VIVIAN’S LESSON
[Illustration: They made such a pretty picture that there was quite a
burst of applause.
V. L. PAGE 33.]
VIVIAN’S LESSON
By
ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON
Author of
‘Children’s Tales from Scottish Ballads,’
‘The Children’s Book of Edinburgh,’ &c.
WITH TEN ILLUSTRATIONS
by
Hilda Cowham
[Illustration]
LONDON AND EDINBURGH
W. & R. CHAMBERS, LIMITED
Philadelphia: J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
1907
Edinburgh:
Printed by W. & R. Chambers, Limited.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER PAGE
I. WHAT BEGAN IT 1
II. AN INVITATION 11
III. GOING TO LONDON 19
IV. THE CHRISTMAS TREE 29
V. A FALSE STEP 40
VI. A GAME OF HIDE-AND-SEEK 54
VII. ANOTHER INVITATION 70
VIII. THE BROKEN WINDOWS 80
IX. THE MAN IN THE SUMMER-HOUSE 92
X. BURGLARS 103
XI. THE DOCTOR’S VISIT 121
XII. THE DARK SHADOW 135
XIII. A DREARY HOMECOMING 156
XIV. VIVIAN CONQUERS 166
XV. ANOTHER MYSTERY 179
XVI. A VAIN SEARCH 193
XVII. MADAME GENVIÈVE 203
XVIII. RUNNING AWAY 214
XIX. THE JOURNEY 223
XX. MONSIEUR THE VICOMTE DE CHOISIGNY 236
XXI. THE OPINION OF DR JULES 245
XXII. MR MAXWELL FINDS OUT THE TRUTH 254
XXIII. A HAPPY MEETING 265
XXIV. A FRESH BEGINNING 277
XXV. WESTWARD HO! 285
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
They made such a pretty picture that there was
quite a burst of applause _Frontispiece._
They were a merry party as they walked across
the snowy meadow to church 17
The children set to work and transformed the
hall into a perfect bower 29
‘But what is that bundle of rags for?’ went on
Vivian, putting up his hand to pull them
down 59
Isobel lay down with a story-book on the
schoolroom sofa, and soon fell into a
heavy sleep 64
There, to his horror, looking through the gap,
was a rough-looking man, with a stubbly
beard, and a dirty white muffler twisted
loosely round his neck 92
At last a tiny red speck appeared under the yellow
lamp, and began to move slowly up the road 162
‘Thou lazy dreamer!’ she said, pulling him to his
feet by the collar of his blue cotton blouse 205
He sank gratefully into the soft bed of straw
which the kind countryman made up for him,
and had fallen into a feverish sleep 231
‘Mother, oh mother!’ he cried.... ‘Can you forgive me?’ 266
VIVIAN’S LESSON.
CHAPTER I.
WHAT BEGAN IT.
‘COME on, Vivian. It is high time we were going home; you know we
promised mother that we would come off the ice at half-past four.’
‘Well, so we will; but it is only five-and-twenty past now, so we
have plenty of time for one turn more. Come on, old stupid; you are
always frightened of being late;’ and the younger of the speakers, a
brown-eyed, mischievous-looking lad of about eleven, swung off with
his three companions, leaving his brother standing watching them, a
troubled look on his face.
He hated to make a fuss, and he did not want to leave the ice a moment
sooner than he could help; but a promise is a promise, and he had
given his word that they would be ready to leave the pond at the
half-hour. It was later than they were generally allowed to stay; but
it was Saturday afternoon, and there were signs of a thaw, so, as the
ice might not last till Monday, their father had agreed to an extra
half-hour on condition that they left the ice punctually and hurried
home.
Vivian had given his word readily enough, and had meant to keep it; but
now, as he flew round and round the pond, crying ‘Just one turn more,’
he seemed to have forgotten all about his promise.
Ronald sat down and took off his skates, then stepped on the path, and
stood buckling them together.
‘Come on, Vivi,’ he entreated. ‘It is the half-hour now, and you know
how anxious mother will be.’
‘All right,’ said Vivian a little sulkily, ‘I suppose I must; but it
is an awful nuisance, when we may not have such lovely ice all winter
again.’
‘I should think so,’ struck in Fergus Strangeways. ‘I am thankful that
father doesn’t make us come in so soon. Why, the moon will be up in no
time, and we will stay on quite late. Captain Laing and he are coming
down before dinner, and Captain Laing promised to show us how to cut
the “Figure Eight.”’
‘How jolly!’ said Ronald a little wistfully, while Vivian bent his head
over his straps and pretended not to hear.
‘Couldn’t you stay, really?’ asked Charlie Strangeways, Fergus’s
elder brother; ‘you could come in and have tea with us. I dare say Dr
Armitage would know where you were; it is going to be lovely moonlight,
and it isn’t as if we were to be alone all the time. I don’t suppose
that he would have minded if he had known that the dad and Captain
Laing were coming.’
‘Oh, do let us stay, Ronald! I’m sure father wouldn’t mind. You know he
did say that he would have taken us out by moonlight himself if he had
not been so busy,’ pleaded Vivian.
‘No, Charlie,’ said Ronald firmly. ‘It is very good of you to ask us,
and it would have been splendid fun; but father didn’t know about your
father and Captain Laing, and he would wonder where we were. Besides,
we promised.—So hurry up, Vivian.’
‘What a stick you are, Ronald!’ said Fergus; ‘you can’t change a bit,
even when circumstances change. Just because Dr Armitage said that you
couldn’t be out alone here after dark, you spoil all the fun by going
off, although it is very different now that father and Captain Laing
are coming.’
‘Don’t be stupid, Fergus,’ put in Charlie good-naturedly. ‘If they
promised, they must go. Besides, it is a long way over to Holmend; it
is easy for us with our house close by.’
Charlie was fifteen, and a public school boy, so his word carried
weight with it, and his brother was silent, while Vivian took up his
skates more cheerfully.
‘We’ll see you in the beginning of the week,’ went on Charlie; ‘we are
going to practise shooting on Tuesday if the frost doesn’t hold, we
have got such jolly little pistols from Uncle Don; they carry quite a
long way, and one can kill a bird with them. You must come over and
bring yours; the Doctor is going to give you a pair for Christmas,
isn’t he?’
Poor Vivian turned hot all over. If there was one thing in the world he
was frightened of, it was being laughed at. As a rule, the boys were
at liberty to choose their Christmas presents; and when, a fortnight
before, Fergus had told him of his uncle’s intended present, he had
instantly agreed to ask his father for the same, and great had been his
disappointment and dismay when his request met with a grave refusal.
‘A pistol for your Christmas present! Not if I know it, my boy. What!
Fergus and Vere and Charlie going to have them? Well, if I mistake
not, they will be in my hands shortly. No, no; if their father likes
to risk their lives, that is no reason why I should risk yours. Now,
don’t look so glum; I know what I am talking about. If you had seen the
case I saw over at Whitforth the other day: a lad older than either
Ronald or you had got hold of one of these pistols, and it went off in
his little brother’s face. I don’t want to harrow your feelings, but,’
and the Doctor’s voice dropped, and he spoke sadly, ‘that poor little
chap will never be able to see again. No; I’ll give you anything you
like, in reason, for your Christmas present, but a pistol is out of the
question.’
At the time the explanation had been sufficient, but now Vivian’s eager
little spirit felt very rebellious.
Fergus Strangeways was just a year older than he was, and surely he
was as capable of being careful as Fergus. How Fergus and Vere would
laugh at him if they knew the whole story! He flashed a warning look at
Ronald, but Ronald did not seem to understand.
‘We may come out to watch,’ he said in his quiet voice; ‘but father
won’t let us have pistols yet. He says we are too young. He has
promised to give us proper guns when we are sixteen. He will not let us
shoot before that.’
The pitying looks on his companions’ faces were quite lost on Ronald,
who was only thinking of his promise to be home in good time; but they
stung Vivian even more than the words that followed.
‘What a nuisance it must be to be so well looked after! You’ll grow
into regular muffs if you don’t look out.’
‘I would give you a licking for that, just to judge if the symptoms are
beginning, but I haven’t time to-night,’ said Ronald, with a laugh,
conscious that none of the boys could stand up against him; and he
walked off whistling through the woods, followed by Vivian, who was
fuming with rage and injured pride.
‘What made you go and give me away like that?’ he asked presently.
‘You know there is a talk of our going to Aunt Dora’s next week. I
know, anyhow, because mother had a letter, and if only you had held
your tongue I would have said that very likely we would be away from
home, and they need never have known anything about father not letting
us have these pistols. Now Fergus will go all over the place laughing
at us for a couple of babies;’ and he kicked at the fallen leaves
viciously in his vexation.
‘As if I minded what Fergus Strangeways says!’ retorted Ronald
scornfully; ‘why, he’s the veriest little ass going. He may get a
pistol, but I bet you a sixpence that he daren’t let it off, in spite
of all his bluster. Besides, I knew nothing about any invitation to
Aunt Dora’s; and if I had, I wouldn’t have been such a sneak as to
pretend that that was the reason that we couldn’t go to shoot with
them. Of course it is a nuisance. I would have liked a pistol as well
as you; but father would not have hindered us having one if he had not
had good reasons, and now that he has promised us that lovely camera
I’m sure we can’t grumble.’
‘That’s all very well for you,’ growled Vivian; ‘you always were a bit
of a muff, with your music, and your photographs, and your collections.
“The paragon” the other boys call you behind your back, for they say
that you haven’t enough spirit in you to do anything wrong.’
‘They had better say it to my face then, and I’ll give them what for,
and you too for listening to such rot,’ said Ronald hotly; and then he
laughed at his own vehemence. ‘Don’t let us quarrel on Christmas Eve,’
he went on pleasantly; ‘I’ll race you across the meadow.’
They set off at a run, and by the time they had reached the garden
gate, hot and breathless, they had almost forgotten the cause of their
anger.
‘There is mother at the window, and Dorothy,’ cried Vivian, waving his
cap. ‘Doesn’t a lit-up room look jolly and comfortable when one is
outside? After all, I am rather glad that we didn’t stay any longer at
the lake, for I am awfully hungry, and I expect there is a scrumptious
tea in the schoolroom.’
As they went into the hall of the long, low red house, a little figure
in white ran out to meet them.
‘Hurry, quick!’ she lisped, ‘we’s going to have tea wif muvver, an’
then we’s going to dec’rate. Black has brought in such a lot of green
stuff, heaps an’ heaps, all p’ickles. Dorothy knows, ’cause she hurted
her fingers.’
‘Dorothy was well warned, so it was her own fault,’ said a clear voice
behind her, and Mrs Armitage appeared in the hall. Tall, slim, and
graceful, with a wealth of rippling hair and a sweet pale face, it was
no wonder that to the boys mother was the centre of their world.
‘Quickly, boys, run upstairs, get off those dirty boots, and get ready
for tea. Father has been called out, and may not be home till quite
late, so I will have it with you in the schoolroom, and afterwards we
will try to get the hall decorated before he comes back. You know how
he loves to see the greenery.’
After tea, Ellen the housemaid was pressed into the service, so the
decorations went on merrily; and as Vivian stood on a ladder fastening
up the wreaths of bright holly which his mother’s quick fingers wove so
rapidly, while little Dorothy ran about, proud in the belief that she
was helping every one, he thought quite pityingly of the Strangeways,
who had no mother or little sister, although they might possess pistols
and skate in the moonlight while he had to come home.