CHAPTER X

IN THE VILLAGE OF HIDE AND SEEK

A general burst of applause greeted the ears of the story-teller as he ceased speaking and sank into silence. All the boys now rose with merry faces and surrounding the old oaken bucket, journeyed together to the old well, while the little girls sat gazing intently upon the stranger, as if he were the greatest man in the whole world.

One little girl whispered to another little girl that some day he might be President of the United States, but the other little girl gave it as her honest opinion that he should have been long ago. Many of the others were now almost as much interested in the man as in his wonderful story.

A little girl asked him if Harpers Ferry was very far from there; while another wanted to know if he could call around the next day for she was anxious to introduce him to her father and mother, who, she declared, would be more than delighted to meet him.

The Vagabond's only answer to all was a good-natured smile. When the water arrived, and it had been passed around to the children, the Vagabond helped himself to his heart's content, after which he proceeded to tell the last of his story.

"The Queen did not have to wait long after pressing the button, for it rang a bell that summoned into her presence a finely liveried butler, who, when he learned the wants of Her Royal Highness, glided silently down the steps of the throne. Presently two court attendants entered, bearing a tray on which were a number of glasses filled with a fluid referred to by the Queen as Nectar; although, as Maud said, it was too good for language to describe. Shortly after the refreshment they started to visit the Village of Hide and Seek.

"When they were part way down the steps some little doll in the village spread the news of their coming, and all the dolls, almost wild with joy, dropped their playthings and flocked to meet them.

"The Queen and the children followed a beautiful, pebbly path that led through an orchard lying to the north of the village, for they wanted to enter upon the main street; and as they went slowly along they passed beneath boughs laden almost to breaking with ripe, mellow chocolate drops, while the path was lined on either side with bushes where great, rich, juicy clusters of gum drops hung, ready to fall to the ground.

"They were soon joined by the romping dolls, and together they walked down the main street to the public square and paused in front of the beautiful Temple of Music.

"Dolls with bright, rosy cheeks came running as if almost wild to meet them. Some had azure eyes and light golden hair: while others, with dark piercing eyes and long raven locks might put to blush the fairest picture ever drawn.

"They gathered around little Maud, and pulling at the hem of her dress, begged to be taken into her arms. At last she lifted a flaxen-haired beauty from the ground, and with a sweet, satisfied smile upon its face, it laid its head lovingly upon her breast as it said in a contented half-whisper:

"'Please be my mamma, please be my mamma.'

"Then a thousand sweet doll-baby voices cried out in chorus:

"'No, she shall be my mamma. She shall be my mamma.'

"And they raised such a hue and cry and scrambled so to get hold of her dress, that in order not to be partial, she had to let the little beauty down again on to the ground.

"Amid the wild excitement of the dolls, Arthur was not alone. He stood to one side watching a little doll that was lying under a tree and talking with some other little dolls standing near by.

"Its eyelids were wide-open, yet its eyes had an unnatural expression. For a long time he regarded her pityingly when he saw that the doll was blind. A strange manly-looking doll walked up to him, and, peering into his face, exclaimed:

"'Seeing you are a stranger, sir, in the village of Hide and Seek, and noting your apparent sympathy for the blind doll lying yonder under the tree, allow me to tell you the life story of her who has so touched your emotions. Arthur bowed politely and expressed a desire to hear what the strange doll might have to say. The little fellow continued:

"'Perhaps you have noticed by my long hair and studious demeanor that I am both a gentleman and a scholar; and right here let me say, I am the Village Poet. I can converse much more easily in verse than in prose; so if you will kindly listen to me for a moment, I will relate a little circumstance which occurred some time ago, and will tell you the plain, unvarnished truth about the blind doll.'

Illustration: _"Perhaps you have noticed by my long hair and studious demeanor that I am both a gentleman and a scholar."_

"Resting for a moment, for he did not appear to be very strong, he breathed a long sigh as he began:

"'Once on a time a Baboon came across yon mountain crown. He sailed down in a big balloon and landed near the town; And seeing, as he walked along, this blind doll lying near, He paused to say a kindly word, or shed a gentle tear.

"'Why is it, little doll?' he asked, 'you lie here all the day, Instead of romping on the green, like other dolls at play? And why avoid the jolly crowd, pray tell me if you will, Is it that you thus like to be, or is it you are ill?'

"'Oh, sir,' the little doll replied, 'you're surely more than kind, But look at me and you will see that I, alas, am blind; And thus all day I keep away, nor venture near the throng, For not a friend a hand will lend to guide my feet along.'

"'The Baboon picked the blind doll up and stared with all his might. 'Pray, tell me Dolly,' he inquired, 'how did you lose your sight?' 'Alas, kind sir, my sightless eyes, I strained them in a fog, A-looking for a Christmas gift from Mother Hubbard's dog.'

"'Then up spoke Simple Simon, and with utterance unkind He cried, 'This doll who falsifies is lazy and not blind. I'll prove my words,' but ere he could, to everyone's surprise, The Baboon pulled his anchor up and sailed off through the skies.

"'Poor Simple Simon, he was right. This doll is only blind When lying flat upon its back, or partly so inclined; But if you make it sit up straight, you'll find his words are true, For then the sleepy-headed Doll can see as well as you.'

"Little Arthur walked over to the doll and lifted it into a sitting position. It opened its eyes at once and looked squarely into his own. Uttering a word of surprise to his poet friend, they walked away from the blind doll together and passed down the street.

"When they had nearly crossed the square, the Poet Doll bade him 'Good day' and entered a house on the corner which Arthur concluded to be the Poet's home. He found himself standing near a curious, round-faced boy-doll, who was looking on the gathering in silence. His head was so close shaven that he was almost bald, except for a long queue extending far down his back like a pig-tail, while his little black almond-shaped eyes sat well aslant on his head.

"Arthur thought he would speak first; and, turning to the little fellow, he said:

"'Excuse me, my little man, this is a most lovely village. Do you live here?'

"There was a moment's pause and a look of bashfulness upon the boy-doll's face, as, with a courteous bow and the politeness of a prince, it said in reply:

"'I humbly beg your honorable pardon, sir, but, as my education in foreign languages was sadly neglected, I most heartily deplore the deficiency and am quite sorry to inform you that I do not speak your honorable language as I understand nothing but Chinese.'

"Arthur, seeing his mistake, retired with a most polite bow and went over to another little doll that spoke English.

"'Come,' exclaimed this new found acquaintance in a quite familiar manner, 'let us play a game of hide and seek. I know a dandy place to hide.'

"'All right, sir,' said Arthur, joyfully; 'but first let me tell my sister about it for she dearly loves to play.'

"And the two walked hand in hand to where Maud stood surrounded by a multitude of little dolls.

"As Arthur watched and listened, waiting to get an audience with his sister, he overheard one little doll say to her:

"'When did you come here?'

"'To-day,' replied Maud, then added, 'but if I had only known the way, I would have been here long ago. I am so sorry that I must soon leave.'

"'Where are you going?' another doll shyly inquired.

"'Going home,' replied Maud, with a deep sigh.

"All the little beauties looked up into her face as if greatly bewildered.

"'What does she mean?' asked one of the dolls of her companions. 'What is home?' And it arose on tip-toes to look into her face.

"'My home,' replied little Maud, 'is down in Harpers Ferry on the Shenandoah River.'

"'River!' a doll repeated. 'Harpers Ferry!' And it turned a bewildered look upon the rest of the assembled dolls standing in questioning silence before her.

"Maud soon realized that the dolls failed to understand her, and, wishing to make herself understood, she gazed wistfully over the gathering of bright faces, as she said:

"'I live in one of the most beautiful places in the world.'

"Before she could finish what she wished to say, however, one little doll way back in the multitude spoke up, saying:

"'World, did she say? Why, I have often heard Santa Claus speak of that place.'

"All the dolls turned their attention from Maud to the little speaker. They assisted their little companion up on to the bottom of an inverted tin sand pail that she might be seen as well as heard; when with a bashful bow, she said:

"'The world, playmates, is the place where mothers die and leave their little children all alone.'

"With a leap from the sand pail, the little speaker disappeared in the assemblage of dolls. Instantly all turned to Maud with an inquiring look. There was an expression of doubt upon their little faces and they were now more than anxious for her to speak.

"'Yes,' she replied, 'alas! That is only too true.'

"And she breathed a sorrowful sigh as she thought of her mamma who had been dead for two long years, and of how she had nestled close in her loving arms waiting for Santa Claus to come, only three nights before she passed away.

"She glanced into the sad face of her orphan brother standing near, and down in her little heart there came a sad longing for the sound of that sweet mother's gentle voice, with its tender words of love and nightly prayer.

"Again the happy days, now gone forever, came back to her childish memory; and the soft song of her mother stole into her soul with a charming lullaby. Again she felt the warm, fervent kiss on her cheek, as in fancy she heard her mother whisper a last 'Good night.'

"A sob burst from her sweet lips. A tear rose to her eye and stood trembling upon the long black lashes. Another followed and crowded it from its place to the ground.

"The Queen drew back horror-struck, for the Heaven-forbidden drop of water had at last fallen upon Beauty Valley.

"A sudden chorus of wild screams rent the air. There was a terrible shock, an upheaval, as if from an earthquake. The very ground trembled as if in a fit of convulsions. Sharp, darting pains struck the children mercilessly down into a state of insensibility. All then grew silent as death and pitch dark.

"In a few moments the shrill whistle of a train resounded through the Shenandoah Valley, as it dashed out of the tunnel in the mountain and on over the great steel bridge into Harpers Ferry.

"Little Maud, wakened by the echoing tumult, gazed in a bewildered manner about her. There lay her brother asleep upon the green mound, under the same tree where they had first met 'Aunt Twaddles.' She placed her hand tenderly upon him, and he awoke with a sudden start.

"'Oh, Maudie!' he exclaimed, 'what happened that it grew dark so suddenly?'

"The boy half arose as he received only a sob in reply, and you can well imagine his surprise as he gazed about; for there at his side lay a huge pile of freshly picked pennyroyal on the very top of which was a snow-white card. The card was most beautifully embossed with a picture of the Village of Hide and Seek, and, in the handwriting of 'Aunt Twaddles,' it bore the following inscription:

_"To my darling Children: Remember always that, as you saw a tear destroy a realm of joy, so can a spirit of discontent destroy a life of useful happiness. Yours very lovingly, 'Twaddles, the Queen of the Dolls_.'

"'Oh, Arthur!' exclaimed Maud, 'hurry and don't think of it any more.'

"And the two children gathered up as much of the pennyroyal as each could possibly carry and hurried across the long foot-bridge into the village.

"Men, women and children ran to greet them with tears of joy in their eyes. With strong arms they bore them and their pennyroyal into the Inn, where the stern, scolding, old inn-keeper stood ready to whip them, but the sight of the pennyroyal caused him to relent.

"On the afternoon of the following day, Arthur and his little sister were seated all alone on the bank of the Shenandoah, looking far across upon the steep path that led straight up the face of the mountain. Their little elbows were planted firmly upon their knees, their chins sunk deeply into the palms of their wide-open hands. For a long time they sat motionless, thinking no doubt of their wonderful journey. Little Arthur finally broke the silence.

"'Maud!' he exclaimed, in a tone deeply touched with emotion.

"'What is it, Arthur?' she replied, with a sob.

"'Maud,' he repeated, 'I was just wishing that that big mountain over yonder, right under Taffy River, would spring a leak.'

"For a long time they sat weeping and thinking of it; nor is there any doubt that they wept over it until far into the night, when they fell asleep and forgot about it.

"This then is the story, my children, of the strange path on the side of the mountain that lies like a scar on the face of the cliff; and many are the old settlers thereabout who will vouch for the truth of my tale.

"It is needless to prove true what is true; still if there is any feeling of doubt in your hearts, just stand on the banks of the fair Shenandoah almost any warm morning in springtime, and no doubt you will see 'Aunt Twaddles' slowly ascending the path with her big bag of herbs.

"But if you should happen to miss her, and still want some proof of these facts, just keep a close watch on the strangers who step from the trains when they stop at the little stone station. If you see them wiping their eyes with a handkerchief and gazing about on the surrounding mountains, you may be sure they have once eaten some of 'Aunt Twaddles' candy and are wiping the tears from their eyes and crying like children for more.

"At the same time you will see them looking about on the cliffs, and searching for the steep path that leads up to the Village of Hide and Seek, quite firmly resolved at some future day to return and go up with 'Aunt Twaddles.' But for the present, (poor things), their only hope is to go back into the cars and cry until they forget about it.

"There are many more wonderful things I might tell you of the Village of Hide and Seek, and likewise to the everlasting glory of 'Aunt Twaddles'' candy as well, but the very thought of it makes me feel sad; for now as I talk, I feel tears coming to my eyes and find I must either talk on and cry on, or quit talking and forget about it.

"Excuse me, dear children, won't you, while I weep?"

As the Vagabond ceased speaking the tears flowed down his cheeks in a perfect torrent; and although the children were delighted with his story, they too wept in sympathy with him. The very loudest of all was the dear little tot who had occupied the place of honor on his knee.

While the group of children sat weeping in sympathy under the tree, the Vagabond arose. Bidding them all farewell, he placed his old, worn-out hat on his head, shouldered his crooked staff, waved a parting blessing toward the well on the lawn, and still weeping, passed out of sight along the dusty highway.

THE END.

● Transcriber's Notes: ○ Punctuation has been standardized. ○ For illustrations which had no caption in the book, a descriptive phrase was added. For example: [Illustration: Decoration] ○ Unbalanced quotation marks were left as the author intended. ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected. ○ Spelling and hyphenation were made consistent when a predominant form was found in this book.