and then somebody rushed in, saying, “we've another locomotive; now we're going!” and everybody else who was outside hurried into the cars; the new propelling power was attached to the other end of the train, and after a deal of switching, there they were at last—off on the way home!
polly gave a long breath of relief, and clasped alexia's hand closely. “oh, by this time they know at home it's all right,” she cried.
the doctor came smilingly down the aisle. “well,” he nodded to polly. “yes, it's all right,” he said. “i must really call you polly pepper now, for i know your grandfather, and dr. fisher—well there! indeed i know him.”
“do you?” cried polly with blooming cheeks, well pleased to find a friend at such a time.
“yes, indeed. i'm fortunate enough to meet him in hospital work. now then, how is our little friend here?” he leaned over, and touched alexia's arm lightly.90
“oh, i'm all right,” she said.
“that's good,” in a gratified tone. “now keep plucky, and you'll get out of this finely.” then he sat down on the arm of the seat, and told such a funny story that no one supposed it could be the home station when the train came to a standstill, and he was helping alexia out.
“there now—drop polly's hand, if you please,” the doctor was saying; “i'll assist you.”
“but i don't want to,” said alexia, hanging to it for dear life. “i want polly.”
“i presume so,” laughed the doctor, “but i think it's best for me to help you.” miss baker and all the girls crowded up in a bunch. “easy there,” he said. “don't hurry so; there's plenty of time.” and he got between them and alexia's lame arm.
and there, down by the car steps—polly could see him as he waited for the stream of passengers to get out—was jasper, his eyes eagerly searching every face, with an impatience scarcely to be controlled. and back of him were dr. fisher's big glasses, shining as the little doctor pranced back and forth, unable to keep still.
“there they are—there they are!” polly exclaimed. “oh, if we could hurry and let them91 know we're all right!” but they were wedged in so, there was nothing to do but to take their turn and let the passengers in front descend.
“jasper—oh, papa fisher!” at last polly was out on the platform where she stood on her tiptoes and waved her hand.
“are you all right?” asked jasper eagerly, craning his neck to see for himself.
“yes—yes!” cried polly. and then presently they had her on either hand! “oh, help alexia,” she cried, turning back.
dr. fisher took one look through his big glasses. “well, well, pennell,” he exclaimed, “you here?” and he skipped over to them.
“i really believe so,” laughed dr. pennell.
“dear me!” little dr. fisher glanced at alexia quickly.
“nothing but sprained,” the other doctor said quickly. “still, it needs careful attention.”
and then it came out that alexia's aunt had heard a chance word dropped about the accident, and had run down to mr. king's in her distress, so she was there awaiting them; and the fathers and brothers of the rest of the “salisbury girls” took off their charges, much to the relief of the governess. so presently jasper had his party all92 settled in the carriage, dr. pennell saying, “well, i resign my responsibility about that arm to you, dr. fisher.” he lifted his hat, and was off.
“oh, wait!” cried polly in great distress as thomas was just starting off with a dash, “i must speak to him.”
“polly—what is it?” cried jasper. “wait, thomas!” so thomas pulled up.
“i must—i must,” declared polly. her foot was on the step, and she was soon out.
“i'll go with you,” said jasper, as she sped down through the streams of people pouring along the platform, to thread her way after the tall figure, jasper by her side. “dr. pennell—oh, please stop.”
“hey?” the doctor pulled up in his brisk walk. “oh dear me! what is it?”
“will you please tell me—do you know who the poor man was who was killed?” she gasped.
“oh polly,” cried jasper, “was there some one killed?”
“yes, he was a brakeman, polly,” said dr. pennell.
“oh, i know—but where did he live?” cried polly, “and had he any children?” all in one breath.93
“a big family, i understand,” said the doctor gravely.
“oh dear me!” exclaimed polly with a sorry droop to the bright head, and clasping her hands, “could you, dr. pennell, tell me anything more?”
“that's all i know about the poor fellow,” said the doctor. “the conductor told me that.”
“i'll find out for you to-morrow, polly,” said jasper quickly; “i'll run down to the railroad office, and get all the news i can.”
“and i'll go with you,” said polly, “for i most know grandpapa will let me. he was so very good to us all—that poor man was,” she mourned.
“yes, polly, there's no doubt of that,” dr. pennell said abruptly. “you and i maybe wouldn't be standing here if it were not for him.”
jasper shivered, and laid hold of polly's arm. “well now, run along and get home,” finished the doctor cheerily, “and look out for that plucky little friend of yours, and i'll try and find out, too, about that brakeman, and we'll talk the thing over.” so polly and jasper raced back again down over the platform, clambered into the carriage, and away they went home to grandpapa and mamsie!94
and alexia and her aunt staid all night. and after the whole story had been gone over and over, and grandpapa had held polly on his knee, all the time she was not in mamsie's lap, and alexia had had her poor arm taken care of, and all bandaged up, dr. fisher praising her for being so cool and patient, why then it was nearly eleven o'clock.
“dear me! polly,” cried mother fisher in dismay, looking over at the clock—they were all in the library, and all visitors had been denied—“the very idea! you children must get to bed.”
“yes—or you won't be cool and patient to-morrow,” said dr. fisher decidedly, and patting alexia's bandages. “now run off, little girl, and we'll see you bright as a button in the morning.”
“i'm not cool and patient,” declared alexia, abruptly pulling down, with her well hand, the little doctor till she could whisper in his ear. “oh, aunt does fuss so—you can't think; i'm a raging wild animal.”
“well, you haven't been raging to-night, alexia,” said the little doctor, bursting out into a laugh.
“oh, hush, do,” implored alexia, who wasn't in the slightest degree afraid to speak her mind,95 least of all to dr. fisher, whom she liked immensely; “they'll all hear us,” she brought up in terror.
“what is it, alexia?” cried her aunt from the sofa, where dr. fisher had asked her to be seated, as it was well across the room. “oh, is she worse?” she exclaimed, hurrying over nervously.
“there, now, you see,” cried alexia tragically, and sinking back in her chair; “everything's just as bad as can be now.”
“not in the least, miss rhys,” the little doctor said in his cheeriest tones, “only alexia and i had a little joke all by ourselves.” and as he waited coolly for the maiden lady to return to her seat, she soon found herself back there. then he went over to mamsie, and said something in a low tone.
“yes, adoniram.” mother fisher nodded over polly's brown head. “she ought to have a good night's sleep.”
“polly,” said dr. fisher, leaning over her, “it's just this: that aunt of alexia's—she's a good enough sort of a woman, i suppose,” wrinkling his brows in perplexity to find the right words, “but she certainly does possess the96 faculty to rile folks up remarkably well. she sets my teeth on edge; she does really, wife.” he brought out this confession honestly, although he hated professionally to say it. “and alexia—well, you know, polly, she ought to be kept quiet to-night. so your mother and i—we do, don't we, dear?” taking mamsie's hand.
“we certainly do,” said mrs. fisher, not waiting for the whole story to be told, “think it's best for you to have alexia with you to-night.”
“oh, goody!” exclaimed polly, sitting quite straight in mamsie's lap.
“you are not to talk, polly, you know,” said dr. fisher decidedly.
“oh, we won't—we won't,” promised polly faithfully.
“you can have the red room, polly,” said mamsie, “because of the two beds. and now, child, you must both hop off and get into them as soon as you can, or you'll be sick to-morrow.”
so polly ran off to bid grandpapa good night. and then as he held her in his arms, he said, “well, now, polly, you and jasper and i will take that trip down to the railroad station to-morrow.”
“oh, grandpapa!” cried polly, clasping her hands, while her cheeks turned rosy red, “i am so very glad. we can go right after school, can't we?”
“school? oh, you won't go to school to-morrow,” said old mr. king decidedly. “yes, yes, mrs. fisher, in just a minute—polly shall go to bed in a minute. no, no, polly, after such an excitement, school isn't to be thought of for a day or two.”
“perhaps she'll be all right in the morning, father,” jasper hurried to say, at sight of polly's face.
“oh, i shall—i shall.” polly flashed a bright glance at97 him. “please, grandpapa, let me go. i haven't been absent this year.”
“and it's so awfully hard to make up lessons,” said jasper.
“make up lessons? well, you needn't make them up. bless me! such a scholar as you are, polly, i guess you'll stand well enough at the end of the year, without any such trouble. quite well enough,” he added with decision.
polly's brown head drooped, despite her efforts to look bravely up into his face. “good night, grandpapa,” she said sadly, and was turning away.98
“oh bless me!” exclaimed old mr. king hastily, “polly, see here, my child, well—well, in the morning perhaps—dear me!—we can tell then whether it's best for you to go to school or not. come, kiss me good night, again.”
so polly ran back and gave him two or three kisses, and then raced off, jasper having time to whisper at the door: “i most know, polly, father'll let you go; i really and truly believe he will.”
“i believe so too,” cried polly happily.
and sure enough, he did. for the next morning polly ran down to breakfast as merry as a bee, brown eyes dancing, as if accidents were never to be thought of; and grandpapa pinched her rosy cheek, and said: “well, polly, you've won! off with you to school.” and polly tucked her books under her arm, and raced off with jasper, who always went to school with her as far as their paths went, turning off at the corner where she hurried off to miss salisbury's select school, to go to his own.
“oh, here comes polly pepper!” the girls, some of them waiting for her at the big iron gate, raced down to meet her. “oh polly—polly.” at that a group of girls on the steps99 turned, and came flying up, too. “oh, tell us all about the awful accident,” they screamed. “tell, polly, do.” they swarmed all over her.
“give me the books,” and one girl seized them. “i'll carry them for you, polly.”
“and, polly, not one of the other girls that went out to silvia horne's is here this morning.”
“they may come yet,” said polly; “it's not late.”
“oh, i know; we came early to meet you; well, silvia isn't here either.”
“oh, she can't come, because of her cousin,” said polly, “and——”
“well, i don't care whether she ever comes,” declared leslie fyle. “i can't abide that silvia horne.”
“nor i,” said another girl, “she's so full of her airs and graces, and always talking about her fine place at edgewood. oh dear me! i'm sick of edgewood!”
a little disagreeable laugh went around.
“oh, i'll tell you of the accident,” said polly; “come, let's sit down on the steps; we've ten minutes yet.”
“yes, do, do,” cried the girls. so they huddled100 up together on the big stone steps, polly in the middle, and she told them the whole story as fast as she could. meantime other girls hurrying to school, saw them from a distance, and broke into a run to get there in time.
and polly gave alexia's love all round, as she had been commissioned to do.
“we'll go up to your house to see her,” cried leslie, “perhaps this afternoon.”
“oh, no, you mustn't,” said polly. “i'm dreadfully sorry, girls, but papa fisher says no one must come yet, till he sends word by me.”
“i thought you said alexia was all right.”
“and if her arm isn't broken i should think we might see her,” said a big girl on the edge of the circle discontentedly. she had private reasons for wishing the interview as soon as possible, as she and alexia had quarrelled the day before, and now it was quite best to ignore all differences, and make it up.
“but she's had a great strain, and papa-doctor says it isn't best,” repeated polly very distinctly, “so we can't even think of it, sarah.”
“polly? is that polly pepper?” exclaimed a voice in the hall.
and she told them the whole story as fast as she could.
“oh, yes, miss anstice,” cried polly, hopping up so quickly she nearly overthrew some of the bunch of girls.
yes, she had on the black silk gown, and polly fancied she could hear it crackle, it was so stiff, as miss anstice advanced primly.
“i hear that there was an accident, polly pepper, last night, which you and some of the other girls were in. now, why did you not come and tell me or sister at once about it?”
“oh dear me! do forgive me,” cried poor polly, now seeing that she had done a very wrong thing not to have acquainted miss salisbury first with all the particulars. “i do hope you will forgive me, miss anstice,” she begged over again.
“i find it very difficult to overlook it, polly,” said miss anstice, who was much disturbed by the note she held in her hand, just delivered, by which professor mills informed her he should be unable to deliver his address that morning before her art class. so she added with asperity, “it would have been quite the proper thing, and something that would naturally, i should suppose, suggest itself to a girl brought up as you have been, polly, to come at once to the head of the school with the information.”102
polly, feeling that all this reflected on mamsie and her home training, had yet nothing to do but to stand pale and quiet on the steps.
“she couldn't help it.” the big girl pushed her way into the inner circle. “we girls all just made her stop. my! miss anstice, it was just a mob here when we saw polly coming.”
“sarah miller, you have nothing to say until i address you.” a little red spot was coming on either cheek as miss anstice turned angrily to the big girl. “and i shall at once report you to sister, for improper behavior.”
“oh dear, dear! well, i wish 'sister' would fire old black silk,” exclaimed a girl on the edge of the circle under her breath. “look at her now. isn't she a terror!” and then the big bell rang, and they all filed in.
“now she won't let us have our picnic; she'll go against it every way she can,” cried a girl who was out of dangerous earshot. and the terror of this spread as they all scampered down the hall.
“oh dear, dear! to think this should have happened on her black silk day!”
“no, we won't get it now, you may depend,” cried ever so many. and poor polly, with all this added woe, to make her feel responsible for103 the horrible beginning of the day, sank into her seat and leaned her head on her desk.
the picnic, celebrated as an annual holiday, was given by miss salisbury to the girls, if all had gone well in the school, and no transgressions of rules, or any misdemeanor, marred the term. miss anstice never had looked with favor on the institution, and the girls always felt that she went out of her way to spy possible insubordination among the scholars. so they strove not to get out of her good graces, observing special care when the “black silk days” came around.
on this unlucky day, everything seemed against them; and as miss anstice stalked off to sit upon the platform by “sister” for the opening exercises, the girls felt it was all up with them, and a general gloom fell upon the long schoolroom.
miss salisbury's gentle face was turned in surprise upon them as she scanned the faces. and then, the general exercises being over, the classes were called, and she and “sister” were left on the platform alone.
“oh, now she's getting the whole thing!” groaned leslie, looking back from the hall, to peer in. “old black silk is giving it to her. oh, i just hate miss anstice!”104
“sarah, why couldn't you have kept still?” cried another girl. “if you hadn't spoken, miss anstice would have gotten over it.”
“well, i wasn't going to have polly pepper blamed,” said sarah sturdily. “if you were willing to, i wasn't going to stand still and hear it, when it was our fault she told us first.”
“oh, no, sarah,” said polly, “it surely was my own self that was to blame. i ought to have run in and told miss salisbury first. well, now, girls, what shall i do? i've lost that picnic for you all, for i don't believe she will let us have it now.”
“no, she won't,” cried leslie tragically; “of that you may be sure, polly pepper.”
