the week following faith’s visit to the fort proved rather a difficult one for her at school. caroline and catherine seemed to think they had played a fine joke, and accused her of running home when they were waiting for her. faith had resolved not to quarrel with them, but apparently the sisters meant to force her into trouble, if sneering words and ridicule could do it.
“you’re an american, so you don’t dare talk back,” sneered catherine one day when faith made no reply to the assertion that faith had meant to run home from the fort alone.
“americans are not afraid,” replied faith quickly.
catherine jumped up and down with delight at having made faith angry.
[pg 130]“oh, yes they are. my father says so. another summer the english soldiers are going to take all the farms, and all you rebels will be our servants,” declared catherine.
“another summer the green mountain boys will send the english soldiers where they will behave themselves,” declared faith. “ethan allen is braver than all the men in that fort.”
“i don’t care what you say. we’re not going to play with you any more, are we, caroline?” said catherine. “you play with that horrid little lame girl.”
“she isn’t horrid. she is much better than you are. she wouldn’t say or do the things you do!” responded faith, now too angry to care what she said, “and she is my very best friend. i wouldn’t play with you anyway. you’re only tory children,” and faith walked off with her head lifted very proudly, feeling she had won the battle; as indeed she had, for the sisters looked after her in silent horror.
to be called “only” tory children was a new point of view, and for several days they let faith wholly alone. then one morning they appeared at school with the news that it would be their last appearance there.
[pg 131]“we’re going to albany, and never coming back to this rough common place,” catherine said.
“i am glad of it,” faith replied sharply; “perhaps you will learn to be polite in albany.”
some of the other children overheard these remarks, and a little titter of amusement and satisfaction followed faith’s words. for the sisters had made no effort to be friendly with their schoolmates, and not one was sorry to see the last of them.
faith awoke each morning hoping that her father would come that day, but it was toward the last of november before he appeared. there had been several light falls of snow; the ground was frozen and ice formed along the shores of the lake. the days were growing shorter, and mrs. scott had decided that it was best for faith to come straight home from school at night, instead of stopping in to help louise with her lessons. but both the little girls were pleased with the new plan that mrs. scott suggested, for louise to come home with faith on tuesdays and fridays and stay all night. louise was learning a good deal more than to read and write. mrs. scott was teaching her to sew neatly, and faith had taught her to knit. she [pg 132]was always warmly welcomed by donald and the two younger boys, and these visits were the bright days of the week for louise.
at last, when faith had begun to think her father might not come after all, she returned from school one night to find him waiting for her. it was difficult to tell which of the two, father or daughter, was the happier in the joy of seeing each other. mr. carew had arrived in the early afternoon, and aunt prissy was now busy preparing the evening meal and faith and her father had the sitting-room to themselves. there was so much to say that faith hardly knew where to begin, after she had listened to all her father had to tell her of her mother.
“i would have come before, but i have been waiting for kashaqua to come and stay with your mother,” said mr. carew. “she appeared last night, and will stay until i return. and your mother could have no better protector. kashaqua is proud enough since we proved our confidence in her by sending you here in her charge.”
faith told him about louise, and was surprised to see her father’s face grave and troubled. for mr. carew had heard of the shoemaker, and [pg 133]was sure that he was an english spy, and feared that his daughter’s friendship with faith might get the scotts into some trouble.
“she is my dearest friend. i tell her everything,” went on faith.
“i’m afraid her father is not a friend to the settlers about here,” replied mr. carew. “be careful, dear child, that you do not mention any of the visitors who come to your uncle’s house. your friend would mean no harm, but if she told her father great harm might come of it,” for mr. scott was doing his best to help the americans. messengers from connecticut and massachusetts with news for the settlers came to his house, and mr. scott found ways to forward their important communications to the men on the other side of lake champlain.
“aunt prissy likes louise; we all do,” pleaded faith; so her father said no more, thinking that perhaps he had been overanxious.
“your mother sent your blue beads. i expect you would have been scolded a little for being a careless child if you had been at home, for she found them under the settle cushion the very day you left home,” said mr. carew, handing [pg 134]faith two small packages. “the larger package is one that came from esther eldridge a few weeks ago,” he added, in answer to faith’s questioning look.
“i wonder what it can be,” said faith; but before she opened esther’s package she had taken the blue beads from the pretty box and put them around her neck, touching them with loving fingers, and looking down at them with delight. then she unfastened the wrapping of the second package.
“here is a letter!” she exclaimed, and began reading it. as she read her face brightened, and at last she laughed with delight. “oh, father! read it! esther says to let you and mother read it. and she has sent me another string of beads!” and now faith opened the other box, a very pretty little box of shining yellow wood with “faith” cut on the top, and took out another string of blue beads, so nearly like her own that it was difficult to tell them apart.
mr. carew read esther’s letter. she wrote that she had lost faith’s beads, and had been afraid to tell her.[pg 135] “now i am sending you another string that my father got on purpose. i think you were fine not to say a word to any one about how horrid i was to ask for your beads. please let your mother and father read this letter, so they will know how polite you were to company.”
“so it was esther who lost the beads! well, now what are you going to do with two strings of beads?” said her father smilingly.
when aunt prissy came into the room faith ran to show her esther’s present and the letter, and told her of what had happened when she had so rashly promised to give esther anything she might ask for. “i am so glad to have my own beads back again. and most of all i am glad not to have the secret,” she said, thinking to herself that life was much happier when father and mother and aunt prissy could know everything that she knew. then, suddenly, faith recalled the fort, and the difficult climb down the cliff. “but that’s not my secret. it’s something outside. something that i ought not to tell,” she thought, with a little sense of satisfaction.
“but which string of beads did esther send you? i can’t tell them apart,” she heard aunt prissy say laughingly.
when the time came for mr. carew to start [pg 136]for home faith was sure that she wanted to go home with him. and it was only when her father had promised to come after her early in march, “or as soon as march stirs the fire, and gives a good warm day,” he said, that faith could be reconciled and persuaded to let him go without her. she was glad indeed that it was a tuesday, and that louise would come to stay all night. faith was eager to tell louise the story of the blue beads, and to show her those esther had sent, and those that aunt prissy had given her. faith was sure that she herself could tell the beads apart, and equally sure that no one else could do so.
louise was waiting at the gate when faith came from school. at the first sight of her faith was hardly sure that it was louise; for the little girl at the gate had on a beautiful fur coat. it was made of otter skins, brown and soft. on her head was a cap of the same fur; and, as faith came close, she saw that louise wore fur mittens.
“oh, louise! your coat is splendid,” she exclaimed. “and you look so pretty in it; and the cap and mittens.” and faith looked at louise, smiling with delighted admiration.
[pg 137]louise nodded happily. “my father sent to albany for them. a man brought them last night,” she said. “you do truly like them?” she questioned, a little anxiously.
“of course! any girl would think they were beautiful. aunt prissy will be just as glad as i am,” declared faith. “what’s in that big bundle?” she added, as louise lifted a big bundle from beside the gate.
but if louise heard she made no reply, and when faith offered to carry the package she shook her head laughingly. faith thought it might be something that louise wanted to work on that evening, and was so intent on telling of her father’s visit, the blue beads, and the promised visit to her own dear home in march, that she did not really give much thought to the package.
aunt prissy was at the window watching for the girls, with the three little boys about her. they all came to the door, and aunt prissy exclaimed, just as faith had done, over the beauty of louise’s new possessions. “but what is in that big bundle, louise?” she asked, when the little lame girl had taken off coat, cap and mittens, and stood smiling up at her good friend.
[pg 138]“once you said to me that a present was something that any one ought to be very happy to receive,” she said.
“yes, i remember. and i know you are happy over your father’s gift,” replied mrs. scott.
louise nodded, and began unwrapping the bundle.
“this is my present to faith,” she said, struggling to untie the heavy string.
“let me, louise; let me,” and donald was down on his knees and in a moment the bundle was opened, and donald exclaimed:
“my! it’s a coat exactly like louise’s.”
“there’s a cap too, and mittens,” said louise eagerly. “do try it on.”
donald stood holding the coat; and faith, as excited and happy as louise, slipped on the coat, put the cap on her head and held out her hands for the mittens.
“oh, louise! they are lovely. i may keep them, mayn’t i, aunt prissy?” she asked, turning about for her aunt to see how nicely the coat fitted.
neither of the little girls noticed that mrs. scott looked grave and a little troubled, for she [pg 139]was thinking that this was almost too fine a present for her little niece to accept from the shoemaker’s daughter. but she knew that to refuse to let faith accept it would not only make both the girls very unhappy, but that mr. trent would forbid louise coming to the house, and so stop all her friendly efforts to help louise; so she added her thanks to those of faith, and the two little friends were as happy as it is possible to be over giving and receiving a beautiful gift. faith even forgot her blue beads in the pleasure of possessing the pretty coat and cap.
