Peggy

Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards

Informations

• Publié par: phiwyog
• Publié le: 08 décembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 19
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Project Gutenberg EBook of Peggy, by Laura E. Richards This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: Peggy Author: Laura E. Richards Illustrator: Etheldred B. Barry Release Date: May 12, 2008 [EBook #25448] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEGGY *** Produced by Suzanne Shell, Emmy and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net [1] PEGGY [1] [2] Books by Laura E. Richards. "Mrs. Richards has made for herself a little niche apart in the literary world, from her delicate treatment of New England village life."—Boston Post. —————— CAPTAIN JANUARY. 16mo, cloth, 50 cents. THE CAPTAIN JANUARY SERIES. A charming idyl of New England coast life, whose success has been very remarkable. One reads it, is thoroughly charmed by it, tells others, and so its fame has been heralded by its readers, until to-day it is selling by the thousands, constantly enlarging the circle of its delighted admirers. SAME. Illustrated Holiday Edition. With thirty half-tone pictures from drawings by Frank T. Merrill. 4to, cloth, $1.25. MELODY. The Story of a Child. 16mo, 50 cents. "Had there never been a 'Captain January,' 'Melody' would easily take first place."—Boston Times. SAME. Illustrated Holiday Edition. With thirty half-tone pictures from drawings by Frank T. Merrill. 4to, cloth, $1.25. MARIE. 16mo, 50 cents. "Seldom has Mrs. Richards drawn a more irresistible picture, or framed one with more artistic literary adjustment." —Boston Herald. "A perfect literary gem."—Boston Transcript. NARCISSA, and a companion story, IN VERONA. 16mo, cloth, 50 cents. "Each is a simple, touching, sweet little story of rustic New England life, full of vivid pictures of interesting character, and refreshing for its unaffected genuineness and human feeling."—Congregationalist. JIM OF HELLAS; or, IN DURANCE VILE, and a companion story, BETHESDA POOL. 16mo, 50 cents. SOME SAY, and a companion story, NEIGHBOURS IN CYRUS. 16mo, 50 cents. ROSIN THE BEAU. 16mo, 50 cents. A sequel to "Melody." —————— ISLA HERON. A charming prose idyl of quaint New England life. Small quarto, cloth, 75 cents. NAUTILUS. A very interesting story, with illustrations; uniquely bound, small quarto, cloth, 75 cents. FIVE MINUTE STORIES. A charming collection of short stories and clever poems for children. Small quarto, cloth, $1.25. THREE MARGARETS. One of the most clever stories for girls that the author has written. 16mo, cloth, handsome cover design, $1.25. MARGARET MONTFORT. The second volume in the series of which "Three Margarets" was so successful as the initial volume. 16mo, cloth, handsome cover design, $1.25. PEGGY. The third volume in the series of which the preceding ones have been so successful. 16mo, cloth, handsome cover design, $1.25. LOVE AND ROCKS. A charming story of one of the pleasant islands that dot the rugged Maine coast. With etching frontispiece by Mercier. Tall 16mo, unique cover design on linen, gilt top, $1.00. ————————————————— Dana Estes & Company, Publishers, Boston. [3] [4] "PEACE BE TO THIS DWELLING" PEGGY BY [5] LAURA E. RICHARDS AUTHOR OF "CAPTAIN JANUARY," "MELODY," "QUEEN HILDEGARDE," ETC. Illustrated by ETHELDRED B. BARRY BOSTON DANA ESTES & COMPANY PUBLISHERS Copyright, 1899 B Y DANA E STES & COMPANY [6] Colonial Press: Electrotyped and Printed by C. H. Simonds & Co. Boston, Mass., U. S. A. CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGE [7] I.A N EW WORLD II.THE BOX FROM FERNLEY III.IN THE "GYM." IV.ENTER THE SCAPEGOAT V.TO THE R ESCUE VI.THE OWL'S N EST VII.WEDDING BELLS VIII.BY MOONLIGHT IX.FACULTY MEETING AND BEDLAM X.TEACHER AND PUPIL XI.D ECORATION—AND OTHER THINGS 11 31 51 72 89 102 121 141 160 182 194 XII.AN ADVENTURE XIII.PEGGY VICTRIX XIV.ON SPY H ILL XV.WHAT WAS THE MATTER WITH LOBELIA PARKINS? XVI.THE TERROR BY N IGHT XVII.WAITING XVIII.THE END AND THE BEGINNING 210 224 240 253 268 279 297 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE [8] [9] "'PEACE BE TO THIS DWELLING '" (p. 79) "'BERTHA, LOOK AT THIS, WILL YOU?'" "U P THEY WENT, HAND OVER HAND." THE GRAND TELL IN THE OWL'S N EST "'H ERE! TAKE MY HAND AND SCRAMBLE OUT'" "WITH ONE OF HER SUDDEN MOVEMENTS SHE HAD THROWN OFF HER ASSAILANTS" "'OH, GRACE, SHE HAS FAINTED!'" "'WE FOUR AGAINST THE WORLD!'" Frontispiece 36 69 120 207 237 272 308 [10] PEGGY. [11] CHAPTER I. A NEW WORLD. "Miss Montfort!" said the Principal. Peggy looked about her. "I wonder if it's another cousin!" she said to herself. "It can't be, or Margaret would have known. Dear Margaret! now if she were only here, she could answer, and everybody would—" "Miss Montfort!" said the Principal again, rather sharply. "Isn't that your name?" whispered the girl who sat beside Peggy. "You'll have to answer, you know!" Peggy started violently, and, looking up, met the Principal's eyes bent upon her. She struggled to her feet, feeling herself one blush from head to foot. "I—I beg your pardon!" she faltered. "I didn't suppose—did you mean me?" [12] "You are Miss Montfort, are you not?" "Oh, no! my cousins are both—that is,—I am just Peggy!" There was a general titter, which the Principal checked with her pencil. "Young ladies!" she said in a warning tone. "Miss Montfort, you will have room No. 18, in the second corridor. You will be alone for the present." "Oh, goody!" cried Peggy. "I mean—I'm ever so much obliged, thank you! Can I go now?" " Y o u may go now!" said the Principal, with a slight emphasis on the auxiliary. Peggy stumbled over the foot of the girl next her, stepped on her own dress, tripped and came to her knees; picked herself up, with a sound of rending cloth, and finally got out of the room. This time the titter was not so easily checked. Peggy heard it rippling behind her as she fled. Even Miss Russell smiled as she rapped on the desk, and said one word to herself: "Untrained!" But the girl who had sat beside Peggy rubbed her foot, which hurt a good deal, and said three words: "Poor little thing!" No. 18 in the second corridor was a good-sized room, with two windows, one of them crossed on the outside by a fire-escape. Its present aspect was bare and unhomelike. The furniture consisted of an iron bedstead, a bureau and wash-stand, two chairs and a small table, all neat, but severely plain. The small square of carpet on the floor was a cold gray mixture with brown flowers on it. As Peggy Montfort looked about her, her heart sank. Was she to live here, to spend her days and nights here, for a whole endless year? She thought of her room at home, the great sunny room that she shared with her sister Jean. That had four windows, which were generally flung wide open; it was bare, because she and Jean liked to have plenty of space for gymnastics and wrestling; but that was a homelike, accustomed bareness, and they loved it. The great old four-post bed, with the round balls on which they loved to stand and perform circus tricks; the hammock slung across one end; the birds' nests and hawks' wings that adorned the walls in lieu of pictures; the antlers on which they hung their hats,—all these, or the thought of them, smote Peggy's stout heart, and sent it lower and lower down. A maid knocked at the door: here was Miss Montfort's trunk, and would she unpack it, please, as the man would be coming again to take the empty trunks to the attic. Peggy fell to work with ardour; here, at least, was something to do, in this strange, lonesome place. Arriving in the afternoon, a day or two after the beginning of school, her lessons were not to begin till the next morning. Every dress, as she lifted it out, seemed a bit of home. Here was the triangular tear in her blue gingham, that Jean mended for her. One could hardly see it now! Dear Jean! she was neat-handed, and she had a little look of Margaret, the same soft hair and clear, quiet eyes. Here was her beloved bicycle skirt! Ah, there was something heavy in the pocket. Peggy explored, and drew forth an apple; that brought the tears, which were not very far off in the first place, and there was a good deal of salt in the apple as she ate it. She was [13] [14] [15] so determined to make the best of everything, however, that she fought back the homesickness that was rising like a flood within her, and even managed to whistle a tune as she hung up her dresses and laid her stockings and handkerchiefs in the drawers. Then the shoe-bag must be hung against the closet door, the bag that Margaret had made and worked with her initials. Dearest Margaret! and here was the pincushion that Flora gave her, and the writing-case from Brother Hugh— Oh! she would write to him every week of her life, indeed she would! and so on and so on. When the trunk was empty, the room looked less forlorn, though still pretty bare, for in Peggy's home little thought was given to anything not of practical use. The door was open, and happening to look up she caught a glimpse of the opposite room, on the other side of the narrow corridor. Here, too, the door stood open, and Peggy gazed open-eyed. A greater contrast could hardly be imagined. Here every available inch of wall-space was covered, with photographs, with Japanese fans and umbrellas, with posters and ribbons and flags. The room itself was choked, it seemed to Peggy, with chairs and tables, low tables covered with books, with cups and saucers, with knickknacks of every possible description. The whole effect was bewildering, but so gay and cheerful that Peggy sighed as she glanced back at her own bare white walls, at the bureau with its sober brush and comb, and the polished table where the writing-case lay in solitary state. She could not imagine living in a room like that other: she shoul