, handsome
nose, fine teeth, small hands and feet, taller than I am; very
polite for a boy, and altogether jolly. Wonder how old he is?”
It was on the tip of Jo’s tongue to ask; but she checked
herself in time, and, with unusual tact, tried to find out in a
roundabout way.
“I suppose you are going to college soon? I see you
pegging away at your books—no, I mean studying hard ;” and
Jo blushed at the dreadful “pegging” which had escaped
her.
Laurie smiled, but didn’t seem shocked, and answered with
a shrug,—
““Not for a year or two; I won’t go before seventeen,
anyway.”
“ Aren’t you but fifteen?” asked Jo, looking at the tall lad
whom she had imagined seventeen already.
“Sixteen next month.”
‘“* How I wish I was going to college! You don’t look as if
you liked it.”
“I hate it! Nothing but grinding or skylarking. And I
don’t like the way fellows do either, in this country.”
“What do you like?”
“To live in Italy, and to enjoy myself in my own way.”
Jo wanted very much to ask what his own way was; but his
black brows looked rather threatening as he knit them, so she
 The Laurence Boy ) 27
changed the subject by saying, as her foot kept time, “ That’s
a splendid polka! Why don’t you go and try it?”
? “If you will come too,” he answered, with a gallant little
ow.
“T can’t; for I told Meg I wouldn’t, because—” There Jo
stopped, and looked undecided whether to tell or to laugh.
“ Because what?” asked Laurie curiously.
“You won’t tell?”
* Never |”
“Well, I have a bad trick of standing before the fire, and
so I burn my frocks, and I scorched this one; and, though it’s
nicely mended, it shows, and Meg told me to keep still, so no
one would see it. You may laugh if you want to; it is funny,
I know.”
But Laurie didn’t laugh; he only looked down a minute,
and the expression of his face puzzled Jo, when he said very
gently,—
“Never mind that; I’ll tell you how we can manage: there’s
a long hall out there, and we can dance grandly, and no one
will see us. Please come?”
Jo thanked him, and gladly went, wishing she had two neat
gloves, when she saw the nice pearl-coloured ones her partner
wore. The hall was empty, and they had a grand polka, for
Laurie danced well, and taught her the German step, which
delighted Jo, being full of swing and spring. When the music
stopped they sat down on the stairs to get their breath, and
Laurie was in the midst of an account of a students’ festival at
Heidelberg, when Meg appeared in search of her sister. She
beckoned, and Jo reluctantly followed her into a side-room,
‘where she found her on a sofa holding her foot, and looking
ale.
ae I’ve sprained my ankle. That stupid high heel turned,
and gave me a sad wrench. It aches so, I can hardly
stand, and I don’t know how I’m ever going to get home,”
she said, rocking to and fro in pain.
“T knew you’d hurt your feet with those silly shoes. I’m
sorry. But I don’t see what you can do, except get a carriage,
or stay here all night,” answered Jo, softly rubbing the poor
ankle as she spoke.
“‘T can’t have a carriage without its costing ever so much;
I dare say I can’t get one at all, for most people come in their
‘own, and it’s a long way to the stable, and no one to send.”
“Tirso.
23 Little Women
“No, indeed! It’s past nine, and dark as Egypt. I can’t stop
here, for the house is full. Sallie has some girls staying with
her.’ I’ll rest till Hannah comes, and then do the best | can.”
“T’ll ask Laurie; he will go,” said Jo, looking relieved as
the idea occurred to her.
‘‘Mercy, no! Don’t ask or tellany one. Get me my rubbers,
and put these slippers with our things. I can’t dance any
more; but as soon as supper is over, watch for Hannah, and
tell me the minute she comes.”
‘“They are going out to supper now. [I'll stay with you;
I’d rather.”
“No, dear; run along, and bring me some coffee. I’m so
tired, I can’t stir.”
So Meg reclined, with rubbers well hidden, and Jo went
blundering away to the dining-room, which she found after
going into a china closet, and opening the door of a room
where old Mr. Gardiner was taking a little private refresh-
ment. Making a dart at the table, she secured the coffee,
which she immediately spilt, thereby making the front of her
dress as bad as the back.
‘Oh, dear! what a blunderbuss I am!” exclaimed Jo, finish-
ing Meg’s glove by scrubbing her gown with it.
“Can I help you?” said a friendly voice; and there was
Laurie, with a full cup in one hand and a plate of ice in the
other.
“T was trying to get something for Meg, who is very tired,
and some one shook me, and here I am, in a nice state,”
answered Jo, glancing dismally from the stained skirt to the
coffee-coloured glove.
“Too bad! I was looking for some one to give this to.
May I take it to your sister?”
“Oh, thank you; I’ll show you where she is. I don’t offer
to take it myself, for I should only get into another scrape if I
did.”
Jo led the way; and, as if used to waiting on ladies, Laurie
drew upalittle table, brought a second instalment of coffee
and ice for Jo, and was so obliging that even particular Meg
pronounced him a “ nice boy.” They had a merry time over
the bonbons and mottoes, and were in the midst of a quiet
game of “buzz” with two or three other young people who
had strayed in, when Hannah appeared. Meg forgot her foot,
and rose so quickly that she was forced to catch hold of Jo,
with an exclamation of pain.
 The Laurence Boy | 29
** Hush! don’t say anything,” she whispered ; adding aloud,
ae It’s nothing; I turned my foot a little—that’s all,” and
limped upstairs to put her things on.
Hannah scolded, Meg cried, and Jo was at her wits’ end,
till she decided to take things into her own hands. Slipping
out, she ran down, and finding a servant, asked if he could get
her a carriage. It happened to be a hired waiter, who knew
nothing about the neighbourhood ; and Jo was looking round
_ for help, when Laurie, who had heard what she said, came up
and offered his grandfather’s carriage, which had just come for
him, he said.
_ “Tt’sso early! You can’t mean to go yet,” began Jo, looking
. relieved, but hesitating to accept the offer.
“T always go early—I do, truly. lease let me take you
home? It’s all on my way, you know, and it rains, they say.”
That settled it; and telling him of Meg’s mishap, Jo grate-
fully accepted, and rushed up to bring down the rest of the
party. Hannah hated rain as much as a cat does; so she
made no trouble, and they rolled away in the luxurious close
carriage, feeling very festive and elegant. Laurie went on the
box, so Meg could keep her foot up, and the girls talked over
their party in freedom.
“J had a capital time. Did you?” asked Jo, rumpling up
her hair, and making herself comfortable.
“Yes, till I hurt myself. Sallie’s friend, Annie Moffat, took
a fancy to me, and asked me to come and spend a week with
ber when Sallie does. She is going in the spring, when the
opera comes, and it will be perfectly splendid if mother only
lets me go,” answered Meg, cheering up at the thought.
‘“<T saw you dancing with the red-headed man I ran away
from. Was he nice?”
“‘Oh, very! His hair is auburn, not red; and he was very
polite, and I had a delicious redowa with him !”
“He looked like a grasshopper ina fit, when he did the
new step. Laurie and I couldn’t help laughing. Did you
hear us?”
“No, but it was very rude. What weve you about all that
time, hidden away there ?” ;
Jo told her adventures, and by the time she had finished,
they were at home. With many thanks, they said “ Good-
night.” and crept in, hoping to disturb no one; but the instant
their door creaked, two little night-caps bobbed up, and two
sleepy but eager voices cried out,—
30 Little Women
“Tell about the party! tell about the party!”
With what Meg called “a great want of manners,” Jo had
saved some bonbons for the little girls, and they soon sub-
sided, after hearing the most thrilling events of the evening.
‘“*T declare, it really seems like being a fine young lady, to
come home from the party in a carriage, and sit in my dress-
ing-gown with a maid to wait on me,” said Meg, as Jo bound
up her foot with arnica, and brushed her hair.
“J don’t believe fine young ladies enjoy themselves a bit
more than we do, in spite of our burnt hair, old gowns, one
glove apiece, and tight slippers that sprain our ankles when
we are silly enough to wear them.” And I think Jo was
quite rigut.

CHAPTER IV

BURDENS
“On dear, how hard it does seem to take up our packs and
go on,” sighed Meg, the morning after the party ; for, now the
holidays were over, the week of merry-making did not fit her
for going on easily with the task she never liked.
“T wish it was Christmas or New Year all the time;
wouldn't it be fun?” answered Jo, yawning dismally.
“We shouldn’t enjoy ourselves half so much as we do now.
But it does seem so nice to have little suppers and bouquets,
and go to parties, and drive home, and read and rest, and
not work. It’s like other people, you know, and I always
envy girls who do such things; I’m so fond of luxury,” said
Meg, trying to decide which of two shabby gowns was the
least shabby.
‘‘ Well, we can’t have it, so don’t let us grumble, but shoulder
our bundles and trudge along as cheerfully as Marmee does.
I’m sure Aunt March is a regular Old Man of the Sea to me,
but I suppose when I’ve learned to carry her without com-
plaining, she will tumble off, or get so light that I shan’t mind
her.”
This idea tickled Jo’s fancy, and put her in good spirits;
but Meg didn’t brighten, for her burden, consisting of four
spoilt children, seemed heavier than ever. She hadn’t heart
enough even to make herself pretty, as usual, by putting on a
 Burdens 21
blue neck-ribbon, and dressing her hair in the most becoming
way. .
““Where’s the use of looking nice, when no one sees me
but those cross midgets, and no one cares whether I’m pretty
or not?” she muttered, shutting her drawer with a jerk. “I
shall have to toil and moil all my days, with only little bits of
fun now and then, and get old and ugly and sour, because
I’m poor, and can’t enjoy my life as other girls do. It’s a
shame!”
So Meg went down, wearing an injured look, and wasn’t at
all agreeable at breakfast-time. Every one seemed rather out
of sorts, and inclined to croak. Beth had a headache, and
- lay on the sofa trying to comfort herself with the cat and three
kittens ; Amy was fretting because her lessons were not learned,
and she couldn’t find her rubbers; Jo would whistle, and
make a great racket getting ready ; Mrs. March was very busy
trying to finish a letter, which must go at once; and Hannah
had the grumps, for being up late didn’t suit her.
“There never was such a cross family!” cried Jo, losing
her temper when she had upset an inkstand, broken both
boot-lacings, and sat down upon her hat.
“ You're the crossest person in it!” returned Amy, washing
out the sum, that was all wrong, with the tears that had fallen
on her slate.
“ Beth, if you don’t keep these horrid cats down cellar Ill
have them drowned,” exclaimed Meg angrily, as she tried to
get rid of the kitten, which had scrambled up her back, and
stuck like a burr just out of reach.
- Jo laughed, Meg scolded, Beth implored, and Amy wailed,
because she couldn’t remember how much nine times twelve
was.
“ Girls, girls, do be quiet one minute! I must get this off
by the early mail, and you drive me distracted with your
worry,” cried Mrs. March, crossing out the third spoilt sentence
in her letter.
There was a momentary lull, broken by Hannah, who
stalked in, laid two hot turn-overs on the table, and stalked out
again. ‘These turn-overs were an institution; and the girls
called them “ muffs,” for they had no others, and found the hot
pics very comforting to their hands on cold mornings. Hannah
never forgot to make them, no matter how busy or grumpy she
might be, for the walk was long and bleak; the poor things
got no other lunch, and were seldom home before two.
22 Little Women
“Cuddle your cats, and get over your headache, Bethy.
Good-bye, Marmee; we are a set of rascals this morning, but
we'll come home regular angels. Now then, Meg!” and Jo
tramped away, feeling that the pilgrims were not setting out
as they ought to do.
They always looked back before turning the corner, for
their mother was always at the window, to nod and smile, and
wave her hand to them. Somehow it seemed as if they
couldn’t have got through the day without that, for whatever
their mood might be, the last glimpse of that motherly face
was sure to affect them like sunshine.
“If Marmee shook her fist instead of kissing her hand to
us, it would serve us right, for more ungrateful wretches than
we are were never seen,” cried Jo, taking a remorseiul satis-
faction in the snowy walk and bitter wind.
“Don’t use such dreadful expressions,” said Meg, from the
depths of the veil in which she had shrouded herself, like a
nun sick of the world.
‘“‘T like good, strong words, that mean something,” replied
Jo, catching her hat as it took a leap off her head, preparatory
to flying away altogether.
“Call yourself any names you like; but 7 am neither a
rascal nor a wretch, and I don’t choose to be called so.”
“You're a blighted being, and decidedly cross to-day be-
cause you can’t sit in the lap of luxury all the time. Poor
dear, just wait till I make my fortune, and you shall revel in
carriages and ice-cream and high-heeled slippers and posies
and red-headed boys to dance with.”
‘“ How ridiculous you are, Jo!” but Meg laughed at the
nonsense, and felt better in spite of herself.
“Lucky for you I am; for if I put on crushed airs, and
tried to be dismal, as you do, we should be in anice state.
Thank goodness, I can always find something funny to keep
me up. Don’t croak any more, but come home jolly, there’s
a dear.”
Jo gave her sister an encouraging pat on the shoulder as
they parted for the day, each going a different way, each hug-
ging her little warm turn-over, and each trying to be cheerful
in spite of wintry weather, hard work, and the unsatisfied
desires ot pleasure-loving youth.
When Mr. March lost his property in trying to help an un-
fortunate friend, the two oldest girls begged to be allowed to
do something toward their own support, at least. Believing
 Burdens 33
that they could not begin too early to cultivate energy, in-
dustry, and independence, their parents consented, and both
fell to work with the hearty goodwill which, in spite of all
obstacles, is sure to succeed at last. Margaret found a place
_ as nursery governess, and felt rich with her small salary. As
she said, she was “fond of luxury,” and her chief trouble was
poverty. She found it harder to bear than the others, be-
_ cause she could remember a time when home was beautiful,
life full of ease and pleasure, and want of any kind unknown.
She tried not to be envious or discontented, but it was very
natural that the young girl should long for pretty things, gay
friends, accomplishments, and a happy life. At the Kings’
- she daily saw all she wanted, for the children’s older sisters
were just out, and Meg caught frequent glimpses of dainty
ball-dresses and bouquets, heard lively gossip about theatres,
concerts, sleighing parties, and merry-makings of all kinds, and
saw money lavished on trifles which would have been so pre-
cious to her. Poor Meg seldom complained, but a sense of
injustice made her feel bitter toward every one sometimes, for
she had not yet learned to know how rich she was in the
blessings which alone can make life happy.
Jo happened to suit Aunt March, who was lame, and needed
an active person to wait upon her. The chiidless old lady had
offered to adopt one of the girls when the troubles came, and
was much offended because her offer was declined. Other
friends told the Marches that they had lost all chance of being
remembered in the rich old lady’s will; but the unworldly
Marches only said,—
-““We can’t give up our girls for a dozen fortunes. Rich or
poor, we will keep together and be happy in one another.”
The old lady wouldn’t speak to them for a time, but happen-
‘ing to meet Jo at a friend’s, something in her comical face and
blunt manners struck the old lady’s fancy, and she proposed
to take her for a companion. This did not suit Jo at all; but
she accepted the place since nothing better appeared, and, to
every one’s surprise, got on remarkably well with her irascible
relative. There was an occasional tempest, and once Jo had
marched home, declaring she couldn’t bear it any longer; but
Aunt March always cleared up quickly, and sent for her back
- again with such urgency that she could not refuse, for in her
heart she rather liked the peppery old lady.
I suspect that the real attraction was a large library of fine
books, which was left to dust and spiders since Uncle March
 34 Little Women
died. Jo remembered the kind old gentleman, who used to
let her build railroads and bridges with his big dictionaries, tell
her stories about the queer pictures in his Latin books, and
buy her cards of gingerbread whenever he met her in the
street. The dim, dusty room, with the busts staring down
from the tall bookcases, the cosy chairs, the globes, and, best
of all, the wilderness of books, in which she could wander
where she liked, made the library a region of bliss to her.
The moment Aunt March took her nap, or was busy with
company, Jo hurried to this quiet place, and, curling herself
up in the easy-chair, devoured poetry, romance, history, travels,
and pictures, like a regular bookworm. But, like all happiness,
it did not last long; for as sure as she had just reached the
heart of the story, the sweetest verse of the song, or the most
perilous adventure of her traveller, a shrill voice called “ Josy-
phine! Josy-phine!” and she had to leave her paradise to wind
yarn, wash the poodle, or read Belsham’s Essays by the hour
together.
Jo’s ambition was to do something very splendid ; what it was
she had no idea as yet, but left it for time to tell her; and mean-
while, found her greatest affliction in the fact that she couldn’t
read, run, and ride as much as she liked. A quick temper,
sharp tongue, and restless spirit were always getting her into
scrapes, and her life was a series of ups and downs, which
were both comic and pathetic. But the training she received
at Aunt March’s was just what she needed ; and the thought
that she was doing something to support herself made her
happy, in spite of the perpetual ‘‘ Josy-phine!”
Beth was too bashful to go to school; it had been tried,
but she suffered so much that it was given up, and she did
her lessons at home, with her father.. Even when he went
away, and her mother was called to devote her skill and
energy to Soldiers’ Aid Societies, Beth went faithfully on by
herself, and did the best she could. She was a housewifely
little creature, and helped Hannah keep home neat and com-
fortable for the workers, never thinking of any reward but to
be loved. Long, quiet days she spent, not lonely nor idle,
for her little world was peopled with imaginary friends, and
she was by nature a busy bee. There were six dolls to be
taken up and dressed every morning, for Beth was a child
- still, and loved her pets as well as ever. Not one whole or
handsome one among them; all were outcasts till Beth took
them in; for, when her sisters outgrew these idols, they passed
 Burdens | 35
to her, because Amy would have nothing old or ugly. Beth
cherished them all tne more tenderly for that very reason, and
set up a hospital for infirm dolls. No pins were ever stuck
into their cotton vitals; no harsh words or blows were ever
given them; no neglect ever saddened the heart of the most
repulsive, but all were fed and clothed, nursed and caressed,
with an affection which never failed. One forlorn fragment of
dollanity had belonged to Jo; and, having led a tempestucus
- life, was left a wreck in the rag-bag, from which dreary poor-
house it was rescued by Beth, and taken to her refuge. Having
no top to its head, she tied on a neat kttle cap, and, as both
arms and legs were gone, she hid these deficiencies by folding
it in a blanket, and devoting her best bed to this chronic in-
valid. If any one had known the care lavished on that dolly,
I think it would have touched their hearts, even while they
laughed. She brought it bits of bouquets; she read to it,
took it out to breathe the air, hidden under her coat; she
sung it lullabys, and never went to bed without kissing its
dirty face, and whispering tenderly, ‘‘I hope you'll have a
good night, my poor dear.”
Beth had her troubles as well as the others ; and not being
an angel, but a very human little girl, she often “wept a little
weep,” as Jo said, because she couldn’t take music lessons
and have a fine piano. She loved music so dearly, tried so
hard to learn, and practised away so patiently at the jingling
old instrument, that it did seem as if some one (not to hint
Aunt March) ought to help her. Nobody did, however, and
nobody saw Beth wipe the tears off the yellow keys, that
wouldn’t keep in tune, when she was all alone. She sang like
a little lark about her work, never was too tired to play for
Marmee and the girls, and day after day said hopefully to
. herself, “1 know I’ll get my music some time, if ’m good.”
There are many Beths in the world, shy and quiet, sitting
in corners till needed, and living for others so cheerfully, that
no one sees the sacrifices till the little cricket on the hearth
stops chirping, and the sweet, sunshiny presence vanishes,
leaving silence and shadow behind.
If anybody had asked Amy what the greatest trial of her
life was, she would have answered at once, “ My nose.” When
she was a baby, Jo had accidentally dropped her into the
coal-hod, and Amy insisted that the fall had ruined her nose
for ever. It was not big, nor red, like poor “ Petrea’s;” it
was only rather flat, and all the pinching in the world could
36 Little Women
not give it an aristocratic point. No one minded it but her-
self, and it was doing its best to grow, but Amy felt deeply the
want of a Grecian nose, and drew whole sheets of handsome
ones to console herself.
“Little Raphael,” as her sisters called her, had a decided
talent for drawing, and was never so happy as when copying
flowers, designing fairies, or illustrating stories with queer
specimens of art. Her teachers complained that, instead of
doing her sums, she covered her slate with animals; the blank
pages of her atlas were used to copy maps on, and caricatures
of the most ludicrous description came fluttering out of all
her books at unlucky moments. She got through her lessons
as well as she could, and managed to escape reprimands by
being a model of deportment. She was a great favourite with
her mates, being good-tempered, and possessing the happy art
of pleasing without effort. Her little airs and graces were
much admired, so were her accomplishments; for beside her
drawing, she could play twelve tunes, crochet, and read ©
French without mispronouncing more than two-thirds of the
words. She had a plaintive way of saying, ‘When papa was
rich we did so-and-so,” which was very touching; and her
long words were considered ‘‘ perfectly elegant” by the girls.
Amy was in a fair way to be spoilt; for every one petted
her, and her small vanities and selfishnesses were °rowing
nicely. One thing, however, rather quenched the vanities;
she had to wear her cousin’s clothes. Now Florence’s mamma
hadn’t a particle of taste, and Amy suffered deeply at having
to wear a red instead of a blue bonnet, unbecoming gowns,
and fussy aprons that did not fit. Everything was good, well
made, and little worn; but Amy’s artistic eyes were much
afflicted. especially this winter, when her school dress was a
dull purple, with yellow dots, and no trimming.
“My only comfort,” she said to Meg, with tears in her eyes,
‘is, that mother don’t take tucks in my dresses whenever I’m
naughty, as Maria Parks’ mother does. My dear, it’s really
dreadful ; for sometimes she is so bad, her frock is up to her
knees, and she can’t come to school. When I think of this
deggerredation, | feel that I can bear even my flat nose and
purple gown, with yellow sky-rockets on it.”
Meg was Amy’s confidant and monitor, and, by some strange
attraction of opposites, Jo was gentle Beth’s. To Jo alone
did the shy child tell her thoughts; ‘and over her big harum-
scarum sister, Beth unconsciously exercised more influence
 Burdens 37
than any one in the family. The two older girls were a great
deal to one another, but each took one of the younger into
her keeping, and watched over her in her own way ;
“playing mother” they called it, and put their sisters in the
places of discarded dolls, with the maternal instinct of little
women.
“Has anybody got anything to tell? It’s been such a
dismal day, I’m really dying for some amusement,” said Meg,
as they sat sewing together that evening.
“T had a queer time with aunt to-day, and, as I got the
best of it, I'll tell you about it,” began Jo, who dearly loved
to tell stories. ‘I was reading that everlasting Belsham, and
droning away as I always do, for aunt soon drops off, and
then I take out some nice book, and read like fury till she
wakes up. I actually made myself sleepy; and, before she
began to nod, I gave such a gape that she asked me what
I meant by opening my mouth wide enough to take the whole
book in at once.
““*T wish I could, and be done with it,’ said I, trying not to
be saucy.
‘*“Then she gave me a long lecture on my sins, and told me
to sit and think them over while she just ‘lost’ herself for a
moment. She never finds herself very soon; so the minute
her cap began to bob, like a top-heavy dahlia, I whipped the
‘Vicar of Wakefield’ out of my pocket, and read away, with
one eye on him, and one on aunt. I’d just got to where they
all tumbled. into the water, when I forgot, and laughed out
loud. Aunt woke up; and, being more good-natured after
her nap, told me to read a bit, and show what frivolous work
I preferred to the worthy and instructive Belsham. I did my
very best, and she liked it, though she only said,—
* ¢T don’t understand what it’s all about. Go back and
begin it, child.’
“Back I went, and made the Primroses as interesting as
ever I could. Once I was wicked enough to stop in a thrilling
place, and say meekly, ‘I’m afraid it tires you, ma’am ; shan’t
- I stop now?’”
“She caught up her knitting, which had dropped out of her
hands, gave me a sharp look through her specs, and said, in
‘her short way,—
‘‘‘ Finish the chapter, and don’t be impertinent, miss.’ ”
“ Did she own she liked it?” asked Meg.
6©Oh, bless you, no! but she let old Belsham rest; and,
38 Little Women
when I ran back after my gloves this afternoon, there she was,
so hard at the Vicar that she didn’t hear me laugh as I danced
a jg in the hall, because of the good time coming. What a
pleasant life she might have, if she only chose. I don’t envy
her much, in spite of her money, for after all rich peonle have
about as many worries as poor ones, I think,” added Jo.
“That reminds me,” said Meg, “that l’ve got something to
tell. It isn’t funny, like Jo’s story, but I thought about it a
good deal as I came home. At the Kings’ to-day I found
everybody in a flurry, and one of the children said that her
oldest brother had done something dreadful, and papa had
sent him away. I heard Mrs. King crying, and Mr. King
talking very loud, and Grace and Ellen turned away their
faces when they passed me, so I shouldn’t see how red their
eyes were. I didn’t ask any questions, of course; but I felt
so sorry for them, and was rather glad I hadn’t any wild
brothers to do wicked things and disgrace the family.”
““T think being disgraced in school is a great deal tryinger
than anything bad boys can do,” said Amy, shaking her head,
as if her experience of life had been a deep one. “Susie
Perkins came to school to-day with a lovely red carnelian
ring ; I wanted it dreadfully, and wished I was her with all
my might. Well, she drew a picture of Mr. Davis, with a
monstrous nose and a hump, and the words, ‘ Young ladies,
my eye is upon you!’ coming out of his mouth in a balloon
thing. We were laughing over it, when all of a sudden his
eye was on us, and he ordered Susie to bring up her slate.
She was parrylised with fright, but she went, and oh, what do
you think he did? He took her by the ear—the ear! just
fancy how horrid !—and led her to the recitation platform, and
made her stand there half-an-hour, holding that slate so every
one could see.”
“Didn’t the girls laugh at the picture?” asked Jo, who
relished the scrape.
“Laugh? Notone! They sat as still as mice; and Susie
cried quarts, I know she did. I didn’t envy her then, for I
felt that millions of carnelian rings wouldn’t have made me
happy after that. I never, never should have got over such an
agonising mortification.” And Amy went on with her work, in
the proud consciousness of virtue, and the successful utter-
ance of two long words in a breath.
“‘T saw something that I liked this morning, and I meant
to tell it at dinner, but I forgot,” said Beth, putting Jo’s topsy-
 Burdens 39
turvy basket in order as she talked. ‘‘ When I went to get
some oysters for Hannah, Mr. Laurence was in the fish-shop,
but he didn’t see me, for I kept behind a barrel, and he was
busy with Mr. Cutter, the fish-man. A poor woman came in,
_ with a pail and a mop, and asked Mr. Cutter if he would let
her do some scrubbing for a bit of fish, because she hadn’t
any dinner for her children, and had been disappointed of a
day’s work. Mr. Cutter was in a hurry, and said ‘ No,’ rather
crossly ; so she was going away, looking hungry and sorry,
when Mr. Laurence hooked up a big fish with the crooked
end of his cane, and held it out to her. She was so glad and
surprised, she took it right in her arms, and thanked him over
‘and over. He told her to ‘go along and cook it,’ and she
hurried off, so happy! Wasn't it good of him? Oh, she did
look so funny, hugging the big, slippery fish, and hoping Mr.
Laurence’s bed in heaven would be ‘aisy.’”
When they had laughed at Beth’s story, they asked their
mother for one; and, after a moment’s thought, she said
soberly,—
“As I sat cutting out blue flannel jackets to-day, at the
rooms, I felt very anxious about father, and thought how
lonely and helpless we should be if anything happened to
him. It was not a wise thing to do; but I kept on worrying,
till an old man came in, with an order for some clothes. He
sat down near me, and I began to talk to him; for he looked
poor and tired and anxious.
‘“‘* Have you sons in the army?’ [ asked; for the note he
brought was not to me.
Ves, ma’am. I had four, but two were killed; one is a
prisoner, and I’m going to the other, who is very sick in a
Washington hospital,’ he answered quietly.
“¢Vou have done a great deal for your country, sir,’ I said,
feeling respect now, instead of pity.
“¢Not a mite more than I ought, ma’am. I'd go myself,
if I was any use; as I ain’t, I give my boys, and give em
ree.”
“ He spoke so cheerfully, looked so sincere, and seemed sO
glad to give his all, that I was ashamed of myself. I'd given
one man, and thought it too much, while he gave four, with-
out grudging them. I had all my girls to comfort me at
home, and his last son was waiting, miles away, to say ‘ good-
bye’ to him, perhaps! I felt so rich, so happy, thinking of
my blessings, that 1 made him a nice bundle, gave him some
40 Little Women
money, and thanked him heartily for the lesson he had
taught me.”
‘“‘Tell another story, mother; one with a moral to it, like
this. I like to think about them afterwards, if they are real,
and not too preachy,” said Jo, after a minute’s silence.
Mrs. March smiled, and began at once; for she had told
stories to this little audience for many years, and knew how
to please them.
“Once upon a time there were four girls, who had enough
to eat and drink and wear, a good many comforts and
pleasures, kind friends and parents, who loved them dearly,
and yet they were not contented.” (Here the listeners stole
sly looks at one another, and began to sew diligently.)
“These girls were anxious to be good, and made many
excellent resolutions, but they did not keep them very well,
and were constantly saying, ‘If we only had this,’ or ‘If
we could only do that,’ quite forgetting how much they
already had, and how many pleasant things they actually could
do. So they asked an old woman what spell they could use
to make them happy, and she said, ‘When you feel dis-
contented, think over your blessings, and be grateful.’” (Here
Jo looked up quickly, as if about to speak, but changed her
mind, seeing that the story was not done yet.)
‘Being sensible girls, they decided to try her advice, and
soon were surprised to see how well off they were. One
discovered that money couldn’t keep shame and sorrow out
of rich people’s houses; another that though she was poor,
she was a great deal happier, with her youth, health, and good
spirits, than a certain fretful, feeble old lady, who couldn’t
enjoy he: comforts; a third that, disagreeable as it was to
help get dinner, it was harder still to have to go begging for
it; and the fourth, that even carnelian rings were not so
valuable as good behaviour. So they agreed to stop com-
plaining, to enjoy the blessings already possessed, and try to
deserve them, lest they should be taken away entirely, instead
of increased; and I believe they were never disappointed, or
sorry that they took the old woman’s advice.”
“Now, Marmee, that is very cunning of you to turn our
own stories against us, and give us a sermon instead of a_
romance,” cried Meg.
“T like that kind of sermon. It’s the sort father used to
tell us,” said Beth thoughtfully, putting the needles straight
on Jo’s cushion,
 Being Neighbourly — qt
*T don’t complain near as much as the others do, and I
shall be more careful than ever now, for I’ve had warning
from Susie’s downfall,” said Amy morally.
“We needed that lesson, and we won’t forget it. If we do,
you just say to us, as old Chloe did in ‘ Uncle Tom’—‘ Tink
ob yer marcies, chillen ! tink ob yer marcies !’” added Jo, who
could not, for the life of her, help getting a morsel of fun out
of the little sermon, though she took it to heart as much as
-any of them.

CHAPTER V
BEING NEIGHBOURLY
“WaT in the world are you going to do now, Jo?” asked
Meg, one snowy afternoon, as her sister came tramping
through the hall, in rubber boots, old sack and hood, with
a broom in one hand and a shovel in the other.
“Going out for exercise,” answered Jo, with a mischievous
twinkle in her eyes.
‘I should think two long walks this morning would have
been enough. It’s cold and dull out, and I advise you tu
stay, warm and dry, by the fire, as I do,” said Meg, with a
shiver.
“Never take advice! Can’t keep still all day, and, not being
a pussy-cat, I don’t like to doze by the fire. I like adventures,
and I’m going to find some.”
Meg went back to toast her feet and read “Ivanhoe ;” and
Jo began to dig paths with great energy. The snow was light,
and with her broom she soon swept a path all round the
garden, for Beth to walk in when the sun came out; and
the invalid dolls needed air. Now, the garden separated
the Marches’ house from that of Mr. Laurence. Both stood
in a suburb of the city, which was still country-like, with
groves and lawns, large gardens, and quiet streets. A low
hedge parted the two estates. On one side was an old brown
house, looking rather bare and shabby, robbed of the vines
that in summer covered its walls, and the flowers which then
surrounded it. On the other side was a stately stone mansion,
plainly betokening every sort of comfort and luxury, from the
big coach-house and well-kept grounds to the conservatory
and the glimpses of lovely things one caught between the rich
42 Little Women
curtains. Yet it seemed a lonely, lifeless sort of house; for
no children frolicked on the lawn, no motherly face ever smiled
at the windows, and few people went in and out, except the
old gentleman and his grandson.
To Jo’s lively fancy this fine house seemed a kind of en-
chanted palace, full of splendours and delights, which no one
enjoyed. She had long wanted to behold these hidden glories,
and to know the “ Laurence boy,” who looked as if he would
like to be known, if he only knew how to begin. Since the
party she had been more eager than ever, and had planned
many ways of making friends with him; but he had not been
seen lately, and Jo began to think he had gone away, when
she one day spied a brown face at an upper window, looking
wistfully down into their garden, where Beth and Amy were
snowballing one another.
“That boy is suffering for society and fun,” she said to
herself. ‘‘ His grandpa does not know what’s good for him, and
keeps him shut up all alone. He needs aparty of jolly boys to
play with, or somebody young and lively. I’ve a great mind
to go over and tell the old gentleman so.”
The idea amused Jo, who liked to do daring things, and
was always scandalising Meg by her queer performances. The
plan of “going over” was not forgotten ; and when the snowy
afternoon came, Jo resolved to try what could be done. She
saw Mr. Laurence drive off, and then sallied out to dig her
way down to the hedge, where she paused and took a survey.
All quiet—curtains down at the lower windows; servants out
of sight, and nothing human visible but a curly black head
leaning on a thin hand at the upper window.
“ There he is,” thought Jo, “ poor boy! all alone and sick,
this dismal day. It’s a shame! I’ll toss up a snowball, and
make him look out, and then say a kind word to him.”
Up went a handful of soft snow, and the head turned at
once, showing a face which lost its listless look in a minute,
as the big eyes brightened and the mouth began to smile.
Jo nodded and laughed, and flourished her broom as she
called out,—
“How do you do? Are you sick?”
Laurie opened the window, and croaked out as hoarsely as
a raven,—
*“ Better, thank you. I’ve had a bad cold, and been shut
up a week.”
“[’m sorry. What do you amuse yourself with?”
 Being Neighbourly | 43
“Nothing; it’s as dull as tombs up here.”
* Don’t you read ?”
“ Not much; they won’t let me.”
* Can’t somebody read to you?”
*‘Grandpa does, sometimes; but my books don’t interest
him, and I hate to ask Brooke all the time.”
“ Have some one come and see you, then.”
“There isn’t any one I’d like to see. Boys make such a
_row, and my head is weak.”
““Tsn’t there some nice girl who’d read and amuse you?
Girls are quiet, and like to play nurse.” -
‘Don’t know any.”
“You know us,” began Jo, then laughed, and stopped.
*So Ido! Will you come, please?” cried Laurie.
“I’m not quiet and nice; but I’ll come, if mother will let
me. I'll go ask her. Shut that window. like a good boy, and
wait till I come.”
With that, Jo shouldered her broom and marched into the
house, wondering what they would all say to her. Laurie was
in a flutter of excitement at the idea of having company,
and flew about to get ready; for, as Mrs. March said, he was
‘a little gentleman,” and did honour to the coming guest by
brushing his curly pate, putting on a fresh collar, and trying
to tidy up the room, which, in spite of half-a-dozen servants,
was anything but neat. Presently there came a loud ring,
then a decided voice, asking for ‘‘ Mr. Laurie,” and a surprised-
looking servant came running up to announce a young
lady.
‘ All right, show her up, it’s Miss Jo,” said Laurie, going to
thé door of his little parlour to meet Jo, who appeared, looking
rosy and kind and quite at her ease, with a covered dish in one
_hand and Beth’s three kittens in the other.
‘“‘ Here I am, bag and baggage,” she said briskly. ‘‘ Mother
sent her love, and was glad if I could do anything for you.
Meg wanted me to bring some of her blanc-mange ; she makes
it very nicely, and Beth thought her cats would be comforting.
I knew you’d laugh at them, but I couldn’t refuse, she was so
anxious to do something.”
It so happened that Beth’s funny loan was just the thing ;
for, in laughing over the kits, Laurie forgot his bashfulness,
and. grew sociable at once.
“That looks too pretty to eat,” he said, smiling with
pleasure, as Jo uncovered the dish, and showed the bianc-
44 Little Women
mange, surrounded by a garland of green leaves, and the
scarlet flowers of Amy’s pet geranium.
“Jt isn’t anything, only they all felt kindly, and wanted
to’show it. ‘Tell the girl to put it away for your tea; it’s so
simple, you can eat it; and, being soft, it will slip down with-
out hurting your sore throat. What a cosy room this is! ”
“Tt might be if it was kept nice ; but the maids are lazy, and
I don’t know how to make them mind. It worries me, though.”
“T’ll nght it up in two minutes; for it only needs to have
the hearth brushed, so—and the things made straight on the
mantelpiece, so—and the books put here, and the bottles
there, and your sofa turned from the light, and the pillows
plumped up a bit. Now, then, you're fixed.”
And so he was; for, as she laughed and talked, Jo had
whisked things into place, and given quite a different air to
the room. Laurie watched her in respectful silence; and
when she beckoned him to his sofa, he sat down with a sigh
of satisfaction, saying gratefully,—
‘“How kind you are! Yes, that’s what it wanted. Now
please take the big chair, and let me do something to amuse
my company.”
‘““No; I came to amuse you. Shall I read aloud?” and
Jo looked affectionately toward some inviting books near by.
“Thank you; I’ve read all those, andif you don’t mind,
I’d rather talk,” answered Laurie.
“Not a bit; I’ll talk all day if you’ll only set me going.
Beth says I never know when to stop.”
“Ts Beth the rosy one, who stays at home a good deal,
and sometimes goes out with a little basket?” asked Laurie,
with interest.
“Yes, that’s Beth; she’s my girl, and a regular good one
she is, too.”
“The pretty one is Meg, and the curly-haired one is Amy,
I believe ?”
** How did you find that out?”
Laurie coloured up, but answered frankly, ‘‘ Why, you see,
I often hear you calling to one another, and when I’m alone
up here, I can’t help looking over at your house, you always
seem to be having such good times. I beg your pardon for
being so rude, but sometimes you forget to put down the
curtain at the window where the flowers are; and when the
lamps are lighted, it’s like looking at a picture to see the fire,
and you all round the table with your mother: her face is
 Being Neighbourly | 45
right opposite, and it looks so sweet behind the flowers, I can’t
help watching it. I haven’t got any mother, you know ;” and
Laurie poked the fire to hide a little twitching of the lips that
he could not control.
The solitary, hungry look in his eyes went straight to Jo’s
warm heart. She had been so simply taught that there was
no nonsense in her head, and at fifteen she was as innocent
and frank as any child. Laurie was sick and lonely; and,
feeling how rich she was in home-love and happiness, she
gladly tried to share it with him. Her face was very friendly,
and her sharp voice unusually gentle as she said,—
“We'll never draw that curtain any more, and I give you
leave to look as much as you like. I just wish, though,
instead of peeping, you’d come over and see us. Mother is
so splendid, she’d do you heaps of good, and Beth would sing
to you if Z begged her to, and Amy would dance; Meg and I
would make you laugh over our funny stage properties, and
we'd have jolly times. Wouldn’t your grandpa let you?”
“T think he would, if your mother asked him. He’s very
kind, though he does not look so; and he lets me do what I
like, pretty much, only he’s afraid I might be a bother to
strangers,” began Laurie, brightening more and more.
“We are not strangers, we are neighbours, and you needn’t
think you’d be a bother. We want to know you, and I’ve
been trying to do it this ever so long. We haven’t been here
a great while, you know, but we have got acquainted with all
our neighbours but you.”
“You see’ grandpa lives among his books, and doesn’t mind
much what happens outside. Mr. Brooke, my tutor, doesn’t
stay here, you know, and I have no one to go about with me,
so I just stop at home and get on as I can.”
‘That’s bad. You ought to make an effort, and go visiting
everywhere you are asked ; then you'll have plenty of friends,
and pleasant places to go to. Never mind being bashful, it
won’t last long if you keep going.”
Laurie turned red again, but wasn’t offended at being
accused of bashfulness; for there was so much goodwill
in Jo, it was impossible not to take her blunt speeches as
kindly as they were meant.
“Do you like your school?” asked the boy, changing
the subject, after a little pause, during which he stared at the
fire, and Jo looked about her, well pleased. ,
“Don’t go to school; I’m a business man—girl, I mean.
 46 Little Women
I go to wait on my great-aunt, and a dear, cross old soul she is,
too,” answered Jo.
Laurie opened his mouth to ask another question; but
remembering just in time that it wasn’t manners to make
too many inquiries into people’s affairs, he shut it again,
and looked uncomfortable. Jo liked his good-breeding, and
didn’t mind having a laugh at Aunt March, so she gave him
a lively description of the fidgety old lady, her fat poodle, the
parrot that talked Spanish, and the library where she revelled,
Laurie enjoyed that immensely; and when she told about the
prim old, gentleman who came once to woo Aunt March, and,
“in the middle of a fine speech, how Poll had tweaked his wig
off to his great dismay, the boy lay back and laughed till the ©
tears ran down his cheeks, and a maid popped her head in to
see what was the matter.
“ Oh! that does me no end of good. Tell on, please,” he
said, taking his face out of the sofa-cushion, red and shining
with merriment.
Much elated with her success, Jo did “tell on,” all about
their plays and plans, their hopes and fears for father, and the
most interesting events of the little world in which the sisters
lived. Then they got to talking about books; and to Jo’s
delight, she found that Laurie loved them as well as she did,
and had read even more than herself.
“If you like. them so much, come down and see ours.
Grandpa is out, so you needn’t be afraid,” said Laurie, getting
up.
“T’m not afraid of anything,” returned Jo, with a toss of
the head.
“IT don’t believe you are!” exclaimed the boy, looking at
her with much admiration, though he privately thought she
would have good reason to beatrifle afraid of the old gentle-
man, if she met him in some of his moods.
The atmosphere of the whole house being summer-like,
Laurie led the way from room to room, letting Jo stop to
examine whatever struck her fancy; and so at last they came
to the library, where she clapped her hands, and pranced, as
she always did when especially delighted. It was lined with
books, and there were pictures and statues, and distracting
little cabinets full of coins and curiosities, and sleepy-hollow
chairs, and queer tables, and bronzes; and, best of all, a great
open fireplace, with quaint tiles all round it.
“What richness!” sighed Jo, sinking into the depth of a
 Being Neighbourly "aah
velvet chair, and gazing about her with an air of intense satis-
faction. “Theodore Laurence, you ought to be the happiest
boy in the world,” she added impressively.
“A fellow can’t live on books,” said Laurie, shaking’ his
head, as he perched on a table opposite.
Before he could say more, a bell rung, and Jo flew up,
exclaiming with alarm, “ Mercy me! it’s your grandpa ! ”
“Well, what if itis? You are not afraid of anything, you
know,” returned the boy, looking wicked.
*‘T think I am a little bit afraid of him, but I don’t know
why I should be. Marmee said I might come, and I don’t
think you’re any the worse for it,” said Jo, composing herself,
though she kept her eyes on the door.
“T’m a great deal better for it, and ever so much obliged.
I’m only afraid you are very tired talking to me; it was so
pleasant, I couldn’t bear to stop,” said Laurie gratefully.
“The doctor to see you, sir,” and the maid beckoned as
she spoke.
“Would you mind if I left you fora minute? I suppose I
must see him,” said Laurie.
“Don’t mind me. I’m as happy as a cricket here,”
answered Jo.
Laurie went away, and his guest amused herself in her
own way. She was standing before a fine portrait of the
old gentleman, when the door opened again, and, without
turning, she said decidedly, “I’m sure now that I shouldn’t
be airaid of him, for he’s got kind eyes, though his mouth is
grim, and he looks as if he had a tremendous will of his own.
He isn’t as handsome as my grandfather, but I like him.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” said a gruff voice behind her; and
there, to her great dismay, stood old Mr. Laurence.
Poor Jo blushed till she couldn’t blush any redder, and her
heart began to beat uncomfortably fast as she thought what
she had said. For a minute a wild desire to run away
possessed her; but that was cowardly, and the girls would
laugh at her; so she resolved to stay, and get out of the
scrape as she could. A second look showed her that the
living eyes, under the bushy grey eyebrows, were kinder even
than the painted ones; and there was a sly twinkle in them,
which lessened her fear a good deal. The gruff voice was
‘gruffer than ever, as the old gentleman said abruptly, after
that dreadful pause, ‘So you’re not afraid of me, hey?”
‘“ Not much, sir.”
48 Little Women
“ And you don’t think me as handsome as your grandfather?”
* Not quite, sir.”
“ And I’ve got a tremendous will, have 1?”
“I only said I thought so.”
“ But you like me, in spite of it?”
**Ves, I do, sir.”
That answer pleased the old gentleman; he gave a short
laugh, shook hands with her, and, putting his finger under her
chin, turned up her face, examined it gravely, and let it go,
saying, with a nod, “You've got your grandfather’s spirit, if
you haven’t his face. He was a fine man, my dear; but,
what is better, he was a brave and an honest one, and I was
proud to be his friend.”
“ Thank you, sir;” and Jo was quite comfortable after that,
for it suited her exactly.
‘‘What have you been doing to this boy of mine, hey?”
was the next question, sharply put.
“ Only trying to be neighbourly, sir;” and Jo told how her
visit came about.
‘You think he needs cheering up a bit, do you?”
“Yes, sir; he seems alittle lonely, and young folks would
do him good perhaps. We are only girls, but we should be
glad to help if we could, for we don’t forget the splendid
Christmas present you sent us,” said Jo eagerly.
“Tut, tut, tut! that was the boy’s affair. How is the poor
woman?”
“ Doing nicely, sir ;” and off went Jo, talking very fast, as
she told all about the Hummels, in whom her mother had
interested richer friends than they were.
‘Just her father’s way of doing good. I shall come and see
your mother some fine day. ‘Tell her so. There’s the tea-
bell; we have it early, on the boy’s account. Come down,
and go on being neighbourly.”
“If you’d like to have me, sir.”
“ Shouldn’t ask you if I didn’t;” and Mr. Laurence offered
her his arm with old-fashioned courtesy.
“What would Meg say to this?” thought Jo, as she was
marched away, while her eyes danced with fun as she
imagined herself telling the story at home.
“ Hey! Why, what the dickens has come to the fellow?”
said the old gentleman, as Laurie came running downstairs,
and brought up with a start of surprise at the astonishing sight
of Jo arm-in-arm with his redoubtable grandfather.
 Being Neighbourly | 49
“T didn’t know you’d come, sir,” he began, as Jo gave him
a triumphant little glance.
‘““That’s evident, by the way you racket downstairs. Come
to your tea, sir, and behave like a gentleman ;” and having
pulled the boy’s hair by way of a caress, Mr. Laurence walked
on, while Laurie went through a series of comic evolutions
behind their backs, which nearly produced an explosion of
laughter from Jo.
The old gentleman did not say much as he drank his four
cups of tea, but he watched the young people, who soon
chatted away like old friends, and the change in his grandson
did not escape him. ‘There was colour, light, and life in the
boy’s face now, vivacity in his manner, and genuine merriment
‘in his laugh.
‘‘She’s right; the lad zs lonely. I'll see what these little
girls can do for him,” thought Mr. Laurence, as he looked
and listened. He liked Jo, for her odd, blunt ways suited
him; and she seemed to understand the boy almost as well
as if she had been one herself.
If the Laurences had been what Jo called ‘‘ prim and poky,”
she would not have got on at all, for such people always made
her shy and awkward ; but finding them free and easy, she was
so herself, and made a good impression. When they rose she
proposed to go, but Laurie said he had something more to
show her, and took her away into the conservatory, which had
been lighted for her benefit. It seemed quite fairylike to Jo,
as she went up and down the walks, enjoying the blooming
walls on either side, the soft light, the damp sweet air, and
the wonderful vines and trees that hung above her—while her
néw friend cut the finest flowers till his hands were full; then
he tied them up, saying, with the happy look Jo liked to see,
. Please give these to your mother, and tell her I like the
medicine she sent me very much.”
They found Mr. Laurence standing before the fire in the
great drawing-room, but Jo’s attention was entirely absorbed
by a grand piano, which stood open.
“Do you play?” she asked, turning to Laurie with a
respectful expression.
“ Sometimes,” he answered modestly.
“Please do now. I want to hear it, so I can tell Beth.”
“Won't you first ?”
“Don’t know how; too stupid to learn, but I love music
dearly.”
50 Little Women
So Laurie played, and Jo listened, with her nose luxuriously
buried in heliotrope and tea-roses. Her respect and regard
for the “ Laurence boy” increased very much, for he played
remarkably well, and didn’t put on any airs. She wished Beth
could hear him, but she did not say so; only praised him till
he was quite abashed, and his grandfather came to the rescue.
“ That will do, that will do, young lady. Too many sugar-plums
are not good for him. His music isn’t bad, but I hope he will
do as well in more important things. Going? Well, I’m
much obliged to you, and I hope you'll come again. My
respects to your mother. Good-night, Doctor Jo.”
He shook hands kindly, but looked as if something did not
please him. When they got into the hall, Jo asked Laurie if
she had said anything amiss. He shook his head.
“No, it was me; he doesn’t like to hear me play.”
sf Why not?”
“Tl tell you some day. John is going home with you, as
I can’t.”
“No need of that; I am not a young lady, and it’s only a
step. Take care of yourself, won’t you?”
“Ves; but you will come again, I hope?”
“If you promise to come and see us after you are well.”
“T will.”
“ Good-night, Laurie!”
“ Good-night, Jo, good-night!”
When all the afternoon’s adventures had been told, the
family felt inclined to go visiting in a body, for each found
something very attractive in the big house on the other side
of the hedge. Mrs. March wanted to talk of her father with
the old man who had not forgotten him; Meg longed to walk
in the conservatory ; Beth sighed for the grand piano; and
Amy was eager to see the fine pictures and statues.
“Mother, why didn’t Mr. Laurence like to have Laurie
play?” asked Jo, who was of an inquiring disposition.
“T am not sure, but I think it was because his son, Laurie’s
father, married an Italian lady, a musician, which displeased
the old man, who is very proud. The lady was good and
lovely and accomplished, but he did not like her, and never
saw his son after he married. They both died when Laurie
was a little child, and then his grandfather took him home.
I fancy the boy, who was born in Italy, is not very strong,
and the old man is afraid of losing him, which makes him so
careful. Laurie comes naturally by his love of music, for he
 Being Neighbourly Pg
is like his mother, and I dare say his grandfather fears that
he may want to be a musician; at any rate, his skill reminds
him of the woman he did not like, and so he ‘glowered,’ as
Jo said.”
‘Dear me, how romantic!” exclaimed Meg.
“How silly!” said Jo. “Let him be a musician, if he
wants to, and not plague his life out sending him to college,
when he hates to go.”
‘“That’s why he has such handsome black eyes and pretty
manners, I suppose. Italians are always nice,” said Meg, who
was a little sentimental. 7
_ “What do you know about his eyes and his manners? You
never spoke to him, hardly,” cried Jo, who was of sentimental.
“IT saw him at the party, and what you tell shows that he
knows how to behave. ‘That was a nice little speech about
the medicine mother sent him.”
“He meant the blanc-mange, I suppose.”
“ How stupid you are, child! He meant you, of course.”
“Did he?” and Jo opened her eyes as if it had never
occurred to her before.
“T never saw such a girl! You don’t know a compliment
when you get it,” said Meg, with the air of a young lady who
knew all about the matter.
“J think they are great nonsense, and I’ll thank you not to
be silly, and spoil my fun. Laurie’s a nice boy, and I like him,
and I won’t have any sentimental stuff about compliments and
such rubbish. We'll all be good to him, because he hasn’t
got any mother, and he may come over and see us, mayn’t he,
Marmee P”
“Yes, Jo, your little friend is very welcome, and I hope
Meg will remember that children should be children as long
as they can.’
. “I don’t call myself a child, and I’m not in my teens yet,”
observed Amy. ‘‘ What do you say, Beth?”
“T was thinking about our ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’” a9) answered
Beth, who had not heard a word. ‘‘ How we got out of the
Slough and through the Wicket Gate by resolving to be good,
and up the steep hill by trying; and that maybe the house
over there, full of splendid things, is going to be our Palace
Beautiful.”
“We have got to get by the lions, first,” said Jo, as if she
rather hiked the prospect.
52 Little Women
CHAPTER VI

BETH FINDS THE PALACE BEAUTIFUL

Tue big house did prove a Palace Beautiful, though it took

some time for all to get in, and Beth found it very hard to
pass the lions. Old Mr. Laurence was the biggest one; but
after he had called, said something funny or kind to each
one of the girls, and talked over old times with their mother,
nobody felt much afraid of him, except timid Beth. The
other lion was the fact that they were poor and Laurie rich;
for this made them shy of accepting favours which they
could not return. But, after a while, they found that he con-
sidered them the benefactors, and could not do enough to
show how grateful he was for Mrs. March’s motherly welcome,
their cheerful society, and the comfort he took in that humble
home of theirs. So they soon forgot their pride, and inter-
changed kindnesses without stopping to think which was the
greater.
All sorts of pleasant things happened about that time; for
the new friendship flourished like grass in spring. Every one
liked Laurie, and he privately informed his tutor that “the
Marches were regularly splendid girls.” With the delightful
enthusiasm of youth, they took the solitary boy into their midst,
and made much of him, and he found something very charming
in the innocent companionship of these simple-hearted girls.
Never having known mother or sisters, he was quick to feel
the influences they brought about him ; and their busy, lively
ways made him ashamed of the indolent life he led. He was
tired of books, and found people so interesting now, that Mr.
Brooke was obliged to make very unsatisfactory reports; for
Laurie was always playing truant, and running over to the
Marches.
“Never mind; let him take a holiday, and make it up ae
wards,” said the old gentleman. ‘The good lady next door
says he is studying too hard, and needs young society, amuse-
ment, and exercise. I suspect she is right, and that I’ve been
coddling the fellow as if I’d been his grandmother. Let him
do what he likes, as long as he is happy. He can’t get into
mischief in that little nunnery over there; and Mrs. March is
doing more for him than we can.” _
What good times they had, to be sure! Such plays and
 Beth Finds the Palace Beautiful 53
tableaux, such sleigh-rides and skating frolics, such pleasant
evenings in the old parlour, and now and then such gay little
parties at the great house. Meg could walk in the conservatory
whenever she liked, and revel in bouquets ; Jo browsed over
the new library voraciously, and convulsed the old gentleman
- with her criticisms ; Amy copied pictures, and enjoyed beauty
to her heart’s content ; and Laurie played “lord of the manor”
in the most delightful style.
But Beth, though yearning for the grand piano, could not
pluck up courage to go to the “‘ Mansion of Bliss,” as Meg
called it. She went once with Jo, but the old gentleman, not
being aware of her infirmity, stared at her so hard from under
his heavy eyebrows, and said ‘‘ Hey!” so loud that he frightened
her so much her “feet chattered on the floor,” she told her
mother; and she ran away, declaring she would never go
there any more, not even for the dear piano. No persuasions
or enticements could overcome her fear, till the fact coming to
Mr. Laurence’s ear in some mysterious way, he set about
mending matters. During one of the brief calls he made, he
artfully led the conversation to music, and talked away about
great singers whom he had seen, fine organs he had heard, and
told such charming anecdotes, that Beth found it impossible to
stay in her distant corner, but crept nearer and nearer, as if
fascinated. At the back of his chair she stopped, and stood
listening with her great eyes wide open, and her cheeks red
with the excitement of this unusual performance. ‘Taking no
more notice of her than if she had been a fly, Mr. Laurence
talked on about Laurie’s lessons and teachers; and presently,
as if the idea had just occurred to him, he said to Mrs. March,—
~The boy neglects his music now, and I’m glad of it, for he
was getting too fond of it. But the piano suffers for want of
. use. Wouldn’t some of your girls like to run over, and practise
on it now and then, just to keep it in tune, you know, ma’am?”
Beth took a step forward, and pressed her hands tightly to-
gether to keep from clapping them, for this was an irresistible
temptation; and the thought of practising on that splendid
instrument quite took her breath away. Before Mrs. March
could reply, Mr. Laurence went on with an odd little nod and
smile,— :
“They needn’t see or speak to any one, but run in at any
time, for I’m shut up in my study at the other end of the
house, Laurie is out a great deal, and the servants are never
near the drawing-room after nine o’clock.”
54 Little Women
Here he rose, as if going, and Beth made up her mind to
speak, for that last arrangement left nothing to be desired.
“Please tell the young ladies what I say, and if they don’t
care to come, why, never mind.” Here a little hand slipped
into his, and Beth looked up at him with a face full of grati-
tude, as she said, in her earnest yet timid way,—
“O sir! they do care, very, very much!”
“ Are you the musical girl ?” he asked, without any startling
“Hey!” as he looked down at her very kindly.
“T’m Beth. I love it dearly, and I’ll come, if you are quite
sure nobody will hear me—and be disturbed,” she added,
fearing to be rude, and trembling at her own boldness as she
spoke.
me Not a soul, my dear. The house is empty half the day;
so come and drum away as much as you like, and I shall be
obliged to you.”
“ How kind you are, sir!”
Beth blushed like a rose under the friendly look he wore ; but —
she was not frightened now, and gave the big hand a grateful
squeeze, because she had no words to thank him for the
precious gift he had given her. The old gentleman softly
stroked the hair off her forehead, and, stooping down, he
kissed her, saying, in a tone few people ever heard,—
“T had a little girl once, with eyes like these. God bless
you, my dear! Good-day, madam ;” and away he went, in a
great hurry.
Beth had a rapture with her mother, and then rushed up to
impart the glorious news to her family of invalids, as the girls
were not at home. How blithely she sung that evening, and
how they all laughed at her, because she woke Amy in the night
by playing the piano on her face in her sleep. Next day, having
seen both the old and young gentleman out of the house, Beth,
after two or three retreats, fairly got in at the side-door, and
made her way, as noiselessly as any mouse, to the drawing-room,
where her idol stood. Quite by accident, of course, some pretty,
easy music lay on the piano; and, with trembling fingers, and
frequent stops to listen and look about, Beth at last touched
the great instrument, and straightway forgot her fear, herself,
and everything else but the unspeakable delight which the
music gave her, for it was like the voice of a beloved friend.
She stayed till Hannah came to take her home to dinner;
but she had no appetite, and could .only sit and smile upon
every one in a general state of beatitude.
 Beth Finds the Palace Beautiful 55
After that, the little brown hood slipped through the hedge
nearly every day, and the great drawing-room was haunted by
a tuneful spirit that came and went unseen. She never knew
that Mr. Laurence often opened his study door to hear the
old-fashioned airs he liked ; she never saw Laurie mount guard
in the hall, to warn the servants away; she never suspected
that the exercise-books and new songs which she found in the
rack were put there for her especial benefit ; and when he
_ talked to her about music at home, she only thought how
kind he was to tell things that helped her so much. So she
enjoyed herself heartily, and found, what isn’t always the case,
that her granted wish was all she had hoped. Perhaps it was
. because she was so grateful for this blessing that a greater was
given her ; at any rate, she deserved both.
“ Mother, I’m going to work Mr. Laurence a pair of slippers.
He is so kind to me I must thank him, and I don’t know any
other way. Can I do it?” asked Beth, a few weeks after that
eventful call of his.
“Yes, dear. It will please him very much, and be a nice way
of thanking him. The girls will help you about them, and I
will pay for the making up,” replied Mrs. March, who took
peculiar pleasure in granting Beth’s requests, because she so
seldom asked anything for herself.
After many serious discussions with Meg and Jo, the pattern
was chosen, the materials bought, and the slippers begun. A
cluster of grave yet cheerful pansies, on a deeper purple ground,
was pronounced very appropriate and pretty ; and Beth worked
away early and late, with occasional lifts over hard parts. She
was a nimble little needle-woman, and they were finished
before any one got tired of them. Then she wrote a very
short, simple note, and, with Laurie’s help, got them smuggled
‘ on to the study-table one morning before the old gentleman
was up.
When this excitement was over, Beth waited to see what
would happen. All that day passed, and a part of the next,
before any acknowledgment arrived, and she was beginning to
fear she had offended her crotchety friend. On the afternoon
of the second day she went out to do an errand, and give poor
Joanna, the invalid doll, her daily exercise. As she came up
the street on her return she saw three—yes, four heads popping
in and out of the parlour windows, and the moment they
saw her several hands were waved, and several joyful voices
screamed,—
56 Little Women
“ Here’s a letter from the old gentleman! Come quick, and
read it!”
“© Beth! he’s sent you—” began Amy, gesticulating with
unseemly energy ; but she got no further, for Jo quenched her
by slamming down the window.
Beth hurried on in a flutter of suspense. At the door her
sisters seized and bore her to the parlour in a triumphal pro-
cession, all pointing, and all saying at once, “ Look there!
look there!” Beth did look, and turned pale with delight and
surprise; for there stood alittle cabinet piano, with a letter
lying on the glossy lid, directed, like a sign-board, to ‘‘ Miss
Elizabeth March.”
“For me?” gasped Beth, holding on to Jo, and feeling as if
she should tumble down, it was such an overwhelming thing
altogether. i
“Yes; all for you, my precious! Isn’t it splendid of him?
Don’t you think he’s the dearest old man in the world? ©
Here’s the key in the letter. We didn’t open it, but we are
dying to know what he says,” cried Jo, hugging her sister, and
offering the note.
“You read it! I can’t, I feel so queer. Oh, it is too
lovely!” and Beth hid her face in Jo’s apron, quite upset by
her present.
Jo opened the paper, and began to laugh, for the first words
she saw were,—
“Miss MARcH:
“ Dear Madam—”
** How nice it sounds! I wish some one would write to me
so!” said Amy, who thought the old-fashioned address very
elegant.
***T have had many pairs of slippers in my life, but I never
had any that suited me so well as yours,’” continued Jo.
“* FHeart’s-ease is my favourite flower, and these will always
remind me of the gentle giver. I like to pay my debts, so I
know you will allow “the old gentleman” to send you some-
thing which once belonged to the little granddaughter he lost.
With hearty thanks and best wishes, I remain,
“‘* Your grateful friend and humble servant,
***JaMES LAURENCE,’”
“There, Beth, that’s an honour to be proud of, I’m sure!
Laurie told me how fond Mr. Laurence used to be of the child
 Beth Finds the Palace Beautiful 57
who died, and how he kept all her little things carefully. Just
think, he’s given you her piano. That comes of having big
blue eyes and loving music,” said Jo, trying to soothe Beth,
who trembled, and looked more excited than she had ever
been before.
“See the cunning brackets to hold candles, and the nice
green silk, puckered up, with a gold rose in the middle, and
the pretty rack and stool, all complete,” added Meg, opening
_ the instrument and displaying its beauties.
“*Your humble servant, James Laurence ;’ only think of
his writing that to you. I'll tell the girls. They’ll think it’s
splendid,” said Amy, much impressed by the note.
“Try it, honey. Let’s hear the sound of the baby pianny,”
said Hannah, who always took a share in the family joys and
SOIrows.
So Beth tried it, and every one pronounced it the most
remarkable piano ever heard. It had evidently been newly
tuned and put in apple-pie order; but, perfect as it was, I
think the real charm of it lay in the happiest of all happy
faces which leaned over it, as Beth lovingly touched the
beautiful black and white keys, and pressed the bright pedals.
“You'll have to go and thank him,” said Jo, by way of a
joke; for the idea of the child’s really going never entered
her head.
“Yes, I mean to. I guess I'll go now, before I get
frightened thinking about it.” And, to the utter amazement
of the assembled family, Beth walked deliberately down the
garden, through the hedge, and in at the Laurences’ door.
“Well, I wish I may die if it ain’t the queerest thing I ever
see! The pianny has turned her head! Shed never have
gone in her right mind,” cried Hannah, staring after her, while
the girls were rendered quite speechless by the miracle.
' They would have been still more amazed if they had seen
what Beth did afterward. If you will believe me, she went
and knocked at the study door before she gave herself time
to think; and when a gruff voice called out, “Come in!” she
did go in, right up to Mr. Laurence, who looked quite taken
aback, and held out her hand, saying, with only a small quaver
in her voice, “‘I came to thank you, sir, for—” But she didn’t
finish; for he looked so friendly that she forgot her speech,
and, only remembering that he had lost the little girl he loved,
she put both arms round his neck, and kissed him.
If the roof of the house had suddenly flown off, the old
 58 Little Women
gentleman wouldn’t have been more astonished; but he liked
it—oh dear, yes, he liked it amazingly !—and was so touched
and pleased by that confiding little kiss that all his crustiness
vanished ; and he just set her on his knee, and laid his
wrinkled cheek against her rosy one, feeling as if he had got
his own little granddaughter back again. Beth ceased to fear
him from that moment, and sat there talking to him as cosily
as if she had known him all her life; for love casts out fear,
_and gratitude can conquer pride. When she went home, he
walked with her to her own gate, shook hands cordially, and
touched his hat as he marched back again, looking very stately
and erect, like a handsome, soldierly old gentleman, as he was.
When the girls saw that performance, Jo began to dance a
jig, by way of expressing her satisfaction; Amy nearly fell out
of the window in her surprise; and Meg exclaimed, with up-
lifted hands, ‘‘ Well, I do believe the world is coming to an
end!”

CHAPTER VII

AMY’S VALLEY OF HUMILIATION

“THaT boy is a perfect Cyclops, isn’t he?” said Amy, one

day, as Laurie clattered by on horseback, with a flourish of
his whip as he passed.
‘* How dare you say so, when he’s got both his eyes? and
very handsome ones they are, too,” cried Jo, who resented
any slighting remarks about her friend.
““T didn’t say anything about his eyes, and I don’t see why
you need fire up when I admire his riding.”
““Oh, my goodness! that little goose means a centaur, and
she called him a Cyclops,” exclaimed Jo, with a burst of
laughter.
“You needn’t be so rude, it’s only a ‘lapse of lingy,’ as Mr.
Davis says,” retorted Amy, finishing Jo with her Latin. “I
just wish I had alittle of the money Laurie spends on that
horse,” she added, as if to herself, yet hoping her sisters
would hear.
““Why?” asked Meg kindly, for Jo had gone off in another
laugh at Amy’s second blunder.
““T need it so much; I’m dreadfully in debt, and it won’t
be my turn to have the rag-money for a month.”
 Amy’s Valley of Humiliation 59
ep debt, Amy? What do you mean?” and Meg looked
sober.
“Why, I owe at least a dozen pickled limes, and I can’t
pay them, you know, till I have money, for Marmee forbade
my having anything charged at the shop.”
“Tell me all about it. Are limes the fashion now? It
used to be pricking bits of rubber to make balls;” and Meg
tried to keep her countenance, Amy looked so grave and
_important.
“Why, you see, the girls are always buying them, and un-
less you want to be thought mean, you must do it too. It’s
nothing but limes now, for every one is sucking them in their
desks in school-time, and trading them off for pencils, bead-
‘rings, paper dolls, or something else, at recess. If one girl
likes another, she gives her a lime; if she’s mad with her, she
eats one before her face, and don’t offer even a suck. They
treat by turns; and I’ve had ever so many, but haven’t
returned them, and I ought, for they are debts of honour,
you know.”
“How much will pay them off, and restore your credit?”
asked Meg, taking out her purse.
“A quarter would more than do it, and leave a few cents
over for a treat for you. Don’t you like limes?”
“Not much; you may have my share. Here’s the money,
Make it last as long as you can, for it isn’t very plenty,
you know.”
‘Oh, thank you! It must be so nice to have pocket-money !
T’ll have a grand feast, for I haven’t tasted a lime this week.
I felt delicate about taking any, as I couldn’t return them, and
I'm actually suffering for one.”
Next day Amy was rather late at school; but could not
_resist the temptation of displaying, with pardonable pride, a
moist brown-paper parcel, before she consigned it to the
inmost recesses of her desk. During the next few minutes
the rumour that Amy March had got twenty-four delicious
limes (she ate one on the way), and was going to treat, circu-
lated through her “set,” and the attentions of her friends
became quite overwhelming. Katy Brown invited her to her
next party on the spot; Mary Kingsley insisted on lending
_her her watch till recess; and Jenny Snow, a satirical young
lady, who had basely twitted Amy upon her limeless state,
promptly buried the hatchet, and offered to furnish answers
to certain appalling sums. But Amy had not forgotten Miss
60 Little Women
Snow’s cutting remarks about “some persons whose noses
were not too flat to smell other people’s limes, and stuck-up
people, who were not too proud to ask for them ;” and she
instantly crushed “that Snow girl’s” hopes by the withering
telegram, “ You needn't be so polite all of a sudden, for you
won't get any.”
A distinguished personage happened to visit the school that
morning, and Amy’s beautifully drawn maps received praise,
which honour to her foe rankled in the soul of Miss Snow, and
caused Miss March to assume the airs of a studious young
peacock... But, alas, alas! pride goes before a fall, and the
revengeful Snow turned the tables with disastrous success.
No sooner had the guest paid the usual stale compliments,
and bowed himself out, than Jenny, under pretence of asking
an important question, informed Mr. Davis, the teacher, that
Amy March had pickled limes in her desk.
Now Mr. Davis had declared limes a contraband article, and
solemnly vowed to publicly ferrule the first person who was found ~
breaking the law. This much-enduring man had succeeded
in banishing chewing-gum after a long and stormy war, had
made a bonfire of the confiscated novels and newspapers, had
suppressed a private post-office, had forbidden distortions of
the face, nicknames, and caricatures, and done all that one
man could do to keep half a hundred rebellious girls in order.
Boys are trying enough to human patience, goodness knows!
but girls are infinitely more so, especially to nervous gentle-
men, with tyrannical tempers, and no more talent for teaching
than Dr. Blimber. Mr. Davis knew any quantity of Greek,
Latin, Algebra, and ologies of all sorts, so he was called a fine
teacher; and manners, morals, feelings, and examples were
not considered of any particular importance. It was a most
unfortunate moment for denouncing Amy, and Jenny knew
it. Mr. Davis had evidently taken his coffee too strong that
morning; there was an east wind, which always affected his
neuralgia, and his pupils had not done him the credit which
he felt he deserved: therefore, to use the expressive, if not
elegant, language of a school-girl, “he was as nervous as a
witch and as cross as a bear.” The word “limes” was like
fire to powder; his yellow face flushed, and he rapped on his
desk with an energy which made Jenny skip to her seat with
unusual rapidity.
“Young ladies, attention, if you please!”
At the stern order the buzz ceased, and fifty pairs of blue,
 Amy’s Valley of Humiliation 61
black, grey, and brown eyes were obediently fixed upon his
awful countenance.
** Miss March, come to the desk.”
Amy rose to comply with outward composure, but a secret
tear oppressed her, for the limes weighed upon her conscience.
“Bring with you the limes you have in your desk,” was the
unexpected command which arrested her before she got out
of her seat.
“ Don’t take all,” whispered her neighbour, a young lady of
great presence of mind.
Amy hastily shook out half-a-dozen, and laid the rest down
before Mr. Davis, feeling that any man possessing a human
heart would relent when that delicious perfume met his nose.
Unfortunately, Mr. Davis particularly detested the odour of
the fashionable pickle, and disgust added to his wrath.
“ts that all?”
“Not quite,” stammered Amy.
“ Bring the rest immediately.”
With a despairing glance at her set she obeyed.
“You are sure there are no more?”
*T never lie, sir.”
“So I see. Now take these disgusting things two by two,
and throw them out of the window.”
There was a simultaneous sigh, which created quite alittle
gust as the last hope fled, and the treat was ravished from
their longing lips. Scarlet with shame and anger, Amy went
to and fro six dreadful times; and as each doomed couple—
looking, oh, so plump and juicy!—fell from her reluctant
hands, a shout from the street completed the anguish of the
girls, for it told them that their feast was being exulted over
by the little Irish children, who were their sworn foes. This
-—this was too much; all flashed indignant or appealing
glances at the inexorable Davis, and one passionate lime-
lover burst into tears.
As Amy returned from her last trip, Mr. Davis gave a por-
tentous ‘‘ Hem!” and said, in his most impressive manner,—
“Young ladies, you remember what I said to you a week
ago. I am sorry this has happened; but I never allow my
rules to be infringed, and I never break my word. Miss
March, hold out your hand.”
Amy started, and put both hands behind her, turning on
him an imploring look which pleaded for her better than the
words she could not utter. She was rather a favourite with
62 Little Women
“ old Davis,” as, of course, he was called, and it’s my private
belief that he woudd have broken his word if the indignation
of one irrepressible young lady had not found vent in a hiss.
That hiss, faint as it was, irritated the irascible gentleman,
and sealed the culprit’s fate.
“ Your hand, Miss March!” was the only answer her mute
appeal received; and, too proud to cry or beseech, Amy set
her teeth, threw back her head defiantly, and bore without
flinching several tingling blows on her little palm. They were
neither many nor heavy, but that made no difference to her.
For the first time in her life she had been struck; and the
disgrace, in her eyes, was as deep as if he had knocked her
down.
“You will now stand on the platform till recess,” said Mr.
Davis, resolved to do the thing thoroughly, since he had
begun.
That was dreadful. It would have been bad enough to go
to her seat and see the pitying faces of her friends, or the
satisfied ones of her few enemies; but to face the whole
school, with that shame fresh upon her, seemed impossible,
and for a second she felt as if she could only drop down
where she stood, and break her heart with crying. A bitter
sense of wrong, and the thought of Jenny Snow, helped her
to bear it; and, taking the ignominious place, she fixed her
eyes on the stove-funnel above what now seemed a sea of
faces, and stood there, so motionless and white that the girls
found it very hard to study, with that pathetic figure before
them.
During the fifteen minutes that followed, the proud and
sensitive little girl suffered a shame and pain which she never
forgot. To others it might seem a ludicrous or trivial affair,
but to her it was a hard experience; for during the twelve
years of her life she had been governed by love alone, and a
blow of that sort had never touched her before. The smart
of her hand and the ache of her heart were forgotten in the
sting of the thought,—
‘*T shall have to tell at home, and they will be so disap-
pointed in me!”
The fifteen minutes seemed an hour; but they came to an
end at last, and the word “ Recess!” had never seemed so
welcome to her before.
“You can go, Miss March,” said Mr. Davis, looking, as he
felt, uncomfortable.
 Amy’s Valley of Humiliation 63
He did not soon forget the reproachful glance Amy gave him,
as she went, without a word to any one, straight into the ante-
room, snatched her things, and left the place “for ever,” as
she passionately declared to herself. She was in a sad state
when she got home; and when the older girls arrived, some
_ time later, an indignation meeting was held at once. Mrs.
March did not say much, but looked disturbed, and com-
forted her afflicted little daughter in her tenderest manner.
_ Meg bathed the insulted hand with glycerine and tears; Beth
felt that even her beloved kittens would fail as a balm for
griefs like this; Jo wrathfully proposed that Mr. Davis be
arrested without delay; and Hannah shook her fist at the
villain,” and pounded potatoes for dinner as if she had him
under her pestle.
No notice was taken of Amy’s flight, except by her mates;
but the sharp-eyed demoiselles discovered that Mr. Davis was
quite benignant in the afternoon, also unusually nervous,
Just before school closed, Jo appeared, wearing a grim expres-
sion, as she stalked up to the desk, and delivered a letter from
her mother; then collected Amy’s property, and departed,
carefully scraping the mud from her boots on the door-mat, as
if she shook the dust of the place off her feet.
“Yes, you can have a vacation from school, but I want you
to study a little every day, with Beth,” said Mrs. March, that
evening. “I don’t approve of corporal punishment, espe-
cially for girls. I dislike Mr. Davis’s manner of teaching, and
don’t think the girls you associate with are doing you any good,
so I shall ask your father’s advice betore I send you anywhere
else.”
-“That’s good! I wish all the girls would leave, and spoil
his old school. It’s perfectly maddening to think of those
_ lovely limes,” sighed Amy, with the air of a martyr.
‘“‘T am not sorry you lost them, for you broke the rules, and
deserved some punishment for disobedience,” was the severe
reply, which rather disappointed the young lady, who expected
nothing but sympathy.
“‘Do you mean you are glad I was disgraced before the
whole school?” cried Amy.
“IT should not have chosen that way of mending a fault,”
replied her mother; “ but I’m not sure that it won’t do you
more good than a milder method. You are getting to be
rather conceited, my dear, and it is quite time you set
about correcting it. You have a good many little gifts
64 Little Women
and virtues, but there is no need of parading them, for conceit
spoils the finest genius. There is not much danger that real
talent or goodness will be overlooked long; even if it is, the
cor'sciousness of possessing and using it well should satisty
one, and the great charm of all power is modesty.”
“So it is!” cried Laurie, who was playing chess in a corner
with Jo. ‘I knew agirl, once, who had a really remarkable
talent for music, and she didn’t know it; never guessed what
sweet little things she composed when she was alone, and
would have believed it if any one had told her.”
“T wish I’d known that nice girl, maybe she would have
helped me, I’m so stupid,” said Beth, who stood beside him,
listening eagerly.
“You do know her, and she helps you better than any one
else could,” answered Laurie, looking at her with such mis-
chievous meaning in his merry black eyes, that Beth suddenly
turned very red, and hid her face in the sofa-cushion, quite
overcome by such an unexpected discovery.
Jo let Laurie win the game, to pay for that praise of her
Beth, who could not be prevailed upon to play for them after
her compliment. So Laurie did his best, and sung delight-
fully, being in a particularly lively humour, for to the Marches
he seldom showed the moody side of his character. When
he was gone, Amy, who had been pensive all the evening,
said suddenly, as if busy over some new idea,—
“Is Laurie an accomplished boy?”
“Yes; he has had an excellent education, and has much
talent; he will make a fine man, if not spoilt by petting,”
replied her mother.
“ And he isn’t conceited, is he?” asked Amy.
‘Not in the least; that is why he is so charming, and we
all like him so much,”
“T see; it’s nice to have accomplishments, and be elegant;
but not to show off or get perked up,” said Amy thoughtfully.
‘‘ These things are always seen and felt in a person’s manner
and conversation if modestly used; but it is not necessary to
display them,” said Mrs. March.
“Any more than it’s proper to wear all your bonnets and
gowns and ribbons at once, that folks may know you've got
them,” added Jo; and the lecture ended in a laugh,
(Wt et
 Jo Meets Apollyon * 6s
CHAPTER VIII
JO MEETS APOLLYON
_“Grris, where are you going?” asked Amy, coming into
their room one Saturday afternoon, and finding them getting
ready to go out, with an air of secrecy which excited her
Curiosity.
“ Never mind ; little girls shouldn’t ask questions,” returned
Jo sharply. :
Now if there zs anything mortifying to our feelings, when we
are young, it is to be told that; and to be bidden to “run
‘away, dear,” is still more trying to us. Amy bridled up at
this insult, and determined to find out the secret, if she teased
for anhour. Turning to Meg, who never refused her anything
very long, she said coaxingly, ‘‘ Do tell me! I should think
_ you might let me go, too; for Beth is fussing over her piano,
_ and I haven’t got anything to do, and am so lonely.”
**I can’t, dear, because you aren’t invited,” began Meg; but
Jo broke in impatiently, “ Now, Meg, be quiet, or you will
spoil it all. You can’t go, Amy; so don't be a baby, and
whine about it.”
“You are going somewhere with Laurie, I know you are;
you were whispering and laughing together, on the sofa, last
night, and you stopped when I came in. Aren’t you going
with him?”
“Ves, we are; now do be still, and stop bothering.”
Amy held her tongue, but used her eyes, and saw Meg slip
a fan into her pocket.
“IT know! I know! you're going to the theatre to see the
_*Seven Castles’!” she cried; adding resolutely, “and I shadd
go, for mother said I might see it; and I’ve got my rag-money,
and it was mean not to tell me in time.”
“Just listen to me a minute, and be a good child,” said
Meg soothingly. ‘‘ Mother doesn’t wish you to go this week,
because your eyes are not well enough yet to bear the light of
this fairy piece. Next week you can go with Beth and Hannah,
and have a nice time.”
“T don’t like that half as well as going with you and Laurie.
Please let me; I’ve been sick with this cold so long, and shut
up, I’m dying for some fun. Do, Meg! 1’ll be ever so good,”
pleaded Amy, looking as pathetic as she could.
66 Little Women
“ Suppose we take her. I don’t believe mother would mind,
if we bundle her up well,” began Meg. ,
“Tf she goes J shan’t; and if I don’t, Laurie won’t iike it;
and it will be very rude, after he invited only us, to go and
drag in Amy. I should think she’d hate to poke herself where
she isn’t wanted,” said Jo crossly, for she disliked the trouble
of overseeing a fidgety child, when she wanted to enjoy
herself.
Her tone and manner angered Amy, who began to put her
boots on, saying, in her most aggravating way, “I shadl go;
Meg says I may; and if I pay for myself, Laurie hasn’t any-
thing to do with it.”
“You can’t sit with us, for our seats are reserved, and you
musn’t sit alone; so Laurie will give you his place, and that
will spoil our pleasure, or he'll get another seat for you, and
that isn’t proper, when you weren’t asked. You shan’t stir a
step ; SO you may just stay where you are,” scolded Jo, crosser
than ever, having just pricked her finger in her hurry.
Sitting on the floor, with one boot on, Amy began to cry,
and Meg to reason with her, when Laurie called from below,
and the two girls hurried down, leaving their sister wailing;
for now and then she forgot her grown-up ways, and acted
like a spoilt child. Just as the party was setting out, Amy
called over the banisters, in a threatening tone, “ You'll be
sorry for this, Jo.March; see if you ain’t.”
* Fiddlesticks !” returned Jo, slamming the door.
They had a charming time, for “‘ The Seven Castles of the
Diamond Lake” were as brilliant and wonderful as heart
could wish. But, in spite of the comical red imps, sparkling
elves, and gorgeous princes and princesses, Jo’s pleasure had
a drop of bitterness in it; the fairy queen’s yellow curls re-
minded her of Amy; and between the acts she amused herself
with wondering what her sister would do to make her “ sorry
for it.” She and Amy had had many lively skirmishes in the
course of their lives, for both had quick tempers, and were
apt to be violent when fairly roused. Amy teased Jo, and
Jo irritated Amy, and semi-occasional explosions occurred, of
which both were much ashamed afterward. Although the
oldest, Jo had the least self-control, and had hard times
trying to curb the fiery spirit which was continually getting
her into trouble; her anger never lasted long, and, having
humbly confessed her fault, she sincerely repented, and tried
to do better. Her sisters used to say that they rather liked
 Jo Meets Apollyon a
to get Jo into a fury, because she was such an angel afterward.
Poor Jo tried desperately to be good, but her bosom enemy
was always ready to flame up and defeat her ; and it took years
of patient effort to subdue it.
When they got home, they found Amy reading in the
parlour. She assumed an injured air as they came in; never
lifted her eyes from her book, or asked a single question.
Perhaps curiosity might have conquered resentment, if Beth
_had not been there to inquire, and receive a glowing descrip-
tion of the play. On going up to put away her best hat, Jo’s
first look was toward the bureau; for, jin their last quarrel,
Amy had soothed her feelings by turning Jo’s top drawer
upside down on the floor. Everything was in its place, how-
‘ever; and after a hasty glance into her various closets, bags,
and boxes, Jo decided that Amy had forgiven and forgotten
her wrongs.
There Jo was mistaken; for next day she made a discovery
which produced.a tempest. Meg, Beth, and Amy were sitting
together, late in the afternoon, when Jo burst into the room,
looking excited, and demanding breathlessly, “ Has any one
taken my book?”
Meg and Beth said “ No,” at once, and looked surprised ;
Amy poked the fire and said nothing. Jo saw her colour rise,
and was down upon her in a minute.
‘Amy, you’ve got it?”
* No, I haven't.”
* You know where it is, then?”
“No, I don’t.”
“That’s a fib!” cried Jo, taking her by the shoulders, and
looking fierce enough to frighten a much braver child than
Amy.
i ort isn’t. I haven’t got it, don’t know where it is now, and
don’t care.”
“You know something about it, and you’d better tell at
once, or I'll make you,” and Jo gave her a slight shake.|
“‘Scold as much as you like, you'll never see your silly old
book again,” cried Amy, getting excited in her turn.
“ Why not?”
“J burnt it up.”
«What! my little book I was so fond of, and worked over,
and meant to finish before father got home? Have you really
burnt it?” said Jo, turning very pale, while her eyes kindled
and her hands clutched Amy nervously.
68 Little Women
“Yes, I did! I told you I’d make you pay for being so
cross yesterday, and I have, so i
Amy got no further, for Jo’s hot temper mastered her, and
she shook Amy till her teeth chattered in her head ; crying,
in a passion of grief and anger,—
“You wicked, wicked girl! I never can write it again, and
I’ll never forgive you as long as I live.”
Meg flew to rescue Amy, and Beth to pacify Jo, but Jo was
quite beside herself; and, with a parting box on her sister’s
ear, she rushed out of the room up to the old sofa in the
garret, and finished her fight alone.
The storm cleared up below, for Mrs. March came home,
and, having heard the story, soon brought Amy to a sense of
the wrong she had done her sister. Jo’s book was the pride
of her heart, and was regarded by her family as a literary sprout
of great promise. It was only half-a-dozen little fairy tales,
but Jo had worked over them patiently, putting her whole
heart into her work, hoping to make something good enough ~
to print. She had just copied them with great care, and had
destroyed the old manuscript, so that Amy’s bonfire had con-
sumed the loving work of several years. It seemed a small
loss to others, but to Jo it was a dreadful calamity, and she
felt that it never could be made up to her. Beth mourned
as for a departed kitten, and Meg refused to defend her pet;
Mrs. March looked grave and grieved, and Amy felt that no
one would love her till she had asked pardon for the act which
she now regretted more than any of them.
When the tea-bell rung, Jo appeared, looking so grim and
unapproachable, that it took all Amy’s courage to say meekly—
“‘ vlease forgive me, Jo; I’m very, very sorry.”
“I never shall forgive you,” was Jo’s stern answer; and
from that moment she ignored Amy entirely.
No one spoke of the great trouble—not even Mrs. March—
for all had learned by experience that when Jo was in that
mood words were wasted; and the wisest course was to wait
till some little accident, or her own generous nature, softened
Jo’s resentment, and healed the breach. It was not a happy
evening ; for, though they sewed as usual, while their mother
read aloud from Bremer, Scott, or Edgeworth, something was
wanting, and the sweet home-peace was disturhed. They felt
this most when singing-time came; for Beth could only play,
Jo stood dumb as a stone, and Amy. broke down, so Meg and
mother sung alone. But, in spite of their efforts to be as
 Jo Meets Apollyon ~ 65
cheery as larks, the flute-like voices did not seem to chord
as well as usual, and all felt out of tune.
& Jo received her good-night kiss, Mrs. March whispered
gently,—
““My dear, don’t let the sun go down upon your anger;
forgive each other, help each other, and begin again to-
morrow.”
Jo wanted to lay her head down on that motherly bosom,
and cry her grief and anger all away; but tears were an un-
manly weakness, and she felt so deeply injured that she really
couldn't quite forgive yet. So she winked hard, shook her
head, and said gruffly, because Amy was listening,—
“Tt was an abominable thing, and she don’t deserve to be
forgiven.”
With that she marched off to bed, and there was no merry
or confidential gossip that night.
Amy was much offended that her overtures of peace had
been repulsed, and began to wish she had not humbled herself,
_to feel more injured than ever, and to plume herself on her
superior virtue in a way which was particularly exasperating.
Jo still looked like a thunder-cloud, and nothing went well all
day. It was bitter cold in the morning; she dropped her
precious turnover in the gutter, Aunt March had an attack of
fidgets, Meg was pensive, Beth wou/d look grieved and wistful
when she got home, and Amy kept making remarks about
people who were always talking about being good, and yet
wouldn’t try when other people set them a virtuous example.
** Fverybody is so hateful, I’ll ask Laurie to go skating. He
is always kind and jolly, and will put me to rights, I know,”
said Jo to herself, and off she went.
Amy heard the clash of skates, and looked out with an
impatient exclamation,—
' “There! she promised I should go next time, for this is the
last ice we shall have. But it’s no use to ask such a cross-
patch to take me.”
“Don’t say that; you weve very naughty, and it zs hard to
forgive the loss of her precious little book; but I think she
might do it now, and I guess she will, if you try her at the
right minute,” said Meg. ‘Go after them; don’t say any-
thing till Jo has got good-natured with Laurie, then take a
quiet minute, and just kiss her, or do some kind thing, and
I’m sure she'll be friends again, with all her heart.”
“T’ll try,” said Amy, for the advice suited her; and, after
70 Little Women
a flurry to get ready, she ran after the friends, who were just
disappearing over the hill,
It was not far to the river, but both were ready before Amy
reached them. Jo saw her coming, and turned her back;
Laurie did not see, for he was carefully skating along the
shore, sounding the ice, for a warm spell had preceded the
cold snap.
“Tl go on to the first bend, and see if it’s all right, before
we begin to race,” Amy heard him say, as he shot away, look-
ing like a young Russian, in his fur-trimmed coat and cap.
Jo heard Amy panting after her run, stamping her feet, and
blowing her fingers, as she tried to put her skates on; but Jo
never turned, and went slowly zigzagging down the river,
taking a bitter, unhappy sort of satisfaction in her sister’s
troubles. She had cherished her anger till it grew strong,
and took possession of her, as evil thoughts and feelings
always do, unless cast out at once. As Laurie turned the
bend, he shouted back,—
“ Keep near the shore; it isn’t safe in the middle.”
Jo heard, but Amy was just struggling to her feet, and did
not catch a word. Jo glanced over her shoulder, and the
little demon she was harbouring said in her ear,—
‘““No matter whether she heard or not, let her take care of
herself.”
Laurie had ‘vanished round the bend; Jo was just at the
turn, and Amy, far behind, striking out toward the smoother
ice in the middle of the river. Fora minute Jo stood still,
with a strange feeling at her heart; then she resolved to go
on, but something held and turned her round, just in time
to see Amy throw up her hands and go down, with the
sudden crash of rotten ice, the splash of water, and a cry
that made Jo’s heart stand still with fear. She tried to call
Laurie, but her voice was gone; she tried to rush forward,
but her feet seemed to have no strength in them; and, fora
second, she could only stand motionless, staring, with a terror-
stricken face, at the little blue hood above the black water.
Something rushed swiftly by her, and Laurie’s voice cried
out,—
“ Bring a rail; quick, quick!”
How she did it she never knew; but for the next few
minutes she worked as if possessed, blindly obeying Laurie,
who was quite self-possessed; and, lying flat, held Amy up
by his arm and hockey, till Jo dragged a rail from the fence,
 Jo Meets Apollyon ee '
ce together they got the child out, more frightened than
urt.
‘** Now then, we must walk her home as fast as we can; pile
our things on her, while I get off these confounded skates,”
cried Laurie, wrapping his coat round Amy, and tugging away
at the straps, which never seemed so intricate before.
Shivering, dripping, and crying, they got Amy home; and,
after an exciting time of it, she fell asleep, rolled in blankets,
_ before a hot fire. During the bustle Jo had scarcely spoken;
but flown about, looking pale and wild, with her things half
off, her dress torn, and her hands cut and bruised by ice and
rails, and refractory buckles. When Amy was comfortably
asleep, the house quiet, and Mrs. March sitting by the
‘ped, she called Jo to her, and began to bind up the hurt
hands.
*‘ Are you sure she is safe?” whispered Jo, looking remorse-
fully at the golden head, which might have been swept away
from her sight for ever under the treacherous ice.
‘Quite safe, dear; she is not hurt, and won’t even take
cold, I think, you were so sensible in covering and getting her
home quickly,” replied her mother cheerfully.
‘Laurie did it all; I only let her go. Mother, if she should
die, it would be my fault ;” and Jo dropped down beside the
bed, in a passion of penitent tears, telling all that had hap-
pened, bitterly condemning her hardness of heart, and sobbing
out her gratitude for being spared the heavy punishment which
might have come upon her.
“It’s my dreadful temper! I try to cure it; I think I
have, and then it breaks out worse than ever. O mother,
what shall Ido? what shall I do?” cried poor Jo, in despair.
“Watch and pray, dear; never get tired of trying, and
never think it is impossible to conquer your fault,” said Mrs.
' March, drawing the blowzy head to her shoulder, and kissing
the wet cheek so tenderly that Jo cried harder than ever.
“You don’t know; you can’t guess how bad it is! It
seems as if I could do anything when I’m in a passion; I
get so savage, I could hurt any one, and enjoy it. 1’m afraid
1 shall do something dreadful some day, and spoil my life,
and make everybody hate me. O mother, help me, do
help me!”
“T will, my child, I will. Don’t cry so bitterly, but re-
member this day, and resolve, with all your soul, that you
will never know another like it. Jo, dear, we all have our
72 Little Women
temptations, some far greater than yours, and it often takes
us all our lives to conquer them. You think your temper
is the worst in the world; but mine used to be just like it.”
Yours, mother? Why, you are never angry!” and, for
the moment, Jo forgot remorse in surprise.
‘“‘T’ve been trying to cure it for forty years, and have only
succeeded in controlling it. Iam angry nearly every day of
my life, Jo; but I have learned not to show it; and I still
hope to learn not to feel it, though it may take me another
forty years to do so.”
The patience and the humility of the face she loved so well
was a better lesson to Jo than the wisest lecture, the sharpest
reproof. She felt comforted at once by the sympathy and
confidence given her; the knowledge that her mother had a
fault like hers, and tried to mend it, made her own easier to
bear and strengthened her resolution to cure it ; though forty
years seemed rather a long time to watch and pray, to a girl
of fifteen.
‘* Mother, are you angry when you fold your lips tight
together, and go out of the room sometimes, when Aunt
March scolds, or people worry you?” asked Jo, feeling nearer
and dearer to her mother than ever before.
‘Yes, Pve learned to check the hasty words that rise to my
lips; and when | feel that they mean to break out against my
will, I just go away a minute, and give myself a little shake,
for being so weak and wicked,” answered Mrs. March, with
a sigh and a smile, as she smoothed and fastened up Jo’s
dishevelled hair.
“ How did you learnto keep still? That is what troubles
me—for the sharp words fly out before I know what I’m
about ; and the more I say the worse I get, till it’s a pleasure
to hurt people’s feelings, and say dreadful things. Tell me
how you do it, Marmee dear.”
** My good mother used to help me tr

“As you do us—” interrupted Jo, with a grateful kiss.

“ But I lost her when I was alittle older than you are, and for
years had to struggle on alone, for I was too proud to confess
my weakness to any one else. I had a hard time, Jo, and
shed a good many bitter tears over my failures; for, in spite
of my efforts, I never seemed to get on. Then your father
came, and I was so happy that I found it easy to be good.
But by-and-by, when | had four little daughters round me,
and we were poor, then the old trouble began again ; for I am
 Jo Meets Apollyon 73
not patient by nature, and it tried me very much to see my
children wanting anything.”
‘“*Poor mother! what helped you then?”
“Your father, Jo. He never loses patience—never doubts
or complains—but always hopes, and works, and waits so
cheerfully that one is ashamed to do otherwise before him.
He helped and comforted me, and showed me that I must try
to practise all the virtues I would have my little girls possess,
‘for I was their example. It was easier to try for your sakes
than for my own; a startled or surprised look from one of
you, when I spoke sharply, rebuked me more than any words
could have done; and the love, respect, and confidence of my
children was the sweetest reward I could receive for my efforts
- to be the woman I would have them copy.”
“QO mother, if I’m ever half as good as you, I shall be
satisfied,” cried Jo, much touched.
“I hope you will be a great deal better, dear; but you must
keep watch over your ‘bosom enemy,’ as father calls it, or it
may sadden, if not spoil your life. You have had a warning;
remember it, and try with heart and soul to master this quick
temper, before it brings you greater sorrow and regret than
you have known to-day.”
“*T will try, mother; I truly will. But you must help me,
remind me, and keep me from flying out. I used to see
father sometimes put his finger on his lips, and look at you
with a very kind but sober face, and you always folded your
lips tight or went away; was he reminding you then?” asked
Jo softly.
“Yes; I asked him to help me so, and he never forgot it,
but saved me from many a sharp word by that little gesture
_and kind look.”
- Jo saw that her mother’s eyes filled and her lips trembled
as she spoke; and, fearing that she had said too much, she
whispered anxiously, ‘‘ Was it wrong to watch you, and to
speak of it? I didn’t mean to be rude, but it’s so com-
fortable to say all I think to you, and feel so safe and happy
_ here.”
“My Jo, you may say anything to your mother, for it is my
greatest happiness and pride to feel that my girls confide in
me, and know how much I love them.”
“T thought I’d grieved you.”
“No, dear; but speaking of father reminded me how much
I miss him, how much I owe him, and how faithfully 1 should
74. Little Women
watch and work to keep his little daughters safe and good for
him.”
“Yet you told him to go, mother, and didn’t cry when he
went, and never complain now, or seem as if you needed any
help,” said Jo, wondering.
“T gave my best to the country I love, and kept my tears
till he was gone. Why should I complain, when we both have
merely done our duty, and will surely be the happier for it in
the end? If I don’t seem to need help, it is because I have
a better friend even than father, to comfort and sustain me.
My child, the troubles and temptations of your life are be-
ginning, and may be many ; but you can overcome and outlive
them all, if you learn to feel the strength and tenderness of
your Heavenly Father as you do that of your earthly one.
The more you love and trust Him, the nearer you will feel to
Him, and the less you will depend on human power and
wisdom. His love and care never tire or change, can never
be taken from you, but may become the source of lifelong
peace, happiness, and strength. Believe this heartily, and go
to God with all your little cares, and hopes, and sins, and
sorrows, as freely and confidingly as you come to your
mother.”
Jo’s only answer was to hold her mother close, and, in the
silence which followed, the sincerest prayer she had ever
prayed left her heart without words; for in that sad, yet
happy hour, she had learned not only the bitterness of remorse
and despair, but the sweetness of self-denial and self-control ;
and, led by her mother’s hand, she had drawn nearer to the
Friend who welcomes every child with a love stronger than
that of any father, tenderer than that of any mother.
Amy stirred, and sighed in her sleep; and, as if eager to
begin at once to mend her fault, Jo looked up with an expres-
sion on her face which it had never worn before.
“T let the sun go down on my anger; I wouldn’t forgive
her, and to-day, if it hadn’t been for Laurie, it might have
been too late! How could I be so wicked?” said Jo, half
aloud, as she leaned over her sister, softly stroking the wet
hair scattered on the pillow.
As if she heard, Amy opened her eyes, and held out her
arms, with a smile that went straight to Jo’s heart. Neither
said a word, but they hugged one another close, in spite of the
blankets, and everything was forgiven and forgotten in one
hearty kiss.
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair’ 75

CHAPTER IX
MEG GOES TO VANITY FAIR
“T po think it was the most fortunate thing in the world that
those children should have the measles just now,” said Meg,
one April day, as she stood packing the “ go abroady” trunk
in her room, surrounded by her sisters.
“ And so nice of Annie Moffat not to forget her promise.
A whole fortnight of fun will be regularly splendid,” replied
Jo, looking like a windmill, as she folded skirts with her long
arms.
‘‘And such lovely weather; I’m so glad of that,” added
Beth, tidily sorting neck and hair ribbons in her best box, lent
for the great occasion.
“‘T wish I was going to have afine time, and wear all these
nice things,” said Amy, with her mouth full of pins, as she
artistically replenished her sister’s cushion.
“T wish you were all going; but, as you can’t, I shall keep
my adventures to tell you when I come back. I’m sure it’s
the least I can do, when you have been so kind, lending me
things, and helping me get ready,” said Meg, glancing round the
room at the very simple outfit, which seemed nearly perfect in
their eyes.
“What did mother give you out of the treasure-box?”
asked Amy, who had not been present at the opening of a
certain cedar chest, in which Mrs. March kept a few relics
of past splendour, as gifts for her girls when the proper time
came.
“A pair of silk stockings, that pretty carved fan, and a
lovely blue sash. I wanted the violet silk; but there isn’t
time to make it over, so I must be contented with my old
tarlatan.”
“Tt will look nicely over my new muslin skirt, and the sash
will set it off beautifully. I wish I hadn’t smashed my coral
_ bracelet, for you might have had it,” said Jo, who loved to
give and lend, but whose possessions were usually too dilapi-
dated to be of much use.
‘There is a lovely old-fashioned pearl set in the treasure-
_ box; but mother said real flowers were the prettiest Ornaments
for'a young girl, and Laurie promised to send me all I want,”
replied Meg. “ Now, let me see; there’s my new grey walking-
76 Little Women
suit—just curl up the feather in my hat, Beth—then my
poplin, for Sunday, and the small party—it looks heavy for
spring, doesn’t it? The violet silk would be so nice ; oh dear!”
«Never mind; you’ve got the tarlatan for the big party,
and you always look lke an angel in white,” said Amy,
brooding over the little store of finery in which her soul
delighted.
“Tt isn’t low-necked, and it doesn’t sweep enough, but it
will have to do. My blue house-dress looks so well, turned
and freshly trimmed, that I feel as if I'd got a new one. My
silk sacque isn’t a bit the fashion, and my bonnet doesn’t look
like Sallie’s; I didn’t like to say anything, but I was sadly
disappointed in my umbrella. I told mother black, with a
white handle, but she forgot, and bought a green one, with a
yellowish handle. It’s strong and neat, so I ought not to
complain, but I know I shall feel ashamed of it beside Annie’s
silk one, with a gold top,” sighed Meg, surveying the little
umbrella with great disfavour.
“ Change it,” advised Jo.
“I won’t be so silly, or hurt Marmee’s feelings, when she
took so much pains to get my things. It’s a nonsensical
notion of mine, and I’m not going to give up to it. My silk
stockings and two pairs of new gloves are my comfort.
You are a dear, to lend me yours, Jo. I feel so rich, and
sort of elegant, with two new pairs, and the old ones cleaned
up for common;” and Meg took a refreshing peep at her
glove-box.
“ Annie Moffat has blue and pink bows on her night-caps;
would you put some on mine?” she asked, as Beth brought
up a pile of snowy muslins, fresh from Hannah’s hands.
“No, I wouldn’t; for the smart caps won’t match the plain
gowns, without any trimming on them. Poor folks shouldn’t
rig,” said Jo decidedly.
“I wonder if I shall ever be happy enough to have real lace
on my clothes, and bows on my caps?” said Meg impatiently.
“You said the other day that you’d be perfectly happy if
you could only go to Annie Moffat’s,” observed Beth, in her
quiet way.
“So I did! Well, I am happy, and I won’t fret; but it
does seem as if the more one gets the more one wants, doesn’t
it? There, now, the trays are ready, and everything in but my
ball-dress, which I shall leave for mother to pack,” said Meg,
cheering up, as she glanced from the half-filled trunk to the
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair oo
many-times pressed and mended white tarlatan, which she
called her “ ball-dress,” with an important air.
The, next day was fine, and Meg departed, in style, for a
fortnight of novelty and pleasure. Mrs. March had consented
to the visit rather reluctantly, fearing that Margaret would
come back more discontented than she went. But she had
begged so hard, and Sallie had promised to take good care
of her, and alittle pleasure seemed so delightful after a winter
of irksome work, that the mother yielded, and the daughter
went to take her first taste of fashionable life.
The Moffats weve very fashionable, and simple Meg was
rather daunted, at first, by the splendour of the house and
the elegance of its occupants. But they were kindly people,
-in spite of the frivolous life they led, and soon put their guest
at her ease. Perhaps Meg felt, without understanding why,
that they were not particularly cultivated or intelligent people,
and that all their gilding could not quite conceal the ordinary
material of which they were made. It certainly was agreeable
to fare sumptuously, drive in a fine carriage, wear her best
frock every day, and do nothing but enjoy herself. It suited
her exactly; and soon she began to imitate the manners and
conversation of those about her; to put on little airs and
graces, use French phrases, crimp her hair, take in her dresses,
and talk about the fashions as well as she could. The more
she saw of Annie Moffat’s pretty things, the more she envied
her, and sighed to be rich. Home now looked bare and dismal
as she thought of it, work grew harder than ever, and she felt
that she was a very destitute and much injured girl, in spite of
the new gloves and silk stockings.
She had not much time for repining, however, for the three
young girls were busily employed in “having a good time.”
They shopped, walked, rode, and called all day; went to
‘theatres and operas, or frolicked at home in the evening; for
Annie had many friends, and knew how to entertain them.
Her older sisters were very fine young ladies, and one was
engaged, which was extremely interesting and romantic, Meg
thought. Mr. Moffat was a fat, jolly old gentleman, who knew
her father; and Mrs. Moffat, a fat, jolly old lady, who took as
great a fancy to Meg as her daughter had done. Every one
petted her; and “ Daisy,” as they called her, was in a fair
' way to have her head turned.
When the evening for the “small party” came, she found
that the poplin wouldn’t do at all, for the other girls were
78 Little Women
putting on thin dresses, and making themselves very fine
indeed; so out came the tarlatan, looking older, limper, and
shabbier than ever, beside Sallie’s crisp new one. Meg saw
the girls glance at it, and then at one another, and her cheeks
began to burn; for, with all her gentleness, she was very
proud. No one said a word about it, but Sallie offered to dress
her hair, and Annie to tie her sash, and Belle, the engaged
sister, praised her white arms; but in their kindness Meg
saw only pity for her poverty, and her heart felt very heavy as
she stood by herself, while the others laughed, chattered, and
flew about like gauzy butterflies. The hard, bitter feeling
was getting pretty bad, when the maid brought in a box of
flowers. Before she could speak, Annie had the cover off,
and all were exclaiming at the lovely roses, heath, and fern
within,
“It’s for Belle, of course; George always sends her some,
but these are altogether ravishing,” cried Annie, with a great
sniff.
““They are for Miss March, the man said. And here’s a
note,” put in the maid, holding it to Meg.
“What fun! Who are they from? Didn’t know you had
a lover,” cried the girls, fluttering about Meg in a high state
of curiosity and surprise.
“The note is from mother, and the flowers from Laurie,”
said Meg simply, yet much gratified that he had not for-
gotten her.
“Oh, indeed!” said Annie, with a funny look, as Meg
slipped the note into her pocket, as a sort of talisman against
envy, vanity, and false pride; for the few loving words had
done her good, and the flowers cheered her up by their
beauty.
Feeling almost happy again, she laid by a few ferns and
roses for herself, and quickly made up the rest in dainty
bouquets for the breasts, hair, or skirts of her friends, offering
them so prettily that Clara, the elder sister, told her she was
“the sweetest little thing she ever saw;” and they looked
quite charmed with her small attention. Somehow the kind
act finished her despondency ; and, when all the rest went to
show themselves to Mrs. Moffat, she saw a happy, bright-eyed
face in the mirror, as she laid her ferns against her rippling
hair, and fastened the roses in the dress that didn’t strike her
as so very shabby now.
She enjoyed herself very much that evening, for she danced
 ‘

Meg Goes to Vanity Fair 79

to her heart’s content ; every one was very kind, and she had
three compliments. Annie made her sing, and some one said
she had a remarkably fine voice; Major Lincoln asked who
“the fresh little girl with the beautiful eyes was;” and Mr.
Moffat insisted on dancing with her, because she “ didn’t
dawdle, but had some spring in her,” as he gracefully ex-
pressed it. So, altogether, she had a very nice time, till she
overheard a bit of conversation which disturbed her extremely.
She was sitting just inside the conservatory, waiting for her
partner to bring her an ice, when she heard a voice ask, on
the other side of the flowery wall,—
“ How old is he?”
“Sixteen or seventeen, I should say,” replied another voice.
It would be a grand thing for one of those girls, wouldn’t
it? Sallie says they are very intimate now, and the old man
- quite dotes on them.”
““Mrs. M. has made her plans, I dare say, and will play her
cards well, early as it is. The girl evidently doesn’t think of
it yet,” said Mrs. Moffat.
‘She told that fib about her mamma, as if she did know,
and coloured up when the flowers came, quite prettily. Poor
thing! she’d be so nice if she was only got up in style. Do
you think she’d be offended if we offered to lend her a dress
for Thursday ?” asked another voice.
*‘She’s proud, but I don’t believe she’d mind, for that
dowdy tarlatan is all she has got. She may tear it to-night,
and that will be a good excuse for offering a decent one.”
“We'll see. I shall ask young Laurence, as a compliment
to her, and we’ll have fun about it afterward.”
Here Meg’s partner appeared, to find her looking much
flushed and rather agitated. She was proud, and her pride
was useful just then, for it helped her hide her mortification,
anger, and disgust at what she had just heard; for, innocent
and unsuspicious as she was, she could not help understanding
’ the gossip of her friends. She tried to forget it, but could not,
and kept repeating to herself, “ Mrs. M. has made her plans,”
“that fib about her mamma,” and “ dowdy tarlatan,” till she
was ready to cry, and rush home to tell her troubles and ask for
advice. As that was impossible, she did her best to seem gay ;
and, being rather excited, she succeeded so well that no one
dreamed what an effort she was making. She was very glad
when it was all over, and she was quiet in her bed, where she
~ could think and wonder and fume till her head ached, and her
80 Little Women
hot cheeks were cooled by a few natural tears. Those foolish,
yet well-meant words, had opened a new world to Meg, and
much disturbed the peace of the old one, in which, till now,
she had lived as happily as a child. Her innocent friendship
with Laurie was spoilt by the silly speeches she had overheard;
her faith in her mother was a little shaken by the worldly plans
attributed to her by Mrs. Moffat, who judged others by herself;
and the sensible resolution to be contented with the simple
wardrobe which suited a poor man’s daughter was weakened
by the unnecessary pity of girls, who thought a shabby dress
one of the greatest calamities under heaven.
Poor Meg had a restless night, and got up heavy-eyed,
unhappy, half-resentful toward her friends, and half-ashamed
of herself for not speaking out frankly, and setting everything
right. Everybody dawdled that morning, and it was noor
before the girls found energy enough even to take up thei
worsted work. Something in the manner of her friends struck
Meg at once; they treated her with more respect, she thought.
took quite a tender interest in what she said, and looked at
her with eyes that plainly betrayed curiosity. All this sur-
prised and flattered her, though she did not understand it till
Miss Belle looked up from her writing, and said, with a senti
mental air,—
“ Daisy, dear, I’ve sent an invitation to your friend, Mr.
Laurence, for Thursday. We should like to know him, anc
it’s only a proper compliment to you.”
Meg coloured, but a mischievous fancy to tease the girls
made her reply demurely, —
“You are very kind, but I’m afraid he won’t come.”
“Why not, chérie?” asked Miss Belle.
‘* He’s too old.”
“ My child, what do you mean? What is his age, I beg tc
know!” cried Miss Clara.
“Nearly seventy, I believe,” answered Meg, counting
stitches, to hide the merriment in her eyes.
“You sly creature! Of course we meant the young man,”
exclaimed Miss Belle, laughing.
“There isn’t any; Laurie is only a little boy,” and Meg
laughed also at the queer look which the sisters exchanged as
she thus described her supposed lover.
“ About your age,” Nan said.
“Nearer my sister Jo’s; Z am seventeen in August,”
returned Meg, tossing her head,
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair SI
“It’s very nice of him to send you flowers, isn’t it?” said
Annie, looking wise about nothing.
“Yes, he often does, to all of us; for their house is full, and
we are so fond of them. My mother and old Mr. Laurence
are friends, you know, so it is quite natural that we children
should play together;” and Meg hoped they would say no
more.
“It’s evident Daisy isn’t out yet,” said Miss Clara to
Belle, with a nod.
“Quite a pastoral state of innocence all round,” returned
Miss Belle, with a shrug.
“I’m going out to get some little matters for my girls; can
I do anything for you, young ladies?” asked Mrs. Moffat,
-lumbering in, like an elephant, in silk and lace.
3 _“No, thank you, ma’am,” replied Sallie. “I’ve got my new
qpink silk for Thursday, and don’t want a thing.”
“Nor I,—” began Meg, but stopped, because it occurred to
her that she dd want several things, and could not have them.
3 “What shall you wear?” asked Sallie.
“ My old white one again, if I can mend it fit to be seen;
it got sadly torn last night,” said Meg, trying to speak quite
.easily, but feeling very uncomfortable.
“Why don’t you send home for another?” said Sallie, who
.was not an observing young lady.
¢ “I haven’t got any other.” It cost Meg an effort to say
that, but Sallie did not see it, and exclaimed, in amiable
surprise,—
“Only that? How funny—”’ She did not finish her
speech, for Belle shook her head at her, and broke in,
saying kindly,—
~ “Not at all; where is the use of having a lot of dresses
qwhen she isn’t out? There’s no need of sending home,
Daisy, even if you had a dozen, for I’ve got a sweet blue
silk laid away, which I’ve outgrown, and you shall wear it,
to please me; won’t you, dear?”
“You are very kind, but I don’t mind my old dress, if you
don’t; it does well enough foralittle girl like me,” said Meg.
‘**Now do let me please myself by dressing you up in style.
I admire to do it, and you’d be a regular little beauty, with a
touch here and there. I shan’t let any one see you till you
are done, and then we’ll burst upon them like Cinderella and
her godmother, going to the ball,” said Belle, in her persuasive
tone.
82 Little Women
Meg couldn’t refuse the offer so kindly made, for a desire
to see if she would be “a little beauty” after touching up,
caused her to accept, and forget all her former uncomfortable
feelings towards the Moffats.
On the Thursday evening, Belle shut herself up with her
maid; and, between them, they turned Meg into a fine lady.
They crimped and curled her hair, they polished her neck and
arms with some fragrant powder, touched her lips with coralline
salve, to make them redder, and Hortense would have added
‘““a soupcon of rouge,” if Meg had not rebelled. They laced
her into a sky-blue dress, which was so tight she could hardly
breathe, and so low in the neck that modest Meg blushed at
herself in the mirror. <A set of silver filagree was added,
bracelets, necklace, brooch, and even earrings, for Hortense
tied them on, with a bit of pink silk, which did not show.
A cluster of tea-rose buds at the bosom, and a ruache,
reconciled Meg to the display of her pretty white shoulders,
and a pair of high-heeled blue silk boots satisfied the last wish
of her heart. A laced handkerchief, a plumy fan, and a
bouquet in a silver holder finished her off; and Miss Belle
surveyed her with the satisfaction of a little girl with a newly-
dressed doll.
“ Mademoiselle is charmante, trés jolie, is she not?” cried
Hortense, clasping her hands in an affected rapture.
“Come and show yourself,” said Miss Belle, leading the
way to the room where the others were waiting.
As Meg went rustling after, with her long skirts trailing, her
earrings tinkling, her curls waving, and her heart beating, she
felt as if her ‘“‘fun” had really begun at last, for the mirror
had plainly told her that she was “a little beauty.” Her
friends repeated the pleasing phrase enthusiastically; and,
for several minutes, she stood, like the jackdaw in the fable,
enjoying her borrowed plumes, while the rest chattered like
a party of magpies.
“While I dress, do you drill her, Nan, in the management
of her skirt, and those French heels, or she will trip herself up.
Take your silver butterfly, and catch up that long curl on the
left side of her head, Clara, and don’t any of you disturb the
charming work of my hands,” said Belle, as she hurried away,
looking well pleased with her success.
“’m afraid to go down, I feel so queer and stiff and half-
dressed,” said Meg to Sallie, as the bell rang, and Mrs,
Moffat sent to ask the young ladies to appear at once.
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair. 83
“You don’t look a bit like yourself, but you are very nice.
I’m nowhere beside you, for Belle has heaps of taste, and
you're quite French, I assure you. Let your flowers hang;
don’t: be so careful of them, and be sure you don’t trip,”
returned Sallie, trying not to care that Meg was prettier than
herself.
Keeping that warning carefully in mind, Margaret got
safely downstairs, and sailed into the drawing-rooms, where
the Moffats and a few early guests were assembled. She very
soon discovered that there is a charm about fine clothes
which attracts a certain class of people, and secures their
respect. Several young ladies, who had taken no _ notice
of her before, were very affectionate all of a sudden; several
young gentlemen, who had only stared at her at the other
party, now not only stared, but asked to be introduced, and
said all manner of foolish but agreeable things to her; and
several old ladies, who sat on sofas, and criticised the rest
of the party, inquired who she was, with an air of interest.
She heard Mrs. Moffat reply to one of them,—
“Daisy March—father a colonel in the army—one of our
first families, but reverses of fortune, you know; intimate
friends of the Laurences; sweet creature, I assure you; my
Ned is quite wild about her.”
“Dear me!” said the old lady, putting up her glass for
another observation of Meg, who tried to look as if she had
not heard, and been rather shocked at Mrs. Moffat’s fibs.
The “ queer feeling” did not pass away, but she imagined
herself acting the new part of fine lady, and so got on pretty
well, though the tight dress gave her a side-ache, the train
kept getting under her feet, and she was in constant fear
lest her earrings should fly off, and get lost or broken. She
was flirting her fan. and laughing at the feeble jokes of
a young gentleman who tried to be witty, when she suddenly
stopped laughing, and looked confused ; for, just opposite, she
saw Laurie. He was staring at her with undisguised surprise,
and disapproval also, she thought; for, though he bowed and
smiled, yet something in his honest eyes made her blush,
and wish she had her old dresson. ‘To complete her confusion,
she saw Belle nudge Annie, and both glance from her to Laurie,
who, she was happy to see, looked unusually boyish and shy.
“Silly creatures, to put such thoughts into my head! I
won’t care for it, or let it change me a bit,” thought Meg,
and rustled across the room to shake hands with her friend.
84 Little Women
“I’m glad you came, I was afraid you wouldn’t,” she said,
with her most grown-up air.
“Jo wanted me to come, and tell her how you looked, so I
did;” answered Laurie, without turning his eyes upon her,
though he half smiled at her maternal tone.
‘What shall you tell her?” asked Meg, full of curiosity to
know his opinion of her, yet feeling ill at ease with him, for
the first time.
“ ] shall say I didn’t know you; for you look so grown-up,
and unlike yourself, I’m quite afraid of you,” he said, fumbling
at his glove-button.
‘How absurd of you! The girls dressed me up for fun,
and I rather like it. Wouldn’t Jo stare if she saw me?” said
Meg, bent on making him say whether he thought her im-
proved or not.
“‘ Yes, I think she would,” returned Laurie gravely.
‘‘Don’t you like me so?” asked Meg.
**No, I don’t,” was the blunt reply.
“Why not?” in an anxious tone.
He glanced at her frizzled head, bare shoulders, and
fantastically trimmed dress, with an expression that abashed
her more than his answer, which had not a particle of his
usual politeness about it.
“T don’t like fuss and feathers.”
That was altogether too much from a lad younger than
herself; and Meg. walked away, saying petulantly,—
“ You are the rudest boy I ever saw.”
Feeling very much ruffled, she went and stood at a quiet
window, to cool her cheeks, for the tight dress gave her an
uncomfortably brilliant colour. As she stood there, Major
Lincoln passed by; and, a minute after, she heard him saying
to his mother,—
“They are making a fool of that little girl; I wanted you to
see her, but they have spoilt her entirely; she’s nothing but a
doll to-night.”
“Oh dear!” sighed Meg; “I wish I’d been sensible, and
worn my own things; then I should not have disgusted other
people, or felt so uncomfortable and ashamed myself.”
She leaned her forehead on the cool pane, and stood half
hidden by the curtains, never minding that her favourite
waltz had begun, till some one touched her; and, turning, she
saw Laurie, looking penitent, as he said, with his very best
bow, and his hand out,—
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair 85
‘Please forgive my rudeness, and come and dance
with me.”
“I’m afraid it will be too disagreeable to you,” said Meg,
trying to look offended, and failing entirely.
“Not a bit of it; ’m dying to do it. Come, I’ll be good;
I don’t like your gown, but | do think you are—just splendid ;”
and he waved his hands, as if words failed to express his
admiration.
Meg smiled and relented, and whispered, as they stood
waiting to catch the time,—
“Take care my skirt don’t trip you up; it’s the plague of
my life, and I was a goose to wear it.” *
“Pin it round your neck, and then it will be useful,” said
Laurie, looking down at the little blue boots, which he evidently
approved of.
Away they went, fleetly and gracefully; for, having practised
at home, they were well matched, and the blithe young couple
were a pleasant sight to see, as they twirled merrily round and
round, feeling more friendly than ever after their small tiff.
“Laurie, I want you to do me a favour; will you?” said
Meg, as he stood fanning her, when her breath gave out, which
it did very soon, though she would not own why.
“Won't I!” said Laurie, with alacrity.
“Please don’t tell them at home about my dress to-night.
They won’t understand the joke, and it will worry mother.”
“Then why did you do it?” said Laurie’s eyes, so plainly
that Meg hastily added,—
‘*T shall tell them myself all about it, and ‘’fess’ to mother
how silly I’ve been. But I’d rather do it myself; so you'll not
tell, will you?”
“IT give you my word I won’t; only what shall I say when
they ask me?”
“Just say I looked pretty well, and was having a good time.”
“T’ll say the first, with all my heart; but how about the
other? You don’t look as if you were having a good time;
are you?” and Laurie looked at her with an expression which
made her answer, in a whisper,—
“No; not just now. Don’t think I’m horrid; I only wanted
a little fun, but this sort doesn’t pay, I find, and I’m getting
tired of it.”
“Here comes Ned Moffat; what does he want?” said
Laurie, knitting his black brows, as if he did not regard his
young host in the light of a pleasant addition to the party.
86 Little Women
“He put his name down for three dances, and I suppose
he’s coming for them. What a bore!” said Meg, assuming
a languid air, which amused Laurie immensely.
He did not speak to her again till supper-time, when he
saw her drinking champagne with Ned and his friend Fisher,
who were behaving “like a pair of fools,” as Laurie said to
himself, for he felt a brotherly sort of right to watch over
the Marches, and fight their battles whenever a defender
was needed.
“You'll have a splitting headache to-morrow, if you drink
much of that. I wouldn’t, Meg; your mother doesn’t like it,
you know,” he whispered, leaning over her chair, as Ned turned
to refill her glass, and Fisher stooped to pick up her fan.
“T’m not Meg to-night; I’m ‘a doll,’ who does all sorts
of crazy things. To-morrow I shall put away my ‘fuss and
feathers,’ and be desperately good again,” she answered, with
an affected little laugh.
“Wish to-morrow was here, then,” muttered Laurie, walking
off, ill-pleased at the change he saw in her.
Meg danced and flirted, chattered and giggled, as the
other girls did; after supper she undertook the German, and
blundered through it, nearly upsetting her partner with her
long skirt, and romping in a way that scandalised Laurie, who
looked on and meditated a lecture. But he got no chance
to deliver it, for Meg kept away from him till he came to say
good-night. :
“Remember!” she said, trying to smile, for the splitting
headache had already begun.
“Silence 4 la mort,” replied Laurie, with a melodramatic
flourish, as he went away.
This little bit of by-play excited Annie’s curiosity ; but Meg
was too tired for gossip, and went to bed, feeling as if she had
been to a masquerade, and hadn’t enjoyed herself as much as
she expected. She was sick all the next day, and on Saturday
went home, quite used up with her fortnight’s fun, and feeling
that she had “sat in the lap of luxury” long enough.
“It does seem pleasant to be quiet, and not have company
manners on all the time. Home ¢sa nice place, though it
isn’t splendid,” said Meg, looking about her with a restful
expression, as she sat with her mother and Jo on the Sunday
evening.
“I’m glad to hear you say so, dear, for I was afraid home
would seem dull and poor to you, after your fine quarters,”
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair 87
replied her mother, who had given her many anxious looks
that day; for motherly eyes are quick to see any change in
children’s faces.
Meg had told her adventures gaily, and said over and over
what a charming time she had had; but something still
seemed to weigh upon her spirits, and, when the younger
girls were gone to bed, she sat thoughtfully staring at the
fire, saying little, and looking worried. As the clock struck
nine, and Jo proposed bed, Meg suddenly left her chair, and,
taking Beth’s stool, leaned her elbows on her mother’s knee,
saying bravely,— :
- © Marmee, I want to ‘’fess.’”
**T thought so; what is it, dear?”
“Shall I go away ?” asked Jo discreetly.
“Of course not; don’t I always tell you everything? I was
ashamed to speak of it before the children, but I want you to
know all the dreadful things I did at the Moffats’.”
“We are prepared,” said Mrs. March, smiling, but looking
a little anxious.
*“T told you they dressed me up, but I didn’t tell you that
they powdered and squeezed and frizzled, and made me look
like a fashion-plate. Laurie thought I wasn’t proper; I know
he did, though he didn’t say so, and one man called me
‘a doll.’ 1 knew it was silly, but they flattered me, and said I
was a beauty, and quantities of nonsense, so I let them make
a fool of me.”
“Ts that all?” asked Jo, as Mrs. March looked silently at
the downcast face of her pretty daughter, and could not find it
in her heart to blame her little follies.
“No; I drank champagne and romped and tried to flirt,
and was altogether abominable,” said Meg self-reproachfully.
‘‘There is something more, I think;” and Mrs. March
smoothed the soft cheek, which suddenly grew rosy, as Meg
answered slowly,—
‘Yes; it’s very silly, but I want to tell it, because I hate to
have people say and think such things about us and Laurie.”
Then she told the various bits of gossip she had heard at
the Moffats; and, as she spoke, Jo saw her mother fold her
lips tightly, as if ill pleased that such ideas should be put into
Meg’s innocent mind.
. “Well, if that isn’t the greatest rubbish I ever heard,” cried
Jo indignantly. ‘ Why didn’t you pop out and tell them so,
on the spot?”
88 Little Women
“T couldn’t, it was so embarrassing for me. I couldn’t help
hearing, at first, and then I was so angry and ashamed, I didn’t
remember that I ought to go away.”
“Just wait till J see Annie Moffat, and I’ll show you how to
settle such ridiculous stuff. The idea of having ‘plans,’ and
being kind to Laurie, because he’s rich, and may marry us
by-and-by! Won't he shout, when I tell him what those silly
things say about us poor children?” and Jo laughed, as if, on
second thoughts, the thing struck her as a good joke.
“Tf you tell Laurie, T’ll never forgive you! She mustn’t,
must she, mother?” said Meg, looking distressed.
“No; never repeat that foolish gossip, and forget it as soon
as you can,” said Mrs. March gravely. “I was very unwise to
let you go among people of whom I know so little—kind, I
dare say, but worldly, ill-bred, and full of these vulgar ideas
about young people. I am more-sorry than I can express for
the mischief this visit may have done you, Meg.”
‘Don’t be sorry, I won’t let it hurt me; I’ll forget all the
bad, and remember only the good; for I did enjoy a great
deal, and thank you very much for letting me go. I'll not be
sentimental or dissatisfied, mother; I know I’ma silly little
girl, and I'll stay with you till I’m fit to take care of myself.
But it zs nice to be praised and admired, and I can’t help
saying I like it,” said Meg, looking half ashamed of the
confession.
“That is perfectly natural, and quite harmless, if the liking
does not become a passion, and lead one to do foolish or un-
maidenly things. Learn to know and value the praise which is
worth having, and to excite the admiration of excellent people
by being modest as well as pretty, Meg.”
Margaret sat thinking a moment, while Jo stood with her
hands behind her, looking both interested and alittle per-
plexed ; for it was a new thing to see Meg blushing and
talking about admiration, lovers, and things of that sort; and
Jo felt as if, during that fortnight, her sister had grown up
amazingly, and was drifting away from her into a world where
she could not follow.
“Mother, do you have ‘plans,’ as Mrs. Moffat said?”
asked Meg bashfully.
“Yes, my dear, I have a great many; all mothers do, but
mine differ somewhat from Mrs. Moffat’s, I suspect. I will
tell you some of them, for the time has come when a word
may set this romantic little head and heart of yours right, on a
 Meg Goes to Vanity Fair 89
very serious subject. You are young, Meg, but not too
young to understand me; and mothers’ lips are the fittest to
speak of such things to girls like you. Jo, your turn will
come in time, perhaps, so listen to my ‘plans,’ and help me
carry them out, if they are good.”
Jo went and sat on one arm of the chair, looking as it
she thought they were about to join in some very solemn
affair. Holding a hand of each, and watching the two young
faces wistfully, Mrs. March said, in her serious yet cheery
way,—
wy want my daughters to be beautjful, accomplished, and
good; to be admired, loved, and respected, to have a happy
youth, to be well and wisely married, and to lead useful,
pleasant lives, with as little care and sorrow to try them as
God sees fit to send. To be loved and chosen by a good
man is the best and sweetest thing which can happen to a
woman ; and I sincerely hope my girls may know this beautiful
experience. It is natural to think of it, Meg; right to hope
and wait for it, and wise to prepare for it; so that, when the
happy time comes, you may feel ready for the duties and
worthy of the joy. My dear girls, I am ambitious for you,
but not to have you make a dash in the world—marry rich
men merely because they are rich, or have splendid houses,
which are not homes because love is wanting. Money is a
needful and precious thing—and, when well used, a noble
thing—but I never want you to think it is the first or only
prize to strive for. I’d rathersee you poor men’s wives, it
you were. happy, beloved, contented, than queens on thrones,
without self-respect and peace.”
“Poor girls don’t stand any chance, Belle says, unless they
put themselves forward,” sighed Meg.
“Then we’ll be old maids,” said Jo stoutly.
“Right, Jo; better be happy old maids than unhappy wives,
or unmaidenly girls, running about to find husbands,” said
Mrs. March decidedly. ‘Don’t be troubled, Meg; poverty
seldom daunts a sincere lover. Some of the best and most
honoured women I know were poor girls, but so love-worthy
that they were not allowed to be old maids. Leave these
things to time; make this home happy, so that you may
be fit for homes of your own, if they are offered you, and
contented here if they are not. One thing remember, my
girls : mother is always ready to be your confidante, father to be
your friend ; and both of us trust and hope that our daughters,
go Little Women
whether married or single, will be the pride and comfort of
our lives.” . f
“We will, Marmee, we will!” cried both, with all their
hearts, as she bade them good-night.

CHAPTER X
THE P. C. AND P. 0.
As spring: came on, a new set of amusements became the
fashion, and the lengthening days gave long afternoons for
work and play of all sorts. The garden had to be put in
order, and each sister had a quarter of the little plot to do
what she liked with. Hannah used to say, “Id know which
each of them gardings belonged to, ef I see ’em in Chiny ;”
and so she might, for the girls’ tastes differed as much as
their characters. Meg’s had roses and heliotrope, myrtle,
and a little orange-tree in it. Jo's bed was never alike two
seasons, for she was always trying experiments; this year
it was to be a plantation of sunflowers, the seeds of which
cheerful and aspiring plant were to feed “‘ Aunt Cockle-top”
and her family of chicks. Beth had old-fashioned, fragrant
flowers in her garden—sweet peas and mignonette, larkspur,
pinks, pansies, and southernwood, with chickweed for the
bird and catnip for the pussies. Amy had a bower in hers
—rather small and earwiggy, but very pretty to look at—
with honeysuckles and morning-glories hanging their coloured
horns and bells in graceful wreaths all over it; tall, white
lilies, delicate ferns, and as many brilliant, picturesque plants
as would consent to blossom there.
Gardening, walks, rows on the river, and flower-hunts em-
ployed the fine days; and for rainy ones, they had house
diversions—some old, some new—all more or less original.
One of these was the “P. C.”; for, as secret societies were
the fashion, it was thought proper to have one; and, as all
of the girls admired Dickens, they called themselves the
Pickwick Club. With a few interruptions, they had kept
this up for a year, and met every Saturday evening in the
big garret, on which occasions the ceremonies were as fol-
lows: Three chairs were arranged in a row before a table,
on which was a lamp, also four white badges, with a big
 TherPac@/ ai@iP. 0. ~ so
“Pp. C.” in different colours on each, and the weekly news-
paper, called “The Pickwick Portfolio,” to which all con-
tributed something; while Jo, who revelled in pens and
ink, was the editor. At seven o’clock, the four members
ascended to the club-room, tied their badges round their
heads, and took their seats with great solemnity Meg, as
the eldest, was Samuel Pickwick; Jo, being of a literary
turn, Augustus Snodgrass; Beth, because she was round and
rosy, Tracy Tupman; and Amy, who was always trying to
do what she couldn’t, was Nathaniel Winkle. Pickwick, the
president, read the paper, which was filled with original
tales, poetry, local news, funny advertisements, and _ hints,
in which they good-naturedly reminded each other of their
faults and shortcomings. On one occasion Mr. Pickwick put
on a pair of spectacles without any glasses, rapped upon the
table, hemmed, and, having stared hard at Mr. Snodgrass,
who was tilting back in his chair, till he arranged himself
properly, began to read :—

“he Pickwick Portfolio.”

MAY 20, 18—

APoet’s Corner, Poetic fire lights up his eye,

He struggles ’gainst his lot.
Behold ambition on his brow,
ANNIVERSARY ODE. And on his nose a blot!
Again we meet to celebrate,
~ With badge and solemn rite, Next our peaceful Tupman comes,
Our fifty-second anniversary, So rosy, plump, and sweet,
In Pickwick Hall, to-night. Who chokes with laughter at the puns,
And tumbles off his seat.
We all are here in perfect health
None gone from our small band;
Again we see each well-known face, Prim little Winkle too is here,
And press each friendly hand. With every hair in place,
A model of propriety,
Our Pickwick, always at his post, Though he hates to wash his face,
With reverence we greet,
As, spectacles on nose, he reads The year is gone, we still unite
Our well-filled weekly sheet. To joke and laugh and read,
And tread the path of literature
Although he suffers from a cold, That doth to glory lead.
We joy to hear him speak,
For words of wisdom from him fall,
In spite of croak or squeak. Long may our paper prosper well.
Our club unbroken be, ;
_ Old six-foot Snodgrass looms on high, And coming years their blessings pour
With elephantine grace, On the useful, gay “‘ P. C.”
And beams upon the company, A, SNODGRASS.
With brown and jovial face.
92 Little Women
THE MASKED MARRIAGE, as high a name and vast a fortune as the
Count Antonio. I can do more; for even
A TALE OF VENICE. your ambitious soul cannot refuse the
Earl of Devereux and De Vere, when he
Gondola after gondola swept up to the gives his ancient name and boundless
marble steps, and left its lovely load to wealth in return for the beloved hand of
swell the brilliant throng that filled the this fair lady, now my wife.”
stately halls of Count de Adelon. Knights The count stood like one changed to
and ladies, elves and pages, monks and stone: and, turning to the bewildered
flower-girls, all mingled gaily in the dance. crowd, Ferdinand added, with a gay
Sweet voices and rich melody filled the smile of triumph, ‘‘ To you, my gallant
air; and so with mirth and music the friends, I can only wish that your wooing
masquerade went on. may prosper as mine has done; and that
“Has your Highness seen the Lady ae may all win as fair a bride as I have,
Viola to-night ?”’ asked a gallant trouba- y this masked marriage.”
dour of the fairy queen who floated down S. Pickwick.
the hall upon his arm.
“Yes; isshe'not lovely, though so sad !
Her dress is well chosen, too, for in a Why is the P. C. like the Tower of
week she weds Count Antonio, whom she Babel? It is full of unruly members.
passionately hates.”
‘“« By my faith, I envy him. Yonder he
comes, arrayed like a bridegroom, except
the black mask. When that is off we
shall see how he regards the fair maid THE HISTORY OF A
whose heart he cannot win, though her SQUASH.
stern father bestows her hand,” returned
the troubadour. Once upon a time a farmer planted a
““'Tis whispered that she loves the little seed in his garden, and after a whiie
young English artist who haunts her it sprouted and became a vine, and bore
steps, and is spurned by the old count,” Many squashes. One day in October,
said the lady, as they joined the dance, when they were ripe, he picked one and
The revel was at its height when a took it to market. A grocer man bought
priest appeared, and, withdrawing the and put it in hisshop. That same morne
young pair to an alcove hung with purple ing, a little girl, in a brown hat and blue
velvet, he motioned them to kneel. In- dress, with a round face and snub nose,
stant silence fell upon the gay throng; went and bought it for her mother. She
and not a sound, but the dash of foun- lugged it home, cut it up, and boiled it in
tains or the rustle of orange groves sleep- the big pot; mashed some of it, with salt
ing in the moonlight, broke the hush, as and butter, for dinner ; and to the rest she
Count de Adelon spoke thus :— added a Fat of milk, two eggs, four
““My lords and ladies, pardon the spoons of sugar, nutmeg, and some
ruse by which I have gathered you here crackers; put it in a deep dish, and
to witness the marriage of my daughter. baked it till it was brown and nice; and
Father, we wait your services.” next day it was eaten by a family named
All eyes turned toward the bridal March. T. TupMan.
party, and a low murmur of amazement
went through the throng, for neither bride
nor groom removed their masks. Curio-
sity and wonder possessed all hearts, but Mr. Picxwicx, Siy :—
respect restrained all tongues till the holy I address you upon the subject of sin
rite was over. Then the eager spectators the sinner I mean is a man named Winkle
gathered round the count, demanding an who makes trouble in his club by laugh-
explanation. ing and sometimes won’t write his piece
“Gladly would I give it if I could; in this fine paper I hope you will pardon
but I only know that it was the whim of his badness and let him send a French
my timid Viola, and I yielded toit. Now, fable because he can’t write out of his
my children, let the play end. Unmask, head as he has so many lessons to do and
and receive my blessing.” no brains in future I will try to take time
But neither bent the knee; for the by the fetlock and prepare some work
young bridegroom replied, in a tone that which will be all commy la fo that means
startled all listeners, as the mask fell, dis- all right I am in haste as it is nearly
closing the noble face of Ferdinand De- school time
vereux, the artist lover; and, leaning on Yours respectably, N. WINKLE,
the breast where now flashed the star of
an English earl, was the lovely Viola, [The above is a manly and handsome
radiant with joy and beauty. acknowledgment of past misdemeanours,
*“*My lord, you scornfully bade me If our young friend studied punctuation,
claim your daughter when I could boast it would be well.)
 The P. C. and P.O. ~—_93
A SAD ACCIDENT. Another cat comes after her mice,
A cat with a dirty face ;
On Friday last, we were startled by a But she does not hunt as our darling did,
violent.shock in our basement, followed Nor play with her airy grace.
by cries of distress, On rushing, in a
body, to the cellar, we discovered our be- Her stealthy paws tread the very hall
loved President prostrate upon the floor, Where Snowball used to play,
having tripped and fallen while getting But she only spits at the dogs our pet
wood for domestic purposes. A perfect So gallantly drove away.
scene of ruin met our eyes; for in his fall
Mr. Pickwick had plunged his head and She is useful and mild, and does her best,
sboulders into a tub of water, upset a keg But she is not fair to see ;
of soft soap upon his manly form, and And we cannot give her your place, dear,
torn his garments badly. On being re- Nor worship her as we worship thee.
moved from this perilous situation, it was he
discovered that he had suffered no injury
but several bruises ; and, we are happy to vo
add, is now doing well. Ep ADVERTISEMENTS.

Miss ORANTHY BLUGGAGE, the accom-

THE PUBLIC BEREAVEMENT. plished Strong-Minded Lecturer, will
deliver her famous Lecture on ‘*‘ WomMAN
It is our painful duty to record the AND Her Position,” at Pickwick Hall,
sudden and mysterious disappearance next Saturday Evening, after the usual
of our cherished friend, Mrs. Snowball performances.
Pat Paw. This lovely and beloved cat
was the pet of a large circle of warm A WEEKLY MEETING will be held
and admiring friends; for her beauty at Kitchen Place, to teach young ladies
attracted all eyes, her graces and how to cook. Hannah Brown will pre-
virtues endeared her to all hearts, and side; and all are invited to attend.
her Joss is deeply felt by the whole
community. Tue Dustpan Society will meet on
When last seen, she was sitting at the Wednesday next, and parade in the upper
gate. watching the butcher’s cart; and storey of the Club House. All members
it is feared that some villain, tempted to appear in uniform and shoulder their
by her charms, basely stole her, Weeks brooms at nine precisely.
have passed. but no trace of her has
been discovered ; and we relinquish all
hope, tie a black ribbon to her basket. Mrs. BetH Bouncer will open her
set aside her dish, and weep for her as new assortment of Doll’s Millinery next
one lost to us for ever. week. The latest Paris Fashions have
arrived, and orders are respectfully
solicited.

A New Puay will appear at the Barn-

ville Theatre, in the course of a few weeks,
which will surpass anything ever seen on
A sympathising friend sends the fol- the American stage. “‘ THE GREEK SLAVE,
lowing gem :— or Constantine the Avenger,” is the
name of this thrilling drama!!!
A LAMENT.
FOR S. B. PAT PAW. HINTS.
We mourn the loss of our little pet, If S. P. didn’t use so much soap on
And sigh o’er her hapless fate. his hands, he wouldn’t always be late at
For never more by the fire she’ll sit, breakfast. A. S. is requested not to
Nor play by the old green gate. whistle in the street. T. T., please don’t
forget Amy’s napkin. N. W. must not
The little grave where her infant sleeps, fret because his dress has not nine tucks,
Is ’neath the chestnut tree ;
But o’er her grave we may not weep,
We know not where it may be. WEEKLY REPORT.
Her empty bed, her idle ball, Meg—Good.
Will never see her more ; Jo—Bad.
No gentle tap, no loving purr Beth—Very good,
Is heard at the parlour doors Amy—Middling. ,
94 Little Women
As the President finished reading the paper (which I beg
leave to assure my readers is a Jona fide copy of one written~
by dona fide girls once upon a time), a round of applause
followed, and then Mr. Snodgrass rose to make a proposition.
““Mr. President and gentlemen,” he began, assuming a
parliamentary attitude and tone, “I wish to propose the
admission of a new member—one who highly deserves the
honour, would be deeply grateful for it,and would add im-
mensely to the spirit of the club, the literary value of the
paper, and be no end jolly and nice. I propose Mr. Theodore
Laurence as an honorary member of the P. C. Come now,
do have him.”
Jo’s sudden change of tone made the girls laugh; but all
looked rather anxious, and no one said a word, as Snodgrass
took his seat.
‘“‘ We'll put it to vote,” said the President. “ All in favour
of this motion please to manifest it by saying ‘ Ay.’”
A loud response from Snodgrass, followed, to everybody’s
surprise, by a timid one from Beth.
“ Contrary minded say ‘ No.’”
“Meg and Amy were contrary minded; and Mr. Winkle
rose to say, with great elegance, ‘‘We don’t wish any boys;
they only joke and bounce about. This is a ladies’ club, and
we wish to be private and proper.”
“T’m afraid he'll laugh at our paper, and make fun of us
afterward,” observed Pickwick, pulling the little curl on her
forehead, as she always did when doubtful.
Up rose Snodgrass, very much in earnest. ‘“ Sir, I give you
my word as a gentleman, Laurie won’t do anything of the
sort. He likes to write, and he'll give a tone to our con-
tributions, and keep us from being sentimental, don’t you
see? We can do so little for him, and he does so much
for us, I think the least we can do is to offer him a place here,
and make him welcome if he comes.”
This artful allusion to benefits conferred brought Tup-
man to his feet, looking as if he had quite made up his
mind.
“Yes, we ought to do it, even if we ave afraid. I say he
may come, and his grandpa, too, if he likes.”
This spirited burst from Beth electrified the club, and Jo
left her seat to shake hands approvingly. ‘ Now then, vote
again. Everybody remember it’s our Laurie, and say ‘ Ay !’”
cried Snodgrass excitedly,
 TherPacG; and P, O. - 95
* Ay! ay! ay!” replied three voices at once.
“Good! Bless you! Now, as there’s nothing like ‘ taking
time by the fet/ock,’ as Winkle characteristically observes, allow
me to present the new member; ” and, to the dismay of the
rest of the club, Jo threw open the door of the closet, and
displayed Laurie sitting on a rag-bag, flushed and twinkling
with suppressed laughter.
“ You rogue! you traitor! Jo, how could you?” cried the
three girls, as Snodgrass led her friend triumphantly forth ;
and, producing both a chair and a badge, installed him in
a jiffy. ,
“The coolness of you two rascals is amazing,” began Mr.
Pickwick, trying to get up an awful frown, and only succeeding
in producing an amiable smile. But the new member was
equal to the occasion; and, rising, with a grateful salutation
to the Chair, said, in the most engaging manner, “ Mr.
President and ladies—I beg pardon, gentlemen—allow me
to introduce myself as Sam Weller, the very humble servant of
the club.”
“Good! good!” cried Jo, pounding with the handle of the
old warming-pan on which she leaned.
“‘ My faithful friend and noble patron,” continued Laurie,
with a wave of the hand, “who has so flatteringly presented
me, is not to be blamed for the base stratagem of to-night.
I planned it, and she only gave in after lots of teasing.”
“ Come now, don’t lay it all on yourself; you know I pro-
posed the cupboard,” broke in Snodgrass, who was enjoying
the joke amazingly.
“Never you mind what she says. I’m the wretch that did
it, sir,” said the new member, with a Welleresque nod to Mr.
Pickwick. ‘But on my honour, I never will do so again,
and henceforth dewote myself to the interest of this immortal
club.”
‘Hear! hear!” cried Jo, clashing the lid of the warming-
pan like a cymbal.
“‘Go on, go on!” added Winkle and Tupman, while the
President bowed benignly.
“I merely wish to say, that as a slight token of my grati-
tude for the honour done me, and as a means of promoting
friendly relations between adjoining nations, I have set up a
post-office in the hedge in the lower corner of the garden; a
fine, spacious building, with padlocks on the doors, and every
convenience for the mails,—also the females, if I may be
96 Little Women
allowed the expression. It’s the old martin-house; but I’ve
stopped up the door, and made the roof open, so it will hold
all sorts of things, and save our valuable time. Letters, manu-
scripts. books, and bundles can be passed in there; and, as
each nation has a key, it will be uncommonly nice, I fancy.
Allow me to present the club key; and, with many thanks for
your favour, take my seat.”
Great applause as Mr. Weller deposited a little key on the
table, and subsided; the warming-pan clashed and waved
wildly, and it was some time before order could be restored.
A long discussion followed, and every one came out sur-
prising, for every one did her best; so it was an unusually
lively meeting, and did not adjourn till a late hour, when it
broke up with three shrill cheers for the new member.
No one ever regretted the admittance of Sam Weller, for
a more devoted, well-behaved, and jovial member no club
could have. He certainly did add “spirit” to the meetings,
and “a tone” to the paper; for his orations convulsed his
hearers, and his contributions were excellent, being patriotic,
classical, comical, or dramatic, but never sentimental. Jo
regarded them as worthy of Bacon, Milton, or Shakespeare;
and remodelled her own works with good effect, she thought.
The P. O. was a capital little institution. and flourished
wonderfully, for nearly as many queer things passed through
it as through the real office. Tragedies and cravats, poetry
and pickles, garden seeds and long letters, music and ginger-
bread, rubbers, invitations, scoldings and puppies. The old
gentleman liked the fun, and amused himself by sending odd
bundles, mysterious messages, and funny telegrams; and his
gardener, who was smitten with Hannah’s charms, actually
sent a love-letter to Jo’s care. How they laughed when the
secret came out, never dreaming how many love-letters that
little post-office would hold in the years to come!

CHAPTER XI
EXPERIMENTS
“THE first of June! The Kings are off to the seashore
to-morrow, and I’m free. Three months’ vacation—how I
shall enjoy it!” exclaimed Meg, coming home one warm day
 Experiments a 97
to find Jo laid upon the sofa in an unusual state of exhaus-
tion, while Beth took off her dusty boots, and Amy made
lemonade for the refreshment of the whole party.
“Aunt March went to-day, for which, oh, be joyful!” said
Jo. “Iwas mortally afraid she’d ask me to go with her; if
she had, I should have felt as if I ought to do it; but Plum-
field is about as gay as a churchyard, you know, and I’d
rather be excused. We had aflurry getting the old lady off,
and I had a fright every time she spoke to me, for I was in
such a hurry to be through that I was uncommonly helpful
and sweet, and feared she’d find it impossible to part from
me. I quaked till she was fairly in the carriage, and had
a final fright, for, as it drove off, she popped out her head,
saying, ‘Josyphine, won’t you—?’ I didn’t hear any more,
for I basely turned and fled; I did actually run, and whisked
round the corner, where I felt safe.”
“Poor old Jo! she came in looking as if bears were after
her,” said Beth, as she cuddled her sister’s feet with a motherly
air.
** Aunt March is a regular samphire, is she not?” observed
Amy, tasting her mixture critically.
“She means vampire, not sea-weed; but it doesn’t matter;
it’s too warm to be particular about one’s parts of speech,”
murmured Jo.
“What shall you do all your vacation?” asked Amy,
changing the subject, with tact.
*‘T shall lie abed late, and do nothing,” replied Meg, from
the depths of the rocking-chair. “I’ve been routed up early
all winter, and had to spend my days working for other
people; so now I’m going to rest and revel to my heart’s
content.”
“No,” said Jo, “that dozy way wouldn’t suit me. I’ve
laid in a heap of books, and I’m going to improve my shining
hours reading on my perch in the old apple-tree, when I’m
not having 1 4
“Don’t say ‘larks!’” implored Amy, as a return snub for
the “samphire” correction.
“T’ll say ‘nightingales,’ then, with Laurie; that’s proper and
appropriate, since he’s a warbler.” {
“Don’t let us do any lessons, Beth, for a while, but play all
the time, and rest, as the girls mean to,” proposed Amy.
“ Well, I will, if mother doesn’t mind. I want to learn some
new songs, and my children need fitting up for the summer;
98 Little Women
they are dreadfully out of order, and really suffering for
clothes.” ’
““May we, mother?” asked Meg, turning to Mrs. March,
who sat sewing, in what they called ‘‘ Marmee’s corner.’
“Vou may try your experiment for a week, and see how
you like it. I think by Saturday night you will find that all
play and no work is as bad as all work and no play.”
“Oh, dear, no! it will be delicious, I’m sure,” said Meg
complacently.
“J now propose a toast, as my ‘friend and pardner, Sairy
Gamp,’ says. Fun for ever, and no grubbing !” cried Jo, rising,
glass in hand, as the lemonade went round.
They all drank it merrily, and began the experiment by
lounging for the rest of the day. Next morning, Meg did
not appear till ten o’clock; her solitary breakfast did not
taste nice, and the room seemed lonely and untidy; for Jo
had not filled the vases, Beth had not dusted, and Amy’s
books lay scattered about. Nothing was neat and pleasant
but “‘Marmee’s corner,” which looked as usual; and there
Meg sat, to “rest and read,” which meant yawn, and imagine
what pretty summer dresses she would get with her salary.
Jo spent the morning on the river, with Laurie, and the after-
noon reading and crying over “The Wide, Wide World,”
up in the apple-tree. Beth began by rummaging everything
out of the big closet, where her family resided, but, getting
tired before half done, she left her establishment topsy-turvy,
and went to her music, rejoicing that she had no dishes to
wash. Amy arranged her bower, put on her best white frock,
smoothed her curls, and sat down to draw, under the honey-
suckles, hoping some one would see and inquire who the
young artist was. As no one appeared but an inquisitive
daddy-long-legs, who examined her work with interest, she
went to walk, got caught in a shower, and came home
dripping.
At tea-time they compared notes, and all agreed that it
had been a delightful, though unusually long day. Meg,
who went shopping in the afternoon, and got a “sweet blue
muslin,” had discovered, after she had cut the breadths off,
that it wouldn’t wash, which mishap made her slightly cross.
Jo had burnt the skin off her nose boating, and got a raging
headache by reading too long.© Beth was worried by the con-
fusion of her closet, and the difficulty of learning three or four
songs at once; and Amy deeply regretted the damage done
 Experiments ) 99
her frock, for Katy Brown’s party was to be the next day;
and now, like Flora McFlimsey, she had “nothing to wear.”
But these were mere trifles; and they assured their mother
that the experiment was working finely. She smiled, said
nothing, and, with Hannah’s help, did their neglected work,
keeping home pleasant, and the domestic machinery running
smoothly. It was astonishing what a peculiar and uncomfort-
able state of things was produced by the “resting and revel-
ling” process. The days kept getting longer and longer; the
weather was unusually variable, and so were tempers ; an un-
settled feeling possessed every one, and Satan found plenty of
mischief for the idle hands to do. As the height of luxury,
Meg put out some of her sewing, and then found time hang
so heavily that she fell to snipping and spoiling her clothes,
in her attempts to furbish them up 4 la Moffat. Jo read till
her eyes gave out, and she was sick of books; got so fidgety
that even good-natured Laurie had a quarrel with her, and so
reduced in spirits that she desperately wished she had gone
with Aunt March. Beth got on pretty well, for she was con-
stantly forgetting that it was to be a// play, and no work, and
fell back into her old ways now and then; but something
in the air affected her, and, more than once, her tranquillity
was much disturbed; so much so, that, on one occasion, she
actually shook poor dear Joanna, and told her she was “‘a
fright.” Amy fared worst of all, for her resources were small;
and, when her sisters left her to amuse and care for herself,
she soon found that accomplished and important little self a
great burden. She didn’t like dolls, fairy-tales were childish,
and one couldn’t draw all the time; tea-parties didn’t amount
to much, neither did picnics, unless very well conducted. ‘If
one could have a fine house, full of nice girls, or go travelling,
the summer would be delightful; but to stay at home with
three selfish sisters and a grown-up boy was enough to try
the patience of a Boaz,” complained Miss Malaprop, after
several days devoted to pleasure, fretting, and exnuz.
No one would own that they were tired of the experiment ;
but, by Friday night, each acknowledged to herselt that she
was glad the week was nearly done. Hoping to impress the
lesson more deeply, Mrs. March, who had a good deal of
humour, resolved to finish off the trial in an appropriate
manner; so she gave Hannah a holiday, and let the girls
enjoy the full effect of the play system.
When they got up on Saturday morning, there was no fire
100 Little Women
in the kitchen, no breakfast in the dining-room, and no mother
anywhere to be seen.
“Mercy on us! what fas happened?” cried Jo, staring
about her in dismay.
Meg ran upstairs, and soon came back again, looking
relieved, but rather bewildered, and alittle ashamed.
‘Mother isn’t sick, only very tired, and she says she is
going to stay quietly in her room all day, and let us do the
best we can. It’s a very queer thing for her to do, she doesn’t
act a bit like herself; but she says it has been a hard week for
her, so we mustn’t grumble, but take care of ourselves.”
“That’s easy enough, and I like the idea; I’m aching for
something to do—that is, some new amusement, you know,”
added Jo quickly.
In fact it was an immense relief to them all to have alittle
work, and they took hold with a: will, but soon realised the
truth of Hannah’s saying, ‘‘ Housekeeping ain’t no joke.”
There was plenty of food in the larder, and, while Beth and
Amy set the table, Meg and Jo got breakfast, wondering, as
they did so, why servants ever talked about hard work.
‘“* J] shall take some up to mother, though she said we were
not to think of her, for she’d take care of herself,” said Meg,
who presided, and felt quite matronly behind the teapot.
So a tray was fitted out before any one began, and taken
up, with the cook’s compliments. The boiled tea was very
bitter, the omelette scorched, and the biscuits speckled with
saleratus; but Mrs. March received her repast with thanks,
and laughed heartily over it after Jo was gone.
“Poor little souls, they will have a hard time, I’m afraid;
but they won’t suffer, and it will do them good,” she said,
producing the more palatable viands with which she had
provided herself, and disposing of the bad breakfast, so that
their feelings might not be hurt,—a motherly little deception,
for which they were grateful.
Many were the complaints below, and great the chagrin of
the head cook at her failures. ‘Never mind, I’ll get the
dinner, and be servant ; you be mistress, keep your hands nice,
see company, and give orders,” said Jo, who knew still less
than Meg about culinary affairs.
This obliging offer was gladly accepted; and Margaret
retired to the parlour, which she hastily put in order by
whisking the litter under the sofa, and shutting the blinds, to
save the trouble of dusting. Jo, with perfect faith in her own
 Experiments ee):
powers, and a friendly desire to make up the quarrel, im-
mediately put a note in the office, inviting Laurie to dinner.
“You'd better see what you have got before you think of
having company,” said Meg, when informed of the hospitable
but rash act.
‘** Oh, there’s corned beef and plenty of potatoes; and I
shall get some asparagus, and a lobster, ‘for a relish,’ as
Hannah says. We'll have lettuce, and make a salad. I don’t
- know how, but the book tells. Tl have blanc-mange and
strawberries for dessert; and coffee, too, if you want to be
elegant.” %
-* Don’t try too many messes, Jo, for you can’t make any-
thing but gingerbread and molasses candy, fit to eat. I wash
'my hands of the dinner-party; and, since you have asked
Laurie on your own responsibility, you may just take care
of him.”
“J don’t want you to do anything but be civil to him, and
help to the pudding. You'll give me your advice if I get
in a muddle, won’t you?” asked Jo, rather hurt.
“Yes ; but I don’t know much, except about bread, and a
few trifles. You had better ask mother’s leave before you
order anything,” returned Meg prudently.
“ Of course I shall; I’m not a fool,” and Jo went off in a
huff at the doubts expressed of her powers.
“Get what you like, and don’t disturb me; I’m going out
to dinner, and can’t worry about things at home,” said Mrs.
March, when Jo spoke to her. ‘I never enjoyed house-
keeping, and I’m going to take a vacation to-day, and read,
write, go visiting, and amuse myself.”
~ The unusual spectacle of her busy mother rocking comfort-
ably, and reading, early in the morning, made Jo feel as if
. some natural phenomenon had occurred; for an eclipse, an
earthquake, or a volcanic eruption would hardly have seemed
stranger.
“Everything is out of sorts, somehow,” she said to herself,
going downstairs. ‘‘There’s Beth crying; that’s a sure sign
that something is wrong with this family. If Amy is bothering,
Vl shake her.”
Feeling very much out of sorts herself, Jo hurried into the
parlour to find Beth sobbing over Pip, the canary, who lay
dead in the cage, with his little claws pathetically extended,
as if imploring the food for want of which he had died.
“It’s all my fault—I forgot him—there isn’t a seed or a drop
102 Little Women
left. O Pip! O Pip! how could I be so cruel to you?”
cried Beth, taking the poor thing in her hands, and trying to
restore him.
Jo peeped into his half-open eye, felt his little heart, and
finding him stiff and cold, shook her head, and offered her
domino-box for a coffin.
‘Put him in the oven, and maybe he will get warm and
revive,” said Amy hopefully.
“ He’s been starved, and he shan’t be baked, now he’s
dead. I’ll make him a shroud, and he shall be buried in the
garden ; and I’ll never have another bird, never, my Pip! for
I am too bad to own one,” murmured Beth, sitting on the
floor with her pet folded in her hands.
“The funeral shall be this afternoon, and we will all go.
Now, don’t cry, Bethy; it’s a pity, but nothing goes right this
week, and Pip has had the worst of the experiment. Make
the shroud, and lay him in my box; and, after the dinner-
party, we'll have a nice little funeral,” said Jo, beginning to
feel as if she had undertaken a good deal.
Leaving the others to console Beth, she departed to the
kitchen, which was in a most discouraging state of confusion.
Putting on a big apron, she fell to work, and got the dishes
piled up ready for washing, when she discovered that the fire
was out.
“ Here’s a sweet prospect!” muttered Jo, slamming the
stove-door open, and poking vigorously among the cinders.
Having rekindled the fire, she thought she would go to
market while the water heated. The walk revived her spirits;
and, flattering herself that she had made good bargains, she
trudged home again, after buying a very young lobster, some
very old asparagus, and two boxes of acid strawberries. By
the time she got cleared up, the dinner arrived, and the stove
was red-hot. Hannah had left a pan of bread to rise, Meg
had worked it up early, set it on the hearth for a second
rising, and forgotten it. Meg was entertaining Sallie Gardiner
in the parlour, when the door flew open, and a floury, crocky,
flushed, and dishevelled figure appeared, demanding tartly,—
““T say, isn’t bread ‘riz’ enough when it runs over the
pans ?”
Sallie began to laugh; but Meg nodded, and lifted her eye-
brows as high as they would go, which caused the apparition
to vanish, and put the sour bread into the oven without further
delay. Mrs. March went out, after peeping here and there to
 Experiments 2 aes
see how matters went, also saying a word of comfort to Beth,
who sat making a winding-sheet, while the dear departed lay
in state in the domino-box. A strange sense of helplessness
fell upon the girls as the grey bonnet vanished round the
corner; and despair seized them, when, a few minutes later,
Miss Crocker appeared, and said she’d come to dinner. Now,
this lady was a thin, yellow spinster, with a sharp nose and
inquisitive eyes, who saw everything, and gossiped about all
_ she saw. They disliked her, but had been taught to be kind
to her, simply because she was old and poor, and had few
friends. So Meg gave her the easy-chair, and tried to
entertain her, while she asked questions, criticised every-
thing, and told stories of the people whom she knew.
Language cannot describe the anxieties, experiences, and
exertions which Jo underwent that morning ; and the dinner
she served up became a standing joke. Fearing to ask any
more advice, she did her best alone, and discovered that
something more than energy and good-will is necessary to
make a cook. She boiled the asparagus for an hour, and
was grieved to find the heads cooked off and the stalks harder
than ever. The bread burnt black; for the salad-dressing so
aggravated her, that she let everything else go till she had
convinced herself that she could not make it fit to eat. The
lobster was a scarlet mystery to her, but she hammered and
poked, till it was unshelled, and its meagre proportions con-
cealed in a grove of lettuce-leaves. The potatoes had to be
hurried, not to keep the asparagus waiting, and were not done
at last. The blanc-mange was lumpy, and the strawberries not
as ripe as they looked, having been skilfully ‘‘ deaconed.”
- “Well, they can eat beef, and bread and butter, if they are
hungry; only it’s mortifying to have to spend your whole
morning for nothing,” thought Jo, as she rang the bell half-
* an-hour later than usual, and stood, hot, tired, and dispirited,
surveying the feast spread for Laurie, accustomed to all sorts
of elegance, and Miss Crocker, whose curious eyes would mark
all failures, and whose tattling tongue would report them far
and wide.
Poor Jo would gladly have gone under the table, as one
thing after another was tasted and left; while Amy giggled,
Meg looked distressed, Miss Crocker pursed up her lips, and
Laurie talked and laughed with all his might, to give a cheerful
tone to the festive scene. Jo’s one strong point was the fruit,
for she had sugared it well, and had a pitcher of rich cream to
104 Little Women
eat with it. Her hot cheeks cooled a trifle, and she drew a
long breath, as the pretty glass plates went round, and every
one looked graciously at the little rosy islands floating in a sea
of cream. Miss Crocker tasted first, made a wry face, and
drank some water hastily. Jo, who had refused, thinking
there might not be enough, for they dwindled sadly after the
picking over, glanced at Laurie, but he was eating away man-
fully, though there was a slight pucker about his mouth, and
he kept his eye fixed on his plate. Amy, who was fond of
delicate fare, took a heaping spoonful, choked, hid her face in
her napkin, and left the table precipitately.
“Oh, what is it ?” exclaimed Jo, trembling.
“Salt instead of sugar, and the cream is sour,” replied Meg,
with a tragic gesture.
Jo uttered a groan, and fell back in her chair; remem-
bering that she had given a last hasty powdering to the berries
out of one of the two boxes on the kitchen table, and had
neglected to put the milk in the refrigerator. She turned
scarlet, and was on the verge of crying, when she met Laurie’s
eyes, which wou/d look merry in spite of his heroic efforts ; the
comical side of the affair suddenly struck her, and she laughed
till the tears ran down her cheeks. So did every one else,
even “ Croaker,” as the girls called the old lady; and the
unfortunate dinner ended gaily, with bread and butter, olives
and fun.
“‘] haven’t strength of mind enough to clear up now, so we
will sober ourselves with a funeral,” said Jo, as they rose ; and
Miss Crocker made ready to go, being eager to tell the new
story at another friend’s dinner-table.
They did sober themselves, for Beth’s sake; Laurie dug a
grave under the ferns in the grove, little Pip was laid in, with
many tears, by his tender-hearted mistress, and covered with
moss, while a wreath of violets and chickweed was hung on
the stone which bore his epitaph, composed by Jo, while she
struggled with the dinner :—
“* Here lies Pip March,
Who died the 7th of Junes
Loved and lamented sore,
And not forgotten soon,”

At the conclusion of the ceremonies, Beth retired to her

room, overcome with emotion and lobster; but there was no
place of repose, for the beds were not made, and she found
 Experiments ree
her grief much assuaged by beating up pillows and putting
things in order. Meg helped Jo clear away the remains of the
feast, which took half the afternoon, and left them so tired that
they agreed to be contented with tea and toast for supper.
Laurie took Amy to drive, which was a deed of charity, for
the sour cream seemed to have had a bad effect upon her
temper. Mrs. March came home to find the three older girls
hard at work in the middle of the afternoon; and a glance at
the closet gave her an idea of the success of one part of
the experiment.
Before the housewives could rest, several people called, and
there was a scramble to get ready to see them; then tea must
be got, errands done; and one or two necessary bits of
- sewing, neglected till the last minute. As twilight fell, dewy
and still, one by one they gathered in the porch where the
June roses were budding beautifully, and each groaned or
sighed as she sat down, as if tired or troubled.
“What a dreadful day this has been!” began Jo, usually
the first to speak.
“Tt has seemed shorter than usual, but so uncomfortable,”
said Meg. ‘
“ Not a bit like home,” added Amy.
“Tt can’t seem so without Marmee and little Pip,” sighed
Beth, glancing, with full eyes, at the empty cage above her
head.
‘“‘Here’s mother, dear, and you shall have another bird
to-morrow, if you want it.”
As she spoke, Mrs. March came and took her place among
them, looking as if her holiday had not been much pleasanter
than theirs.
“‘ Are you satisfied with your experiment, girls, or do you
want another week of it?” she asked, as Beth nestled up to
* her, and the rest turned toward her with brightening faces, as
flowers turn toward the sun.
“TJ don’t!” cried Jo decidedly.
““Nor I,” echoed the others.
“You think, then, that it is better to have a few duties, and
live a little for others, do you ?”
“ Lounging and larking doesn’t pay,” observed Jo, shaking
her head. “I’m tired of it, and mean to go to work at some-
thing right off.” ;
‘Suppose you learn plain cooking; that’s a useful accom-
plishment, which no woman should be without,” said Mrs,
106 Little Women
March, laughing inaudibly at the recollection of Jo’s dinner-
party; for she had met Miss Crocker, and heard her account
of it.
‘Mother, did you go away and let everything be, just to see
how we'd get on?” cried Meg, who had had suspicions all day.
“Yes; I wanted you to see how the comfort of all depends
on each doing her share faithfully. While Hannah and I did
your work, you got on pretty well, though I don’t think you
were very happy or amiable; so I thought, as a little lesson, I
would show you what happens when every one thinks only of
herself. Don’t you feel that it is pleasanter to help one
another, to have daily duties which make leisure sweet when
it comes, and to bear and forbear, that home may be comfort-
able and lovely to us all?”
“We do, mother, we do!” cried the girls,
“Then let me advise you to take up your little burdens
again ; for though they seem heavy sometimes, they are good
for us, and lighten as we learn to carry them. Work is whole-
some, and there is plenty for every one; it keeps us from
ennut and mischief, is good for health and spirits, and gives
us a sense of power and independence better than money or
fashion.”
‘We'll work like bees, and love it too; see if we don’t!”
said Jo. ‘I'll learn plain cooking for my holiday task; and
the next dinner-party I have shall be a success.”
‘**T’ll make the set of shirts for father, instead of letting you
do it, Marmee. I can and I will, though I’m not fond of
sewing ; that will be better than fussing over my own things,
which are plenty nice enough as they are,” said Meg.
‘Tl do my lessons every day, and not spend so much time
with my music and dolls. Iam a stupid thing, and ought to
be studying, not playing,” was Beth’s resolution; while Amy
followed their example, by heroically declaring, ‘1 shall learn
to make buttonholes, and attend to my parts of speech.”
“Very good! then I am quite satisfied with the experiment,
and fancy that we shall not have to repeat it; only don’t go
to the other extreme, and delve like slaves. Have regular
hours for work and play; make each day both useful and
pleasant, and prove that you understand the worth of time
by employing it well. Then youth will be delightful, old age
will bring few regrets, and life become a beautiful success, in
spite of poverty.”
‘We'll remember, mother!” and they did.
 Camp Laurence .' Oy

CHAPTER XII
CAMP LAURENCE
BETH was postmistress, for, being most at home, she could
attend to it regularly, and dearly liked the daily task of un-
locking the little door and distributing the mail. One July
day she came in with her hands full, and went about the house
leaving letters and parcels, like the penny post.
“‘Here’s your posy, mother! Laurie never forgets that,”
she said, putting the fresh nosegay in the vase that stood
in “ Marmee’s corer,” and was kept supplied by the affec-
tionate boy.
_ “Miss Meg March, one letter and a glove,” continued
Beth, delivering the articles to her sister, who sat near her
mother, stitching wristbands.
“Why, I left a pair over there, and here is only one,” said
Meg, looking at the grey cotton glove.
** Didn’t you drop the other in the garden?”
No, I’m sure I aidn’t ; for there was only one in the office.”
TI hate to have odd gloves! Never mind, the other may
be found. My letter is only a translation of the German song
I wanted; I think Mr. Brooke did it, for this isn’t Laurie’s
writing.”
Mrs. March glanced at Meg, who was looking very pretty
in her gingham morning-gown, with the little curls blowing
about her forehead, and very womanly, as she sat sewing at
her little work-table, full of tidy white rolls; so unconscious
of the thought in her mother’s mind, as she sewed and sung,
while her fingers flew, and her thoughts were busied with girlish
fancies as innocent and fresh as the pansies in her belt, that
. Mrs. March smiled, and was satisfied.
“Two letters for Doctor Jo, a book, and a funny old hat,
which covered the whole post-office, stuck outside,” said Beth,
laughing, as she went into the study, where Jo sat writing.
“What a sly fellow Laurie is! I said I wished bigger hats
were the fashion, because I burn my face every hot day. He
said, ‘Why mind the fashion? Wear a big hat, and be com-
fortable!’ I said I would if I had one, and he has sent
_ me this, to try me. I'll wear it, for fun, and show him I don’¢
care for the fashion;” and, hanging the antique broad-brim
on a bust of Plato, Jo read her letters.
108 Little Women
One from her mother made her cheeks glow and her eyes
fill, for it said to her,—
“My Dear,—I write a little word to tell you with how
much satisfaction I watch your efforts to control your temper.
You say nothing about your trials, failures, or successes, and
think, perhaps, that no one sees them but the Friend whose
help you daily ask, if I may trust the well-worn cover of your
guide-book. J, too, have seen them all, and heartily believe
in the sincerity of your resolution, since it begins to bear fruit.
Go on, dear, patiently and bravely, and always believe that
no one sympathises more tenderly with you than your loving
“ MOTHER.”
“That does me good! that’s worth millions of money and
pecks of praise. O Marmee, I dotry! I will keep on trying,
and not get tired, since I have you to help me.”
Laying her head on her arms, Jo wet her little romance
with a few happy tears, for she 4ad thought that no one saw
and appreciated her efforts to be good; and this assurance was
doubly precious, doubly encouraging, because unexpected, and
from the person whose commendation she most valued. Feel-
ing stronger than ever to meet and subdue her Apollyon, she
pinned the note inside her frock, as a shield and a reminder,
lest she be taken unaware, and proceeded to open her other
letter, quite ready for either good or bad news. In abig,
dashing hand, ‘Laurie wrote,—
* DEAR Jo,
What ho!
Some English girls and boys are coming to see me to-morrow
and I want to have a jolly time. If it’s fine, I’m going to
pitch my tent in Longmeadow, and row up the whole crew to
lunch and croquet—have a fire, make messes, gipsy fashion,
and all sorts of larks, They are nice people, and like such
things. Brooke will go, to keep us boys steady, and Kate
Vaughn will play propriety for the girls. I want you all to
come ; can’t let Beth off, at any price, and nobody shall worry
her. Don’t bother about rations—I’ll see to that, and every-
thing else—only do come, there’s a good fellow!
“In a tearing hurry,
Yours ever, LAuRIE,”
ee Here’s richness!” cried Jo, flying in to tell the news to
eg.
 Camp Laurence 109
“Of course we can go, mother? it will be such a help to
Laurie, for I can row, and Meg see to. the lunch, and the
children be useful in some way.”
“T‘hope the Vaughns are not fine, grown-up people. Do
you know anything about them, Jo?” asked Meg.
“Only that there are four of them. Kate is older than you,
Fred and Frank (twins) about my age, andalittle girl (Grace),
who is nine or ten. Laurie knew them abroad, and liked the
boys; I fancied, from the way he primmed up his mouth in
- speaking of her, that he didn’t admire Kate much.”
“I’m so glad my French print is clean; it’s just the thing,
and so becoming!” observed Meg cemplacently. ‘ Have
you anything decent, Jo?”
_ Scarlet and grey boating suit, good enough for me. I shall
row and tramp about, so I don’t want any starch to think of.
You'll come, Betty?”
“Tf you won’t let any of the boys talk to me.”
| Not a boy!”
‘*T like to please Laurie ; and I’m not afraid of Mr. Brooke,
he is so kind; but I don’t want to play, or sing, or say any-
thing. Tl work hard, and not trouble any one; and youll
take care of me, Jo, so I'll go.”
“That’s my good girl; you do try to fight off your shyness,
and I love you for it. Fighting faults isn’t easy, as I know;
and a cheery word kind of gives a lift. Thank you, mother,”
and Jo gave the thin cheek a grateful kiss, more precious to
Mrs. March than if it had given back the rosy roundness of
her youth.
‘“T had a box of chocolate drops, and the picture I wanted
to copy,” said Amy, showing her mail.
“ And I got a note from Mr. Laurence, asking me to come
over and play to him to-night, before the lamps are lighted,
- and I shall go,” added Beth, whose friendship with the old
gentleman prospered finely.
“ Now let’s fly round, and do double duty to-day, so that
we can play to-morrow with free minds,” said Jo, preparing to
replace her pen with a broom.
When the sun peeped into the girls’ room early next morning,
to promise them a fine day, he saw a comical sight. Each
had made such preparation for the féte as seemed necessary
and proper Meg had an extra row of little curl-papers across
her forehead, Jo had copiously anointed her afflicted face
with cold cream, Beth had taken Joanna to bed with her to
IIO Little Women
atone for the approaching separation, and Amy had capped
the climax by putting a clothes-pin on her nose, to uplift the
offending feature. It was one of the kind artists use to hold
the paper on their drawing-boards, therefore quite appropriate
and’effective for the purpose to which it was now put. This
funny spectacle appeared to amuse the sun, for he burst out
with such radiance that Jo woke up, and roused all her sisters
by a hearty laugh at Amy’s ornament.
Sunshine and laughter were good omens for a pleasure
party, and soon a lively bustle began in both houses. Beth,
who was ready first, kept reporting what went on next door,
and enlivened her sisters’ toilets by frequent telegrams from
the window.
“There goes the man with the tent! I see Mrs. Barker
doing up the lunch in a hamper and a great basket. Now
Mr. Laurence is looking up at the sky, and the weathercock ;
I wish he would go, too. There’s Laurie, looking like a sailor
—nice boy! Oh, mercy me! here’s a carriage full of people
—a tall lady, a little girl, and two dreadful boys. One is
lame; poor thing, he’s got a crutch. Laurie didn’t tell us
that. Be quick, girls! it’s getting late. Why, there is Ned
Moffat, I do declare. Look, Meg, isn’t that the man who
bowed to you one day, when we were shopping? ”
“So it is. How queer that he should come. I thought he
was at the Mountains. There is Sallie; I’m glad she got
back in time. Am Iall right, Jo?” cried Meg, in a flutter.
“A regular daisy. Hold up your dress and put your hat
straight ; it looks sentimental tipped that way, and will fly off
at the first puff. Now, then, come on!”
“OQ Jo! you are not going to wear that awful hat? It’s
too absurd! You shall zo¢ make a guy of yourself,” remon-
strated Meg, as Jo tied down, with a red ribbon, the broad-
brimmed, old-fashioned Leghorn Laurie had sent for a joke.
“‘T just will, though, for it’s capital—so shady, light, and big.
It will make fun ; and I don’t mind being a guy if I’m com-
fortable.” With ‘that Jo marched straight away, and the rest
followed—a bright little band of sisters, all looking their best,
in summer suits, with happy faces under the jaunty hat-
brims.
Laurie ran to meet, and present them to his friends, in the
most cordial manner. The lawn was the reception-room, and
for several minutes a lively scene was enacted there. Meg
was grateful to see that Miss Kate, though twenty, was dressed
 Camp Laurence i i
with a simplicity which American girls would do well to
imitate; and she was much flattered by Mr. Ned’s assurances
that he came especially to see her. Jo understood why
Laurié “primmed up his mouth” when speaking of Kate,
for that young lady had a stand-off-don’t-touch-me air, which
contrasted strongly with the free and easy demeanour of the
other girls. Beth took an observation of the new boys, and
decided that the lame one was not “dreadful,” but gentle and
feeble, and she would be kind to him on that account. Amy
- found Grace a well-mannered, merry little person; and after
staring dumbly at one another for a few minutes, they suddenly
became very good friends. i
'Tents, lunch, and croquet utensils having been sent on
_ beforehand, the party was soon embarked, and the two boats
pushed off together, leaving Mr. Laurence waving his hat on
the shore. Laurie and Jo rowed one boat; Mr. Brooke and
Ned the other; while Fred Vaughn, the riotous twin, did
his best to upset both by paddling about in a wherry like
a disturbed water-bug. Jo’s funny hat deserved a vote of
thanks, for it was of general utility; it broke the ice in the
beginning, by producing a laugh; it created quite a refreshing
breeze, flapping to and fro, as she rowed, and would make an
excellent umbrella for the whole party, if a shower came up,
she said. Kate looked rather amazed at Jo’s proceedings,
especially as she exclaimed “Christopher Columbus!” when
she lost her oar; and Laurie said, ‘‘ My dear fellow, did I
hurt you?” when he tripped over her feet in taking his place.
But after putting up her glass to examine the queer girl several
times, Miss Kate decided that she was “odd, but rather
clever,” and smiled upon her from afar.
' Meg, in the other boat, was delightfully situated, face to
face with the rowers, who both admired the prospect, and
. feathered their oars with uncommon “skill and dexterity.”
Mr. Brooke was a grave, silent young man, with handsome
brown eyes and a pleasant voice. Meg liked his quiet
manners, and considered him a walking encyclopedia of
useful knowledge. He never talked to her much; but he
looked at her a good deal, and she felt sure that he did
not regard her with aversion. Ned, being in college, of course
put on all the airs which Freshmen think it their bounden
duty to assume; he was not very wise, but very good-
natured, and altogether an excellent person to carry on a
picnic. Sallie Gardiner was absorbed in keeping her whihe
112 Little Women
piqué dress clean, and chatting with the ubiquitous Fred, who
kept Beth in constant terror by his pranks.
It was not far to Longmeadow; but the tent was pitched
and the wickets down by the time they arrived. A pleasant
green field, with three wide-spreading oaks in the middle, and
a smooth strip of turf for croquet.
“‘Welcome to Camp Laurence!” said the young host, as
they landed, with exclamations of delight.
“ Brooke is commander-in-chief ; 1 am commissary-general;
the other fellows are staff-officers; and you, ladies, are com-
pany. The tent is for your especial benefit, and that oak is
your drawing-room ; this is the mess-room, and the third is the
camp kitchen. Now, let’s have a game before it gets hot, and
then we’ll see about dinner.”
Frank, Beth, Amy, and Grace sat down to watch the game
played by the other eight. Mr. Brooke chose Meg, Kate,
and Fred; Laurie took Sallie, Jo. and Ned. The Englishers
played well ; but the Americans played better, and contested
every inch of the ground as strongly as if the spirit of 76
inspired them. Jo and Fred had several skirmishes, and once
narrowly escaped high words. Jo was through the last wicket,
and had missed the stroke, which failure ruffled her a good
deal. Fred was close behind her, and his turn came before
hers; he gave a stroke, his ball hit the wicket, and stopped
an inch on the wrong side. No one was very near; and
running up to examine, he gave it a sly nudge with his toe,
which put it just an inch on the right side.
“I’m through! Now, Miss Jo, I'll settle you, and get in
first,” cried the young gentleman, swinging his mallet for
another blow.
“You pushed it; I saw you; it’s my turn now,” said Jo
sharply.
“Upon my word I didn’t move it; it rolled a bit, perhaps,
but that is allowed; so stand off, please, and let me Hews a go
at the stake.”
‘‘We don’t cheat in America, but you can, if you choose,”
said Jo angrily.
“Yankees are a deal the most tricky, everybody knows,
There you go!” returned Fred, croqueting her ball far away.
Jo opened her lips to say something rude, but checked
herself in time, coloured up to her forehead, and stood a
minute, hammering down a wicket with all her might, while
Fred hit the stake, and declared himself out with much
 Camp Laurence "ae
exultation. She went off to get her ball, and was a long time
finding it, among the bushes; but she came back, looking
cool and quiet, and waited her turn patiently. It took several
strokes to regain the place she had lost; and, when she got
there, the other side had nearly won, for Kate’s ball was the
last but one, and lay near the stake.
“ By George, it’s all up with us! Good bye, Kate. Miss Jo
Owes me one, so you are finished,” cried Fred excitedly, as
they all drew near to see the finish.
“Yankees have a trick of being generous to their enemies,”
said Jo, with a look that made the lad redden, “ especially
when they beat them,” she added, as, leaving Kate’s ball
‘untouched, she won the game bya clever stroke.
Laurie threw up his hat; then remembered that it wouldn’t
do to exult over the defeat of his guests, and stopped in the
middle of a cheer to whisper to his friend,—
“Good for you, Jo! He did cheat, I saw him; we can’t
tell him so, but he won’t do it again, take my word for it.”
Meg drew her aside, under pretence of pinning up a loose
braid, and said approvingly,—
“Tt was dreadfully provoking ; but you kept your temper,
and I’m so glad, Jo.”
“ Don’t praise me, Meg, for I could box his ears this minute.
I should certainly have boiled over ifI hadn't stayed among
the nettles till I got my rage under enough to hold my tongue.
It’s simmering now, so I hope he'll keep out of my way,”
returned Jo, biting her lips, as she glowered at Fred from
under her big hat.
“Time: for lunch,” said Mr. Brooke, looking at his watch.
* Commissary-general, will you make the fire and get water,
while Miss March, Miss Sallie, and I spread the table? Who
can make good coffee? ”
“Jo can,” said Meg, glad to recommend her sister. So Jo,
feeling that her late lessons in cookery were to do her honour,
went to preside over the coffee-pot, while the children collected
dry sticks, and the boys made afire, and got water from a
spring near by. Miss Kate sketched, and Frank talked to
Beth, who was making little mats of braided rushes to serve as
lates. :
. The commander-in-chief and his aids soon spread the
tablecloth with an inviting array of eatables and drinkables,
prettily decorated with green leaves. Jo announced that the
coffee was ready, and every one settled themselves to a hearty
II4 Little Women
meal; for youth is seldom dyspeptic, and exercise develops
wholesome appetites. A very merry lunch it was; for every-
thing seemed fresh and funny, and frequent peals of laughter
startled a venerable horse who fed near by. There was a
pleasing inequality in the table, which produced many mishaps
to cups and plates; acorns dropped into the milk, little black
ants partook of the refreshments without being invited, and
fuzzy caterpillars swung down from the tree, to see what was
going on. Three white-headed children peeped over the
fence, and an objectionable dog barked at them from the
other side of the river with all his might and main.
“There’s salt here, if you prefer it,” said Laurie, as he
handed Jo a saucer of berries.
“Thank you, I prefer spiders,” she replied, fishing up two
unwary little ones who had gone to a creamy death. ‘‘ How
dare you remind me of that horrid. dinner-party, when yours is
so nice in every way?” added Jo, as they both laughed, and
ate out of one plate, the china having run short.
*“[ had an uncommonly good time that day, and haven’t
got over it yet. This is no credit to me, you know; I don’t
do anything; it’s you and Meg and Brooke who make it go,
and I’m no end obliged to you. What shall we do when we
can’t eat any more?” asked Laurie, feeling that his trump
card had been played when lunch was over.
“ Have games, till it’s cooler. I brought ‘ Authors,’ and I
dare say Miss Kate knows something new and nice. Go and
ask her; she’s company, and you ought to stay with her
more.”
** Aren’t you company too? I thought she’d suit Brooke;
but he keeps talking to Meg, and Kate just stares at them
through that ridiculous glass of hers. I’m going, so you
needn’t try to preach propriety, for you can’t do it, Jo.”
Miss Kate did know several new games; and as the girls
would not, and the boys could not, eat any more, they all
adjourned to the drawing-room to play “ Rigmarole.”
‘‘One person begins a story, any nonsense you like, and
tells as long as he pleases, only taking care to stop short at
some exciting point, when the next takes it up and does the
same. It’s very funny when well done, and makes a perfect
jumble of tragical comical stuff to laugh over. Please start
it, Mr. Brooke,” said Kate, with a commanding air, which
surprised Meg, who treated the tutor with as much respect as
any other gentleman,
 Camp Laurence RS
Lying on the grass at the feet of the two young ladies, Mr.
Brooke obediently began the story, with the handsome brown
eyes steadily fixed upon the sunshiny river.
“Once on a time, a knight went out into the world to seek
his fortune, for he had nothing but his sword and his shield,
He travelled a long while, nearly eight-and-twenty years, and
had a hard time of it, till he came to the palace of a good old
king, who had offered a reward to any one who would tame
and train a fine but unbroken colt, of which he was very
_ fond. The knight agreed to try, and got on slowly but surely;
for the colt was a gallant fellow, and soon learned to love his
new master, though he was freakish and wild. Every day, when
he gave his lessons to this pet of the king’s, the knight rode
_ him through the city; and, as he rode, he looked everywhere
for a certain beautiful face, which he had seen many times in
his dreams, but never found. One day, as he went prancing
down a quiet street, he saw at the window of a ruinous castle
the lovely face. He was delighted, inquired who lived in this
old castle, and was told that several captive princesses were
kept there by a spell, and spun all day to lay up money to
buy their liberty. The knight wished intensely that he could
free them; but he was poor, and could only go by each day,
watching for the sweet face, and longing to see it out in the
sunshine. At last, he resolved to get into the castle and ask
how he could help them. He went and knocked; the great
door flew open, and he beheld 2
““A ravishingly lovely lady, who exclaimed, with a cry of
rapture, ‘At last! at last!’” continued Kate, who had read
French novels, and admired the style. ‘‘‘’Tis she!’ cried
Count Gustave, and fell at her feet in an ecstasy of joy. ‘Oh,
rise!’ she said, extending a hand of marble fairness. ‘Never!
till you tell me how I may rescue you,’ swore the knight, still
‘ kneeling. ‘Alas, my cruel fate condemns me to remain here
till my tyrant is destroyed.’ ‘Where is the villain?’ ‘In the
mauve salon. Go, brave heart, and save me from despair.’
‘I obey, and return victorious or dead!’ With these thrilling
words he rushed away, and flinging open the door of the mauve
salon, was about to enter, when he received 2?
“A stunning blow from the big Greck lexicon, which an old
fellow in a black gown fired at him,” said Ned. “ Instantly sir
What’s-his-name recovered himself, pitched the tyrant out of
the window, and turned to join the lady, victorious, but with a
bump on his brow; found the door locked, tore up the cur-
116 Little Women
tains, made a rope ladder, got half-way down when the ladder
broke, and he went head first into the moat, sixty feet below.
Could swim like a duck, paddled round the castle till he came
to a little door guarded by two stout fellows; knocked their
heads together till they cracked like a couple of nuts, then,
by a trifling exertion of his prodigious strength, he smashed
in the door, went up a pair of stone steps covered with dust
a foot thick, toads as big as your fist, and spiders that would
frighten you into hysterics, Miss March. At the top of these
steps he came plump upon asight that took his breath away
and chilled his blood f
“ A tall figure, all in white with a veil over its face and
a lamp in its wasted hand,” went on Meg. “It beckoned,
gliding noiselessly before him down a corridor as dark and
cold asanytomb. Shadowy effigies in armour stood on either
side, a dead silence reigned, the lamp burned blue, and the
ghostly figure ever and anon turned its face toward him, show-
ing the glitter of awful eyes through its white veil. They
reached a curtained door, behind which sounded lovely music ;
he sprang forward to enter, but the spectre plucked him back,
and waved threateningly before him a 2
“ Snuff-box,” said Jo, in a sepulchral tone, which convulsed
the audience. ‘‘‘Thankee,’ said the knight politely, as he
took a pinch, and sneezed seven times so violently that his
head fell off. ‘Ha! ha!’ laughed the ghost; and having
peeped throught the keyhole at the princesses spinning away
for dear life, the evil spirit picked up her victim and put
him in a large tin box, where there were eleven other knights
packed together without their heads, like sardines, who all
rose and began to 7
“Dance a hornpipe,” cut in Fred, as Jo paused for breath ;
“and, as they danced, the rubbishy old castle turned to a
man-of-war in full sail. ‘Up with the jib, reef the tops’l
halliards, helm hard a lee, and man the guns!’ roared the
captain, as a Portuguese pirate hove in sight, with a flag
black as ink flying from her foremast. ‘Go in and win, my
hearties,’ says the captain; and a tremendous fight began.
Of course the British beat; they always do.”
“No, they don’t!” cried Jo, aside.
“Having taken the pirate captain prisoner, sailed slap over
the schooner, whose decks were piled with dead, and whose
lee-scuppers ran blood, for the order had been ‘ Cutlasses, and
die hard!’ ‘Bosen’s mate, take a bight of the flying-jib sheet,
 Camp Laurence P17
and start this villain if he don’t confess his sins double quick,’
said the British captain. The Portuguese held his tongue like
a brick, and walked the plank, while the jolly tars cheered like
mad. But the sly dog dived, came up under the man-of-war,
scuttled her, and down she went, with all sail set, ‘To the
bottom of the sea, sea, sea,’ where 2
“Oh, gracious! what ska// I say?” cried Sallie, as Fred
ended his rigmarole, in which he had jumbled together, pell-
mell, nautical phrases and facts, out of one of his favourite
books. ‘‘ Well, they went to the bottom, and a nice mermaid
welcomed them, but was much grieved on finding the box
of headless knights, and kindly pickled them in brine, hoping
‘to discover the mystery about them; for, being a woman, she
was curious. By-and-by a diver came down, and the mer-
maid said, ‘T’ll give you this box of pearls if you can take it
up ;’ for she wanted to restore the poor things to life, and
couldn’t raise the heavy load herself. So the diver hoisted it
up, and was much disappointed, on opening it, to find no pearls.
He left it in a great lonely field, where it was found by a 2
“Little goose-girl, who kept a hundred fat geese in the
field,” said Amy, when Sallie’s invention gave out. ‘“ The
little girl was sorry for them, and asked an old woman what
she should do to help them. ‘Your geese will tell you, they
know everything,’ said the old woman. So she asked what she
should use for new heads, since the old ones were lost, and all
the geese opened their hundred mouths and screamed
‘*«Cabbages !’”continued Laurie promptly. “ ‘ Just the thing,’
said the girl, and ran to get twelve fine ones from her garden.
She put them on, the knights revived at once, thanked her,
and went on their way rejoicing, never knowing the difference,
‘for there were so many other heads like them in the world,
that no one thought anything of it. The knight in whom I’m
interested went back to find the pretty face, and learned that
the princesses had spun themselves free, and all gone to be
married but one. He was in a great state of mind at that;
and mounting the colt, who stood by him through thick and
thin, rushed to the castle to see which was left. Peeping over
the hedge, he saw the queen of his affections picking flowers
in her garden. ‘Will you give me a rose?’ said he. ‘You
must come and get it. I can’t come to you; it isn’t proper,’
said she, as sweet as honey. He tried to climb over the
hedge, but it seemed to grow higher and higher; then he
tried to push through, but it grew thicker and thicker, and
118 Little Women
he was in despair. So he patiently broke twig after twig, till
he had made a little hole, through which he peeped, saying
imploringly, ‘ Let me in! let me in!’ But the pretty princess
did not seem to understand, for she picked her roses quietly,
and [eft him to fight his way in. Whether he did or not,
Frank will tell you.”
“IT can’t ; I’m not playing, I never do,” said Frank, dismayed
at the sentimental predicament out of which he was to rescue
the absurd couple. Beth had disappeared behind Jo, and
Grace was asleep.
‘So the poor knight is to be left sticking in the hedge, is
he?” asked Mr. Brooke, still watching the river, and playing
with the wild rose in his button-hole.
“IT guess the princess gave him a posy, and opened the
gate, after a while,” said Laurie, smiling to himself, as he
threw acorns at his tutor.
“What a piece of nonsense we have made! With practice
we might do something quite clever. Do you know ‘ Truth’ ?”
asked Sallie, after they had laughed over their story.
“I hope so,” said Meg soberly.
“ The game, I mean?”
“What is it?” said Fred.
‘‘ Why, you pile up your hands, choose a number, and draw
out in turn, and the person who draws at the number has to
answer truly any questions put by the rest. It’s great fun.”
“Let’s try it,”'said Jo, who liked new experiments.
Miss Kate and Mr. Brooke, Meg and Ned declined, but
Fred, Sallie, Jo, and Laurie piled and drew; and the lot fell
to Laurie.
“Who are your heroes?” asked Jo.
** Grandfather and Napoleon.”
“Which lady here do you think prettiest?” said Sallie.
** Margaret.”
‘Which do you like best?” from Fred.
“Jo, of course.”
‘* What silly questions you ask!” and Jo gave a disdainful
shrug as the rest laughed at Laurie’s matter-of-fact tone.
“Try again ; Truth isn’t a bad game,” said Fred.
“Tt’s a very good one for you,” retorted Jo, in a low voice.
Her turn came next.
‘What is your greatest fault ?” asked Fred, by way of testing
in her the virtue he lacked himself,
‘A quick temper.”
 Camp Laurence 7!
“What do you most wish for?” said Laurie.
‘‘ A pair of boot-lacings,” returned Jo, guessing and defeating
his purpose,
‘“Not a true answer; you must say what you really do want
most.”
“Genius ; don’t you wish you could give it to me, Laurie?”
and she slyly smiled in his disappointed face.
““What virtues do you most admire in a man?” asked
Sallie.
“ Courage and honesty.”
*“ Now my turn,” said Fred, as his hand came last.
“Let’s give it to him,” whispered Laurie to Jo, who nodded,
and asked at once,—
** Didn’t you cheat at croquet ?”
“Well, yes, a little bit.”
‘Good! Didn’t you take your story out of ‘The Sea-
Lion ?’” said Laurie.
SiN elon
“Don’t you think the English nation perfect in every
respect P” asked Sallie.
“*T should be ashamed of myself ifI didn’t.”
“ He’s a true John Bull. Now, Miss Sallie, you shall have
a chance without waiting to draw. IT’ll harrow up your
feelings first by asking if you don’t think you are something
of a flirt,” said Laurie, as Jo nodded to Fred, as a sign that
peace was declared.
“You impertinent boy! of course I’m not,” exclaimed
Sallie, with an air that proved the contrary.
“What do you hate most?” asked Fred.
“ Spiders and rice-pudding.”
“What do you like best?” asked Jo.
* Dancing and French gloves.”
6 Well, 7think Truth isa very silly play ; let’s have a sensible
game of Authors, to refresh our minds,” proposed Jo.
Ned, Frank, and the little girls joined in tnis, and, while
it went on, the three elders sat apart, talking. Miss Kate
took out her sketch again, and Margaret watched her, while
Mr. Brooke lay on the grass, with a book, which he did not
read.
“ How beautifully you do it! I wish I could draw,” said
Meg, with mingled admiration and regret in her voice.
“Why don’t you learn? I should think you had taste and
talent for it,” replied Miss Kate graciously.
120 Little Women
‘T haven’t time.”
“Your mamma prefers other accomplishments, I fancy. So
did mine; but I proved to her that I had talent, by taking
a few lessons privately, and then she was quite willing I
should go on. Can’t you do the same with your governess?”
“] have none.”
‘‘T forgot; young ladies in America go to school more than
with us. Very fine schools they are, too, papa says. You go
to a private one, I suppose ?”
“T don’t go at all; I am a governess myself.”
“Oh, indeed!” said Miss Kate; but she might as well have
said, ‘Dear me, how dreadful!” for her tone implied it, and
something in her face made Meg colour, and wish she had not
been so frank.
Mr. Brooke looked up, and said quickly, ‘‘ Young ladies in
America love independence as much as their ancestors did,
and are admired and respected for supporting themselves.”
“Oh yes; of course it’s very nice and proper in them to
do so. We have many most respectable and worthy young
women who do the same and are employed by the nobility,
because, being the daughters of gentlemen. they are both well-
bred and accomplished, you know,” said Miss Kate, in a
patronising tone, that hurt Meg’s pride, and made her work
seem not only more distasteful, but degrading.
“Did the German song suit, Miss March?” inquired Mr.
Brooke, breaking an awkward pause.
‘Oh yes; it was very sweet, and I’m much obliged to
whoever translated it for me;” and Meg's downcast face
brightened as she spoke.
‘Don’t you read German?” asked Miss Kate, with a look
of surprise.
“ Not very well. My father, who taught me, is away, and I
don’t get on very fast alone, for I’ve no one to correct my
pronunciation.”
“Try a little now; here is Schiller’s ‘Mary Stuart,’ and a
tutor who loves to teach,” and Mr. Brooke laid his book on
her lap, with an inviting smile.
“It’s so hard I’m afraid to try,” said Meg, grateful, but
bashful in the presence of the accomplished young lady beside
her.
“T'll read a bit to encourage you; ” and Miss Kate read
one of the most beautiful passages, in S:PEECHY
a correct but
perfectly expressionless manner.
 Camp Laurence 121
Mr. Brooke made no comment, as she returned the book
to Meg. who said innocently,—
“ | thought it was poetry.”
“Some of it is. Try this passage.”
There was a queer smile about Mr. Brooke’s mouth as he
opened at poor Mary’s lament.
Meg obediently following the long grass-blade which her new
tutor used to point with. read slowly and timidly, unconsciously
making poetry of the hard words by the soft intonation of her
musical voice. Down the page went the green guide, and
presently, forgetting her listener in the beauty of the sad scene,
Meg read as if alone, giving a little touch of tragedy to the
words of the unhappy queen. If she had seen the brown eyes
then, she would have stopped short; but she never looked up,
and the lesson was not spoiled for her.
‘Very well, indeed!” said Mr. Brooke, as she paused, quite
ignoring her many mistakes, and looking as if he did, indeed,
“love to teach.”
Miss Kate put up her glass, and, having taken a survey of
the little tableau before her, shut her sketch-book, saying, with
condescension,—
“You've a nice accent, and, in time, will be a clever reader.
I advise you to learn, for German is a valuable accomplishment
to teachers. I must look after Grace, she is romping ;” and
Miss Kate strolled away, adding to herself, with a shrug, ‘I
didn’t come to chaperone a governess, though she zs young and
pretty. What odd people thesé Yankees are ; I’m afraid Laurie
will be quite spoilt among them.”
“‘T forgot that English people rather turn up their noses at
-governesses, and don’t treat them as we do,” said Meg, looking
after the retreating figure with an annoyed expression.
“ Tutors, also, have rather a hard time of it there, as I know
to my sorrow. There’s no place like America for us workers,
Miss Margaret ;” and Mr. Brooke looked so contented and
cheerful, that Meg was ashamed to lament her hard lot.
“I’m glad I live in it then. I don’t like my work, but I get
a good deal of satisfaction out of it after all, so I won’t com-
plain; I only wish I liked teaching as you do.”
“T think you would if you had Laurie for a pupil. I shall
be very sorry to lose him next year,” said Mr. Brooke, busily
punching holes in the turf,
“Going to college, I suppose?” Meg’s lips asked that ques-
tion, but her eyes added, ‘‘ And what becomes of your”
122 Little Women
“Yes ; it’s high time he went, for he is ready; and as soon
as he is off, I shall turn
soldier. JI am needed.”
“T am glad of that!” exclaimed Meg. “I should think every
young man would want to go ; though it is hard for the mothers
and sisters who stay at home,” she added sorrowfully.
‘“‘T have neither, andvery few friends, to care whether I live
or die,” said Mr. Brooke, rather bitterly, as he absently put the
dead rose in the hole he had made and covered it up, like a
little grave.
“Laurie and his grandfather would care a great deal, and
we should all be very sorry to have any harm happen to you,”
said Meg heartily.
“Thank you; that sounds pleasant,” began Mr. Brooke,
looking cheerful again ; but before he could finish his speech,
Ned, mounted on the old horse, came lumbering up, to dis-
play his equestrian skill before the young ladies, and there was
no more quiet that day.
“Don’t you love to ride ?” asked Grace of Amy, as they stood
resting, after a race round the field with the others, led by Ned.
“TI dote upon it; my sister Meg used to ride when papa
was rich, but we don’t keep any horses now, except Ellen
Tree,” added Amy, laughing.
“Tell me about Ellen l'ree; is it a donkey?” asked Grace
curiously.
“Why, you see, Jo is crazy about horses, and so am I, but
we've only got an old side-saddle, and no horse. Out in our
garden is an apple-tree, that has a nice low branch; so Jo put
the saddle on it, fixed some reins on the part that turns up,
and we bounce away on Ellen Tree whenever we like.”
“How funny!” laughed Grace. “I have a pony at home,
and ride nearly every day in the park, with Fred and Kate ; it’s
very nice, for my friends go too, and the Row is full of ladies
and gentlemen.”
“Dear, how charming! I hope I shall go abroad some
day; but I’d rather go to Rome than the Row,” said Amy, who
had not the remotest idea what the Row was, and wouldn’t
have asked for the world.
Frank, sitting just behind the little girls, heard what they
were saying, and pushed his crutch away from him with an
impatient gesture as he watched the active lads going through
all sorts of comical gymnastics. Beth, who was collecting the
scattered Author-cards, lookéd up, and said, in her shy yet
friendly way,— '
 Camp Laurence ‘es
“I’m afraid you are tired ; can I do anything for you?”
“Talk to me, please; it’s dull, sitting by myself,” answered
Frank, who had evidently been used to being made much of
at home.
If he had asked her to deliver a Latin oration, it would not
have seemed a more impossible task to bashful Beth; but
there was no place to run to, no Jo to hide behind now,
and the poor boy looked so wistfully at her, that she bravely
resolved to try.
‘“What do you like to talk about?” she asked, fumbling
over the cards, and dropping half as she tried to tie them up.
“Well, I like to hear about cricket and boating and hunt-
ing,” said Frank, who had not yet learned to suit his amuse-
ments to his strength.
“‘ My heart! what shallI do? I don’t know anything about
them,” thought Beth; and, forgetting the boy’s misfortune in
her flurry, she said, hoping to make him talk, “I never saw
any hunting, but I suppose you know all about it.”
“JT did once; but I can never hunt again, for I got hurt
leaping a confounded five-barred gate; so there are no more
horses and hounds for me,” said Frank, with a sigh that made
Beth hate herself for her innocent blunder.
“Your deer are much prettier than our ugly buffaloes,” she
said, turning to the prairies for help, and feeling glad that she
had read one of the boys’ books in which Jo delighted.
Buffaloes proved soothing and satisfactory; and, in her
eagerness to amuse another, Beth forgot herself, and was quite
unconscious of her sisters’ surprise and delight at the unusual
spectacle of Beth talking away to one of the dreadful boys,
. against whom she had begged protection.
“Bless her heart! She pities him, so she is good to him,”
said Jo, beaming at her from the croquet-ground.
‘‘T always said she was alittle saint,” added Meg, as if there
could be no further doubt of it.
“J haven’t heard Frank laugh so much for ever so long,”
said Grace to Amy, as they sat discussing dolls, and making
tea-sets out of the acorn-cups.
“My sister Beth is a very fastidious girl, when she likes to
be,” said Amy, well pleased at Beth’s success. She meant
“fascinating,” but as Grace didn’t know the exact meaning
of either word, “ fastidious ” sounded well, and made a good
impression.
An impromptu circus, fox and geese, and an amicable game
124 Little Women
of croquet, finished the afternoon. At sunset the tent was
struck, hampers packed, wickets pulled up, boats loaded, and
the whole party floated down the river, singing at the tops
of their voices. Ned, getting sentimental, warbled a serenade
with the pensive refrain,—
*« Alone, alone, ah! woe, alone,”

and at the lines—

‘« We each are young, we each have a heart,
Oh, why should we stand thus coldly apart?”

he looked at Meg with such a lackadaisical expression that

she laughed outright and spoilt his song.
““How can you be so cruel to me?” he whispered, under
cover of a lively chorus. ‘‘ You’ve kept close to that starched-
up Englishwoman all day, and now you snub me.”
*] didn’t mean to; but you looked so funny I really couldn’t
help it,” replied Meg, passing over the first part of his reproach ;
for it was quite true that she Zad shunned him, remembering
the Moffat party and the talk after it.
Ned was offended, and turned to Sallie for consolation,
saying to her rather pettishly, “There isn’t a bit of flirt in
that girl, is there?”
“Not a particle ; but she’s a dear,” returned Sallie, defending
her friend even while confessing her shortcomings.
“She’s not a stricken deer, anyway,” said Ned, trying to
be witty, and succeeding as well as very young gentlemen
usually do.
On the lawn, where it had gathered, the little party separated
with cordial good-nights and good-byes, for the Vaughns were
going to Canada. As the four sisters went home through the
garden, Miss Kate looked after them, saying, without the
patronising tone in her voice, “In spite of their demonstrative
manners, American girls are very nice when one knows them.”
“I quite agree with you,” said Mr. Brooke.|

CHAPTER XIII
CASTLES IN THE AIR
Laurie lay luxuriously swinging to and fro in his hammock,
one warm September afternoon, wondering what his neighbours
were about, but too lazy to go and find out. He was in one
 Castles in the Air | 125
of his moods; for the day had been both unprofitable and
unsatisfactory, and he was wishing he could live it over again.
The: hot weather made him indolent, and he had shirked his
studies, tried Mr. Brooke’s patience to the utmost, displeased
his grandfather by practising half the afternoon, frightened the
maid-servants half out of their wits, by mischievously hinting
that one of his dogs was going mad, and, after high words with
the stableman about some fancied neglect of his horse, he had
flung himself into his hammock, to fume over the stupidity of
the world in general, till the peace of the lovely day quieted
him in spite of himself. Staring up into the green gloom of
.the horse-chestnut trees above him, he dreamed dreams of all
sorts, and was just imagining himself tossing on the ocean, in
a voyage round the world, when the sound of voices brought
him ashore in a flash. Peeping through the meshes of the
-hammock, he saw the Marches coming out, as if bound on
some expedition.
“What in the world are those girls about now?” thought
Laurie, opening his sleepy eyes to take a good look, for there was
something rather peculiar in the appearance of his neighbours.
Each wore a large, flapping hat, a brown linen pouch slung
over one shoulder, and carried a long staff. Meg had a
cushion, Jo a book, Beth a basket, and Amy a portfolio. All
walked quietly through the garden, out at the little back gate,
and began to climb the hill that lay between the house and
river.
“Well, that’s cool!” said Laurie to himself, “to have a
picnic and never ask me. They can’t be going in the boat,
for they haven’t got the key. Perhaps they forgot it; I'll
-take it to them, and see what’s going on.”
Though possessed of half-a-dozen hats, it took him some
time to find one; then there was a hunt for the key, which
was at last discovered in his pocket; so that the girls were
quite out of sight when he leaped the fence and ran after
them. Taking the shortest way to the boat-house, he waited
for them to appear: but no one came, and he went up the hill
to take an observation. A grove of pines covered one part
of it, and from the heart of this green spot came a Clearer
sound than the soft sigh of the pines or the drowsy chirp
of the crickets.
“‘ Here’s a landscape!” thought Laurie, peeping through the
bushes, and looking wide-awake and good-natured already.
It was rather a pretty little picture; for the sisters sat
126 Little Women
together in the shady nook, with sun and shadow flickering
over them, the aromatic wind lifting their hair and cooling
their hot cheeks, and all the little wood-people going on
with ,their affairs as if these were no strangers, but old friends.
Meg sat upon her cushion, sewing daintily with her white
hands, and looking as fresh and sweet as a rose, in her pink
dress, among the green. Beth was sorting the cones that lay
thick under the hemlock near by, for she made pretty things
of them. Amy was sketching a group of ferns, and Jo was
knitting as she read aloud. A shadow passed over the boy’s
face as he watched them, feeling that he ought to go away,
because uninvited; yet lingering, because home seemed very
lonely, and this quiet party in the woods most attractive to his
restless spirit. He stood so still that a squirrel, busy with its
harvesting, ran down a pine close beside him, saw him sud-
denly and skipped back, scolding so shrilly that Beth looked
up, espied the wistful face behind the birches, and beckoned
with a reassuring smile.
“May I come in, please? or shall I be a bother?” he
asked, advancing slowly.
Meg lifted her eyebrows, but Jo scowled at her defiantly,
and said, at once, “Of course you may. We should have
asked you before, only we thought you wouldn’t care for such
a girl’s game as this.”
| always liked your games; but if Meg doesn’t want me,
Pll go away.’
“lve no objection, if you do something; it’s against the
rules to be idle here,” replied Meg, gravely but graciously.
“ Much obliged; I'll do anything if you’ll let me stop a bit,
for it’s as dull as the Desert of Sahara down there. Shall I
sew, read, cone, draw, or do all at once? Bring on your
bears; I’m ready,” and Laurie sat down, with a submissive
expression delightful to behold.
“Finish this story while I set my heel,” said Jo, handing
him the book.
** Yes’m,” was the meek answer, as he began, doing his best
to prove his gratitude for the favour of an admission into the
“Busy Bee Society.”
The story was not a long one, and, when it was finished, he
ventured to ask a few questions as a reward of merit.
“Please, ma'am, could I inquire if this highly instructive
and charming institution is a new one?”
“Would you tell him?” asked Meg of her sisters,
 Castles in the Air 127
“He'll laugh,” said Amy warningly.
“Who cares?” said Jo.
“TI guess he'll like it,” added Beth.
“Of course I shall! I give you my word I won't laugh.
Tell away, Jo, and don’t be afraid.”
“The idea of being afraid of you! Well, you see we used
to play ‘ Pilgrim’s Progress,’ and we have been going on with
it in earnest, all winter and summer.”
“Yes, I know,” said Laurie, nodding wisely.
“Who told you?” demanded Jo.
* Spirits.”
“No, I did; I wanted to amuse him one night when you
were all away, and he was rather dismal. He did like it, so
don’t scold, Jo,” said Beth meekly.
“You can’t keep a secret. Never mind; it saves trouble
now.”
“Go on, please,” said Laurie, as Jo became absorbed in
her work, looking atrifle displeased.
“Oh, didn’t she tell you about this new plan of ours?
Well, we have tried not to waste our holiday, but each has
had a task, and worked at it with a will. The vacation is
nearly over, the stints are all done, and we are ever so glad
that we didn’t dawdle.”
“Yes, I should think so;” and Laurie thought regretfully
of his own idle days.
** Mother likes to have us out-of-doors as much as possible;
so we bring our work here, and have nice times. For the fun
of it we bring our things in these bags, wear the old hats, use
poles to climb the hill, and play pilgrims, as we used to do
years ago. We call this hill the ‘ Delectable Mountain,’ for
we can look far away and see the country where we hope to
live some time.”
Jo pointed, and Laurie sat up to examine; for through an
Opening in the wood one could look across the wide, blue
river, the meadows on the other side, far over the outskirts of
the great city, to the green hills that rose to meet the sky.
The sun was low, and the heavens glowed with the splendour
of an autumn sunset. Gold and purple clouds lay on the
hill-tops; and rising high into the ruddy light were silvery
white peaks, that shone like the airy spires of some Celestial
City.
eHow beautiful that is!” said Laurie softly, for he was
quick to see and feel beauty of any kind.
128 Little Women
“It’s often so; and we like to watch it, for it is never the
same, but always splendid,” replied Amy, wishing she could
aint it.
“Jo talks about the country where we hope to live some
time-the real country, she means, with pigs and chickens and
haymaking. It would be nice, but I wish the beautiful
country up there was real, and we could ever go to it,” said
Beth musingly.
“There is a lovelier country even than that, where we ska/Z
go, by-and-by, when we are good enough,” answered Meg, with
her sweet voice.
“Tt seems so long to wait, so hard to do; I want to fly
away at once, as those swallows fly, and go in at that splendid
ate.
. “You'll get there, Beth, sooner or later; no fear of that,”
said Jo; ‘‘ I’m the one that will have to fight and work, and
climb and wait, and maybe never get in after all.”
“You'll have me for company, if that’s any comfort. I
shall have to do a deal of travelling before I come in sight of
your Celestial City. If I arrive late, you’ll say a good word
for me, won’t you, Beth?”
Something in the boy’s face troubled his little friend; but
she said cheerfully, with her quiet eyes on the changing
clouds, “If people really want to go, and really try all their
lives, I think they will get in; for I don’t believe there are
any locks on that door, or any guards at the gate. I always
imagine it is as it is in the picture, where the shining ones
stretch out their hands to welcome poor Christian as he comes
up from the river.”
“Wouldn’t it be fun if all the castles in the air which we
make could come true, and we could live in them?” said Jo,
after a little pause.
“T’ve made such quantities it would be hard to choose
which I’d have,” said Laurie, lying flat, and throwing cones at
the squirrel who had betrayed him.
“You'd have to take your favourite one, What is it?”
asked Meg.
“Tf I tell mine, will you tell yours? ”
“Yes, if the girls will too.”
“We will. Now, Laurie.”
“ After ’'d seen as much of the world as TI want to, I’d like
to settle in Germany, and have just as much music as I choose.
I’m to be a famous musician myself, and all creation is to rush
 Castles in the Air ~ 26
to hear me; and I’m never to be bothered about money or
business, but just enjoy myself, and live for what I like. That’s
my favourite castle. What’s yours, Meg? ?
Margaret seemed to find it a little hard to tell hers, and
waved a brake before her face, as if to disperse imaginary
gnats, while she said slowly, “I should like a lovely house,
full of all sorts of luxurious things—nice food, pretty clothes,
handsome furniture, pleasant people, and heaps of money. I
_ am to be mistress of it, and manage it as I like, with plenty
of servants, so I never need work a bit. How I should enjoy
it! for I wouldn’t be idle, but do good, and make every one
love me dearly.”
“ Wouldn’t you have a master for your castle in the air?”
- asked Laurie slyly.
“T said ‘ pleasant people,’ you know;” and Meg carefully
tied up her shoe as she spoke, so that no one saw her face.
“Why don’t you say you’d have a splendid, wise, good
husband, and some angelic little children? You know your
castle wouldn’t be periect without,” said blunt Jo, who had
no tender fancies yet, and rather scorned romance, except in
books.
“ You’d have nothing but horses, inkstands, and novels in
yours,” answered Meg petulantly.
“Wouldn't I, tho gh? I’d have a stable full of Arabian
steeds. rooms piled with books, and I’d write out of a magic
inkstand, so that my works should be as famous as Laurie’s
music. I want to do something splendid before I go into my
castle—something heroic or wonderful, that won’t be forgotten
after I’m dead. I don’t know what, but I’m on the watch for it,
and mean to astonish you all, some day. I think I shall write
books, and get rich and famous: that would suit me, so that
is my favourite dream.”
“‘ Mine is to stay at home safe with father and mother, and
help take care of the family,” said Beth contentedly.
“ Don’t you wish for anything else?” asked Laurie.
“Since I had my little piano, I am perfectly satisfied. I
only wish we may all keep well and be together; nothing
else.”
“‘T have ever so many wishes; but the pet one is to be an
artist, and go to Rome, and do fine pictures, and be the best
artist In the whole world,” was Amy’s modest desire.
_“ We're an ambitious set, aren’t we? Every one of us, but
Beth, wants to be rich and famous, and gorgeous in every
130 Little Women
respect. I do wonder if any of us will ever get our wishes,”
said Laurie, chewing grass, like a meditative calf.
“Tve got the key to my castle in the air; but whether I
can unlock the door remains to be seen,” observed Jo mys-
teriously.
“T’ve got the key to mine, but I’m not allowed to try it.
Hang college!” muttered Laurie, with an impatient sigh.
“ Here’s mine!” and Amy waved her pencil.
‘*T haven't got any,” said Meg forlornly.
“Ves, you have,” said Laurie at once.
eOWiherevng
“Tn your face.”
‘Nonsense ; that’s of no use.”
“Wait and see if it doesn’t bring you something worth
having,” replied the boy, laughing at the thought of a charming
little secret which he fancied he knew.
Meg coloured behind the brake, but asked no questions, and
looked across the river with the same expectant expression
which Mr. Brooke had worn when he told the story of the
knight.
‘““If we are all alive ten years hence, let’s meet, and see how
many of us have got our wishes, or how much nearer we are
then than now,” said Jo, always ready with a plan.
“Bless me! how old I shall be—twenty-seven !” exclaimed
Meg, who felt grown up already, having just reached seventeen.
“You and I'shall be twenty-six, Teddy, Beth twenty-four,
and Amy twenty-two. What a venerable party!” said Jo.
‘“‘T hope I shall have done something to be proud of by that
time; but I’m such a lazy dog, I’m afraid I shall ‘dawdle,’
Jo.”

“You need a motive, mother says; and when you get it,
she is sure you'll work splendidly.”
“Is she? By Jupiter I will, if I only get the chance!”
cried Laurie, sitting up with sudden energy. ‘“I ought to be
satisfied to please grandfather, and I do try, but it’s working
against the grain, you see, and comes hard. He wants me
to be an India merchant, as he was, and I’d rather be shot.
I hate tea and silk and spices, and every sort of rubbish his
old ships bring, and I don’t care how soon they go to the
bottom when I own them. Going to college ought to satisfy
him, for if I give him four years he ought to let me off from
the business; but he’s set, and I’ve got to do just as he did,
unless I break away and please myself, as my father did. If
 Castles in the Air 131
there was any one left to stay with the old gentleman, I’d do
it to-morrow.”
_ Laurie spoke excitedly, and looked ready to carry his threat
Into execution on the slightest provocation ; for he was growing
up very fast, and, in spite of his indolent ways, had a young
man’s hatred of subjection, a young man’s restless longing
to try the world for himself.
“I advise you to sail away in one of your ships, and never
come home again till you have tried your own way,” said Jo,
whose imagination was fired by the thought of such a daring
exploit, and whose sympathy was excited by what she called
*“Teddy’s wrongs.”
“That’s not right, Jo; you mustn’t talk in that way, and
Laurie mustn’t take your bad advice. You should do just
what your grandfather wishes, my dear boy,” said Meg, in her
most maternal tone. “Do your best at college, and, when
he sees that you try to please him, I’m sure he wont be hard
or unjust to you. As you say, there is no one else to stay
with and love him, and you’d never forgive yourself if you
left him without his permission. Don’t be dismal or fret,
but do your duty; and you'll get your reward, as good Mr.
Brooke has, by being respected and loved.”
“What do you know about him ?” asked Laurie, grateful for
the good advice, but objecting to the lecture, and glad to turn
the conversation from himself, after his unusual outbreak.
“Only what your grandpa told us about him—how he
took good care of his own mother till she died, and wouldn’t
go abroad as tutor to some nice person, because he wouldn’t
leave her; and how he provides now for an old woman who
nursed his mother; and never tells any one, but is just as
generous and patient and good as he can be.”
“So he is, dear old fellow!” said Laurie heartily, as Meg
paused, looking flushed and earnest with her story. “It’s
like grandpa to find out all about him, without letting him
know, and to tell all his goodness to others, so that they might
like him. Brooke couldn’t understand why your mother was
so kind to him, asking him over with me, and treating him in
her beautiful friendly way. He thought she was just perfect,
and talked about it for days and days, and went on about you
all in flaming style. If ever I do get my wish, you see what
I'll do for Brooke.”
“ Begin to do something now, by not plaguing his life out,”
said Meg sharply.
132 Little Women
“ How do you know I do, miss?”
“T can always tell by his face, when he goes away. If vou
have been good, he looks satisfied and walks briskly; if you
have plagued him, he’s sober and walks slowly, as if he wanted
to go back and do his work better.”
“Well, I like that! So you keep an account of my good
and bad marks in Brooke’s face, do you? I see him bow and
smile as he passes your window, but I didn’t know you'd got
up a telegraph.”
“We haven’t; don’t be angry, and oh, don’t tell him I said
anything! It was only to show that I cared how you get on,
and what is said here is said in confidence, you know,” cried
Meg, much alarmed at the thought of what might follow from
her careless speech.
“7 don’t tell tales,” replied Laurie, with his “high and
mighty” air, as Jo called a certain expression which he
occasionally wore. ‘Only if Brooke is going to be a
thermometer, I must mind and have fair weather for him
to report.”
“ Please don’t be offended. I didn’t mean to preach or tell
tales or be silly; I only thought Jo was encouraging you in a
feeling which you'd be sorry for, by-and-by. You are so kind
to us, we feel as if you were our brother, and say just what we
think. Forgive me, I meant it kindly.” And Meg offered her
hand with a gesture both affectionate and timid.
Ashamed of his'momentary pique, Laurie squeezed the kind
little hand, and said frankly, “I’m the one to be forgiven;
I’m cross, and have been out of sorts all day. I like to have
you tell me my faults and be sisterly, so don’t mind if I am
grumpy sometimes; I thank you all the same.”
Bent on showing that he was not offended, he made himself
as agreeable as possible—wound cotton for Meg, recited poetry
to please Jo, shook down cones for Beth, and helped Amy with
her ferns, proving himself a fit person to belong to the “ Busy
Bee Society.” In the midst of an animated discussion on the
domestic habits of turtles (one of those amiable creatures
having strolled up from the river), the faint sound of a bell
warned them that Hannah had put the tea “to draw,” and they
would just have time to get home to supper.
‘* May I come again?” asked Laurie.
“Yes, if you are good, and love your book, as the boys in
the primer are told to do,” said Meg, smiling,
Tl try.”
 Secrets . S98
“Then you may come, and I’ll teach you to knit as the
Scotchmen do; there’s a demand for socks just now,” added
Jo, waving hers, like a big blue worsted banner, as they parted
at the gate.
That night, when Beth played to Mr. Laurence in the
twilight, Laurie, standing in the shadow of the curtain,
listened to the little David, whose simple music always
quieted his moody spirit, and watched the old man, who
sat with his grey head on his hand, thinking tender thoughts
of the dead child he had loved so much. Remembering the
conversation of the afternoon, the boy said to himseif, with
the resolve to make the sacrifice cheerfully, “I'll let my castle
go, and stay with the dear old gentleman while he needs me,
for I am all he has,”

CHAPTER XIV
SECRETS
Jo was very busy in the garret, for the October days began
to grow chilly, and the afternoons were short. For two or
three hours the sun lay warmly in the high window, show-
ing Jo seated on the old sofa, writing busily, with her papers
spread out upon a trunk before her, while Scrabble, the pet
rat, promenaded the beams overhead, accompanied by his
oldest son, a fine young fellow, who was evidently very proud
of his whiskers. Quite absorbed in her work, Jo scribbled
away till the last page was filled, when she signed her name
with a flourish, and threw down her pen, exclaiming,—
“ There, I’ve done my best! If this won’t suit I shall have
to wait till I can do better.”
’ Lying back on the sofa, she read the manuscript carefully
through, making dashes here and there, and putting in many
exclamation points, which looked like little balloons; then she
tied it up with a smart red ribbon, and sat a minute looking
at it with a sober, wistful expression, which plainly showed
‘ how earnest her work had been. Jo’s desk up here was an
old tin kitchen, which hung against the wall. In it she kept
her papers and a few books, safely shut away from Scrabble,
who, being likewise of a literary turn, was fond of making a
circulating library of such books as were left in his way, by
eating the leaves. From this tin receptacle Jo produced
134 Little Women
another manuscript; and, putting both in her pocket, crept
quietly downstairs, leaving her friends to nibble her pens and
taste her ink.
She put on her hat and jacket as noiselessly as possible,
and, going to the back entry window, got out upon the roof of
a low porch, swung herself down to the grassy bank, and took
a roundabout way to the road. Once there, she composed
herself, hailed a passing omnibus, and rolled away to town,
looking very merry and mysterious.
If any one had been watching her, he would have thought
her movements decidedly peculiar; for, on alighting, she went
off at a great pace till she reached a certain number ina cer-
tain busy street ; having found the place with some difficulty,
she went into the doorway, looked up the dirty stairs, and,
after standing stock still a minute, suddenly dived into the
street, and walked away as rapidly as she came. This man-
ceuvre she repeated several times, to the great amusement
of a black-eyed young gentleman lounging in the window of
a building opposite. On returning for the third time, Jo gave
herself a shake, pulled her hat over her eyes, and walked up
the stairs, looking as if she were going to have all her teeth out.
There was a dentist’s sign, among others, which adorned
the entrance, and, after staring a moment at a pair of artificial
jaws which slowly opened and shut to draw attention to a fine
set of teeth, the young gentleman put on his coat, took his
hat, and went down to post himself in the opposite doorway,
saying, with a smile and a shiver,—
“It’s like her to come alone, but if she has a bad time
she'll need some one to help her home.”
In ten minutes Jo came running downstairs with a very
red face, and the general appearance of a person who had
just passed through a trying ordeal of some sort. When she
saw the young gentleman she looked anything but pleased,
and passed him with a nod; but he followed, asking with an
air of sympathy,—
“Did you have a bad time?”
“Not very.”
“You got through quickly.”
Yes, thank goodness!”
“Why did you go alone?”
‘*Didn’t want any one to know.”
“You're the oddest fellow I ever saw. How many did you
have out?”
 Secrets 125
Jo looked at her friend as if she did not understand him ;
then began to laugh, as if mightily amused at something.
“There are two which I want to have come out, but I must
wait a week.”
“What are you laughing at? You are up to some mischief,
Jo,” said Laurie, looking mystified.
“So are you. What were you doing, sir, up in that billiard
saloon?”
“ Begging your pardon, ma’am, it wasn’t a billiard saloon,
but a gymnasium, and I was taking a lesson in fencing.”
“T’m glad of that.” »
cc Why ? ”

You can teach me, and then when we play Hamlet, you
-can be Laertes, and we'll make a fine thing of the fencing
scene.”
Laurie burst out with a hearty boy’s laugh, which made
several passers-by smile in spite of themselves.
** [ll teach you whether we play Hamlet or not; it’s grand
fun, and will straighten you up capitally. But I don't believe
that was your only reason for saying, ‘I’m glad,’ in that
decided way ; was it, now?”
“No, I was glad that you were not in the saloon, because I
hope you never go to such places. Do you?”
“ Not often.”
**T wish you wouldn’t.”
“Tt’s no harm, Jo. I have billiards at home, but it’s no
fun unless you have good players; so, as I’m fond of it, I
come sometimes and have a game with Ned Moffat or some
of the other fellows.”
‘Oh dear, I’m so sorry, for you'll get to liking it better and
better, and will waste time and money, and grow like those
dreadful boys. I did hope you'd stay respectable, and be a
‘satisfaction to your friends,” said Jo, shaking her head.
“Can’t a fellow take a little innocent amusement now and
then without losing his respectability ?” asked Laurie, looking
nettled.
“That depends upon how and where he takes it. I don’t
like Ned and his set, and wish you'd keep out of it. Mother
won’t let us have him at our house, though he wants to come ;
and if you grow like him she won’t be willing to have us frolic
together as we do now.”
“ Won’t she?” asked Laurie anxiously.
“No, she can’t bear fashionable young men, and she’d shut
136 Little Women
us all up in bandboxes rather than have us associate with
them.”
“Well, she needn’t get out her bandboxes yet; I’m not a
fashionable party, and don’t mean to be; but I do like harm-
less larks now and then, don’t you?”
“Ves, nobody minds them, so lark away, but don’t get wild,
will you? or there will be an end of all our good times.”
“T’ll be a double-distilled saint.”
“TI can’t bear saints: just be a simple, honest, respectable
boy, and we'll never desert you. I don’t know what | should
do if you acted like Mr. King’s son; he had plenty of money,
but didn’t know how to spend it, and got tipsy and gambled,
and ran away, and forged his father’s name, I believe, and was
altogether horrid.”
“ You think I’m likely to do the same? Much obliged.”
“No, I don’t—oh, dear, no!—but I hear people talking
about money being such a temptation, and I sometimes wish
you were poor; I shouldn’t worry then.”
“Do you worry about me, Jo?”
“A little, when you look moody or discontented, as you
sometimes do ; for you’ve got such a strong will, if you once
get started wrong, I’m afraid it would be hard to stop you.”
Laurie walked in silence a few minutes, and Jo watched
him, wishing she had held her tongue, for his eyes looked
angry, though,his lips still smiled as if at her warnings,
‘“Are you going to deliver lectures all the way home ?” he
asked presently.
“Of course not; why?”
“ Because if you are, I’ll take a ’bus; if youare not, I’d like
to walk with you, and tell you something very interesting.”
“*T won’t preach any more, and I’d like to hear the news
immensely.”
“Very well, then ; come on. It’s a secret, and ifI tell you,
you must tell me yours.”
“JT haven’t got any,” began Jo, but stopped suddenly,
remembering that she had.
‘You know you have—you can’t hide anything ; soup and
"fess, or I won’t tell,” cried Laurie.
“Ts your secret a nice one?”
“Oh, isn’t it! all about people you know, and such fun!
You ought to hear it, and I’ve been aching to tell it this long
time. Come, you begin.”
** You'll not say anything about it at home, will you?”
 Secrets ~ Hey
** Not a word.”
** And you won’t tease me in private?”
“TI never tease.”
“Yes, you do; you get everything you want out of people.
I don’t know how you do it, but you are a born wheedler.”
“ Thank you ; fire away.”
“Well, I’ve left two stories with a newspaper man, and he’s
to give his answer next week,” whispered Jo, in her confi-
dant’s ear.
“Hurrah for Miss March, the celebrated American autho-
ress!” cried Laurie, throwing up his hat and catching it
again, to the great delight of two ducks, four cats, five hens,
and half-a-dozen Irish children ; for they were out of the city
now.
‘Hush! It won’t come to anything, I dare say; but I
couldn’t rest till I had tried, and I said nothing about it,
because I didn’t want any one else to be disappointed.”
“It won’t fail. Why, Jo, your stories are works of Shake-
speare, compared to half the rubbish that is published every
day. Won’t it be fun to see them in print; and shan’t we
feel proud of our authoress ?”
Jo’s eyes sparkled, for it is always pleasant to be believed
in ; and a friend’s praise is always sweeter than a dozen news-
paper puffs.
‘“‘Where’s your secret? Play fair, Teddy, or I'll never
believe you again,” she said, trying to extinguish the brilliant
hopes that blazed up at a word of encouragement.
‘“‘T may get into a scrape for telling; but I didn’t promise
not to, so I will, for I never feel easy in my mind till l’ve told
you any plummy bit of news I get. I know where Meg’s
glove is.”
“Is that all?” said Jo, looking disappointed, as Laurie
‘nodded and twinkled, with a face full of mysterious intelli-
gence.
“Tt’s quite enough for the present, as you'll agree when I
tell you where it 1s.”
“Tell, then.”
Laurie bent, and whispered three words in Jo’s ear, which
produced a comical change. She stood and stared at him
for a minute, looking both surprised and displeased, then
- walked on, saying sharply, “ How do you know?”
*¢ Saw it.”
“ Where?”
138 © Little Women
“ Pocket.”
“ All this time ?”
“Yes; isn’t that romantic?”
“No, it’s horrid.”
“Don’t you like it ?”
“Of course I don’t. It’s ridiculous; it won’t be allowed.
My patience! what would Meg say ?”
“You are not to tell any one; mind that.”
“T didn’t promise.”
“ That was understood, and I trusted you.”
“Well, I won’t for the present, any way; but I’m disgusted,
and wish ‘you hadn’t told me.”
“‘T thought you’d be pleased.”
** At the idea of anybody coming to take Meg away? No,
thank you.”
“ You'll feel better about it when somebody comes to take
you away.”
“T’d like to see any one try it,” cried Jo fiercely.
**So should I!” and Laurie chuckled at the idea.
“JT don’t think secrets agree with me; I feel rumpled up
in my mind since you told me that,” said Jo, rather ungrate-
fully.
‘Race down this hill with me, and you'll be all right,”
suggested Laurie.
No one was in sight; the smooth road sloped invitingly
before her; and ‘finding the temptation irresistible, Jo darted
away, soon leaving hat and comb behind her, and scattering
hair-pins as she ran. Laurie reached the goal first, and was
quite satisfied with the success of his treatment; for his
Atalanta came panting up, with flying hair, bright eyes, ruddy
cheeks, and no signs of dissatisfaction in her face.
‘‘T wish I was a horse; then I could run for miles in this
splendid air, and not lose my breath. It was capital; but see
what a guy it’s made me. Go, pick up my things, like a
cherub as you are,” said Jo, dropping down under a maple-
tree, which was carpeting the bank with crimson leaves.
Laurie leisurely departed to recover the lost property, and
Jo bundled up her braids, hoping no one would pass by till
she was tidy again. But some one did pass, and who should
it be but Meg, looking particularly ladylike in her state and
festival suit, for she had been making calls.
“What in the world are you doing here?” she asked,
regarding her dishevelled sister with well-bred surprise.
 Secrets £86
“Getting leaves,” meekly answered To i
handful she had just swept up. soe ane cia.
‘iAnd hair-pins,” added Laurie, throwing half-a-dozen into
Jo’s lap. “They grow on this road, Meg; so do combs
and
brown straw hats.”
“You have been running, Jo; how could you? When
will you stop such romping ways?’ said Meg reprovingly, as
she settled her cuffs, and smoothed her hair, with which the
wind had taken liberties.
“Never till I’m stiff and old, and have to use a crutch.
Don’t try to make me grow up before my time, Meg: it’s
hard enough to have you change all of a sudden ; let me be
a little girl as long as I can.”
_ As she spoke, Jo bent over the leaves to hide the trembling
of her lips; for lately she had felt that Margaret was fast
getting to be a woman, and Laurie’s secret made her dread
the separation which must surely come some time, and now
seemed very near. He saw the trouble in her face, and drew
Meg’s attention from it by asking quickly, ‘‘ Where have you
been calling, all so fine?’
“At the Gardiners’; and Sallie has been telling me all
about Belle Moffat’s wedding. It was very splendid, and
they have gone to spend the winter in Paris. Just think how
delightful that must be!”
“Do you envy her, Meg?” said Laurie.
“T’m afraid I do.”
“T’m glad of it!” muttered Jo, tying on her hat with a jerk.
“Why?” asked Meg, looking surprised.
“Because if you care much about riches, you will never
go and marry a poor man,” said Jo, frowning at Laurie, who,
was mutely warning her to mind what she said.
“T shall never ‘go and marry’ any one,” observed Meg,
walking on with great dignity, while the others followed,
laughing, whispering, skipping stones, and “behaving like
children,” as Meg said to herself, though she might have been
tempted to join them if she had not had her best dress on.
For a week or two, Jo behaved so queerly that her sisters
‘were quite bewildered. She rushed to the door when the
postman rang; was rude to Mr. Brooke whenever they met;
would sit looking at Meg with a woebegone face, occasion-
ally jumping up to shake, and then to kiss her, in a very
mysterious manner; Laurie and she were always making signs
to one another, and talking about ‘Spread Eagles,” till the
140 Little Women
girls declared they had both lost their wits. On the second
Saturday after Jo got out of the window, Meg, as she sat
sewing at her window, was scandalised by the sight of Laurie
chasing Jo all over the garden, and finally capturing her in
Amy’s bower. What went on there, Meg could not see; but
shrieks of laughter were heard, followed by the murmur of
voices and a great flapping of newspapers.
‘‘What shall we do with that girl? She never w// behave
like a young lady,” sighed Meg, as she watched the race with
a disapproving face.
“‘T hope she won’t; she is so funny and dear as she is,”
said Beth, who had never betrayed that she was a little hurt
at Jo’s having secrets with any one but her.
“It’s very trying, but we never can make her commy la fo,”
added Amy, who sat making some new frills for herself, with
her curls tied up in a very becoming way—two agreeable
things, which made her feel unusually elegant and _lady-
like.
In a few minutes Jo bounced in, laid herself on the sofa,
and affected to read.
‘“‘Have you anything interesting there?” asked Meg, with
condescension.
“Nothing but a story; won’t amount to much, I guess,”
returned Jo, carefully keeping the name of the paper out of
sight. .
‘“‘You’d better read it aloud ; that will amuse us and keep
you out of mischief,” said Amy, in her most grown-up tone.
““What’s the name?” asked Beth, wondering why Jo kept
her face behind the sheet,
“The Rival Painters.”
“That sounds well; read it,” said Meg.
With a loud “‘ Hem!” and a long breath, Jo began to read
very fast. The girls listened with interest, for the tale was
romantic, and somewhat pathetic, as most of the characters
died in the end,
“T like that about the splendid picture,” was Amy’s ap-
proving remark, as Jo paused.
“I prefer the lovering part. Viola and Angelo are two of °
our favourite names; isn’t that queer?” said Meg, wiping her
eyes, for the “lovering part” was tragical.
“Who wrote it?” asked Beth, who had caught a glimpse of
Jo’s face.
The reader suddenly sat up, cast away the paper, displaying
 Secrets oda
a flushed countenance, and, with a funny mixture of solemnity
and excitement, replied in a loud voice, ‘‘ Your sister.”
“You!” cried Meg, dropping her work.
“It's very good,” said Amy critically.
““T knew it! I knew it! Oh, my Jo, I am so proud!” and
Beth ran to hug her sister, and exult over this splendid success.
Dear me, how delighted they all were, to be sure! how Meg
wouldn’t believe it till she saw the words, “Miss Josephine
March,” actually printed in the paper; how graciously Amy
criticised the artistic parts of the story, and offered hints for a
sequel, which unfortunately couldn’t be carried out, as the hero
and heroine were dead; how Beth got» excited, and skipped
and sung with joy; how Hannah came in to exclaim, “‘ Sakes
alive, well I never !” in great astonishment at ‘‘that Jo’s doin’s ;”
_ how proud Mrs. March was when she knew it; how Jo laughed,
with tears in her eyes, as she declared she might as well be a
peacock and done with it; and how the “Spread Eagle” might
be said to flap his wings triumphantly over the House of March,
as the paper passed from hand to hand.
“Tell us all about it.” “When did it come?” “How
much did you get for it?” ‘What weé// father say?” ‘ Won’t
Laurie laugh?” cried the family, all in one breath, as they
clustered about Jo; for these foolish, affectionate people
made a jubilee of every little household joy.
“‘Stop jabbering, girls, and I'll tell you everything,” said
Jo, wondering if Miss Burney felt any grander over her
“Evelina” than she did over her “ Rival Painters.” Having
told how she disposed of her tales, Jo added, ‘“‘And when I
went to get my answer, the man said he liked them both, but
didn’t pay beginners, only let them print in his paper, and
noticed the stories. It was good practice, he said; and when
the beginners improved, any one would pay. So I let him
. have the two stories, and to-day this was sent to me, and
Laurie caught me with it, and insisted on seeing it; so I let
him; and he said it was good, and I shall write more, and he’s
going to get the next paid for, and I am so happy, for in time
I may be able to support myself and help the girls.” 2
Jo’s breath gave out here; and, wrapping her head in the
paper, she bedewed her little story with a few natural tears;
for to be independent, and earn the praise of those she loved
were the dearest wishes of her heart, and this seemed to be the
first step toward that happy end.
142 Little Women

CHAPTER XV
A TELEGRAM
‘‘NovEMBER is the most disagreeable month in the whole
year,” said Margaret, standing at the window one dull after-
noon, looking out at the frost-bitten garden.
‘“‘ That’s the reason I was born in it,” observed Jo pensively,
quite unconscious of the blot on her nose.
‘Tf something very pleasant should happen now, we should
think it a delightful month,” said Beth, who took a hopeful
view of everything, even November.
“TI dare say; but nothing pleasant ever does happen in this
family,” said Meg, who was out of sorts. ‘We go grubbing
along day after day, without a bit of change, and very little
fun. We might as well be in a treadmill.”
‘My patience, how blue we are!” cried Jo. “I don’t much
wonder, poor dear, for you see other girls having splendid
times, while you grind, grind, year in and year out. Oh, don’t
I wish I could manage things for you as I do for my heroines!
You're pretty enough and good enough already, so I’d have
some rich relation leave you a fortune unexpectedly; then
you’d dash out as an heiress, scorn every one who has slighted
you, go abroad, and come home my Lady Something, in a
blaze of splendour and elegance.”
‘“‘People don’t have fortunes left them in that style now-
adays; men have to work, and women to marry for money.
It’s a dreadfully unjust world,” said Meg bitterly.
‘Jo and I are going to make fortunes for you all; just wait
ten years, and see if we don’t,” said Amy, who sat in a corner,
making mud pies, as Hannah called her little clay models of
birds, fruit, and faces.
*Can’t wait, and I’m afraid I haven’t much faith in ink
and dirt, though I’m grateful for your good intentions.”
Meg sighed, and turned to the frost-bitten garden again: Jo
groaned, and leaned both elbows on the table in a despondent
attitude, but Amy spatted away energetically; and Beth, who
sat at the other window, said, smiling, ‘‘ Two pleasant things
are going to happen right away: Marmee is coming down the
street, and Laurie is tramping through the garden as if he had
something nice to tell.”
 A Telegram ~* gs
In they both came, Mrs. March with her usual question,
“ Any letter from father, girls?” and Laurie to say in his
guasive way, “ Won't some of you come for a drive? I’ve
working away at mathematics till my head is in a muddle,
_ and I’m going to freshen my wits by a brisk turn. It’s a dull
day, but the air isn’t bad, and I’m going to take Brooke
home, so it will be gay inside, if it isn’t out. Come, Jo,
you and Beth will go, won’t you?”
* Of course we will.”
“Much obliged, but I’m busy;” and Meg whisked out her
_ work-basket, for she had agreed with her mother that it was
_ best, for her at least, not to drive often with the young gentle-
man.
“We three will be ready in a minute,” cried Amy, running
_ away to wash her hands.
“Can I do anything for you, Madam Mother?” asked
Laurie, leaning over Mrs. March’s chair, with the affectionate
look and tone he always gave her.
“No, thank you, except call at the office, if you'll be so
kind, dear. It’s our day for a letter, and the postman hasn’t
been. Father is as regular as the sun, but there’s some delay
on the way, perhaps.”
A sharp ring interrupted her, and a minute after Hannah
came in with a letter.
’ “It's one of them horrid telegraph things, mum,” she said,
handing it as if she was afraid it would explode and do some
damage.
At the word “ telegraph,” Mrs. March snatched it, read the
two lines it contained, and dropped back into her chair as
white as if the little paper had sent a bullet to her heart.
Laurie dashed downstairs for water, while Meg and Hannah
supported her, and Jo read aloud, in a frightened voice,—

“Mrs. Marcu:
“ Your husband is very ill. Soae y once,
*S, HALE,
“ Blank Hospital, Washington.”

How still the room was as they listened breathlessly, how

strangely the day darkened outside, and how suddenly the
whole world seemed to change, as the girls gathered about
their mother, fecling as if all the happiness and support of
their lives was about to be taken from them. Mrs. March
144 Little Women
was herself again directly; read the message over, and
stretched out her arms to her daughters, saying, in a tone
they never forgot, “I shall go at once, but it may be too
late. O children, children, help me to bear it!”
‘For several minutes there was nothing but the sound of
sobbing in the room, mingled with broken words of comfort,
tender assurances of help, and hopeful whispers that died
away in tears. Poor Hannah was the first to recover, and
with unconscious wisdom she set all the rest a good example;
for, with her, work was the panacea for most afflictions.
“The Lord keep the dear man! I won’t waste no time a
cryin’. but git your things ready right away, mum,” she said
heartily, as she wiped her face on herapron, gave her mistress
a warm shake of the hand with her own hard one, and went
away, to work like three women in one.
“‘She’s right; there’s no time for tears now. Be calm, girls,
and let me think.” ;
They tried to be calm, poor things, as their mother sat up,
looking pale, but steady, and put away her grief to think and
plan for them.
“Where's Laurie?” she asked presently, when she had
collected her thoughts, and decided on the first duties to be
done.
‘Here, ma’am. Oh, let me do something!” cried the boy,
hurrying from the next room, whither he had withdrawn, feel-
ing that their'first sorrow was too sacred for even his friendly
eyes to see.
“Send a telegram saying I will come at once. The next
train goes early in the morning. I'll take that.”
“Whatelse? ‘Ihe horses are ready; I can go anywhere,
do anything,” he said, looking ready to fly to the ends of the
earth.
‘Leave a note at Aunt March’s. Jo, give me that pen and
paper.”
Tearing off the blank side of one of her newly-copied pages,
Jo drew the table before her mother, well knowing that moncy
for the long, sad journey must be borrowed, and feeling as if
she could do anything to add alittle to the sum for her father.
‘““Now go, dear; but don’t kill yourself driving at a desper-
ate pace; there is no need of that.”
Mrs. March's warning was evidently thrown away; for five
minutes later Laurie tore by the window on his own ficet
horse, riding as if for his life,
 A Telegram ao) 245
* Jo, run to the rooms, and tell Mrs. King that I can’t
come. On the way get these things. I’ll put them down;
they’ll be needed, and I must go prepared for nursing.
Hospital stores are not always good. Beth, go and ask
Mr. Laurence for a couple of bottles of old wine: I’m not
too proud to beg for father; he shall have the best of every-
thing. Amy, tell Hannah to get down the black trunk; and,
Meg, come and help me find my things, for I’m half be-
wildered.”
_ Writing, thinking, and directing, all at once, might well
bewilder the poor lady, and Meg begged her to sit quietly
in her room fora little while, and let them work. Every one
scattered like leaves before a gust of wind; and the quiet,
happy household was broken up as suddenly as if the paper
-had been an evil spell.
Mr. Laurence came hurrying back with Beth, bringing every
comfort the kind old gentleman could think of for the invalid,
and friendliest promises of protection for the girls during the
mother’s absence, which comforted her very much. There
was nothing he didn’t offer, from his own dressing-gown to
himself as escort. But that last was impossible. Mrs. March
would not hear of the old gentleman’s undertaking the long
journey; yet an expression of relief was visible when he spoke
of it, for anxiety ill fits one for travelling. He saw the look,
knit his heavy eyebrows, rubbed his hands, and marched
abruptly away, saying he’d be back directly. No one had
time to think of him again till, as Meg ran through the entry,
with a pair of rubbers in one hand and a cup of tea in the
other, she came suddenly upon Mr. Brooke.
“I’m very sorry to hear of this, Miss March,” he said, in
the kind, quiet tone which sounded very pleasantly to her
perturbed spirit. ‘I came to offer myself as escort to your
mother. Mr. Laurence has commissions for me in Washing-
’ ton, and it will give me real satisfaction to be of service to her
there.”
Down dropped the rubbers, and the tea was very near
following, as Meg put out her hand, with a face so full of
gratitude, that Mr. Brooke would have felt repaid for a much
greater sacrifice than the trifling one of time and comfort
which he was about to make.
“How kind you all are! Mother will accept, I’m sure;
- and it will be such a relief to know that she has some one to
take care of her. Thank you very, very much!”
146 Little Women
Meg spoke earnestly, and forgot herself entirely till some-
thing in the brown eyes looking down at her made her re-
member the cooling tea, and lead the way into the parlour,
saying she would call her mother.
Everything was arranged by the time Laurie returned with a
note from Aunt March, enclosing the desired sum, and a few
lines repeating what she had often said before—that she had
always told them it was absurd for March to go into the army,
always predicted that no good would come of it, and she hoped
they would take her advice next time. Mrs. March put the
note in the fire, the money in her purse, and went on with her
preparations, with her lips folded tightly, in a way which Jo
would have understood if she had been there.
The short afternoon wore away; all the other errands were
done, and Meg and her mother busy at some necessary needle-
work, while Beth and Amy got tea, and Hannah finished her
ironing with what she called a ‘slap and a bang,” but still Jo
did not come. They began to get anxious; and Laurie went
off to find her, for no one ever knew what freak Jo might take
into her head. He missed her, however, and she came walk-
ing in with a very queer expression of countenance, for there
was a mixture of fun and fear, satisfaction and regret, in it,
which puzzled the family as much as did the roll of bills she
laid before her mother, saying, with a little choke in her voice,
‘“That’s my contribution towards making father comfortable,
and bringing him home!”
“My dear, where did you get it? Twenty-five dollars!
Jo! I hope you haven’t done anything rash?”
‘No, it’s mine honestly ; I didn’t beg, borrow, or steal it.
I earned it; and I don’t think you'll blame me, for I only sold
what was my own.”
As she spoke, Jo took off her bonnet, and a general outcry
arose, for all her abundant hair was cut short.
“Your hair! Your beautiful hair!” ‘“O Jo, how could
you? Your one beauty.” ‘ My dear girl, there was no need
of this.” ‘She doesn’t look like my Jo any more, but I love
her dearly for it!”
As every one exclaimed, and Beth hugged the cropped head
tenderly, Jo assumed an indifferent air, which did not deceive
any one a particle, and said, rumpling up the brown bush, and
trying to look as if she liked it, “It doesn’t affect the fate of
the nation, so don’t wail, Beth. It will be good for my vanity;
I was getting too proud of my wig. It will do my brains good
 A Telegram BEAT
to have that mop taken off; my head feels deliciously light and
cool, and the barber said I could soon havea curly crop, which
will be boyish, becoming, and easy to keep in order. I’m
satisfied; so please take the money, and let’s have supper.”
“Tell me all about it, Jo. Jam not quite satisfied, but I can’t
blame you, for I know how willingly you sacrificed your vanity,
as you call it, to your love. But, my dear, it was not neces-
sary, and I’m afraid you will regret it, one of these days,” said
Mrs. March.
**No, I won’t!” returned Jo stoutly, feeling much relieved
that her prank was not entirely condemned.
‘““What made you do it?” asked Amy, who would as soon
have thought of cutting off her head as her pretty hair.
** Well, I was wild to do something for father,” replied Jo,
~as they gathered about the table, for healthy young people
can eat even in the midst of trouble. ‘I hate to borrow as
much as mother does, and Iknew Aunt March would croak ;
she always does, if you ask for a ninepence. Meg gave all her
quarterly salary toward the rent, and I only got some clothes
with mine, so I felt wicked, and was bound to have some
money, if I sold the nose off my face to get it.”
“You needn’t feel wicked, my child: you had no winter
things, and got the simplest with your own hard earnings,”
said Mrs. March, with a look that warmed Jo’s heart.
“T hadn’t the least idea of selling my hair at first, but as I
went along I kept thinking what I could do, and feeling as if
Id like to dive into some of the rich stores and help myself.
In a barbers window I saw tails of hair with the prices
marked; and one black tail, not so thick as mine, was forty
dollars. It came over me all of a sudden that I had one
thing to make money out of, and without stopping to think, I
walked in, asked if they bought hair, and what they would
give for mine.”
* *T don’t see how you dared to do it,” said Beth, in a tone
of awe.
“‘ Oh, he was a little man who looked as if he merely lived
to oil his hair. He rather stared, at first, as if he wasn’t used
to having girls bounce into his shop and ask him to buy
their hair. He said he didn’t care about mine, it wasn’t the
fashionable colour, and he never paid much for it in the
first place; the work put into it made it dear, and so on. It
was getting late, and I was afraid, if it wasn’t done right away,
that I shouldn't have it done at all, and you know when I
148 Little Women
start to do a thing, I hate to give it up; so I begged him to
take it, and told him why I was in such a hurry. It was silly,
I dare say, but it changed his mind, for I got rather excited,
and told the story in my topsy-turvy way, and his wife heard,
and said so kindly,—
“<Take it, Thomas, and oblige the young lady; I’d do as
much for our Jimmy any day if I had a spire of hair worth
selling.’”
“ Who was Jimmy?” asked Amy, who liked to have things
explained as they went along.
“Her son, she said, who was in the army. How friendly
such things make strangers feel, don’t they? She talked
away all the time the man clipped, and diverted my mind
nicely.”
a Didn't you feel dreadfully when the first cut came?”
asked Meg, with a shiver.
“T took a last look at my hair while the man got his things,
and that was the end of it. I never snivel over trifles like
that; I will confess, though, I felt queer when I saw the dear
old hair laid out on the table, and felt only the short, rough
ends on my head. It almost seemed as if I’d an arm or a leg
off. ‘The woman saw me look at it, and picked out a long lock
for me to keep. I'll give it to you, Marmee, just to remember
past glories by; for a crop is so comfortable I don’t think I
shall ever have a mane again.”
Mrs. March folded the wavy, chestnut lock, and laid it away
with a short grey one in her desk. She only said “Thank
you, deary,” but something in her face made the girls change
the subject, and talk as cheerfully as they could about Mr.
Brooke’s kindness, the prospect of a fine day to-morrow, and
the happy times they would have when father came home to
be nursed.
No one wanted to go to bed, when, at ten o’clock, Mrs.
March put by the last finished job, and said, “ Come, girls.”
Beth went to the piano and played the father’s favourite
hymn; all began bravely, but broke down one by one, till Beth
was left alone, singing with all her heart, for to her music
was always a sweet consoler.
“Go to bed and don’t talk, for we must be up early, and
shall need all the sleep we can get. Good-night, my darlings,”
said Mrs. March, as the hymn ended, for no one cared to try
another.
They kissed her quietly, and went to bed as silently as if
 A Telegram 149
the dear invalid lay in the next room. Beth and Amy soon
fell asleep in spite of the great trouble, but Meg lay awake,
thinking the most serious thoughts she had ever known in her
short life. Jo lay motionless, and her sister fancied that she
was asleep, till a stifled sob made her exclaim, as she touched
a wet cheek,—
“Jo, dear, what is it? Are you crying about father?”
“No, not now.”
“What then P ”
_ ** My—nmy hair!” burst out poor Jo, trying vainly to smother
her emotion in the pillow.
“It did not sound at all comical to Meg, who kissed and
caressed the afflicted heroine in the tenderest manner.
“T’m not sorry,” protested Jo, with a choke. ‘“I’d do it
again to-morrow, if I could. It’s only the vain, selfish part of
me that goes and cries in this silly way. Don’t tell any one,
it’s all over now. I thought you were asleep, so I just made
a little private moan for my one beauty. How came you to
be awake ?”
‘I can’t sleep, I’m so anxious,” said Meg.
“Think about something pleasant, and you'll soon drop
off.”
“*T tried it, but felt wider awake than ever.”
“What did you think of?”
“Handsome faces—eyes particularly,” answered Meg,
smiling to herself in the dark.
“ What colour do you like best ?”
‘“‘ Brown—that is, sometimes ; blue are lovely.”
Jo laughed, and Meg sharply ordered her not to talk, then
amiably promised to make her hair curl, and fell asleep to
dream of living in her castle in the air.
The clocks were striking midnight, and the rooms were
.very still, as a figure glided quietly from bed to bed, smooth-
ing a coverlid here, settling a pillow there, and pausing to look
long and tenderly at each unconscious face, to kiss each with
lips that mutely blessed, and to pray the fervent prayers which
only mothers utter. As she lifted the curtain to look out into
the dreary night, the moon broke suddenly from behind the
clouds, and shone upon her like a bright, benignant face, which
seemed to whisper in the silence, “‘ Be comforted, dear soul!
. There is always light behind the clouds.”
150 Little Women

CHAPTER XVI
LETTERS

In the cold grey dawn the sisters lit their lamp, and read their
chapter with an earnestness never felt before; for now the
shadow of'a real trouble had come, the little books were full
of help and comfort ; and, as they dressed, they agreed to say
good-bye cheerfully and hopefully, and send their mother on
her anxious journey unsaddened by tears or complaints from
them. Everything seemed very strange when they went
down—so dim and still outside, so full of light and bustle
within. Breakfast at that early hour seemed odd, and even
Hannah’s familiar face looked unnatural as she flew about
her kitchen with her night-cap on. The big trunk stood
ready in the hall, mother’s cloak and bonnet lay on the sofa,
and mother herself sat trying to eat, but looking so pale and
worn with sleeplessness and anxiety that the girls found it
very hard to keep their resolution. Meg’s eyes kept filling
in spite of herself; Jo was obliged to hide her face in the
kitchen roller more than once, and the little girls wore a
grave, troubled expression, as if sorrow was a new experience
so them.
Nobody talked much, but as the time drew very near, and
they sat waiting for the carriage, Mrs. March said to the
girls, who were all busied about her, one folding her shawl, ~
another smoothing out the strings of her bonnet, a third
putting on her overshoes, and a fourth fastening up her
travelling-bag,—
“Children, I leave you to Hannah’s care and Mr. Laurence’s
protection. Hannah is faithfulness itself, and our good neigh-
bour will guard you as if you were his own. I have no fears
for you, yet Iam anxious that you should take this trouble
rightly. Don’t grieve and fret when I am gone or think that
you can comfort yourselves by being idle and trying to forget.
Go on with your work as usual, for work is a blessed solace.
Hope and keep busy; and whatever happens, remember that
you never can be fatherless.”
“Ves, mother.”
“Meg, dear, be prudent, watch over your sisters, consult
Hannah, and, in any perplexity, go to Mr. Laurence. Be
patient, Jo, don’t get despondent or do rash things; write to
 Letters ue TG
me often, and be my brave girl, ready to help and cheer us
all. Beth, comfort yourself with your music, and be faithful
to the little home duties ; and you, Amy, help all you can, be
obedient, and keep happy safe at home.”
“We will, mother! we will!”
The rattle of an approaching carriage made them all start
and listen. That was the hard minute, but the girls stood it
well: no one cried, no one ran away or uttered a lamenta-
tion, though their hearts were very heavy as they sent loving
messages to father, remembering, as they spoke, that it might
be too late to deliverthem. They kissed their mother quietly,
clung about her tenderly, and tried to wave their hands cheer-
fully when she drove away.
Laurie and his grandfather came over to see her off, and
Mr. Brooke looked so strong and sensible and kind that the
girls christened him ‘‘ Mr. Greatheart ” on the spot.
“Good-bye, my darlings! God bless and keep us all!”
whispered Mrs. March, as she kissed one dear little face after
the other, and hurried into the carriage.
As she rolled away, the sun came out, and, looking back,
she saw it shining on the group at the gate, like a good omen.
They saw it also, and smiled and waved their hands; and the
last thing she beheld, as she turned the corner, was the four
bright faces, and behind them, like a body-guard, old Mr.
Laurence, faithful Hannah, and devoted Laurie.
“ How kind every one is to us!” she said, turning to find
fresh proof of it in the respectful sympathy of the young man’s
face.
““T don’t: see how they can help it,” returned Mr. Brooke,
laughing so infectiously that Mrs. March could not help
smiling; and so the long journey began with the good omens
of sunshine, smiles, and cheerful words.
“T feel as if there had been an earthquake,” said Jo, as their
neighbours went home to breakfast, leaving them to rest and
refresh themselves.
“Tt seems as if half the house was gone,” added Meg
forlornly. :
Beth opened her lips to say something, but could only point
to the pile of nicely-mended hose which lay on mother’s table,
showing that even in her last hurried moments she had
thought and worked for them. It was a little thing, but it
went straight to their hearts; and, in spite of their brave
resolutions, they all broke down, and cried bitterly.
152 Little Women
Hannah wisely allowed them to relieve their feelings, and,
when the shower showed signs of clearing up, she came to
the rescue, armed with a coffee-pot.
“Now, my dear young ladies, remember what your
ma’ said, and don’t fret. Come and have a cup of coffee
all round, and then let’s fall to work, and be a credit to the
family.”
Coffee was a treat, and Hannah showed great tact in making
it that morning. No one could resist her persuasive nods, or
the fragrant invitation issuing from the nose of the coffee-pot.
They drew up to the table, exchanged their handkerchiefs for
napkins, and in ten minutes were all right again.
‘““* Hope and keep busy ;’ that’s the motto for us, so let’s
see who will remember it best. I shall go to Aunt March, as
usual. Oh, won’t she lecture though!” said Jo, as she sipped
with returning spirit.
“TI shall go to my Kings, though I’d much rather stay at
home and attend to things here,” said Meg, wishing she hadn’t
made her eyes so red.
“No need of that; Beth and I can keep house perfectly
well,” put in Amy, with an important air.
‘Hannah will tell us what to do; and we’ll have everything
nice when you come home,” added Beth, getting out her mop
and dish-tub without delay.
“I think anxiety is very interesting,” observed Amy, eating
sugar, pensively.
The girls couldn’t help laughing, and felt better for it,
though Meg shook her head at the young lady who could find
consolation in a sugar-bowl.
The sight of the turnovers made Jo sober again; and when
the two went out to their daily tasks, they looked sorrowfully
back at the window where they were accustomed to see their
mother’s face. It was gone; but Beth had remembered the
little household ceremony, and there she was, nodding away
at them like a rosy-faced mandarin.
“That’s so like my Beth!” said Jo, waving her hat, with a
grateful face. ‘Good-bye, Meggy; I hope the Kings won’t
train to-day. Don’t fret about father, dear,” she added, as
they parted.
“And I hope Aunt March won’t croak. Your hair 7s
becoming, and it looks very boyish and nice,” returned Meg,
trying not to smile at the curly head, which looked comically
small on her tall sister’s shoulders,
 Letters Spee
“That’s my only comfort ;” and, touching her hat, @ /a
ee away went Jo, feeling like a shorn sheep on a wintry
day.
News from their father comforted the girls very much ; for,
though dangerously ill, the presence of the best and tenderest
of nurses had already done him good. Mr. Brooke sent a
- bulletin every day, and, as the head of the family, Meg insisted
on reading the despatches, which grew more and more cheer-
ing as the week passed. At first, every one was eager to
write, and plump envelopes were carefully poked into the
letter-box, by one or other of the sisters, who felt rather
important with their Washington correspondence. As one
of these packets contained characteristic notes from the party,
_we will rob an imaginary mail, and read them :—

“My DEAREST MOTHER,—It is impossible to tell you how

happy your last letter made us, for the news was so good we
couldn’t help laughing and crying over it. How very kind
Mr. Brooke is, and how fortunate that Mr. Laurence’s business
detains him near you so long, since he is so useful to you and
father. The girls are all as good as gold. Jo helps me with
the sewing, and insists on doing all sorts of hard jobs. I
should be afraid she might overdo, if I didn’t know that her
‘moral fit’? wouldn’t last long. Beth is as regular about her
tasks as a clock, and never forgets what you told her. She
grieves about father, and looks sober except when she is at
her little piano. Amy minds me nicely, and I take great care
of her. She does her own hair, and I am teaching her to
make buttonholes and mend her stockings. She tries very
hard, and I know you will be pleased with her improvement
when youcome. Mr. Laurence watches over us like a motherly
old hen, as Jo says; and Laurie is very kind and neighbourly.
‘ He and Jo keep us merry, for we get pretty blue sometimes,
and feel like orphans, with you so far away. Hannah is a
perfect saint; she does not scold at all, and always calls me
Miss ‘ Margaret,’ which is quite proper, you know, and treats
me with respect. We are all well and busy ; but we long, day
and night, to have you back. Give my dearest love to father,
and believe me, ever your own MEc.”

This note, prettily written on scented paper, was a great

contrast to the next, which was scribbled on a big sheet of
154 Little Women
thin foreign paper, ornamented with blots and all manner
of flourishes and curly-tailed letters :—

“My pREcIouS MARMEE,—Three cheers for dear father!

Brooke was a trump to telegraph right off, and let us know
the minute he was better. I rushed up garret when the letter
came, and tried to thank God for being so good to us; but I
could only cry, and say, ‘I’m glad! I’m glad!’ Didn’t that
do as well as a regular prayer? for I felt a great many in my
heart. We have such funny times ; and now I can enjoy them,
for every one is so desperately good, it’s like living in a nest
of turtle-doves. You’d laugh to see Meg head the table and
try to be motherish. She gets prettier every day, and I’m in
love with her sometimes. The children are regular archangels,
and I—well, I’m Jo, and never shall be anything else. Oh, I
must tell you that I came near having a quarrel with Laurie.
I freed my mind about asilly little thing, and he was offended.
I was right, but didn’t speak as I ought, and he marched ~
home, saying he wouldn’t come again till I begged pardon. I
declared I wouldn’t, and got mad. It lasted all day; I felt bad,
and wanted you very much. Laurie and I are both so proud,
it’s hard to beg pardon; but I thought he’d come to it, for I
was in the right. He didn’t come; and just at night I re-
membered what you said when Amy fell into the river. I read
my little book, felt better, resolved not to let the sun set on
my anger, and ran over to tell Laurie I was sorry. I met
him at the gate, coming for thesame thing. We both laughed,
begged each other’s pardon, and felt all good and comfortable
again.
“T made a ‘ pome’ yesterday, when I was helping Hannah
wash ; and, as father likes my silly little things, I put it in to
amuse him. Give him the lovingest hug that ever was, and _
kiss yourself a dozen times for your
* Topsy-Turvy Jo.”

*©A SONG FROM THE SUDS.

®* Queen of my tub. I merrily sing,

While the white foam rises high 3
And sturdily wash and rinse and wring,
And fasten the clothes to dry;
Then out in the free fresh air they swing
Under the sunny sky. .
 Letters ve") TBS
** I wish we could wash from our hearts and souls
The stains of the week away,
And let water and air by their magic make
Ourselves as pure as they;
Then on the earth there would be indeed
A glorious washing-day !

** Along the path of a useful life,

Will heart’s-ease ever bloom;
The busy mind has no time to think
Of sorrow or care or gloom ;
And anxious thoughts may be swept away,
As we bravely wield a broom.

**T am glad a task to me is given,

To labour at day by day; ¥
For it brings me health and strength and hope,
And I cheerfully learn to say,—
* Head, you may think, Heart, you may feel,
But, Hand, you shall work alway !’"

“Dear MoTHER,—There is only room for me to send my

love, and some pressed pansies from the root I have been
keeping safe in the house for father to see. I read every
morning, try to be good all day, and sing myself to sleep with
father’s tune. I can’t sing ‘ Land of the Leal’ now; it makes
me cry. Every one is very kind, and we are as happy as we
can be without you. Amy wants the rest of the page, so I
must stop. I didn’t forget to cover the holders, and I wind
the clock and air the rooms every day.
“Kiss dear father on the cheek he calls mine. Oh, do
come soon to your loving LittLe Betu.”
“Ma CHERE MamMa,—We are all well I do my lessons
always and never corroberate the girlsk—Meg says I mean
contradick so I put in both words and you can take the pro-
perest. Meg is a great comfort to me and lets me have jelly
. every night at tea its so good for me Jo says because it keeps
me sweet tempered. Laurie is not as respeckful as he ought
to be nowI am almost in my teens, he calls me Chick and
hurts my feelings by talking French to me very fast when I
say Merci or Bon jour as Hattie King does. The sleeves of
my blue dress were all worn out, and Meg put in new ones
but the full front came wrong and they are more blue than
the dress. I felt bad but did not fret I bear my troubles well
_ but I do wish Hannah would put more starch in my aprons
and have buckwheats every day. Can’t she? Didn’t I make
that interrigation point nice? Meg says my punchtuation and
156 Little Women
spelling are disgraceful and I am mortyfied but dear me I
have so many things to do, I can’t stop. Adieu, I send heaps
of love to Papa.—Your affectionate daughter,
‘ ** Amy CurTIs Marcu.”
“Dear Mis Marcu,—I jes drop a line to say we git on
fust rate. The girls is clever and fly round right smart. Miss
Meg is going to make a proper good housekeeper ; she hes the
liking for it, and gits the hang of things surprisin quick. Jo
doos beat all for goin ahead, but she don’t stop to cal’k’late
fust, and you never know where she’s like to bring up. She
done out a tub of clothes on Monday, but she starched em afore
they was wrenched, and blued a pink calico dress till I thought
I should a died a laughin. Beth is the best of little creeters,
anda sight of help to me, bein so forehanded and depend-
able. She tries to learn everything, and really goes to market
beyond her years; likewise keeps accounts, with my help,
quite wonderful. We have got on very economical so fur;
I don’t let the girls hev coffee only once a week, accordin to
your wish, and keep em on plain wholesome vittles. Amy
does well about frettin, wearin her best clothes and eatin sweet
stuff. Mr. Laurie is as full of didoes as usual, and turns the
house upside down frequent; but he heartens up the girls,
and so I let em hev full swing. The old gentleman sends
heaps of things, and is rather wearin, but means wal, and it
aint my place to:say nothin. My bread is riz, so no more
at this time. I send my duty to Mr. March, and hope he’s
seen the last of his Pewmonia.—Yours Respectful,
“ HANNAH MULLET.”
‘“HEAD NurRsE OF WarRD No. 2,—All serene on the Rappa-
hannock, troops in fine condition, commissary department
well conducted, the Home Guard under Colonel Teddy always
on duty, Commander-in-chief General Laurence reviews the
army daily, Quartermaster Mullett keeps order in camp, and
Major Lion does picket duty at night. A salute of twenty-
four guns was fired on receipt of good news from Washington,
and a dress parade took place at headquarters. (Commander-
in-chief sends best wishes, in which he is heartily joined by
** COLONEL TEDDY.”
*DeaR MapamM,—The little girls are all well; Beth and
my boy report daily; Hannah is a model servant, and guards
 Little Faithful ee
pretty Meg like a dragon. Glad the fine weather holds; pray
make Brooke useful, and draw on me for funds if expenses
exceed your estimate. Don’t let your husband want anything.
Thank God he is mending.—Your sincere friend and servant,
“ JAMES LAURENCE.”

CHAPTER XVII
LITTLE FAITHFUL
For a week the amount of virtue in the old house would have
supplied the neighbourhood. It was really amazing, for every
_ one seemed in a heavenly frame of mind, and self-denial was
all the fashion. Relieved of their first anxiety about their
father, the girls insensibly relaxed their praiseworthy efforts
a little, and began to fall back into the old ways. They did
not forget their motto, but hoping and keeping busy seemed
to grow easier; and after such tremendous exertions, they felt
that Endeavour deserved a holiday, and gave it a good many.
Jo caught a bad cold through neglect to cover the shorn
head enough, and was ordered to stay at home till she was
better, for Aunt March didn’t like to hear people read with
colds in their heads. Jo liked this, and after an energetic
rummage from garret to cellar, subsided on the sofa to nurse
her cold with arsenicum and books. Amy found that house-
work and art did not go well together, and returned to her
mud pies. Meg went daily to her pupils, and sewed, or
thought she did, at home, but much time was spent in writing
long letters to her mother, or reading the Washington de-
spatches over and over. Beth kept on, with only slight
relapses into idleness or grieving. All the little duties were
faithfully done each day, and many of her sisters’ also, for
they were forgetful, and the house seemed like a clock whose
pendulum was gone a-visiting, When her heart got heavy
with longings for mother or fears for father, she went away
into a certain closet, hid her face in the folds of a certain dear
old gown, and made her little moan and prayed her little
prayer quietly by herself. Nobody knew what cheered her
up after a sober fit, but every one felt how sweet and helpful
Beth was, and fell into a way of going to her for comfort
or advice in their small affairs.
All were unconscious that this experience was a test of
158 Little Women
character; and, when the first excitement was over, felt that
they had. done well, and deserved praise. So they did; but
their mistake was in ceasing to do well, and they learned this
lessqn through much anxiety and regret.
“Meg, I wish you’d go and see the Hummels; you know
mother told us not to forget them,” said Beth, ten days after
Mrs. March’s departure.
“I’m too tired to go this afternoon,” replied Meg, rocking
comfortably as she sewed.
**Can’t you, Jo?” asked Beth.
“Too stormy for me with my cold.”
“T thought it was almost well.”
“Tt’s well enough for me to go out with Laurie, but not well
enough to go to the Hummels’,” said Jo, laughing, but looking
a little ashamed of her inconsistency.
‘Why don’t you go yourself?” .asked Meg.
“T fave been every day, but the baby is sick, and I don’t
know what to do for it. Mrs. Hummel goes away to work,
and Lottchen takes care of it; but it gets sicker and sicker,
and IJ think you or Hannah ought to go.”
Beth spoke earnestly, and Meg promised she would go
to-morrow.
“Ask Hannah for some nice little mess, and take it round,
Beth; the air will do you good,” said Jo, adding apologeti-
cally, “I’d go, but I want to finish my writing.”
“My head aches and I’m tired, so I thought maybe some
of you would go,” said Beth.
‘“*Amy will be in presently, and she will run down for us,”
suggested Meg.
“Well, I’ll rest a little and wait for her.”
So Beth lay down on the sofa, the others returned to their
work, and the Hummels were forgotten. An hour passed:
Amy did not come; Meg went to her room to try on a new
dress; Jo was absorbed in her story, and Hannah was sound
asleep before the kitchen fire, when Beth quietly put on her
hood, filled her basket with odds and ends for the poor
children, and went out into the chilly air, with a heavy head,
and a grieved look in her patient eyes. It was late when she
came back, and no one saw her creep upstairs and shut her-
self into her mother’s room. Half-an-hour after Jo went to
“ mother’s closet” for something, and there found Beth sitting
on the medicine chest, looking very grave, with red eyes, and
a camphor-bottle in her hand.
 Little Faithful / 159
“Christopher Columbus! What’s the matter?” cried Jo,
as Beth put out her hand as if to warn her off, and asked
quickly,—
‘You've had the scarlet fever, haven’t you?”
“Years ago, when Meg did. Why?”
“Then [ll tell you. O Jo, the baby’s dead!”
** What baby?”
“Mrs. Hummel’s ; it died in my lap before she got home,”
cried Beth, with a sob.
“My poor dear, how dreadful for you! I ought to have
gone,” said Jo, taking her sister in her arms as she sat down in
her mother’s big chair, with a remorseful face.
_ “Tt wasn’t dreadful, Jo, only so sad! I saw in a minute
that it was sicker, but Lottchen said her mother had gone for
a doctor, so I took baby and let Lotty rest. It seemed asleep,
but all of a sudden it gave a little cry, and trembled, and then
lay very still. I tried to warm its feet, and Lotty gave it some
milk, but it didn’t stir, and I knew it was dead.”
“Don’t cry, dear! What did you do?”
“JT just sat and held it softly till Mrs. Hummel came with
the doctor. He said it was dead, and looked at Heinrich and
Minna, who have got sore throats. ‘Scarlet fever, ma’am.
Ought to have called me before,’ he said crossly. Mrs.
Hummel told him she was poor, and had tried to cure baby
herself, but now it was too late, and she could only ask him
to help the others, and trust to charity for his pay. He
smiled then, and was kinder; but it was very sad, and I cried
with them till he turned round, all of a sudden, and told me
to go home and take belladonna right away, or I’d have the
fever.”
“No, you won’t!” cried Jo, hugging her close, with a
frightened look. ‘‘O Beth, if you should be sick I never
could forgive myself! What sha// we do?”
“Don’t be frightened, I guess I shan’t have it badly. I
looked in mother’s book, and saw that it begins with head-
ache, sore throat, and queer feelings like mine, so I did take
some belladonna, and I feel better,” said Beth, laying her cold
hands on her hot forehead, and trying to look well.
‘If mother was only at home!” exclaimed Jo, seizing the
book, and feeling that Washington was an immense way off.
She read a page, looked at Beth, felt her head, peeped
into her throat, and then said gravely, ‘‘ You've been over
the baby every day for more than a week, and among the
160 Little Women
others who are going to have it; so I’m afraid you are going
to have it, Beth. Ill call Hannah, she knows all about
sickness.”
“ Don’t let Amy come; she never had it, and I should hate
to give it to her. Can’t you and Meg have it over again?”
asked Beth, anxiously.
“T guess not; don’t care if I do; serve me right, selfish
pig, to let you go, and stay writing rubbish myself!” muttered
Jo, as she went to consult Hannah.
The good soul was wide awake in a minute, and took the
lead at once, assuring Jo that there was no need to worry;
every one had scarlet fever, and, if rightly treated, nobody
died—all of which Jo believed, and felt much relieved as they
went up to call Meg.
‘Now I'll tell you what we'll do,” said Hannah, when she
had examined and questioned Beth; “we will have Dr.
Bangs, just to take a look at you, dear, and see that we start
right; then we'll send Amy off to Aunt March’s, for a spell,
to keep her out of harm’s way, and one of you girls can stay
at home and amuse Beth for a day or two.”
“T shall stay, of course; I’m oldest,” began Meg, looking
anxious and self-reproachful.
‘* J shall, because it’s my fault she is sick ; Itold mother I’d
do the errands, and I haven't,” said Jo decidedly.
“Which will you have, Beth? there ain’t no need of but
one,” said Hannah.
‘Jo, please;” and Beth leaned her head against her
sister, with a contented look, which effectually settled that
oint.
“Tl go and tell Amy,” said Meg, feeling a little hurt, yet
rather relieved, on the whole, for she did not like nursing, and
Jo did.
Amy rebelled outright, and passionately declared that she
had rather have the fever than go to Aunt March. Meg
reasoned, pleaded, and commanded: all in vain. Amy pro-
tested that she would zo¢ go; and Meg left her in despair.
to ask Hannah what should be done. Before she came
back, Laurie walked into the parlour to find Amy sobbing
with her head in the sofa-cushions. She told her story,
expecting to be consoled; but Laurie only put his hands in
his pockets and walked about the room, whistling softly, as he
knit his brows in deep thought. Presently he sat down
beside her, and said, in his most wheedlesome tone, ‘ Now
 Little Faithful e GOa
be a sensible little woman, and do as they say. No, don’t
cry, but hear what a jolly plan I’ve got. You go to Aunt
March’s, and I’ll come and take you out every day, driving or
walking, and we’ll have capital times. Won’t that be better
than moping here?”
“‘T don’t wish to be sent off as if I was in the way,” began
Amy, in an injured voice.
“Bless your heart, child, it’s to keep you well. You don’t
want to be sick, do you?”
“No, I’m sure I don’t; but I dare say I shall be, for I’ve
been with Beth all the time.”
‘*That’s the very reason you ought tod go away at once, so
that you may escape it. Change of air and care will keep
you well, I dare say; or, if it does not entirely, you will have
the fever more lightly. I advise you to be off as soon as you
can, for scarlet fever is no joke, miss.”
“ But it’s dull at Aunt March’s, and she is so cross,” said
Amy, looking rather frightened.
“It won't be dull with me popping in every day to tell you
how Beth is, and take you out gallivanting. The old lady
likes me, and I’ll be as sweet as possible to her, so she won’t
peck at us, whatever we do.”
“ Will you take me out in the trotting waggon with Puck ?”
“On my honour as a gentleman.”
* And come every single day ?”
See if I don’t.”
* And bring me back the minute Beth is well?”
The identical minute.”
* And go to the theatre, truly?”
‘ A dozen theatres, if we may.”
“ Well—I guess—I will,” said Amy slowly.
“ Good girl! Call Meg, and tell her you'll give in,” said
Laurie, with an approving pat, which annoyed Amy more than
the “giving in.” ;
Meg and Jo came running down to behold the miracle
which had been wrought ; and Amy, feeling very precious and
self-sacrificing, promised to go, if the doctor said Beth was
going to be ill.
“ How is the little dear?” asked Laurie; for Beth was his
especial pet, and he felt more anxious about her than he liked
to show.
“ She is lying down on mother’s bed, and feels better. The
baby’s death troubled her, but I dare say she has only got
162 Little Women
cold. Hannah says she thinks so; but she 4vozs worried, and
that makes me fidgety,” answered Meg.
“ What a trying world it is!” said Jo, rumpling up her hair
in a fretful sort of way. ‘‘No sooner do we get out of one
trouble than down comes another. There doesn’t seem to be
anything to hold on to when mother’s gone; so I’m all at sea.”
“Well, don’t make a porcupine of yourself, it isn’t be-
coming. Settle your wig, Jo, and tell me if I shall telegraph
to your mother, or do anything?” asked Laurie, who never
had been reconciled to the loss of his friend’s one beauty.
“That is what troubles me,” said Meg. “I think we ought
to tell her if Beth is really ill, but Hannah says we mustn’t,
for mother can’t leave father, and it will only make them
anxious. Beth won’t be sick long, and Hannah knows just
what to do, and mother said we were to mind her, so I
suppose we must, but it doesn’t seem quite right to me.”
“Hum, well, I can’t say; suppose you ask grandfather
after the doctor has been.”
“We will. Jo, go and get Dr. Bangs at once,” commanded
Meg; ‘‘we can’t decide anything till he has been.”
‘Stay where you are, Jo; I’m errand-boy to this establish-
ment,” said Laurie, taking up his cap.
‘“‘T’m afraid you are busy,” began Meg.
“No, I’ve done my lessons for the day.”
* Do you study in vacation time?” asked Jo,
“TI follow the good example my neighbours set me,” was
Laurie’s answer, as he swung himself out of the room.
‘* I have great hopes of my boy,” observed Jo, watching him
fly over the fence with an approving smile.
‘“‘ He does very well—for a boy,” was Meg’s somewhat un-
gracious answer, for the subject did not interest her.
Dr. Bangs came, said Beth had symptoms of the fever, but
thought she would have it lightly, though he looked sober over
the Hummel story. Amy was ordered off at once, and pro-
vided with something to ward off danger; she departed in
great state, with Jo and Laurie as escort.
Aunt March received them with her usual hospitality.
“What do you want now?” she asked, looking sharply over
her spectacles, while the parrot, sitting on the back of her
chair, called out,—
“Go away. No boys allowed here.”
Laurie retired to the window, and Jo told her story.
“ No more than I expected, if you are allowed to go poking
 Dark Days a BG
about among poor folks. Amy can stay and make herself
useful if she isn’t sick, which I’ve no doubt she will be—looks
a it now. Don't cry, child, it worries me to hear people
sniff.
Amy was on the point of crying, but Laurie slyly pulled the
parrot’s tail, which caused Polly to utter an astonished croak,
and call out,—
“Bless my boots!” in such a funny way, that she laughed
instead.
“What do you hear from your mother?” asked the old
lady gruffly.
‘“‘ Father is much better,” replied Jo, trying to keep sober.
- “Qh, is he? Well, that won’t last long, I fancy; March
_ never had any stamina,” was the cheerful reply.
‘“‘ Ha, ha! never say die, take a pinch of snuff, good-bye,
good-bye!” squalled Polly, dancing on her perch, and clawing
at the old lady’s cap as Laurie tweaked him in the rear.
“ Hold your tongue, you disrespectful old bird! and, Jo,
you'd better go at once; it isn’t proper to be gadding about
so late with a rattle-pated boy like Ki
“Hold your tongue, you disrespectful old bird!” cried
Polly, tumbling off the chair with a bounce, and running to
peck the “rattle-pated”’ boy, who was shaking with laughter
at the last speech.
“JT don’t think I caz bear it, but I'll try,” thought Amy, as
she was left alone with Aunt March.
“ Get along, you fright!” screamed Polly; and at that rude
speech Amy could not restrain a sniff.

CHAPTER XVIII
DARK DAYS
Betu did have the fever, and was much sicker than any
one but Hannah and the doctor suspected. The girls knew
nothing about illness, and Mr. Laurence was not allowed to
see her, so Hannah had everything all her own way, and busy
Dr. Bangs did his best, but left a good deal to the excellent
nurse. Meg stayed at home, lest she should infect the Kings,
and kept house, feeling very anxious andalittle guilty when
she wrote letters in which no mention was made of Beth’s
164 Little Women
illness. She could not think it right to deceive her mother,
but she had been bidden to mind Hannah, and Hannah
wouldn’t hear of ‘‘ Mrs. March bein’ told, and worried just
for sech a trifle.” Jo devoted herself to Beth day and night;
nota hard task, for Beth was very patient, and bore her
pain uncomplainingly as long as she could control herself.
But there came a time when during the fever fits she began
to talk in a hoarse, broken voice, to play on the coverlet,
as if on her beloved little piano, and try to sing with a
throat so swollen that there was no music left; a time
when she did not know the familiar faces round her, but
addressed, them by wrong names, and called imploringly
for her mother. Then Jo grew frightened, Meg begged to
be allowed to write the truth, and even Hannah said she
‘would think of it, though there was no danger yer.” <A
letter from Washington added to their trouble, for Mr. March
had had a relapse, and could not think of coming home for a
long while.
How dark the days seemed now, how sad and lonely the
house, and how heavy were the hearts of the sisters as they
worked and waited, while the shadow of death hovered over the
once happy home! Then it was that Margaret, sitting alone
with tears dropping often on her work, felt how rich she
had been in things more precious than any luxuries money
could buy—in, love, protection, peace, and health, the real
blessings of life. * Then it was that Jo, living in the darkened
room, with that suffering little sister always before her eyes, and
that pathetic voice sounding in her ears, learned to see the
beauty and the sweetness of Beth’s nature, to feel how deep
and tender a place she filled in all hearts, and to acknowledge
the worth of Beth’s unselfish ambition, to live for others, and
make home happy by the exercise of those simple virtues
which all may possess, and which all should love and value
more than talent, Wealth, or beauty. And Amy, in her exile,
longed eagerly to be at home, that she might work for Beth,
feeling now that no service would be hard or irksome, and re-
membering, with regretful grief, how many neglected tasks those
willing hands had done for her. Laurie haunted the house
like a restless ghost, and Mr. Laurence locked the grand
piano, because he could not bear to be reminded of the young
neighbour who used to make the twilight pleasant for him.
Every one missed Beth. The milkman, baker, grocer, and
butcher inquired how she did; poor Mrs. Hummel came to
 Dark Days 165
beg pardon for her thoughtlessness, and to get a shroud for
Minna; the neighbours sent all sorts of comforts and good
wishes, and even those who knew her best were surprised to
find how many friends shy little Beth had made.
Meanwhile she lay on her bed with old Joanna at her side,
for even in her wanderings she did not forget her forlorn
protégé. She longed for her cats, but would not have them
brought, lest they should get sick; and, in her quiet hours,
she was full of anxiety about Jo. She sent loving messages to
Amy, bade them tell her mother that she would write soon ;
and often begged for pencil and paper to try to say a word,
that father might not think she had neglected him. But
soon even these intervals of consciousness ended, and she lay
hour after hour, tossing to and fro, with incoherent words on
her lips, or sank into a heavy sleep which brought her no
refreshment. Dr. Bangs came twice a day, Hannah sat up at
night, Meg kept a telegram in her desk all ready to send off at
any minute, and Jo never stirred from Beth’s side.
The first of December was a wintry day indeed to them,
for a bitter wind blew, snow fell fast, and the year seemed
getting ready for its death When Dr. Bangs came that
morning, he looked long at Beth, held the hot hand in both
his own a minute, and laid it gently down, saying, in a low
tone, to Hannah,—
‘Tf Mrs. March cam leave her husband, she’d better be sent
for.”
Hannah nodded without speaking, for her lips twitched
nervously ; Meg dropped down into a chair as the strength
seemed to go out of her limbs at the sound of those words;
and Jo, after standing with a pale face for a minute, ran to
the parlour, snatched up the telegram, and, throwing on her
things, rushed out into the storm. She was soon back, and,
while noiselessly taking off her cloak, Laurie came in with a
letter, saying that Mr. March was mending again. Jo read it
thankfully, but the heavy weight did not seem lifted off her
heart, and her face was so full of misery that Laurie asked
quickly,—
‘What is it? is Beth worse?”
“T’ve sent for mother,” said Jo, tugging at her rubber boots
with a tragical expression.
“ Good for you, Jo! Did you do it on your own responsi-
bility?” asked Laurie, as he seated her in the hall chair, and
took off the rebellious boots, seeing how her hands shook.
166 Little Women
“‘ No, the doctor told us to.”
© Jo, it’s not so bad as that?” cried Laurie, with a
startled face.
“Yes, it is; she doesn’t know us, she doesn’t even talk
about the flocks of green doves, as she calls the vine-leaves
on the wall; she doesn’t look like my Beth, and there’s
nobody to help us bear it ; mother and father both gone, and
God seems so far away I can’t find Him.”
As the tears streamed fast down poor Jo’s cheeks, she
stretched out her hand in a helpless sort of way, as if grop-
ing in the dark, and Laurie took it in his, whispering, as well
as he could, with a lump in his throat,—
‘“T’m here. Hold on to me, Jo, dear!”
She could not speak, but she did “ hold on,” and the warm
grasp of the friendly human hand comforted her sore heart,
and seemed to lead her nearer to the Divine arm which alone
could uphold her in her trouble. Laurie longed to say some-
thing tender and comfortable, but no fitting words came to
him. so he stood silent, gently stroking her bent head as her
mother used to do. It was the best thing he could have
done; far more soothing than the most eloquent words, for
Jo felt the unspoken sympathy, and, in the silence, learned
the sweet solace which affection administers to sorrow. Soon
she dried the tears which had relieved her, and looked up
with a grateful face.
“Thank you, Teddy, I’m better now; I don’t feel so for-
lorn, and will try to bear it if it comes.”
“Keep hoping for the best; that will help you, Jo.
Soon your mother will be here, and then everything will be
right.”
“I’m so glad father is better; now she won’t feel so bad
about leaving him. Oh, me! it does seem as if all the
troubles came in a heap, and I got the heaviest part on
my shoulders,” sighed Jo, spreading her wet handkerchief
over her knees to dry.
* Doesn’t Meg pull fair?” asked Laurie, looking indignant.
*“Oh yes; she tries to, but she can’t love Bethy as I do;
and she won’t miss her as I shall. Beth is my conscience,
and I can’t give her up. I can’t! I can’t!”
Down went Jo’s face into the wet handkerchief, and she
cried despairingly ; for she had kept up bravely till now, and
never shed a tear. Laurie drew his hand across his eyes, but
could not speak till he had subdued the choky feeling in his
 Dark Days : 167
throat and steadied his lips. It might be unmanly, but he
couldn’t help it, and I am glad of it. Presently, as Jo’s sobs
quieted, he said hopefully, “I don’t think she will die; she’s
so good, and we all love her so much, I don’t believe God
will take her away yet.”
“The good and dear people always do die,” groaned Jo,
but she stopped crying, for her friend’s words cheered her up,
in spite of her own doubts and fears.
“Poor girl, you're worn out. It isn’t like you to be forlorn.
Stop a bit ; I’ll hearten you up inajiffy.”
Laurie went off two stairs at a time, and Jo laid her wearied
head down on Beth’s little brown hdod, which no one had
‘thought of moving from the table where she left it. It must
have possessed some magic, for the submissive spirit of its
gentle owner seemed to enter into Jo; and, when Laurie came
running down with a glass of wine, she took it with a smile,
and said bravely, “ I drink—Health to my Beth! You are a
good doctor, Teddy, and such a comfortable friend ; how can
I ever pay you?” she added, as the wine refreshed her body,
as the kind words had done her troubled mind.
“Tl send in my bill, by-and-by ; and to-night I’ll give you
something that will warm the cockles of your heart better than
quarts of wine,” said Laurie, beaming at her with a face of
suppressed satisfaction at something.
“ What is it?” cried Jo, forgetting her woes for a minute,
in her wonder.
‘“‘T telegraphed to your mother yesterday, and Brooke
answered she’d come at once, and she’ll be here to-night, and
everything will be all right. Aren’t you glad I did it?”
Laurie spoke very fast, and turned red and excited all ina
“minute, for he had kept his plot a secret, for fear of dis-
appointing the girls or harming Beth. Jo grew quite white,
flew out of her chair, and the moment he stopped speaking
she electrified him by throwing her arms round his neck, and
crying out, with a joyful cry, “‘O Laurie! O mother! I am so
glad!” She did not weep again, but laughed hysterically,
and trembled and clung to her friend as if she was alittle
bewildered by the sudden news. Laurie, though decidedly
amazed, behaved with great presence of mind; he patted her
back soothingly, and, finding that she was recovering, followed
it up by a bashful kiss or two, which brought Jo round at
once. Holding on to the banisters, she put him gently away,
‘saying breathlessly, ‘Oh, don’t! I didn’t mean to; it was
168 Little Women
dreadful of me; but you were such a dear to go and do it in
at you. Tell me
spite of Hannah that I couldn’t help flying
all about it, and don’t give me wine again; it makes me
act so.”
«] don’t mind,” laughed Laurie, as he settled his tie.
“Why, you see I got fidgety, and so did grandpa. We
thought Hannah was overdoing the authority business, and
your mother ought to know. She’d never forgive us if Beth—
well, if anything happened, you know. So I got grandpa to
say it was high time we did something, and off I pelted to the
office yesterday, for the doctor looked sober, and Hannah
most took:my head off when I proposed a telegram. I never
can bear to be ‘ lorded over ;’ so that settled my mind, and I
did it. Your mother will come, I know, and the late train is
in at two, a.M. I shall go for her; and you’ve only got to
bottle up your rapture, and keep- Beth quiet, till that blessed
lady gets here.”
‘“ Laurie, you’re an angel! How shall I ever thank you?”
“Fly at me again; I rather like it,” said Laurie, looking
mischievous—a thing he had not done for a fortnight.
“No, thank you. I'll do it by proxy, when your grandpa
comes. Don’t tease, but go home and rest, for you'll be up
half the night. Bless you, Teddy, bless you!”
Jo had backed into a corner; and, as she finished her
speech, she vanished precipitately into the kitchen, where
she sat down upon a dresser, and told the assembled cats
that she was “happy, oh, so happy!” while Laurie departed,
feeling that he had made rather a neat thing of it.
‘““That’s the interferingest chap I ever see; but I forgive
him, and do hope Mrs. March is coming on right away,” said
Hannah, with an air of relief, when Jo told the good news.
Meg had a quiet rapture, and then brooded over the letter,
while Jo set the sick-room in order, and Hannah “knocked
up a couple of pies in case of company unexpected.” A breath
of fresh air seemed to blow through the house, and something
better than sunshine brightened the quiet rooms. Everything
appeared to feel the hopeful change; Beth’s bird began to
chirp again, and a half-blown rose was discovered on Amy’s
bush in the window; the fires seemed to burn with unusual
cheeriness ; and every time the girls met, their pale faces broke
into smiles as they hugged one another, whispering encourag-
ingly, “ Mother’s coming, dear! mother’s coming!” Every
one rejoiced but Beth; she lay in that heavy stupor, alike
 Dark Days i REG
unconscious of hope and joy, doubt and danger. It was a
piteous sight—the once rosy face so changed and vacant,
the once busy hands so weak and wasted, the once smiling
lips quite dumb, and the once pretty, well-kept hair scattered
rough and tangled on the pillow. All day she lay so, only
rousing now and then to mutter, “ Water!” with lips so
parched they could hardly shape the word; all day Jo and
Meg hovered over her, watching, waiting, hoping, and trusting
in God and mother; and all day the snow fell, the bitter wind
raged, and the hours dragged slowly by. But night came at
last; and every time the clock struck, the sisters, still sitting
on either side the bed, looked at each*other with brightening
eyes, for each hour brought help nearer. The doctor had
been in to say that some change, for better or worse, would
probably take place about midnight, at which time he would
return.
Hannah, quite worn out, lay down on the sofa at the bed’s
foot, and fell fast asleep; Mr. Laurence marched to and fro
in the parlour, feeling that he would rather face a rebel
battery than Mrs. March’s anxious countenance as she entered ;
Laurie lay on the rug, pretending to rest, but staring into
the fire with the thoughtful look which made his black eyes
beautifully soft and clear.
The girls never forgot that night, for no sleep came to them
as they kept their watch, with that dreadful sense of power-
lessness which comes to us in hours like those.
‘* If God spares Beth I never will complain again,” whispered
Meg earnestly.
“If God spares Beth I’ll try to love and serve Him all my
life,” answered Jo, with equal fervour.
' “T wish I had no heart, it aches so,” sighed Meg, after a pause.
“If life is often as hard as this, I don’t see how we ever
shall get through it,” added her sister despondently.
Here the clock struck twelve, and both forgot themselves
in watching Beth, for they fancied a change passed over her
wan face. The house was still as death, and nothing but the
wailing of the wind broke the deep hush. Weary Hannah
slept on, and no one but the sisters saw the pale shadow
which seemed to fall upon the little bed. An hour went by,
and nothing happened except Laurie’s quiet departure for the
station. Another: hour—still no one came ; and anxious fears
of delay in the storm, or accidents by the way, or, worst of all,
a great grief at Washington, haunted the poor girls.
170 Little Women
It was past two, when Jo, who stood at the window thinking
how dreary the world looked in its winding-sheet of snow,
heard a movement by the bed, and, turning quickly, saw Meg
kneeling before their mother’s easy-chair, with her face hidden.
A dreadful fear passed coldly over Jo, as she thought, “ Beth
is dead, and Meg is afraid to tell me.”
She was back at her post in an instant, and to her excited
eyes a great change seemed to have taken place. The fever
flush and the look of pain were gone, and the beloved little
face looked so pale and peaceful in its utter repose, that Jo
felt no desire to weep or to lament. Leaning low over this
dearest of .her sisters, she kissed the damp forehead with her
heart on her lips, and softly whispered, ‘‘ Good-bye, my Beth ;
good-bye!” ;
As if waked by the stir, Hannah started out of her sleep,
hurried to the bed, looked at Beth, felt her hands, listened
at her lips, and then, throwing her apron over her head, sat
down to rock to and fro, exclaiming, under her breath, “ The
fever’s turned ; she’s sleepin’ nat’ral; her skin’s damp, and she
breathes easy. Praise be given! Oh, my goodness me!”
Before the girls could believe the happy truth, the doctor
came to confirm it. He was a homely man, but they thought
his face quite heavenly when he smiled, and said, with a
fatherly look at them, “Yes, my dears, I think the little girl
will pull through this time. Keep the house quiet; let her
sleep, and when she wakes, give her ne
What they were to give, neither heard; for both crept into
the dark hall, and, sitting on the stairs, held each other close,
rejoicing with hearts too full for words. When they went
back to be kissed and cuddled by faithful Hannah, they
found Beth lying, as she used to do, with her cheek pillowed
on her hand, the dreadful pallor gone, and breathing quietly,
as if just fallen asleep.
“If mother would only come now!” said Jo, as the winter
night began to wane.
“See,” said Meg, coming up with a white, half-opened rose,
“‘T thought this would hardly be ready to lay in Beth’s hand
to-morrow if she — went away from us. But it has blossomed
in the night, and now I mean to put it in my vase here, so
that when the darling wakes, the first thing she sees will be
the little rose, and mother’s face.”
Never had the sun risen so beautifully, and never had the
world seemed so lovely, as it did to the heavy eyes of Meg
 Amy’s Will ! 171
and Jo, as they looked out in the early morning, when their
long, sad vigil was done.
“It looks like a fairy world,” said Meg, smiling to herself,
as she stood behind the curtain, watching the dazzling sight.
‘Hark !” cried Jo, starting to her feet.
Yes, there was a sound of bells at the door below, a cry
from Hannah, and then Laurie’s voice saying, in a joyful
whisper, “Girls, she’s come! she’s come!”

CHAPTER XIX

AMY’S WILL

WHILE these things were happening at home, Amy was having

hard times at Aunt March’s. She felt her exile deeply, and,
for the first time in her life, realised how much she was beloved
and petted at home. Aunt March never petted any one; she
did not approve of it; but she meant to be kind, for the well-
behaved little girl pleased her very much, and Aunt March
had a soft place in her old heart for her nephew’s children,
though she didn’t think proper to confess it. She really did
her best to make Amy happy, but, dear me, what mistakes she
made! Some old people keep young at heart in spite of
wrinkles and grey hairs, can sympathise with children’s little
cares and joys, make them feel at home, and can hide wise
lessons under pleasant plays, giving and receiving friendship
in the sweetest way. But Aunt March had not this gift, and
she worried Amy very much with her rules and orders, her
prim ways, and long, prosy talks. Finding the child more
docile and amiable than her sister, the old lady felt it her
duty to try and counteract, as far as possible, the bad effects
of home freedom and indulgence. So she took Amy in hand,
and taught her as she herself had been taught sixty years ago,
—a process which carried dismay to Amy’s soul, and made
her feel like a fly in the web ofa very strict spider.
She had to wash the cups every morning, and polish up the
old-fashioned spoons, the fat silver teapot, and the glasses, till
they shone. Then she must dust the room, and what atrying
job that was! Not a speck escaped Aunt March’s eye, and
all the furniture had claw legs, and much carving, which was
never dusted to suit. Then Polly must be fed, the lap-dog
 172 Little Women
combed, and a dozen trips upstairs and down, to get things,
or deliver orders, for the old lady was very lame, and seldom
left her big chair. After these tiresome labours, she must
do her lessons, which was a daily trial of every virtue she
possessed, Then she was allowed one hour for exercise or
play, and didn’t she enjoy it? Laurie came every day, and
wheedled Aunt March, till Amy was allowed to go out with
him, when they walked and rode, and had capital times.
After dinner, she had to read aloud, and sit still while the old
lady slept, which she usually did for an hour, as she dropped
off over the first page. Then patchwork or towels appeared,
and Amy sewed with outward meekness and inward rebellion
till dusk, when she was allowed to amuse herself as she liked
till teatime. The evenings were the worst of all, for Aunt
March fell to telling long stories about her youth, which were
so unutterably dull that Amy was always ready to go to bed,
intending to cry over her hard fate, but usually going to sleep
before she had squeezed out more than a tear or two.
If it had not been for Laurie, and old Esther, the maid, she
felt that she never could have got through that dreadful time.
The parrot alone was enough to drive her distracted, for he
soon felt that she did not admire him, and revenged himself
by being as mischievous as possible. He pulled her hair
whenever she came near him, upset his bread and milk to
plague her when she had newly cleaned his cage, made Mop
bark by pecking.at him while Madam dozed; called her
names before company, and behaved in all respects like a
reprehensible old bird. Then she could not endure the
dog—a fat, cross beast, who snarled and yelped at her
when she made his toilet, and who lay on his back, with all
his legs in the air and a most idiotic expression of countenance
when he wanted something to eat, which was about a dozen
times a day. The cook was bad-tempered, the old coachman
deaf, and Esther the only one who ever took any notice of the
young lady.
Esther was a Frenchwoman, who had lived with ‘“* Madame,”
as she called her mistress, for many years, and who rather
tyrannised over the old lady, who could not get along without
her. Her real name was Estelle, but Aunt March ordered her
to change it, and she obeyed, on condition that she was never
asked to change her religion. . She took a fancy to Made-
moiselle, and amused her very much, with odd stories of
her life in France, when Amy sat with her while she got up
 Amy's Will ~- T¥8
Madame’s laces. She also allowed her to roam about the
great house, and examine the curious and pretty things stored
away in the big wardrobes and the ancient chests; for Aunt
March hoarded like a magpie. Amy’s chief delight was an
Indian cabinet, full of queer drawers, little pigeon-holes, and
secret places, in which were kept all sorts of ornaments, some
precious, some merely curious, all more or less antique. To
examine and arrange these things gave Amy great satisfaction,
especially the jewel-cases, in which, on velvet cushions, reposed
the ornaments which had adorned a belle forty years ago.
There was the garnet set which Aunt March wore when she
came out, the pearls her father gave her on her wedding-day,
her lover’s diamonds, the jet mourning rings and pins, the
queer lockets, with portraits of dead friends, and weeping
willows made of hair inside; the baby bracelets her one little
daughter had worn; Uncle "March’s big watch, with the red
seal so many childish hands had played with, and in a box,
all by itself, lay Aunt March’s wedding-ring, too small now for
her fat finger, but put carefully away, like the most precious
jewel of them all.
“Which would Mademoiselle choose if she had her will? ”
asked Esther, who always sat near to watch over and lock up
the valuables.
“T like the diamonds best, but there is no necklace among
them, and I’m fond of necklaces, they are so becoming. I
should choose this if I might,” replied Amy, looking with
great admiration at a string of gold and ebony beads, from
which hung a heavy cross of the same.
“J, too,-covet that, but not as a necklace; ah, no! to me
it is a rosary, and as such I should use ‘it like a good
Catholic,” said Esther, eyeing the handsome thing wist-
full
; tsiit meant to use as you use the string of good-smelling
wooden beads hanging over your glass?” asked Amy.
“Truly, yes, to pray with. It would be pleasing to the
saints if one used so fine a rosary as this, instead of wearing
it as a vain bijou.”
“ You seem to take a great deal of comfort in your prayers,
Esther, and always come down looking quiet and satisfied. I
wish I could.”
“Tf Mademoiselle was a Catholic, she would find true
comfort; but, as that is not to be, it would be well if you
went apart each day, to meditate and pray, as did the good
 174 Little Women
mistress whom I served before Madame. She had a httle
chapel, and in it found solacement for much trouble.”
“Would it be right for me to do so too?” asked Amy,
who, in her loneliness, felt the need of help of some sort, and
found that she was apt to forget her little book, now that Beth
was not there to remind her of it.
“It would be excellent and charming; and I shall gladly
arrange the little dressing-room for you it you like it. Say
nothing to Madame, but when she sleeps go you and sit alone
a while to think good thoughts, and pray the dear God to
preserve your sister.”
Esther was truly pious, and quite sincere in her advice; for
she had an affectionate heart, and felt much for the sisters in
their anxiety. Amy liked the idea, and gave her leave to
arrange the light closet next her room, hoping it would do her
good. k
**T wish I knew where all these pretty things would go when
Aunt March dies,” she said, as she slowly replaced the shining
rosary, and shut the jewel-cases one by one.
“To you and your sisters. I know it; Madame confides
in me; I witnessed her will, and it is to be so,” whispered
Esther, smiling.
“* How nice! but I wish she’d let us have them now. Pro-
cras-ti-nation is not agreeable,” observed Amy, taking a last
look at the diamonds,
“It is too soon yet for the young ladies to wear these
things. The first one who is affianced will have the pearls
—Madame has said it; and I have a fancy that the little
turquoise ring will be given to you when you go, for Madame
approves your good behaviour and charming manners.”
“Do you think so? Oh, I'll be a lamb, if I can only
have that lovely ring! It’s ever so much prettier than Kitty
Bryant’s. I do like Aunt March, after all;” and Amy tried
on the blue ring with a delighted face, and a firm resolve to
earn it.
From that day she was a model of obedience, and the old
_lady complacently admired the success of her training. Esther
fitted up the closet with a little table, placed a footstool before
it, and over it a picture taken from one of the shut-up rooms.
She thought it was of no great value, but, being appropriate,
she borrowed it, well knowing that Madame would never know
it, nor care if she did. It was, however, a very valuable copy
of one of the famous pictures of the world, and Amy’s beauty-
 Amy’s Will i ES
loving eyes were never tired of looking up at the sweet face of
the divine mother, while tender thoughts of her own were busy
at her heart. On the table she laid her little Testament and
hymn-bvok, kept a vase always full of the best flowers Laurie
brought her, and came every day to “sit alone, thinking good
thoughts, and praying the dear God to preserve her sister.”
Esther had given her a rosary of black beads, with a silver
cross, but Amy hung it up and did not use it, feeling doubtful
as to its fitness for Protestant prayers.
‘ The little girl was very sincere in all this, for, being left
alone outside the safe home-nest, she felt the need of some
kind hand to hold by so sorely, that she instinctively turned
to the strong and tender Friend, whose fatherly love most
closely surrounds his little children. She missed her mother’s
help to understand and rule herself, but having been taught
where to look, she did her best to find the way, and walk in it
confidingly. But Amy was a young pilgrim, and just now her
burden seemed very heavy. She tried to forget herself, to
keep cheerful, and be satisfied with doing right, though no
one saw or praised her for it. In her first effort at being very,
very good, she decided to make her will, as Aunt March had
done ; so that if she dd fall ill and die, her possessions might
be justly and generously divided. It cost her a pang even to
think of giving up the little treasures which in her eyes were
as precious as the old lady’s jewels.
During one of her play-hours she wrote out the important
document as well as she could, with some help from Esther
as to certain legal terms, and, when the good-natured French-
woman had signed her name, Amy felt relieved, and laid it by
to show Laurie, whom she wanted as a second witness. As it
was a rainy day, she went upstairs to amuse herself in one of
the large chambers, and took Polly with her for company.
In this room there was a wardrobe full of old-fashioned
‘ costumes, with which Esther allowed her to play, and it
was her favourite amusement to array herself in the faded
brocades, and parade up and down before the long mirror,
making stately courtesies, and sweeping her train about, with
a rustle which delighted her ears. So busy was she on this
day that she did not hear Laurie’s ring, nor see his face
peeping in at her, as she gravely promenaded to and fro,
flirting her fan and tossing her head, on which she wore a
' great pink turban, contrasting oddly with her blue brocade
dress and yellow quilted petticoat. She was obliged to walk
176 Little Women
carefully, for she had on high-heeled shoes, and, as Laurie told
Jo afterward, it was a comical sight to see her mince along in
her gay suit, with Polly sidling and bridling just behind her,
imitating her as well as he could, and occasionally stopping to
laugh or exclaim, “ Ain’t we fine? Get along, you fright!
Hold your tongue! Kiss me, dear! Ha! ha!”
Having with difficulty restrained an explosion of merriment,
lest it should offend her majesty, Laurie tapped, and was
graciously received.
‘Sit down and rest while I put these things away; then I
want to consult you about a very serious matter,” said Amy,
when she had shown her splendour, and driven Polly into a
corner. ‘That bird is the trial of my life,” she continued,
removing the pink mountain from her head, while Laurie
seated himself astride of a chair. “ Yesterday, when aunt
was asleep, and I was trying to be as still as a mouse, Polly
began to squall and flap about in his cage; so I went to let
him out, and found a big spider there. I poked it out, and
it ran under the bookcase; Polly marched straight after it,
stooped down and peeped under the bookcase, saying, in his
funny way, with a cock of his eye, ‘Come out and take a
walk, my dear.’ I couddn’t help laughing, which made Poll
swear, and aunt woke up and scolded us both.”
“‘ Did the spider accept the old fellow’s invitation?” asked
Laurie, yawning.
“Yes; out it came, and away ran Polly, frightened to
death, and scrambled up on aunt’s chair, calling out, ‘ Catch
her! catch her! catch her!’ as I chased the spider.”
“That’s a lie! Oh lor!” cried the parrot, pecking at Laurie’s
toes.
“T’d wring your neck if you were mine, you old torment,”
cried Laurie, shaking his fist at the bird, who put his head on ~
one side, and gravely croaked, “ Allyluyer! bless your buttons,
dear !”
“ Now I’m ready,” ” said Amy, shutting the wardrobe, and
taking a paper out of her pocket. ‘I want you to read that,
please, and tell me if it is legal and right. I felt that I ought
to do it, for life is uncertain and I don’t want any ill-feeling
over my tomb.”
Laurie bit his lips, and turning a little from the pensive
speaker, read the following document, with praiseworthy
gravity, considering the spelling :—
 Amy’s Will een
wry LAST WILL AND TESTIMENT.
**T, Amy Curtis March, being in my sane mind, do give
and bequeethe all my earthly property—viz. to wit :—namely
‘* To my father, my best pictures, sketches, maps. and works of
art, including frames. Also my $100, to do what he likes with.
“To my mother, all my clothes, except the blue apron with
pockets,— also my likeness, and my medal, with much love.
‘To my dear sister Margaret, I give my turkquoise ring (if
I get it), also my green box with the doves on it, also my
piece of real lace for her neck, and my sketch of her asa
memorial of her ‘little girl.’ Pe
“To Jo I leave my breast-pin, the one mended with sealing
wax, also my bronze inkstand—she lost the cover—and my
most precious plaster rabbit, because I am sorry I burnt up
her story.
“To Beth (if she lives after me) I give my dolls and the
little bureau, my fan, my linen cellars and my new slippers if
she can wear them being thin when she gets well. And I
herewith also leave her my regret that I ever made fun of old
Joanna.
“To my friend and neighbour Theodore Laurence I
bequeethe my paper marshay portfolio, my clay model of a
horse though he did say it hadn’t any neck. Also in return
for his great kindness in the hour of affliction any one of my
artistic works he likes, Noter Dame is the best.
“To our venerable benefactor Mr. Laurence I leave my
purple box with a looking glass in the cover which will be
nice for his pens and remind him of the departed girl who
thanks him for his favours to her family, specially Beth.
’ “JT wish my favourite playmate Kitty Bryant to have the
blue silk apron and my gold-bead ring with a kiss.
“To Hannah I give the bandbox she wanted and all the
patch work I leave hoping she ‘will remember me, when it
you see.’
“And now having disposed of my most valuable property
I hope all will be satisfied and not blame the dead. I forgive
every one, and trust we may all meet when the trump shall
sound. Amen.
“To this will and testiment I set my hand and seal on this
2oth day of Nov. Anni Domino 1861.
“ Amy CurTIS Marcu.”
: ESTELLE VALNOR,
Witnesses : 7 bee
as
LAURENCE.”
173 Little Women
The last name was written in pencil, and Amy explained
that he was to rewrite it in ink, and seal it up for her properly.
“What put it into your head? Did any one tell you about
Bethis giving away her things?” asked Laurie soberly, as
Amy laid a bit of red tape, with sealing-wax, a taper, and a
standish before him.
She explained; and then asked anxiously, “ What about
Beth?”
“I’m sorry I spoke; but as I did, I'll tell you. She felt so
ill one day that she told Jo she wanted to give her piano to
Meg, her cats to you, and the poor old doll to Jo, who would
love it for her sake. She was sorry she had so little to give,
and left locks of hair to the rest of us, and her best love to
grandpa. She never thought of a will.”
Laurie was signing and sealing as he spoke, and did not
look up till a great tear dropped .on the paper. Amy’s face
was full of trouble; but she only said, ‘ Don’t people put sort
of postscrips to their wills, sometimes ?”
“ Yes ; ‘codicils,’ they call them.”
“Put one in mine then—that I wish a@/7 my curls cut off,
and given round to my friends. I forgot it; but I want it
done, though it will spoil my looks.”
Laurie added it, smiling at Amy’s last and greatest sacrifice.
Then he amused her for an hour, and was much interested in
all her trials. But when he came to go, Amy held him back
to whisper, with trembling lips, “Is there really any danger
about Beth ?”
“Tm afraid there is; but we must hope for the best, so
don’t cry, dear;” and Laurie put his arm about her with a
brotherly gesture which was very comforting.
When he had gone, she went to her little chapel, and,
sitting in the twilight, prayed for Beth, with streaming tears
and an aching heart, feeling that a million turquoise rings
would not console her for the loss of her gentle little sister,

CHAPTER XX
CONFIDENTIAL
I pvon’r think I have any words in which to tell the meeting
of the mothcr and daughters; such hours are beautiful to live,
but very hard to describe, so I will leave it to the imagination
 Confidential 179
of my readers, merely saying that the house was full of genuine
happiness, and that Meg’s tender hope was realised ; for when
Beth woke from that long, healing sleep, the first objects on
which her eyes fell were the little rose and mother’s face.
Too weak to wonder at anything, she only smiled, and
nestled close into the loving arms about her, feeling that
the hungry longing was satisfied at last. Then she slept
again, and the girls waited upon their mother, for she would
not unclasp the thin hand which clung to hers even in sleep.
Hannah had “dished up” an astonishing breakfast for the
traveller, finding it impossible to vent her excitement in any
other way; and Meg and Jo fed théir mother like dutiful
young storks, while they listened to her whispered account
of father’s state, Mr. Brooke’s promise to stay and nurse him,
the delays which the storm occasioned on the homeward
journey, and the unspeakable comfort Laurie’s hopeful face
had given her when she arrived, worn out with fatigue,
anxiety, and cold.
What a strange, yet pleasant day that was! so brilliant and
gay without, for all the world seemed abroad to welcome the
first snow; so quiet and reposeful within, for every one slept,
spent with watching, and a Sabbath stillness reigned through
the house, while nodding Hannah mounted guard at the door.
With a blissful sense of burdens lifted off, Meg and Jo closed
their weary eyes, and lay at rest, like storm-beaten boats, safe
at anchor in a quiet harbour. Mrs. March would not leave
Beth’s side, but rested in the big chair, waking often to look
at, touch, and brood over her child, like a miser over some
recovered treasure.
Laurie, meanwhile, posted off to comfort Amy, and told his
story so well that Aunt March actually “ sniffed” herself, and
never once said, “I told you so.” Amy came out so strong
on this occasion that I think the good thoughts in the little
chapel really began to bear fruit. She dried her tears quickly,
restrained her impatience to see her mother, and never even
thought of the turquoise ring, when the old lady heartily
agreed in Laurie’s opinion, that she behaved “like a capital
little woman.” Even Polly seemed impressed, for he called
her “good girl,” blessed her buttons, and begged her to
“come and take a walk, dear,” in his most affable tone.
She would very gladly have gone out to enjoy the bright
wintry weather; but, discovering that Laurie was droppiug
with sleep in spite of manful efforts to conceal the fact, she
180 Little Women
persuaded him to rest on the sofa, while she wrote a note to
her mother. She was a long time about it; and, when she
returned, he was stretched out, with both arms under his
head, sound asleep, while Aunt March had pulled down
the curtains, and sat doing nothing in an unusual fit of
benignity.
After a while, they began to think he was not going to wake
till night, and I’m not sure that he would, had he not been
effectually roused by Amy’s cry of joy at sight of her mother.
There probably were a good many happy little girls in and
about the city that day, but it is my private opinion that Amy
was the happiest of all, when she sat in her mother’s lap and
told her trials, receiving consolation and compensation in the
shape of approving smiles and fond caresses. They were
alone together in the chapel, to which her mother did not
object when its purpose was explained to her.
‘“‘ On the contrary, I like it very much, dear,” looking from
the dusty rosary to the well-worn little book, and the lovely
picture with its garland of evergreen. “It is an excellent plan
to have some place where we can go to be quiet, when things
vex or grieve us. There are a good many hard times in this
life of ours, but we can always bear them if we ask help in the
right way. I think my little girl is learning this ?”
‘Yes, mother; and when I go home I mean to have a
corner in the big closet to put my books, and the copy of that
picture which I’ve tried to make. The woman’s face is not
good—it’s too beautiful for me to draw—but the baby is
done better, and I love it very much. I like to think He was
a little child once, for then I don’t seem so far away, and that
helps me.”
As Amy pointed to the smiling Christ-child on his mother’s
knee, Mrs. March saw something on the lifted hand that made
her smile. She said nothing, but Amy understood the look,
and, after a minute’s pause, she added gravely,—
“T wanted to speak to you about this, but I forgot it.
Aunt gave me the ring to-day; she called me to her and
kissed me, and put it on my finger, and said I was a credit to
her, and she’d like to keep me always. She gave that funny
guard to keep the turquoise on, as it’s too big. Id like to
wear them, mother; can 1?”
“They are very pretty, but I think you’re rather too young
for such ornaments, Amy,” said Mrs. March, looking at the
plump little hand, with the band of sky-blue stones on the
 Confidential ISI
forefinger, and the quaint guard, formed of two tiny, golden
hands clasped together.
“Pll try not to be vain,” said Amy. “I don’t think I like
it only because it’s so pretty ; but I want to wear it as the girl
in the story wore her bracelet, to remind me of something.”
“Do you mean Aunt March ?” asked her mother, laughing.
““No, to remind me not to be selfish.” Amy looked so
earnest and sincere about it, that her mother stopped laugh-
ing, and listened respectfully to the little plan.
“Tve thought a great deal lately about my ‘bundle of
naughties,’ and being selfish is the largest one in it; so I’m
going to try hard to cure it, if I can. ~ Beth isn’t selfish, and
that’s the reason every one loves her and feels so bad at the
thoughts of losing her. People wouldn’t feel half so bad
about me if I was sick, and I don’t deserve to have them;
but Id like to be loved and missed by a great many friends,
so I’m going to try and be like Beth all I can. I’m apt to
forget my resolutions; but if I had something always about
me to remind me, I guess I should do better. May Itry this
way?”
“Yes ; but I have more faith in the corner of the big closet.
Wear your ring, dear, and do your best; I think you will
prosper, for the sincere wish to be good is half the battle.
Now I must go back to Beth. Keep up your heart, little
daughter, and we will soon have you home again.”
That evening, while Meg was writing to her father, to report
the traveller’s safe arrival, Jo slipped upstairs into Beth’s room,
and, finding her mother in her usual place, stood a minute
twisting her fingers in her hair, with a worried gesture and an
undecided look.
‘“‘ What is it, deary?” asked Mrs. March, holding out her
hand, with a face which invited confidence.
“‘T want to tell you something, mother.”
* About Meg?”
“How quickly you guessed! Yes, it’s about her, and
though it’s a little thing, it fidgets me.”
“Beth is asleep; speak low, and tell me all about it.
That Moffat hasn’t been here, I hope?” asked Mrs. March
rather sharply. :
“No, I should have shut the door in his face if he had,”
said Jo, settling herself on the floor at her mother’s feet.
“Last summer Meg left a pair of gloves over at the Laurences’,
and only one was returned. We forgot all about it, till Teddy
182 Little Women
told me that Mr. Brooke had it. He kept it in his waistcoat
pocket, and once it fell out, and Teddy joked him about it,
and Mr. Brooke owned that he liked Meg, but didn’t dare say
so, she was so young and he so poor. Now, isn’t it a dreadful
state of things?”
“Do you think Meg cares for him?” asked Mrs. March,
with an anxious look.
“Mercy me! I don’t know anything about love and such
nonsense!” cried Jo, with a funny mixture of interest and
contempt. ‘In novels, the girls show it by starting and
blushing, fainting away, growing thin, and acting like fools.
Now Meg does not do anything of the sort: she eats and
drinks and sleeps, like a sensible creature ; she looks straight
in my face when I talk about that man, and only blushes a
little bit when Teddy jokes about lovers. I forbid him to do
it, but he doesn’t mind me as he ought.”
‘Then you fancy that Meg is zo¢ interested in John?”
“Who?” cried Jo, staring.
“Mr. Brooke. I call him ‘John’ now; we fell into the
way of doing so at the hospital, and he likes it.”
“Oh, dear! I know you'll take his part: he’s been good
to father, and you won't send him away, but let Meg marry
him, if she wants to. Mean thing! to go petting papa and
helping you, just to wheedle you into liking him;” and Jo
pulled her hair again with a wrathful tweak.
‘* My dear, don’t get angry about it, and I will tell you how
it happened. John went with me at Mr. Laurence’s request,
and was so devoted to poor father that we couldn’t help getting
fond of him. He was perfectly open and honourable about
Meg, for he told us he loved her, but would earn a comfortable
home before he asked her to marry him. He only wanted our
leave to love her and work for her, and the right to make her
love him if he could. He isa truly excellent young man, and
we could not refuse to listen to him; but I will not consent
to Meg’s engaging herself so young.”
“Of course not; it would be idiotic! I knew there was
mischief brewing; I felt it; and nowit’s worse than I imagined.
I just wish I could marry Meg myself, and keep her safe in
the family.”
This odd arrangement made Mrs. March smile; but she
said gravely, “Jo, I confide in you, and don’t wish you to
say anything to Meg yet. When John comes back, and I see
them together, I can judge better of ‘her feelings toward him.”
 Confidential ee
«She'll see his in those handsome eyes that she talks about,
and then it will be all up with her. She’s got such a soft heart,
it will. melt like butter in the sun if any one looks sentimentally
at her. She read the short reports he sent more than she did
your letters, and pinched me when I spoke of it, and likes
brown eyes, and doesn’t think John an ugly name, and she’ll
go and fall in love, and there’s an end of peace and fun, and
cosy times together. I see it all! they'll go lovering around
_ the house, and we shall have to dodge; Meg will be absorbed,
and no good to me any more; Brooke will scratch up a fortune
somehow, carry her off, and make a holg in the family; and I
shall break my heart, and everything will be abominably un-
comfortable. Oh, dear me! why weren’t we all boys, then
’ there wouldn’t be any bother.”
Jo leaned her chin on her knees, in a disconsolate attitude,
and shook her fist at the reprehensible John. Mrs. March
sighed, and Jo looked up with an air of relief.
“You don’t like it, mother? I’m glad of it. Let’s send
him about his business, and not tell Meg a word of it, but all
be happy together as we always have been.”
“JT did wrong to sigh, Jo. It is natural and right you
should all go to homes of your own, in time; but I do want
to keep my girls as long as I can; and I am sorry that
this happened so soon, for Meg is only seventeen, and it will
be some years before John can make a home for her. Your
father and I have agreed that she shall not bind herself in any
way, nor be married, before twenty. If she and John love
one another, they can wait, and test the love by doing so.
She is conscientious, and I have no fear of her treating him
unkindly. My pretty, tender-hearted girl! I hope things will
go happily with her.”
“ Hadn’t you rather have her marry a rich man?” asked
Jo, as her mother’s voice faltered a little over the last words.
“ Money is a good and useful thing, Jo; and I hope my
girls will never feel the need of it too bitterly, nor be tempted
by too much. I should like to know that John was firmly
established in some good business, which gave him an income
large enough to keep free from debt and make Meg comfort-
able. I’m not ambitious for a splendid fortune, a fashionable
position, or a great name for my girls. If rank and money
Come with love and virtue, also, I should accept them grate-
fully, and enjoy your good fortune; but I know, by experience,
how much genuine happiness can be had ina plain little
184 Little Women
house, where the daily bread is earned, and some privations
give sweetness to the few pleasures. I am content to see
Meg begin humbly, for, if I am not mistaken, she will be rich
in the possession of a good man’s heart, and that is better
than a fortune.”
“TI understand, mother, and quite agree; but I’m dis-
appointed about Meg, for I’d planned to have her marry
Teddy by-and-by, and sit in the lap of luxury all her days.
Wouldn’t it be nice?” asked Jo, looking up, with a brighter
face.
“He is younger than she, you know,” began Mrs. March;
but Jo broke in,—
“Only a little; he’s old for his age, and tall; and can be
quite grown-up in his manners if he likes. Then he’s rich
and generous and good, and loves us all; and J say it’s a pity
my plan is spoilt.”
“Tm afraid Laurie is hardly: grown up enough for Meg,
and altogether too much of a weathercock, just now, for any
one to depend on. Don’t make plans. Jo; but let time and
their own hearts mate your friends. We can’t meddle safely
in such matters, and had better not get ‘ romantic rubbish,’ as
you call it, into our heads, lest it spoil our friendship.”
“Well, I won’t; but I hate to see things going all criss-cross
and getting snarled up, when a pull here and a snip there would
straighten it out. I wish wearing flat-irons on our heads
would keep us from growing up. But buds will be roses, and
kittens, cats,—more’s the pity!”
“*What’s that about flat-irons and cats?” asked Meg, as
she crept into the room, with the finished letter in her hand.
“Only one of my stupid speeches. I’m going to bed;
come, Peggy,” said Jo, unfolding herself, like an animated
puzzle.
“ Quite right, and beautifully written. Please add that I
send my love to John,” said Mrs. March, as she glanced over
the letter, and gave it back.
“Do you call him ‘John’?” asked Meg, smiling, with her
innocent eyes looking down into her mother’s.
“Yes ; he has been like a son to us, and we are very fond
of him,” replied Mrs. March, returning the look with a keen
one.
“Tm glad of that, he is so lonely. Good-night, mother,
dear. It is so inexpressibly coo els to have you here,”
was Meg’s quiet answer.
 Laurie Makes Mischief —-185
The kiss her mother gave her was a very tender one; and,
as she went away, Mrs. March said, with a mixture of satis-
faction and regret, “She does not love John yet, but will soon
learn to.”

CHAPTER XXI
LAURIE MAKES MISCHIEF, AND JO MAKES PEACE
Jo’s face was a study next day, for the secret rather weighed
upon her, and she found it hard not to look mysterious and
important. Meg observed it, but did not trouble herself to
make inquiries, for she had learned that the best way to
manage Jo was by the law of contraries, so she felt sure of
being told everything if she did not ask. She was rather
surprised, therefore, when the silence remained unbroken,
and Jo assumed a patronising air, which decidedly aggravated
Meg, who in her turn assumed an air of dignified reserve, and
devoted herself to her mother. This left Jo to her own
devices ; for Mrs. March had taken her place as nurse, and
bade her rest, exercise, and amuse herself after her long con-
finement. Amy being gone, Laurie was her only refuge; and,
much as she enjoyed his society, she rather dreaded him just
then, for he was an incorrigible tease, and she feared he would
coax her secret from her.
She was quite right; for the mischief-loving lad no sooner
suspected a mystery than he set himself to find it out, and
led Jo a trying life of it. He wheedled, bribed, ridiculed,
threatened, and scold«d; affected indifference, that he might
surprise the truth from her; declared he knew, then that he
didn’t care ; and, at last, by dint of perseverance, he satisfied
himself that it concerned Meg and Mr. Brooke. Feeling
indignant that he was not taken into his tutor’s confidence, he
set his wits to work to devise some proper retaliation for the
slight.
es meanwhile had apparently forgotten the matter, and
was absorbed in preparations for her father’s return; but all
of a sudden a change seemed to come over her, and, for a
day or two, she was quite unlike herself. She started when
spoken to, blushed when looked at, was very quiet, and sat
over her sewing, with a timid, troubled look on her face. To
186 Little Women
her mother’s inquiries she answered that she was quite well,
and Jo’s she silenced by begging to be let alone.
“She feels it in the air—love, I mean—and she’s going very
fast: She’s got most of the symptoms,—is twittery and cross,
doesn’t eat, lies awake, and mopes in corners. I caught her
singing that song he gave her, and once she said ‘ John,’ as
you do, and then turned as red as a poppy. Whatever shall
we do?” said Jo, looking ready for any measures, however
violent.
“Nothing but wait. Let her alone, be kind and patient,
and father’s coming will settle everything,” replied her
mother.
“ Here’s a note to you, Meg, all sealed up. How odd!
Teddy never seals mine,” said Jo, next day, as she distributed
the contents of the little post-office.
Mrs. March and Jo were deep -in their own affairs, when a
sound from Meg made them look up to see her staring at her
note, with a frightened face.
““My child, what is it?” cried her mother, running to
her, while Jo tried to take the paper which had done the
mischief.
“It’s all a mistake—he didn’t send it. O Jo, how could
you do it?” and Meg hid her face in her hands, crying as if
her heart was quite broken.
“Me! I’ve done nothing! What’s she talking about ?”
cried Jo, bewildered.
Meg’s mild eyes kindled with anger as she pulled a
crumpled note from her pocket, and threw it at Jo, saying
reproachfully,—
“You wrote it, and that bad boy helped you. How could
you be so rude, so mean, and cruel to us both ?”
Jo hardly heard her, for she and her mother were reading
the note, which was written in a peculiar hand.

“My DEAREST MARGARET,—I can no longer restrain my

passion, and must know my fate before I return. I dare not
tell your parents yet, but I think they would consent if they
knew that we adored one another. Mr. Laurence will help
me to some good place, and then, my sweet girl, you will
make me happy. I implore you to say nothing to your family
yet, but to send one word of hope through Laurie to
* Your devoted JoHn.”
 Laurie Makes Mischief —_187
“Oh, the little villain! that’s the way he meant to pay
me for keeping my word to mother. I’ll give him a hearty
scolding, and bring him over to beg pardon,” cried Jo, burn-
ing to execute immediate justice. But her mother held her
back, saying, with a look she seldom wore,—
“Stop, Jo, you must clear yourself first. You have played
so many pranks, that I am afraid you have had a hand in
this.”
“On my word, mother, I haven’t! I never saw that note
before, and don’t know anything about it, as true as I live!”
said Jo, so earnestly that they believed her. “If I Aad taken
a part in it I’d have done it better than this, and have written
asensible note. I should think you’d have known Mr. Brooke
~ wouldn’t write such stuff as that,” she added, scornfully tossing
down the paper.
“It’s like his writing,” faltered Meg, comparing it with the
note in her hand.
““O Meg, you didn’t answer it?” cried Mrs. March quickly.
Ves, I did!” and Meg hid her face again, overcome with
shame.
“ Here’s a scrape! Do let me bring that wicked boy over
to explain, and be lectured. I can’t rest till I get hold of
him ;” and Jo made for the door again.
“ Hush! let me manage this, for it is worse than I thought.
Margaret, tell me the whole story,” commanded Mrs. March,
sitting down by Meg, yet keeping hold of Jo, lest she should
fly off.
Ne I received the first letter from Laurie, who didn’t look as
if he knew anything about it,” began Meg, without looking
up. ‘I was worried at first, and meant to tell you; then I
remembered how you liked Mr. Brooke, so I thought you
wouldn’t mind if I kept my little secret for a few days. I’m
so silly that I liked to think no one knew; and, while I was
deciding what to say, I felt like the girls in books, who have
such things to do. Forgive me, mother, I’m paid for my silli-
ness now ; I never can look him in the face again.”
“What did you say to him?” asked Mrs. March.
“TI only said I was too young to do anything about it yet;
that I didn’t wish to have secrets from you, and he must speak
to father. I was very grateful for his kindness, and would be
his friend, but nothing more, for a long while.”
' Mrs. March smiled, as if well pleased, and Jo clapped her
hands, exclaiming, with a laugh,—
188 Little Women
“You are almost equal to Caroline Percy, who was a
pattern of prudence! Tell on, Meg. What did he say to
that?”
‘He writes in a different way entirely, telling me that he
never sent any love-letter at all, and is very sorry that my
roguish sister, Jo, should take such liberties with our names.
It’s very kind and respectful, but think how dreadful for me!”
Meg leaned against her mother, looking the image of
despair, and Jo tramped about the room, calling Laurie
names. All of a sudden she stopped, caught up the two
notes, and, after looking at them closely, said decidedly,
“I don’t believe Brooke ever saw either of these letters.
Teddy wrote both, and keeps yours to crow over me with,
because I wouldn’t tell him my secret.”
“Don’t have any secrets, Jo; tell it to mother, and keep
out of trouble, as I should have done,” said Meg warningly.
*“ Bless you, child! Mother told me.”
“That will do, Jo. Ill comfort Meg while you go and get
Laurie. I shall sift the matter to the bottom, and put a stop
to such pranks at once.”
Away ran Jo,and Mrs. March gently told Meg Mr. Brooke’s
real feelings. ‘Now, dear, what are your own? Do you love
him enough to wait till he can make a home for you, or will
you keep yourself quite free for the present ?”
“T’ye been so.scared and worried, I don’t want to have
anything to do with lovers for a long while—perhaps never,”
answered Meg petulantly. “If John doesn’t know anything
about this nonsense, don’t tell him, and make Jo and Laurie
hold their tongues. I won’t be deceived and plagued and
made a fool of—it’s a shame!”
Seeing that Meg’s usually gentle temper was roused and her
pride hurt by this mischievous joke, Mrs. March soothed her
by promises of entire silence, and great discretion for the
future. The instant Laurie’s step was heard in the hall, Meg
fled into the study, and Mrs. March received the culprit alone.
Jo had not told him why he was wanted, fearing he wouldn’t
come ; but he knew the minute he saw Mrs. March’s face, and
stood twirling his hat, with a guilty air which convicted him at
once. Jo was dismissed, but chose to march up and down
the hall like a sentinel, having some fear that the prisoner
might bolt. The sound of voices in the parlour rose and fell
for half-an-hour; but what happened during that interview the
girls never knew.
 Laurie Makes Mischief — 189
When they were called in, Laurie was standing by their
mother, with such a penitent face that Jo forgave him on the
spot, but did not think it wise to betray the fact. Meg
received his humble apology, and was much comforted by
the assurance that Brooke knew nothing of the joke.
“ll never tell him to my dying day—wild horses shan’t
drag it out of me; so you'll forgive me, Meg, and I'll do
anything to show how out-and-out sorry I am,” he added,
looking very much ashamed of himself.
“Tl try; but it was a very ungentlemanly thing to do. I
didn’t think you could be so sly and malicious, Laurie,”
replied Meg, trying to hide her maidenly confusion under a
gravely reproachtul air.
“It was altogether abominable, and I don’t deserve to be
spoken to for a month; but you will, though, won’t you?”
and Laurie folded his hands together with such an imploring
gesture, as he spoke in his irresistibly persuasive tone, that it
was impossible to frown upon him, in spite of his scandalous
behaviour. Meg pardoned him, and Mrs. March’s grave face
relaxed, in spite of her efforts to keep sober, when she
heard him declare that he would atone for his sins by all
sorts of penances, and abase himself like a worm before the
injured damsel.
Jo stood aloof, meanwhile, trying to harden her heart against
him, and succeeding only in primming up her face into an
expression of entire disapprobation. Laurie looked at her
once or twice, but, as she showed no sign of relenting, he felt
injured, and turned his back on her till the others were done
with him, when he made her a low bow, and walked off with-
out a word.
As soon as he had gone, she wished she had been more
forgiving ; and when Meg and her mother went upstairs, she
felt lonely, and longed for Teddy. After resisting for some
time, she yielded to the impulse, and, armed with a book to
return, went over to the big house.
“Ts Mr. Laurence in?” asked Jo, of a housemaid, who was
coming downstairs.
“ Yes, miss ; but I don’t believe he’s seeable just yet.”
“ Why not? is he ill?”
“La, no, miss, but he’s had a scene with Mr. Laurie, whois
in one of his tantrums about something, which vexes the old
gentleman, so I dursn’t go nigh him,”
‘““ Where is Laurie?”
190 Little Women
“Shut up in his room, and he won’t answer, though I’ve
been a-tapping. I don’t know what’s to become of the dinner,
for it’s ready, and there’s no one to eat it.”
“Tl go and see what the matter is. I’m not afraid of
either of them.”
Up went Jo, and knocked smartly on the door of Laurie’s
little study.
“Stop that, or I’ll open the door and make you!” called
out the young gentleman, in a threatening tone.
Jo immediately knocked again; the door flew open, and in
she bounced, before Laurie could recover from his surprise.
Seeing that he really was out of temper, Jo, who knew how to
manage him, assumed a contrite expression, and going artisti-
cally down upon her knees, said meekly, ‘‘ Please forgive me for
being so cross, I came to make it up, and can’t go away till
I have.”
‘“Tt’s all right. Get up, and don’t be a goose, Jo,” was the
cavalier reply to her petition.
“Thank you ; I will. Could Iask what’s the matter? You
don’t look exactly easy in your mind.”
“ve been shaken, and I won't bear it!” growled Laurie
indignantly.
“Who did it ?” demanded Jo.
“‘ Grandfather; if it had been any one else I’d have—” and
the injured youth finished his sentence by an energetic gesture
of the right arm.
“That’s nothing; I often shake you, and you don’t mind,”
said Jo soothingly.
“Pooh! you’rea girl, and it’s fun; but I'll allow no man to
shake me.”
‘“] don’t think any one would care to try it, if you looked
as much like a thunder-cloud as you do now. Why were you
treated sor”
‘Just because I wouldn’t say what your mother wanted me
for. Id promised not to tell, and of course I wasn’t going to
break my word.”
**Couldn’t you satisfy your grandpa in any other way?”
“No; he would have the truth, the whole truth, and
nothing but the truth. I’d have told my part of the scrape,
if I could without bringing Meg in. As I couldn't, I held my
tongue, and bore the scolding till the old gentleman collared
me. Then I got angry, and bolted, for fear I should forget
myself.”
 Laurie Makes Mischief | IOI
“It wasn’t nice, but he’s sorry, I know; so go down and
make up. Tl help you.”
“ Hanged if I do! I’m not going to be lectured and
pummelled by every one, just for a bit of a frolic. I was
sorry about Meg, and begged pardon like a man; but I won't
do it again, when I wasn’t in the wrong.”
* He didn’t know that.”
“He ought to trust me, and not act asif Iwas a baby. It’s
no use, Jo; he’s got to learn that I’m able to take care of
myself, and don’t need any one’s apron-string to hold on by.”
“What pepper-pots you are!” sighed Jo. “ How do you
mean to settle this affair ?”
“‘ Well, he ought to beg pardon, and believe me when I say
I can’t tell him what the fuss’s about.”
* Bless you! he won’t do that.”
‘IT won’t go down till he does.”
“Now, Teddy, be sensible; let it pass, and I'll explain
what Ican. You can’t stay here, so what’s the use of being
melodramatic ?”
“‘T don’t intend to stay here long, any way. I'll slip off and
take a journey somewhere, and when grandpa misses me he'll
come round fast enough.”
“T dare say ; but you ought not to go and worry him.”
“Don’t preach. I'll go to Washington and see Brooke;
it’s gay there, and I’ll enjoy myself after the troubles.”
“What fun you’d have! I wish I could run off too,” said
Jo, forgetting her part of Mentor in lively visions of martial
life at the capital.
“Come on, then! Why not? You go and surprise your
father, and I’ll stir up old Brooke. It would bea glorious
joke; let’s do it, Jo. We’ll leave a letter saying we are all
right, and trot off at once. I’ve got money enough; it will
do you good, and be no harm, as you go to your father.”
For a moment Jo looked as if she would agree; for, wild
as the plan was, it just suited her. She was tired of care and
confinement, longed for change, and thoughts of her father
blended temptingly with the novel charms of camps and
hospitals, liberty and fun. Her eyes kindled as they turned
wistfully toward the window, but they fell on the old house
opposite, and she shook her head with sorrowful decision. —
“Tf I was a boy, we’d run away together, and have a capital
time; but as I’m a miserable girl, I must be proper, and stop
at home. Don’t tempt me, Teddy, it’s a crazy plan.”
192 Little Women
“That’s the fun of it,” began Laurie, who had got a wilful
fit on him, and was possessed to break out of bounds in some
way.
Hold your tongue! ” cried Jo, covering herears. ‘“ ‘Prunes
and prisms’ are my doom, and I may as well make up my
mind to it. I came here to moralise, not to hear about things
that make me skip to think of.”
“IT know Meg would wet-blanket such a proposal, but I
thought you had more spirit,” began Laurie insinuatingly.
“ Bad boy, be quiet! Sit down and think of your own sins,
don’t go making me add to mine. If I get your grandpa to
apologise for the shaking, will you give up running away?”
asked Jo seriously.
“Yes, but you won’t do it,” answered Laurie, who wished
“to make up,” but felt that his outraged dignity must be
appeased first.
“If I can manage the young one I can the old one,”
muttered Jo, as she walked away, leaving Laurie bent over
a railroad map, with his head propped up on both hands.
“Come in!” and Mr. Laurence’s gruff voice sounded gruffer
than ever, as Jo tapped at his door.
“Tt’s only me, sir, come to return a book,” she said blandly,
as she entered.
“Want any more?” asked the old gentleman, looking grim
and vexed, buti trying not to show it.
“Yes, please. I like old Sam so well, I think I'll try the
second volume,” returned Jo, hoping to propitiate him by
accepting a second dose of Boswell’s “‘ Johnson,” as he had
recommended that lively work.
The shaggy eyebrows unbent alittle, as he rolled the steps
toward the shelf where the Johnsonian literature was placed.
Jo skipped up, and, sitting on the top step, affected to be
searching for her book, but was really wondering how best to
introduce the dangerous object of her visit. Mr. Laurence
seemed to suspect that something was brewing in her mind;
for, after taking several brisk turns about the room, he faced
round on her, speaking so abruptly that “ Rasselas” tumbled
face downward on the floor.
“What has that boy been about? Don’t try to shield him.
I know he has been in mischief by the way he acted when
he came home. I can’t get a word from him; and when I
threataned to shake the truth out of him he bolted upstairs,
and locked himself into his room,”
 Laurie Makes Mischief ' 193
“He did do wrong, but we forgave him, and all promised
not to say a word to any one,” began Jo reluctantly.
“That won’t do; he shall not shelter himself behind a
promise from you soft-hearted girls. If he’s done anything
amiss, he shall confess, beg pardon, and be punished. Out
with it, Jo, I won’t be kept in the dark.”
Mr. Laurence looked so alarming and spoke so sharply
that Jo would have gladly run away, if she could, but she
was perched aloft on the steps, and he stood at the foot, a
lion in the path, so she had to stay and brave it out.
“Indeed, sir, I cannot tell; mother forbade it. Laurie has
confessed, asked pardon, and been punished quite enough.
We don’t keep silence to shield him, but some one else, and
it will make more trouble if you interfere. Please don’t; it
was partly my fault, but it’s all right now; so let’s forget it,
and talk about the ‘ Rambler,’ or something pleasant.”
“‘ Hang the ‘ Rambler!’ come down and give me your word
that this harum-scarum boy of mine hasn’t done anything un-
grateful or impertinent. If he has, after all your kindness to
him, I’ll thrash him with my own hands.”
The threat sounded awful, but did not alarm Jo, for she
knew the irascible old gentleman would never lift a finger
against his grandson, whatever he might say to the contrary.
She obediently descended, and made as light of the prank as
she could without betraying Meg or forgetting the truth.
“ Hum—ha—well, if the boy held his tongue because he
promised, and not from obstinacy, Pll forgive him. He’s a
stubborn. fellow, and hard to manage,” said Mr. Laurence,
rubbing up his hair till it looked as if he had been out ina
gale, and smoothing the frown from his brow with an air of
relief.
“So am I; but a kind word will govern me when all the
king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn't,” said Jo, trying
to say a kind word for her friend, who seemed to get out of
one scrape only to fall into another.
“You think I’m not kind to him, hey?” was the sharp
answer.
“Oh, dear, no, sir; you are rather too kind sometimes, and
then just a trifle hasty when he tries your patience. Don’t
you think you are?” ;
_ Jo was determined to have it out now, and tried to look
quite placid, though she quaked a little after her bold speech.
To her great relief and surprise, the old gentleman only threw
194 Little Women
his spectacles on to the table with a rattle, and exclaimed
frankly,—
“You're right, girl, Iam! I love the boy, but he tries my
patience past bearing, and I don’t know how it will end, if we
go on so.”
“T’ll tell you, he’ll run away.” Jo was sorry for that speech
the minute it was made; she meant to warn him that Laurie
would not bear much restraint, and hoped he would be more
forbearing with the lad.
Mr. Laurence’s ruddy face changed suddenly, and he sat
down, with a troubled glance at the picture of a handsome
man, which hung over his table. It was Laurie’s father, who
had run away in his youth, and married against the imperious
old man’s will. Jo fancied he remembered and regretted
the past, and she wished she had held her tongue.
“He won't do it unless he is very much worried, and only
threatens it sometimes, when he gets tired of studying. I
often think I should like to, especially since my hair was cut;
so, if you ever miss us, you may advertise for two boys, and
look among the ships bound for India.”
She laughed as she spoke, and Mr. Laurence looked relieved,
evidently taking the whole as a joke.
“You hussy, how dare you talk in that way? Where’s
your respect for me, and your proper bringing up? Bless the
boys and girls! What torments they are; yet we can’t do
without them,” he said, pinching her cheeks good-humouredly.
‘Go and bring that boy down to his dinner, tell him it’s all
right, and advise him not to put on tragedy airs with his
grandfather. I won't bear it.”
“He won't come, sir; he feels badly because you didn’t
believe him when he said he couldn’t tell. I think the shaking
hurt his feelings very much.”
Jo tried to look pathetic, but must have failed, for Mr,
Laurence began to laugh, and she knew the day was won.
“T’m sorry for that, and ought to thank him for not shaking
me, 1 suppose. What the dickens does the fellow expect ?” and
the old gentleman looked a trifle ashamed of his own testiness.
“If I were you, ’d write him an apology, sir. _He says he
won’t come down till he has one, and talks about Washington,
and goes on in an absurd way. A formal apology will make
him see how foolish he is, and bring him down quite amiable.
Try it; he likes fun, and this way is better than talking. Tl
carry it up, and teach him his duty.”
 Laurie Makes Mischief —_—195
Mr. Laurence gave her a sharp look, and put on his spec-
tacles, saying slowly, ‘‘ You’re a sly puss, but I don’t mind
being: managed by you and Beth. Here, give me a bit of
paper, and let us have done with this nonsense.”
The note was written in the terms which one gentleman
would use to another after offering some deep insult. Jo
dropped a kiss on the top of Mr. Laurence’s bald head, and
ran up to slip the apology under Laurie’s door, advising him,
through the keyhole, to be submissive, decorous, and a few
other agreeable impossibilities. Finding the door locked
again, she left the note to do its work,,and was going quietly
away, when the young gentleman slid down the banisters, and
waited for her at the bottom, saying, with his most virtuous
' expression of countenance, ‘‘ What a good fellow you are, Jo!
Did you get blown up?” he added, laughing.
“No; he was pretty mild, on the whole.”
“Ah! I got it all round ; even you cast me off over there,
and I felt just ready to go to the deuce,” he began apolo-
getically.
“Don’t talk in that way; turn over a new leaf and begin
again, Teddy, my son.”
‘‘T keep turning over new leaves, and spoiling them, as I
used to spoil my copy-books; and I made so many beginnings
there never will be an end,” he said dolefully.
“Go and eat your dinner; you'll feel better after it. Men
always croak when they are hungry,” and Jo whisked out at
the front door after that.
“That’s a ‘label’ on my ‘sect,’” answered Laurie, quoting
Amy, as he went to partake of humble-pie dutifully with his
grandfather, who was quite saintly in temper and overwhelm-
ingly respectful in manner all the rest of the day. _
Every one thought the matter ended and the little cloud
blown over; but the mischief was done, for, though others
forgot it, Meg remembered. She never alluded to a certain
person, but she thought of him a good deal, dreamed dreams
more than ever; and once Jo, rummaging her sister’s desk for
stamps, found a bit of paper scribbled over with the words,
“Mrs. John Brooke;” whereat she groaned tragically, and
cast it into the fire, feeling that Laurie’s prank had hastened
the evil day for her.,
196 Little Women

CHAPTER XXII
, PLEASANT MEADOWS
Lrxe sunshine after storm were the peaceful weeks which fol-
lowed. The invalids improved rapidly, and Mr. March began
to talk of returning early in the new year. Beth was soon
able to lie on the study sofa all day, amusing herself with the
well-beloved cats, at first, and, in time, with doll’s sewing,
which had fallen sadly behindhand. Her once active limbs
were so stiff and feeble that Jo took her a daily airing about
the house in her strong arms. Meg cheerfully blackened and
burnt her white hands cooking delicate messes for ‘‘ the dear” ;
while Amy, a loyal slave of the ring, celebrated her return by
giving away as many of her treasures as she could prevail on
her sisters to accept.
As Christmas approached, the usual mysteries began to
haunt the house, and Jo frequently convulsed the family by
proposing utterly impossible or magnificently absurd cere-
monies, in honour of this unusually merry Christmas. Laurie
was equally impracticable, and would have had bonfires, sky-
rockets, and triumphal arches, if he had had his own way.
After many skirmishes and snubbings, the ambitious pair were
considered effectually quenched, and went about with forlorn
faces, which were rather belied by explosions of laughter when
the two got together.
Several days of unusually mild weather fitly ushered in a
splendid Christmas Day. Hannah “felt in her bones” that
it was going to be an unusually fine day, and she proved her-
self a true prophetess, for everybody and everything seemed
bound to produce a grand success. To begin with, Mr. March
wrote that he should soon be with them ; then Beth felt uncom-
monly well that morning, and, being dressed in her mother’s
gift—a soft crimson merino wrapper—was borne in triumph
to the window to behold the offering of Jo and Laurie. The
Unquenchables had done their best to be worthy of the name,
for, like elves, they had worked by night, and conjured up a comi-
cal surprise. Out in the garden stood a stately snow-maiden,
crowned with holly, bearing a basket of fruit and flowers
in one hand, a great roll of new music in the other, a perfect
rainbow of an Afghan round her chilly shoulders, and a Christ-
mas carol issuing from her lips, on a pink paper streamer :—
 Pleasant Meadows 197
*THE JUNGFRAU TO BETH,
**God bless you, dear Queen Bess!
May nothing you dismay,
But health and peace and happiness,
Be yours, this Christmas Day,
* Here's fruit to feed our busy bee,
And flowers for her nose;
Here's music for her pianee,
An Afghan for her toes,
&* A portrait of Joanna, see,
By Raphael No. 2, 5
Who laboured with great industry
To make it fair and true.
(** Accept a ribbon red, I beg,
For Madam Purrer’s tail;
And ice-cream made by lovely Peg,—«
A Mont Blanc in a pail.

* Their dearest love my makers laid

Within my breast of snow:
Accept it, and the Alpine maid,
From Laurie and from Jo.”

How Beth laughed when she saw it, how Laurie ran up and
down to bring in the gifts, and what ridiculous speeches Jo
made as she presented them!
“T’m so full of happiness, that, if father was only here, I
couldn’t hold one drop more.” said Beth, quite sighing with
contentment as Jo carried her off to the study to rest after the
excitement, and to refresh herself with some of the delicious
grapes the “ Jungfrau” had sent her.
“*So am I,” added Jo, slapping the pocket wherein reposed
the long-desired Undine and Sintram.
“T’m sure I am,” echoed Amy, poring over the engraved
copy of the Madonna and Child, which her mother had given
her, in a pretty frame.
“ Of course I am!” cried Meg, smoothing the silvery folds
of her first silk dress; for Mr. Laurence had insisted on
giving it.
“ How can J be otherwise?” said Mrs. March gratefully, as
her eyes went from her husband’s letter to Beth’s smiling face,
and her hand caressed the brooch made of grey and golden,
chestnut and dark brown hair, which the girls had just fastened
on her breast.
_ Now and then, in this work-a-day world, things do happen
198 Little Women
in the delightful story-book fashion, and what a comfort that
is. Half-an-hour after every one had said they were so happy
they could only hold one drop more, the drop came. Laurie
opened the parlour door, and popped his head in very quietly.
He might just as well have turned a somersault and uttered
an Indian war-whoop; for his face was so full of suppressed
excitement and his voice so treacherously joyful, that every one
jumped up, though he only said, in a queer, breathless voice,
‘“‘ Here’s another Christmas present for the March family.”
Before the words were well out of his mouth, he was
whisked away somehow, and in his place appeared a tall man,
muffled up to the eyes, leaning on the arm of another tall man,
who tried to say something and couldn’t. Of course there
was a general stampede; and for several minutes everybody
seemed to lose their wits, for the strangest things were done,
and no one said a word. Mr. March became invisible in the
embrace of four pairs of loving arms; Jo disgraced herself by
nearly fainting away, and had to be doctored by Laurie in the
china-closet ; Mr. Brooke kissed Meg entirely by mistake, as
he somewhat incoherently explained ; and Amy, the dignified,
tumbled over a stool, and, never stopping to get up, hugged
and cried over her father’s boots in the most touching manner.
Mrs. March was the first to recover herself, and held up her
hand with a warning, “ Hush! remember Beth!”
But it was too late; the study door flew open, the little red
wrapper appeared on the threshold—joy put strength into the
feeble limbs—and Beth ran straight into her father’s arms.
Never mind what happened just after that ; for the full hearts
overflowed, washing away the bitterness of the past, and
leaving only the sweetness of the present.
It was not at all romantic, but a hearty laugh set everybody
straight again, for Hannah was discovered behind the door,
sobbing over the fat turkey, which she had forgotten to put
down when she rushed up from the kitchen. As the laugh
subsided, Mrs. March began to thank Mr. Brooke for his
faithful care of her husband, at which Mr. Brooke suddenly
remembered that Mr. March needed rest, and, seizing Laurie,
he precipitately retired. Then the two invalids were ordered
to repose, which they did, by both sitting in one big chair,
and talking hard.
Mr. March told how he had longed to surprise them, and
how, when the fine weather came, he had been allowed by his
doctor to take advantage of it; how devoted Brooke had
 Pleasant Meadows —"—_sittgg
been, and how he was altogether a most estimable and up-
right young man. Why Mr. March paused a minute just
there, and, after a glance at Meg, who was violently poking
the fire, looked at his wife with an inquiring lift of the eye-
brows, I leave you to imagine; also why Mrs. March gently
nodded her head, and asked, rather abruptly, if he wouldn’t
have something to eat. Jo saw and understood the look ; and
she stalked grimly away to get wine and beef-tea, muttering to
herself, as she slammed the door, “I hate estimable young
men with brown eyes!”
There never was such a Christmas dinner as they had that
day. The fat turkey was a sight to behold, when Hannah
sent him up, stuffed, browned, and decorated; so was the
- plum-pudding, which quite melted in one’s mouth; likewise
the jellies, in which Amy revelled like a fly in a honey-pot.
Everything turned out well, which was a mercy, Hannah said,
“For my mind was that flustered, mum, that it’s a merrycle I
didn’t roast the pudding, and stuff the turkey with raisins, let
alone bilin’ of it in a cloth.”
Mr. Laurence and his grandson dined with them, also Mr.
Brooke—at whom Jo glowered darkly, to Laurie’s infinite
amusement. Two easy-chairs stood side by side at the head
of the table, in which sat Beth and her father, feasting
modestly on chicken anda little fruit. They drank healths,
told stories, sung songs, “reminisced,” as the old folks say,
and had a thoroughly good time. A sleigh-ride had been
planned, but the girls would not leave their father; so the
guests departed early, and, as twilight gathered, the happy
family sat together round the fire.
“Just a year ago we were groaning over the dismal
Christmas we expected to have. Do you remember?” asked
Jo, breaking a short pause which had followed a long con-
versation about many things.
“Rather a pleasant year on the whole!” said Meg, smiling
at the fire, and congratulating herself on having treated Mr.
Brooke with dignity.
“J think it’s been a pretty hard one,” observed Amy, watch-
ing the light shine on her ring, with thoughtful eyes.
“Tm glad it’s over, because we’ve got you back,” whispered
Beth, who sat on her father’s knee.
“ Rather a rough road for you to travel, my little pilgrims,
especially the latter part of it. But you have got on bravely ;
and I think the burdens are in a fair way to tumble off very
200 Little Women
soon,” said Mr. March, looking with fatherly satisfaction at
the four young faces gathered round him,
“ How do you know?” Did mother tell you?” asked Jo.
“Not much; straws show which way the wind blows, and
I’ve made several discoveries to-day.”
“Oh, tell us what they are!” cried Meg, who sat beside
him.
“Here is one;” and taking up the hand which lay on the
arm of his chair, he pointed to the roughened forefinger, a
burn on the back, and two or three little hard spots on the
palm. “I remember a time when this hand was white and
smooth, and your first care was to keep it so. It was very
pretty then, but to me it is much prettier now—for in these
seeming blemishes I read a little history. A burnt-offering
has been made of vanity; this hardened palm has earned
something better than blisters ; and I’m sure the sewing done
by these pricked fingers will last a long time, so much good-
will went into the stitches. Meg, my dear, I value the
womanly skill which keeps home happy more than white
hands or fashionable accomplishments. I’m proud to shake
this good, industrious little hand, and hope I shall not soon
be asked to give it away.”
If Meg had wanted a reward for hours of patient labour, she
received it in the hearty pressure of her father’s hand and the
approving smile he gave her.
““What about Jo? Please say something nice; for she has
tried so hard, and been so very, very good to me,” said Beth,
in her father’s ear.
He laughed, and looked across at the tall girl who sat
opposite, with an unusually mild expression in her brown
face.
“In spite of the curly crop, I don’t see the ‘son Jo’ whom
I left a year ago,” said Mr. March. ‘I see a young lady who
pins her collar straight, laces her boots neatly, and neither
whistles, talks slang, nor lies on the rug as she used to do.
Her face is rather thin and pale, just now, with watching and
anxiety; but I like to look at it, for it has grown gentler, and
her voice is lower; she doesn’t bounce, but moves quietly,
and takes care of a certain little person in a motherly way
which delights me. I rather miss my wild girl; but if I get a
strong, helpful, tender-hearted woman in her place, I shall
feel quite satisfied. I don’t know whether the shearing
sobered our black sheep, but I do know that in all
 Pleasant Meadows . 201
Washington I couldn’t find anything beautiful enough to
be bought with the five-and-twenty dollars which my good
girl sent me.”
Jo’s keen eyes were rather dim for a minute, and her thin
face grew rosy in the firelight, as she received her father’s
praise, feeling that she did deserve a portion of it.
“Now Beth,” said Amy, longing for her turn, but ready
to wait.
“There’s so little of her, I’m afraid to say much, for fear
_ she will slip away altogether, though she is not so s»y as she
used to be,” began their father cheerfully; but recollecting
how nearly he Aad lost her, he held her’close, saying tenderly,
with her cheek against his own, “I’ve got you safe, my Beth,
. and I’ll keep you so, please God.”
After a minute’s silence, he looked down at Amy, who sat
on the cricket at his feet, and said, with a caress of the
shining hair,—
“T observed that Amy took drumsticks at dinner, ran
errands for her mother all the afternoon, gave Meg her place
to night, and has waited on every one with patience and good
humour. I also observe that she does not fret much nor look
in the glass, and has not even mentioned a very pretty ring
which she wears ; so I conclude that she has learned to think
of other people more and of herself less, and has decided to
try and mould her character as carefully as she moulds her
litle clay figures. Iam glad of this; for though I should be
very proud of a graceful statue made by her, I shall be
infinitely prouder of a lovable daughter, with a talent for
making life beautiful to herself and others.”
. “What are you thinking of, Beth?” asked Jo, when Amy
had thanked her father and told about her ring.
“TI read in ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ to-day, how, after many
troubles, Christian and Hopeful came to a pleasant green
meadow, where lilies bloomed all the year round, and there
they rested happily, as we do now, before they went on to their
journey’s end,” answered Beth ; adding, as she slipped out of
her father’s arms, and went slowly to the instrument, “ It’s
singing time now, and I want to be in my old place. I'll try
to sing the song of the shepherd-boy which the Pilgrims
heard. I made the music for father, because he likes the
verses.”
_ So, sitting at the dear little piano, Beth softly touched the
keys, and, in the sweet voice they had never thought to hear
202 Little Women
again, sung to her own accompaniment the quaint hymn,
which was a singularly fitting song for her :—
6‘ He that is down need fear no fall,
He that is low no pride;
He that is humble ever shall
Have God to be his guide.

**T am content with what I have,

Little be it or much ;
And, Lord! contentment still I crave,
Because Thou savest such,

** Fulness to them a burden is,

That go on pilgrimage;
Here little, and hereafter bliss,
Is best from age to age!”

CHAPTER XXIII
AUNT MARCH SETTLES THE QUESTION
LIKE bees swarming after their queen, mother and daughters
hovered about Mr. March the next day, neglecting everything
to look at, wait upon, and listen to the new invalid, who was
in a fair way to be killed by kindness. As he sat propped up
in a big chair:by Beth’s sofa, with the other three close by,
and Hannah popping in her head now and then, ‘‘to peep at
the dear man,” nothing seemed needed to complete their
happiness. But something was needed, and the elder ones
felt it, though none confessed the fact. Mr. and Mrs. March
looked at one another with an anxious expression, as their
eyes followed Meg. Jo had sudden fits of sobriety, and was
seen to shake her fist at Mr. Brooke’s umbrella, which had
been left in the hall; Meg was absent-minded, shy, and silent,
started when the bell rang, and coloured when John’s name
was mentioned; Amy said ‘Every one seemed waiting for
something, and couldn’t settle down, which was queer, since
father was safe at home,” and Beth innocently wondered why
their neighbours didn’t run over as usual.
Laurie went by in the afternoon, and, seeing Meg at the
window, seemed suddenly possessed with a melodramatic fit,
for he fell down upon one knee in the snow, beat his breast,
tore his hair, and clasped his hands imploringly, as if begging
some boon; and when Meg told him to behave himself and
 Aunt March Settles the Question 203
go away, he wrung imaginary tears out of his handkerchief,
and staggered round the corner as if in utter despair.
“What does the goose mean?” said Meg, laughing, and
trying to look unconscious.
**He’s showing you how your John will go on by-and-by.
Touching, isn’t it?” answered Jo scornfully,
“Don’t say my John, it isn’t proper or true;” but Meg’s
voice lingered over the words as if they sounded pleasant to
her. ‘ Please don’t plague me, Jo; I’ve told you I don’t care
much about him, and there isn’t to be anything said, but we
are all to be friendly, and go on as before.”
“We can’t, for something as beén said, and Laurie’s
mischief has spoilt you for me. I see it, and so does mother;
_ you are not like your old self a bit, and seem ever so far away
from me. I don’t mean to plague you, and will bear it like a
man, but I do wish it was all settled. I hate to wait; so if
you mean ever to do it, make haste and have it over quickly,”
said Jo pettishly.
“7 can’t say or do anything till he speaks, and he
won't, because father said I was too young,” began Meg,
bending over her work, with a queer little smile, which
suggested that she did not quite agree with her father on
that point.
“Tf he did speak, you wouldn’t know what to say, but
would cry or blush, or let him have his own way, instead of
giving a good, decided, No.”
“T’m not so silly and weak as you think. I know just what
I should say, for I’ve planned it all, so I needn’t be taken
unawares; there’s no knowing what may happen, and I
wished to be prepared.”
Jo couldn’t help smiling at the important air which Meg
had unconsciously assumed, and which was as becoming as
the pretty colour varying in her cheeks.
“Would you mind telling me what you’d say?” asked Jo
more respectfully.
“Not at all; you are sixteen now, quite old enough to be
my confidante, and my experience will be useful to you by-
and-by, perhaps, in your own affairs of this sort.”
“Don’t mean to have any; it’s fun to watch other people
philander, but I should feel like a fool doing it myself,” said
Jo, looking alarmed at the thought.
“TJ think not, if you liked any one very much, and he liked
you.” Meg spoke as if to herself, and glanced out at the lane,
204 Little Women
where she had often seen lovers walking together in the
summer twilight.
‘“‘T thought you were going to tell your speech to that man,”
said Jo, rudely shortening her sister’s little reverie.
“Oh, I should merely say, quite calmly and decidedly,
‘Thank you, Mr. Brooke, you are very kind, but I agree with
father that I am too young to enter into any engagement at
present; so please say no more, but let us be friends as we
were.’”
“Hum! that’s stiff and cool enough. I don’t believe you'll
ever say it, and I know he won’t be satisfied if you do. If he
goes on like the rejected lovers in books, you’ll give in, rather
than hurt his feelings.”
“No, I won’t. I shall tell him I’ve made up my mind, and
shall walk out of the room with dignity.”
Meg rose as she spoke, and was just going to rehearse the
dignitied exit, when a step in the hall made her fly into her
seat, and begin to sew as if her life depended on finishing that
particular seam in a given time. Jo smothered a laugh at the
sudden change, and, when some one gave a modest tap,
opened the door with a grim aspect, which was anything but
hospitable.
“Good afternoon. I came to get my umbrella—that is, to
see how your father finds himself to-day,” said Mr. Brooke,
getting a trifle confused as his eye went from one tell-tale face
to the other. ,
“It’s very well, he’s in the rack, I’ll get him, and tell it you
are here,” and having jumbled her father and the umbrella —
well together in her reply, Jo slipped out of the room to give
Meg a chance to make her speech and air her dignity. But
the instant she vanished, Meg began to sidle towards the
door, murmuring,—
“* Mother will like to see you. Pray sit down, I’ll call her.”
“Don’t go; are you afraid of me, Margaret?” and Mr.
Brooke looked so hurt that Meg thought she must have done
something very rude. She blushed up to the little curls on
her forehead, for he had never called her Margaret before,
and she was surprised to find how natural and sweet it seemed
to hear him say it. Anxious to appear friendly and at her
ease, she put out her hand with a confiding gesture, and said
gratefully, —
“How can I be afraid when you have been so kind to
father? I only wish I could thank you for it.”
 Aunt March Settles the Question 205
“Shall I tell you how?” asked Mr. Brooke, holding the
small hand fast in both his own, and looking down at Meg
with so much love in the brown eyes, that her heart began to
flutter, and she both longed to run away and to stop and listen.
“Oh no, please don’t—I’d rather not,” she said, trying to
withdraw her hand, and looking frightened in spite of her
denial.
“T won’t trouble you, I only want to know if you care for
me a little, Meg. I love you so much, dear,” added Mr.
Brooke tenderly.
This was the moment for the calm, proper speech, but Meg
didn’t make it; she forgot every word of it, hung her head,
and answered, ‘‘I don’t know,” so softly that John had to
stoop down to catch the foolish little reply.
He seemed to think it was worth the trouble, for he smiled
to himself as if quite satisfied, pressed the plump hand grate-
fully, and said, in his most persuasive tone, “ Will you try and
find out? I want to know so much; for I can’t go to work
with any heart until I learn whether I am to have my reward
in the end or not.”
“T’m too young,” faltered Meg, wondering why she was so
fluttered, yet rather enjoying it.
“T’ll wait; and in the meantime, you could be learning to
like me. Would it be a very hard lesson, dear?”
“ Not if I chose to learn it, but fe
‘Please choose to learn, Meg. I love to teach, and this is
easier than German,” broke in John, getting possession of the
other hand, so that she had no way of hiding her face, as he
bent to look into it.
His tohe was properly beseeching; but, stealing a shy look
at him, Meg saw that his eyes were merry as well as tender,
and that he wore the satisfied smile of one who had no doubt
of his success. This nettled her; Annie Moffat’s foolish
lessons in coquetry came into her mind, and the love of
power, which sleeps in the bosoms of the best of little women,
woke up all of a sudden and took possession of her. She
felt excited and strange, and, not knowing what else to do,
followed a capricious impulse, and, withdrawing her hands,
said petulantly, “I don’t choose. Please go away and let
me be!”
Poor Mr. Brooke looked as if his lovely castle in the air
was tumbling about his ears, for he had never seen Meg in
such a mood before, and it rather bewildered him.
206 Little Women
“Do you really mean that?” he asked anxiously, following
her as she walked away.
“‘ Yes, I do; I don’t want to be worried about such things.
Father says I needn't; it’s too soon and Id rather not.”
** Mayn’t I hope you'll change your mind by-and-by? I'll
wait, and say nothing till you have had more time. Don’t
play with me, Meg. I didn’t think that of you.”
“Don’t think of me at all. I’d rather you wouldn't,” said
Meg, taking a naughty satisfaction in trying her lovers
patience and her own power.
He was grave and pale now, and looked decidedly more
like the novel heroes whom she admired; but he neither
slapped his forehead nor tramped about the room, as they
did; he just stood looking at her so wistfully, so tenderly,
that she found her heart relenting in spite of her. What
would have happened next I cannot say, if Aunt March had
not come hobbling in at this interesting minute.
The old lady couldn’t resist her longing to see her nephew;
for she had met Laurie as she took her airing, and, hearing of
Mr. March’s arrival, drove straight out to see him. The
family were all busy in the back part of the house, and she
had made her way quietly in, hoping to surprise them. She
did surprise two of them so much that Meg started as if she
had seen a ghost, and Mr. Brooke vanished into the study.
“Bless me, what’s all this?” cried the old lady, with a rap
of her cane, as she glanced from the pale young gentleman to
the scarlet young lady.
“Tt’s father’s friend. I’m so surprised to see you!” stam-
mered Meg, feeling that she was in for a lecture now.
“That’s evident,” returned Aunt March, sitting down.
“But what is father’s friend saying to make you look like a
peony? There’s mischief going on, and I insist upon know-
ing what it is,” with another rap.
“We were merely talking. Mr. Brooke came for his um-
brella,” began Meg, wishing that Mr. Brooke and the umbrella
were safely out of the house.
“Brooke? That boy’s tutor? Ah! I understand now.
I know all about it. Jo blundered into a wrong message in
one of your father’s letters, and I made her tell me. You
haven’t gone and accepted him, child?” cried Aunt March,
looking scandalised.
“Hush! he’ll hear. Shan’t I call mother?” said Meg,
much troubled.
 Aunt March Settles the Question 207
“Not yet. I’ve something to say to you, and I must free
my mind at once. Tell me, do you mean to marry this Cook?
If you do, not one penny of my money ever goes to you.
Remember that, and be a sensible girl,” said the old lady
impressively.
Now Aunt March possessed in perfection the art of rousing
the spirit of opposition in the gentlest people, and enjoyed
doing it. The best of us have a spice of perversity in us,
especially when we are young and in love. If Aunt March
had begged Meg to accept John Brooke, she would probably
have declared she couldn’t think of it; but as she was per-
emptorily ordered zoft to like him, she immediately made up
her mind that she would. Inclination as well as perversity
made the decision easy, and, being already much excited,
- Meg opposed the old lady with unusual spirit.
“J shall marry whom I please, Aunt March, and you can
leave your money to any one you like,” she said, nodding her
head with a resolute air.
“Highty tighty! Is that the way you take my advice,
miss? You'll be sorry for it, by-and-by, when you’ve tried
love in a cottage, and found ita failure.”
“Tt can’t be a worse one than some people find in big
houses,” retorted Meg.
Aunt March put on her glasses and took a look at the girl,
for she did not know her in this new mood. Meg hardly
knew herself, she felt so brave and independent—so glad to
defend John, and assert her right to love him, if she liked.
Aunt March saw that she had begun wrong, and, after alittle
pause, made a fresh start, saying, as mildly as she could,
‘““Now, Meg, my dear, be reasonable, and take my advice. I
mean it kindly, and don’t want you to spoil your whole life by
making a mistake at the beginning. You ought to marry
well, and help your family; it’s your duty to make a rich
‘ match, and it ought to be impressed upon you.”
“Father and mother don’t think so; they like John, though
he zs poor.” ;
“Your parents, my dear, have no more worldly wisdom
than two babies.”
“I’m glad of it,” cried Meg stoutly.
Aunt March took no notice, but went on with her lecture.
“This Rook is poor, and hasn’t got any rich relations, has
he?”
-“°No; but he has many warm friends.”
208 Little Women
“You can’t live on friends; try it, and see how cool they’ll
grow. He hasn’t any business, has he?”
“Not yet; Mr. Laurence is going to help him.”
“That won’t last long. James Laurence is a crotchety
old fellow, and not to be depended on. So you intend to
marry a man without money, position, or business, and go on
working harder than you do now, when you might be com-
fortable all your days by minding me and doing better? I
thought you had more sense, Meg.”
“T couldn’t do better if I waited half my life! John is
good and wise; he’s got heaps of talent; he’s willing to work,
and sure to get on, he’s so energetic and brave. Every one
likes and respects him, and I’m proud to think he cares for
me, though I’m so poor and young and silly,” said Meg,
looking prettier than ever in her earnestness.
“He knows you have got rich relations, child; that’s the
secret of his liking, I suspect.”
“ Aunt March, how dare you say such a thing? John is
above such meanness, and I won’t listen to you a minute if
you talk so,” cried Meg indignantly, forgetting everything but
the injustice of the old lady’s suspicions. ‘ My John wouldn’t
marry for money, any more than I would. We are willing to
work, and we mean to wait. I’m not afraid of being poor,
for I've been happy so far, and I know Ishall be with him,
because he loves me, and I
Meg stopped there, remembering all of a sudden that she
hadn’t made up her mind; that she had told “her John”
to go away, and that he might be overhearing her inconsistent
remarks.
Aunt March was very angry, for she had set her heart
on having her pretty niece make a fine match, and something
in the girl’s happy young face made the lonely old woman feel
both sad and sour.
“Well, I wash my hands of the whole affair! You are
a wilful child, and youve lost more than you know by this
piece of folly. No, I won’t stop; I’m disappointed in you,
and haven’t spirits to see your father now. Don’t expect
anything from me when you are married; your Mr. Book’s
friends must take care of you. I’m done with you for ever.”
And, slamming the door in Meg’s face, Aunt March drove
off in high dudgeon. She seemed to take all the girl’s
courage with her ; for, when left alone, Meg stood a moment,
undecided whether to laugh or cry. Before she could make
 Aunt March Settles the Question 209
up her mind, she was taken possession of by Mr. Brooke,
who said, all in one breath, “I couldn’t help hearing, Meg.
Thank you for defending me, and Aunt March for proving
that you do care for me a little bit.”
“T didn’t know how much, till she abused you,” began Meg.
“ And I needn’t go away, but may stay and be happy, may
I, dear?”
Here was another fine chance to make the crushing speech
and the stately exit, but Meg never thought of doing either,
_ and disgraced herself for ever in Jo’s eyes by meekly whisper-
ing, “Yes, John,” and hiding her face on Mr. Brooke’s
waistcoat. 2
. Fifteen minutes after Aunt March’s departure, Jo came
softly downstairs, paused an instant at the parlour door,
‘and, hearing no sound within, nodded and smiled, with a
satisfied expression, saying to herself, “She has sent him
away as we planned, and that affair is settled. Dll go and
hear the fun, and have a good laugh over it.”
But poor Jo never got her laugh, for she was transfixed
upon the threshold by a spectacle which held her there,
staring with her mouth nearly as wide open as her eyes.
Going in to exult over a fallen enemy, and to praise a strong-
minded sister for the banishment of an objectionable lover,
it certainly was a shock to behold the aforesaid enemy
serenely sitting on the sofa, with the strong-minded sister
enthroned upon his knee, and wearing an expression of the
most abject submission. Jo gave a sort of gasp, as if a cold
shower-bath had suddenly fallen upon her—for such an
unexpected turning of the tables actually took her breath
away. At the odd sound, the lovers turned and saw her.
Meg jumped up, looking both proud and shy; but “that
man,” as Jo called him, actually laughed, and said coolly,
_as he kissed the astonished new-comer, “Sister Jo, con-
gratulate us!”
That was adding insult to injury—it was altogether too
much—and, making some wild demonstration with her hands,
Jo vanished without a word. Rushing upstairs, she startled
the invalids by exclaiming tragically, as she burst into the
room, ‘Oh, do somebody go down quick; John Brooke is
acting dreadfully, and Meg likes it!”
Mr. and Mrs. March left the room with speed; and, cast-
ing herself upon the bed, Jo cried and scolded tempestuously
as she told the awful news to Beth and Amy. The little
210 Little Women
girls, however, considered it a most agreeable and interesting
event, and Jo got little comfort from them; so she went up to
her refuge in the garret, and confided her troubles to the rats.
Nobody ever knew what went on in the parlour that after-
noon; but a great deal of talking was done, and quiet Mr.
Brooke astonished his friends by the eloquence and spirit
with which he pleaded his suit, told his plans, and persuaded
them to arrange everything just as he wanted it.
The tea-bell rang before he had finished describing the
paradise which he meant to earn for Meg, and he proudly
took her in to supper, both looking so happy that Jo hadn’t
the heart to be jealous or dismal. Amy was very much
impressed by John’s devotion and Meg’s dignity, Beth beamed
at them from a distance, while Mr. and Mrs. March surveyed
the young couple with such tender satisfaction that it was per-
fectly evident Aunt March was right in calling them as
“unworldly as a pair of babies.” No one ate much, but
every one looked very happy, and the old room seemed to
brighten up amazingly when the first romance of the family
began there.
“You can’t say nothing pleasant ever happens now, can
you, Meg?” said Amy, trying to decide how she would group
the lovers in the sketch she was planning to take.
“No, I’m sure I can’t. How much has happened since I
said that! It seems a year ago,” answered Meg, who was in
a blissful dream, lifted far above such common things as
bread and butter.
“The joys come close upon the sorrows this time, and
I rather think the changes have begun,” said Mrs. March.
“In most families there comes, now and then, a year full
of events; this has been such an one, but it ends well,
after all.”
“‘ Hope the next will end better,” muttered Jo, who found
it very hard to see Meg absorbed in a stranger before her face;
for Jo loved a few persons very dearly, and dreaded to have
their affection lost or lessened in any way.
“TI hope the third year from this wz// end better; I mean
it shall, if I live to work out my plans,” said Mr. Brooke,
smiling at Meg, as if everything had become possible to
him now.
“‘Doesn’t it seem very long to wait?” asked Amy, who
was in a hurry for the wedding.
“I’ve got so much to learn before I shall be ready, it seems
 Aunt March Settles the Question art
a short time to me,” answered Meg, with a sweet gravity in
her face, never seen there before.
“You have only to wait; Jam to do the work,” said John,
beginning his labours by picking up Meg’s napkin, with an
expression which caused Jo to shake her head, and then say
to herself, with an air of relief, as the front door banged,
“Here comes Laurie. Now we shall have a little sensible
conversation.”
But Jo was mistaken; for Laurie came prancing in, over-
flowing with spirits, bearing a great bridal-looking bouquet for
“Mrs. John Brooke,” and evidently labouring under the
delusion that the whole affair had been, brought about by his
excellent management.
“IT knew Brooke would have it all his own way, he always
’ does; for when he makes up his mind to accomplish any-
thing, it’s done, though the sky falls,’ said Laurie, when he
had presented his offering and his congratulations.
“ Much obliged for that recommendation. I take it as a
good omen for the future, and invite you to my wedding on
the spot,” answered Mr. Brooke, who felt at peace with all
mankind, even his mischievous pupil.
‘““T’ll come if I’m at the ends of the earth ; for the sight of
Jo’s face alone, on that occasion, would be worth a long
journey. You don’t look festive, ma’am ; what’s the matter?”
asked Laurie, following her into a corner of the parlour,
whither all had adjourned to greet Mr. Laurence.
“‘T don’t approve of the match, but I’ve made up my mind
to bear it, and shall not say a word against it,” said Jo
solemnly.. ‘‘ You can’t know how hard it is for me to give up
Meg,” she continued, with a little quiver in her voice.
~ “You don’t give her up. You only go halves,” said Laurie
consolingly.
“It never can be the same again. I’ve lost my dearest
friend,” sighed Jo.
“ You’ve got me, anyhow. I’m not good for much, I know;
but I’ll stand by you, Jo, all the days of my life; upon my
word I will!” and Laurie meant what he said.
“T know you will, and I’m ever so much obliged; you are
always a great comfort to me, Teddy,” returned Jo, gratefully
shaking hands.
‘Well, now, don’t be dismal, there’s a good fellow. It’s
all right, you see. Meg is happy ; Brooke will fly round and
get settled immediately; grandpa will attend to him, and it
212 Little Women
will be very jolly to see Meg in her own little house. We'll
have capital times after she is gone, for I shall be through
college before long, and then we’ll go abroad, or some nice
trip or other. Wouldn’t that console you?”
“T rather think it would; but there’s no knowing what may
happen in three years,” said Jo thoughtfully. —
“That’s true. Don’t you wish you could take a look for-
ward, and see where we shall all be then? I do,” returned
Laurie.
“JT think not, for I might see something sad; and every
one looks so happy now, I don’t believe they could be
much improved,” and Jo’s eyes went slowly round the room,
brightening as they looked, for the prospect was a pleasant
one.
Father and mother sat together, quietly re-living the first
chapter of the romance which -for them began some twenty
years ago. Amy was drawing the lovers, who sat apart in
a beautiful world of their own, the light of which touched
their faces with a grace the little artist could not copy.
Beth lay on her sofa, talking cheerily with her old friend,
who held her little hand as if he felt that it possessed the
power to lead him along the peaceful way she walked. Jo
lounged in her favourite low seat, with the grave, quiet
look which best became her; and Laurie, leaning on the
back of her chair, his chin on a level with her curly head,
smiled with his friendliest aspect, and nodded at her in the
long glass which reflected them both. ;

So grouped, the curtain falls upon Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy.
Whether it ever rises again, depends upon the reception
given to the first act of the domestic drama called “ LitTLE
Women.”
 t=

: > i “A
OMPLETE AND UNABRIDGED