The Naughtiest Girl in the School - Blyton, Enid.
CHAPTER 1.
The Naughty Spoilt Girl.
"YOU'LL have to go to school, Elizabeth!" said Mrs. Allen.
"I think your governess is quite right. You are spoilt and naughty, and
although Daddy and 1 were going to leave you here with Miss Scott, when we went
away, I think it would be better for you to go to school." Elizabeth
stared at her mother in dismay. What, leave her home? And her pony and her dog?
Go and be with a lot of children she would hate! Oh no, she wouldn't go!
"I'll be good with Miss Scott," she said.
"You've said that before," said her mother, "Miss Scott
says she can't stay with you any longer. Elizabeth, is it true that you put
earwigs in her bed last night?" Elizabeth giggled. "Yes," she
said. "Miss Scott is so frightened of them! It's silly to be afraid of
earwigs, isn't it?" "It is much sillier to put them into somebody's
bed," said Mrs. Allen sternly. "You have been spoilt, and you think
you can do what you like! You are an only child, and we love you so much, Daddy
and I, that I think we have given you too many lovely things, and allowed you
too much freedom." "Mummy, if you send me to school, I shall be so
naughty there that they'll send me back home again," said Elizabeth,
shaking her curls back. She was a pretty girt with laughing blue eyes and dark
brown curls. All her life she had done as she liked. Six governesses had come
and gone, but not one of them had been able to make Elizabeth obedient or good
mannered! "You can be such a nice little girl!" they had all said to
her, "but all you think of is getting into mischief and being rude about
it!" And now when she said that she would be so naughty at school that
they would have to send her home, her mother looked at her in despair. She
loved Elizabeth very much, and wanted her to be happy-but how could she be
happy if she did not learn to be as other children were?
"You have been alone too much, Elizabeth," she said.
"You should have had other children to play with and to work with."
"I don't like other children!" said Elizabeth sulkily, It was quite
true-she didn't like boys and girls at all! They were shocked at her mischief
and rude ways, and when they said they wouldn't join in her naughtiness, she
laughed at them and said they were babies, Then they told her what they thought
of her, and Elizabeth didn't like it.
So now the thought of going away to school and living with other boys
and girls made Elizabeth feel dreadful! "Please don't send me," she
begged. "I really will be good at home." "No, Elizabeth,"
said her mother. "Daddy and I must go away for a whole year, and as Miss
Scott won't stay, and we could not expect to find another governess quickly
before we go, it is best you should go to school, You have a good brain and you
should be able to do your work well and get to the top of the form. Then we
shall be proud of you." "I shan't work at all," said Elizabeth,
pouting. "I won't work a bit, and they'll think I'm so stupid they won't
keep me!" "Well, Elizabeth, if you want to make things difficult for
yourself, you'll have to," said Mother, getting up. "We have written
to Miss Belle and Miss Best, who run Whyteleafe School, and they are willing to
take you next week, when the new term begins. Miss Scott will get all your
things ready. Please help her all you can." Elizabeth was very angry and
upset. She didn't want to go to school. She hated everybody, especially silly
children! Miss Scott was horrid to say she wouldn't stay. Suddenly Elizabeth
wondered if she would stay, if she asked her very, very nicely! She ran to find
her governess. Miss Scott was busy sewing Elizabeth's name on to a pile of
brown stockings.
"Are these new stockings?" asked Elizabeth, in surprise.
"I don't wear stockings! I wear socks!" "You have to wear
stockings at Whyteleafe School," said Miss Scott. Elizabeth stared at the
pile, and then she suddenly put her arms round Miss Scott's neck.
"Miss Scott!" she said. "Stay with me! I know I'm
sometimes naughty, but I don't want you to go." "What you really mean
is that you don't want to go to school," said Miss Scott. "I suppose
Mother's been telling you?" "Yes, she has," said Elizabeth.
"Miss Scott, I won't go to school!" "Well, of course, if you're
such a baby as to be afraid of doing what all other children do, then I've nothing
more to say," said Miss Scott, beginning to sew another name on a brown
stocking.
Elizabeth stood up at once and stamped her foot. "Afraid!"
she shouted. "I'm not afraid! Was I afraid when I fell off my pony? Was I
afraid when our car crashed into the bank? Was I afraid when-when---when-"
"Don't shout at me, please, Elizabeth," said Miss Scott. "I
think you are afraid to go to school and mix with obedient, well-mannered,
hard-working children who are not spoilt as you are. You know quite well that
you wouldn't get your own way, that you would have to share everything, instead
of having things to yourself as you do now, and that you would have to be
punctual, polite, and obedient. And you are afraid to go!" "I'm not,
I'm not, I'm not!" shouted Elizabeth. "I shall go! But I shall be so
naughty and lazy that they won't keep me, and then I'll come back home! And
you'll have to look after me again, so there!" "My dear Elizabeth, I
shan't be here," said Miss Scott, taking another stocking. "I am
going to another family, where I shall have two little boys to teach. 1 am
going the day you go to school, So you can't come back home because I shan't be
here, your father and mother will be away, and the house will be shut up!"
Elizabeth burst into tears. She sobbed so loudly that Miss Scott, who was
really fond of the spoilt, naughty girl, put her arms round her and comforted
her.
"Now don't be silly," she said. "Most children simply
love school. It's great fun. You play games, you go for walks, all together,
you have the most lovely lessons, and you will make such a lot of friends. You
have no friends now, and it is a dreadful thing not to have a single friend.
You are very lucky." "I'm not," wept Elizabeth. "Nobody
loves me. I'm very unhappy." "The trouble is that people have loved
you too much," said Miss Scott. "You are pretty, and merry, and rich,
so you have been spoilt. People like the way you look, the way you smile, and
your pretty clothes, so they fuss you, and pet you, and spoil you, instead of
treating you like an ordinary child, But it isn't enough to have a pretty face
and a merry smile-you must have a good heart too." Nobody had spoken to
Elizabeth like this before, and the little girl was astonished. "I have
got a good heart," she said, tossing her curls back again.
"Well, you don't show it much!" said Miss Scott, "Now
run away, please, because I've got to count all these stockings, and then mark
your new vests and bodices." Elizabeth looked at the pile of stockings.
She hated them. Nasty brown things! She wouldn't wear them! She'd take her
socks to school and wear those if she wanted to! Miss Scott turned to a
chest-of-drawers and began to take out some vests. Elizabeth picked up two
brown stockings and pinned them toe to toe. Then she tiptoed to Miss Scott and
neatly and quietly pinned them to her skirt! She skipped out of the room,
giggling. Miss Scott carried the vests to the table. She began to count the
stockings. There should be six pairs.
"One-two-three-four-five," she counted. "Five, Dear
me-where's the sixth?" She looked on the floor. She looked on the chair.
She was really vexed. She counted the pile again. Then she went to the door and
looked for Elizabeth. The little girl was pulling something out of a cupboard
on the landing.
"Elizabeth!" called Miss Scott sharply, "have you got a
pair of your brown stockings?" "No, Miss Scott," said Elizabeth,
making her eyes look round and surprised. "Why?" "Because a pair
is missing," said Miss Scott. "Did you take them out of this
room?" "No, really, Miss Scott," said Elizabeth truthfully,
trying not to laugh as she caught sight of the stockings swinging at Miss
Scott's back. "I'm sure all the stockings are in the room, Miss Scott,
really!" "Then perhaps your mother has a pair," said Miss Scott.
"I'll go and ask her." Off marched the governess down the landing,
the pinned brown stockings trailing behind her like a tail. Elizabeth put her
head into the cupboard and squealed with laughter. Miss Scott went into her
mother's room, "Excuse me, Mrs. Allen," she said, "but have you
one of Elizabeth's new pairs of stockings? I've only five pairs."
"No, I gave you them all," said Mrs. Allen, surprised. "They
must be together. Perhaps you have dropped them somewhere." Miss Scott
turned to go, and Mrs. Allen caught sight of the brown stockings following Miss
Scott. She looked at them in astonishment.
"Waft, Miss Scott," she said. "What's this!" She
went to Miss Scott, and unpinned the stockings. The governess looked at Mrs.
Allen, "Elizabeth, of course!" she said.
"Yes, Elizabeth!" said Mrs. Allen, "Always in mis~
chief. I really never knew such a child in my life. It is high time she went to
school. Don't you agree, Miss Scott?" "I do," said Miss Scott
heartily. "You will see a different and much nicer child when you come back
home again, Mrs. Allen!" Elizabeth was passing by, and heard what her
mother and her governess were saying. She hit the door with the book she was
carrying and shouted angrily, "You won't see me any different, Mother, you
won't, you won't! I'll be worse!" "You couldn't be!" said Mrs.
Allen in despair. "You really couldn't be worse!" CHAPTER 2.
Elizabeth goes to School.
FOR the rest of her time at home Elizabeth was very naughty and also
very good.
"I'll try being very, very good and obedient and polite and sweet,
and see if Mother changes her mind," she thought. So, to the surprise of
everyone, she became thoughtful, sweet-tongued, good-mannered, and most
obedient. But it had quite the wrong effect, because, instead of saying that
she would keep her at home now, her mother said something quite different!
"Well, Elizabeth, now that I know what a really nice girl you can be, I'm
not so afraid of sending you to school as I was," she said. "I
thought you would get into such trouble and be so unhappy-but now that I see
how well you really can behave, I am sure you will get on nicely at school. I
am very pleased with your behaviour!" And you can guess what happened
after that. Elizabeth at once became naughtier than she had ever been before!
"If being good makes Mother feel like that, I'll see what being naughty
does!" she thought.
So she emptied the ink-bottle over the cushions in the drawing-room.
She tore a hole in one of the nicest curtains. She put three black beetle into
poor Miss Scott's toothbrush mug, and she squeezed the seccotine into the ends
of both Miss Scott's brown shoes, so that her toes would stick there!
"Well, all this makes it quite certain that Elizabeth needs to go to
school!" said Miss Scott angrily, as she tried to get her feet out of her sticky
shoes. "I'm glad to leave her! Naughty little girl! And yet she can be so
sweet and nice when she likes," Elizabeth's things were packed and ready.
She had a neat brown trunk, with "E. Allen" painted on it in black.
She had a tuck-box too, with a big currant cake inside, a box of chocolate, a
tin of toffee, a jam sandwich, and a tin of shortbread.
"You will have to share these things with the others," said
Miss Scott, as she packed the things neatly inside.
"Well, I shan't, then," said Elizabeth, "Very well,
don't!" said Miss Scott. "If you want to show everyone what a selfish
child you are, just take the chance!" Elizabeth put on the outdoor uniform
of Whyteleafe School. It was very neat, and she looked nice in it. But then
Elizabeth looked nice in anything! The outdoor uniform was a dark blue coat
with a yellow edge to the collar and cuffs, a dark blue hat with a yellow
ribbon round it, and the school badge at the front, Her stockings were long and
brown, and her lace shoes were brown too.
"My goodness, you do look a real schoolgirl!" said her
mother, quite proudly. Elizabeth wouldn't smile. She stood there, sulky and
angry. "I shan't stay at school long," she said. "They'll soon
send me back!" "Don't be silly, Elizabeth," said her mother. She
kissed the little girl good-bye and hugged her, "I will come and see you
at half-term," she said, "No, Mother, you won't," said
Elizabeth. "I shall be home long before that!" "Don't make me
sad, Elizabeth!" said Mrs. Alien.
But Elizabeth wouldn't smile or say she was sorry. She got into the car
that was to take her to the station, and sat there, very cross and straight.
She had said goodbye to her pony. She had said good-bye to Timmy, her dog. She
had said good-bye to her canary. And to each of them she had whispered the same
thing.
"I'll soon be back! You'll see-they won't keep the naughtiest girl
in the school for long!" Miss Scott took her to the station and then up to
London in the train. She went with Elizabeth to a big station where trains
whistled and chuffed, and people ran about in a hurry.
"Now we must find the right platform," said Miss Scott.
hurrying too. "We have to meet the teacher there, who is in charge of the
girls going by this train."' They came to the right platform and went
through to where a big group of girls stood with a teacher. They were all
dressed in dark blue coats and hats, with yellow hat-bands like Elizabeth. The
girls were of all ages, some big, some small, and most of them were chattering
hard.
Two or three stood apart, looking shy. They were the new ones, like
Elizabeth. The teacher spoke to them now and again, and they smiled gratefully
at het Miss Scott bustled up to the teacher. "Good morning," she
said. "Is this Miss Thomas? This is Elizabeth Allen. I'm glad we are in
good time!" "Good morning," said Miss Thomas, smiling. She held
out her hand to Elizabeth. "Well, dear," she said, "so you are
going to join the happy crowd at Whyteleafe School!" Elizabeth put her
hand behind her back and would not shake hands with Miss Thomas. The teacher
looked surprised. The other children stared. Miss Scott blushed red, and spoke
sharply to Elizabeth.
"Elizabeth! Shake hands at once!" Elizabeth turned her back
and looked at a train puffing nearby. "I'm so sorry she's behaving so
rudely," said Miss Scott, really upset. She spoke in a low voice to Miss
Thomas, "She's an only child-very, very spoilt-rich, pretty-and she
doesn't want to come away to school, Just leave her alone for a bit and I
expect she'll be all right." Miss Thomas nodded. She was a merry-looking
young woman, and the girls liked her. She was just going to say something when
a man came hurrying up with four boys.
"Good morning, Miss Thomas," he said. "Here is my batch!
Sorry I can't stop, I've a train to catch! Good-bye, boys!" "Good-bye,
sir," said the four boys.
"How many boys have you at Whyteleafe this term?" asked Miss
Scott. "As many as girls?" "Not quite," said Miss Thomas,
"There are some more boys over there, look, in charge of Mr. Johns."
Miss Scott liked the look of the boys, all in dark blue overcoats and blue caps
with yellow badge in front. "Such a good idea," she said, "to
educate boys and girls together. For a child like Elizabeth, who has no
brothers, and not even a sister, it is like joining a large family of brothers
and sisters and cousins, to go to a school like Whyteleafe!" "Oh,
they'll soon knock the corners off your Elizabeth," smiled Miss Thomas.
"Look-here comes our train. We have our carriages reserved for us, so I
must find them. The boys have two carriages and the girls have three. Come
along, girls, here's our train!" Elizabeth was swept along with the
others, She was pushed into a carriage with a big label on it, "Reserved
for Whyteleafe School." "Good-bye, Elizabeth; good-bye, dear!"
cried Miss Scott. "Do your best!" "Good-bye," said
Elizabeth, suddenly feeling very small and lost, "I'll soon be back!"
she shouted, "Gracious!" said a tubby little girl next to her,
"a term's a long time, you know! Fancy saying you'll soon be back!"
"Well, I shall," said Elizabeth, She was squashed in a heap by the
tubby little girl and another girl on the other side, who was rather bony. She
didn't like it.
Elizabeth felt sure she would never, never learn who all the different
girls were. She felt a little afraid of the big ones, and she was horrified to
think there were boys at her school! Boys! Nasty, rough creatures-well. she'd
show them that a girl could be rough too! The little girl sat silently as the
train rattled on and on. The others chattered and talked and offered sweets
round the carriage. Elizabeth shook her head when the sweets were offered to
her, "Oh, come on, do have one!" said the tubbly little girl, whose
sweets they were. "A sweet would do you good-make you look a bit sweeter
perhaps!" Everybody laughed. Elizabeth went red and hated the tubby little
girl.
"Ruth! You do say some funny things!" said a big girl
opposite. "Don't tease the poor little things She's new." "Well,
so is Belinda, next to you," said Ruth, "but she does at least say
something when she's spoken to!" "That will do, Ruth," said Miss
Thomas, seeing how red Elizabeth had gone. Ruth said no more, but the next time
she offered her sweets round she did not offer them to Elizabeth.
It was a long journey. Elizabeth was tired when at last the train drew
up in a country station and the girls poured out of the carriages. The boys
came to join them, and the children talked eagerly of all they bad done in the
holidays..
"Come along now, quickly," said Mr. Johns, pushing them out
of the station gate. "The coach is waiting." There was an enormous
coach outside the station, labelled "Whyteleafe School," The children
took their places. Elizabeth found a place as far away as possible from the
tubby little girl called Ruth, She didn't like her one bit. She didn't like
Belinda either. She didn't like anyone! They all stared at her too much! The
coach set off with a loud clank and rumble. Round the corner it went, down a
country lane, up a steep hill-and there was Whyteleafe School at the top! It
was a beautiful building, like an old country house-which, indeed, it once had
been. Its deep red walls, green with creeper, glowed in the April sun. It had a
broad flight of steps leading from the green lawns up to the school terrace.
"Good old Whyteleafe!" said Ruth, pleased to see it. The
coach swept round to the other side of the school, through a great archway, and
up to the front door. The children jumped down and ran up the steps, shouting
and laughing.
Elizabeth found her hand taken by Miss Thomas, "Welcome to Whyteleafe,
Elizabeth!" said the teacher kindly, smiling down at the sulky face,
"I am sure you will do well here and be very happy with us all."
"I shan't," said naughty Elizabeth, and she pulled her hand away! It
was certainly not a very good beginning.
CHAPTER 3.
Elizabeth makes a Bad Beginning.
IT was half-past one by the time the children arrived~ and they were
all hungry for their dinner, They were told to wash their hands quickly, and
tidy themselves and then go to the dining-hall for their dinner.
"Eileen, please look after the three new girls," said Miss
Thomas. A big girl, with a kindly face and a mass of fair curls, came up to
Belinda, Elizabeth, and another girl called Helen, She gave them a push in the
direction of the cloakrooms.
"Hurry!" she said. So they hurried, and Elizabeth soon found
herself in a big cloakroom, tiled in gleaming white, with basins down one side,
and mirrors here and there.
She washed quickly, feeling rather lost in such a crowd of chattering
girls. Helen and Belinda had made friends, and Elizabeth wished they would say
something to her instead of chattering to one another, But they said nothing to
Elizabeth, thinking her rude and queer, Then to the dining-hall went all the
girls and took their places. The boys clattered in too.
"Sit anywhere you like to-day," said a tall mistress, whose
name, Elizabeth found, was Miss Belle. So the children sat down and began to
eat their dinner hungrily. There was hot soup first, then beef carrots,
dumplings, onions and potatoes, and then rice pudding and golden syrup.
Elizabeth was so hungry that she ate everything put before her, though at home
she would certainly have pushed away the rice pudding.
As it was the first day the children were allowed to talk as they
pleased, and there was such a noise as they told one another what they had done
in the holidays.
"I had a puppy for Easter," said one girl with a laughing
face. "Do you know, my father bought a simply enormous Easter egg, and put
the puppy inside, and tied up the egg with a red ribbon? Goodness, didn't I
laugh when I undid it!" Everybody else laughed too, "I had a new
bicycle for my Easter present," said a round-faced boy. "But it
wasn't put into an egg!" "What did you have for Easter?" said
Eileen to Elizabeth in a kindly tone, She was sitting opposite, and felt sorry
for the silent new girl. Belinda and Helen were sitting together, telling each
other about the last school they had been to. Only Elizabeth had no one to talk
to her.
"I had a guinea-pig," said Elizabeth, in a clear voice, "and
it had a face just like Miss Thomas." There was a shocked silence.
Somebody giggled. Miss Thomas looked rather surprised, but she said nothing.
"If you weren't a new girl, you'd be jolly well sat on for
that!" said a girl nearby, glaring at Elizabeth. "Rude
creature!" Elizabeth couldn't help going red. She had made up her mind to
be naughty and rude, and she was going to be really bad, but it was rather
dreadful to have somebody speaking like that to her, in front of everyone. She
went on with her rice pudding. Soon the children began to talk to one another
again, and Elizabeth was forgotten.
After dinner the boys went to unpack their things in their own
bedrooms, and the girls went to theirs.
"Whose room are the new girls in, please, Miss Thomas?" asked
Eileen, Miss Thomas looked at her list.
"Let me see," she said, "yes-here we are-Elizabeth
Allen, Belinda Green, Helen Marsden-they are all in Room Six, Eileen, and with
them are Ruth James, Joan Lesley, and Nora O'Sullivan. Ask Nora to take the new
girls there and show them what to do. She's head of that room."
"Nora! Hie, Nora!" called Eileen, as a tall, dark-haired girl, with
deep blue eyes, went by. "Take these kids to Room Six, will you? They're
yours! You're head of that room." "I know," said Nora, looking
at the three new girls. "Hallo, is this the girl who was rude to Miss
Thomas? You just mind what you say, whatever-your-name-is. I'm not having any
cheek from you!" "I shall say exactly what I like," said
Elizabeth boldly, "You can't stop me!" "Oho, can't I?" said
Nora, her blue Irish eyes glaring at Elizabeth, "That's all you know! Get
along to the bedroom now, and I'll show you all what to do," They all went
up a winding oak staircase and came to a wide landing. All around it were
doors, marked with numbers, Nora opened the door of Number Six and went in.
The bedroom was long, high, and airy. There were wide windows, all open
to the school gardens outside. The sun poured in and made the room look very
pleasant indeed.
The room was divided into six by blue curtains, which were now drawn
back to the walls, so that six low white beds could be seen, each with a blue
eiderdown. Beside each bed stood a wide chest-of-drawers, with a small mirror
on top. The chests were painted white with blue wooden handles, and looked very
pretty.
There were three wash-basins in the room, with hot and cold water taps,
to be shared by the six girls. There was also a tall white cupboard for each
girl, and in these they hung their coats and dresses.
Each bed had a blue rug beside it on the polished brown boards.
Elizabeth couldn't help thinking that it all looked rather exciting. She had
only slept with Miss Scott before-now she was to sleep with five other girls!
"Your trunks and tuck-boxes are beside your beds," said Nora. "You
must each unpack now, and put your things away tidily. And when I say tidily I
MEAN tidily. I shall look at your drawers once a week. On the top of the chest
you are allowed to have six things, not more. Choose what you like-hairbrushes,
or photographs, or ornaments-it doesn't matter." "How silly!"
thought Elizabeth scornfully, thinking of her own untidy dressing-table at
home, "I shall put as many things out as I like!" They all began
unpacking. Elizabeth had never packed or unpacked anything in her life, and she
found it rather exciting. She put her things neatly away in her
chest-of-drawers-the piles of stockings, vests, bodices, blouses, everything
she had brought with her. She hung up her school coat and her dresses.
The others were busy unpacking too. Whilst they were doing this two
more girls danced into the room, "Hallo, Nora!" said one, a
red-haired girl with freckles all over her face. "I'm in your room this
term. Good!" "Hallo, Joan," said Nora. "Get on with your
unpacking, there's a lamb. Hallo, Ruth-I've got you here again, have I? Well,
just see you're a bit tidier than last term!" Ruth laughed. She was the
girl who had handed round her sweets in the train, and she was plump and
clever. She ran to her trunk and began to undo it.
Nora began to tell the new girls a little about the schooL They
listened as they busily put away their things in their drawers.
"Whyteleafe School isn't a very large school," began Nora,
"but it's a jolly fine one. The boys have their lessons with us, and we
play tennis and cricket with them and we have our own teams of girls only, too.
Last year we beat the boys at tennis. We'll beat them this year, too, if only
we can get some good players.
Any of you new girls play tennis?" Belinda did but the others
didn't. Nora went on talking, as she hung up her dresses.
"We all have the same amount of pocket-money to spend," she
said. "And it's plenty too. Two shillings a week." "I shall have
a lot more than that," said Belinda, in surprise.
"Oh no, you won't," said Nora. "All th~ money we have is
put into a big box, and we each draw two shillings a week from it, unless we've
been fined for something." "What do you mean-fined?" asked
Helen. "Who fines us? Miss Belle and Miss Best?" "Oh no,"
said Nora. "We hoki a big meeting once a week-oftener, if necessary-and we
hear complaints and grumbles, and if anyone has been behaving badly we fine
them. Miss Belle or Miss Best come to the meeting too, of course, but they
don't decide anything much. They trust us to decide for ourselves." Elizabeth
thought this was very strange. She had always thought that the teachers
punished the children -but at Whyteleafe it seemed as if the children did it!
She listened in astonishment to all that Nora was saying.
"If there's any money over, it is uiven to anyone who particularly
wants to buy something that the meeting approves of." went on Nora.
"For instance, suppose you broke your tennis racket, Belinda, and needed a
new one, the meeting might allow you to take the money from the box to buy one-especially
if they thought you were a very good player." "I see," said
Belinda. "It sounds a good idea, Look, Nora-here are the things out of my
tuck-box What do I do with them? I want to share them with everybody."
"Thanks," said Nora, "Well, we keep all our cakes and sweets and
things in the playroom downstairs. There's a big cupboard there, and tins to
put cakes into. I'll show you where. Elizabeth, are your tuck-box things ready?
If so, bring them along, and we'll put them into the cupboard to share at
tea-time." "I'm not going to share," said Elizabeth, remembering
that she hadn't been naughty or horrid for some time. "I shall eat them
all myself." There was a horrified silence. The five girls stared at
Elizabeth as if they couldn't believe their ears Not share her cakes and
sweets? Whatever sort of a girl was this?
"Well," said Nora, at last, her merry face suddenly very
disgusted. "You can do what you like, of course, with your own things. If
they're as horrid as you seem to be, nobody would want to eat them!"
CHAPTER 4.
Elizabeth gets into Trouble.
As Nora was about to lead the way down to the playroom, she glanced at
the chests-of-drawers to see that they were tidy on the top. To her surprise
she saw that Elizabeth had put about a dozen things on her chest! Nora stopped
and looked at them. There were two hairbrushes, a mirror, a comb, three
photographs, a bottle of scent, two small vases, and a clothes-brush,
"Look here ! °' said Nora, to the others, "this poor child can't
count up to six! She's got eleven things on her chest. Poor Elizabeth! Fancy
not being able to count six," "I can," said Elizabeth fiercely.
"One, two, three, four, five, six." Everybody squealed with laughter.
"She can count!" said Nora, "Well, Elizabeth, count your things,
and take five away-or can't you do taking-away? There are eleven things on your
chest-take away five-and it will leave six-which is the number I told you to
have." "I'm not going to take any away," said Elizabeth rudely.
"Aren't you?" said Nora, in surprise. "Well, if you won't-I
will !" The angry Irish girl picked up a hairbrush, the three photographs,
and the mirror, She went to a box under the window, took a key from her pocket
and unlocked it. She put the five things inside and locked the box.
"That's what happens when people can't count," she said.
Elizabeth stared at her in a rage.
"Give me my things back," she said. "I want those
photographs at once! They are of Mummy and Daddy and my pony too."
"Sorry," said Nora, putting the key into her pocket. "You can
have them back when you apologise, arid tell me that you know how to
count." "I shan't," said Elizabeth, "Just as you
please," said Nora. "Now come on, everybody, and let's take the
eatables down to the play room." "I don't want to bring mine,"
said Elizabeth, "I want to leave them here." "Well, if you do,
they'll go into that box along with the photographs," said Nora firmly.
"The rule is that all eatables go downstairs." Elizabeth stood
sulking, looking at her cake, her jam sandwich, her chocolate, toffee, and
shortbread. Then she picked up her tuck-box and followed the others. She did
not want them to go into that box! She had seen enough of Nora to know that
that young lady was very determined! They clattered down the oak staircase. At
one side of the hall was an open door, leading into a very large room lined
with cupboards and bookcases. It was full of boys and girls.
Some were talking, some were playing games, some were putting away
cakes into tins. They were all busy and happy, and called out greetings to Nora
as she came into the room.
There was a gramophone going in one corner. Elizabeth stopped to listen
to it, for she loved music. It was playing a tune that her mother played at
home, and suddenly the little girl felt as if she wanted her mother badly.
"But, never mind!" she thought to herself. "I shan't be
here long! I don't expect they'll keep me more than a week if I go on being
awfully naughty." "Here are some empty tins," said Nora, handing
some down from a shelf. "Catch, Helen. Catch, Elizabeth. Here's a big one
for you, Belinda, to take in that enormous cake!" Soon they were all
putting away their things. Nora took slips of paper from a pile and wrote their
names on. "Stick your name on your tin," she said, licking hers and
sticking it to the side of her tin.
"I'd like to see the classrooms," said Belinda. Ruth said she
would show her round the whole school, and off she went with Belinda and Helen.
Elizabeth followed a little way behind, curious to see what a school was like,
for she had never seen inside one before, The dining-hall she had already
seen-a great high room, with big windows. Tables ran down the middle of it. It
was only used for meals.
Then there were the classrooms, big, sunny rooms all over the place,
with neat desks and chairs, and a bigger desk for the teacher. There were
blackboards everywhere, just like the one that Miss Scott had used for
Elizabeth, "This is our classroom," said Ruth to the new girls,
"I expect we'll all be in Miss Ranger's class. She's pretty strict, I can
tell you! Nora'~ in a higher class, of course. She's older, She's a jolly good
sort, don't you think so?" "Yes," agreed Helen and Belinda at
once. But Elizabeth thought differently. She pursed up her mouth and said
nothing.
"This is the gym," said Ruth, and the three new girls looked
in wonder at the great room, with its ropes and climbing-ladders, and bars and
poles. Elizabeth suddenly felt excited. She loved climbing and swinging and
jumping. She hoped she could do some gym before she left.
There were many other bedrooms like her own, and then there was the
part of the house put aside for Miss Belle and Miss Best and the other
teachers.
"You'll each have to go and see the heads after tea," said
Ruth. "They're good sorts." By the time the four girls had gone over
the lovely grounds and had seen the cricket-fields, the tenniscourts, and the
flower-filled gardens, it was time for tea, A bell rang loudly, and the girls
looked cheerful, "Good! Tea!" said Ruth. "Come on. Wash first,
all of you, and do your hairs. Yours looks awful, Elizabeth." Elizabeth
did not like her dark curls being called "awful." She went up to her
bedroom and did her hair neatly, and washed her hands. She was very hungry, and
thought with pleasure of her currant cake and jam sandwich.
"I've got the most gorgeous chocolate cake you ever saw!"
said Belinda to the others. "It just melts in your mouth! You must all
have a piece." "And I've got some home-made shrimp-paste that's too
delicious for words," said Ruth. "You wait till you taste it."
Chocolate cake and home-made shrimp-paste seemed even more delicious to
Elizabeth than currant cake and jam sandwich, which suddenly seemed rather
ordinary. She ran downstairs wondering if she would have two pieces of
Belinda's gorgeous chocolate cake, Tea was laid in the dining-room. The long
tables were spread with white cloths, and plates with big slices of brown bread
and butter were set all the way down.
There were also some large plain cakes here and there, and some big
pots of plum jam.
The children put their tuck-boxes on a bare table, and placed on some
empty plates there the cake or sandwich, jam or paste they meant to share at
tea.
These plates they took to their own table.
Once again they were allowed to sit where they liked.
Elizabeth put out her sandwich and her currant cake and took her place
too. Grace was said and then the boys and girls began to chatter quietly.
Suddenly Nora banged on the table. She was at the head of it. Everyone
at her table stopped speaking.
"I nearly forgot to say something," said Nora.
"Elizabeth Allen does not wish to share her things with anyone, so
don't ask her for a piece of her cake, wifi you? She wants it all
herself." "All right!" said the other children, and they stared
at Elizabeth in surprise. Elizabeth went on eating her bread and butter. Next
to her was Ruth, opening a large pot of shrimp-paste that smelt simply
delicious. She passed it round the table-but did not offer Elizabeth any.
Nobody offered her anything at all. Belinda counted how many there were
at the table-eleven-and then cut her cake into ten big pieces. Ten was enough,
because she missed Elizabeth out! Elizabeth watched the others munching the
chocolate cake, which looked and smelt marvellous and longed for a piece.
She cut her currant cake. It looked quite nice. She suddenly felt that
she really couldn't eat it all by her self, she must offer it to the others
too. She didn't mind being thought naughty, but being thought mean was
different.
"Wifi you have a piece of my cake?" she asked Ruth, Ruth
stared at her in surprise, "How you do change your mind!" she said,
"No thanks. I've bad enough." Elizabeth offered her cake to Belinda.
Belinda shook her head. "No, thank you," she said. Elizabeth held out
her plate to Helen, but Helen simply made a face at her and turned away, Nobody
would have any of Elizabeth's cake or of her sandwich either. Everyone else had
either cut up half or all their cakes, and had finished up their pots of jam or
paste. Only Elizabeth's cake and sandwich stood almost untouched on their plates.
A bell rang. Miss Thomas stood up and spoke to the girls and boys,
"You may go out to play," she said, "but the new children must
stay behind in the play room, and see the headmistresses." So Helen,
Elizabeth, and Belinda went to the play room, and also two boys named Kenneth
and Ronald. They set the gramophone going. Belinda did a funny dance and made
them all laugh.
Then someone poked her head in at the door and called to the children.
"Miss Belle and Miss Best are waiting to see you. Go and line up outside
the drawing-room door- -and mind you each say you're going to do your best for
Whyteleafe School, and will work and play hard!" The girl disappeared. The
new children went to line up outside the drawing-room door. it opened and Miss
Best appeared. "Come in," she said to Belinda, and in Belinda went.
The door shut.
"Well, I'm not going to say I shall work hard and play hard,"
said Elizabeth to herself. "I'm going just to warn them that II won't stay
here and I'll be so bad they'll have to send me away. I won't stay at this
horrid school !" The door opened and Belinda came out, smiling.
"You're to go in next, Elizabeth," she said. "And for goodness'
sake behave yourself!" CHAPTER 5.
Elizabeth is Naughty.
ELIZABBTH pushed open the door and went into the big drawing-room. It
was a lovely room, with a few beautiful pictures on the walls, and glowing
cushions on the chairs and the couches. The two mistresses were sitting on
chairs near the window, They looked up as Elizabeth came m.
"Well, Elizabeth! We are very glad to see you at Whyteleafe
School," said Miss Belle, She was young and pretty, but Miss Best was
older, and, except when she smiled, she had rather a stern face.
"Sit down, Elizabeth," said Miss Best, smiling her lovely
smile. "I hope you have made a few friends already." "No, I
haven't," said Elizabeth. She sat down on a chair, Miss Best looked at her
in surprise, when she answered so shortly.
"Well, I expect you will soon make plenty," said the
headmistress. "I hope you will be very happy with us, Elizabeth,"
"I shan't be," said Elizabeth in a rude voice.
"What a funny little girl!" said Miss Belle, and she laughed.
"Cheer up, dear-you'll soon find things are very jolly here, and I am sure
you will do your best to work hard, and make us proud of you." "I'm
not going to," said Elizabeth, going red, "I'm going to be as bad and
naughty and horrid as I can possibly be, so there! I don't want to go to
school. I hate Whyteleafe School! I'll be so bad that you'll send me home next
week!" The little girl glared at the two mistresses as she said all this,
expecting them to jump up in anger. Instead they both threw back their heads
and laughed and laughed! "Oh, Elizabeth, what an extraordinary child you
are!" said Miss Belle, wiping away the tears of laughter that had come
into her eyes. "You look such a good, pretty little girl too-no one would
think you wanted to be so bad and naughty and horrid!" "I don't care
how you punish me," said Elizabeth, tears coming into her own eyes-but
tears of anger, not of laughter. "You can do all you like-I just shan't
care!" "We never punish anyone, Elizabeth," said Miss Best,
suddenly looking stern again. "Didn't you know that?" "No, I
didn't," said Elizabeth in astonishment. "What do you do when people
are naughty, then?" "Oh, we leave any naughty person to the rest of
the children to deal with," said Miss Best. "Every week the school
holds a meeting. you know, and the children themselves decide what is to be
done with boys and girls who don't behave themselves, it won't bother us if you
are naughty-but you may perhaps find that you make the children angry~"
"That seems funny to me," said Elizabeth, "I thought it was
always the teachers that did the punishing." "Not at Whyteleafe
School," said Miss Belle. "Well, Elizabeth, my dear, perhaps you'd go
now and tell the next child to come in, will you? Maybe one day Whyteleafe
School will be proud of you, even though you are quite sure it won't!"
Elizabeth went out without another word, She couldn't help liking the two headmistresses,
though she didn't want to at all. She wished she had been ruder to them. What a
funny school this was! She spoke to Helen outside the door, "You're to go
in now," she said. "The Beauty and the Beast are waiting for!"
"Oh, you naughty girl !" said Helen, with a giggle. "Miss Belle
and Miss Best--the Beauty and the Beast! That's rather clever of you to think
of that, Elizabeth!" Elizabeth had meant it to be very rude. She did not
know enough of other children to know that they always loved nicknames for their
masters and mistresses. She was surprised that Helen thought her clever- and
secretly she was pleased.
But she stuck her nose in the air and marched off. She wasn't going to
be pleased with anything or anybody at Whyteleafe School! She wandered round by
herself until the supper-bell went at seven o'clock. She felt hungry and went
into the dining-hall. The children were once more opening their tins of cakes,
and a lively chatter was going on. It all looked very jolly.
There were big mugs on the table and big jugs of steaming hot cocoa
here and there. There were piles of bread again, butter, cheese, and dishes of
stewed fruit. The children sat down and helped themselves.
Nobody took any notice of Elizabeth at all, till suddenly Helen
remembered what she had called Miss Belle and Miss Best. With a giggle she
repeated it to her neighbour, and soon there was laughter all round the table.
"The Beauty and the Beast," went the whisper, and chuckles
echoed round. Elizabeth heard the whispers and went red. Nora O'Sullivan
laughed loudly.
"It's a jolly good nickname!" she said. "Belle means
Beauty, and Best is very like Beast-and certainly Miss Belle is lovely, and
Miss Best isn't! That was pretty smart of you, Elizabeth." Elizabeth
smiled! She really couldn't help it. She didn't want to-she wanted to be as
horrid as possible -but it was really very pleasant to have everyone laughing
at her joke.
"It's queer, though," she thought. "I meant to be horrid
and rude, and the others just think it's funny. I guess Miss Belle and Miss
Best wouldn't think it was funny, though!" Nobody offered Elizabeth any of
their goodies. and she did not like to offer hers, for she felt sure everyone
would say no. The meal went on until half-past seven, and then after grace was
said the children all got up and went to the playroom.
"When's your bedtime?" said Nora to Elizabeth, "I expect
it's eight o'clock. You'd better see. The times are on the notice-board over
there. My bedtime is at half-past eight, and when I come to bed I expect all
the rest of you to be safe in bed." "I don't want to go to bed at
eight o'clock," said Elizabeth indignantly. "I go to bed much later
than that at home." "Well, you shouldn't, then," said Nora.
"No wonder you're such a crosspatch! My mother says that late hours make
children stupid, bad-tempered, and slow," Elizabeth went to see the times
for going to bed. Hers was, as Nora had said, at eight o'clock. Well, she
wouldn't go! She'd be naughty! So she slipped out into the garden and went to
where she had seen two or three big swings. She got on to a swing and began to
push herself to and fro, It was lovely there in the evening sunshine. Elizabeth
quite forgot that she was at school, and she sang a little song to herself.
A boy came into the place where the swings were, and stared at
Elizabeth. "What are you doing here?" he said. "I bet it's your
bedtime!" "Mind your own business!" said Elizabeth at once.
"Well, what about you going off to bed, and minding yours!" said the
boy. "I'm a monitor, and it's my job to see that people do what they're
told!" "I don't know what a monitor is, and I don't care," said
Elizabeth rudely.
"Well, let me tell you what a monitor is," said the boy, who
was just about Elizabeth's size. "It's somebody put in charge of other
silly kids at Whyteleafe, to see they don't get too silly! If you don't behave
yourself I shall have to report you at the Meeting! Then you'll be
punished," "Pooh!" said Elizabeth, and she swung herself very
hard indeed, put out her foot and kicked the boy so vigorously that he fell
right over, Elizabeth squealed with laughter-but not for long! ~'The boy jumped
up, ran to the swing and shook Elizabeth off. He caught hold of her dark curls
and pulled them so hard that the little girl yelled with pain.
The boy grinned at her and said, "Serve you right! You be careful
how you treat me next time, or I'll pull your nose as well as your hair!
Now-are you going in or not?" Elizabeth ran away from him and went
indoors, She looked at the clock-quarter-past eight! Perhaps she would have
time to go to bed before that horrid Nora came up at half-past.
So she ran up the stairs and went to Bedroom Number 6. Ruth, Joan,
Belinda, and Helen were already there half undressed. Their curtains were
pulled around their cubicles, but they were talking hard all the same.
Elizabeth slipped into her own cubicle "You're late, Elizabeth," said
Ruth. "You'll get into trouble if you're caught by a monitor,"
"I have been," said Elizabeth. "But 1 didn't care! I was on the
swing and I put out my foot and kicked him over!" "Well, you're very
silly," said Ruth. "You will get into trouble at the Meeting if you
don't look out. And that's not pleasant." "I don't care for any silly
Meeting," said Elizabeth, jumping into bed. She remembered that Nora had
put her three photographs into the locked box, and she jumped out again. She
went to the box and tried to open it--but it was still locked. Nora came in at
that moment and saw Elizabeth there.
"Hallo, kid," she said. "Do you want your things back?
Well, apologise and you can have them." But Elizabeth was not going to say
she was sorry.
She made a rude face at Nora, and flung herself into bed.
"Well, you are a sweet child, aren't you!" said Nora
mockingly. "I hope you get out at the right side of your bed to-morrow!"
Then there was a creak as Nora sat on her bed to take off her stockings. A
clock struck half-past eight downstairs. "No more talking now," said
Nora. "Sleep tight, all of you!" CHAPTER 6.
Elizabeth joins her Class.
ELIZABETH wondered where she was when she awoke the next morning, but
she soon remembered. She was at that horrid school! A bell rang. Nora sat up in
her bed and spoke to the others. "That's the bell for getting up,"
she said. "Stir yourselves! You've got half an hour." Elizabeth
thought she wouldn't get up. She lay there warm in her bed, and looked up at
the white ceiling.
Nora's voice came sharply to her.
"Elizabeth Allen! Are you getting up or are you not?"
"Not," said Elizabeth cheekily.
"Well, I'm in charge of you five, and it's my job to get you down
to breakfast in good time," said Nora, poking her nose round the curtain,
"Get up, you lazy creature!" "Are you a monitor?" asked
Elizabeth, remembering the boy of the evening before.
"I am," said Nora. "Come on, get up, Elizabeth, and
don't make yourself such a nuisance." Elizabeth still lay there. Nora
nodded to plump Ruth, and the two went beside Elizabeth's bed Together they
stripped all the clothes off the lazy girl, and then tipped up the mattress.
Elizabeth gave a shriek and slid on to the floor. She was very angry.
She rushed at Nora-but Nora was big and strong, and caught hold of the
angry girl's arms at once. "Don't be silly now," she said. "Get
dressed and hurry up or I'll spank you with a hairbrush! Monitors do that
sometimes, you know!" Elizabeth felt that she couldn't bear to be spanked
by Nora. She washed very sulkily, dressed, cleaned her teeth and did her hair.
She was just going downstairs when Nora, who had gone into everyone's cubicle
to see if they were tidy, called her back.
"Elizabeth! Come and put your chest-of-drawers tidy! Do you want
me to put the rest of your things into the locked box?" Elizabeth went
back and tidied her things. It was quicker to do that than argue with Nora. She
wondered if Nora would notice that she had put socks on instead of the long
brown stockings! But Nora didn't notice. She was in too big a hurry to get down
to breakfast in time, and besides, she didn't dream that anyone would wear
socks instead of stockings at Whyteleafe School! But a great many of the other
children noticed Elizabeth's bare legs at once, and giggled. Miss Thomas
noticed them too, and called to Elizabeth, "You've put the wrong things
on, Elizabeth. You must change your socks for stockings afterwards," But
Elizabeth didn't! When she went up to make her bed afterwards, she didn't
change at all. Nora saw that she hadn't and spoke to her, "For goodness'
sake put stockings on, Elizabeth. Really, I shouldn't have thought anyone could
be quite so silly as you seem to be!" "I'm not silly," said
Elizabeth "I prefer socks. Stockings make my legs too hot. And I'm going
to keep my socks on." Ruth spoke to Nora. "Nora, Elizabeth is really
babyish," she said. "And the babies at Whyteleafe are allowed to wear
socks, aren't they? I've seen them in the Kindergarten, with their dear little
bare legs. Well, why not let Elizabeth keep her socks, to show that she is
really only a baby, though she's getting on for eleven? You can easily explain
that to Miss Thomas." "That's a good idea," said Nora, with a
laugh. "All right, Elizabeth-keep your socks on, and we'll explain to
everyone that we're letting you because you're really not much more than a
baby!" The girls went out of the room laughing. Elizabeth put on her
bedspread and stood thinking. She didn't think she wanted to keep her socks on
now! If only the younger children wore them, because they were the babies of
the school, she didn't want to. The babies would laugh at her, and so would the
others.
Elizabeth tore off her shoes, grabbed her socks and pulled them off in
a temper. She took out her stockings and pulled them on. Bother, bother,
bother! Now she would have to wear stockings after all! She flew downstairs to
the gym, where she had been told to go after making her bed and tidying her
cubicle, All the others were there. Elizabeth had felt sure that they would all
make remarks about her stockings being on after all-but nobody took any notice
of her at all.
Hymns were sung and prayers said, Miss Best read part of a Bible
chapter in her rather stern ioice. Then she called the names of all the girls
and boys to see that they were there.
Elizabeth had a good look round. The boys and girls were in separate
rows. There were a good many masters and mistresses. The matron of the school,
who looked after the children when they were ill, stood on the platform with
some of the other mistresses, a fat, jolly-looking person, dressed like a
nurse, in apron and cap. The music-master played the piano for the singing, and
again when the children marched out.
He made up a fine marching tune, and Elizabeth liked it very much for
she loved music. She wondered if she was supposed to learn music at Whyteleafe.
Miss Scott had taught her at home, but Miss Scott was not musical and Elizabeth
had not enjoyed her lessons at all.
Out marched the children to their classrooms. "You are in Miss
Ranger's class," said Ruth, poking Elizabeth in the back. "Come with
me and I'll show you." Elizabeth followed Ruth. She came to a big sunny
classroom, and into it poured six boys and nine girls. all about Elizabeth's
age.
"Bags I this desk," squealed Ruth. "I like to be by the
window!" She put her things into the desk. The other children chose their
desks too, but the new ones were told to wait till Miss Ranger came. Ruth
sprang to hold the door open as soon as she heard Miss Ranger's rather loud
voice down the passage.
In came Miss Ranger. "Good morning, children!" "Good
morning, Miss Ranger," said everyone but Elizabeth.
"All the old children can sit, but the new ones must stand whilst
I give them their places," said Miss Ranger. She gave Elizabeth a desk at
the back. Elizabeth was glad. It would be a good place to be naughty in! She
meant to be bad in class that very morning, The sooner that everyone knew how
naughty she meant to be, the sooner she would be sent home, Books were given
out. "We will take a reading lesson first," said Miss Ranger, who
wanted to make sure that the new children could read properly. "Then
Dictation-then Arithmetic!" Elizabeth could read beautifully, spell well, and
she liked arithmetic. She couldn't help feeling that it was rather fun to do
lessons with a lot of people instead of by herself! When her turn came she read
very nicely indeed, though she had a great many difficult words in her page.
"Very good, Elizabeth," said Miss Ranger. "Next.
please." Elizabeth got all her dictation right. She thought it was
very easy. Miss Ranger took a red pencil and marked "VERY GOOD" on
Elizabeth's page. Elizabeth looked at it proudly-and then she suddenly
remembered that she had meant to be naughty! "This won't do!" she
said to herself. "I can't get Very Goods like this-they'll never send me
home. I'd better be naughty." She wondered what to do. She looked at Ruth
by the window, and wondered if she could flip her rubber at her and hit her.
She took her ruler, fitted her rubber against the end of it, bent it back and
let it go. Whizzzzzz! The rubber flew across the schoolroom and hit Ruth on the
left ear! "Ooooh!" said Ruth, in surprise. She looked round and saw
Elizabeth's grinning face. Others began to giggle when they saw Ruth's angry
look.
Elizabeth grew bolder. She folded up a bit of paper. and flipped it at
Helen, who sat m front. But Helen moved her head, and the pellet of paper flew
past her and landed on Miss Ranger's desk. She looked up.
"Playtime is for things like this," she said. "Not
lesson-time. Who did that?" Elizabeth didn't answer, Miss Ranger looked up
and down the rows. "WHO DID THAT?" she said again. The boy next to
Elizabeth poked her bard with his ruler.
"Own up!" he whispered. "If you don't we'll all be kept
in." So Elizabeth owned up. "I did it," she said.
"Well, Elizabeth, perhaps you would like to know that I don't
allow behaviour like that in my class," said Miss Ranger. "Don't do
it again." "I shall if I want to," said Elizabeth. Everybody
looked at her in amazement. Miss Ranger was surprised.
"You must be very bored with these lessons to want to flip paper
about," she said. "Go outside the room and stay there till you feel
it would bore you less to come back than to stand outside. I don't mind how
long you stand there, but I do mind anybody being bored in my class. Now,
children, get out your paint-boxes, please." There was a clatter as the
desks were opened and paint-boxes were taken out. Elizabeth loved painting and
was very good at it. She wanted to stay. She sat on in her desk and didn't
move, "Elizabeth! Go outside, please," said Miss Ranger.
There was no help for it then-up Elizabeth got and went outside the
door.
"You may come back when you think you can really behave yourself,
and not disturb my class," said Miss Ranger.
It was very dull standing outside the door. Elizabeth wondered if she
should wander away and have a swing. No-she might meet the Beauty and the
Beast! Ha ha! She was being naughty all right! But it was dull standing so long
outside a door and hearing happy talking coming from inside, as the children
painted blue and pink lupins that Miss Ranger had brought in. Elizabeth
couldn't bear it any longer. She opened the door and went in.
"I can behave myself now," she said, in a low voice to Miss
Ranger. Miss Ranger nodded, without a smile.
"Take your place," she said. "There's no time for you to
do any painting-you can do a few more sums!" "Sums again!"
thought Elizabeth angrily. "Well- I'll just be bad as soon as ever I can
think of something really naughty again!" CHAPTER 7.
The First School Meeting.
THAT evening, after tea, the first Meeting was held. The whole school
attended it, and Miss Belle, Miss Best, and Mr. Johns came too. They sat at the
back and did not seem to be taking a great deal of notice of what was going on.
"But all the same, they never miss a word!" said Ruth to
Belinda. who was feeling just a little scared of this first important Meeting.
The two Head Children of the school, a grave-looking girl called Rita,
and a merry-eyed boy called William, sat at a large table in the gym, where the
Meeting was held. They were the Judges. Twelve other children, six boys and six
girls, big and small, sat round a table just in front of the two judges. They
were called the Jury. All the others sat on forms around.
At first Elizabeth had thought she would not go to the Meeting. Then
she had felt rather curious about it, and decided to go just this one time. She
had seen a notice on the notice-board that said. "Please bring all the
money you have," and she had brought hers in her purse-though she was
quite determined not to give it up if she were asked to do so.
All the children stood up when the two Judges and the two mistresses
and master came into the room-all but Elizabeth! However she got up in a great
hurry when she felt Ruth's hard fingers digging into her back to make her move!
She glared round at Ruth, and was just going to speak angrily to her when there
was the sound of a hammer being rapped on a table, "Sit, please,"
said one of the Judges. Everyone sat. Elizabeth saw that there was a wooden
hammer or mallet on the table in front of the Judges, and also a large notebook
and some sheets of paper. There was a large box as well, like a big money-box.
It all looked important and exciting.
"The twelve children round the smaller table are the
monitors," whispered Helen to Elizabeth. "They are chosen by us all
every month." Elizabeth saw that Nora was at the Jury table, and so was
the boy she had kicked the day before. She didn't know any of the others,
except Eileen, the girl who had been kind to her yesterday.
The girl Judge rose in her seat and spoke clearly to the school.
"This is our first Meeting this term," she said. "We have very little
to do to-day, because school only opened yesterday, but we must just make our
Rules clear to the new children, and we must also take in the money. We do not
need to choose new monitors because we elected those at the last Meeting of the
Easter term. You see them at the Jury table. They will remain monitors for one
month unless any Meeting decides to choose others instead. As you know,
monitors are chosen for their common sense, their loyalty to the school and its
ideas, and their good character, They must be obeyed, because you yourselves
have chosen them." The girl Judge stopped and looked down at a paper she
held, on which she had written notes to remind her of what she wanted to say.
She looked round at the listening children.
"We have very few rules," she said. "One rule is that we
place all the money we get into this box, and we draw from it two shillings a
week each. The rest of the money is used to buy anything that any of you
especially want-but you have to state at the weekly Meeting what you need the
money for, and the Jury will decide if you may have it." One or two of the
children clinked their money as if they would like to put it into the box at
once. The Judges smiled. "You'll be able to give your money in a
minute," said the girl Judge. "Now, to go on with our Rules. The
second rule is that if we have any complaint at all, we must bring it to the
Meeting and announce it there, so that everyone may hear it, and decide what is
to be done with it.
"Any bullying, unkindness, untruthfulness, dis.. obedience may be
brought before the Meeting, and we will decide what punishment shall be given
Please be sure you understand the difference between a real complaint and
telling tales, because telling tales is also punished. If you are not sure of
the difference, ask your monitor before you bring your complaint to the
Meeting." The girl Judge sat down. The boy Judge got up. and beamed round
the listening company. "We will now take the money," be said.
"After that we will hand out the two shillings to everyone, and then see
if anybody wants extra this week. Thomas, take the box round, please."
Elizabeth was quite sure she was not going to give up her money. She quickly
pushed her purse under her and sat on it hard.
Thomas came round with the box, Money clinked into it-shillings and
sixpences, half-crowns and even a ten-shilling note or two went into the big
box.
The box came to Elizabeth. She passed it on without putting her money
into it. But Thomas the monitor noticed it at once. "Haven't you any money
at all?" he asked.
Elizabeth pretended not to hear. Thomas said no more, but went on
taking the box round. Elizabeth was pleased. "I did what I wanted to them
and they couldn't stop me!" she thought.
Thomas took the box up to the Judge. It was very heavy now. He put it
on their table and said something to them in a low voice.
William, the boy Judge, rapped on his table with the hammer. Everyone
stopped chattering.
"Elizabeth Allen did not put her money into the box," he
said. "Elizabeth, have you no money?" "Yes, I have,"
answered Elizabeth defiantly. "But I'm going to keep it." "Stand
up when you speak to me," ordered the Judge. Elizabeth felt Ruth's hard
fingers poking her again and she stood up. Ruth saw the purse on the form, and
quickly picked it up.
"Why do you want to keep your money to yourself?" asked
William. "Are you so very selfish?" "No." said Elizabeth.
"But I think it's a silly idea." "Listen," said William
patiently. "In this school we don't like to think that some of us have
heaps of money to spend and others have hardly any. We all get the same, and if
you want anything extra you can always have it if the Meeting agrees."
"Well, I'm not going to stay at this school very long," said
Elizabeth, in a rude. defiant voice. "And 1 shall want some money to go
home by train-so I'm not going to give it to you." There was a buzz of
surprise and horror. The Judges and the Jury stared at Elizabeth as if she was
something very queer indeed.
The two Headmistresses and the Master looked up with great interest,
wondering what the Judges would say. William and Rita spoke together in low
voices. Then they banged on the table with the hammer. Everyone was silent at
once.
William spoke in a grave voice. "We think Elizabeth is wrong and
silly," he said. "Her parents are paying a lot of money to keep her
in this fine school, and even if she goes home in a short while, her term's
fees still have to be paid. Also we think she is very feeble not to try and see
if she likes Whyteleafe." "If I'm not sent home, I'll run away,"
said Elizabeth, angry at being spoken of like this.
"That can't be allowed," said William at once. "You
would worry your parents and everyone here, just because you are a selfish,
silly girl. Ruth, is that Elizabeth's money I see you waving at me? Bring it
here." Elizabeth made a snatch at her money, but it was too late. Ruth
took the bag to the table and emptied six shillings, two half-crowns, and five
sixpences into the money-box. Elizabeth blinked her eyes She wanted to cry, but
she wasn't going to.
"Elizabeth, we can't allow you to keep your money in case you are
foolish enough to use it for running away," said Rita, in a kind but stern
voice, One of the Jury stood up. It was a tall boy called Maurice. "I
should like to say that the Jury think that Elizabeth Allen must not have any
money at all to spend this week, because of her behaviour," he said.
All the Jury put up their hands to show that they agreed.
"Very well," said the Judge. "Now, Elizabeth, we shan't
say any more to you to-day, because you are a new girl, and must be given a
chance to settle down, I hope you will have a good report at next week's
Meeting. We shall be very pleased if you do." "Well, I shan't,
then," said Elizabeth, in a furious voice. "You just wait and see
what I'll do." "Sit down," said William, losing his patience
with the defiant little girl. "We've had enough of you for one meeting.
Nora, give out the money to everyone, please." Nora gave two shillings to
everybody, except Elizabeth. The little girl sat sulking on her form, hating
everybody. How dared they take her money? She would pay Ruth out for taking her
purse like that! When everyone had their money, the Judges knocked for silence
again. "Does anyone want extra money this week for anything?" asked
William.
A small boy stood up. "I should like sixpence extra," he
said.
"What for?" asked William.
"I've been told I must give some money to the School Club, to help
towards a new gramophone," he said.
"Well, take it out of your two shillings," said William.
"Sit down. Sixpence extra not granted." The boy sat down. A girl got
up. "May I have one and ninepence extra to pay for an electric light bulb
I broke by accident in the playroom?" she asked.
"Who's your monitor?" asked Rita. One of the Jury stood up, a
girl called Winnie.
"Was it a proper accident, Winnie, or just fooling about?"
asked Rita.
"It was a proper accident," said Winnie. "Elsie was
trying to open a tin, and the opener flew out of her hand and broke the light
bulb," "Give her one and ninepence out of the box, then,"
ordered Rita. Winnie took the money and gave it to the girl, who was very
pleased.
"Any more requests?" asked William. Nobody said anything.
"Any complaints or grumbles?" asked Rita.
Elizabeth felt uncomfortable, Would Nora complain about her? Would that
boy she had kicked, who was a monitor, complain too? Goodness, this Meeting was
lasting much too long! CHAPTER 8.
The First Week at School.
NOBODY made any complaints at all. Elizabeth couldn't help feeling
glad. "All the same, they'll have plenty of complaints to make about me
next week!" she thought. "I'll just show them that I mean what I
say!" Somebody had a grumble. It was a small boy called Wilfred. He stood
up, looking rather shy.
"1 have a grumble," he said, "Go on, then," said
William, the Judge.
"Please," he said, "I learn music, and one of the times
put down for my practice is half of, cricket-time on Tuesday. Could I have it
changed, because I do bate missing cricket." "Certainly," said
William. "Mr. Johns, do you think that could be changed?" "I'll
see to it," said Mr. Johns, from the back of the room. "I'll speak to
the music-master and have it put right for Wilfred." "Thank
you," said William and Wilfred together. There were no more grumbles.
William hammered on the table.
"The Meeting is over," he said, "The next will be held
at the same time on the same day next week, Everyone must attend." The
children jumped up, talking loudly, and went out to their various tasks. Some
had lessons to prepare for the next day. Some had pets to feed. Some wanted to
practise cricket or tennis. Everyone seemed to have something to do.
All except Elizabeth. She seemed to have no one to talk to, no one to
walk with. She knew it was her own fault, but she didn't like it. She wandered
off by herself and came to a little room where someone was playing the piano
softly and beautifully.
Elizabeth loved music with all her heart. She crept into the little
music-room and sat down to listen. Mr.
Lewis, the music-master, was there, playing to himself. When he
finished, he turned round and saw Elizabeth.
"Hallo!" he said. "Did you like that?" "Yes, I
loved it," said Elizabeth. "It sounded to me like the sea."
"It was supposed to be the sea on a summer's day," said Mr. Lewis. He
was an old man, with gentle eyes and a small grey beard. "It was written
by a man who loved to put the sea into his music." "I wish I could
learn to play it," said Elizabeth. "I really do wish I could. Am I
supposed to be learning music at this school, do you know?" "What's
your name?" asked the music-master, taking out a small notebook and
opening it. "Mine is Mr. Lewis." "Mine is Elizabeth Allen,"
said Elizabeth, "Yes-here's your name," said Mr. Lewis. "You are
down for music lessons with me. That's fine. We shall get on well together, and
perhaps by the end of the term you will be able to play this sea-piece you like
so much." "I'd like that," said Elizabeth, "but I shan't be
here long. I hate school." "Dear me, what a pity," said Mr.
Lewis. "Most children simply love it-especially Whyteleafe School. Well,
if you think you won't be here long perhaps I had better cross your name off my
list. It seems a waste of time to have any music lessons if you mean to
go." "Well-I might as well have one or two lessons," said
Elizabeth. "I suppose I couldn't have one now, could I?" Mr. Lewis
looked at his watch. "Yes," he said. "I've got twenty minutes.
Fetch your music and we'll see what you can do." Elizabeth was happy for
the first time when she sat down at the piano with the music-master by her
side. She played one of her favourite pieces. Mr. Lewis jerked his foot in time
to the music and nodded his head when she had finished.
"Yes, Elizabeth," he said, pleased. "You will be one of
my best pupils. I must ask you to change your mind about leaving us soon-it
will be a pleasure to me to teach you that sea-piece." Elizabeth felt
pleased and proud. But she shook her head. "I'm afraid I shan't
stay," she said, "They've taken my money away so that I can't run
away, but I'm going to be so horrid that they'll have to send me away!"
"What a pity!" said Mr. Lewis. He looked at his watch again.
"Play me something else," he said. "I've a little more
time." At the end of the lesson Mr. Lewis showed Elizabeth the name of the
sea-piece he had played. "There is a most beautiful gramophone record of
it," he said.
"Why don't you ask for some money to buy it at the next Meeting?
Everyone would love the record in the playroom, and I know they haven't got
it." "I'd love to get it," said Elizabeth, "Then I could
hear it whenever 1 wanted to. But 1 know the Meeting wouldn't give me any
money! Why, they've even not let me have the two shillings everyone else
has." "Dear dear," said Mr. Lewis, smiling. "You must
really be a very bad little girl-and yet you play my piano like an angel
!" "Do I really?" said Elizabeth in delight-but the music-master
had gone, leaving Elizabeth to put away her music and shut the piano.
Elizabeth soon found out that there were many pleasant things that the
children of Whyteleafe were allowed to do. Every other day they were allowed to
go down to the village in twos, to buy sweets, toys, books, and anything they
wanted. They were also allowed to go to the cinema once a week, provided that
they paid for themselves.
They could go riding every day, and this Elizabeth simply adored, for
there were rolling hills and commons around the school, on which it was
perfectly lovely to gallop. Elizabeth rode very well indeed, for she had had
her own pony for years.
Then, on two evenings a week, the music-master gave a little concert to
those children who really loved music. The concert was from half-past seven to
eight, after supper, and Mr. Lewis gathered round him about twelve boys and
girls who loved to hear the beautiful music he drew from his piano. Sometimes
he played the violin too, and Elizabeth longed to learn to play it when she
heard Mr. Lewis drawing the bow across the strings of his fine violin.
On another evening there was a small dance, beginning at half-past
seven, for an hour. Elizabeth loved dancing too, and when she saw the notice on
the notice-board, she was pleased.
No wonder the children were happy at Whyteleafe! There seemed always
something lovely to look forward to, something exciting to do. Helen and
Belinda, the other new girls, soon settled down well, made firm friends with
one another, and were very happy. The two new boys also made friends, Once Joan
tried to make friends with Elizabeth, but the little girl made a rude face and
turned away.
As the days went on, Elizabeth kept to her plan. She took every chance
of being naughty and rude, till everyone was tired of her. She spent most of
the mornings outside the door of the classroom because Miss Ranger could not
have her in the room as she disturbed the class so much.
One morning she caught the school cat and put it inside Miss Ranger's
desk before anyone entered the room. When Miss Ranger opened the lid, the cat
jumped out, and Miss Ranger squealed in fright. Everyone giggled. They knew it
was Elizabeth, of course.
Another time Elizabeth put the classroom clock ten minutes fast, and
Miss Ranger stopped the lesson too soon. When Miss Ranger found out, she was
angry.
"As you all have missed ten minutes of your arith~ metic
lesson," she said, "I am going to give you two extra sums to do for
your preparation time this after~ noon." The class was angry with
Elizabeth. "You wait till the next Meeting!" said Ruth.
"There'll be some fine complaints about you there!" "I don't
care," said Elizabeth. And she didn't.
One afternoon after tea Elizabeth wanted to go and see the village of
Whyteleafe. She went to Nora, her monitor, and asked her for permission to go
and look at the shops in the village.
"Yes, you can go." said Nora. "But get someone to go
with you. We are only allowed to go in twos," Elizabeth went to Ruth.
"Will you come with me to the village?" she asked. "1 want to
look at the shops." "No thanks," said Ruth, "I don't want
to go with anyone like you! I don't know how you might behave in the road. I
might be ashamed of you." "I know how to behave in the road,"
said Elizabeth crossly.
"Well, you don't know how to behave at school!" said Ruth,
and walked away.
Elizabeth asked Belinda. But Belinda shook her head. "I don't want
to go," she said.
Helen wouldn't go either, nor would Joan. Elizabeth didn't like to ask
any of the boys, because they always laughed at her when they saw her coming.
"Here's the bold had girl!" they said to one another. And
soon poor Elizabeth began to be known as the Bold Bad Girl! Elizabeth went back
to Nora. "Nobody will go with me," she said.
"It serves you right," said Nora. "You can't go if
nobody will go with you. We are not allowed to go alone." "Well, I'm
going alone!" said Elizabeth to herself. And she slipped out of the school
door, down the steps, round to the right, and through the big archway! Down the
hills she ran to see the village.
She had a lovely time looking into all the shops. She looked longingly
into the sweet-shop and wished she had some money to buy some toffee. She
looked into a music-shop and wondered if they had the gramophone record of the
sea-piece she loved. She looked into the toy-shop-and good gracious! Coming out
of it was Rita, the Head Girl of Whyteleafe School! Now what was naughty
Elizabeth to do?
CHAPTER 9.
Rita has a Job for Elizabeth.
ELIZABETH had no time to run away. Rita came out of the shop almost on
top of her. She smiled at the little girl-and then she saw that she was alone.
Her smile faded, and she looked stern.
"Surely somebody is with you?" she asked.
"No," said Elizabeth.
"But, Elizabeth, you know by now that no one is allowed in the
village by herself," said Rita. "You must always come with somebody.
Why didn't you?" "Because nobody would come with me," said
Eliza~ beth. "I did ask a whole lot of them," "Well, you had
better come with me now," said Rita. "I am alone, because the girls
of the top class are allowed to shop by themselves. So walk along with
me." Elizabeth was just going to say that she didn't want to, when she saw
what lovely kind eyes Rita had. Rita was looking at her, and Elizabeth thought
she was the kindest-looking girl she had ever seen-even nicer than Eileen. So
she walked along by Rita in silence.
"You know, Elizabeth, it is strange that no one would go with
you," said Rita. "Doesn't anybody at all like you?"
"No," said Elizabeth. "Don't you remember, Rita, that I told you
I was going to be as horrid as could be so that I could go home? Well,
everybody thinks I am very horrid, so nobody wants to talk to me or walk with
me." "And are you really horrid?" asked Rita.
Elizabeth looked up. She was surprised that Rita should talk to her
kindly, after having found her out in disobedience. But Rita did not look
angry, only very understanding and wise.
Elizabeth thought for a moment. Was she really horrid? She remembered
all the governesses she had had. She remembered that Miss Scott wouldn't stay
with her. Perhaps she really and truly was a horrid girl.
"I don't know," she said at last. "I believe I am horrid
really, Rita. I make myself horrider than I truly am-but all the same. I believe
I can't be very nice." "Poor little Elizabeth!" said Rita.
"I wonder what has made you grow so horrid? You look such a nice little
girl, and when you smile you are quite different. I do feel sorry for
you." A lump suddenly came into Elizabeth's throat, and tears into her
eyes. She blinked the tears away angrily. Now Rita would think she was a baby!
"Don't feel sorry for rue," she said. "I want to be horrid, so
that I can go home." "Couldn't you try to be nice for a change, and
just give yourself a chance?" asked Rita.
"No," said Elizabeth. "I shan't be sent home if I am
nice. I simply must be as bad as I can be." "But you will make
yourself very unhappy," said Rita. "And you will make other people
unhappy too." "Shall I?" said Elizabeth in surprise. "Well,
I don't mind making myself unhappy, if I can get what I want in the end-but I
don't want to make other people unhappy. I think I am a horrid girl, but Rita,
I wish you'd believe me when I say that I really don't mean to make the others
unhappy." "Well, listen, Elizabeth." said Rita, walking all the
time hack towards the school, "there is someone in your room who isn't
very happy. Have you noticed it? You might at least do what you can to make
things nicer for her." "Who is it?" asked Elizabeth in surprise.
"It is Joan," said Rita. "She hasn't a happy home, and
she comes back to school very miserable each term. She worries about her father
and mother all the time, because they don't seem to want her or to love her.
They never come to see her at half term." "Oh," said
Elizabeth, remembering that Joan usually did look rather sad. "I didn't
know." "Nobody knows except me," said Rita. "I live near
Joan at home, so I know. I am telling you this, Elizabeth, because if you
really do mean what you say about not wanting to make other people unhappy, you
can just try to make things better for Joan. She hasn't any friend, any more
than you have-but for a different reason. She is afraid of making friends in
case anyone asks her to stay with them for the holidays-and she knows her
mother wouldn't bother to ask any friend back to stay with Joan. And Joan is
very proud and can't bear to take kindnesses she can't return. Now-~ there's a
job for you to do! Can you do it?" "Oh yes, Rita," said
Elizabeth at once. Although she was spoilt, she had a tender heart, and when
she saw that someone was in trouble, she would always go to help them.
"Thank you for telling me. I won't tell anyone else." "I know
you won't," said Rita. "It is such a pity that you mean to be bad,
Elizabeth, because I can see you would be splendid if you would give yourself a
chance." Elizabeth frowned. "It's no good," she said. "I'm
going to do what I meant to do-get sent home as soon as ever I can. And I can't
be sent home if I'm good." "Well, come and talk to me any time you
think you would like to," said Rita, as they walked in at the school
gates. "And I say, Elizabeth-don't go alone into the village again, will
you? Can you promise that?" Elizabeth was just going to say no, she
wouldn't promise, when she thought of how kind and gentle Rita had been-and she
felt she must promise.
"I promise, Rita," she said, "and-and thank you for
being so nice, You make it rather difficult for me to be as horrid as I want to
be." "That's a good thing!" said Rita, with a laugh, and the
tall Head Girl walked away to her own room, Nora met Elizabeth as she walked to
the playroom. "Did you go to the village?" she asked.
"Yes, I did," said Elizabeth, "Who went with you?"
asked Nora.
"Nobody," answered Elizabeth defiantly.
"Then I thai! report you at the next Meeting," said Nora
angrily.
"Report me all you like," said Elizabeth, in a don't-care
tone. "/ shan't mind!" "You'll mind all right when the time
comes, Miss Don't-Care," said Nora.
Elizabeth went to the playroom and put a record on the gramophone. She
looked through the pile of records to see if the sea..p~ece was there that she
loved. But it wasn't. She wondered how much it would cost But what was the use
of wondering that? She would never have any money now to buy anything! This
horrid, horrid school! Joan Townsend came into the playroom. People were used
to her quiet ways, and nobody took much notice of her. They called her the
Mouse, and often asked her where she kept her bit of cheese! Elizabeth looked
ub, and thought that Joan did indeed look very sad. "Has the afternoon
post come yet?" asked Joan.
"Yes," said Helen, "Long ago Nothing for you,
Joan." "Perhaps she hoped to hear from her mother or father,"
thought Elizabeth "I hear from Mummy often, and Miss Scott has written
twice-but I don't remember Joan getting a single letter!" She was just
going to say something to Joan when the supper-bell rang. The children all
trooped into the dining-hall. Elizabeth tried to sit next to Joan but she
couldn't. She noticed that Joan hardly ate anything.
After supper there was a concert in the music master's room. Elizabeth
ran up to Joan and spoke to her. "Joan! Come and hear Mr. Lewis playing to
night. He's going to play a lovely thing to us-my Mummy plays it at home, and I
know it very well." "No thanks," said Joan. "I've got a
letter to write," Elizabeth stared after her as Joan went to the playroom,
Joan always seemed to be writing letters-but none ever came for her. Elizabeth
ran to tell Mr. Lewis she was coming to his little concert, and then she ran
and peeped in at the playroom. Joan was there alone-.-but she was not writing
letters, She sat with her pen in her hand, and two big tears dropped on to the
writing-pad on the desk below. Elizabeth was horrified. She hated to see anyone
crying. She stepped into the room-but Joan turned and saw her coming. She wiped
her tears away at once and spoke fiercely to Elizabeth.
"What are you spying on me for, you horrid thing? Can't you leave
anybody alone? You're always making a nuisance of yourself." "Joan, I
only wanted to. . ." "Yes, I know what you wanted!" said Joan,
just as fiercely. "You wanted to see me crying, and then laugh at me and
tell all the others I'm a baby! You say you want to be as horrid and nasty as
you can-but just you try telling the others you saw me crying!" "Oh
please, Joan! I wouldn't do that, I really wouldn't!" said Elizabeth, full
of dismay to think that Joan should think such a thing of her. "Joan,
please listen. . . I'm not quite as horrid as I make myself be. Oh, do please
let me be friends with you." "No," said Joan, who was almost as
obstinate as Elizabeth, when she was unhappy. "Go away. Do you suppose I'd
let the naughtiest girl in the school be my friend? I don't want any friend. Go
away." Elizabeth went. She felt dreadful. How could she help Joan if Joan
wouldn't believe that she was not quite as horrid as she pretended to be? She
thought of Joan's unhappy, freckled face, and although the music-master played
really beautifully that evening, for once Elizabeth did not listen in
delight-for once she was thinking of somebody else, and not herself! "If
only Joan would let me help her," thought Elizabeth. "Rita wouldn't
have told me if she hadn't thought I could do it. I wish I could have a chance
of showing Rita I can really do something for somebody." Elizabeth's
chance came that very night. When she and the other five girls in her room were
in bed, and Elizabeth was almost asleep, she heard a sound from the end bed,
where Joan slept. Joan was sobbing quietly under the clothes! Elizabeth was out
of bed at once, although she knew that the rule was that no one was to leave
her own cubicle till morning. But Elizabeth didn't care for rules, anyhow-and
she meant to go to Joan, even if Joan pushed her away as fiercely as before!
CHAPTER 10.
Joan's Secret.
ELIZABETH slipped by Nora's bed, and by Belinda's.
She came to Joan's, at the end beside the wall. She slipped in between
the curtains and went to sit on Joan's bed.
Joan stopped crying at once and lay quite stiff and still, wondering
who it was on her bed. Elizabeth whispered to her.
"Joan! It's me, Elizabeth. What's the matter? Are you
unhappy?" "Go away," said Joan in a fierce whisper.
"I shan't," said Elizabeth. "It makes me unhappy myself
to hear you crying all alone. Are you homesick?" "Go away," said
Joan, beginning to cry softly again.
"I tell you I shan't," said Elizabeth, "Listen, Joan.
I'm unhappy too. I was so had at home that no governesses would stay with
me-----so my mother had to send me away to school. But I love my Mummy, and I
can't bear to be sent away from home like this. I want my dog-and my pony-and
even my canary-so I do know how you feel if you are homesick." Joan
listened in surprise, So that was why Elizabeth was so horrid-partly because
she was unhappy too, and wanted to be at home.
"Now, Joan, tell me what's the matter with you," begged
Elizabeth. "Please do. I won't laugh, you know that. I only want to help
you." "There's nothing much the matter," said Joan, wiping her
eyes. "It's only that-I don't think my mother and father love me-and I do
love them so much. You see-they hardly ever write to me-and they never come to
see me at half term-and it's my birthday this term, and everyone knows it-and I
shan't get a present from them or a birthday cake or anything -I know I shan't.
And it makes me feel so dreadful." "Oh, Joan!" said Elizabeth,
and she took the girl's hand in hers and squeezed it. "Oh, Joan. That's
awful When I think how my Mummy spoilt me-and gave me everything I wanted -and
fussed me-and I was cross and impatient all the time! And here are you. just
longing for a little tiny bit of everything I had. I feel rather ashamed of
myself." "Well, so you ought to be," said Joan, sitting up.
"You don't know how lucky you are to be loved and fussed.
Goodness! I should be really thrilled and frightfully happy if my mother wrote
to me even once in a fortnight-and yours has sent you cards and letters almost
every day. It makes me jealous." "Don't be jealous," said
Elizabeth, beginning to cry herself. "I would share everything with you if
I could, Joan; I really would." "Well, you can't be quite so horrid
as everyone thinks you are, then." said Joan.
"I think I am rather horrid, but I do make myself much
worse," said Elizabeth. "You see, I mean to be sent back home as soon
as possible." "That will make your mother very unhappy," said
Joan. "It is a great disgrace to be expelled from school, sent away never
to come back. You are very queer- you love your mother, and she loves you, and
you want to go back to her-and yet you are willing to make her very unhappy. 1
don't understand you. I'd do anything in the world for my mother, and she
doesn't love me at all. I try to make her proud of me. I do everything I can
for her, but she doesn't seem to bother about me.
You're as bad as you can be, and I expect your mother will love you all
the same. It isn't fair." "No-it doesn't seem fair," said
Elizabeth, thinking hard. She was glad her mother wasn't like Joan's She made
up her mind to be very nice to her mother when she went back home, to make up
for making her unhappy by her behaviour at school.
"You see, Elizabeth, the other girls see me waiting for letters
every day, and they laugh at me behind my back, and think my parents must be
very queer people," said Joan. "And I do hate that too. Last term I
sent some letters to myself, just so that I should have some -but the others
found out and teased me dreadfully." "It's a shame," said
Elizabeth, "Joan, don't worry so. Perhaps things will come right, Couldn't
we be friends, please? Just whilst I'm here. I don't mean to be here for long,
but it would be nice to have somebody for a friend for a little while."
"All right," said Joan, and she took Elizabeth's hand. "Thank
you for coming to me tonight, I'm so glad you're not as horrid as I thought. I
think you're very nice." Elizabeth slipped back to her own bed, her heart
feeling warm and glad. It was good to have a friend. It was lovely to be
thought very nice. No boy or girl had ever said that of Elizabeth before
"I won't let the others laugh at Joan!" thought Elizabeth fiercely.
"She's my friend now! I shall look after her-she's just like a timid
mouse." To the astonishment of everyone the two girls soon became fast
friends. They went down to the village together. Joan spent some of her two
shillings on sweets, which she shared with Elizabeth, Elizabeth helped Joan
with her sums during preparation in the afternoon, for Joan was bad at
arithmetic and Elizabeth was quick.
Joan asked Elizabeth many questions about her father and mother. She
was never tired of hearing how wonderful they were, and the presents they gave
Elizabeth, and the fuss they made of her.
"What are they like to look at?" asked Joan.
"I could show you their photographs, but Nora locked them up her
box, by the window," said Elizabeth.
"Well, fancy letting them stay there, when all you've got to do is
to say you're sorry and that you know how to count," said Joan,
remembering what had happened. "Goodness-I wouldn't let my mother's
picture stay in that dirty old box!" "I shan't apologise to
Nora," said Elizabeth sulkily. "I don't like her-interfering
creature." "She's not," said Joan. "She's a good sort.
Sometimes I think you are an awful baby, Elizabeth. Only a baby would talk like
that." "Oh, so you think I'm a baby, do you?" cried EIizabeth,
flaring up in a rage, and tossing her curls over her shoulder. "Well, I'll
just show you!" Nora was coming into the bedroom at that very moment. She
was astonished to find Elizabeth flinging herself almost on top of her,
shouting loudly: "Nora! I'm sorry about those things you put in the box. I
know how to count and I'll show you I can put six things on my
chest-of-drawers." "Good gracious! Don't deafen me," said Nora.
"All right-you can have them back." Nora unlocked the box, took out
all Elizabeth's things, and gave them to her.
"You're an awful goose, you know," she said, half-scolding,
half-kindly. She had been pleased to see that Elizabeth had really tried to
make friends with someone at last.
Elizabeth proudly put her photographs on her chest, and showed them to
Joan. The bell went for tea and they had to go downstairs before Elizabeth had
finished saying all she wanted to. As they passed the hail letter-rack,
Elizabeth glanced up to see if there were any letters for her.
"Goody! A letter from Mother-and one from Daddy too-and this looks
like one from Granny!" said Elizabeth. She took them down. Joan had no
letters at all.
"Hallo, Joan! Still glooming over the letter-rack as usual!"
called Helen's voice, "I'm sure I don't know what you'd do if ever you did
find a letter there one day! Jump through the roof, I should think!" Joan
went red and turned away. Elizabeth saw that she was hurt, and she jumped round
on Helen.
"I suppose you think you're funny!" she shouted.
"Well, perhaps you'd like to know that Joan had four letters and a
card this morning, and she didn't jump through the roof, She's not quite such a
cuckoo as you are!" Helen was so astonished to hear Elizabeth sticking up
for anyone that she couldn't say a word. Elizabeth made a rude face at her,
tucked her arm through Joan's, and walked off with her.
Joan turned to Elizabeth, "What an awful story you told!" she
said. "I didn't have any letters to-day, and you know I didn't."
"Yes, I know," said Elizabeth, "It was a story-but I really
couldn't help it, Joan. You looked like a timid mouse that's been clawed at by
a cat, and I felt like a dog that wanted to bark something horrid at the
cat!" Joan threw back her head and laughed. "You do say the funniest
things, Elizabeth!" she said. "I never know what you will say or do
next," Nobody ever did know what Elizabeth would take into her head to do
or say. The days were slipping by now, and another week had almost gone.
Elizabeth enjoyed her work, for she had a good brain and things came easily to
her. She enjoyed the riding lessons, the gym, the painting, the walks, the
concerts, and above all, her music lessons. She liked cricket, and she was
getting quite good at tennis.
She had to keep reminding herself that she mustn't enjoy these things.
She must really be naughty, or she wouldn't be sent home in disgrace. So every
now and again she was very naughty indeed.
One morning she did every single thing wrong in her class. She wrote
badly and spelt every word wrong. She got all her sums quite wrong. She spilt
ink over her neat geography map. She whistled and hummed till she drove Miss
Ranger quite mad.
Miss Ranger had been told to be patient with naughty Elizabeth, and she
tried to be. But even the children became angry with her, although at first
they giggled and laughed and thought she was funny "I shall report you at
the Meeting to-morrow," said a boy at last. He was a monitor, and had the
right to report anyone. "I'm sick of you. You disturb everyone."
"And I shall report you too!" said Nora that afternoon. "Three
times you've not gone to bed at the right time this week. Last night you even
came up later than I did! And look at this-you've spilt ink over your blue
bedside rug. That will have to be cleaned." "Welt, I'm not going to
clean it," said Elizabeth rudely. "I'll make it a bit worse, just for
fun!" And the naughty little girl tipped up some more ink over another
part of the rug.
Nora stared at her in disgust.
"You're too silly for words," she said. "Well, you'll be
sorry at the Meeting tomorrow!" "Pooh! That's all you know!"
said Elizabeth, CHAPTER 11.
The Meeting Punishes Elizabeth.
THE Meeting the next day was at the same time as before. All the
children went, and once again the two Judges, Rita and William, sat at the big
table, and the twelve monitors, the Jury, sat at the smaller table.
Other teachers were there too, this time, besides Miss Belle and Miss
Best. They sometimes came to hear what was being done at the Meeting, although
they never interfered, Rita hammered on the table for quiet. Elizabeth sat
looking sulky. She knew quite well that she would be scolded and punished, and
she kept telling herself that she didn't care. But one week at Whyteleafe
School had made her see that it really was a splendid school and she couldn't
help feeling rather ashamed of her behaviour.
"Well, it can't be helped. They won't send me home unless I behave
badly," she kept saying to herself, "Has anyone any more money to put
into the Box?" asked William. He looked at a sheet of paper. "Jill
Kenton and Harry Wills have received money this week and have already put it
in. Has anyone else any?" Nobody had. "Nora, give out the two
shillings to everyone, please," ordered William.
Nora began to give out the money. She even gave it to Elizabeth, who
was most surprised. She had quite thought that, owing to her behaviour, she
would get no money at all. She made up her mind to buy some peppermints and
some toffee and share them with Joan. She whispered this to her friend, who was
sitting beside her.
"Thank you," whispered back Joan, "I shall want most of
my money to buy stamps this week, so I shall love to share your sweets!"
"Does anyone want extra money?" asked William. George got up and
spoke.
"We need a new cricket ball for a practice game," he said.
"We lost ours in the shrubbery." "You must look for it again
before you get the money," said William. "Come to me to-morrow."
George sat down. Queenie got up. "Could I have some money to buy a birthday
present for somebody?" she asked. "It's my old nurse's birthday this
week, and I'd like to send her something. Half a crown will do nicely."
Half a crown was given to Queenie.
"I'd like a new garden spade," said John Terry, standing up.
"I'm afraid it will cost rather a lot, though." Mr. Warlow, the games
master, got up and spoke for John, "I should just like to say that in my
opinion John deserves a new spade," he said. "He is the best gardener
in the school, and I believe the peas we had for dinner to-day were due to his
hard work." John's spade was passed at once. "Give him the
money," said William. "How much is it, John?" "I'm afraid
it is twelve shillings and sixpence," said John. "I've asked at three
shops and the price is the same in each." Twelve shillings and sixpence
was handed out. John sat down, blushing with pleasure.
Other things were asked for. Some were granted and some were refused.
Then came the complaints and grumbles.
"Any reports or complaints?" asked Rita, knocking on the
table for silence.
"I want to report Harry Dunn for cheating," said a monitor
firmly.
There was a buzz at once. Everyone knew Harry Dunn, a sly-faced boy in
the class above Elizabeth's.
He sat on his form, looking red.
"Cheating is awful!" said William, shocked. "We haven't
had a proper case of that here for three terms." "Don't give him any
money to spend for the rest of the term!" called someone.
"No. That's a silly punishment for cheating," said William at
once. "It wouldn't stop him and would only make him angry." There was
a loud discussion about Harry. Rita banged on the table with her hammer.
"Quiet!" she said. "I want to ask Harry something.
Harry, what lesson do you cheat in?" "Arithmetic," said
Harry sulkily.
"Why?" asked William.
"Well, I missed five weeks last term, and I got behind in my
arithmetic," said Harry. "My father doesn't like me to be bad at
arithmetic, and I knew I'd be almost bottom if I didn't cheat. So I thought I'd
better cheat, and copy Humphrey's sums. That's all." "Yes-he did miss
five weeks last term," said a monitor. "He had mumps, I
remember." "And his father does get wild if he isn't near the top in
arithmetic," said another monitor.
"Well, it seems to me that we'd better ask Mr. Johns if he'd be
good enough to give Harry extra help in arithmetic this term, so that he can
catch up what be missed," said William. "Then he won't need to cheat.
Mr. Johns, I can see you at the back this evening-do you think it would
help Harry if you gave him extra time?" "Rather!" said Mr.
Johns, "I've already suggested it to Harry-and now that this has happened
I think he'll be glad of extra help in arithmetic, won't you, Harry?"
"Yes, thank you, sir," said Harry.
But William hadn't finished with Harry.
"We can't let you sit with the others in your class until we know
you won't cheat again," he said. "You had better put your desk apart
from the others until you have caught up with the arithmetic you've missed-and
then you can go back, if you will come and tell me that you won't cheat
again." "All right, William," said Harry. He hated the idea of
being set apart because he was a cheat-and he made up his mind he would soon
know as much as anyone else-and then he'd beat them with his own brains, and
never cheat again.
"Cheating is only done by stupid or lazy people," said
William. "Now-any more complaints?" Then it was Elizabeth's turn to
go red and look sulky! Up got Nora at once.
"I have a serious complaint to make," she said. "It is
about Elizabeth Allen again. I am the monitor in her bedroom, and I can't make
her go to bed at the right time. Not only that-she is awfully rude and horrid.
I don't think she cares how she behaves at all." "Anything
else?" asked Rita, staring in disgust at Elizabeth.
"Yes-she has poured ink twice over her bedside rug, and refuses to
clean it," said Nora.
"Well, we will send it to the cleaner's and Elizabeth can pay for
it," said Rita, "It costs two shillings to get those rugs cleaned-so
I am afraid you will have to give up your two shillings, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth really didn't like to be rude to Rita. So she meekly took out her two
shillings and passed them back to Nora, who put them into the money-box.
"About the going late to bed," said William, "that's
easily dealt with. In future Elizabeth's bedtime will be altered, and she will
go at half-past seven, instead of eight." "But I shall miss the
concerts and the dancing," said Elizabeth in dismay.
"That's your own fault," said Rita sternly. "If you are
sensible, we will alter your bedtime next week- but only if you are
sensible." "And now about the rudeness and horridness," said
William. "I'm not sure we can blame Elizabeth for that. You know, we've
usually found that rude children are caused by silly parents, who spoil them
and let them say and do what they like. I should think Elizabeth's parents are
to blame for her present rude behaviour. They haven't taught her good
manners." Elizabeth leapt up at once, her face full of anger. "Mummy
and Daddy have taught me good manners!" she said. "They've beautiful
manners themselves, and Mummy is never rude to anyone." "Well, we
shall only believe that when we see that you are following their example!"
said William. "Whenever you are rude this week we shall each say to
ourselves: 'Poor Elizabeth! She can't help it! She wasn't brought up
properly!'" "i'll show- you I've got good manners!" shouted
Elizabeth. "I'll just show you, you horrid boy!" Everyone began to
laugh at the angry little girl.
William banged on the table with his hammer. "Silence! Elizabeth
wants to show us that she has good manners.
Go on, Elizabeth, shout a little more and call us names.
Then we shall see exactly what your good manners are." Elizabeth
sat down, boiling. So they thought her mother and father didn't know how to
bring children up with good manners, did they? Well, nobody would be more
polite than she would be, next week! They would have to say they were wrong!
Kenneth, the monitor in Elizabeth's class, got up next. "Please, William
and Rita," he said, "could you do something about Elizabeth's
behaviour in class? It is simply impossible. She spoils all our lessons, and we
are getting very tired of it. I guess Miss Ranger is too." "This is
really dreadful," said Rita. "I had no idea Elizabeth was so bad. I
am very disappointed. Has nobody a good word to say for her?" No one
spoke. No one said a word. And then every74 one got a surprise, for up got Joan
Townsend, the Mouse! She was blushing red, for she hated to speak in public.
"I-I-I should like to speak for Elizabeth," she said.
"She can be very kind. She isn't really as horrid as she pretends to
be." Joan sat down with a bump, as red as fire. Elizabeth looked at her
gratefully. It was good to have a friend! "Well, it's something to hear
that!" said William. "But it isn't enough. What are Elizabeth's
favourite lessons?" "Music, painting, and riding," shouted Elizabeth's
class, "Well, Elizabeth, until you can behave in the lessons you don't
seem to like, you must miss those you do like," said William, after
consulting with Rita for a while, "You will miss riding, music, and
painting this week, and you will not go down to the village at all. We hope
there will be better reports next week, so that we can give you back the things
you love. We simply can't let you spoil lessons for the rest of your
class." Elizabeth could not stand the Meeting for one moment more. She stood
up, pushed a chair aside, and rushed out. "Let her go," she heard
Rita say, in a sorry sort of voice. "She's being awfully silly-but she's
really not as bad as she makes out!" Poor Elizabeth! No money to spend-an
early bed~ time-no concerts, no dancing, no riding, painting, or music! The
little girl sat on her bed and wept. She knew it was all her own fault, but it
didn't make things any better. Oh when, when would she be able to leave this
horrid school?
CHAPTER 12.
Elizabeth has a Bad Time.
Joan went to find Elizabeth as soon as the Meeting was over. She
guessed she would be in their bedroom. Elizabeth dried her eyes as soon as she
heard Joan coming. She wasn't going to let anyone see her crying!
"Hallo!" said Joan. "Come down to the playroom. It's raining or
we could go and have a game of tennis." "Joan, it was decent of you
to speak up for me," said Elizabeth. "Thanks awfully. But don't do it
again, because, you see, I want everyone to think I'm too bad for this school,
so that I'll be sent home," "Oh, Elizabeth, do get that silly idea
out of your head!" said Joan. "I'm quite sure that the school won't
send you home, and you'll only go on getting yourself into more and more
trouble. Do be sensible." "Do you really think they won't send me
home, however badly I behave?" said Elizabeth in dismay. "But surely
no school would want to keep a really bad child?" "Whyteleafe School
has never expelled anyone yet," said Joan. "So I don't expect they'll
start on you. You'll just have a perfectly horrid time, instead of haying a
lovely one. You'd have much more chance of going home if you went to Rita and
said you'd be good if only she would do her best to get you home because you
were so unhappy here," "Really?" said Elizabeth, astonished.
"Well, I didn't think of that. Perhaps I'll go to Rita. I'll see. I am
really getting a bit tired of remembering to be bad. There are so many nice
things to do here, that 1 can't help enjoying myself sometimes." "I
think you're a silly goose," said Joan. "Come on down. It will soon
be seven o'clock, and you know you've got to go to bed directly after supper
for a whole week, instead of at eight o'clock." Elizabeth frowned.
"I've a good mind to go at eight o'clock, just to spite them!" she
said.
"Oh, don't be foolish," said Joan. "Do you suppose the
Meeting cares if you go to bed at seven or eight? You'll only be hurting
yourself, not anyone else, if you're silly." "Oh," said
Elizabeth, seeing for the first time that she was spoiling things for herself
far more than she was spoiling them for other people. She sat and thought for a
minute.
"Listen, Joan," she said, "I'll do as I'm told this
week, See? I'll obey the orders of the Meeting, and go to bed early, and miss
all the things I love-and at the end I'll go to Rita and tell her I'm so
unhappy that I simply must go home, and I'll see what she says. I'm sure she
could tell Miss Belle and Miss Best and they could write to Mummy for me."
"Well, you do that," said Joan, getting a bit tired of Elizabeth's
curious ideas. "Now do come on-bother- there's the supper-bell, and we've
wasted all this time!" They had supper-and then poor Elizabeth had to go
straight upstairs to bed. Nora popped in to see that she had obeyed the orders
of the Meeting and felt quite surprised to see Elizabeth under the sheets.
"Good gracious!" she said. "You are learning to be
sensible at last! Now just you listen to me, Elizabeth -the Meeting hates
punishing anyone as much as they have punished you this week-so be good and
sensible and obedient, and you'll find that everything will be all right at the
next Meeting. By the way, I'll take up your bedside rug-the cleaner comes
to-morrow, and I'll see that it's put ready for him to take." "Thank
you, Nora," said Elizabeth, in a very good voice.
The week that followed was not a pleasant one for Elizabeth. She had to
see the others go out riding without her. She had to sit indoors and copy out
sums instead of going out sketching with the painting class. Worst of all she
had to tell Mr. Lewis that she couldn't have her music lessons that week.
Mr. Lewis was disappointed. "Well, aren't you a little
silly?" he said, patting her on the shoulder.
"What a pity! And we were going to do something rather exciting
this week too-I've got Richard Watson to learn a duet, and I thought you and he
could play it together. Duets are fun." "Oh dear," said
Elizabeth in dismay. "I've never played a duet, and I've always thought it
would be fun, Could you wait till next week, do you think, Mr. Lewis?
I might get all my punishments taken off by that time." "I
should hope you would!" said the music-master.
"Now, Elizabeth, although you are going to miss your lessons with
me this week, there is no need for you to miss your practice. Take this duet
and try to learn your part by yourself-and next week I'll have Richard alone
too, and we'll all have a go at it. Practice your other pieces too, and don't
forget your scales," "I won't forget," promised Elizabeth, and
she ran off. Richard Watson was a big boy, and Elizabeth couldn't help feeling
rather proud to think that Mr. Lewis had chosen her to play a duet with him.
She knew that Richard Watson played the piano and the violin beautifully.
Elizabeth turned over a new leaf that week. Nobody could have worked
harder in class than she did She only got one sum wrong the whole of the week.
She didn't get a single mistake in dictation. Even the French mistress,
Mademoiselle, was pleased with her because she learned a French song so
quickly.
"Ah, but you are a clever little girl!" she said to
Elizabeth. "Will you not help this poor little Joan to learn her piece?
Always she makes mistakes, and is at the bottom of my class." "Yes,
I'll help Joan," said Elizabeth eagerly. "I can easily teach her the
song." "You have a good heart," said Mademoiselle. Elizabeth
went red with pleasure. The other children stared at her. They couldn't
understand this strange girl who was so bad and horrid one week, and so good
and helpful the next! Elizabeth helped Joan to learn the song. She and Joan
went off to a corner of the garden and Elizabeth sang each line of the song in
her clear voice, and made Joan sing it after her. It wasn't long before Joan
knew it perfectly.
"You are very decent to me, Elizabeth," said Joan gratefully.
"I wish I was going to have a birthday cake on my birthday-I'd give you
the biggest piece of all!" "When is your birthday?" asked
Elizabeth.
"It's in two weeks' time," said Joan. "And I do hate it
so, because I know I shan't get a single card, and my parents are certain not
to remember it. Everyone else seems to have a big cake, and presents and
cards." "I think it's a shame," said Elizabeth warmly. "I
shall give you a present, anyhow-that is if only the Meeting will give me my
two shillings! I shan't pour ink on my rug again, anyway-that was an awful
waste of two shillings. I could have bought toffees with that. I haven't had a
sweet for ages!" "I'll buy some this afternoon and share them with
you," said Joan. "I want most of my money for stamps, but I shall
have a few pence over for sweets. It's a pity you can't go down to the village
with me and choose the sweets. It would be fun to go together." "It
would," agreed Elizabeth. "But I'm not going down till I'm allowed
to. For one thing I promised Rita I wouldn't go alone-and for another thing,
I'm jolly well not going to have the Meeting taking away my good times any
more!" They went indoors. On the way they met three of the boys, going out
to practise bowling.
"Hallo, Bold Bad Girl!" said one of them. Elizabeth went red,
and tried to rush at them. But Joan held her arm firmly.
"Don't take any notice," she said. "They only want to
see you get angry-and after all, you do deserve the name, you know!" The
boys went off to the cricket field, grinning. Elizabeth felt very angry. She
still had not got used to the good-natured teasing that went on all around her,
She wished she could tease back, or laugh, as the other children did.
Miss Ranger was delighted with Elizabeth that week, The little girl
really had a fine brain, and was fond of a joke. She could say clever things
that made Miss Ranger and the class laugh heartily. She had only to look at a
page once or twice and she knew it by heart! She liked her work and did
everything well, "Elizabeth, you are a lucky little girl," said Miss
Ranger. "Lessons come easily to you, and you should be able to do
something fine in the world when you grow up. Whyteleafe School and your
parents will be proud of you one day." "Whyteleafe School
won't," said Elizabeth firmly.
"I shan't be here long enough. Half a term is as long as I shall
stay, and I may go home before that." "Well, we'll see," said
Miss Ranger. "Anyway, it is a pleasant change to see the other side of you
this week, and not the unpleasant rudeness of last week." Elizabeth
practised hard at the piano all the week. She wanted to show Mr. Lewis that she
could play that duet with Richard! Over and over she played the pages of the
music, trying to get the right time, and lo play softly and loudly at the
proper moments.
One morning she got a letter from her mother enclosing some stamps.
"Now that you have to buy your own stamps I thought perhaps it would help
you if I sent you some," wrote her mother. "Then you can spend all
your money on the things you like." Elizabeth counted the stamps. There
were twelve penny ones and twelve ha'penny ones. She divided them in half and
went to find Joan.
"Joan! Here are some stamps for you! Now you needn't spend all
your money on them," said Elizabeth.
"Oh, thanks," said Joan, delighted. "What a bit of luck!
Your mother must be a darling to think of things like that. I'll go straight
down and buy some toffee." She did-and the two girls sucked it happily
after tea that day, as they w'andered round the school garden. They came across
John Terry busy gardening with his new spade. He showed it to the girls, and
they admired it. Elizabeth told John about the garden she had at home.
"You sound as if you knew a lot about gardening," said John.
"Not many girls do. I suppose you wouldn't like to come and help me
sometime, would you, Elizabeth? There's a lot to do, and in the summer-time not
many people come and help." "I'd love to," said Elizabeth
proudly. Fancy clever John Terry asking her to help him! "I'll come
whenever I can." "You do look happy, Elizabeth," said Joan,
staring at her friend's bright eyes. "I don't believe you want to leave
Whyteleafe at all." "Well, I do, then," said Elizabeth, quite
fiercely. "I don't change my mind as quickly as all that! You'll soon see.
I'll ask Rita to get me sent back home before half-term!" CHAPTER 13.
The Third Meeting.
Tim third Meeting came. Everyone went to the gym as before, and took
their places, Some of the teachers sat at the back as usual, Rita and William
came in last of all and the children rose and stood until their two Judges sat
down.
Joan was sitting next to Elizabeth. She was hoping very much that
Elizabeth would not say anything silly, and so spoil her week's good work and
behaviour. Elizabeth wished the Meeting was over. She was not used to having
her behaviour discussed and dealt with, and she didn't like it at all. But she
knew that everyone was treated the same, and she saw that it was quite fair,
Money was put into the box. One girl, Eileen, had had a whole pound sent to her
by her grandmother, and she put it into the box very proudly. She was glad to
feel that she could add so much to the spending money of the school.
The two shillings were given out to everyone. Elizabeth took hers
gladly-now she would be able to buy some sweets for Joan.
"Does anyone want anything extra this week?" asked William,
rattling the money-box.
Eileen wanted a shilling to get her watch mended, and it was granted at
once, Nobody else said anything.
"Nothing else?" asked Rita, looking round.
Elizabeth suddenly found herself standing up. "I don't expect you
will let me have it," she said, "but I would very much like
something-it isn't only for myself, but it would be nice for everyone else
too." "What is it you want?" asked Rita.
"Well, there's a lovely sea-piece that Mr. Lewis plays," said
Elizabeth eagerly. "He says there is a beautiful gramophone record of it,
and I would so much like it. I'm sure everybody would love it too. I know I
could buy it with my two shillings, but I owe Joan Townsend a lot of sweets,
and I'd like to buy her some this week." William and Rita looked at the
twelve monitors below them at the small table, "What do you think about
it?" Rita asked them. "You might discuss it for a moment," The
jury discussed it for a few minutes. Then Nora stood up.
"We think the money might be granted to Elizabeth," said
Nora. "We have heard her practising like anything every morning this week
before breakfast, and we think she deserves a reward." "An extra two
shillings is granted, then," said William. "Give the money to
Elizabeth, Nora." Elizabeth was given another two shillings. She was
really delighted. She thought the monitors were very decent to have granted her
wish. She forgot that she had hated them all last week! The Meeting passed on
to complaints and reports. One boy, Peter, was reported for scribbling over one
of the cloakroom walls.
"A disgusting habit!" said William severely. "You will
spend your next two playtimes cleaning off the scribble with soap and hot
water, and then you will buy some yellow distemper from the school stores out
of your two shillings, and repaint that bit of wall yourself, I shall come to
see it at the end of the week." Peter sat down, very red. Never again in
his life would he scribble on walls. He was not angry at his punishment for he
knew that it was just-he must remove the mess he had made, and make the wall
good.
"We all see the walls," said William, "and we certainly
don't want to see your silly scribbles on them." Then there was a report
on Harry, who had cheated the week before. Mr. Johns had sent in a written note
to William about him. William read it to the Meeting.
"I have to report that Harry is rapidly catching up with the rest
of his class in arithmetic," wrote Mr. Johns. "After another week, he
will be as good as the rest. As he will then have no reason to cheat, I propose
that at the next Meeting Harry is told he may sit with the others again, and
not apart." "What about letting Harry sit with the rest of his class
this week?" asked one of the monitors. "He's had a week of sitting
apart, and it's not very nice." "No," said William firmly,
"He cheated before because he didn't know as much as the others-and if we
let him go back too soon, he'll be tempted to cheat again. We don't want it to
become a habit. Harry, next week we hope to put you back in your old seat with
the others." "Yes, William," said Harry. He made up his mind to
work so hard at his arithmetic that he would be top of the class before the end
of the term-then the Meeting, and Mr. Johns, would know he had no reason to
cheat at all! "And now for the Bold Bad Girl, Elizabeth Allen," said
William. Everyone laughed. Elizabeth laughed too. It sounded funny, not horrid,
when William called her by those names. "Nora, what report have you to
give?" Nora stood up. "An excellent report," she said.
"Elizabeth has obeyed all the orders of last week's Meeting, and
as far as I know has obeyed them cheerfully and well." "Thank
you," said Rita, Nora sat down, Rita opened a note. It was written by Miss
Ranger.
"Here is a report to me from Miss Ranger," said Rita.
"This is what she says: 'It has been a pleasure to have a girl like
Elizabeth in my class this week. She has worked well, could easily be top of
her class, and has been very helpful to others who cannot work as quickly as
she can. She has been as good this week as she was bad last week!'" Rita
looked up. She smiled her lovely smile at Elizabeth, and William smiled too.
"This is very good, Elizabeth," said Rita. "I too have
noticed a great difference in you this week." "Have you?" asked
Elizabeth, pleased to think that Rita had taken any notice of her, "Rita,
did you notice that my manners were better? Because I'd like you to think that
my mother and father have taught me good manners and brought me up properly. I
don't like people to think they haven't." "Well, we take back what we
said about your parents being at fault," said Rita. "But you really
must see, Elizabeth, that if a boy or girl is rude or horrid, it often means
that their parents are to blame for not having taught them any better."
"I do see that," said Elizabeth. "Well, you'll see my father and
mother at half-term, and then you'll know that they couldn't possibly be
nicer." "Oh-so you have made up your mind to stay with us,
then?" asked Rita, with a sudden smile of amusement. She couldn't help
liking Elizabeth, for the little girl said such funny things, and was so
serious about everything.
"Oh no, I haven't," said Elizabeth at once. "But I see
now that you wouldn't let me go home if I behave too badly-you'll only be angry
with me and make me stay just to show me I can't get my own way. But, Rita, if
I do try hard to be good, and do everything I ought to, will you please ask
Miss Belle and Miss Best to let me go home? They can ask my parents at
half-term to take me away. My mother wouldn't want me to stay anywhere where I
was unhappy." William and Rita looked at Elizabeth in surprise. very
puzzled to know what to do with such a strange little girl.
Rita spoke to William, and the jury discussed things together too. But
nobody could decide anything at all. / Rita hammered on to the table and
everyone was quiet.
"Well, Elizabeth," said Rita, "we simply don't know what
to say to you. We've never been asked such a thing before. We think we'd better
ask Miss Belle and Miss Best to help us. Please, Miss Belle and Miss Best,
could you advise us what to do best for Elizabeth?" The two headmistresses
came up to the platform~ and Rita got them chairs. Mr. Johns came too, and sat
with them. It was not often that the masters and mistresses came on to the
platform at the weekly Meetings, and it seemed to make things much more
important and serious.
"Well, first," said Miss Belle, "I think we should all
discuss this thing together--and as it is not very pleasant to discuss a person
when she is present, and Elizabeth may find it a little awkward to hear us, I
suggest that she shall be given the chance to leave the room until we have
finished, What do you think about it. Elizabeth?" "I'd rather go out
of the gym and wait till you say what's decided," said Elizabeth,
"But please, Miss Belle, I shall be awfully naughty again if-"
"Don't say anything more, Elizabeth, my dear," said Miss Best
hurriedly. She didn't want the children to feel annoyed with Elizabeth. She
knew it was very difficult to be fair if people were feeling angry.
Elizabeth went out of the gym. She went to a music-room nearby and
began to practise her part of the duet.
She hoped that she would be able to have her music lessons the next
week, then she could play the piano with Richard.
The Meeting began to discuss Elizabeth and what to do with her.
Everyone had a say, and everyone was listened to, "We don't want her,
she's a nuisance," said one girl. "Why not let her go?" "We
do want her," said Miss Belle, "I think we can help her a great
deal." "She's been spoilt," said William. "It's always
difficult for spoil children to fit in anywhere. They think the world's made
for them and them alone." "But you can't think how kind Elizabeth is
really," said Joan eagerly. "I'm her only friend, and I know more
about her than anyone. She really has a good heart, Mademoiselle said she had
too." "That is quite true," came Mademoiselle's voice from the
back of the gym. "This little Elizabeth is a good child at heart, and a
clever one. But she is so-o-o-o obstinate." Everyone laughed at
Mademoiselle's long "so-o-o-o-o-" "It's so silly to think that
Elizabeth can be simply splendid, but means to be awful if we don't give her
what she wants," said William. "Fancy wanting to leave Whyteleafe
School! I've never, never known anyone want to do that before." The
discussion went on. Nobody could imagine how Elizabeth could want to leave such
a fine school as Whyteleafe, where the children were so happy, and where they
ruled themselves. Miss Belle, Miss Best, and Mr. Johns smiled at one another when
they heard the excited children blaming Elizabeth for wanting to leave
Whyteleafe.
"I think I can see the answer to your problem," said Miss
Belle, at last. "Shall we say this to Elizabeth-that she may certainly
leave us after the half-term if she is really unhappy, and can say so honestly
to the Meeting? She does not need to be rude or naughty or disobedient any
more, but may be good, hard-working and enjoy herself all she likes-because we
are quite willing to let her go, if she really wants to, in a few weeks'
time!" "Oh-I see," said Rita, her eyes shining. "You mean
that Elizabeth can't possibly come and say she is unhappy, after enjoying
herself at Whyteleafe till half-term! So she won't want to go after all-but
we're offering her what she wants, so she needn't be bad any more?"
"That's right," said Miss Belle. "If Whyteleafe School is all
you say it is, and 1 am very proud to hear it-then I think we can safely say
that you children and the school will be able to keep Elizabeth here of her own
free will. We shall see Elizabeth at her best-and we can all help her to be
good and happy." Everyone stamped their feet and agreed. It seemed comical
to them-they were going to tell Elizabeth she could leave when she wanted
to-but when the time came they were sure she wouldn't want to! What a good
idea! They all made up their minds to be as nice as possible to Elizabeth so
that she simply couldn't say she was unhappy, when half-term came! "Call
Elizabeth in," said Miss Best, "We'll tell her," CHAPTER 14.
A Lovely Week.
ELIZABETH was called back to the gym by Nora. She stopped playing the
piano and went back to her place in the gym.
She wondered what the Judges were going to say. They looked serious,
but not angry. Rita knocked on the table.
"Quiet," she ordered. "Elizabeth, we have all discussed
what you want us to do. And we have decided that if you come to us at the
Meeting after half-term, and tell us honestly that you are unhappy here, and
want to go home, Miss Belle and Miss Best will advise your parents to take you
away." "Really!" said Elizabeth in delight. "Oh, thank you,
Rita. I am pleased. Now I don't need to be horrid and rude any more. I can wait
till half-term, but I warn you that at the very first Meeting after that I
shall ask to go home. I hate being at school." Elizabeth wondered why
everyone roared with laughter when she said that. She looked round in surprise.
Even Joan was laughing.
"Well, Elizabeth, that's settled, then," said Rita.
"Please be as nice as you know very well bow to be until half-term-and
then, if you wish, you can certainly go home, if your parents will take you
away." "I know they will, if I'm unhappy," said Elizabeth.
"Thank you, Rita. I promise to be really good now."
"Very well," said William. "All your punishments are lifted from
now on, your bedtime will be as before, at eight o'clock. You can take riding
and painting and all your favourite lessons." "Good!" said
Elizabeth, beaming. She felt very pleased with herself. She had got what she
wanted! She could go home at half-term! "I'm glad it's not before
then," thought the little girl. "I do want to learn that duet with
Richard. And I want to give Joan a present for her birthday. And I want to do
some more riding-oh yes, and buy that record too! How everyone will love to
hear it when I first put it on." Elizabeth was very happy. She beamed
round at everyone, not listening to anything else that was said at the Meeting.
There was very little else to discuss, anyway, and very soon the gym was empty,
and the children ran off to their various tasks or hobbies.
"Well, Elizabeth, I've got you till half-term, anyway!" said
Joan. tucking her arm into Elizabeth's.
"That's something." "Well, make the most of me!"
said Elizabeth with a laugh. "For you won't have me afterwards. I jolly
well mean to go back home to my pony, and my dog.
I mean to show my parents that I just won't be sent away to
school!" A lovely week began for Elizabeth then. After supper that night
there was a little dance, and the boys and girls had great fun. When eight
o'clock struck Elizabeth and the others of her age went upstairs to bed,
leaving the older ones to go on dancing.
The next day she and Joan went down to the village to buy sweets, and
the gramophone record that Elizabeth wanted. The music-shop didn't have it, but
they said they would send for it to the town over the hill, and get it for
Elizabeth. They would send it up to the school for her.
Joan bought some chocolate and a book, Elizabeth bought some toffee,
and two packets of lettuce seeds. She hadn't forgotten that she was going to
help John Terry with his gardening Dear me, what a lot of things there were to
do! "You can have the first lettuce that grows from these seeds," she
promised Joan.
"Well, you'll have to stay till the end of the term then,"
laughed Joan. "Lettuces don't grow quite so quickly as you think,
Elizabeth." "Oh," said Elizabeth, disappointed,
"Well-you'll have to cut the first lettuce then, after I'm gone. Have a
toffee?" It was fun to eat toffees and talk to a friend. It was fun to
feel the lettuce seeds rattling in their packets It was lovely to think of
going riding that afternoon and having a music lesson after tea. Perhaps
Richard would he there, and they would play their duet.
The riding lesson was glorious. Twelve boys and girls were taken out on
the hills by the riding master. Elizabeth had been used to her pony and she
rode well, enjoying the jog-jog-jog, and sniffing the fresh early summer
breezes, This was much better fun than cantur~~ ing along on her old pony at
home, That afternoon the postman brought a parcel for Elizabeth. She undid
it-and inside she found a large chocolate cake, sent to her by her Granny!
"Oh, I say! Look at this!" cried Elizabeth, "We can all share it
at tea-time ~" "My word, Elizabeth, you're rather different from when
you first came!" said Nora, stating at the excited girl, as she put her
cake into her tin in the playroom. "You wouldn't share a thing then!"
Elizabeth blushed. "Don't remind me of that, Nora," she begged.
"I'm ashamed of it now. All I hope is that you won't all say no when I
offer you some of this cake!" Well, nobody did say no! Elizabeth counted
the number of people at her table-eleven. She cut the cake into twelve pieces.
They were very large. Elizabeth offered the plate round and soon there were
only two pieces left.
"Thanks, Elizabeth! Thanks, Elizabeth!" said everyone, taking
a piece. They were delighted to have it, because by now everyone's tuck-box was
empty, and no more goodies had come yet from their homes, for no one had had a
birthday.
"Your Granny must be jolly generous!" said Nora. "This
is the finest cake I've ever tasted." Elizabeth was proud and pleased. She
took the plate to Miss Ranger and offered her one of the two pieces that
remained on it. Miss Ranger took it and nodded.
"Thank you, Elizabeth," she said. Then Elizabeth helped
herself to the last piece and settled down happily to eat it. This was better
than keeping everything to herself! It was lovely to share. She looked round at
all the contented faces, and liked to see the girls and boys eating her cake.
"Miss Scott would be surprised at me," thought Elizabeth
suddenly. "She wouldn't know me! What a horrid girl I must have seemed to
her." After tea Elizabeth got her music and raced off to Mr. Lewis.
Richard was there too, a big, serious boy with long clever fingers. He meant to
be a musician when he grew up. He looked at Elizabeth and didn't smile.
"I suppose he doesn't think girls can play at all,'9 thought
Elizabeth. She was right. Richard was dis. gusted to find that he was expected
to play a duet with a girl-and Elizabeth too, that Bold bad one! What would she
know of music?
They began. Elizabeth had practised so hard that she knew her part
wonderfully well. She took the lower part, the bass, and Richard had the more
difficult part, the treble, where the higher notes were, "I shall count
the first few bars," said Mr. Lewis.
"Now-one two three four, one two three four, one two three four .
.
He soon stopped, for the two children found their own time, and the
duet went with a swing. Mr. Lewis let them play it all the way through and then
he smiled.
"Very good," he said. "You have a feeling for each
other's playing. Now, Richard, wasn't I right when I said I had found someone
you need not be afraid of playing with?" But Richard was as obstinate in
his way as Elizabeth was in hers. He looked at the little girl's flushed face
and did not answer. Elizabeth was disappointed.
Mr. Lewis laughed. "Thank you, Richard," he said, "You
may go-but come back in half an hour's time, and I will give you your lesson
then. I am going to give Elizabeth hers now. Can you two manage to practise
together sometimes?" "1 suppose so," said Richard ungraciously.
"Well, don't if you don't want to!" said Elizabeth, flaring
up. "I play my part just as well as you play yours. You made two
mistakes." "And you made three!" said Richard, "Now this
won't do," said Mr. Lewis, patting Richard on the back. "You can
choose which you would rather do, Richard-play the duet with Harry or with
Elizabeth. I can find someone else for her, you know-but she's the best, after
you." "Well-I'll have Elizabeth," said Richard. "Harry
plays the piano as if his fingers were a bunch of bananas." Elizabeth went
off into a peal of laughter. It tickled her to think of a bunch of bananas playing
the piano.
Richard laughed too.
"I'll practise with Elizabeth, sir," he said to Mr. Lewis.
"She's really jolly good." Elizabeth glowed with pride, because
Richard was one of the bigger boys. She settled down to her music lesson
happily. Mr. Lewis made her play over the duet with him, and pointed out places
where she went wrong. Elizabeth used to get cross when Miss Scott pointed out
her mistakes. but with Mr. Lewis it was different. She thought he was very
clever indeed, and she could listen all day long to his playing! "I've
ordered that gramophone record, Mr. Lewis," she said. "The shop is
getting it for me." "I'll come and hear it when it arrives,"
promised Mr. Lewis. "Now let's get on with tackling the sea-piece on our
piano, Elizabeth. You want to learn it, don't you- but it won't be easy.
Perhaps you could play it for me at the school concert at the end of the term,
if you're good enough." "Oh, I'd love to," said Elizabeth,
pleased, and then she stopped and looked disappointed. "Oh, but I can't, I
forgot. I shall be going home at half-term." "Really?" said Mr.
Lewis, who knew all about it. "Still being the Bold Bad Girl? Dear, dear,
what a pity!" "Isn't there a concert at half-term?" asked
Elizabeth, her voice trembling.
"Afraid not," said Mr. Lewis. "Come along-get on with
your scales now. Don't worry about not being able to play that sea-piece. I can
easily get someone else to learn it for me." "Let me learn it,
anyhow," said Elizabeth. "Even if I can't play it for you at a
concert, I can still learn it for myself, because I love it."
"Good," said Mr. Lewis. "All right. I'll play it for you now,
and you must listen hard." So Elizabeth listened and was happy. She was
happy all the day, and she couldn't help being surprised at herself.
"It is a nuisance!" thought funny Elizabeth. "I really
can't go about being happy like this-whatever shall I say to the Meeting at
half-term?" CHAPTER 15.
Two Trick's--and a Quarrel.
THE week slipped by quickly. Elizabeth practised her pieces, and loved
her music-lessons. She and Richard practised their duet together, and had such
fun that they asked Mr. Lewis for an even harder piece.
"I'm glad you chose me to play with you instead of Harry,"
said Elizabeth to Richard. "I do love the way you play, Richard. You are
as good as Mr. Lewis," "No, I'm not," said Richard. "But
some day I shall be far, far better, Elizabeth. Some day you will come to
London to hear me play at a great big concert! And some day you will hear the
music I make up, played all over the world!" It didn't seem like boasting
when Richard spoke like this. Elizabeth didn't mock at him or laugh at him. She
believed him, and although he was sometimes very moody and bad-tempered she
grew to like him very much.
"I always hated boys before," thought Elizabeth, surprised at
herself. "I do seem to be changing. I'd better be careful, or I will be
different when I leave here, just as Miss Scott said!" So, to show that
she really did still hate boys she played a trick on Harry. She knew that he
would have to go to the music-room to fetch some music he had left behind.
Elizabeth took a sponge, filled it so full of water that it dripped, and then,
climbing on a chair, she balanced the wet sponge on the top of the door.
She arranged the sponge so that anyone who opened the door would move
the sponge, which would at once drop down on to the surprised person's head!
Then Elizabeth hid in a cupboard in the passage outside, and waited for Harry.
He soon came along, rushing to fetch his forgotten music before the bell rang.
He pushed open the door-and down fell the sponge on top of his head, squelch,
squash! "Oooh!" said Harry, in the greatest astonishment,
"Whatever is it?" He soon found out! He took the sponge off his neck
and threw it down on the floor in a rage. "Now I've got to go and change
my coat!" he said. "Who did that?" Nobody answered, of course,
But as Harry knew quite well that people who set traps for others usually like
to hide somewhere near to see what happens, he guessed that the joker was in
the passage cupboard! He stole up to the cupboard, and flung the door open.
Inside was Elizabeth, trying her best not to laugh loudly. Her handkerchief was
stuffed into her mouth and tears of laughter were trickling down her cheeks.
"Oh, it's you, is it?" said Harry, hauling her out.
"It's the Bold Bad Girl! Well, I'll just stuff this wet sponge down your
neck, see!" But he didn't have time to, because the bell rang and he had
to run. "I'll pay you out for that!" he yelled. But Elizabeth only
laughed mockingly.
"I hate boys!" she shouted. "They're silly! Ha ha! I
tricked you properly. Harry!" But Harry soon paid Elizabeth back for her
trick. He waited until the painting class, and then, when Elizabeth was quite
lost in her work, bending over her painting, he stole up behind her. In his
hand was a large sheet of paper.
He neatly pinned it to Elizabeth's back. The little girl felt something
and shook herself-but the paper was safely on, and she didn't know it. She went
on with her painting.
Harry went back to his place. giggling. The class was nearly over, and
if Miss Chester, the art mistress, did not notice what he had done, there was a
good chance of Elizabeth going about with the paper on her back.
Everyone saw the paper and giggled. On it was print~ ed in big letters:
"I'M THE BOLD BAD GIRL! BEWARE! I BARK! I BITE! I HATE EVERYBODY!"
Joan was not in that painting class or she would have told Elizabeth what Harry
had done. All the others thought it was very funny, especially as Elizabeth was
known as the Bold Bad Girl.
The bell rang. Everyone cleared up their things. Miss Chester began to
prepare for the next class, and did not notice Elizabeth's paper. The children
went out of the art-room, and went to their own classrooms.
Once in her classroom all the others there saw the paper; they nudged
one another and giggled. Joan was holding the door for Miss Ranger to come in,
and did not see what everyone was laughing at. Soon Elizabeth noticed that the
class was giggling at her, and she grew red "What are you all laughing at?"
she demanded angrily. "Is my hair untidy? Have I a smudge on my
nose?" "No, Elizabeth," answered everyone in a chorus.
Then Miss Ranger came in, and the class settled down to work. They
worked hard until Break, when the school had fifteen minutes play out-of-doors,
and could have biscuits and milk if they wished.
Harry looked to see if the paper was still on Elizabeth's back. It was!
He ran round to all his friends, pointing it out. All the boys kept behind
Elizabeth, reading the paper and giggling.
"She's the Bold Bad Girl," they whispered. "Look at the
notice!" Every time that poor Elizabeth turned round she found somebody
behind her, giggling. She grew so furious that she called out she would slap
anyone who giggled behind her again.
Joan came out at that moment, and Elizabeth called to her. "Joan!
What's the matter with everyone to-day? They keep going behind my back and
giggling. I hate it!" Joan knew more of the ways of children than
Elizabeth did. She guessed at once that someone had pinned a notice to Elizabeth's
back.
"Turn round," she said. Elizabeth turned round, and Joan saw
the notice: "I'M THE BOLD BAD GIRL! BEWARE! I BARK! I BITE! I HATE
EVERYBODY!" Joan couldn't help giggling herself. "Oh,
Elizabeth!" she said. "Do look what you've been going round with all
morning! It's too funny! No wonder everyone laughed." She unpinned the
paper and showed it to Elizabeth. The little girl, who was not used to being
teased, went red with rage. She tore the paper into half and faced the laughing
children.
"Who pinned that on me?" she asked, "1 didn't, Bold Bad
Girl !" shouted someone. Everybody laughed. Elizabeth stamped her foot.
"Look out!" cried John. "She barks! She bites! She'll
show her teeth next!" "I suppose the person who pinned that on me
doesn't dare to own up!" shouted Elizabeth.
"Oh yes, I dare!" grinned Harry, nearby. "I pinned it on
you, my dear girl-in return for the wet sponge!" "Don't call me your
dear girl!" cried Elizabeth in a rage. "You're a hateful boy, and a
cheat, cheat, cheat! How dare you pin a notice on me like that! Take
that!" The furious little girl slapped Harry hard in the face. The boy
stepped back in surprise.
"Stop that," commanded Nora, coming up at that minute.
"Elizabeth! That sort of behaviour won't do. Apologise to Harry. He's too
much of a gentleman to slap you back, as you deserve." "I won't
apologise," cried Elizabeth. "Nora, I want you to report Harry at the
next Meeting-and if you don't I shall!" "Come with me," said
Nora to Elizabeth. She saw that Elizabeth was really upset, and needed to be
quietened. "You can tell me about it in the playroom. There's nobody
there." Holding the torn bits of paper in her hand Elizabeth followed
Nora, trembling with anger. Nora made her sit down and tell her what had
happened.
Elizabeth pieced the bits of paper together and Nora read what Harry
had written. She stopped herself smiling, but she really thought it was very
funny.
"And why did Harry play this trick on you?" asked Nora,
"Just because I played a trick on him!" said Elizabeth. "I put a
wet sponge on the music-room door and it fell down on his head!" "And
why shouldn't Harry play a trick on you, then, if you play tricks on him?"
asked Nora. "You know, you wet his coat, and he was late for his class
because he had to change it. If you weren't quite so silly, Elizabeth, you
would see that the joke he played on you was quite as funny as the one you
played on him. After all, you know that we call you the Bold Bad Girl!"
"You're not to," said Elizabeth.
"Well, we certainly shall if you go on behaving so fiercely,"
said Nora.
"Will you report Harry at the Meeting?" said Elizabeth.
"Certainly not," said Nora. "We don't report
jokes!" "Then I shall report him!" said Elizabeth.
"Elizabeth, that would be telling tales, not reporting," said
Nora firmly. "You mustn't do that, Don't spoil this good week of yours by
being silly. And, you know, I really should report you!" "Why?"
asked Elizabeth defiantly.
"Because I heard you call Harry a cheat, and you slapped him
hard," said Nora. "It is very mean to call him a cheat when you know
he isn't now. We try to help one another at Whyteleafe, and it was hateful of
you to remind Harry and everyone else of something he's ashamed of."
Elizabeth went red. "Yes," she said. "That was hateful of me. I
wish I hadn't. And I wish I hadn't slapped Harry now. I knew he wouldn't slap
me back. Oh, Nora-I really have tried to behave decently, and now I've spoilt
it all!" "No, you haven't," said Nora, getting up, pleased that
Elizabeth's temper had gone. "Little things like this can always be put
right. Harry is a good-tempered boy. Go and say you're sorry and he won't think
any more about it." "I don't like saying I'm sorry," said
Elizabeth.
"Nobody does," said Nora. "But it's a little thing that
makes a big difference. Go and try it, and see if I'm not right!" CHAPTER
16.
An Apology--and another Meeting.
ELTZABETH went to find Harry, She noticed that everyone turned away as
she came, and she was sad.
"They were all so friendly to me," she thought. "And now
I've been silly again, and they don't like me any more. I do wish I didn't lost
my temper." She didn't want to say she was sorry. She felt sure Harry
would say something horrid, or would laugh at her. All the same, Elizabeth was
truly sorry that she had called Harry a cheat. It was most unfair when the boy
was doing his best to make up for his cheating.
And Elizabeth was just a little girl, although she did such funny
things when she was in a rage.
Ha7ry was playing with about eight other boys and girls in a corner of
the garden. Elizabeth stopped and looked at them. They turned their backs on
her. It was horrid.
"Harry!" she called.
"I don't want to speak to you," said Harry.
"But Harry, I want to say something to you in private," said
Elizabeth, almost in tears.
"Say it in public, then, in front of everyone," said Harry.
"It can't be anything important." "All right, then," said
Elizabeth, going up to the group of children. "I've come to say I'm sorry
for calling you a cheat, when I know you're not now-and- and I'm sorry for
slapping you, Harry. Nora has explained things to me, and I feel different
now." The children stared at her. They all knew how hard it was to
apologise, especially in front of others, and they admired the little girl.
Harry went up to her. "That's decent of you," he said warmly,
"You've got an awful temper, Elizabeth, but you're a good sort all the
same." Everybody smiled. Everybody was friendly again What a difference a
little apology made! Elizabeth could hardly believe it. She suddenly felt that
everything was perfectly all right, and she wanted to skip for joy.
"Come and see my rabbits," said Harry, slipping his arm
through Elizabeth's. "I've got two, called Bubble and Squeak, and they've
got three babies. Would you like one?" Elizabeth had always longed for a
rabbit. She stared at Harry in delight. "Oh yes!" she said. "Let
me buy one from you." "No, I'll give you one," said Harry, who
was a very generous boy, and was eager to make Elizabeth forget all about the
quarrel. "I've got a little old hutch you can have for it. It will be
ready to leave its mother about half-term." "Oh!" said
Elizabeth, disappointed. "I shan't be here after that. I shall be going
home, you know. I can't have the rabbit!" The bell rang for school again,
so she couldn't see the baby rabbit. She didn't want to, now, either, because
she wouldn't be able to have it. What a pity she couldn't have it now and give
it back to Harry at half-term! She asked Harry and Richard to come and listen
to the new gramophone record that evening. It had come, and was, as Mr. Lewis
said, very lovely. The three children sat and listened to it. They played it
five times.
They were all fond of music, and Harry played quite well although his
fingers were, as Richard had said, rather like a bunch of bananas! But he
couldn't help that! "You know, Elizabeth, we have a marvellous concert at
the end of the term," said Harry, putting the record on for the sixth
time, and letting the sea-piece flood the room again. "It's a pity you
won't be here for it. You could have played at it, and your parents would have
been jolly proud of you." Elizabeth had a quick picture in her mind of
herself playing the lovely grand piano at the concert, and her mother and
father sitting proudly to listen to her. For the first time she really wished
she was staying on at Whyteleafe School, "But it's no good," she said
to herself quickly. "I've made up my mind, and that's that! I shan't stay
a minute longer than half-term." After supper that night Mr. Lewis gave
one of his little concerts. About nine children were in the music-room
listening, all music-lovers. Mr. Lewis had asked Elizabeth to bring her new
record for them all to hear, and the little girl proudly put it on Mr. Lewis's
fine gramophone.
It was such fun to sit around, listening. When two of the children
thanked Elizabeth for getting two shillings to buy such a fine record,
Elizabeth nearly burst with pride and pleasure.
"It really is fun to share things," she thought. "I
simply loved all the others listening to my record. How could I ever have
thought it was horrid to share things? I didn't know much!" Joan was not
such a music-lover as Elizabeth was, but she came to the concerts to be with
Elizabeth. Joan was much happier now that she had a friend-though, as she said.
It was rather like being friends with a thunder-storm! You never quite knew
what Elizabeth was going to do next.
Elizabeth looked forward to the next School Meeting. She knew now that
it was the most important thing of the whole school week. She was beginning to
see that each child was one of a big gathering, and that. because its behaviour
brought good or ill to the school as a whole, each child must learn to do its
best so that the whole school might run smoothly and happily.
This was a difficult thing for a spoilt only child to learn-but
Elizabeth was not stupid, and she soon saw what a fine thing it was for the
children to rule themselves and help each other. But she also saw that they
would not be able to do this as well as they did, if they had not had excellent
teachers, able to teach and guide the classes in the best way.
"I see why everyone is so proud of Whyteleafe School now,"
said Elizabeth to herself. "I'm beginning to feel proud of it
myself!" Elizabeth enjoyed the next Meeting very much. Nora had said that
she had nothing bad to report of her, and so Elizabeth had nothing to fear. She
sat listening to the reports, complaints, and grumbles, and beamed with delight
when she heard that Harry had been second in his class in arithmetic, and was
now to be allowed to sit with the others again.
"Thank you," said Harry to William, "I shall never in my
life cheat again, William." "Good," said William. Everyone knew
that Harry meant what he said and they were as pleased about it as Harry
himself. The boy was different to look at now, too-his sly face had gone, and
his eyes looked straight at everyone. He and everyone else had seen and known
his fault, and he and the whole school had conquered it-there was nothing to be
ashamed of now! There was a report that Peter had carefully cleaned and newly
distempered the wall which he had spoilt by scribbling.
"See that you don't have to waste your two shillings on buying
distemper again," said William to Peter.
"I certainly won't," said Peter heartily. FIe had had to go
without his weekly visit to the cinema, and had missed all his sweets for a
week. He wasn't going to let that happen again! There was a complaint about a
small girl called Doris. The monitor who complained of her was very angry.
She stood up and made her report. "Doris has two
guinea-pigs," she said. "And on two days last week she forgot to feed
them. I think they ought to be taken away from her," "Oh no, please
don't," begged Doris, almost crying. "I do love them, really I do. I
can't think how I came to forget, Rita, I've never forgotten before."
"Has she ever forgotten before?" asked William.
"I don't think so," answered the monitor, who had reported
Doris.
"Then it was probably quite a mistake, which will never happen
again," said William. "Doris, pets trust us completely for their food
and water, and it is a terrible thing to forget about them. You must write out
a card and pin it over your chest-of-drawers to remind you. Print on it: 'Feed
my guinea-pigs.' Take it down after three weeks, and see that you remember
without being reminded. If you forget again your guinea-pigs will be taken away
and given to someone who will remember them." "I'll never forget
again," said small Doris, who was very much ashamed that everyone should
know she had forgotten her beloved guinea-pigs.
Nora reported that Elizabeth was behaving well, and said no more.
Another monitor complained that somebody had been picking and eating the peas
out of the school garden.
But John Terry immediately got up and said that the boy who had taken the
peas had gone to him, and had apologised and paid him a shilling for the peas
he had eaten.
"Then we'll say no more about that," said William.
When the Meeting was over, Elizabeth went out to the garden to see
Harry's rabbits. Harry was not there and the little girl looked at the furry
babies running round the big hutch, As she was standing there looking, she
suddenly remembered something. She had meant to ask for extra money at the
Meeting-and she had forgotten! And what was the extra money for? It was to buy
Joan a nice birthday present! Now Elizabeth would have to save her two
shillings and buy it with that. She was cross with herself, for she had meant
to ask for half a crown to buy Joan a little red handbag she had seen in the
draper's shop.
Joan had said nothing to anyone but Elizabeth about her coming
birthday. She hoped no one would notice it, because she knew she would have no
cake to share with her friends, and no presents or cards to show. She became a
timid Mouse once more, as her birthday came near, ashamed because nobody ever
remembered her.
But a surprise was coming to Joan! And, of course, it was that Bold Bad
Girl, Elizabeth, who planned it! I 08 CHAPTER 17.
Elizabeth has a Secret.
DURING the next week, a registered letter came for Elizabeth from her
Uncle Rupert. She opened it-and stared in delight. There was a pound-note
inside! "Twenty shillings!" said Elizabeth, in surprise. "Two
hundred and forty pence! Ooooh! How kind of Uncle Rupert!" She read her
uncle's letter. He said that he had just heard that she had gone to school, and
had sent her some money to buy some nice things to eat.
"A whole pound!" said Elizabeth, hardly believing her eyes.
"I can buy heaps of things with that! I can buy Joan a lovely
present!" She went off to her bedroom to put the money into her purse.
Plans began to form in her mind-wonderful plans! "Oh!" said
Elizabeth, sitting on her bed, as she thought of the plans. "What fun! I
shall go down to the village--and order a fine birthday cake for Joan! She will
think it comes from her mother, and she will be so pleased!" Elizabeth
went on thinking. "And I shall order the new book that Joan wants, and
send that through the post too-and I'll put a card in 'With love from Mother!'
Then Joan won't be unhappy any more." The little girl thought these were
marvellous plans.
She didn't stop to think that Joan would find out sooner or later that
the cake and the book were not from her mother. She just longed to give her
friend a fine surprise.
She couldn't ask Joan to come down to the village with her, in case
Joan found out what she was doing. So she asked Belinda.
"All right," said Belinda, "I want to buy some stamps,
so I'll go after tea with you. Don't spend your two shillings all at once,
Elizabeth!" All that day Elizabeth thought about the cake and the presents
for Joan. She thought about them so much in the French class, that Mademoiselle
got cross with her.
"Elizabeth! Three times I have asked you a question, and you sit
there and smile and say nothing!" cried the French mistress, who was very
short-tempered.
Elizabeth jumped. She hadn't heard the questions at all, "What was
it you asked me, Mam'zelle?" she asked.
"This girl! She thinks she will make me repeat myself a hundred
times!" cried Mademoiselle, wagging her hands about in the funny way she
had. "You will listen to me properly for the rest of the lesson,
Elizabeth, or else you will come to me for an extra half-hour after tea."
"Gracious!" thought Elizabeth, remembering that she wanted to go
shopping after tea. "I'd better stop dreaming and think of the French
lesson," So for the rest of the lesson she did her best, and Mademoiselle
smiled graciously at her. She liked Elizabeth, and found her very amusing,
though she sometimes wanted to shake her when she said, "Well, you see,
Mam'zelle, you needn't bother about whether I shall be top or bottom in exams,
because I'm not staying after half-term." "You are the most obstinate
child I have ever seen," Mademoiselle would say, and rap loudly on her
desk, half angry and half smiling.
After tea Elizabeth went to get her money and to find Belinda, Helen
said she would come too, so the three of them set off.
"What are you going to buy, Elizabeth?" asked Helen
curiously.
"It's a secret," said Elizabeth at once. "I don't want
you to come into the shops with me, if you don't mind, because I really have
got some secrets to-day. It's to do with somebody else, that's why I can't tell
you." "All right," said Helen. "Well, we are going to have
strawberry ice-creams in the sweet-shop. You can join us there when you have
finished your shopping. Don't be too long." Helen and Belinda went off to
the sweet-shop, and sat down at a little marble-topped table there to enjoy
their ice-creams. Elizabeth disappeared into the baker's shop.
The baker's wife came to see what she wanted. "Please, do you make
birthday cakes?" asked Elizabeth.
"Yes, miss," said the woman. "They are two shillings and
sixpence, five shillings, or, for a very big one with candles on, and the name,
ten shillings." "Would the ten-shilling one be big enough for heaps
of children?" asked Elizabeth, feeling certain that Joan would like to
share the cake with everyone.
"It would be big enough for the whole school!" answered the
woman, smiling. "It's the size people often order for Whyteleafe
School." "Oh, good," said Elizabeth, "Well, will you make a
cake like that for Friday? Put eleven candles on it, all different colours-and
put 'A happy birthday for my darling Joan' on it. Will there be enough room for
all that, do you think?" "Oh yes," said the woman. "I'll
decorate it with sugar flowers, and make it really beautiful, and it shall have
two layers of thick cream inside." "I'll pay now," said
Elizabeth, "Oh, and will you please send it to Miss Joan Townsend,
Whyteleafe School, on Friday morning, early?" "Any message inside,
miss?" asked the baker's wife, writing down the name and address.
"No," said Elizabeth, She took the pound-note out of her
purse, and was just giving it to the shop woman.
when Nora came into the shop. She smiled at Elizabeth.
Then she looked round the shop. "Are you alone?" she asked,
"Surely you didn't come down to the village by yourself?" "Oh
no, Nora," said Elizabeth, "I came with Helen and Belinda, They're
waiting for me at the ice-cream shop." The little girl paid for the cake,
and received ten shillings change. Nora stared at the money, and looked
puzzled. Elizabeth waved good-bye and went out, She went to the book-shop and
ordered the book she knew Joan wanted. It was a book all about birds and cost
five shillings. Elizabeth asked the shopman to send it by post, and to put
inside a little card that she gave him. On the card she had written: "With
love, from Mother." "Now Joan will think her mother has sent her a
fine cake and a present!" thought Elizabeth, pleased to think of Joan's
surprise. "I'll buy some birthday cards now." She bought three nice
ones. In one she wrote "With love, from Daddy," in the second she
wrote "With love, from Mother," and in the last she wrote "With
love, from Elizabeth," and added a row of kisses. She bought stamps for
them, and put them safely in her pocket, ready to post on Thursday.
Then she went to buy the handbag she had seen in the draper's shop. She
had four shillings left by that time, so she bought the red bag, paid for a red
comb and a red handkerchief to put inside, and put the change into the little
purse belonging to the bag! There was sixpence change, and Elizabeth thought it
would be fun to put that in too.
Then she went to the ice-cream shop. Helen and Belinda were there,
tired of waiting for her, "You have been a time, Elizabeth," said.
Helen. "Whatever have you been doing? You can't possibly be so long
spending only two shillings!" And then, for the first time, Elizabeth
remembered that all money had to be put into the school money-box, and asked
for! And she had spent a whole pound that afternoon, and hadn't even put a
penny into the box.
She frowned. Goodness, now what was she to do? How could she have
forgotten?
"Well, perhaps it's a good thing I did forget," said Elizabeth
to herself. "If I'd put the money into the big money-box, and asked for a
pound to spend on somebody's birthday, I'm sure Rita and William wouldn't have
given me so much. It is an awful lot to spend all at once-but I did so want to
give Joan a fine birthday!" All the same, Elizabeth was rather worried
about it. She had broken a rule-but she couldn't mend the broken rule because
she had spent all the money! It was no use saying anything about it. The thing
was done. And anyway Joan would have the finest surprise of her life! But
Elizabeth had a very nasty surprise on her way back to school with Helen and
Belinda. Nora ran up to them and said, "Elizabeth! I want to speak to you
for a minute. Helen, you and Belinda can go on by yourselves. Elizabeth will
catch you up." "What is it, Nora?" asked Elizabeth in surprise.
"Elizabeth, where did you get that money from that I saw you
spending in the baker's shop?" asked Nora.
"My uncle sent it to me," said Elizabeth, her heart sinking
when she knew that Nora had seen the money.
"Well, you knew the rule," said Nora. "Why didn't you
put it into the money-box? You knew you could have out what you wanted, if you
really needed it for something." "I know, Nora," said Elizabeth,
in a small voice. "But I forgot all about that till I'd spent the money.
Really, I did." "Spent all the money!" cried Nora in horror,
"What! A whole pound! Twenty shillings! Whatever did you spend it
on?" Elizabeth didn't answer, Nora grew angry. "Elizabeth! You must
tell me! Whatever could you have spent a whole pound on in such a little time?
It's a real waste of money." "It wasn't," said Elizabeth
sulkily, "Please don't ask me any more, Nora. I can't tell you what I
spent the money on. It's a secret." "You're a very naughty
girl," said Nora, "You break a rule-and spend all that money-and then
won't tell me what you spent it on. Well-you can tell the next Meeting, if you
won't tell me!" "I shan't tell them," said Elizabeth. "It's
a secret-' and a secret I can't possibly tell. Oh dear! I always seem to be
getting into trouble, and this time I really didn't mean to." Nora would
not listen to any more. She sent Elizabeth to catch up Helen and Belinda. Poor
Elizabeth! She simply did not know what to do. She couldn't tell her secret,
because then she would have to own up that she was buying things for Joan, and
pretending that they came from Joan's mother. And the Meeting would be angry
with her just when she was being good and enjoying herself! "Well-never
mind-Joan will have a good birthday, anyhow," said Elizabeth, thinking of
the cake and the book. "How surprised she will be!" CHAPTER 18.
Joan's Wonderful Birthday.
"JOAN, you will soon be eleven!" Elizabeth said at breakfast
the next day, as she chopped the top off her boiled egg. "Gracious! You are
getting old." Joan went red and said nothing. She hated anyone to talk
about her birthday, because she knew there would be no cards or presents or
cake for her. She was such a timid little mouse that she had no friends at all,
except Elizabeth-and Joan was always feeling astonished that the bold Elizabeth
should be her friend! "I wonder if you'll have a cake?" went on
Elizabeth, knowing perfectly well that Joan was going to, because she herself
had ordered it! "I wonder what it will be like?" Joan scowled at
Elizabeth. She really felt angry with her. "How silly Elizabeth is,
talking about my birthday, and if I'm going to have a cake, when she knows
quite well that I don't want anything at all said about it," thought Joan.
She frowned at Elizabeth and signed to her to stop-but Elizabeth gaily went' on
talking.
"Let me see-it's Friday that's your birthday, isn't it, Joan? I
wonder how many cards you'll have?" "Joan didn't have a single one
last year, and she didn't have a cake either," said Kenneth. "I don't
believe she's got a father and mother." "Well, I have, then,"
said Joan, feeling quite desperate.
"Funny they never come and see you, not even at half-term,
then," said Hilda, who liked to see Joan getting red, "You be
quiet," said Elizabeth suddenly, seeing that things were going too far.
"What I'm surprised at is that your parents bother to come and see a girl
like you, Hilda! if I had a daughter like you, I'd go to the end of the world
and stay there." "That's enough, Elizabeth," said Nora, who
pounced on Elizabeth very often since the little girl had refused to tell her
her secret. Elizabeth said no more. She longed to say quite a lot, but she was
learning to control her tongue now. Miss Scott would indeed not have known her!
Nothing more was said about Joan's birthday just then, and after breakfast, as
the girls were making their beds, Joan went up to Elizabeth.
"Please, Elizabeth," she said, "for goodness' sake don't
say any more about my birthday. You make things much worse if you do-think how
I shall feel when everyone watches to see what cards and presents come for me
by the post, and I haven't any! You are lucky-you have two Grannies, and two
Granpas, and Uncles and Aunts--but I haven't a single uncle, aunt, or granny!
So it's no wonder I don't get many treats." "You are unlucky,
Joan," said Elizabeth, in surprise. "Really you are. Well-I won't say
any more about your birthday to the others, if you don't like it." But she
longed to, all the same, for she kept hugging her delicious secret-Joan would
have a wonderful cake, with eleven candles on, and cards, and presents too!
Nora was not kind to Elizabeth that week. She did not say any more to Elizabeth
about her secret, but she had quite made up her mind to report her at the next
Meeting. She thought Elizabeth was very deceitful and mean not to give up her
money as everyone else did, and not to tell her what she had spent it on.
"After all, we gave her a fine chance to be as decent as possible,
at the last Meeting," said Nora to herself. "We really did-and the
funny thing is, I felt sure that Elizabeth would be worth that chance, and
would do her best to keep our rules, and help the school, as we all try to do.
But I was wrong. I don't feel as if I like Elizabeth a bit now." When
Thursday came Elizabeth posted the three birthday cards she had bought. She
could hardly go to sleep that night for thinking of Joan's pleasure in the
morning! It really was lovely to give a surprise to someone.
Friday came. Elizabeth leapt out of bed, ran to Joan's bed, hugged her
and cried, "Many happy returns of the day, Joan! I hope you'll have a
lovely birthday! Here's a little present for you from me!" Joan took the
parcel and undid it. When she saw the red handbag inside, she was delighted-and
she was even more thrilled when she found the comb, the handkerchief, and the
sixpence. She flung her arms round Elizabeth and squeezed her so hard that
Elizabeth almost choked! "Oh, thank you, Elizabeth!" she cried.
"It's perfectly lovely. I did so badly want a handbag. I only had that
little old purse. Oh, how I shall love using it! It's the nicest present I have
ever had." There was another surprise for Joan before she went down to
breakfast. Hilda slipped into the bedroom with a lace-edged handkerchief for
Joan. She had felt rather ashamed of herself for teasing Joan the day before,
and had taken one of her best hankies to give for a present.
Joan was thrilled-in fact, she was so thrilled that a bright idea came
into Elizabeth's head. She flew down to the playroom to see if Harry was there.
He wasn't--'but she could hear him practising in the music-room.
"Harry! Harry!" cried Elizabeth, rushing up to him, and
startling him so much that his music fell to the floor. "Will you do
something for me?" "Depends what it is," said Harry, picking up
his music.
"Harry, it's Joan Townsend's birthday," said Elizabeth.
"You know you said you'd give me one of your rabbits, don't you, and I
said it wasn't any good, because I was going at half-term-well, would you
please give it to Joan instead, because you can't think how pleased she is to
have presents!" "Well-" said Harry, not quite sure about it.
"Go on, Harry, do say yes-be a sport!" begged Elizabeth, her
blue eyes shining like stars. It was very difficult to refuse Elizabeth
anything when she looked like that. Harry nodded.
"All right," be said. "What shall I do-bring the baby
rabbit in at breakfast-time?" "Oooh!" said Elizabeth, with a
squeak of delight. "Yes! Do! Say, 'Shut your eyes, Joan, and feel what
I've brought you!' and then put it into her arms. What a surprise for
her!" "Well, I'll go and get it now," said Harry, putting his
music away. "But she'll have to look after it herself, Elizabeth. It will
be her rabbit." "I'll look after it for her," said Elizabeth,
feeling delighted at the thought of mothering a baby rabbit each day.
"Hurry, Harry!" Elizabeth went back to the bedroom. The breakfast
bell rang as she was tidying her chest-of-drawers. She slipped her arm through
Joan's, and they went downstairs together. They stopped at the letter-rack.
There was one card for Elizabeth from Mrs. Allen-and in Joan's place were three
envelopes, in which were the cards that Elizabeth had bought! Joan took them
down, going red with surprise. She opened them, She took out the first card and
read it: "With love, from Mother." She turned to Elizabeth, her eyes
shining.
"She's remembered my birthday!" she said to Elizabeth, and
her voice was very happy. She was even more surprised when she found a card
marked "With love, from Daddy," and she was delighted with
Elizabeth's card.
"Fancy! Three cards!" said Joan, so happy that she didn't
notice that the writing on the envelopes was the same for all three. She went
into breakfast, quite delighted.
And on her chair was an enormous cardboard box from the baker, and a
small neat parcel from the book-shop; Joan gave a cry of astonishment,
"More presents! Who from, I wonder?" She opened the little parcel
first, and when she saw the book about birds, and read the little card, her
eyes filled suddenly with tears, She turned away to hide them.
"Look," she whispered to Elizabeth, "it's from my mother. Isn't
it lovely of her to remember my birthday! I didn't think she would!" Joan
was so happy to have the book, which she thought came from her mother, that she
almost forgot to undo the box in which was the enormous birthday cake.
"Undo this box, quickly," begged Elizabeth, Joan cut the
string. She took off the lid, and every one crowded round to see what was
inside. When they saw the beautiful cake, they shouted in delight.
"Joan! What a fine cake! Oooh! You are lucky!" Joan was too
astonished to say a word. She lifted the cake out of the box, on its silver
board, and stood it on the breakfast-table. She stared at it as if it was a
dream cake. She couldn't believe it was really true.
"I say!" said Nora. "What a cake! Look at the
candles-and the sugar roses! And look at the message on it-'A happy birthday
for my darling Joan!' Your mother has been jolly generous, Joan-it's the
biggest birthday cake I've seen." Joan stared at the message on the cake.
She could hardly believe it. She felt so happy that she thought she would
really have to burst, It was all so unexpected and so surprising.
Elizabeth was even happier-she looked at her friend's delighted face,
and hugged herself for joy. She was glad she had spent all Uncle Rupert's pound
on Joan. This was better than having a birthday herself- much, much better.
Something that Miss Scott had often said to her flashed into her head.
"It is more blessed to give than to receive," Miss Scott had
said, when she had tried to make Elizabeth give some of her toys to the poor
children at Christmas-time.
"And Miss Scott was quite right!" thought Elizabeth, in
surprise. "I'm getting more fun out of giving these things, than if I was
receiving them myself!" "Everybody in the school must share my
birthday cake," said Joan in a happy, important voice, and she lifted her
head proudly, and smiled around.
"Thanks, Joan! Many happy returns of the day!" shouted
everybody. And then Harry came in and cried, "Joan! Shut your eyes and
feel what I've got for you!" In amazement Joan shut her eyes-and the next
moment the baby rabbit was in her arms. She gave a scream and opened her eyes
again She was so surprised that she didn't hold the rabbit tightly enough-and
it leapt from her arms and scampered to the door, through which the teachers
were just coming to breakfast, The rabbit ran all round them, and the masters
and mistresses stopped in astonishment.
"Is this a rabbit I see?" cried Mademoiselle, who was afraid
of all small animals. "Oh, these children! What will they bring to
breakfast next?" "I'm so sorry," said Harry, catching the
rabbit. "You see, it's Joan's birthday, and I was giving her one ot my
rabbits." "I see," said Miss Best, "Well, take it out to
the hutches now, Harry, and Joan can have it again after breakfast."
"Oh, Elizabeth! I'm so happy!" whispered Joan, as they sat down to
their eggs and bacon. "I can't tell you how happy I am!" "You
needn't tell me," said Elizabeth, laughing. "I can see how happy you
are-and I'm glad!" CHAPTER 19.
Joan gets a Shock.
JOAN had a wonderful birthday. She laughed and chattered in a way that
no one had ever seen before.
The little girl became quite pretty with happiness, and when she cut
her birthday cake, and gave a piece to everyone in the school, her face was a
picture! "Nobody could possibly look happier," thought Elizabeth,
eating the delicious cake. "Goodness! That baker certainly did make Joan's
cake well. It's gorgeous!" That evening, after supper, Elizabeth asked
Joan to come and help her plant the lettuce seeds she had bought, but Joan
shook her head.
"I can't," she said. "I'd love to, Elizabeth-but I've
got something important to do." "What is it?" asked Elizabeth,
rattling the seeds in her packets.
"Well-I've got to write and thank my mother and father for their
cards, and the lovely cake and the book," said Joan. "I must do that
to-night." "Oh," said Elizabeth in dismay. She turned away
biting her lip and frowning. "Good gracious!" she thought. "I
didn't think of Joan writing to say thank you. Whatever will her mother think
when she gets Joan's letter, thanking her for things she hasn't sent? Will she
write and tell Joan she doesn't know anything about them-and what will poor
Joan do then?" Elizabeth went out to the garden, thinking hard. Now she
had made a muddle! Why hadn't she thought of Joan writing to her mother? It was
silly of her. Joan was going to be very unhappy-and perhaps angry- when she
found out the truth.
"Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea after all," said
Elizabeth to herself. "Bother! Why do I do things without thinking first?
I wonder if Joan's mother will be angry with me for pretending those cards and
the book and the cake were from Joan's parents. I don't feel happy about it any
more. I feel dreadful." She went to give John Terry the seeds. He was
delighted.
"Good!" he said. "Just what I wanted. I plant a new row
of lettuce every week, Elizabeth, and then we have new lettuces growing in
different sizes, so that each week I have a fresh row to pull. Did you like the
lettuces we had for tea yesterday? Those were out of the frames. I was rather
proud of them." "They were simply lovely, John," said Elizabeth,
still busy thinking about Joan. She simply couldn't imagine what would happen
and she felt worried.
She helped to plant the lettuce seeds, but John scolded her because she
sowed them so thickly. "I thought you knew something about
gardening!" he said. "Do you want the lettuces to come up like a
forest?" "Sorry, John," said Elizabeth. "I was thinking
about something else." "You haven't been naughty, I hope?" asked
John, who liked Elizabeth, and was always pleased when she came to help him in
his garden. "I hope you won't get ticked off at the Meeting again. You've
bad enough of that!" "I'm afraid I shall be!" said Elizabeth,
sighing. She was worried about that too-she was sure Nora would report her for
spending a whole pound-and whatever would she say about it? She wasn't going to
give away her secret, and let everyone know that it was she, and not Joan's
parents, who had sent the cake and the book.
Things were suddenly getting very difficult.
Joan was very happy for two days-and then she got a letter from her
mother that took away all her happiness.
Elizabeth was with Joan when she found the letter at tea-time in the
letter-rack. "Oh! Mother has written very quickly to answer my
letter," said Joan happily, and she took the letter down. She tore it open
and stood reading it.
Then she turned very pale and looked with wide, miserable eyes at
Elizabeth, "Mother says-Mother says-she didn't send me a card-she
forgot," said Joan in a trembling voice.
"And-and she says she didn't send me a cake-or that book-and she
can't understand why I'm writing to thank her. Oh, Elizabeth!" Elizabeth
didn't know what to do or say. She put her arm round Joan and took her to the
playroom. No one was there, for everyone had gone in to have tea. Joan sat
down, still very white, and stared at Elizabeth.
"I don't understand it," said poor Joan. "Oh,
Elizabeth-I was so very happy-and now I feel dreadful! Who could have sent
those things-if it wasn't my mother?" Still Elizabeth couldn't say a word.
How could she say she had done it? Her kindness now seemed like a cruel trick.
Poor Joan! "Come in and have some tea," said Elizabeth at last,
finding her voice. "You look so pale, Joan. Come and have some tea-it will
do you good." But Joan shook her head. "I'm not hungry. I couldn't
eat anything," she said. "Let me alone. You go in to tea without me.
I want to be alone-please, Elizabeth. You are kind and sweet to me, but I don't
want anybody just now. I'm going out for a walk. I'll be better when I come
back." Joan slipped out of the playroom, Elizabeth stared after her,
unhappy and worried. Joan had gone out alone-without anyone, which wasn't
allowed. Elizabeth simply didn't know what to do. So she went in to tea, very
late, and was scolded by Nora.
"You're late, Elizabeth," snapped Nora. "You'll have to
go without cake to-day." Elizabeth slipped into her place and said
nothing. As she ate her tea, she noticed that the room was getting very dark
indeed.
"There's a good old storm blowing up," said Harry. "My
goodness-look at that rain!" "Splendid!" said John. "I
badly need it for my broad beans and peas!" But Elizabeth did not think it
was splendid. She was thinking of poor Joan, out for a walk all alone in the
storm. A roll of thunder sounded, and lightning flashed across the window.
"Joan hadn't even got a hat on," said Elizabeth to herself.
"She'll be soaked! If only I knew which way she had gone I'd go and meet
her with a mackintosh. Oh dear, everything's going wrong!" She could
hardly eat any tea. When the meal was over, she ran to the playroom and then to
the bedroom to see if Joan was back. She wasn't. Elizabeth looked out of the window,
She felt very ashamed and guilty.
"I meant to be so kind-and all I've done is to give Joan a
dreadful shock, make her very unhappy, and now she's out in this dreadful
thunderstorm!" thought Elizabeth.
For a whole hour Elizabeth watched for Joan to come back, The thunder
gradually rolled itself away and the lightning stopped. But the heavy rain went
on and on, lashing down on the new leaves of the trees. and making a noise like
the waves breaking at sea.
At last Joan came back, Elizabeth saw a small dripping figure coming in
through the garden-door. She rushed to Joan at once.
"Joan! You're simply soaked through! Come and change at
once." Water dripped off Joan's dress, for the rain had been tremendous.
The little girl was soaked through to the skin. She was shivering with cold.
"Oh, poor Joan," said Elizabeth, dragging her friend
upstairs. "You'll catch a dreadful cold. Come on, you must change into dry
things straight away." On the way up, the two girls met the matron of the
school, who looked after them when they were ill, and who bandaged their arms
and legs when they hurt themselves. She was a fat, jolly woman, and everyone
liked her, though she could be very strict when she liked.
She stopped when she saw Joan.
"Good gracious!" she said. "Wherever have you been to
get into that state, you silly child?" "She's been out in the
rain," said Elizabeth, "She's awfully cold, Matron. She's going to
put on dry things." "I've got some of Joan's things airing in my hot
cupboard," said Matron. "She'd better come along with me. Gracious,
child, what a sight you look!" Joan went with Matron, She was hurriedly
stripped of her soaking clothes, and Matron rubbed her down well, with a rough
towel. Joan said nothing at all, but stood looking so sad and miserable that Matron
was worried.
"I think I'd better take your temperature," she said.
"You don't look right to me. Put this warm dressing-down round you
for a minute. I'll get the thermometer." She sent Elizabeth away. The
little girl went off to the music-room to practise, feeling very upset. She
practised her scales steadily, and somehow it comforted her. She went to look
for Joan at supper-time, but she was nowhere to be seen.
"Haven't you heard?" said Belinda. "Joan's ill! She'd
got a high temperature, and she's in bed in the San." The San., or
sanatorium, was where any boy or girl was put when they were ill. It was a
cheerful, sunny room, built apart from the school. So Joan was there, ill!
Elizabeth's heart sank. She felt that it was all her fault.
"Cheer up! She'll be all right to-morrow, I expect,'~ said
Belinda, seeing Elizabeth's dismayed face.
But Joan wasn't all right. She was worse! The doctor came and went with
a grave face. It was dreadful.
"I know what would make Joan better," thought Elizabeth, in
despair. "If only her mother could come and see her, and love her a
bit-Joan would be quite all right! Her chill would go, and she'd be happy
again." Elizabeth sat and wondered what she could do. Then an idea came
into her head, She would write to Joan's mother! She would tell her of the
presents she had given to Joan pretending that they were from Joan's mother.
She would tell her how much Joan loved her mother, and wanted her to think of
her and remember her-and she would beg her to come and see Joan because she was
ill! Elizabeth jumped up. She ran to Joan's writing-paper, which she kept on a
shelf in the playroom. In it she found the letter from Joan's mother, and
Elizabeth copied the address for herself. Then she slipped the letter back.
"Now I'll write to Mrs. Townsend," said the little girl.
"It will be the most difficult letter I've ever written -but it's got to
be done. Oh dear-what an awful lot of trouble I'm going to get into!"
CHAPTER 20.
More Trouble! ELIZABETH sat down to write to Joan's mother. She bit the
end of her pen. She began twice and tore the paper up. It was very, very
difficult.
It took her a long time to write the letter, but at last it was done,
and put in the box to be posted. This is what Elizabeth had written: "DEAR
MRS. TOWNSEND, I am Elizabeth Allen, Joan's friend. I am very fond of Joan, but
I have made her unhappy, and now she is ill. I will tell you what I did.
"You see, Joan told me a lot about you, and how she loved you, and
she said she didn't think you loved her very much because you hardly ever wrote
to her, and you didn't remember her birthdays. It is awful not to have your
birthday remembered at school, because most people have cards and a cake. Well,
I had a pound from my Uncle Rupert, and I thought of a good idea. At least, I thought
it was a good idea, but it wasn't, I ordered a big birthday cake for Joan, with
a loving message on it-and I got cards and wrote in them 'With love, from
Mother,' and 'With love, from Daddy,' and sent them. And I got a book and
pretended that was from you too.
"Well, Joan was awfully happy on her birthday because she thought
you had remembered her. You can't think how happy she was. Then she wrote to
thank you for the things. I quite forgot she would do that- and of course you
wrote back to tell her that you hadn't sent them. Joan got a dreadful shock,
and she went out for a walk by herself and a thunderstorm came. She was soaked
through, and now she is very ill.
"I am very unhappy about it, because I know it is all my fault.
But I did really mean to make Joan happy. What I am writing for is to ask you
if you could come and see Joan, and make a fuss of her, because then I think
she would be so glad that she would soon get better. I know you will be very
angry with me, and I am very sorry.
"ELIZABETH ALLEN," That was Elizabeth's letter, written with
many smudges because she had to stop and think what she wanted to say, and each
time she stopped she smudged her letter. She licked-the envelope, stamped it,
and left it to be posted. What would Joan's mother say? If only she would come
and see Joan and put things right for her; it would be lovely-but goodness, she
would be very, very angry with Elizabeth! Elizabeth missed Joan very much, The
next day she went to ask Matron if she might see Joan, but Matron shook her
head.
"No," she said. "The doctor says no one must see her.
She is really ill." Elizabeth went to find John. He was putting sticks in
for his peas to climb up. Every spare moment he spent in the school garden.
That was the nice part of Whyteleafe School-if you had a love for something,
you could make it your hobby and everything was done to help you.
"John," said Elizabeth, "Joan is ill. Do you think you
could spare me some flowers for her?" "Yes," said John, standing
up straight. "You can pick some of those pink tulips if you like."
"Oh, but they are your best ones, John," said Elizabeth. "Aren't
you keeping them for something special?" "Well, Joan's being ill is
something special," said John. "Pick them with nice long stalks. Slit
the stalks at the end before you put them into water-the tulips will last a
long time then." Elizabeth just had time to pick the tulips, find a vase,
and run to Matron with it before the school bell went. Matron promised to give
the flowers to Joan. Elizabeth shot back to the classroom, and was only just in
time.
"Don't forget it's the School Meeting to-night," Belinda said
to Elizabeth at the end of school that morning.
"Bother!" said Elizabeth in dismay. She had forgotten all
about it. "I don't think I'll come. I know I'm going to get into
trouble." "You must come!" said Belinda, shocked. "Are you
afraid to?" "No," said Elizabeth fiercely. "I'm not afraid
to! I'll be there!" And she was, sitting angrily on a form beside Harry
and Helen, knowing perfectly well that Nora was going to report her as soon as
possible.
"Well, if she does, I shan't give Joan's secret away,"
thought Elizabeth. "They can punish me all they like- but if they do I'll
start being naughty again! Worse than ever!" Of course Nora reported
Elizabeth almost at once.
She stood up and spoke gravely to Rita and William, the two Judges.
"I have a serious report to make," said Nora. "It is
about Elizabeth. Although we gave her every chance to be good and helpful last
week, I am sorry to say that she has been mean and deceitful. She went down to
the village this week, and took with her a pound-note to spend, instead of
putting it into the money-box to share out. She spent the whole pound and would
not tell me anything about it." Everyone stared at Elizabeth in surprise.
"A pound!" said Rita. "Twenty shillings-spent in one
afternoon. Elizabeth, is this true?" "Quite true," said
Elizabeth sulkily.
"Then it's too bad!" cried Eileen, "We all put our money
into the box and share it out and we gave Elizabeth extra money for a
record-but she puts her money into her own purse, the mean thing!"
Everybody thought the same, The children began to talk angrily. Elizabeth sat
silent, looking red and sulky.
Rita hammered on the table. "Quiet!" she said.
Everyone was silent. Rita turned to Elizabeth. "Stand up,
Elizabeth," she said, "Please tell me what you spent the pound on-you
can at least let us judge whether or not you spent the money well."
"I can't tell you what I spent it on," said Elizabeth, looking
pleadingly at Rita, "Don't ask me, Rita. It's a secret-and not my own
secret, really. As a matter of fact, I quite forgot that I ought to put my
money into the box, and then ask for what I wanted. I really did forget."
"Do you think we would have allowed you to spend the money on what you
bought?" asked Rita.
"I don't know," said Elizabeth, rather miserably. "All I
know is that I wish I hadn't spent it on what I did! I was quite wrong."
Rita felt sorry for Elizabeth, "Well," she said, "you used the
money wrongly and you know it-if you had only kept our rule, we should have
known whether or not to let you have the money to spend as you did. Don't you
see what a good idea our money-box is, Elizabeth?" "Yes, I really do,
Rita," said Elizabeth, glad that Rita was speaking kindly to her.
"Well, now listen, Elizabeth," said Rita, after talking with
William for a while, "we will be as fair as we can be to you about this,
but you must trust us and tell us what you wanted the money for, first. If we
think it was for a very good purpose, we shall say no more about it, but ask
you to remember the rule another time." "That's very fair of you,
Rita," said Elizabeth, almost in tears. "But I can't tell you. I know
now that I did something wrong with the money-but there's somebody else mixed
up in the secret, and I simply can't say any more." "Who is the other
person in the secret?" asked Rita. "I can't tell you that,
either," said poor Elizabeth, who had no wish to bring Joan in. After all,
it wasn't Joan's fault at all, that this had happened.
"Have you told anybody about this secret?" asked Rita.
"Yes, one person," said Elizabeth. "It's a grown-up,
Rita." "What did the grown-up say when you told her?" asked
William.
"She hasn't said anything yet," said Elizabeth. "I told
her the secret in a letter, and she hasn't answered my letter yet. I only wrote
it yesterday." William, Rita, and the monitors spoke together for a little
while. Everyone was puzzled to know what to do. It was a very serious matter,
and somehow it had to be dealt with.
"The Beauty and the Beast aren't here tonight," said Nora,
looking towards the back of the room. "They are worried about Joan
Townsend being ill. Only Miss Ranger and Mr. Johns are here. If the others were
here we could ask them for advice again-but somehow I feel I'd like to settle
it without asking Miss Ranger or Mr. Johns." "I think I know what
we'll do," said William at last. "We'll leave the matter until
Elizabeth has had an answer to her letter." "Good," said Rita.
She hammered on the table. "Elizabeth," she said, "we are going
to leave the matter until you have had an answer to your letter. Will you
please come to me and tell me when you have?" "Yes, Rita," said
Elizabeth gratefully. "I think the person I wrote to will be very, very
angry with me, and I wish I could tell you all about it, but I can't."
"Well, it seems to me as if Elizabeth is being punished quite enough
without us saying anything more," said William. "We'll leave it for a
day or two.
Then please go to Rita, Elizabeth, and tell her what answer you have
received." Elizabeth sat down, glad that things were not worse. She
thought the children were very fair and just. She hadn't even been punished!
When the two shillings were given out to everyone~ Elizabeth put hers back into
the box.
"I won't have it this week," she said. "I'll do without
it." "Good girl." said William. There was a nicer feeling in the
room at once. Everyone felt that Elizabeth had tried to make up a bit for her
mistake.
After the Meeting, Elizabeth went to ask how Joan was. The Matron came
to the door of the San. and shook her head.
"She's not any better," she said. "She's worrying about
something, the doctor says-and she even says she doesn't want to see her
mother, though we have asked her if she would like us to send for her!"
"Oh," said Elizabeth, and ran away in dismay. Now Joan didn't want to
see her mother-and Elizabeth had written to ask her to come! "I always
seem to do the wrong thing!" said Elizabeth to herself. "I wish I
could go and tell Rita everything-then perhaps she could help me-but I can't do
that without giving Joan away. She would hate to think that anyone knew her
cake didn't come from her mother after all! Oh dear! Whatever is going to
happen? I wish Mrs. Townsend would hurry up and write to me." 1 ~5 CHAPTER
21.
Joan's Mother arrives.
Two days later Joan was seriously ill, and the Matron and doctor were
very worried indeed.
"We must send for her mother," said Miss Belle at once.
"The child begs us not to send for her," said Matron in a
puzzled voice. "It is very strange. I hardly know whether it would be good
for Joan to see her-she seems so much against having her mother sent for."
"Well," said Miss Best, "the mother ought to come, for her own
sake, if not for Joan's. She would be very angry if we did not send for her. We
can tell her that Joan is behaving rather queerly about her. It may be her
illness that is making her think funny thoughts." But Mrs. Townsend
arrived before she was sent for! She had received Elizabeth's queer letter, and
had packed a bag, and taken a train to Whyteleafe the same day.
Elizabeth saw the taxi coming up through the archway of the school
wall, but she did not know that Mrs. Townsend was inside it, She did not see
her get out, pay the man, and ring the bell.
Mrs. Townsend was shown into the headmistresses' drawing-room at once.
Miss Belle and Miss Best were most astonished to see her.
"I've come about Joan," said Mrs. Townsend. She was a small,
sad-looking woman, beautifully dressed, and with large eyes just like Joan's.
"How is she?" "Not any better, I'm afraid," answered Miss
Belle. "But how did you know she 'was ill?" she asked in surprise.
"I had a letter from a girl called Elizabeth Allen," said
Mrs. Townsend. "A very queer letter - about Joan's birthday. Did she tell
you anything about it?" "No," said Miss Belle, even more
surprised. "I know nothing about it. May' we see the letter?" Mrs.
Townsend gave the two mistresses Elizabeth's smudgy letter. They read it in
silence.
"So that is what Elizabeth wanted the money for!" said Miss
Best, her lovely smile showing for a moment.
"Well! Children are always surprising-but Elizabeth is the most
astonishing child we have ever had-so naughty and yet so good-so defiant, and
yet so kindhearted and just!" "I understand now why Joan keeps saying
that she doesn't want you to be sent for, Mrs. Townsend," said Miss Belle.
"She is ashamed, poor child, because she thought you had sent her those
presents-and now she finds you didn't-and she is bewildered and hurt."
"I think perhaps I ought to explain a few things to you," said Mrs.
Townsend. "I must explain them to Joan too." "Yes, please tell
us anything that will help us with Joan," said Miss Best.
"Well," said Joan's mother, "Joan had a twin, a boy
called Michael. He was the finest, loveliest boy you ever saw, Miss Best. His
father and I couldn't help loving him more than we loved Joan, because we both
wanted a boy, and we didn't care much for girls. He was brave and bonny and
always laughing-but Joan was always rather a coward, and beside Michael she seemed
sulky and selfish~" "Don't you think that might have been because you
made such a fuss of the boy, and perhaps rather left Joan out?" asked Miss
Belle. "She may have been jealous, and that does queer things to a
child," "Yes-you may be right," said Mrs. Townsend.
"Well-when they were three, both children fell i1l-~ and Michael died. And
because we loved him so much, we both wished that-that . .
"That Joan had been taken and Michael had been left to you?"
said Miss Best gently. "Yes, I understand, Mrs. Townsend-but you did a
great wrong to poor Joan. You have never forgiven her for being the only child
left. Does Joan know she had a twin?" "She soon forgot," said
Mrs. Townsend, "and we didn't tell her as she grew older. I don't think
she knows even now that she ever had a brother." "Well, Mrs.
Townsend, I think you should tell Joan this," said Miss Best firmly.
"She loves you very much, and is miserable because she can't understand
why you don't seem to love her." "I do love her," said Mrs.
Townsend. "But somehow it is difficult to show it to Joan. When I got this
queer little letter, telling me how somebody tried to buy Joan presents,
pretending to be me, I felt dreadful, I felt I must come and see my poor little
Joan at once." "Come and see her now," said Miss Belle.
"Tell her what you have told us. Joan will understand, and once she is
sure of your love, she will not mind how little you show it! But it shouldn't
be difficult to love a child like Joan-she is so gentle and kind."
"And what about Elizabeth?" asked Mrs. Townsend. "I must speak
to her. I think she must be a very kind child, to try to make Joan happy."
"Go and see Joan first," said Miss Best. So Mrs.
Townsend was taken to the San~ She opened the door and Matron beckoned
her in, seeing at once that she was Joan's mother.
"She's asleep," she whispered. "Come over here and sit
by the bed till she wakes." Mrs. Townsend sat beside the bed. She looked
at Joan. The little girl was thin and pale, and her sleeping face was so
unhappy that her mother couldn't bear it, She leant over Joan and kissed her
gently on the cheek.
Joan awoke and stared up. Her large eyes grew larger as she saw her
mother, She looked at her for a moment and then spoke, "Are you really
here? Was it you who kissed me?" "Of course," said Mrs.
Townsend, with tears in her eyes. "Poo~ little Joan! I was so very sorry
to hear you were ill." Joan's mother put her arms round her little girl
and hugged her. Joan flung her arms round her mother's neck in delight.
"Oh, Mother! I didn't want you to come! But now I'm so
happy!" "I'm sorry I didn't remember your birthday, darling,"
said Mrs. Townsend. "I think we've got a few things to say to one another.
Why didn't you want me to come?" "Because-because-oh, because I
didn't think you would be pleased that somebody pretended to be you and sent me
things," said Joan. "I was afraid of seeing you." "Now
listen, Joan; I want to tell you something," said Mrs. Townsend, sitting
on the bed and cuddling Joan beside her. And she began to tell the little girl
of her lost brother. "You see, I grieved so much for him, that I almost
forgot I had a little daughter to make up for him," said Mrs. Townsend in
a trembling voice. "You have always been so quiet and timid too, Joan-.--
you never asked for things, never pushed yourself for'. ward. So I never knew
that you minded so much. You didn't say a word." "I couldn't,"
said Joan, "But I'm very happy now, Mother. This is the biggest surprise
of my life. I understand things now! I do wish you had told me before. But it
doesn't matter. Nothing matters now that I've got you close beside me, and I
know you really do love me, and won't forget me again." "I will never
forget you," said Mrs. Townsend. "I didn't think you minded at
all-hut now that 1 know what you have been thinking, I shall be the kind of
mother you want. But you must hurry up and get better, mustn't you?"
"Oh, I feel much, much better already," said Joan. And indeed she
looked quite different. When Matron came in, she was surprised to see such a
happy-looking child.
"I shall want lots of dinner to-day!" said Joan.
"Because Mother is going to have it with me, Matron, and she wants to see
how much I can eat!" As they were eating their dinner together they talked
about Elizabeth. "I guessed that it was Elizabeth who sent those things,
when you said it wasn't you," said Joan. "It was just the sort of
mad, kind thing she would do! You know, Mother, she's the first real friend
I've had, and I think she's splendid, though the first weeks she was here she was
really the naughtiest, rudest girl in the school. The sad thing is-she's made
up her mind to go at half-term, so I shan't have her very much longer."
"I want to see Elizabeth," said Mrs. Townsend. "She wrote me
such a funny, sad letter. If it hadn't been for her letter, and what she did
for your birthday, we shouldn't have come to understand one another as we now
do, Joan! And although she thinks she did a very wrong thing, somehow or other
it has come right, because she really did mean to be kind." "Matron!
Do you think Elizabeth might come and see me whilst my mother is here?"
asked Joan, when Matron came in to take her temperature.
"We'll see what your temperature is doing," said Matron,
pleased to see the empty plates. She slipped the thermometer into Joan's mouth.
She waited a minute and then took it out again.
"Good gracious! Just below normal!" she said. "You are
getting better quickly! Yes-I think Elizabeth might come. I'll send for
her." Elizabeth was practising her duet with Richard when the message
came. One of the school maids brought it.
"Mrs. Townsend is in the San. with Joan and says she would like to
see you," said the maid. "Matron says you can go for twenty
minutes." Elizabeth's heart sank. So Mrs. Townsend had come to the school!
She had got her letter-and now she was here, and wanted to see Elizabeth!
"I don't want to go to the San," said Elizabeth. "Oh dear-isn't
there any excuse I can make?" "But I thought Joan was your
friend?" said Richard in surprise.
"She is," said Elizabeth, "but you see-oh dear, I can't
possibly explain. Things have just gone wrong, that's all." The little
girl put her music away, looking glum. "Cheer up!" said Richard.
"Things aren't so bad when you go and face them properly!"
"Well, I'll face them all right," said Elizabeth, throwing her curls
back. "I wonder what's going to happen to me now?" CHAPTER 22.
Rita talks to Elizabeth.
ELIZABETH went to the San. Matron was just coming out, smiling.
"How is Joan now?" asked Elizabeth. "Much better!"
said Matron, "We shall soon have her out and about again now."
"Oh, good," said Elizabeth, "Can I go in?" "Yes,"
said Matron. "You can stay for twenty minutes, till afternoon school, Talk
quietly, and don't excite Joan at all." Elizabeth went in. She shut the
door quietly behind her, Joan was lying in a white bed under a big sunny
window, and Mrs. Townsend was sitting beside her.
"And is this Elizabeth?" asked Mrs. Townsend with a welcoming
smile. Elizabeth went forward and shook hands, thinking that Mrs. Townsend
didn't look very angry after all. She bent over and kissed her friend.
"I'm so glad you're better, Joan," she said. "I do miss
you." "Do you really?" said Joan, pleased. "I've missed you
too." "Come here, Elizabeth," said Mrs. Townsend, drawing
Elizabeth to her. "I want to thank you for your letter. I was so surprised
to get it-and I know it must have been hard to write." "Yes, it
was," said Elizabeth, "I was awfully afraid you would be angry with
me when you got it, Mrs. Townsend. I meant to make Joan so happy on her
birthday-and I didn't think she'd find out it wasn't you who sent the things! I
know it was a silly thing to do, now." "Never mind," said Joan's
mother. "It has made things come right in the end!" "Have they
come right?" asked Elizabeth in surprise, looking from Joan to her mother.
"Very right," said Mrs. Townsend, smiling. "Joan will
tell you all we have said, one day, and you will understand how they went
wrong. But now I want to tell you that I am very, very glad Joan has such a
kind little friend. I know she will be much happier at WhyEeleafe now that she
has you. It is so horrid to have no friends at all." "Oh, Elizabeth,
I do so wish you were staying on at Whyteleafe," sighed Joan, taking her
friend's hand, "Couldn't you possibly, possibly stay?" "Don't
ask me to, Joan," said Elizabeth. "You know I've made up my mind to
go, and it's feeble to change your mind once you've made it up! I've said I
shall go, and if the Meeting says I can, I shall go back with my parents when
they come to see me at half-term." "Do you think you will be able to
come and see me at half-term?" asked Joan, turning to her mother.
"Yes, I will," answered Mrs. Townsend. "I hope by then
that you will be up and about, and we will go to the next town, and spend the
day there, Joan." "Oh, good," said Joan happily. It was the
first time her mother had ever come to take her out at half-term, and the
little girl was delighted. "I shall get better quickly now, so that I
shall be ready for you at halfterm!" A bell rang in the school. Elizabeth
got up quickly.
"That's my bell," she said. "I must go. Good-bye, Mrs.
Townsend, and thank you for being so nice about my letter. Good-bye,
Joan. I'm so glad you're happy. I'll come and see you again if Matron will let
me." She ran off. Mrs. Townsend turned to Joan, "She's a very nice
child," she said. "How funny that she should have been so naughty at
first-and what a pity she wants to leave! She's just the sort of girl that
Whyteleafe School would be proud of." Elizabeth thought of Rita as she sat
in class that afternoon, doing her painting. "I told Rita I would go to
her as soon as I had an answer to my letter," she thought, "Well-I
haven't exactly had an answer-and yet I do know the answer, because Mrs.
Townsend came herself and told me!" She wondered if she should go to Rita
after tea. What should she tell her? She didn't know! She need not have worried
herself. Miss Belle and Miss Best had sent for Rita that day, and had told her
about Elizabeth, and her queer letter to Joan's mother.
"She spent the money her uncle gave her on buying that big
birthday cake for Joan, and other presents and cards," said Miss Belle.
"That is where the money went, Rita!" "But why didn't Elizabeth
say so?" asked Rita, puzzled.
"Because if she explained that, the school would know Joan's
unhappiness at being forgotten by her mother," said Miss Best. "If
Elizabeth had been longer at Whyteleafe School, she would have gone to you,
Rita, or to one of the monitors she trusted, and would have asked their
advice-but she has been here such ~ short time, and is such a headstrong,
independent child, that she takes matters into her own hands-and gets into
trouble!" "All the same, she has the makings of a very fine girl m
her," said Miss Belle, "She is fearless and brave, kind and clever,
and although she has been the naughtiest, rudest girl we have ever had, that
only lasted for a little while." "Yes," said Rita, "I liked
her almost from the beginning, although she has been very difficult. But she
really is the sort of girl we want at Whyteleafe. I'm afraid now, though, that
she will go home, for we have promised that she shall, if she wants to."
"You must send for her and have a talk with her, Rita," said Miss
Best. "She was supposed to come and tell you when she had an answer to her
letter to Mrs. Townsend, wasn't she? Well-we know the answer now-and it is not
an answer that can be explained fully to a School Meeting. Have a talk with
Elizabeth, and then decide what to do. I think you will feel that although
Elizabeth did wrong, the kindness that was at the bottom of it more than makes
up for the upset she caused!" "Yes, I think so too," agreed
Rita, who had been very interested in all that Miss Belle and Miss Best had
told her. She was glad to know that Elizabeth had spent the pound on somebody
else, glad that it was only kindness that had caused such a disturbance! She
went out to look for Elizabeth.
It was after tea. Elizabeth was running to see if Matron would let her
sit with Joan again. She bumped into Rita round a corner.
"Good gracious! What a hurricane you are!" said Rita, her
breath bumped out of her. "You're just the person I want to see, Come to
my study." Rita had a little room of her own, a study all to herself,
because she was Head Girl. She was very proud of it, and had made it as nice as
she could. Elizabeth had never been in it before, and she looked round in
pleasure.
"What a dear little room!" she said. "I like the blue
carpet-and the blue tablecloth-and the pictures and flowers. Is this your very
own room?" "Yes," said Rita, "William has one too. His is
just as nice as mine. He is coming here in a minute. Have a sweet,
Elizabeth?" Rita took down a tin from the small cupboard and offered it to
Elizabeth, who at once took a toffee. Elizabeth wondered what Rita and William
were going to say to her. There was a knock at the door, and William strolled
in.
"Hallo," he said, smiling at Elizabeth. "How's the Bold
Bad Girl?" Elizabeth laughed. She liked William calling her that, though
she had hated the name not so very long ago.
"Elizabeth, William and I know now what you spent that pound on,
and why you did it," said Rita, "And we want to say that we quite see
that you couldn't tell the Meeting." "And we shan't tell the Meeting
either," said William, sitting down in Rita's cosy arm-chair.
"But won't you have to?" asked Elizabeth in surprise.
"No," said William. "Rita and I are the judges of what
can be told the Meeting, and what need not be explained, if we think best. We
shall simply say that we have had a satisfactory answer and explanation, and
that the matter is now finished." "Oh, thank you," said
Elizabeth. "It wasn't really myself I was thinking of, you know, it was
Joan." "We know that now," said Rita, "You tried to do a
right thing in a wrong way, Elizabeth! If you had been at Whyteleafe a little
longer, you would have done things differently-but you haven't been here long
enough." "No, I haven't," said Elizabeth. "I do see that I
have learnt a lot already, but I haven't learnt enough. I wish I was wise like
you and William." "Well, why not stay and learn to be?" said
William with a laugh. "You are just the sort of girl we want, Elizabeth,
You would make a fine monitor, later on." "Me! A monitor!" cried
Elizabeth, most astonished, "Oh, I'd never, never be a monitor! Good
gracious!" "It may sound funny to you now, Elizabeth," said
William. "But in a term or two you would be quite responsible and sensible
enough to be made one." "I'd simply love to be a monitor, and sit in
the jury!" said Elizabeth, "Whatever would Mummy say-and Miss Scott,
my old governess, would never, never believe it. She said I was so spoilt I
would never do anything worth while!" "You are spoilt!" said
Rita, smiling. "But you would soon get over that. What about staying on,
Elizabeth, and seeing what you can do?" "I'm beginning to feel it
would be nice," said Elizabeth. "But I can't change my mind, I said I
meant to go home at half-term, and I'm going to. It's only feeble people that
change their minds, and say first one thing and then another. I'm not going to
be like that." "I wonder where you got that idea from?" said
William, "I mean, the idea that it's feeble to change your mind once it's
made up? That's a wrong idea, you know," "Wrong?" said
Elizabeth, in surprise.
"Of course," said William. "Make up your mind about things,
by all means-but if something happens to show that you are wrong, then it is
feeble not to change your mind, Elizabeth. Only the strongest people have the
pluck to change their minds, and say so, if they see they have been wrong in
their ideas," "I didn't think of that," said Elizabeth, feeling
puzzled, "Well, don't puzzle your head too much about things," said
William, getting up. "I must go. Think about what we have said, Elizabeth.
The next Meeting will be your last one, if you are leaving us-and we shall keep
our word to you and let you go if you want to. You can tell your parents when
they come to see you at half-term, and Miss Belle and Miss Best will explain
everything to them. But we shall be sorry to lose the naughtiest girl in the
school !" Elizabeth left the study, her head in a whirl. She did like
William and Rita so much. But she couldn't change her mind-she would be so
ashamed to climb down and say she had been wrong! CHAPTER 23.
Elizabeth fights with Herself.
THE next day or two were very pleasant. Elizabeth was allowed to see
Joan whenever she liked, and she took her some more flowers from John. She also
took her a jigsaw puzzle from Helen, and a book from Nora.
Joan was looking very pretty and very happy. Her mother had gone,
leaving behind her a big box of velvety peaches, a tin of barley sugar, and
some books, But best of all she had left Joan a promise that never, never would
she let Joan think she was forgotten again.
"It's all because of you, Elizabeth," said Joan, offering her
friend a barley sugar to suck. "Oh, Elizabeth-do please stay on at
Whyteleafe. Don't make me unhappy by leaving, just as I've got to know
you!" "There are plenty of other people for you to make friends
with," said Elizabeth, sucking the barley sugar, "I don't want
them," said Joan. "They would seem feeble after you, Elizabeth. I
say-have you been looking after my rabbit for me?" "Of course,"
said Elizabeth. "Oh, Joan, it's the dearest little thing you ever saw!
Really it is. Do you know, it knows me now when I go to feed it, and it presses
its tiny woffly nose against the wire to welcome me! And yesterday it nuzzled
itself into the crook of my arm and stayed there quite still time the school
bell rang and I had to go." "Harry came to see me this morning and he
said he wishes you were not leaving, because he wants to give us two more baby
rabbits, to live with my tiny one," said Joan. "He said they could be
between the two of us." "Oh," said Elizabeth, longing for the
two rabbits. "Really, if I'd known what a nice place Whyteleafe School
was, I'd never have made up my mind to leave it!" She had to go then,
because it was time for her music-lesson. She rushed to get her music. Richard
was in the music-room, waiting for her with Mr. Lewis.
The two were getting on well with their duets. Richard was pleased with
Elizabeth now, for he knew that she really loved music, as he did, and was
willing to work hard at it. They played two duets very well indeed for Mr.
Lewis.
"Splendid!" he said. "Elizabeth, I'm pleased with you.
You've practised well since your last lesson, and got that difficult part
perfect now. Now-play Richard your sea-piece that you love so much."
Elizabeth was proud to play to Richard, for she thought him a wonderful player.
She played her best. Mr. Lewis and Richard listened without a word or a
movement till she had finished.
"She ought to play that at the school concert at the end of the
term," said Richard, when the piece was ended. "It's fine!"
Elizabeth glowed with pleasure. She liked praise from Richard even more than
praise from the music-master.
"That's what I suggested to her," said Mr. Lewis, sitting
down at the piano and playing some beautiful chords. "But she doesn't want
to." "I do want to!" cried Elizabeth indignantly. "It's
only that I'm leaving soon." "Oh-that silly old story again,"
said Richard in disgust. "I thought better of you, Elizabeth. You can stay
here if you want to-but you're just too jolly obstinate for words. Your music
may be good-but 1 don't think much of your common sense." He stalked off
without another word, his music rolled under his arm. Elizabeth felt half
angry, half tearful. She hated being spoken to like that by Richard.
"I expect Richard is disappointed with you because I know he hoped
that you and he would play the duets in the concert this term," explained
Mr. Lewis. "He'll have to play them with Harry now-and though Harry likes
music, he's not a good player." Elizabeth finished her music-lesson
without saying very much. She was thinking hard. She was in a muddle. She
wanted to stay-and she wanted to go, because her pride told her to keep her
word to herself, and leave.
She went out to do some gardening when her lesson was over. She and
John had become very friendly indeed over the garden. Elizabeth did not mind
working hard with John, and he was pleased.
"So many of the others like to pick the flowers, and trim the
hedges when they feel like it," he said, "but hardly anybody really
works hard. When the tiny plants have to be bedded out, or the kitchen garden
has to be hoed, who is there that offers to do it? Nobody!" "Well,
aren't I somebody?" demanded Elizabeth.
"Don't I come?" "Oh yes-but what's the use of you?"
said John.
"You're leaving soon, aren't you? You can't take a real interest
in a garden that you won't ever see again.
If you were going to stay I would make all my plans with you-I believe
Mr. Johns would let you take part-charge of the garden with me. It really would
be fun." "Yes-it would," said Elizabeth, looking round the
garden. "Are you the head of the garden, John?" "Yes-under Mr.
Johns," said John. "Nobody needs to garden unless they like, you
know-but if it's anyone's hobby, as it is mine, they are allowed to spend most
of their spare time here. I've had charge of the garden for two years now, and
it's pretty good, don't you think so?" "Oh yes, I do," said
Elizabeth, looking round it, "It's lovely. I could think of lovely things
for it too, John. Don't you think a row of double pink hollyhocks would be
nice, looking over that wall?" "Fine!" said John, standing up
from his hoeing. "Fine! We could get the seeds now and plant them- and we
could set out the new little plants this autumn, ready to flower next summer,
Let's ask for money for the seeds at the next Meeting, shall we?"
"Well-you can, if you like," said Elizabeth. "I'm afraid it will
be my last Meeting, John." "Your inst Meeting!" said John
scornfully, and he dug his hoe into the hard ground as if he were digging it
into a Meeting. 'What a feeble goose you are, Elizabeth."
"Feeble!" cried Elizabeth angrily. "I like that! Just because
I'm keeping my word and sticking to what I said, you call me feeble."
"Well, it is feeble to give up everything you like so much here-your
gardening-your riding-your friend -and your music-just because you're too proud
to climb down and change your mind," said John. "I'm disappointed in
you." Elizabeth stamped off in a rage. She hated to be called feeble. It
was the one thing she had always thought that she wasn't.
She went to the swings. There was no one else there. Elizabeth sat on
the highest swing and began to sway to and fro. She thought very hard.
"Now let's get things clear in my own mind," said Elizabeth
to herself. "First of all-i didn't want to come here, and I vowed to
myself, to Mummy and Miss Scott that I'd get sent home as soon as possible.
Well, I got the Meeting to say I could leave at half-term, and I was jolly
pleased. I'd got what I wanted!" Elizabeth swung high, and the swing
creaked as it went to and fro.
"Yes-I'd got what I wanted," said Elizabeth. "I needn't
even stay a term at this horrid, hateful school. That was what I called
it." "And now I find it isn't horrid or hateful. I can't help being
happy here, The others seem to like me now that I've given up being so awful. I
have a friend who is longing for me to stay and will be unhappy when I go. I've
disappointed Richard, who wants to play with me at the concert. I've
disappointed Mr. Lewis. John is angry with me because I don't like his garden
enough to stay-though really I do like it awful ~y. And Harry wants to give me
those lovely rabbits." She swung even higher as her thoughts sped along.
"And why am I going? Now I'll just be really honest with myself.
I'm not going because I'm unhappy. I'm very happy now. I'm going simply because
I can't bear to change my mind and say I'm wrong. I'm too proud to say I'll
stay, when I've said i'll go. I'm not strong enough to change my mind, and own
up I'm wrong!" Elizabeth slowed down the swing and put her feet on the
ground. She frowned and looked at the grass.
She had never thought so hard in her life. She spoke to herself
sternly.
"Elizabeth Allen, you're feeble! Richard is right and Harry is
right. You're feeble! You're a coward! You don't dare to stand up at the next
Meeting and say you're too happy to leave! You aren't strong enough to change
your mind! You're proud and silly! Elizabeth Allen, I'm ashamed of you!"
Elizabeth spoke these words to herself more sternly than anyone had ever spoken
to her, She stopped for a moment, thinking deeply.
"But am I really so silly? Am I really so feeble? Can I really
spoil my happiness here, and Joan's too, by being so stupid and proud? No, I
can't! I'm stronger than I thought. I can change my mind! I will change my
mind! What did William say? He said that only the strongest people could change
their minds when they saw they were wrong-it was the feeble ones who couldn't!
She began to swing again. "Well, I'm strong!" she sang, as she swung.
"I can change my mind! I can say I'm wrong! Elizabeth Allen, you're not
such a poor thing as I thought! Just wait till the next Meeting-and I'll give
them the biggest surprise they've ever had!" The little girl laughed as
she swung. She felt very happy. She was no longer obstinate and proud, She was
strong enough to change her mind.
"I wish the next Meeting would come soon!" she said to
herself. "What a shock I shall give them!" CHAPTER 24.
A Surprise for the School.
THE last Meeting before half-term met at the same time as usual in the
gym. Everyone was there except Joan, who was in the San. rapidly getting
better.
Elizabeth sat on her usual form, between Harry and Belinda, feeling
rather excited. What a surprise she was going to give everyone! The ordinary
business of the Meeting went through as usual. Money was taken from the box,
but none was put in. Most of the children were expecting money from their
parents when they saw them at half-term, and the next week the box would be
very full again! A few complaints were made, and one or two reports. Doris, who
owned the guinea-pigs, beamed when her monitor reported that she had not
forgotten her pets once.
"And," said the monitor, "they look the finest
guinea-pigs I've ever seen now." "Good," said Rita.. "See
that they keep like that. Doris!" Then Elizabeth's turn came, at the end
of the reports.
Rita knocked on the table with the mallet, and every~ one was silent.
"I haven't much to say about Elizabeth Allen this week," said
Rita. "But I must just say this-both William and I know now why Elizabeth
spent so much money and what she spent it on. We are quite satisfied about it,
and we hope that the jury and the rest of you will accept our word when we say
that we can only say that we are satisfied, and not tell you any more.
Elizabeth was wrong to do what she did, but she was right not to tell us about
it. Now the matter has come right, and we have no more to say."
"Wait, Rita," said William. "We have more to say! This is the
Meeting at which we were to ask Elizabeth if she wanted to leave us-it is our
half-term Meeting.
Well-we are keeping our word to you, Elizabeth. If you want to go, and
you have made up your mind to do so, we give you our permission. Miss Belle and
Miss Best will tell your parents, and if they agree, you may go back with them
when they see you to-morrow." Elizabeth stood up. Her cheeks were flaming
red, and her voice was not quite the same as usual.
"I've got something to say," she said. "It's not very
easy-and I don't quite know how to say it. But anyway, it's this-I'm not
going!" "Not going!" cried everyone in surprise, turning to look
at Elizabeth.
"But why not?" asked Rita. "You said you had -made up
your mind to go, and that you never changed your mind." "Well,
William said that only feeble people never change their mind if they know they
are wrong," said Elizabeth. "And I know I was wrong now. I only made
up my mind to be as naughty as possible because I was angry at being sent to
school when I didn't want to go, and I vowed I'd go back home as soon as
possible, just to show I'd have my own way. Well, I like Whyteleafe. It's a
lovely school. And I want to stay. So I've changed my mind, and though you've
said I can have what I want, and it's very nice of you, I don't want it now! I
want to stay-that is, if you'll let me after all I've 1" Everyone began to
talk at once. Harry thumped Elizabeth on the back. He was very pleased. John
nodded at her in delight. Now she could help him with the garden! Richard
actually left his place and came to whisper to her, "You're a good
sort," he said. "You can play the game as well as you play the
piano." William banged with the mallet. "Richard, go back to your
place!" Richard went back, grinning. Belinda and Helen smiled at
Elizabeth, trying to catch her eye. Everyone seemed as pleased as could be,
"Elizabeth!" said William, "we are very pleased with you. You've
made a lot of silly mistakes, but you have made up for them all-and we admire
you for being able to change your mind, admit you were wrong, and say so to us
all! You are the sort of person we want at this school. We hope you will stay for
years, and do your very best." "I will," said Elizabeth, and she
meant it. She sat down, looking happy and excited, It was lovely that everyone
was pleased. She wasn't the Bold Bad Girl any more-she was Elizabeth Allen, the
sort of person that Whyteleafe School. wanted, She was proud and happy.
The Meeting ended soon after that-and Elizabeth sped off to the San. to
find Joan. Joan was sitting up in a chair, reading.
"Halo!" she said. "What happened at the Meeting?
Anything exciting?" "Well-the Meeting said I could go home with my
parents to-morrow," said Elizabeth, "So I got my own way, you
see." "Oh, Elizabeth-I shall miss you so!" said Joan.
"You won't!" said Elizabeth. "Because, you see, I'm not
going! I'm staying on! I've changed my mind, Joan. I love Whyteleafe, and I
won't leave it for years and years and years! Oh, what fun we'll have together!
We'll be monitors one day-think of that! Shan't we be grand?" "Good
gracious!" said Joan, so delighted that she hopped out of her chair, and flung
her arms round her friend. "I can't believe it! Oh, I do feel so
glad." Matron came into the room and looked horrified to see Joan out of
her chair.
"What are you doing?" she said sternly. "I shan't let
Elizabeth come in here if that's the way you behave, Joan!" "But,
Matron, I was so pleased because Elizabeth is staying on instead of
leaving," said Joan, sinking back into her chair.
"Dear me! Fancy being pleased because a bad girl like this is
staying with us!" said Matron, with a twinkle in her eye.
The girls laughed. They liked Matron-she was cheerful and friendly,
though strict, She gave Joan some medicine, and went out.
"We shall have a lovely half-term now," said Joan.
"My mother's coming to take me out. Is yours coming too?"
"Yes, I had a letter this morning," said Elizabeth. "Oh,
Joan-let's ask our mothers to take us out together! That would be much more fun
than going alone." "Yes, we will," said Joan happily. "I am
sure I shall be well enough to-morrow to get up properly.
Now you'll have to go, Elizabeth. That's the supper- bell."
"Well, I'll see you to-morrow," said Elizabeth.
"What fun we'll have! Oh, I am glad I'm not going home with my
mother to-morrow. I wonder what she'll say when she hears that I want to stay
on. Every letter I've written to her I've told her that I want to leave!"
Mrs. Allen was very much astonished when she saw Elizabeth the next day. The
little girl looked so bright and happy-her mouth was no longer sulky, and there
was no sign of a frown at all! Elizabeth flung herself into her mother's arms
and hugged her.
"It's lovely to see you, Mummy," she said. "Do come and
see everything-the playroom, and my classroom, and our bedroom-it's number
6-and the garden- and everything!" Her mother followed Elizabeth round,
marvelling at the change in her little girl. Could this really be
Elizabeth-this good-mannered, polite, happy child? Every one seemed to like
her. She had lots of friends, especially the gentle Joan, who seemed to be
Elizabeth's special friend.
"Well, Elizabeth, you're quite a different child!" said her
mother at last. "Oh, look-there is Miss Best.
I must just have a word with her." "Good morning, Miss
Best," said Mrs. Allen.
"Elizabeth has just been showing me round-and really, she does
seem so happy and jolly. What a change you have made in her! I feel quite proud
of her!" "She has made a change in herself," said Miss Best,
smiling her lovely smile. "You know, Mrs. Allen-she was the naughtiest
girl in the school-yes, she really was! It was difficult to know what to do
with her- but she knew what to do with herself. One of these days she will be
the best girl in the school, and how proud you will be of her then!"
"Then you want to stay on, Elizabeth?" said her mother in
astonishment. "Well, I am glad! What a surprise!" Mrs. Townsend arrived
to see Joan at that minute, and Elizabeth ran to see if Joan was ready. She had
been kept in bed to breakfast, but was to get up afterwards and allowed to go
in her mother's car. She was tremendously excited.
"It's the first time I've ever had a half-term treat like
this!" she chattered excitedly, as Elizabeth helped her to dress quickly.
"And it's all because of you, Elizabeth!" "Oh, rubbish!"
said Elizabeth. "Hurry up, Joan, What a time you take with your stockings.
We're going to have lunch at a hotel-fancy that! I hope there will be
strawberry ice-creams, don't you?" Joan was ready at last, and the two
girls went to find their mothers, who had already made friends, Then they
settled down in Mrs. Townsend's car, for she said she would drive them all.
"Now we're off for our treat!" said Elizabeth happily, as the
car sped through the archway. She looked back at the beautiful building.
"Good-bye for a little while!" she said. "I'm coming
back to you, and I'm glad it's not good-bye for ever!" We must say good-bye
too, though maybe we will see Elizabeth again, and follow her exciting
adventures at Whyteleafe School. Good-bye, Elizabeth--naughtiest girl in the
school!
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