mr. weston looked down smilingly at his little daughter. he was evidently amused at her excitement.
“is this the little girl who was born in loyal boston?” he questioned; for rebecca was six years of age and anna three when their parents came to this far-off place to make their home. eastern maine was then a wilderness, and this little village was not connected with the outside world except by the indian trails or by the sailing craft which plied up and down the coast. but its citizens were soon to write a page of heroism and valor in their country’s history.
“of course machias is to have a liberty pole,” continued mr. weston. “it has been so decided by a vote in a town meeting; and dan and i will start off in good season to-morrow morning to look for the finest pine sapling in the forest. it will be a great day for the village when ’tis set up, with its waving green plume to show that we are20 pledged to resist england’s injustice to her long-suffering colonies.”
it was the custom to leave a tuft of verdure at the top of the liberty tree as an emblem, the best they had at command, of the flag they meant to fight for.
before her father had finished speaking rebecca had relinquished her grasp on his arm and ran toward the cupboard, and neither her father nor mother gave much thought to her anxious question. the venison was just ready to serve, and mrs. weston hurried from the fireplace to the table, on which rebecca had now placed the dishes, while mr. weston and anna talked happily together over the proposed excursion on the following day.
“i am afraid that we may have to postpone our journey,” said mr. weston, “for i noticed the gulls were coming in flocks close to the shores, and you know:
“‘when sea-birds fly to land a storm is at hand.’”
“but look at malty,” responded anna quickly, pointing to the fat maltese cat who was industriously washing her face:21
“‘if the cat washes her face over the ear ’tis a sign the weather’ll be fine and clear,’”
quoted the little girl; “and you told me ’twas a sure sign, father; and ’tis what matty is doing this minute.”
“to be sure,” laughed mr. weston, “both are sure signs, and so we will hope for fair weather.”
rebecca was very silent at dinner, and as the sisters began to clear away the dishes anna watched her with troubled eyes.
“perhaps it’s because i called her ‘rebby,’” thought the little girl regretfully. “i’ll tell her i am sorry,” and when their mother left the kitchen anna whispered:
“flora, i forgot when i called you ‘rebby.’ but i will now surely remember. you are not vexed at me, are you?” and anna leaned her head against her sister’s arm and looked up at her pleadingly.
rebecca sniffed a little, as if trying to keep back the tears. she wished she could talk over her worries with anna; but of course that would never do.
“i believe i’d rather be called ‘rebby,’” she22 managed to say, to the surprise of her younger sister. “do you suppose they really mean to put up a liberty pole?”
“of course,” responded anna. “i heard the minister say that it must be done.”
rebby sighed dolefully. she was old enough to understand the talk she heard constantly of his majesty’s ships of war capturing the american fishing sloops, and of the many troubles caused to peaceable americans all along the coast; and she, like all the american children, knew that their rights must be defended; but lucia horton’s talk had frightened and confused rebecca’s thoughts. to set up a liberty pole now seemed to her a most dangerous thing to do, and something that would bring only trouble.
she wished with all her heart that she could tell her father all that lucia had told her. but that she could not do because of her promise. rebecca knew that a promise was a sacred thing, not to be broken.
“rebby, will you not go to the bluff with me? ’twill be pleasant there this afternoon, and we could see the polly if she chances to come into harbor to-day,” said anna.
“you had best ask luretta foster, danna,”23 she answered quickly. “i am sure mother will want my help with her quilting this afternoon.”
rebby so often played at being “grown up” that this reply did not surprise anna, and she ran off to find her mother and ask permission to go to the shore with luretta foster, a girl of about her own age. mrs. weston gave her consent, and in a few moments the little girl was running along the river path toward the blacksmith shop where a short path led to luretta’s home.
anna often thought that there could not be another little girl in all the world as pretty as luretta. luretta was not as tall or as strongly made as anna; her eyes were as blue as the smooth waters of the harbor on a summer’s day; her hair was as yellow as the floss on an ear of corn, and her skin was not tanned brown like anna’s, but was fair and delicate. beside her anna looked more like a boy than ever. but luretta admired anna’s brown eyes and short curly hair, and was quite sure that there was no other little girl who could do or say such clever things as anna weston. so the two little girls were always well pleased with each other’s company, and to-day luretta was quite ready to go down to the shore and watch for the polly. mrs.24 foster tied on the big sunbonnet which luretta always wore out-of-doors, and the two friends started off.
“will it not be fine if the polly reaches harbor to-day?” said anna. “my father says she will bring sugar and molasses and spices, and it may be the unity will come sailing in beside her loaded with things from far lands. do you not wish our fathers were captains of fine sloops, luretta, so that perhaps we could go sailing off to boston?”
but luretta shook her head. “i’d much rather journey by land,” she answered; “but ’tis said the polly is to bring a fine silk gown for mistress lyon; ’tis a present from her sister in boston, and two dolls for melvina lyon. why is it that ministers’ daughters have so many gifts?” and luretta sighed. her only doll was made of wood, and, though it was very dear to her, luretta longed for a doll with a china head and hands, such as the fortunate little daughter of the minister already possessed.
“i care not for melvina lyon, if she be a minister’s daughter,” anna responded bravely. “she can do nothing but sew and knit and make fine cakes, and read from grown-up books. she25 is never allowed to go fishing, or wade in the cove on warm days, or go off in the woods as i do. i doubt if melvina lyon could tell the difference ’twixt a partridge and heron, or if she could tell a spruce tree from a fir. and as for presents, hers are of no account. they are but dolls, and silver thimbles and silk aprons. why! did not my father bring me home a fine beaver skin for a hood, and a pair of duck’s wings, and a pair of moccasins the very last time he went north!” and anna, out of breath, looked at her friend triumphantly.
“but melvina’s things are all bought in stores in big towns, and your presents are all from the woods, just as if you were a little indian girl,” objected luretta, who greatly admired the ruffled gowns of melvina’s dolls, such as no other little girl in the settlement possessed.
anna made no response to this; but she was surprised that luretta should not think as she did about the value of her gifts, and rather vexed that melvina lyon should be praised by her own particular friend.
the girls had passed the sawmill and lumber yard, and now turned from the well-traveled path to climb a hill where they could catch the first26 glimpse of any sail entering the harbor. farther along this bluff stood the church, not yet quite finished, and beyond it the house of the minister, the reverend james lyon, whose little daughter, melvina, was said to be the best behaved and the smartest girl in the settlement. although only ten years old melvina had already “pieced” four patchwork quilts and quilted them; and her neat stitches were the admiration of all the women of the town. but most of the little girls were a little in awe of melvina, who never cared to play games, and always brought her knitting or sewing when she came for an afternoon visit.
anna and luretta sat down on the short grass, and for a few moments talked of the polly, and looked in vain for the glimmer of a sail.
“look, danna! here comes melvina now,” whispered luretta, whose quick ears had caught the sound of steps.
anna looked quickly around. “she’s all dressed up,” she responded. “see, her skirts set out all around her like a wheel.”
melvina walked with great care, avoiding the rough places, and so intent on her steps that, if anna had not called her name, she would have passed without seeing them. she was thin and27 dark, and looked more like a little old lady than a ten-year-old girl.
“how do you do?” she said, bowing as ceremoniously as if luretta and anna were grown up people of importance.
“come and sit down, melly, and watch for the polly,” said anna.
“and tell us about the fine dolls that are on board for you,” added luretta quickly.
a little smile crept over melvina’s face and she took a step toward them, but stopped suddenly.
“i fear ’twould not be wise for me to stop,” she said a little fearfully; but before she could say anything more anna and luretta had jumped up and ran toward her.
“look!” exclaimed anna, pointing to a flock of white gulls that had just settled on the smooth water near the shore.
“look, melly, at the fine partridges!”
melvina’s dark eyes looked in the direction anna pointed. “thank you, anna. how white they are, and what a queer noise they make,” she responded seriously.
anna’s eyes danced with delight as she heard luretta’s half-repressed giggle at melvina’s reply. she resolved that luretta should realize of28 how little importance melvina lyon, with all her dolls, and her starched skirts like wheels, really was.
“and are those not big alder trees, melly?” she continued, pointing to a group of fine pine trees near by.
again melvina’s eyes followed the direction of anna’s pointing finger, and again the minister’s little daughter replied politely that the trees were indeed very fine alders.
luretta was now laughing without any effort to conceal her amusement. that any little girl in maine should not know a partridge from a gull, or an alder bush from a pine tree, seemed too funny to even make it necessary to try to be polite; and luretta was now ready to join in the game of finding out how little melvina lyon, “the smartest and best-behaved child in the settlement,” really knew.
“and, danna, perhaps melvina has never seen the birds we call clams?” she suggested.
melvina looked from anna to luretta questioningly. these little girls could not be laughing at her, she thought, recalling with satisfaction that it was well known that she could spell the names of every city in europe, and repeat the list29 of all england’s kings and queens. she remembered, also, that anna weston was called a tomboy, and that her mother said it was a scandal for a little girl to have short hair. so she again replied pleasantly that she had never known that clams were birds. “we have them stewed very often,” she declared.
anna fairly danced about the neat little figure in the well-starched blue linen skirt.
“oh, melly! you must come down to the shore, and we will show you a clam’s nest,” she said, remembering that only yesterday she had discovered the nest of a kingfisher in an oak tree whose branches nearly touched the shore, and could point this out to the ignorant melvina.
“but i am to visit lucia horton this afternoon, and i must not linger,” objected melvina.
“it will not take long,” urged anna, clasping melvina’s arm, while luretta promptly grasped the other, and half led, half pushed the surprised and uncertain melvina along the rough slope. anna talked rapidly as they hurried along. “you ought really to see a clam’s nest,” she urged, between her bursts of laughter; “why, melly, even luretta and i know about clams.”30
anna had not intended to be rude or cruel when she first began her game of letting luretta see that melly and her possessions were of no importance, but melvina’s ignorance of the common things about her, as well as her neatly braided hair, her white stockings and kid shoes, such as no other child in the village possessed, made anna feel as if melvina was not a real little girl, but a dressed-up figure. she chuckled at the thought of luretta’s calling clams “birds,” with a new admiration for her friend.
“i guess after this luretta won’t always be talking about melvina lyon and her dolls,” she thought triumphantly; and at that moment melvina’s foot slipped and all three of the little girls went sliding down the sandy bluff.
the slide did not matter to either anna or luretta, in their stout shoes and every-day dresses of coarse flannel, but to the carefully dressed melvina it was a serious mishap. her starched skirts were crushed and stained, her white stockings soiled, and her slippers scratched. the hat of fine-braided straw with its ribbon band, another “present” from the boston relatives, now hung about her neck, and her knitting-bag was lost.31
as the little girls gathered themselves up melvina began to cry. her delicate hands were scratched, and never before in her short life had she been so frightened and surprised.
she pulled herself away from anna’s effort to straighten her hat. “you are a rough child,” she sobbed, “and i wish i had not stopped to speak with you. and my knitting-bag with my half-finished stocking is lost!”
at the sight of melvina’s tears both anna and luretta forgot all about showing her a “clam’s nest,” and became seriously frightened. after all, melly was the minister’s daughter, and the reverend mr. lyon was a person of importance; why, he even had a colored body-servant, london atus by name, who usually walked behind the clergyman carrying his cloak and bible, and who opened the door for visitors. often melvina was attended in her walks by london, who thought his little mistress far superior to the other children.
“don’t cry, melvina,” pleaded luretta. “we will find your bag, and we will wash the stains from your stockings and dress, and help you back up the slope. don’t cry,” and luretta put a protecting arm about the frightened melvina.32 “your hat has only slipped from your head; it is not hurt at all,” she added consolingly.
melvina was finally comforted, and anna climbed up the slope to search for the missing bag, while luretta persuaded melvina to take off her stockings in order that they might be washed.
“they’ll dry in no time,” luretta assured her. “i can wash them out right here in this clean puddle, and put them on the warm rocks to dry.” so melvina reluctantly took off her slippers, and the pretty open-work stockings, and curling her feet under her, sat down on a big rock to watch luretta dip the stockings in the little pool of sea water near by, and to send anxious glances toward the sandy bluff where anna was searching for the missing bag.
