Chapter 14

And Captain Beck came over to say good-by, and wished that they could have gone down by the packet boat, as Betty came, and gave our friend a little brass pocket-compass, which he had carried to sea many years. The minister came to call in the evening, with his girls; and the dear old doctor came in next morning, though he was always in a hurry, and kissed Betty most kindly, and held her hand in both his, while he said that he had lost a good deal of practice, lately, because she kept the young folks stirring, and he did not know about letting her come back another summer.

But when poor Mrs. Foster came, with Nelly, and thanked Betty for bringing a ray of sunshine into her sad home, it was almost too much to bear; and good-by must be said to Becky, and that was harder than anything, until they tried to talk about what they would do next summer, and how often they must write to each other in the winter months between.

"Why, sometimes I have been afraid that you didn't like me," said Betty, as her friend's tears again began to fall.

"It was only because I didn't like myself," said dear Becky forlornly. It was a most sad and affectionate leave-taking, but there were many things that Becky would like to think over when her new old friend had fairly gone.

"I never felt as if I really belonged to any place, until now. You must always say that I am Betty Leicester of Tideshead," said Betty to her father, after she had looked back in silence from the car window for a long time. Aunt Barbara had come to the station with them, and was taking the long drive home alone, with only Jonathan and the slow horses. Betty's thoughts followed her all along the familiar road. Last night she had put the little red silk shawl back into her trunk with a sorry sigh. Everybody had been so good to her, while she had done so little for any one!

But Aunt Barbara was really dreading to go back to the old house, she knew that she should miss Betty so much.

Papa was reading already; he always read in the cars himself, but he never liked to have Betty do so. He looked up now, and something in his daughter's face made him put down his book. She was no longer only a playmate; her face was very grave and sweet. "I must try not to scurry about the world as I have done," he thought, as he glanced at Betty again and again. "We ought to have a home, both of us; her mother would have known. A girl should grow up in a home, and get a girl's best life out of the cares and pleasures of it."

"I am afraid you won't wish to come down to the hospitalities of lodgings this winter," said Mr. Leicester. "Perhaps we had better look for a comfortable house of our own near the Duncans."

"Oh, we're sure to have the best of good times!" said Betty cheerfully, as if there were danger of his being low-spirited. "We must wait about all that, papa, dear, until we are in London."

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Transcriber's Notes:

Page 10, "fee" changed to "feel" (You don't feel)

Page 10, "grand-aunts" changed to "grandaunts" to match rest of usage (my grandaunts this summer)

Page 36, "upstairs" changed to "up-stairs" to match rest of usage (Now run up-stairs)

Page 124, "something'" changed to "somethin'" (somethin' else that)

Page 124, single quotation mark changed to double (from our house,")

Page 128, period added (Betty herself would.)

Page 134, opening quotation mark added ("But your Aunt Mary)

Page 154, period changed to a comma (a darlin' gal,")

Page 159, "grand-niece" changed to "grandniece" to match rest of usage (my grandniece, sometimes)

Page 163, period added (answered Betty humbly.)

Page 287, single quotation mark changed to double (lodgings this winter,")