Marion Berkley.
by Elizabeth B. Comins.
CHAPTER I.
EN ROUTE FOR SCHOOL.
"Come on, Mab! the carriage is round; only fifteen minutes to get to the depot."
"Yes, I am coming. O mamma! do fasten this carpet-bag for me. Dear me!
there goes the b.u.t.ton off my gloves. Was there ever any one in such a flutter?"
"Never mind, dear; it is too late to sew it on now. Here is your bag; come, we must not stop another moment; there is Fred calling again."
"I say, Mab," shouted the first speaker from the bottom of the stairs, "if you"re coming, why don"t you come? I shan"t leave until you bid me good-by, and I know I shall lose the ball-match. You do keep a fellow waiting so eternally long!"
His sister was downstairs, and had her arms around his neck before he had finished speaking, and said to him, in a tone of mock gravity, "Now, Frederic, don"t get excited; always follow my good example, and keep cool. There now!" she exclaimed, as she gave him a hearty kiss; "be off. I forgot all about your ball-match, and all the amends I can make is to hope the Isthmians will beat the Olympics all to pieces."
"Come, come," called Mrs. Berkley from the inside of the carriage, "we have not a moment to lose."
"Good-by, Hannah. One more kiss for Mab, Charlie. Good-by, all;" then to the coachman, as she whisked into the carriage, "Drive on, John, just as fast as you can."
The carriage-door was shut with a snap; off went the horses, and Mrs.
Berkley and her daughter were soon at the Western depot, where the latter was to take the cars for B----, a little New England town, where she attended boarding-school. They were very late at the depot, and Mrs.
Berkley had only time for a fond kiss and a "Write often, darling," when the bell rung, and she was forced to leave the car, feeling a little uneasy that her daughter was obliged to take her journey alone. Just as the cars were starting, Marion put her head out of a window, and called to her mother, "O mamma! Flo is here; isn"t that jolly? No fear now of--" The last part of the sentence was unintelligible, and all Mrs.
Berkley got was a bright smile, and a wave of the hand, as the train moved out of the depot.
"Now, Flo, I call this providential," exclaimed Marion; "for, I can tell you, I did not relish the prospect of my solitary ride. Just hand me your bag, and I"ll put it in the rack with my budgets. This seat is empty; suppose we turn it over, and then we shall be perfectly comfortable. Now I say this is decidedly scrumptious;" and she settled herself back, with a sigh of satisfaction.
"Why, Mab, what made you so late? I had been here fifteen minutes before you came, all on the _qui vive_, hoping to see some one I knew; but I never dreamed you would be here. I thought you were going up yesterday with the Thayers."
"I did intend to; but Fred had a sort of spread last night for the Isthmians, so I stayed over. I expect Miss Stiefbach will give me one of her annihilators, but I guess I can stand it. I"ve been withered so many times, that the glances of those "eagle eyes" have rather lost their effect."
"Well, I only wish I had a little more of your spirit of resistance.
What a lovely hat you have! Just suits your style. Where did you get it?"
"Why, it"s only my old sun-down dyed and pressed over, and bound with the velvet off my old brown rep. I trimmed it myself, and feel mighty proud of it."
"Trimmed it yourself!--really? Well, I never saw such a girl; you can do anything! I couldn"t have done it to save my life. I only wish to gracious I could; it would be very convenient sometimes."
And so the two girls rattled on for some time, in true school-girl fashion; but at last they each took a book, and settled back into their respective corners. Before very long, however, Marion tossed her book on to the opposite seat; for they were coming to Lake Cochituate, and nothing could be lovelier than the view which was stretching itself before them. I do not think that half the people of Ma.s.sachusetts realize how beautiful this piece of water is; but I believe, if they had seen it then, they surely must have appreciated its charms.
It was about the middle of September, and the leaves were just beginning to turn; indeed, some of them were already quite brilliant. The day was soft and hazy,--just such a one as we often have in early autumn, and the slight mist of the atmosphere served to soften and harmonize the various colors of the landscape. The lake itself was as clear and smooth as polished gla.s.s, and every tree on the borders was distinctly reflected on its clear bosom; while the delicate blue sky, with the few feathery clouds floating across it seemed to be far beneath the surface of the water.
Marion was at heart a true artist, and had all a true artist"s intense love of nature; she now sat at the window, completely absorbed in the scene before her, her eye and mind taking in all the beauties of form, color, and reflection; and as the cars bore her too swiftly by she uttered a sigh of real regret.
Perhaps there will be no better time than the present for giving my young readers a description of my heroine. My tale will contain no thrilling incidents, no hairbreadth escapes, or any of those startling events with which ideas of heroism are generally a.s.sociated. It will be a simple story of a school-girl"s life; its fun and frolic; its temptations, trials, and victories.
Marion Berkley was a remarkably beautiful girl; but she owed her beauty chiefly to the singular contrast of her hair and eyes. The former was a beautiful golden color, while her eyes, eyebrows, and lashes were very dark. Her nose and mouth, though well formed, could not be considered in any way remarkable. When in conversation her face became animated, the expression changed with each inward emotion, and her eyes sparkled brilliantly; but when in repose they a.s.sumed a softer, dreamier look, which seemed to hint of a deeper nature beneath this gay and often frivolous exterior.
Mr. Berkley was very fond of his daughter. He had a large circle of acquaintances, many of whom were in the habit of dining, or pa.s.sing the evening, at his house, and it pleased him very much to have them notice her. Marion was by no means a vain girl; yet these attentions from those so much older than herself were rather inclined to turn her head.
Fortunately, her mother was a very lovely and sensible woman, whose good example and sound advice served to counteract those influences which might otherwise have proved very injurious.
And now that I have introduced my friends to Marion, it is no more than fair that I should present them to her companion. Florence Stevenson was a bright, pretty brunette, of sixteen. She and Marion had been friends ever since they made "mud pies" together in the Berkleys" back yard.
They shared the same room at school, got into the same sc.r.a.pes, kept each other"s secrets, and were, in short, almost inseparable. Florence had lost her mother when she was very young, and her father"s house was ruled over by a well-meaning, but disagreeable maiden-aunt, who, by her constant and oftentimes unnecessary fault-finding, made Florence so unhappy, that she had hailed with delight her father"s proposition of going away to school. For three years Florence and Marion had been almost daily together, being only separated during vacations, when, as Florence lived five miles from Boston, it was impossible that they should see as much of each other as they would have liked.
About four in the afternoon, the girls reached their destination; rather tired out by their long ride, but, nevertheless, in excellent spirits.
Miss Stiefbach, after a few remarks as to the propriety of being a day before, rather than an hour behind time, dismissed them to their rooms to prepare for supper, where for the present we will leave them.
CHAPTER II.
SCHOOL.
Miss Stiefbach and her sister Christine, were two excellent German ladies who, owing to a sudden reverse of fortune, were obliged to leave their mother-country, hoping to find means of supporting themselves in America. They were most kindly received by the gentlemen to whom they brought letters of introduction, and with their a.s.sistance they had been able to open a school for young ladies; and now, at the end of seven years, they found themselves free from debt, and at the head of one of the best boarding-schools in the United States.
Miss Stiefbach, the head and director of the establishment, was a stern, cold, forbidding woman; acting on what she considered to be the most strictly conscientious principles, but never unbending in the slightest degree her frigid, repelling manner. To look at her was enough to have told you her character at once. She was above the medium height, excessively thin and angular in her figure, and was always dressed in some stiff material, which, as Marion Berkley expressed it, "looked as if it had been starched and frozen, and had never been thawed out."
Miss Christine was fifteen years her junior, and her exact opposite in appearance as well as in disposition: she was short and stout, and rosy-cheeked, not at all pretty; but having such a kind smile, such a thoroughly good-natured face, that the girls all thought she was really beautiful, and would feel more repentance at one of her grieved looks, than they would for forty of Miss Stiefbach"s frigid reprimands. And well they might love her, for she certainly was a kind friend to them.
Many a school-girl trick or frolic had she concealed, which, if it had come under the searching eyes of her sister, would have secured the perpetrators as stern a rebuke, and perhaps as severe a punishment, as if they had committed some great wrong.
Miss Stiefbach"s school was by no means what is generally called a "fashionable school." The parents of the young girls who went there wished that their daughters should receive not only a sound education, but that they should be taught many useful things not always included in the list of a young lady"s accomplishments.
There were thirty scholars, ranging from the ages of seventeen to ten; two in each room. They were obliged to make their own beds, and take all the care of their rooms, except the sweeping. Every Sat.u.r.day morning they all a.s.sembled in the school-room to darn their stockings, and do whatever other mending might be necessary. Formerly Miss Stiefbach herself had superintended their work, but for the last year she had put it under the charge of Miss Christine; an arrangement which was extremely pleasing to the girls, making for them a pleasant pastime of what had always been an irksome duty. After their mending was done, and their Bible lesson for the following Sabbath learned, the rest of the day was at their own disposal. Those who had friends in the neighborhood generally went to visit them; while the others took long walks, or occupied themselves in doing whatever best pleased them. There were of course some restrictions; but these were so slight, and so reasonable, that no one ever thought of complaining, and the day was almost always one of real enjoyment. Miss Stiefbach herself was an Episcopalian, and always required that every one, unless prevented by illness, should attend that church in the morning; but, in the afternoon, any girl who wished might go to any other church, first signifying her intention to one or the other of the sisters.
Some of Miss Stiefbach"s ancestors had suffered from religious persecutions in Germany, and, although she felt it her duty to have her scholars attend what she considered to be the "true church," she could not have it on her conscience to be the means of preventing any one from worshipping G.o.d in whatever manner their hearts dictated.
CHAPTER III.
MONSIEUR BeRANGER.
It was the half-hour intermission at school; and Marion and Florence had taken Julia Thayer up into their room to give her a taste of some of the goodies they had brought from home with them. Their room was one of the largest in the house, having two deep windows; one in front, the other on the side. The side window faced the west, and in it the girls had placed a very pretty flower-stand filled with plants; an ivy was trained against the side, and a lovely mirandia hung from the top. The front window had a long seat fitted into it, and as it overlooked the street it was here that the girls almost always sat at their work or studies.
"Now, Julie," began Marion, "which will you have, sponge or currant?"
"Why, you are getting awfully stingy!" exclaimed Flo; "give her some of both."
"No, she can"t have both; it is altogether too extravagant. This is my treat, and you need not make any comments."
"Well, if I can"t have but one, I think I"ll try sponge."