Every-day Life. A true story

Preface

. — o — In sending this little volume into the world, I wish to claim nothing for it, but that every incident related is strictly true, from the greatest to the smallest. The words attributed to Sir John Franklin were spoken by him in my home just before his last voyage was undertaken. The teaching of the dumb girl ; the finding of the snake's skin ; the eating of the wild arum, &c, all are related exactly as they occurred; names and places only are a Httle veiled. E. A. B. PoNTENTS.

Chapter I. The Abbey Fields

" E^j£^\l^" what a beautiful, beautiful day ; is it not, LvnffJ Norna?" cried little Emily Dene. "Are you not glad we are going into the Abbey fields ? Oh, look what a blue sky, and what lovely little white clouds. See how they sail and sail along, and how many different shapes they have ! There is hardly anything so beautiful as sky and clouds, I think. Come, Ellen," she said to her youngest sister, " make haste. Arthur, we are going into the Abbey fields ; will you go ? " " Yes, indeed I will ; but Fred and I are going to run on first, as far as the valley field, and see if there are plenty of violets out, and then we can all pick together, you know." " Yes, yes, that will be nice. I hope there will be B such a lot, then we can bring them home and pick t'aem for the scent bowl." "Make haste, then, Chatterbox," said Fred to Emily, who often got this name in fun from her great propensity for incessant talking, " because you know if you spend all the time in chattering, Arthur and I will be obliged to gather all the violets by ourselves.

" " And that would be too bad, Fred," said Emily. " We will be very quick, Fred ; but you know we must not run till we get into the fields, because dear mother does not like us to run in the street." " All right," said Fred. " Come along, Artie." Now these Abbey fields were a very favourite walk with the young Dene children. Only a short space of quiet, almost country road lay between the entrance to tbe fields and their home, and they were so much used by the inhabitants of the small cathedral city, in the outskirts of which they lived, that Mr. and Mrs. Dene felt quite easy in trusting their children to ramble there alone. Good houses stood on one side of the road, and the magnificent cathedral on the other : some of the houses with a large piece of garden in front, making the road seem airy and pleasant ; then came more houses on the right, and gardens on the left, a church and schools, at last a row of cottages on one side, a field on the other, and at the end of the field a gentleman's house evehy'Day life. just opposite the Inst of the cottages.

Here all town life ended. There was only a road to cross, and the children were in their beloved " Abbey fields," so called because in one of them stood the ruins of an old abbey. The situation of these ruins was very lovely. A moat, now dry and grassy, ran round two sides of it; roses in abundance grew in the hedges which now formed the enclosure ; wild hoj^s trailed about among them ; a few nuts were to be found in the autumn ; not many, and all the more precious because they were so few, and a good deal of scrambling and jumping was necessary before they oould be reached ; a smooth quiet river ran along at the bottom, and in a deep drain which carried off the water from the fields above, into this river, grew abundance of the true forget-me-not, so lovely in its pure blue, that Emily used to call it " water sky : " plenty of the delicate arrowhead grew there, too ; its snow-white flowers, with their spots of rich deep crimson looking almost like a tiny gum cistus; the water primrose, yellow water-lilies, great yellow iris, and so many more favourite flowers that the children considered it quite a paradise; and many and many a happy summer's afternoon they spent there rambling in and out among the ruins, playing at hide-and-seek amongst them ; and when tired of play, sitting down to rest under the shade of a small grove of trees close by.

The stumps and b boles of the frees made nice dry seats; especially one large one at the upper end, which was always called "The Abbot," whilst the group of smaller ones were his "monks." Then, when rested, they would gather plenty of flowers and hasten home to put them in water before they could wither. This used to be when they had a half-holiday, as the abbey was some distance from their home. But perhaps of all these fields, which ran on in one long line for a mile or more, the children's chief favourite was the one which they called " the valley field." This valley was the space left by stone which long ago had been dug out here ; it was in fact an old stone quarry, the bottom and sides of which were now all covered with grass, and bushes of hawthorn, blackthorn, roses, privet, &c, among which grew abundance of the sweet violets for which they delighted to hunt ; not heeding a few pricks from brambles, or now and then a sting from a young nettle.

The lads delighted to make whistles and flutes, as they called them, from the thick stems of the spotted hemlock which grew at one end of their favourite valley, whilst Norna and her sisters equally rejoiced in its delicate blossoms, so fine that they always called it " white lace." . This valley was in the first of the meadow fields, which stretched away beyond it, eight or ten of them, all grass fields ; until at the far end of the EVEBY-DAY LIFE. 5 very last of them, you reached an enormous old ash tree; the trunk of which in its very young days must have had some accident, for it now formed two huge stems, one of which rose at once straight into the air, whilst the other grew quite flat for some three feet, and then rose up straight and strong beside its brother stem, thus forming an excellent seat.

The children called it the " arm-chair ;" and here, when there were not many flowers to gather, or they had plenty of time, they would come and rest ; the girls scrambling up to the chair, whilst their brothers went up higher and sat among the branches, or, with a pocket-knife, cut their names upon the bark. Very, very happy they used to be here, more especially Norna, who being a little lame and not very strong, enjoyed resting more than the more active ones. Must we tell you a little more about them all, whilst they are walking quietly to the end of the houses and across the road, and then hurrying through the first long field, wliich, being a ploughed field, did not often detain them long, unless when the pretty small pink and w*hite convolvolus was throwing its long wreaths of sweetsmelling flowers all over the hedge ; at all other times they were too eager to reach the soft grass, and their pleasant valley, to linger long in the ploughed field.

Frederick was the eldest ; he was nearly sixteen, and was studying hard with a surgeon, as he wished to be a medical man ; so he had got beyond the ranks of the children, and did not often have a walk w*ith them now, only just at this time he was having a little holiday. He was tall and very fair, with kindlooking blue eyes, and of so affectionate and gentle a disposition that though he was so tall and old, he never teased his young sisters, or made them feel afraid of him. He was always ready to lift the tiny Ellen, who was only five, and very small, up into a high seat on a tree or a stile ; to run a race, or play football with Arthur and other young lads ; or dive down the banks to gather forget-me-nots for Norna and Emily ; though he did sometimes call her Chatterbox in a playful way, wliich she did not at all mind, for she was a merry ohild, full of fun and good spirits, generally dancing along because she was too happy to walk steadily.

She too was very fair, and her long flaxen hair hung in natural curls all over her shoulders ; but, unlike her brother Frederick, she had very dark hazel eyes. She was nine years old, but being somewhat childish for her years, she always preferred little Ellen for her chief playfellow rather than Arthur or Norna. Norna was fourteen, small, and dark-complexioned ; a little lame. She was very fond of reading ; partly, perhaps, because having been obliged to lie part of each day upon her back, she had not been able to do any thineelse at those times. She was shy and reserved, but so quiet, steady, and thoughtful, that her mother could trust her always with the younger ones. Arthur came next ; a bright, active boy of eleven, rather given to tease a little at times, and somewhat obstinate and fond of his own opinion ; still, he was, on the whole, a kind brother, and always ready either to join in his sisters' games, or teach them to join him in his ; so that the girls were very fair hands at cricket, marbles, and other boys' games, whilst he could skip or use battledore and shuttlecock as well as they could.

Last came little Ellen ; a merry little puss, and a favourite with everyone, and of a most happy disposition. She was very healthy, but yet so liable, when she took any little cold, to run up at once into extremely high fever, that some care was needful ; and often her parents were obliged to deny her some little indulgences which were quite safe for the others ; on these occasions the happytempered child, who had just before been begging earnestly that she might do this or that, would turn round with a merry smile and say, " I don't want," and run off to some other amusement. She was very like her brother Frederick, who was much attached to the little thing, and she returned his affection with childish trust and confidence. Her blue eyes were always sparkling, and her Hght hair, though it did not curl like Emily's, was wavy and shining.

One young baby had been taken home again a short while ago, and had left little Ellen the undisputed pet and darling of the whole household. Two elder sons and a married daughter completed the party. But now they have reached the fields, and we must join them to see what they are doing.

Chapter II. Faiky Tales

" hl^b'tiP^ we may run' Norna, mayn't we ? " cavl| said Emily, who had with difficulty kept ' ■ — ' a steady walk through the town. " Yes, darling, you may run now as fast as you like, but do not go beyond the valley field; wait there for me." " 0, Norna, will not you run, too ? " cried Emily, rather sorrowfully. " No, dear ; I cannot to-day, my knee is so painful, and my back, too." " Then I will stay with you, Norna ; I do not want to run," said little Ellen. " No, Ellie dearest, run off ; I shall not mind being left, and you know I shall soon overtake you ; you cannot reach the valley more than five minutes before me; you can find the boys before I come, and then we can all search together for violets." So the two young ones scampered off in high glee, and were almost out of breath before they reached the gate ; then there was a lane to cross, which led down to the windmill ; and then through the next gate they rushed, and were at the head of the valley in another moment.

But no boys were to be seen. Along the valley bottom, and on both its sides, the two girls gazed, but no brothers could they see. " Frederick ! " " Arthur ! " they shouted again and again, but no answer came ; and the two girls were beginning to feel just a little timid at finding themselves so entirely alone, and a little frightened for their brothers, when to their great joy the gate opened and Norna joined them. They were standing just under a fine maple tree, which, with a small elm, grew at the head of the valley ; and though the day was so still, the leaves of the maple rustled a good deal, but they did not notice this in their eagerness to tell Norna. " "Where can they be gone to, Norna ? we cannot find them any where, and we have called and shouted, but we cannot make them hear." Just then a low smothered laugh sounded faintly over their heads, and Norna pointed to the branches of the maple tree, where one, two, three, four legs were to be seen dangling ; and then rapidly sliding down, the two brothers jumped to the ground, laughing at their sisters for not guessing at their hiding-place.

" Oh, you sly things," cried one. "Fine fellows you are for finding where the best violets are, when you go hiding up in trees instead of looking below them," said another. " Oh, we know without going to look," said Arthur; while Fred, laughing, caught up little Ellen in his arms, and ran down the valley with her, crying, "Now, Ellie, we'll run to the best place, and get such lots." All the others followed ; and soon the valley was sounding with their gleeful exclamations of delight, as, scrambling up and down its steep sides by tiny tracks which wound beneath the bushes, they came every now and then on some finer blossoms than usual, generally hidden in the most difficult spots for getting at them ; brambles, roses, blackthorn, and hawthorn, all were ready to scratch and prick the young gatherers ; but they went on unheeding pricks and scratches.

The girls were provided with little baskets, the boys liked better to fill their pockets and their caps. Soon, however, poor Norna tired, and beat a retreat to the top of the valley side, where she rested quietly, whilst the others pursued their search. They had nearly hunted through all the valley, when Emily came rushing up to her sister. " Oh, Norna, Norna, just look what a funny thing I have found ; what can it be ? It was growing amongst some large leaves under the hedge on the far side of the valley. Is it not pretty? Look what a soft purple top it has. What can it be ? It is not a flower, and yet it had a stalk and leaves about it." " Yes ; it is a flower, Emily, though it is a very curious one. It is a wild arum. Look down here, below the purple olub. Do you see these small lumps all set closely together around the stalk ?

Well, these are what will be the seed vessels ; and in autumn they will be a mass of such beautiful scarlet berries ; but they are not good to eat, they are poisonous. If we can remember to come and look here in autumn, you shall see how beautiful they are. Some people call it ' cuckoo pint/ because of this pale green sheath which is partly wrapped round it, and so closely at the bottom, that you might pour a little water into it, quite enough for a cuckoo to drink, though very far from a pint. We always call them 'lords and ladies,' because some of them are this dark purple, and others are a pale yellow; this you have found is a lord; but perhaps if you were to look well about, you might find a yellowish cream-coloured lady. Only if you wish to see the berries in autumn, you must not gather them all now."

" No, I think I will not look any more to-day. I will rest a little with you before we go home, and you shall tell me some more ; but Norna, I cannot think why you should call this a flower, even if it will have berries on ; it is not at all like a flower." " Do you remember that beautiful white arum lily at the Botanical Gardens, Emily ? Well, that lily has a yellow club — a lady — growing up in the middle of it; and if you consider, the beautiful white flower, almost like a trumpet in shape, is very little different from this pale green leaf which wraps round your purple lord ; if this were a pure white instead of green, and just curled over at the top, it would be very like that beautiful lily." " So it would," said Emily. " Eeally, Norna, this is very curious ; only think of my finding something so like that beautiful lily in our valley field — a sort of cousin to it.

Oh, Norna," she added, as she threw away the "lord" from her, which had now snapped off and looked drooping, " how did you get to know so much about flowers ? I do believe you know them every one." " Oh no, no, Emmie ! there are hundreds that I know nothing about ; but I do like to read about them, and learn as much as I can. The Christmas after I was eleven, Aunt Charlotte gave me a nice little book all about flowers and botany, and that was when I began to learn about them. It was all in nice talks between a young boy and his mother, in which she was teaohing him about them; and I thought if he could learn from her talks, so might I, by reading all she said instead of hearing her. So I began directly to read it, and learn what she said should be learned. And the first flower that came out in the garden was a crocus, and I made my first try upon that, and I found it all true that she said in the book ; and it was so interesting that from that time I went on more and more, and read other books when I could get them from the library."

"Oh, how nice, Norna. Do you think I could do so too, and should I like it ?" " I am sure you would like it, for there are such wonderful things about them; as wonderful as a fairy tale, some of them. I do not think you would like just yet to begin in the proper way, and learn all the hard words that are used ; but you might learn lots of the wonderful things about them, and many of the useful things too, without knowing all the hard words ; and without learning all the very difficult parts, if you would only take a very little trouble. There would be just a few hard words you must learn, perhaps ; but not harder than learning roses and brambles, hawthorn and blackthorn." " Those are not hard at all, Norna. And what are the wonderful fairy tales?" " Ah ! you little puss, you want to get all the plums without the pudding, do you ?

You know I told you it was if you would take a little trouble, and learn a few names I" " But I would learn a few names, Norna, if you will tell me them, and I could look at a crocus as you did." " But I had read and learned a good deal before I came to the crocus, Emmy, and crocusses are over now ; but you might be ready for roses and lilies and tulips, if you like to try. And as for the fairy tales, what do you think of a plant that grows all its flowers shut up in little bags, hundreds of poor little tiny flowers in each bag ?" " Oh, Norna, are you making a joke at me ?" " No, indeed, Emily, it is all true, I assure you. Then there is one with lots of wee, wee balloons on its stalks. This one lives in the water, and when it wishes to come to the top of the water and look about, it fills its little balloons with air, and up it comes.

There it stops and opens its buds, and shows people who will look, all its pretty little flowers. When its seeds are ripe, it empties all the air out of its Httle baUoons, lets some water in instead of the air, and down it pops to the bottom again. Then, what do you think of one which, instead of growing all its seeds inside, as apples and oranges do, carries them all on the outside of it ? Or of another which, if you go near to touch it, fires off its seeds in your face, and rolls up the seed bags in two curls, as if it were in a great rage at you, and would not be touched?" " Oh, Norna, it is like a fairy tale, indeed ! and are you sure it is all true ? Have you seen them ?" " Every one of them Em ; and I will show them all to you, and plenty more besides, if you like to learn a little first, just to understand about them.

And besides, Em, see how useful it is. Why, there are lots of plants in the world of which you could say, even though you had never seen them before, ' This one is good and wholesome, we may cook and eat it ; that one is bad and poisonous, we must let it alone.' Now, think if you were shipwreoked on some desert island, like Robinson Crusoe, how nice it would be if you could say so to the poor sailors, who were hunting about for something fit to eat." Frederick and Arthur came up with pockets and caps full of fresh, sweet violets, as Noini was end ing her speech ; and they were just going to make some remark about Robinson Crusoe and the plants, when they were all startled by a sharp cry of pain from Httle Ellen, who was sitting a short distance off, playing with the daisies around her. Instantly they all started up, and ran to ask what was the matter with her.

Chapter III. Sad Trouble

" tIIIHAT is [t' Ellie ? What is {t ? " they a11 WLsllP exclaimed. " " Oh, my throat, my throat, it burns 60 ! " cried poor Ellen, " and my mouth too. Oh, Norna, what must I do ; it burns so badly ? " " My dear little Ellie," said Norna, sitting down and taking the poor weeping child on her lap, " what is it ? Tell me, dear, what has made it burn ? Has anything stung you, or have you eaten anything, darling ? " she added, with a sudden fear oreeping into her heart, as she saw lying near, part of the " lord " from the wild arum, which Emily had thrown away. " Yes, Norna ; I ate some of that purple thing ; it looked so good, and I bit a piece off and ate it : but it was not nice, so I threw the rest away, and then my throat began to burn so badly, and it burns now. Oh, it burns so ! " said the child, bursting afresh into the tears which the comfort of her sister's soothing had stayed for awhile.

In great alarm Norna turned to Frederick. " We c must get her home as quickly as we can, Fred, she said. Do you run home as fast as possible, and tell what has happened, and ask if you should fetch Dr. Franklin, and Arthur and I will bring her on home between us." Then thinking of her father and mother, and the alarm they would feel, she called after him, "She cannot have eaten very much, tell them ; " and then turning to the sobbing Ellen, she said, " Never mind, EUen ; it is well you did not eat any more. Perhaps the pain and burn ing will go off soon, so do not cry any more, darHng, but try to bear it as well as you can, and we will make haste home and get something to do you good." Ellen was a little comforted, and bravely stopping her sobs as much as she could, gave her other hand to Arthur, and between the two they hurried her along, half helping and half lifting her ; whilst Emily followed behind, in great sorrow to think she had happened to throw away the poisonous plant so close to where her little sister came to sit ; although Ellen was not there when she threw it away, but came there afterwards.

Norna's alarm grew very great when she found, as they rapidly crossed the field, that the burning in her throat did not diminish, but rather increased, as she could tell by the more frequent wails and cries the poor Httle girl uttered from time to time, in spite os her brave efforts to bear it patiently. At length, as they drew near the end of the field, she could bear it no longer, but burst again into a flood of tears, crying, " Oh, Sis ; it is so hot, and my throat is so dry, I cannot help crying. Do let us go into Mrs. Chapel's house and ask for a drink of water ; please do." " Yes you shaU, dear," said Norna, not knowing this would be bad for her. They had now reached the road, and as old Mrs. Chapel lived in the very first cottage, they were soon in, and asked for and got the cup of cold water, which Ellen eagerly drank.

Mrs. Chapel was a quiet, respectable old woman, to whom Mrs. Dene had often been kind, sending her a Httle hot nourishing food and warm flannels wheD, as often happened, the poor old woman had a sharp attack of rheumatism. So Norna had not been at all afraid to go in there and ask for the water, knowing that her mother had a great respect for the old woman ; and, indeed, Mrs. Dene had often sent the children to caU on some errand of kindness at her cottage. She was very sorry when she heard the tale, which Arthur quickly told her whilst Ellen was drinking the water, and said they were quite wise to make haste home, adding that she knew well how poisonous those " lords and ladies " were, as a Httle child near by had been nearly killed with them. c2 Again a pang of deep anguish smote poor Norna as she looked at her sister's tearful face ; and Ellen declared she was no better at all for the water, she thought her throat burned more than ever.

Thank ing the good old woman for the water, and somewhat refreshed by the short rest, they set off again at a quick walk, and in a few minutes more were at home. Here they found Dr. Franklin waiting for them ; for whilst running home Frederick had had time to think, and as his medical studies had already made him aware that if any good was to be done in cases of poisoning it must be done quickly, he had decided to go first to the doctor's house and tell him all the circumstances before going home to tell his parents ; and all said he had done wisely : so they all entered the house together. Little Ellen was by this time quite worn out with crying and pain and running, and the doctor said she had better be taken at once to bed. Mrs. Dene inquired if he would give her an emetic. But he said, " No ; it would be of no use to do that, it is too late for that, the poison will be absorbed into her system before now.

But do not be uneasy, Mrs. Dene, the quantity she has eaten cannot be sufficient to do her any very serious harm. I will give her some medicine which I have brought with me, and by-and-bye she will fall asleep, and when she wakes up I hope the burning pain wdl have passed away, and she will be pretty well again ; but meantime she must be kept very quiet, and must not on any account be awakened by any noise. The nursemaid might sit in the room with her sewing ; but she must not let cotton-reels fall, or scissors sound on the table." "No," said Mrs. Dene. "I will take care she shall be kept very quiet. Go, Norna dear, and say there is to be no noise anywhere in the house." So Ellen was speedily undressed and put to bed, and then the kind Dr. Franklin himself gave her the medicine, and watched beside her until she was in a quiet sleep.