Transcriber Note
Emphasis is denoted by _Italics_ and =Bold=.
[Illustration: Having a good time in the Garret.
See page 38.
]
UP IN THE GARRET.
By ROBIN RANGER.
SUNDAY-SCHOOL DEPARTMENT,
805 Broadway, N. Y.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by
CARLTON & PORTER,
in the Clerk's Office the District Court of the United States
for the Southern District of New York.
CONTENTS.
Chapter Page
I. How the Garret looked 7
II. The Little Bondies 16
III. Fine times up stairs 22
IV. Somebody comes to see them 35
V. The Swallow Story 44
VI. Coming down from the Garret 49
UP IN THE GARRET.
CHAPTER I.
HOW THE GARRET LOOKED.
The house in which Mr. Bondy lives is large and roomy. It stands on a
knoll or little hill, and has green grass and bright pretty flowers all
around it. There are also trees, some for shade and some for fruit.
But it is not about the house or the garden that I wish to tell you now.
You may laugh when I say that I want to talk to you about the GARRET of
the house.
"O, Mr. Robin Ranger," say you, "what is there about the garret that will
make a pleasant story for me to read? Don't the rats and mice live in the
garret? It is not a nice place: cold in winter, and hot in summer."
But stop a moment, Master Flurry, (if that is your name.) Isn't there a
garret to your house? And don't you go there sometimes to play, or to
find something that has been put in the rag bag? If you do not, I think
your sister does, and you may call her, if you think you do not want to
read about a garret, and see if she will not like it.
But I suppose that as you have read so far, you think you may as well go
on and find out what the story is about.
Mr. Bondy's garret was quite large. It had four small windows in it, two
at each end, so that there was plenty of light. There was also a chimney
between each pair of windows.
On the floor of the garret there was a little of everything: old
bedsteads and chairs waiting to be mended; trunks, valises, and
carpet-bags ready for traveling; rolls of spare carpet, matting, and oil
cloth; two or three stoves, put out of sight for the summer; hats in
bandboxes, and boots without any boxes; rag bags, and bags without any
rags.
Yet there was no disorder on the floor. Mrs. Bondy was a neat and careful
woman, and she had everything in her house, even in the garret, put in
order and kept so. Her motto was, "A place for everything, and everything
in its place." Hence the floor of the garret was kept clean, and the
various things I have named were stowed away where they might be found
when wanted.
There was a rope stretched across one end of the garret, and on this rope
were hung old clothes to be given to the poor, and winter clothes not now
in use. Nails were also driven into the rafters, which, I suppose you
know, are the beams or long pieces of wood just under the roof. From these
nails there hung little bundles of last year's herbs: mint, sage, thyme,
catnip, pennyroyal, and summer savory. These gave to the garret a very
pleasant smell.
Against one of the chimneys there stood a set of shelves which had once
been used in the kitchen; but when the kitchen was made larger, new
shelves were put in, and these old ones were sent up garret, where old
papers and books were piled on them.
I must not forget to tell you that on and under an old table with a
broken leg there were some toys: dolls, some with broken heads, and some
with broken arms; toy cats that couldn't squeak, and dogs that had long
ceased to bark; a company of soldiers that had once been able to stand up
together, but now looked as if they had been in the wars. The captain had
lost his head, and most of the men had lost either an arm or a leg.
There was also a little cradle with one rocker off, and a small cart with
only one wheel. There was a Noah's ark that had once been filled with
animals and with Noah's family--wooden animals and wooden people; but the
lid of the ark was gone, as though a great wind had blown it away, and the
animals and people were scattered, with broken limbs and heads, about the
floor.
These toys had been nice and new once, but they had been used as all other
toys are, and did not long stand the wear and tear of young hands. They
were still good enough to play with once in a while, and thus were put up
in the garret, while the newer and better toys were kept below, some in
the nursery and a few in the parlor.
And now you begin to think there must be some children in Mr. Bondy's
house, for he and his good wife would not play with dolls, and toy cats,
and wooden soldiers.
And you are right. There were children there, and I am glad of it, because
a house without any children in it is too dull and quiet, and is not as
pleasant as a house in which are the pattering of little feet, and the
laughter of merry little hearts, and the smiles of happy little faces. A
house without children is like a garden without buds.
If you want to know something of these children, read the next chapter.