"STARTING DAY."
AS the days went by, the children grew very restless, wishing the
"starting day" would come. Ted's Mamma had packed his little trunk, and
marked it "T. T.," and finally, when only one more day remained of the
"between days," as the children called them, Mr. and Mrs. Terry had
bidden their little son good-bye and started off on their own journey.
So Teddy was all the more glad when the "great day" came at last.
"Hurrah, hurrah, Polly! This is our starting day! Polly, why don't you
halloo?"
"I'm _going_ to halloo," replied Polly: "listen!" And her voice rang out
in a clear shout which reached even down to the gate.
"Once more," cried Teddy, and this time his voice joined hers, and
Mamma, coming to the hall door, looked out to see what was going on.
[Illustration: "Teddy's Mamma had packed his little trunk."]
"It's 'cause we're so glad, Mamma dearie," replied Polly to the question
asked, "and it's our starting day, you know." She was perched upon the
piazza rail nearest the piazza of Teddy's house, and Teddy was to have
breakfast with her presently. Just now he was having his jacket well
brushed by Bridget, as he stood on his own piazza, and he was so
impatient to get over to Polly that he could hardly stand still long
enough for the brushing.
"Goin' inter the dirty wudshed just to see 'bout that tricircle," said
Bridget, grumbling as she brushed, "an' s'ilin' this bran' new suit yer
Ma bought for yer trav'lin'! I told yer I'd put it safe away!"
"Well, I wanted to see if you hadn't only _thought_ you'd put it safe,"
explained Teddy, who had considered it a very manly thing to investigate
his affairs himself, and had consequently gotten his new clothes into
disgrace.
"There now, yer clane and swate as a rose, an' it's ould Bridgie who'll
be missin' the trouble of yersel', an' for sure'll be wantin' some more
of that same!" said the good woman, giving him a parting hug and pat
before he was off to join Polly. At half-past nine the carriage was to
come for them and their trunks, and they would catch the ten a. m. train
for New York, and say good-bye to their pretty village home for a long
time. It was truly a very exciting morning, and Polly's mood for rhyming
was so strong that she finally accomplished this wonderful couplet,
which Teddy admired as much as she did herself. It ran this way:--
"Oh, Teddy Terry! we're going away!
For this--this--this is our _starting_ day!"
So Ted caught the rhyme, and joined in the singing of it, and if it was
sung once, it certainly was sung twenty times, till at last Papa put his
head out of the window and asked "if they would mind giving him and the
neighbors something _new_?"
Breakfast over, the little couple sat down on the sofa in the hall and
watched the clock, and at last the little hammer inside lifted itself
and struck against the bell waiting beside it, and lo and behold! there
came the carriage, driving up the road, and through the big gate, and up
to the door. Then the trunks were put on the rack behind (while Teddy
watched closely to see that the man did not forget to go and get the "T.
T." little trunk).
[Illustration]
Bridget and Ann were on hand to say the last good-byes, Mamma gave a few
last directions, and entered the carriage, Papa poked the small couple
in, topsy-turvy style, got in himself, called out good-bye to the
servants, who were wiping their eyes with the corners of their aprons,
and--the long-anticipated "start" had taken place.
Polly was radiant. She hugged Papa, squeezed Mamma, threw her arms
around Teddy, and kissed him over and over (getting as many kisses from
him as she gave, you may be sure), and finally settled down with a long
sigh of deep, pure content, and said "she was so happy she felt crowded
inside of her, right up to her throat!" And Teddy, not willing to feel
different from Polly, said: "So do I!"
I won't be able to tell you very much of the short journey to the city
of New York, for I've neither time nor space for it. But you know Polly
and Teddy were just like you, my dear little girls and boys, and they
enjoyed the few hours of train ride past fields and villages, hills and
meadows, and all the various kinds of landscape views, they watched from
the windows of their car, just as much as you have enjoyed such little
trips; and, moreover, they were just as restless and fidgety--when
feeling that they wanted to have a good run about, and couldn't "because
they were shut up in a railroad car so long!"--as all little folks (who
are real _live_ little folks) are apt to get under such circumstances.
But the cars sped on and on, and after a while they rushed pell-mell
into a long dark tunnel, which Polly at once recognized as the
"beginning of the end" of their journey to New York City.
"Now, jus' as soon as we get into the light again, and under a big high
roof, and the cars stop, that will be New York! Oh, Teddy Terry, aren't
you glad we're almost there?"
In his excitement Teddy forgot where he was, and, jumping to his feet,
he shouted: "Whoop!" as loudly as if he had been standing in his own
garden at home. Then, with an immediate sense of his mistake, the little
boy dropped again into his seat, and covered his mouth with both hands,
while his little crimson face was a pitiful sight to see.
"Oh, I forgot!" said he. "I truly did forget; but I did feel so full of
halloo, I--I--it came right out 'fore I guessed it would!" He looked
very penitent, but whispered to Polly:
"Don't you wish you could halloo, Polly darling? I should think you
would!"
"Teddy Terry, I'm just _bursting_ to halloo as loud as I can, but I
s'pose we'll have to keep on wanting to and never doing it while we're
European travelers. It'll be hard holding in, Teddy; but we've truly got
to, else Mamma and Papa'll be 'shamed of our queerness again, don't you
see?"
Teddy saw, and made up his mind to crowd his "hallooing feelings" as
deeply down inside of him as possible in future; and just then the train
gave a jerk, and began to move again very slowly, and at last New York
was reached.