Eight Cousins Read online

  Chapter 15--Ear-Rings

  Rose's sprain proved to be a serious one, owing to neglect, and Dr. Alecordered her to lie on the sofa for a fortnight at least; whereat shegroaned dismally, but dared not openly complain, lest the boys turnupon her with some of the wise little sermons on patience which she haddelivered for their benefit.

  It was Mac's turn now, and honourably did he repay his debt; for, asschool was still forbidden, he had plenty of leisure, and devoted mostof it to Rose. He took many steps for her, and even allowed her to teachhim to knit, after assuring himself that many a brave Scotchman knew howto "click the pricks." She was obliged to take a solemn vow of secrecy,however, before he would consent; for, though he did not mind beingcalled "Giglamps," "Granny" was more than his boyish soul could bear,and at the approach of any of the Clan his knitting vanished as if bymagic, which frequent "chucking" out of sight did not improve the stripehe was doing for Rose's new afghan.

  She was busy with this pretty work one bright October afternoon, allnicely established on her sofa in the upper hall, while Jamie and Pokey(lent for her amusement) were keeping house in a corner, with Comet andRose's old doll for their "childerns."

  Presently, Phebe appeared with a card. Rose read it, made a grimace,then laughed and said,

  "I'll see Miss Blish," and immediately put on her company face, pulledout her locket, and settled her curls.

  "You dear thing, how do you do? I've been trying to call every day sinceyou got back, but I have so many engagements, I really couldn't manageit till to-day. So glad you are alone, for mamma said I could sitawhile, and I brought my lace-work to show you, for it's perfectlylovely." cried Miss Blish, greeting Rose with a kiss, which was not verywarmly returned, though Rose politely thanked her for coming, and bidPhebe roll up the easy chair.

  "How nice to have a maid!" said Ariadne, as she settled herself withmuch commotion. "Still, dear, you must be very lonely, and feel the needof a bosom friend."

  "I have my cousins," began Rose, with dignity, for her visitor'spatronising manner ruffled her temper.

  "Gracious, child! you don't make friends of those great boys, do you?Mamma says she really doesn't think it's proper for you to be with themso much."

  "They are like brothers, and my aunts do think it's proper," repliedRose, rather sharply, for it struck her that this was none of MissBlish's business.

  "I was merely going to say I should be glad to have you for my bosomfriend, for Hatty Mason and I have had an awful quarrel, and don'tspeak. She is too mean to live, so I gave her up. Just think, she neverpaid back one of the caramels I've given her, and never invited me toher party. I could have forgiven the caramels, but to be left out inthat rude way was more than I could bear, and I told her never to lookat me again as long as she lived."

  "You are very kind, but I don't think I want a bosom friend, thank you,"said Rose, as Ariadne stopped to bridle and shake her flaxen head overthe delinquent Hatty Mason.

  Now, in her heart Miss Blish thought Rose "a stuck-up puss," butthe other girls wanted to know her and couldn't, the old house was acharming place to visit, the lads were considered fine fellows, andthe Campbells "are one of our first families," mamma said. So Ariadneconcealed her vexation at Rose's coolness, and changed the subject asfast as possible.

  "Studying French, I see; who is your teacher?" she asked, flitting overthe leaves of "Paul and Virginia," that lay on the table.

  "I don't study it, for I read French as well as English, and uncle andI often speak it for hours. He talks like a native, and says I have aremarkably good accent."

  Rose really could not help this small display of superiority, for Frenchwas one of her strong points, and she was vain of it, though she usuallymanaged to hide this weakness. She felt that Ariadne would be the betterfor a little crushing, and could not resist the temptation to patronisein her turn.

  "Oh, indeed!" said Miss Blish, rather blankly, for French was not herstrong point by any means.

  "I am to go abroad with uncle in a year or two, and he knows howimportant it is to understand the languages. Half the girls who leaveschool can't speak decent French, and when they go abroad they areso mortified. I shall be very glad to help you, if you like, for, ofcourse, you have no one to talk with at home."

  Now Ariadne, though she looked like a wax doll, had feelings within herinstead of sawdust, and these feelings were hurt by Rose's lofty tone.She thought her more "stuck up" than ever, but did not know how to bringher down, yet longed to do it, for she felt as if she had received abox on the ear, and involuntarily put her hand up to it. The touch of anear-ring consoled her, and suggested a way of returning tit for tat in atelling manner.

  "Thank you, dear; I don't need any help, for our teacher is from Paris,and of course he speaks better French than your uncle." Then she added,with a gesture of her head that set the little bells on her ears totingling: "How do you like my new ear-rings? Papa gave them to me lastweek, and everyone says they are lovely."

  Rose came down from her high horse with a rapidity that was comical,for Ariadne had the upper hand now. Rose adored pretty things, longedto wear them, and the desire of her girlish soul was to have her earsbored, only Dr. Alec thought it foolish, so she never had done it. Shewould gladly have given all the French she could jabber for a pair ofgolden bells with pearl-tipped tongues, like those Ariadne wore; and,clasping her hands, she answered, in a tone that went to the hearer'sheart,

  "They are too sweet for anything! If uncle would only let me wear some,I should be perfectly happy."

  "I wouldn't mind what he says. Papa laughed at me at first, but he likesthem now, and says I shall have diamond solitaires when I am eighteen,"said Ariadne, quite satisfied with her shot.

  "I've got a pair now that were mamma's, and a beautiful little pair ofpearl and turquoise ones, that I am dying to wear," sighed Rose.

  "Then do it. I'll pierce your ears, and you must wear a bit of silk inthem till they are well; your curls will hide them nicely; then, someday, slip in your smallest ear-rings, and see if your uncle don't likethem."

  "I asked him if it wouldn't do my eyes good once when they were red, andhe only laughed. People do cure weak eyes that way, don't they?"

  "Yes, indeed, and yours are sort of red. Let me see. Yes, I really thinkyou ought to do it before they get worse," said Ariadne, peering intothe large clear eye offered for inspection.

  "Does it hurt much?" asked Rose, wavering.

  "Oh dear, no; just a prick and a pull, and it's all over. I've donelots of ears, and know just how. Come, push up your hair and get a bigneedle."

  "I don't quite like to do it without asking uncle's leave," falteredRose, when all was ready for the operation.

  "Did he ever forbid it?" demanded Ariadne, hovering over her prey like avampire.

  "No, never!"

  "Then do it, unless you are afraid," cried Miss Blish, bent onaccomplishing the deed.

  That last word settled the matter, and, closing her eyes, Rose said"Punch!" in the tone of one giving the fatal order "Fire!"

  Ariadne punched, and the victim bore it in heroic silence, though sheturned pale and her eyes were full of tears of anguish.

  "There! Now pull the bits of silk often, and cold-cream your ears everynight, and you'll soon be ready for the rings," said Ariadne, wellpleased with her job, for the girl who spoke French with "a fine accent"lay flat upon the sofa, looking as exhausted as if she had had both earscut off.

  "It does hurt dreadfully, and I know uncle won't like it," sighed Rose,as remorse began to gnaw. "Promise not to tell, or I shall be teasedto death," she added, anxiously, entirely forgetting the two littlepitchers gifted with eyes as well as ears, who had been watching thewhole performance from afar.

  "Never. Mercy me, what's that?" and Ariadne started as a sudden sound ofsteps and voices came up from below.

  "It's the boys! Hide the needle. Do my ears show? Don't breathe a word!"whispered Rose, scrambling about to conceal all traces of their iniquityfrom the sharp eyes
of the Clan.

  Up they came, all in good order, laden with the proceeds of a nuttingexpedition, for they always reported to Rose and paid tribute to theirqueen in the handsomest manner.

  "How many, and how big! We'll have a grand roasting frolic after tea,won't we?" said Rose, plunging both hands into a bag of glossy brownnuts, while the Clan "stood at ease" and nodded to Ariadne.

  "That lot was picked especially for you, Rosy. I got every one myself,and they are extra whackers," said Mac, presenting a bushel or so.

  "You should have seen Giglamps when he was after them. He pitched outof the tree, and would have broken his blessed old neck if Arch hadnot caught him," observed Steve, as he lounged gracefully in the windowseat.

  "You needn't talk, Dandy, when you didn't know a chestnut from a beech,and kept on thrashing till I told you of it," retorted Mac, festooninghimself over the back of the sofa, being a privileged boy.

  "I don't make mistakes when I thrash you, old Worm, so you'd better mindwhat you are about," answered Steve, without a ray of proper respect forhis elder brother.

  "It is getting dark, and I must go, or mamma will be alarmed," saidAriadne, rising in sudden haste, though she hoped to be asked to remainto the nut-party.

  No one invited her; and all the while she was putting on her things andchatting to Rose the boys were telegraphing to one another the sad factthat someone ought to escort the young lady home. Not a boy felt heroicenough to cast himself into the breach, however; even polite Archieshirked the duty, saying to Charlie, as they quietly slipped into anadjoining room,

  "I'm not going to do all the gallivanting. Let Steve take that chit homeand show his manners."

  "I'll be hanged if I do!" answered Prince, who disliked Miss Blishbecause she tried to be coquettish with him.

  "Then I will," and, to the dismay of both recreant lads, Dr. Alec walkedout of the room to offer his services to the "chit."

  He was too late, however, for Mac, obeying a look from Rose, had alreadymade a victim of himself, and trudged meekly away, wishing the gentleAriadne at the bottom of the Red Sea.

  "Then I will take this lady down to tea, as the other one has found agentleman to go home with her. I see the lamps are lighted below, and Ismell a smell which tells me that auntie has something extra nice for usto-night."

  As he spoke, Dr. Alec was preparing to carry Rose downstairs as usual;but Archie and Prince rushed forward, begging with penitent eagernessfor the honour of carrying her in an arm-chair. Rose consented, fearingthat her uncle's keen eye would discover the fatal bits of silk; so theboys crossed hands, and, taking a good grip of each curly pate, she wasborne down in state, while the others followed by way of the banisters.

  Tea was ordered earlier than usual, so that Jamie and his dolly couldhave a taste, at least, of the holiday fun, for they were to stay tillseven, and be allowed twelve roasted chestnuts apiece, which they wereunder bonds not to eat till next day.

  Tea was despatched rapidly, therefore, and the party gathered round thewide hearth in the dining-room, where the nuts were soon dancing gailyon hot shovels or bouncing out among the company, thereby causingdelightful panics among the little ones.

  "Come, Rosy, tell us a story while we work, for you can't help much,and must amuse us as your share," proposed Mac, who sat in the shadepricking nuts, and who knew by experience what a capital littleScheherazade his cousin was.

  "Yes, we poor monkeys can't burn our paws for nothing, so tell away,Pussy," added Charlie, as he threw several hot nuts into her lap andshook his fingers afterwards.

  "Well, I happen to have a little story with a moral to it in my mind,and I will tell it, though it is intended for younger children thanyou," answered Rose, who was rather fond of telling instructive tales.

  "Fire away," said Geordie, and she obeyed, little thinking what adisastrous story it would prove to herself.

  "Well, once upon a time, a little girl went to see a young lady who wasvery fond of her. Now, the young lady happened to be lame, and hadto have her foot bandaged up every day; so she kept a basketful ofbandages, all nicely rolled and ready. The little girl liked to playwith this basket, and one day, when she thought no one saw her, she tookone of the rolls without asking leave, and put it in her pocket."

  Here Pokey, who had been peering lovingly down at the five warm nutsthat lay at the bottom of her tiny pocket, suddenly looked up and said,"Oh!" in a startled tone, as if the moral tale had become intenselyinteresting all at once.

  Rose heard and saw the innocent betrayal of the small sinner, and wenton in a most impressive manner, while the boys nudged one another andwinked as they caught the joke.

  "But an eye did see this naughty little girl, and whose eye do you thinkit was?"

  "Eye of Dod," murmured conscience-stricken Pokey, spreading two chubbylittle hands before the round face, which they were not half big enoughto hide.

  Rose was rather taken aback by this reply, but, feeling that she wasproducing a good effect, she added seriously,

  "Yes, God saw her, and so did the young lady, but she did not sayanything; she waited to see what the little girl would do about it. Shehad been very happy before she took the bandage, but when it was in herpocket she seemed troubled, and pretty soon stopped playing, and satdown in a corner looking very sober. She thought a few minutes, and thenwent and put back the roll very softly, and her face cleared up, andshe was a happy child again. The young lady was glad to see that, andwondered what made the little girl put it back."

  "Tonscience p'icked her," murmured a contrite voice from behind thesmall hands pressed tightly over Pokey's red face.

  "And why did she take it, do you suppose?" asked Rose, in aschool-marmish tone, feeling that all the listeners were interested inher tale and its unexpected application.

  "It was so nice and wound, and she wanted it deffly," answered thelittle voice.

  "Well, I'm glad she had such a good conscience. The moral is that peoplewho steal don't enjoy what they take, and are not happy till they putit back. What makes that little girl hide her face?" asked Rose, as sheconcluded.

  "Me's so 'shamed of Pokey," sobbed the small culprit, quite overcome byremorse and confusion at this awful disclosure.

  "Come, Rose, it's too bad to tell her little tricks before everyone,and preach at her in that way; you wouldn't like it yourself," began Dr.Alec, taking the weeper on his knee and administering consolation in theshape of kisses and nuts.

  Before Rose could express her regret, Jamie, who had been reddeningand ruffling like a little turkey-cock for several minutes, burst outindignantly, bent on avenging the wound given to his beloved dolly.

  "I know something bad that you did, and I'm going to tell right out. Youthought we didn't see you, but we did, and you said uncle wouldn't likeit, and the boys would tease, and you made Ariadne promise not to tell,and she punched holes in your ears to put ear-rings in. So now! andthat's much badder than to take an old piece of rag; and I hate you formaking my Pokey cry."

  Jamie's somewhat incoherent explosion produced such an effect thatPokey's small sin was instantly forgotten, and Rose felt that her hourhad come.

  "What! what! what!" cried the boys in a chorus, dropping their shovelsand knives to gather round Rose, for a guilty clutching at her earsbetrayed her, and with a feeble cry of "Ariadne made me!" she hid herhead among the pillows like an absurd little ostrich.

  "Now she'll go prancing round with bird cages and baskets and carts andpigs, for all I know, in her ears, as the other girls do, and won't shelook like a goose?" asked one tormentor, tweaking a curl that strayedout from the cushions.

  "I didn't think she'd be so silly," said Mac, in a tone ofdisappointment that told Rose she had sunk in the esteem of her wisecousin.

  "That Blish girl is a nuisance, and ought not to be allowed to come herewith her nonsensical notions," said the Prince, feeling a strong desireto shake that young person as an angry dog might shake a mischievouskitten.

  "How do you like it, uncle?" asked Ar
chie, who, being the head of afamily himself, believed in preserving discipline at all costs.

  "I am very much surprised; but I see she is a girl, after all, and musthave her vanities like all the rest of them," answered Dr. Alec, witha sigh, as if he had expected to find Rose a sort of angel, above allearthly temptations.

  "What shall you do about it, sir?" inquired Geordie, wondering whatpunishment would be inflicted on a feminine culprit.

  "As she is fond of ornaments, perhaps we had better give her a nose-ringalso. I have one somewhere that a Fiji belle once wore; I'll look itup," and, leaving Pokey to Jamie's care, Dr. Alec rose as if to carryout his suggestion in earnest.

  "Good! good! We'll do it right away! Here's a gimlet, so you holdher, boys, while I get her dear little nose all ready," cried Charlie,whisking away the pillow as the other boys danced about the sofa in trueFiji style.

  It was a dreadful moment, for Rose could not run away she could onlygrasp her precious nose with one hand and extend the other, cryingdistractedly,

  "O uncle, save me, save me!"

  Of course he saved her; and when she was securely barricaded by hisstrong arm, she confessed her folly in such humiliation of spirit, thatthe lads, after a good laugh at her, decided to forgive her and lay allthe blame on the tempter, Ariadne. Even Dr. Alec relented so far as topropose two gold rings for the ears instead of one copper one for thenose; a proceeding which proved that if Rose had all the weakness ofher sex for jewellery, he had all the inconsistency of his in giving apretty penitent exactly what she wanted, spite of his better judgment.