for some days, nothing was seen and little was heard of the "dearsufferers," as the old ladies called them. but they were notforgotten; the first words uttered when any of the young peoplemet were: "how is jack?" "seen jill yet?" and all waited withimpatience for the moment when they could be admitted to theirfavorite mates, more than ever objects of interest now.
meantime, the captives spent the first few days in sleep, pain, andtrying to accept the hard fact that school and play were done withfor months perhaps. but young spirits are wonderfully elastic andsoon cheer up, and healthy young bodies heal fast, or easily adaptthemselves to new conditions. so our invalids began to mend onthe fourth day, and to drive their nurses distracted with efforts toamuse them, before the first week was over.
the most successful attempt originated in ward no. i, as mrs.
minot called jack's apartment, and we will give our sympathizingreaders some idea of this place, which became the stage whereonwere enacted many varied and remarkable scenes.
each of the minot boys had his own room, and there collected hisown treasures and trophies, arranged to suit his convenience andtaste. frank's was full of books, maps, machinery, chemicalmesses, and geometrical drawings, which adorned the walls likeintricate cobwebs. a big chair, where he read and studied with hisheels higher than his head, a basket of apples for refreshment at allhours of the day or night, and an immense inkstand, in whichseveral pens were always apparently bathing their feet, were theprincipal ornaments of his scholastic retreat.
jack's hobby was athletic sports, for he was bent on having astrong and active body for his happy little soul to live and enjoyitself in. so a severe simplicity reigned in his apartment; insummer, especially, for then his floor was bare, his windows wereuncurtained, and the chairs uncushioned, the bed being as narrowand hard as napoleon's. the only ornaments were dumbbells,whips, bats, rods, skates, boxing-gloves, a big bath-pan and a smalllibrary, consisting chiefly of books on games, horses, health,hunting, and travels. in winter his mother made things morecomfortable by introducing rugs, curtains, and a fire. jack, also,relented slightly in the severity of his training, occasionallyindulging in the national buckwheat cake, instead of the prescribedoatmeal porridge, for breakfast, omitting his cold bath when thethermometer was below zero, and dancing at night, instead ofrunning a given distance by day.
now, however, he was a helpless captive, given over to all sorts ofcoddling, laziness, and luxury, and there was a droll mixture ofmirth and melancholy in his face, as he lay trussed up in bed,watching the comforts which had suddenly robbed his room of itsspartan simplicity. a delicious couch was there, with frankreposing in its depths, half hidden under several folios which hewas consulting for a history of the steam-engine, the subject of hisnext composition.
a white-covered table stood near, with all manner of dainties setforth in a way to tempt the sternest principles. vases of flowersbloomed on the chimney-piece gifts from anxious young ladies,left with their love. frivolous story-books and picture-papersstrewed the bed, now shrouded in effeminate chintz curtains,beneath which jack lay like a wounded warrior in his tent. but thesaddest sight for our crippled athlete was a glimpse, through ahalf-opened door, at the beloved dumb-bells, bats, balls,boxing-gloves, and snow-shoes, all piled ignominiously away inthe bath-pan, mournfully recalling the fact that their day was over,now, at least for some time.
he was about to groan dismally, when his eye fell on a sight whichmade him swallow the groan, and cough instead, as if it chokedhim a little. the sight was his mother's face, as she sat in a lowchair rolling bandages, with a basket beside her in which werepiles of old linen, lint, plaster, and other matters, needed for thedressing of wounds. as he looked, jack remembered how steadilyand tenderly she had stood by him all through the har4 times justpast, and how carefully she had bathed and dressed his wound eachday in spite of the effort it cost her to give him pain or even seehim suffer.
"that's a better sort of strength than swinging twenty-pounddumb-bells or running races; i guess i'll try for that kind, too, andnot howl or let her see me squirm when the doctor hurts," thoughtthe boy, as he saw that gentle face so pale and tired with muchwatching and anxiety, yet so patient, serene, and cheerful, that itwas like sunshine.
"lie down and take a good nap, mother dear, i feel first-rate, andfrank can see to me if i want anything. do, now," he added, with apersuasive nod toward the couch, and a boyish relish in stirring uphis lazy brother.
after some urging, mamma consented to go to her room for fortywinks, leaving jack in the care of frank, begging him to be asquiet as possible if the dear boy wished to sleep, and to amuse himif he did not.
being worn out, mrs. minot lengthened her forty winks into athree hours nap, and as the "dear boy" scorned repose, mr. frankhad his hands full while on guard.
"i'll read to you. here's watt, arkwright, fulton, and a lot ofcapital fellows, with pictures that will do your heart good. have abit, will you?" asked the new nurse, flapping the leaves invitinglyfor frank bad a passion for such things, and drew steam-enginesall over his slate, as tommy traddles drew hosts of skeletonswhen low in his spirits.
"i don't want any of your old boilers and stokers and whirligigs. im tired of reading, and want something regularly jolly," answeredjack, who had been chasing white buffaloes with "the hunters ofthe west," till he was a trifle tired and fractious.
"play cribbage, euchre, anything you like"; and frank obliginglydisinterred himself from under the folios, feeling that it was hardfor a fellow to lie flat a whole week.
"no fun; just two of us. wish school was over, so the boys wouldcome in; doctor said i might see them now.""they'll be along by and by, and i'll hail them. till then, whatshall we do? i'm your man for anything, only put a name to it.
"just wish i had a telegraph or a telephone, so i could talk to jill.
wouldn't it be fun to pipe across and get an answer!""i'll make either you say"; and frank looked as if trifles of that sortwere to be had for the asking.
"could you, really?""we'll start the telegraph first, then you can send things over if youlike," said frank, prudently proposing the surest experiment.
"go ahead, then. i'd like that, and so would jill, for i know shewants to hear from me.""there's one trouble, though; i shall have to leave you alone for afew minutes while i rig up the ropes"; and frank looked sober, forhe was a faithful boy, and did not want to desert his post.
"oh, never mind; i won't want anything. if i'd o, i can pound forann.""and wake mother. i'll fix you a better way than that"; and, full ofinventive genius, our young edison spliced the poker to part of afishing-rod in a jiffy, making a long-handled hook which reachedacross the room.
"there's an arm for you; now hook away, and let's see how itworks," he said, handing over the instrument to jack, whoproceeded to show its unexpected capabilities by hooking the clothoff the table in attempting to get his handkerchief, catching frankby the hair when fishing for a book, and breaking a pane of glass intrying to draw down the curtain. -"it's so everlasting long, i can't manage it," laughed jack, as itfinally caught in his bed-hangings, and nearly pulled them, ringand all, down upon his head.
"let it alone, unless you need something very much, and don'tbother about the glass. it's just what we want for the telegraph wireor rope to go through. keep still, and i'll have the thing running inten minutes"; and, delighted with the job, frank hurried away,leaving jack to compose a message to send as soon as it waspossible.
"what in the world is that flying across the minots' yard a brownhen or a boy's kite?" exclaimed old miss hopkins, peering out ofher window at the singular performances going on in her oppositeneighbor's garden.
first, frank appeared with a hatchet and chopped a clear space inthe hedge between his own house and the cottage; next, a clothesline was passed through this aperture and fastened somewhere onthe other side; lastly, a small covered basket, slung on this rope,was seen hitching along, drawn either way by a set of strings; then,as if satisfied with his job, frank retired, whistling "hailcolumbia.""it's those children at their pranks again. i thought broken boneswouldn't keep them out of mischief long," said the old lady,watching with great interest the mysterious basket travelling upand down the rope from the big house to the cottage.
if she had seen what came and went over the wires of the "greatinternational telegraph," she would have laughed till herspectacles flew off her roman nose. a letter from jack, with alarge orange, went first, explaining the new enterprise:
"dear jill-it's too bad you can't come over to see me. i am prettywell, but awful tired of keeping still. i want to see you ever somuch. frank has fixed us a telegraph, so we can write and sendthings. won't it be jolly! i can't look out to see him do it; but, whenyou pull your string, my little bell rings, and i know a message iscoming. i send you an orange. do you like gorver jelly? peoplesend in lots of goodies, and we will go halves. good-by.
jack"away went the basket, and in fifteen minutes it came back fromthe cottage with nothing in it but the orange.
"hullo! is she mad?" asked jack, as frank brought the despatch forhim to examine.
but, at the first touch, the hollow peel opened, and out fell a letter,two gum-drops, and an owl made of a peanut, with round eyesdrawn at the end where the stem formed a funny beak. two bits ofstraw were the legs, and the face looked so like dr. whiting thatboth boys laughed at the sight.
"that's so like jill; she'd make fun if she was half dead. let's seewhat she says"; and jack read the little note, which showed a sadneglect of the spelling-book:
"dear jacky-i can't stir and it's horrid. the telly graf is very niceand we will have fun with it. i never ate any gorver jelly. theorange was first rate. send me a book to read. all about bears andships and crockydiles. the doctor was coming to see you, so i senthim the quickest way. molly loo says it is dreadful lonesome atschool without us. yours truly,jill"jack immediately despatched the book and a sample of guavajelly, which unfortunately upset on the way, to the great detrimentof "the wild beasts of asia and africa." jill promptly respondedwith the loan of a tiny black kitten, who emerged spitting andscratching, to jack's great delight; and he was cudgelling his brainsas to how a fat white rabbit could be transported, when a shrillwhistle from without saved jill from that inconvenient offering.
"it's the fellows; do you want to see them?" asked frank, gazingdown with calm superiority upon the three eager faces whichlooked up at him.
"guess i'd o!" and jack promptly threw the kitten overboard,scorning to be seen by any manly eye amusing himself with suchgirlish toys.
bang! went the front door; tramp, tramp, tramp, came six bootedfeet up the stairs; and, as frank threw wide the door, three largebeings paused on the threshold to deliver the courteous "hullo!"which is the established greeting among boys on all socialoccasions.
"come along, old fellows; i'm ever so glad to see you!" cried theinvalid, with such energetic demonstrations of the arms that helooked as if about to fly or crow, like an excited young cockerel.
"how are you, major?""does the leg ache much, jack?""mr. phipps says you'll have to pay for the new rails."with these characteristic greetings, the gentlemen cast away theirhats and sat down, all grinning cheerfully, and all with eyesirresistibly fixed upon the dainties, which proved too much for thepoliteness of ever-hungry boys.
"help yourselves," said jack, with a hospitable wave. "all the dearold ladies in town have been sending in nice things, and i can'tbegin to eat them up. lend a hand and clear away thislot, or we shall have to throw them out of the window. bring onthe doughnuts and the tarts and the shaky stuff in the entry closet,frank, and let's have a lark."no sooner said than done. gus took the tarts, joe the doughnuts,ed the jelly, and frank suggested "spoons all round" for the italiancream. a few trifles in the way of custard, fruit, and wafer biscuitswere not worth mentioning; but every dish was soon emptied, andjack said, as he surveyed the scene of devastation with greatsatisfaction,"call again to-morrow, gentlemen, and we will have another bout.
free lunches at ~ p.m. till further notice. now tell me all thenews."for half an hour, five tongues went like mill clappers, and there isno knowing when they would have stopped if the little bell had notsuddenly rung with a violence that made them jump.
"that's jill; see what she wants, frank"; and while his brother sentoff the basket, jack told about the new invention, and invited hismates to examine and admire.
they did so, and shouted with merriment when the next despatchfrom jill arrived. a pasteboard jumping-jack, with one leg done upin cotton-wool to preserve the likeness, and a great lump ofmolasses candy in a brown paper, with accompanying note:
"dear sir-i saw the boys go in, and know you are having a nicetime, so i send over the candy molly loo and merry brought me.
mammy says i can't eat it, and it will all melt away if i keep it.
also a picture of jack minot, who will dance on one leg andwaggle the other, and make you laugh. i wish i could come, too.
don't you hate grewel? i'do. in haste,j.p. ""let's all send her a letter," proposed jack, and out came pens, ink,paper, and the lamp, and everyone fell to scribbling. a drollcollection was the result, for frank drew a picture of the fatal fallwith broken rails flying in every direction, jack with his headswollen to the size of a balloon, and jill in two pieces, while thevarious boys and girls were hit off with a sly skill that gave guslegs like a stork, molly loo hair several yards long, and boo aseries of visible howls coming out of an immense mouth in theshape of o s. the oxen were particularly good, for their hornsbranched like those of the moose, and mr. grant had a patriarchalbeard which waved in the breeze as he bore the wounded girl to asled very like a funeral pyre, the stakes being crowned with bigmittens like torches.
"you ought to be an artist. i never saw such a dabster as you are.
that's the very moral of joe, all in a bunch on the fence, with ablot to show how purple his nose was," said gus, holding up thesketch for general criticism and admiration.
"i'd rather have a red nose than legs like a grasshopper; so youneedn't twit, daddy," growled joe, quite unconscious that a blotactually did adorn his nose, as he labored over a brief despatch.
the boys enjoyed the joke, and one after the other read out hismessage to the captive lady:
"dear jill-sorry you ain't here. great fun. jack pretty lively. lauraand lot would send love if they knew of the chance. fly round andget well.
gus""dear gilliflower-hope you are pretty comfortable in your'dungeon cell. would you like a serenade when the moon comes?
hope you will soon be up again, for we miss you very much. shallbe very happy to help in anyway i can. love to your mother. yourtrue friend,e.d.""miss pecq.
"dear madam-i am happy to tell you that we are all well, and hopeyou are the same. i gave jem cox a licking because he went toyour desk. you had better send for your books. you won't have topay for the sled or the fence. jack says he will see to it. we havebeen having a spread over here. first-rate things. i wouldn't mindbreaking a leg, if i had such good grub and no chores to do. nomore now, from yours, with esteem,joseph p. flint"joe thought that an elegant epistle, having copied portions of itfrom the "letter writer," and proudly read it off to the boys, whoassured him that jill would be much impressed.
"now, jack, hurry up and let us send the lot off, for we must go,"said gus, as frank put the letters in the basket, and the clatter oftea-things was heard below.
"i'm not going to show mine. it's private and you mustn't look,"answered jack, patting down an envelope with such care that noone had a chance to peep.
but joe had seen the little note copied, and while the others wereat the window working the telegraph he caught up the original,carelessly thrust by jack under the pillow, and read it aloud beforeanyone knew what he was about.
"my dear-i wish i could send you some of my good times. as ican't, i send you much love, and i hope you will try and be patientas i am going to, for it was our fault, and we must not make a fussnow. ain't mothers sweet? mine is coming over to-morrow to seeyou and tell me how you are. this round thing is a kiss forgood-night.
your jack""isn't that spoony? you d better hide your face, i think. he's gettingto be a regular mollycoddle, isn't he?" jeered joe, as the boyslaughed, and then grew sober, seeing jack's head buried in thebedclothes, after sending a pillow at his tormentor.
it nearly hit mrs. minot, coming in with her patient's tea on a tray,and at sight of her the guests hurriedly took leave, joe nearlytumbling downstairs to escape from frank, who would havefollowed, if his mother had not said quickly, "stay, and tell mewhat is the matter.""only teasing jack a bit. don't be mad, old boy, joe didn't meanany harm, and it was rather soft, now wasn't it?" asked frank,trying to appease the wounded feelings of his brother.
"i charged you not to worry him. those boys were too much for thepoor dear, and i ought not to have left him," said mamma, as shevainly endeavored to find and caress the yellow head burrowed sofar out of sight that nothing but one red ear was visible.
"he liked it, and we got on capitally till joe roughed him aboutjill. ah, joe's getting it now! i thought gus and ed would do thatlittle job for me," added frank, running to the window as the soundof stifled cries and laughter reached him.
the red ear heard also, and jack popped up his head to ask, withinterest,'what are they doing to him?""rolling him in the snow, and he's howling like fun.""serves him right," muttered jack, with a frown. then, as a wailarose suggestive of an unpleasant mixture of snow in the mouthand thumps on the back, he burst out laughing, and said,good-naturedly, "go and stop them, frank; i won't mind, only tellhim it was a mean trick. hurry! gus is so strong he doesn't knowhow his pounding hurts."off ran frank, and jack told his wrongs to his mother. shesympathized heartily, and saw no harm in the affectionate littlenote, which would please jill, and help her to bear her trialspatiently.
"it isn't silly to be fond of her, is it? she is so nice and funny, andtries to be good, and likes me, and i won't be ashamed of myfriends, if folks do laugh," protested jack, with a rap of histeaspoon.
"no, dear, it is quite kind and proper, and i'd rather have you playwith a merry little girl than with rough boys till you are big enoughto hold your own," answered mamma, putting the cup to his lipsthat the reclining lad might take his broma without spilling.
"pooh! i don't mean that; i'm strong enough now to take care ofmyself," cried jack, stoutly. "i can thrash joe any day, if i like. justlook at my arm; there's muscle for you!" and up went a sleeve, tothe great danger of overturning the tray, as the boy proudlydisplayed his biceps and expanded his chest, both of which werevery fine for a lad of his years. "if i'd been on my legs, hewouldn't have dared to insult me, and it was cowardly to hit afellow when he was down.
mrs. minot wanted to laugh at jack's indignation, but the bell rang,and she had to go and pull in the basket, much amused at the newgame.
burning to distinguish herself in the eyes of the big boys, jill hadsent over a tall, red flannel night-cap, which she had been makingfor some proposed christmas plays, and added the following verse,for she was considered a gifted rhymester at the game parties:
"when it comes night,we put out the light.
some blow with a puff,some turn down and snuff;but neat folks prefera nice extinguisher.
so here i send you backone to put on mr. jack.""now, i call that regularly smart; not one of us could do it, and ijust wish joe was here to see it. i want to send once more,something good for tea; she hates gruel so"; and the last despatchwhich the great international telegraph carried that day was abaked apple and a warm muffin, with "j. m.'s best regards."
