The doctor had come to see Evelyn, had pronounced her whole in limb, and not as much shaken by her fall out of her carriage as might have been expected. After prescribing a day in bed, and all absence of excitement, he went away, promising1 to look in again in a few days.
Mrs. Freeman breathed a sigh of relief.
"And now," she said, turning to her two sisters, "the question of questions is this: what is to be done with Bridget O'Hara? Is she to continue at Mulberry Court after such a daring act of disobedience? Must the safety of the other scholars be sacrificed to her?"
"I'd punish her very severely," said Miss Patience. "I am sure punishment is what she wants. She ought to be broken in."
"I don't believe you'll ever drive her," said Miss Delicia. "I know that sort of character. It's only hardened when it's driven."
"I shall do nothing to-night," said Mrs. Freeman. "But to-morrow, after morning school, I must speak to Bridget. Her conduct during that interview will more or less decide what steps I must take."
[Pg 53]
The next morning, after breakfast, Mrs. Freeman went upstairs to sit with her favorite Evelyn.
Evelyn Percival, the head girl of the school, was now between seventeen and eighteen years of age. She was a rather pale, rather plain girl; her forehead was broad and low, which gave indications of thoughtfulness more than originality2; her wide open gray eyes had a singularly sweet expression; they were surrounded by dark eyelashes, and were the best features in a face which otherwise might have appeared almost insignificant3.
But plain as Evelyn undoubtedly4 was, no one who knew her long ever remarked about her appearance, or gave a second thought to the fact that she could lay small claim to physical beauty.
There was a spirit that shone out of those gray eyes, and lent sweetness to that mouth, which was in itself so beautiful that it radiated all over Evelyn, and gave her that strong fascination5 which those who are striving heavenward ever possess.
She never came into a room without exercising in a silent, unobtrusive, very gentle way, a marked effect for good.
Uncharitable talk about others ceased when Evelyn drew near. Selfishness slunk away ashamed.
All the other girls in the school tried to be good when Evelyn was by, not because she would reproach them, but because she had a certain way about her which made goodness so attractive that they were forced to follow it.
She was not a specially6 clever girl, nevertheless she was now, in virtue7 of her seniority, and a certain painstaking8 determination, which made her capable of mastering her studies, at the head of the school.
[Pg 54]
There are some jealous people who dislike the beautiful because they are beautiful, the good because they are good. Girls with this special character are to be found in every school. Janet May was one of them, but perhaps in the whole of Mulberry Court she was the only person who at this juncture9 cordially disliked Evelyn Percival.
"It is delightful10 to have you back again," said Mrs. Freeman, bending over her pupil and kissing her. "And really, Evelyn, you look almost well. Oh, my dear child, what a fright I got about you last night."
"But I'm all right to-day," said Evelyn, in her bright voice. "I don't feel any bad effects whatever from my accident. I can't think why I was so stupid as to faint, and give you a fright. I ought really to have more control over my nerves."
"My dear, you have been ill, which accounts for your nervousness. But in any case a person with the stoutest11 nerves may be pardoned for fainting if she is flung out of a carriage. I cannot imagine how you escaped as you have done."
"I feel quite well," replied Evelyn, "quite well, and disinclined to stay in bed. I want to get up and see all my friends. You don't know how I have been looking forward to this."
"You shall see the girls one at a time in your room, darling, for whether you feel well or not, the doctor wishes you to remain quiet to-day."
Evelyn gave a very faint sigh, and turning her head looked out of the window.
Mrs. Freeman went over and drew back the curtains.
"You can watch the sea from your bed, my dear," she said, "and I will send Dorothy to sit with you after[Pg 55] morning school. Now I want to ask you if you can give any idea of how the accident occurred?"
A slight additional color came into Miss Percival's cheeks.
"Caspar shied at something," she said.
"Yes, but at what?"
"Well, Mrs. Freeman, you know how fond the children are of me, and I of them. They came to meet me, several of the little ones, and one tall, beautiful girl, whom I do not know. Perhaps they were all over-excited. They shouted a good deal, and waved branches of trees. Poor Caspar evidently could not stand it; but they really did nothing that anyone could blame them about."
"Hadn't they got leave to come to meet me?"
"No, it was that wild Irish girl's doing. I really don't know what to do with her."
"Is she the beautiful girl who was the ringleader? I don't think I ever saw anyone with such presence of mind. She absolutely caught me as I was flung out of the carriage. I felt her arms round me; that was why I was not hurt."
"Yes, I am sure she has a good deal of physical courage, but that does not alter the fact of her having defied my authority and led the children into mischief13."
"Poor girl!" said Evelyn, a wistful expression coming into her eyes.
"Now, my dear, you are not going to plead for her. I must manage her my own way. I will leave you now, Evelyn. Rest all you can, dear, and if you are very good you may perhaps be allowed to join us at supper."
[Pg 56]
Mrs. Freeman left her pupil's room, and went downstairs.
Evelyn Percival was one of the few girls in the school who was privileged to have a room to herself. Her little room was prettily14 draped in white and pink. It was called the Pink Room, and adjoined the Blue Room, which was occupied by Bridget O'Hara.
On her way downstairs Mrs. Freeman stepped for a moment into Bridget's room. Her pupil's large traveling trunks had been removed to the box room, but many showy dresses and much finery of various sorts lay scattered15 about.
Bridget was evidently not blessed with the bump of order. Valuable rings and bracelets16 lay, some on the mantelpiece, some on the dressing17 table; ribbons, scarfs, handkerchiefs, littered the chairs, the chest of drawers, and even the bed. A stray stocking poked18 its foot obtrusively19 out of one of the over-packed drawers of the wardrobe. Photographs of friends and of scenery lay face downward on the mantelpiece, and kept company with Bridget's brushes and combs in her dressing-table drawer.
Mrs. Freeman was very particular with regard to tidiness, and the condition of this very pretty room filled her with grave displeasure. The rules with regard to tidy rooms, neatly20 kept drawers, a place for everything and everything in its place, were most stringent at Mulberry Court, but up to the present rules mattered nothing at all to Bridget O'Hara.
"There is nothing whatever for it," murmured Mrs. Freeman; "I must punish the poor child in a way she will really feel. If this fails, and I cannot break her in[Pg 57] before the end of the term, I must ask her father to remove her."
Mrs. Freeman sighed as she said these words.
She went downstairs and entered her own private sitting room. It was now half-past eleven o'clock, and morning school was over. The weather was too hot for regular walks, and the girls were disporting21 themselves according to their own will and pleasure on the lawns and in the beautiful grounds which surrounded the school.
Mrs. Freeman could see them as she sat in her sitting room.
Janet, accompanied by Olive and Ruth, was pacing slowly backward and forward under some shady trees. Her satellites were devoted22 to her, and Janet's slender figure was very erect23, and her manner somewhat dictatorial24. Dorothy Collingwood was not to be seen, she had evidently gone to join Evelyn upstairs. The girls of the middle school were preparing to exert themselves over more than one tennis match. The smaller children were going down to the shore.
Bridget, her hat hanging on her arm, defiance25 very marked on her brow, came suddenly into view. She was alone, and Mrs. Freeman noticed that Janet and her two companions stopped to look at her as if they rather enjoyed the spectacle. They paused for a moment, stared rudely, then turned their backs on Miss O'Hara.
Bridget wore a white muslin dress with a long train. Her silver girdle was clasped round her waist. She went deliberately26 up to a rose tree in full flower, and, picking two or three half-opened buds, put them in her girdle.
Mrs. Freeman got up, and sounded an electric bell in the wall.
[Pg 58]
When the servant answered her summons, she desired her to ask Miss O'Hara to come to her immediately.
In about ten minutes' time Bridget came into the room without knocking. Her hat was still swinging on her arm; there was a wild-rose color on her cheeks; her eyes had a certain excited, untamed gleam in them.
"Did you want me, Mrs. Freeman?" she said, in her lazy, rich, somewhat impertinent voice.
"I certainly want you, Bridget. I am not in the habit of sending for my pupils if I don't wish to speak to them."
Bridget uttered a faint sigh.
"Well, I'm here," she said; "what is it?" She still used that half-mocking, indifferent voice.
Mrs. Freeman could scarcely restrain her impatience27.
"I'm afraid I have some unpleasant things to talk about, Miss O'Hara," she said. "But, before I begin, I must distinctly request you to remember that you are a young girl in the presence of the lady who has been appointed by your father to guide, direct, and command you."
"Yes; does not a mistress always command her pupils?"
"When she can," replied Bridget. Her hands dropped to her sides. She lowered her eyes; her proud lips were firmly shut.
"I hate school," she said. "I want to go back to the Castle. Can I go to-day?"
"No, Bridget, you cannot. You have been sent here to be under my care, and you must remain with me at least until the end of the term."
[Pg 59]
"When will that be?"
"Not for over a month?"
"Couldn't you write to father, Mrs. Freeman, and tell him that I am not happy? Say, 'Biddy is not happy, and she wants to go back to you and the dogs.' If you say that, he'll let me come home fast enough. You might write by the next post, and father, he'd jump on the jaunting-car and drive into Ballyshannon, and send you a wire. If papa wires to you, Mrs. Freeman, the very moment he gets your letter, I may perhaps be home on Sunday."
Bridget's changeful face was now all glowing with excitement, eagerness, and hope. Her defiant31 attitude had vanished. As she looked full at Mrs. Freeman, her governess noticed for the first time that her eyelids32 were red, as if she had been crying. That, and a certain pathos33 in her voice, made the head mistress regard her in a new light.
"My dear," she said, "I cannot grant your request. You have been sent to me by your father. He wishes you to stay here as long as you are well in body. You are quite well, Bridget; you must therefore make up your mind, whether you like school or whether you hate it, to remain here until the end of the term."
"You were not miserable yesterday."
"No, not very. The younger girls were fond of me, and Dorothy Collingwood was nice."
"And isn't she nice to-day?"
"No one is nice to-day. There's the most ridiculous, unfair fuss being made about nothing. There isn't a single girl in the school who hasn't turned against me,[Pg 60] because of the accident last night to that stupid, plain Miss Percival. If I'd hurt her, or if she were ill, and in the least pain, I'd be as sorry as the rest of them; but she's not in the slightest pain; she's quite well. I can't understand all this fuss."
"Can't you, Bridget? I'm afraid I must make you understand that the fact of Evelyn being uninjured does not alter your conduct."
"My conduct? What have I done?"
"You have disobeyed me. One of my strictest rules forbids the girls to leave the grounds without permission. You not only left the grounds contrary to my express order, but you took several of the little children of the school with you. It is against my orders to have the trees destroyed by breaking off branches. Knowing this, you willfully disobeyed me again, and you and your companions rushed down the road shouting wildly. What was the result? Evelyn Percival mercifully escaped serious injury, but my carriage was broken and my horse damaged. The mere36 money loss you have occasioned me, Bridget——"
"Oh, papa'll pay that! Don't you fret37 about that, Mrs. Freeman; the dear old dad will settle it. He quite loves writing checks!"
"But your father cannot pay for your disobedience—for the bad example you have set the little children, for the pain and anxiety you have given me."
"Pain and anxiety! I like that! You are just angry with me—that's about all!"
"I am sorry for you also, my dear. I earnestly desire that you should be a good girl, for the girl is the mother of the woman, and a good girl makes that admirable and priceless treasure—a good woman by and by."
[Pg 61]
Bridget moved restlessly. She looked out of the window. The sun was shining brilliantly, and the grass under the big shady trees looked particularly inviting38.
"I suppose I may go," she said, "if that's all you have got to say?"
"I have some more things to say. I must get you, Bridget, before you leave this room, to make a promise."
"What is that?"
"That you will obey me."
"I don't know how I can, Mrs. Freeman. I said at once, when I came to school and saw what kind of place it was, that I wouldn't obey the rules. They were so tiresome39 and silly; I didn't see the use of them."
"Bridget, you are incorrigible40. If kindness won't make you see that you are bound in honor to obey me, I must try punishment. Wretched child, I don't wish to be hard to you, but do what I say, you must!"
Bridget's face turned very white. She looked wildly toward the door, then at the window.
Mrs. Freeman went up to her, and took her hand. "My dear," she said, "I must make you feel my authority. I do this with great pain, for I know you have not had the advantage of the training which many of the girls who live here have received. I would treat you with kindness, Bridget, but you won't receive my kindness. Now I must be severe, but for your good. Until you promise to obey the rules of the school, you must not join your schoolfellows either at work or play. My sister Patience will allow you to sit with her in her sitting room, and your meals will be brought to you there. The length of your punishment rests with yourself, my dear."
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1
promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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originality
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| n.创造力，独创性；新颖 | |
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3
insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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fascination
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| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
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6
specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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7
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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8
painstaking
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| adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的 | |
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9
juncture
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| n.时刻，关键时刻，紧要关头 | |
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10
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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11
stoutest
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| 粗壮的( stout的最高级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的 | |
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12
stringent
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| adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的 | |
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13
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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14
prettily
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| adv.优美地；可爱地 | |
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15
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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16
bracelets
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| n.手镯，臂镯( bracelet的名词复数 ) | |
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17
dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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18
poked
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| v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交 | |
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19
obtrusively
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| adv.冒失地，莽撞地 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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21
disporting
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| v.嬉戏，玩乐，自娱( disport的现在分词 ) | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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dictatorial
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| adj. 独裁的，专断的 | |
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defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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28
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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29
dilating
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| v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的现在分词 ) | |
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30
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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31
defiant
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| adj.无礼的，挑战的 | |
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32
eyelids
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| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
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33
pathos
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| n.哀婉，悲怆 | |
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34
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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35
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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37
fret
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| v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损 | |
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38
inviting
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| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
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39
tiresome
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| adj.令人疲劳的，令人厌倦的 | |
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incorrigible
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| adj.难以纠正的，屡教不改的 | |
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