Chapter 13
THE TREE-PARTY.
Another golden day! But the days would all be golden now, thought Hildegarde. "Oh, how different it is from yesterday!" she cried to Nurse Lucy as she danced about the kitchen. "The sun shone yesterday, but it did us no good. To-day it warms my heart, the good sunshine. And yesterday the trees seemed to mock me, with all their scarlet and gold; but to-day they are dressed up to celebrate our good fortune. Let us call them in to rejoice with us, Nurse Lucy. Let us have a tree-party, instead of a tea-party!"
"My dear," said Dame Hartley, looking up with a puzzled smile, "what _do_ you mean?"
"Oh! I don't mean to invite the whole forest to supper," said Hildegarde, laughing. "But you shall see, Nurse Lucy; you shall see. Just wait till this afternoon. I must run now over to Pink's, and tell her all the wonderful things that have happened, and see how poor Bubble is."
Away she went like a flash, through the golden fields, down the lane, where the maples made a flaming tent of scarlet over her head, bursting suddenly like a whirlwind into the little cottage, where the brother and sister, both now nearly helpless, sat waiting with pale and anxious faces. At sight of her Pink uttered a cry of delight, while Bubble flushed with pleasure; and both were about to pour out a flood of eager questions, when Hilda laid her hand over Pink's mouth and made a sign to the boy. "Two minutes to get my breath!" she cried, panting; "only two, and then you shall hear all." She spent the two minutes in filling the kettle and presenting Bubble with a pot of peach-marmalade that Dame Hartley had sent him; then, sitting down by the invalid's chair, she told from beginning to end the history of the past two days. The recital was thrilling enough, and before it was over the pale cheeks were crimson, and the two pairs of blue eyes blazed with excitement.
"_Oh!_" cried Bubble, hopping up and down in his chair, regardless of the sprained ankle. "Oh, I _say_, Miss Hildy! I dunno what _to_ say! Wouldn't _he_ ha' liked it, though? My! 'twas jest like himself. Jes' exactly what he'd ha' done."
"What who would have done, Bubble?" asked Hilda, laughing.
"Why, him! Buckle-oh!" said the boy. "I was jest sayin' over the ballid when I saw ye comin'. Warn't it like him, Pink, say?"
But Pink drew the stately head down towards her, and kissed the glowing cheek, and whispered, "Queen Hildegarde! _my_ queen!"
The tears started to Hilda's eyes as she returned the kiss; but she brushed them away, and rose hastily, announcing her intention of "setting things to rights" against Mrs. Chirk's return. "You poor dears!" she cried, "how did you manage yesterday? If I had only known, I would have come and got dinner for you."
"Oh! we got on very well indeed," replied Pink, laughing, "though there were one or two mishaps. Fortunately there was plenty of bread in the cupboard, where we could easily reach it; and with that and the molasses jug, we were in no danger of starvation. But Mother had left a custard-pie on the upper shelf, and poor Bubble wanted a piece of it for dinner. But neither of us cripples could get at it; and for a long time we could think of no plan which would make it possible. At last Bubble had a bright idea. You remember the big fork that Mother uses to take pies out of the oven? Well, he spliced that on to the broom-handle, and then, standing well back, so that he could see (on one foot, of course, for he couldn't put the other to the ground), he reached for the pie. It was a dreadful moment, Hilda! The pie slid easily on to the fork, and for a moment all seemed to promise well; but the next minute, just as Bubble began to lower it, he wavered on his one foot--only a little, but enough to send the poor pie tumbling to the ground."
"Poor pie!" cried Bubble. "Wal, I like that! Poor _me_, I sh'd say. I'd had bread'n m'lasses three meals runnin', Miss Hildy. Now don't you think that old pie might ha' come down straight?"
"You should have seen his face, poor dear!" cried Pink. "He really couldn't laugh--for almost two minutes."
"Wal, I s'pose 'twas kind o' funny," the boy admitted, while Hilda laughed merrily over the catastrophe. "But thar! when one's used to standin' on two legs, it's dretful onhandy tryin' to stand on one. We'll have bread and jam to-day," he added, with an affectionate glance at the pot of marmalade, "and that's a good enough dinner for the Governor o' the State."
"Indeed, you shall have more than that!" cried Hildegarde. "Nurse Lucy does not need me before dinner, so I will get your dinner for you."
So the active girl made up the fire anew, swept the floor, dusted tables and chairs, and made the little room look tidy and cheerful, as Pink loved to see it. Then she ran down to the cellar, and reappeared with a basket of potatoes and a pan of rosy apples.
"Now we will perform a trio!" she said. "Pink, you shall peel and core the apples for apple-sauce, and Bubble shall pare the potatoes, while I make biscuit and gingerbread."
Accordingly, she rolled up her sleeves and set busily to work; the others followed her example, and fingers and tongues moved ceaselessly, in cheerful emulation of each other.
"I'd like to git hold o' Simon Hartley!" said Bubble, slicing vengefully at a big potato. "I wish't he was this tater, so I do! _I'd_ skin him! Yah! ornery critter! An' him standin' thar an' grinnin' at me over the wall, an' I couldn't do nothin'! Seemed's though I sh'd _fly_, Miss Hildy, it did; an' then not to be able to crawl even! I sw--I tell ye, now, I didn't like that."
"Poor Bubble!" said Hilda, compassionately, "I'm sure you didn't. And did he really start to crawl over to the farm, Pink?"
"Indeed he did!" replied Pink. "Nothing that I could say would keep him from trying it; so I bandaged his ankle as well as I could, and off he started. But he fainted twice before he got to the gate, so there was nothing for it but to crawl back again, and--have the knees of his trousers mended."
"Dear boy!" said Hilda, patting the curly head affectionately. "Good, faithful boy! I shall think a great deal more of it, Bubble, than if you had been able to walk all the way. And, after all," she added, "I am glad I had to do it myself,--go down to the mill, I mean. It is something to remember! I would not have missed it."
"No more wouldn't I!" cried Bubble, enthusiastically. "I'd ha' done it for ye twenty times, ye know that, Miss Hildy; but I druther ha' hed you do it;" and Hildegarde understood him perfectly.
The simple meal prepared and set out, Hilda bade farewell to her two friends, and flitted back to the farm. Mrs. Chirk was to return in the evening, so she felt no further anxiety about them.
She found the farmer just returned from the village in high spirits. Squire Gaylord had examined the diamonds, pronounced them of great value, and had readily advanced the money to pay off the mortgage, taking two or three large stones as security. Lawyer Clinch had reluctantly received his money, and relinquished all claim upon Hartley's Glen, though with a very bad grace.
"He kind o' insinuated that the di'monds had prob'ly ben stole by Father _or_ me, he couldn't say which; and he said somethin' about inquirin' into the matter. But Squire Gaylord shut him up pooty quick, by sayin' thar was more things than that as might be inquired into, and if he began, others might go on; and Lawyer Clinch hadn't nothin' more to say after that."
When dinner was over, and everything "redded up," Hildegarde sent Dame Hartley upstairs to take a nap, and escorted the farmer as far as the barn on his way to the turnip-field. Then, "the coast being clear," she said to herself, "we will prepare for the tree-party."
Accordingly, arming herself with a stout pruning-knife, she took her way to the "wood-lot," which lay on the north side of the house. The splendor of the trees, which were now in full autumnal glory, gave Hilda a sort of rapture as she approached them. What had she ever seen so beautiful as this,--the shifting, twinkling myriads of leaves, blazing with every imaginable shade of color above the black, straight trunks; the deep, translucent blue of the sky bending above; the golden light which transfused the whole scene; the crisp freshness of the afternoon air? She wanted to sing, to dance, to do everything that was joyous and free. But now she had work to do. She visited all her favorite trees,--the purple ash, the vivid, passionate maples, the oaks in their sober richness of murrey and crimson. On each and all she levied contributions, cutting armful after armful, and carried them to the house, piling them in splendid heaps on the shed-floor. Then, after carefully laying aside a few specially perfect branches, she began the work of decoration. Over the chimney-piece she laid great boughs of maple, glittering like purest gold in the afternoon light, which streamed broadly in through the windows. Others--scarlet, pink, dappled red, and yellow--were placed over the windows, the doors, the dresser. She filled the corners with stately oak-boughs, and made a bower of the purple ash in the bow-window,--Faith's window. Then she set the tea-table with the best china, every plate and dish resting on a mat of scarlet leaves, while a chain of yellow ones outlined the shining square board. A tiny scarlet wreath encircled the tea-kettle, and even the butter-dish displayed its golden balls beneath an arch of flaming crimson. This done, she filled a great glass bowl with purple-fringed asters and long, gleaming sprays of golden-rod, and setting it in the middle of the table, stood back with her head a little on one side and surveyed the general effect.
"Good!" was her final comment; "very good! And now for my own part."
She gathered in her apron the branches first selected, and carried them up to her own room, where she proceeded to strip off the leaves and to fashion them into long garlands. As her busy fingers worked, her thoughts flew hither and thither, bringing back the memories of the past few days. Now she stood in the kitchen, pistol in hand, facing the rascal Simon Hartley; and she laughed to think how he had shaken and cowered before the empty weapon. Now she was in the vault of the ruined mill, with a thousand horrors of darkness pressing on her, and only the tiny spark of light in her lantern to keep off the black and shapeless monsters. Now she thought of the kind farmer, with a throb of pity, as she recalled the hopeless sadness of his face the night before. Just the very night before, only a few hours; and now how different everything was! Her heart gave a little happy thrill to think that she, Hilda, the "city gal," had been able to help these dear friends in their trouble. They loved her already, she knew that; they would love her more now. Ah! and they would miss her all the more, now that she must leave them so soon.
Then, like a flash, her thoughts reverted to the plan she had been revolving in her mind two days before, before all these strange things had happened. It was a delightful little plan! Pink was to be sent to a New York hospital,--the very best hospital that could be found; and Hildegarde hoped--she thought--she felt almost sure that the trouble could be greatly helped, if not cured altogether. And then, when Pink was well, or at least a great, great deal better, she was to come and live at the farm, and help Nurse Lucy, and sing to the farmer, and be all the comfort--no, not all, but nearly the comfort that Faith would have been if she had lived. And Bubble--yes! Bubble must go to school,--to a good school, where his bright, quick mind should learn everything there was to learn. Papa would see to that, Hilda knew he would. Bubble would delight Papa! And then he would go to college, and by and by become a famous doctor, or a great lawyer, or--oh! Bubble could be anything he chose, she was sure of it.
So the girl's happy thoughts flew on through the years that were to come, weaving golden fancies even as her fingers were weaving the gay chains of shining leaves; but let us hope the fancy-chains, airy as they were, were destined to become substantial realities long after the golden wreaths had faded.
But now the garlands were ready, and none too soon; for the shadows were lengthening, and she heard Nurse Lucy downstairs, and Farmer Hartley would be coming in soon to his tea. She took from a drawer her one white frock, the plain lawn which had once seemed so over-plain to her, and with the wreaths of scarlet and gold she made a very wonderful thing of it. Fifteen minutes' careful work, and Hilda stood looking at her image in the glass, well pleased and a little surprised; for she had been too busy of late to think much about her looks, and had not realized how sun and air and a free, out-door life had made her beauty blossom and glow like a rose in mid-June. With a scarlet chaplet crowning her fair locks, bands of gold about waist and neck and sleeves, and the whole skirt covered with a fantastic tracery of mingled gold and fire, she was a vision of almost startling loveliness. She gave a little happy laugh. "Dear old Farmer!" she said, "he likes to see me fine. I think this will please him." And light as a thistledown, the girl floated downstairs and danced into the kitchen just as Farmer Hartley entered it from the other side.
"Highty-tighty!" cried the good man, "what's all this? Is there a fire? Everything's all ablaze! Why, Hildy! bless my soul!" He stood in silent delight, looking at the lovely figure before him, with its face of rosy joy and its happy, laughing eyes.
"It's a tree-party," explained Hildegarde, taking his two hands and leading him forward. "I'm part of it, you see, Farmer Hartley. Do you like it? Is it pretty? It's to celebrate our good fortune," she added; and putting her arm in the old man's, she led him about the room, pointing out the various decorations, and asking his approval.
Farmer Hartley admired everything greatly, but in an absent way, as if his mind were preoccupied with other matters. He turned frequently towards the door, as if he expected some one to follow him. "All for me?" he kept asking. "All for me and Marm Lucy, Hildy? Ye--ye ain't expectin' nobody else to tea, now?"
"No," said Hilda, wondering. "Of course not. Who else is there to come? Bubble has sprained his ankle, you know, and Pink--"
"Yes, yes; I know, I know!" said the farmer, still with that backward glance at the door. And then, as he heard some noise in the yard, he added hurriedly: "At the same time, ye know, Hildy, people do sometimes drop in to tea--kind o' onexpected-like, y' understand. And--and--all this pretty show might--might seem to--indicate, ye see--"
"Jacob Hartley? what are you up to?" demanded Nurse Lucy, rather anxiously, as she stood at the shed-door watching him intently. "Does your head feel dizzy? You'd better go and lie down; you've had too much excitement for a man of--"
"Oh, you thar, Marm Lucy?" cried the farmer, with a sigh of relief that was half a chuckle, "Now, thar! you tell Hildy that folks does sometimes drop in--onexpected-like--folks from a _con_sid'able distance sometimes. Why, I've known 'em--" But here he stopped suddenly. And as Hilda, expecting she knew not what, stood with hands clasped together, and beating heart, the door was thrown open and a strong, cheery voice cried, "Well, General!" Another moment, and she was clasped in her father's arms.
THE LAST WORD.
The lovely autumn is gone, and winter is here. Mr. and Mrs. Graham have long since been settled at home, and Hildegarde is with them. How does it fare with her, the new Hildegarde, under the old influences and amid the old surroundings? For answer, let us take the word of her oldest friend,--the friend who "_knows_ Hildegarde!" Madge Everton has just finished a long letter to Helen McIvor, who is spending the winter in Washington, and there can be no harm in our taking a peep into it.
"You ask me about Hilda Graham; but, _alas!_ I have NOTHING pleasant to tell. My dear, Hilda is simply LOST to us! It is all the result of that _dreadful_ summer spent among _swineherds_. You know what the Bible says! I don't know exactly _what_, but something _terrible_ about that sort of thing. Of course it is _partly_ her mother's influence as well. I have always DREADED it for Hilda, who is so _sensitive_ to _impressions_. Why, I remember, as far back as the first year that we were at Mme. Haut-Ton's, Mrs. Graham saying to Mamma, 'I wish we could interest our girls a little in _sensible_ things!' My dear, she meant _hospitals_ and _soup-kitchens_ and things! And Mamma said (you know Mamma isn't in the _least_ afraid of Mrs. Graham, though I confess I AM!), 'My _dear_ Mrs. Graham, if there is _one_ thing Society will NOT tolerate, it is a _sensible_ woman. Our girls might as well have the small-pox at once, and be done with it.' Wasn't it _clever_ of Mamma? And Mrs. Graham just LOOKED at her as if she were a _camel_ from _Barnum's_.
"Well, poor Hildegarde is sensible enough _now_ to satisfy _even_ her mother. Ever since she came home from that _odious_ place, it has been one round of hospitals and tenement-houses and _sloughs of horror_. I don't mean that she has given up school, for she is studying harder than ever; but out of school she is simply _swallowed up_ by these wretched things. I have remonstrated with her _almost_ on my KNEES. 'Hildegarde,' I said one day, 'do you REALIZE that you are practically _giving up_ your _whole_ LIFE? If you once _lose your place_ in Society among those of your _own age_ and _position_, you NEVER can regain it. Do you REALIZE this, Hilda? for I feel it a SOLEMN DUTY to _warn_ you!' My dear, she actually LAUGHED! and only said, 'Dear Madge, I have only just begun to have any life!' And that was _all_ I could get out of her, for just then some one came in. But even _this_ is not _the worst_! Oh, Helen! she has some of the _creatures_ whom she saw this summer, actually _staying_ in the house,--in THAT house, which we used to call Castle Graham, and were almost afraid to enter ourselves, so stately and beautiful it was! There are two of these creatures,--a girl about our age, some sort of dreadful cripple, who goes about in a bath-chair, and a freckled imp of a boy. The girl is at ---- Hospital for treatment, but spends _every Sunday_ at the Grahams', and Hilda devotes _most_ of her spare time to her. The boy is at school,--one of the _best_ schools in the city. 'But _who_ are these people?' I hear you cry. My dear! they are simply _ignorant paupers_, who were Hilda's constant companions through that _disastrous summer_. Now their mother is dead, and the people with whom Hilda stayed have adopted them. The boy is to be a doctor, and the girl is going to get well, Dr. George says. (_He_ calls her a beautiful and interesting creature; but you know what _that_ means. _Any diseased_ creature is beautiful to _him_!) Well, and THESE, my dear Helen, are Hilda Graham's FRIENDS, for whom she has _deserted_ her OLD _ones_! for though she is _unchanged_ towards me when I see her, I hardly ever _do_ see her. She cares nothing for _my_ pursuits, and I certainly have NO intention of joining in _hers_. I met her the other day on _Fifth Avenue_, walking beside that _odious_ bath-chair, which the freckled boy was pushing. She looked so _lovely_ (for she is prettier than ever, with a fine color and eyes like _stars_), and was talking so earnestly, and walking somehow as if she were treading on air, it sent a PANG through my heart. I just paused an instant (for though I _trust_ I am not SNOBBISH, Helen, still, I _draw the line_ at bath-chairs, and will _not_ be seen standing by one), and said in a low tone, meant _only_ for _her ear_, 'Ah! has _Queen Hildegarde_ come to _this_?' My dear, she only LAUGHED! But that _girl_, that cripple, looked up with a smile and a sort of flash over her face, and said, just as if she _knew_ me, 'Yes, Miss Everton! the Queen has come to her kingdom!'"
THE END
Selections from The Page Company's Books for Young People
* * * * *
THE BLUE BONNET SERIES
_Each large 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, per volume_ $1.75
A TEXAS BLUE BONNET
By CAROLINE E. JACOBS.
"The book's heroine, Blue Bonnet, has the very finest kind of wholesome, honest, lively girlishness."--_Chicago Inter-Ocean._
BLUE BONNET'S RANCH PARTY
By CAROLINE E. JACOBS AND EDYTH ELLERBECK READ.
"A healthy, natural atmosphere breathes from every chapter."--_Boston Transcript._
BLUE BONNET IN BOSTON
By CAROLINE E. JACOBS AND LELA HORN RICHARDS.
"It is bound to become popular because of its wholesomeness and its many human touches."--_Boston Globe._
BLUE BONNET KEEPS HOUSE
By CAROLINE E. JACOBS AND LELA HORN RICHARDS.
"It cannot fail to prove fascinating to girls in their teens."--_New York Sun._
BLUE BONNET--DÉBUTANTE
By LELA HORN RICHARDS.
An interesting picture of the unfolding of life for Blue Bonnet.
BLUE BONNET OF THE SEVEN STARS
By LELA HORN RICHARDS.
"The author's intimate detail and charm of narration gives the reader an interesting story of the heroine's war activities."--_Pittsburgh Leader._
ONLY HENRIETTA
BY LELA HORN RICHARDS.
Cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated $1.90
"It is an inspiring story of the unfolding of life for a young girl--a story in which there is plenty of action to hold interest and wealth of delicate sympathy and understanding that appeals to the hearts of young and old."--_Pittsburgh Leader._
HENRIETTA'S INHERITANCE: A Sequel to "Only Henrietta"
BY LELA HORN RICHARDS.
Cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated $1.90
"One of the most noteworthy stories for girls issued this season. The life of Henrietta is made very real, and there is enough incident in the narrative to balance the delightful characterization."--_Providence Journal._
THE YOUNG KNIGHT
By I.M.B. of K.
Cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated $1.75
The clash of broad-sword on buckler, the twanging of bow-strings and the cracking of spears splintered by whirling maces resound through this stirring tale of knightly daring-do.
THE YOUNG CAVALIERS
By I.M.B. of K.
Cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated $1.75
"There have been many scores of books written about the Charles Stuarts of England, but never a merrier and more pathetic one than 'The Young Cavaliers.'"--_Family Herald._
"The story moves quickly, and every page flashes a new thrill before the reader, with plenty of suspense and excitement. There is valor, affection, romance, chivalry and humor in this fascinating tale."--_Kansas City Kansan._
THE MARJORY-JOE SERIES
By ALICE E. ALLEN
_Each one volume, cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated, per volume_ $1.50
JOE, THE CIRCUS BOY AND ROSEMARY
These are two of Miss Allen's earliest and most successful stories, combined in a single volume to meet the insistent demands from young people for these two particular tales.
THE MARTIE TWINS: Continuing the Adventures of Joe, the Circus Boy
"The chief charm of the story is that it contains so much of human nature. It is so real that it touches the heart strings."--_New York Standard._
MARJORY, THE CIRCUS GIRL
A sequel to "Joe, the Circus boy," and "The Martie Twins."
MARJORY AT THE WILLOWS Continuing the story of Marjory, the Circus Girl.
"Miss Allen does not write impossible stories, but delightfully pins her little folk right down to this life of ours, in which she ranges vigorously and delightfully."--_Boston Ideas._
MARJORY'S HOUSE PARTY: Or, What Happened at Clover Patch
"Miss Allen certainly knows how to please the children and tells them stories that never fail to charm."--_Madison Courier._
MARJORY'S DISCOVERY
This new addition to the popular MARJORY-JOE SERIES is as lovable and original as any of the other creations of this writer of charming stories. We get little peeps at the precious twins, at the healthy minded Joe and sweet Marjory. There is a bungalow party, which lasts the entire summer, in which all of the characters of the previous MARJORY-JOE stories participate, and their happy times are delightfully depicted.
THE YOUNG PIONEER SERIES
By HARRISON ADAMS
_Each 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, per volume_ $1.65
THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE OHIO; OR, CLEARING THE WILDERNESS.
"Such books as this are an admirable means of stimulating among the young Americans of to-day interest in the story of their pioneer ancestors and the early days of the Republic."--_Boston Globe._
THE PIONEER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES; OR, ON THE TRAIL OF THE IROQUOIS.
"The recital of the daring deeds of the frontier is not only interesting but instructive as well and shows the sterling type of character which these days of self-reliance and trial produced."--_American Tourist, Chicago._
THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE MISSISSIPPI; OR, THE HOMESTEAD IN THE WILDERNESS.
"The story is told with spirit, and is full of adventure."--_New York Sun._
THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE MISSOURI; OR, IN THE COUNTRY OF THE SIOUX.
"Vivid in style, vigorous in movement, full of dramatic situations, true to historic perspective, this story is a capital one for boys."--_Watchman Examiner, New York City._
THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE YELLOWSTONE; OR, LOST IN THE LAND OF WONDERS.
"There is plenty of lively adventure and action and the story is well told."--_Duluth Herald, Duluth, Minn._
THE PIONEER BOYS OF THE COLUMBIA; OR, IN THE WILDERNESS OF THE GREAT NORTHWEST.
"The story is full of spirited action and contains much valuable historical information."--_Boston Herald._
THE FRIENDLY TERRACE SERIES
By HARRIET LUMMIS SMITH
_Each one volume, cloth, decorative, 12mo, illustrated, per volume_ $1.75
THE GIRLS OF FRIENDLY TERRACE
"It is a book that cheers, that inspires to higher thinking; it knits hearts; it unfolds neighborhood plans in a way that makes one tingle to try carrying them out, and most of all it proves that in daily life, threads of wonderful issues are being woven in with what appears the most ordinary of material, but which in the end brings results stranger than the most thrilling fiction."--_Belle Kellogg Towne in The Young People's Weekly, Chicago._
PEGGY RAYMOND'S VACATION
"It is a clean, wholesome, hearty story, well told and full of incident. It carries one through experiences that hearten and brighten the day."--_Utica, N.Y., Observer._
PEGGY RAYMOND'S SCHOOL DAYS
"It is a bright, entertaining story, with happy girls, good times, natural development, and a gentle earnestness of general tone."--_The Christian Register, Boston._
THE FRIENDLY TERRACE QUARTETTE
"The story is told in easy and entertaining style and is a most delightful narrative, especially for young people. It will also make the older readers feel younger, for while reading it they will surely live again in the days of their youth."--_Troy Budget._
PEGGY RAYMOND'S WAY
"The author has again produced a story that is replete with wholesome incidents and makes Peggy more lovable than ever as a companion and leader."--_World of Books._
"It possesses a plot of much merit and through its 324 pages it weaves a tale of love and of adventure which ranks it among the best books for girls."--_Cohoe-American._
FAMOUS LEADERS SERIES
By CHARLES H.L. JOHNSTON
_Each large 12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, per volume_ $2.00
FAMOUS CAVALRY LEADERS
"More of such books should be written, books that acquaint young readers with historical personages in a pleasant, informal way."--_New York Sun._
FAMOUS INDIAN CHIEFS
"Mr. Johnston has done faithful work in this volume, and his relation of battles, sieges and struggles of these famous Indians with the whites for the possession of America is a worthy addition to United States History."--_New York Marine Journal._
FAMOUS SCOUTS
"It is the kind of a book that will have a great fascination for boys and young men."--_New London Day._
FAMOUS PRIVATEERSMEN AND ADVENTURERS OF THE SEA
"The tales are more than merely interesting; they are entrancing, stirring the blood with thrilling force."-_Pittsburgh Post._
FAMOUS FRONTIERSMEN AND HEROES OF THE BORDER
"The accounts are not only authentic, but distinctly readable, making a book of wide appeal to all who love the history of actual adventure."--_Cleveland Leader._
FAMOUS DISCOVERERS AND EXPLORERS OF AMERICA
"The book is an epitome of some of the wildest and bravest adventures of which the world has known."--_Brooklyn Daily Eagle._
FAMOUS GENERALS OF THE GREAT WAR
Who Led the United States and Her Allies to a Glorious Victory.
"The pages of this book have the charm of romance without its unreality. The book illuminates, with life-like portraits, the history of the World War."--_Rochester Post Express._
FAMOUS LEADERS SERIES (Con.)
By EDWIN WILDMAN
FAMOUS LEADERS OF INDUSTRY.--First Series
"Are these stories interesting? Let a boy read them; and tell you."--_Boston Transcript._
FAMOUS LEADERS OF INDUSTRY.--Second Series
"As fascinating as fiction are these biographies, which emphasize their humble beginning and drive home the truth that just as every soldier of Napoleon carried a marshal's baton in his knapsack, so every American youngster carries potential success under his hat."--_New York World._
THE FOUNDERS OF AMERICA (Lives of Great Americans from the Revolution to the Monroe Doctrine)
"How can one become acquainted with the histories of some of the famous men of the United States? A very good way is to read 'The Founders of America,' by Edwin Wildman, wherein the life stories of fifteen men who founded our country are told"--_New York Post._
FAMOUS LEADERS OF CHARACTER (Lives of Great Americans from the Civil War to Today)
"An informing, interesting and inspiring book for boys."--_Presbyterian Banner._
" ... Is a book that should be read by every boy in the whole country...."--_Atlanta Constitution._
FAMOUS AMERICAN NAVAL OFFICERS
With a complete index.
By CHARLES LEE LEWIS
_Professor, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis_
"Professor Lewis does not make the mistake of bringing together simply a collection of biographical sketches. In connection with the life of John Paul Jones, Stephen Decatur, and other famous naval officers, he groups the events of the period in which the officer distinguished himself, and combines the whole into a colorful and stirring narrative."--_Boston Herald._
STORIES BY EVALEEN STEIN
Each, one volume, cloth decorative, 12mo, illustrated, with a jacket in color $1.65
THE CHRISTMAS PORRINGER
This story happened many hundreds of years ago in the quaint Flemish city of Bruges and concerns a little girl named Karen, who worked at lace-making with her aged grandmother.
GABRIEL AND THE HOUR BOOK
"No works in juvenile fiction contain so many of the elements that stir the hearts of children and grown-ups as well as do the stories so admirably told by this author."--_Louisville Daily Courier._
A LITTLE SHEPHERD OF PROVENCE
"The story should be one of the influences in the life of every child to whom good stories can be made to appeal."--_Public Ledger._
THE LITTLE COUNT OF NORMANDY
"This touching and pleasing story is told with a wealth of interest coupled with enlivening descriptions of the country where its scenes are laid and of the people thereof"--_Wilmington Every Evening._
WHEN FAIRIES WERE FRIENDLY
"The stories are music in prose--they are like pearls on a chain of gold--each word seems exactly the right word in the right place; the stories sing themselves out, they are so beautifully expressed."--_The Lafayette Leader._
PEPIN: A Tale of Twelfth Night
"This retelling of an old Twelfth Night romance is a creation almost as perfect as her 'Christmas Porringer.'"--_Lexington Herald._
End of Project Gutenberg's Queen Hildegarde, by Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards