Miss Jerusha, trained in the land of "steady habits," had, from her earliest infancy, been taught to look upon theaters as only a little less horribly wicked than the place unmentionable to ears polite, and upon all "play-actors" as the immediate children and agents of the father of evil himself. She had never until now had the misfortune to come in contact with one personally, having only heard of them as we hear of goblins, warlocks, demons, and other "children of night." What wonder, then, that at this sudden, awful revelation she started back and almost hurled the frail form from her in loathing and horror. But a fierce clutch was laid on her shoulder--she almost fancied for an instant it was Satan himself come for his child--until, looking up, she saw the fiercely blazing eyes and witch-like face of little Georgia gleaming upon it.
"You ugly, wicked old woman!" she pa.s.sionately burst out with, "if you dare to hurt my mamma, I"ll--I"ll _kill_ you!"
And so dark, and fierce, and elfish did she look at that moment, that Miss Jerusha fairly quailed before the small, unearthly looking sprite.
"I"m not a-going to tetch your ma. Get out o" this, and leave me go!"
said Miss Jerusha, shaking off with some difficulty the human burr who clung to her with the tenacity of a crab, and glared upon her with her shining black eyes.
"Georgia, love, go and sit down. Oh, you wild, stormy, savage child, what _ever_ will become of you when I am gone? Do, pray, excuse her,"
said the woman, faintly, lifting her eyes pleadingly to Miss Jerusha"s angry face; "she has had no one to control her, or subdue her wild, willful temper, and has grown up a crazy, mad-headed, half-tamed thing.
If you have children of your own, you will know how to make allowance for her."
"I have no children of my own, and I thank goodness that I haven"t!"
said Miss Jerusha, shortly; "a set of plagues, the whole of "em! Ef that there little gal was mine, I"d spank her while I could stand, and see ef _that_ wouldn"t take some of the nonsense out of her."
The last words did not reach the invalid"s ear, and the little tempest-in-a-teapot retreated again to her corner, scowling darkly on Miss Jerusha, whom she evidently suspected of some sinister designs on her mother, which it was her duty to frustrate.
"Is she a play-acter, too?" said Miss Jerusha, after a sullen pause.
"Who? Georgia? Oh, yes; she plays juvenile parts, and dances and sings, and was a great favorite with the public. She has a splendid voice, and dances beautifully, and whenever she appeared she used to receive thunders of applause. Georgia will make a star actress if she ever goes on the stage again," said the woman, with more animation than she had yet shown.
"And do you want your darter to grow up a wicked good-for-nothing hussy of a play-acter?" said Miss Jerusha, sternly. "Mrs. Darrell, you ought for to be ashamed of yourself. Ef she was mine, I would sooner see her starve decently first."
The dying woman turned away with a groan.
"She won"t starve here, though," said Miss Jerusha, feeling called upon to administer a little consolation; "there"s trustees and selectmen, and one thing and another to look arter poor folks and orphans. She"ll be took care of. And now, how did it happen you came here?"
"I came with the company to which I belong, and we stopped at a town about fifty miles from here. Georgia, as you can see, has a dreadful temper--poor little fiery, pa.s.sionate thing--and the manager of the theater, being an insolent, overbearing man, was always finding fault with her, and scolding about something, whereupon Georgia would fly into one of her fits of pa.s.sion, and a dreadful scene would ensue. I strove to keep them apart as much as I could, but they often met, as a matter of course, and never parted without a furious quarrel. He did not wish to part with her, for I--and it is with little vanity, alas! I say it--was his best actress, and Georgia"s name in the bills never failed to draw a crowded house. I used to talk to Georgia, and implore her to restrain her fierce temper, and she would promise; but when next she would meet him, poor child, and listen to his insulting words, all would be forgotten, and Georgia would stamp and scold, and call him all manner of names, and sometimes go so far as to refuse appearing at all, and _that_ last act of disobedience never failed to put him fairly beside himself with rage. I foresaw how it would end, but I could do nothing with her. Poor little thing! Nature cursed her with that fierce, pa.s.sionate temper, and she could not help it."
"Humph!" muttered Miss Jerusha; "couldn"t help it! That"s all very fine; but I know one thing, ef _I_ had anything to do with her, I"d take the fierceness out of her, or know for why--a ugly tempered, savage little limb!"
"One night," continued the sick woman, "Georgia had been dancing, and when she left the stage the whole house shook with the thunders of applause. They shouted and shouted for her to reappear, but I was sick that night, and Georgia was in a hurry to get home, and would not go.
The manager ordered her in no very gentle tone to go back, and Georgia flatly and peremptorily refused. Then a dreadful scene ensued. He caught her by the arms, and dragged her to her feet, as if he would force her out, and when she resisted he struck her a blow that sent her reeling across the room.
"Aha! that was good for you, my lady!" said Miss Jerusha, with a grim chuckle, as she glanced at the little dancing girl.
"It was the first time any one had ever struck her," said Mrs. Darrell, in a sinking voice, "and a very fury seemed to seize her. A large black bottle lay on a shelf near, and with a perfect _shriek_ of pa.s.sion she seized it and hurled it with all her strength at his head."
"My gracious!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the horrified Miss Jerusha.
"It struck him on the forehead, and laid it open with a frightful gash.
He attempted to spring upon her, but some of the men interposed, and Georgia was forced off by the rest. Her brother Warren was there, and, almost terrified to death, he brought her home with him, and that very night we were told our services were no longer needed, and, what was more, Mr. B., the manager, refused to pay us what he owed us, and even threatened to begin an action against us for a.s.sault and battery, and I don"t know what besides. I knew him to be an unprincipled, vindictive man, and the threat terrified me nearly to death, terrified me so much that, with my two children, I fled the next morning from the town where we were stopping, fled away with only one idea--that of escaping from his power. I had a little money remaining, but it was soon spent, and I was so weak and ill that but for my poor children I felt at times as if I could gladly have lain down and died.
"Coming from Burnfield to-night, we were overtaken by this storm, and must have perished had not Warren discovered this old hut. The exposure of this furious storm completed what sorrow and suffering had long ago begun, and I felt I was dying. It was terrible to think of leaving poor little Warren and Georgia all alone without one single friend in the world, and at last I sent Warren out to the nearest house in the hope that some hospitable person might come who would procure some sort of employment for them that would keep them at least from starving. _You_ came, thank Heaven! but my poor Warren has not returned. Oh! I fear, I _fear_ he has perished in this storm," cried the dying woman, wringing her pale fingers.
"Oh, I guess not," said Miss Jerusha, more startled than she chose to appear; "most likely he"s gone some place else and stayed there to get warm; but you, _you_, what are we to do for you? It doesn"t seem Christian like nor proper no ways to leave you to die here in this miserable old shed."
"Dear, kind friend, never mind me," said the invalid, gratefully; "my short span of life is nearly run, and oh! what does it matter whether for the few brief moments yet remaining where they are spent. But my children, my poor, poor children! Oh, madam, you have a kind heart, I know you have,"--(Miss Jerusha gave a skeptical "humph!")--"do, _do_, for Heaven"s sake, try if some charitable person will not take them and give them their food and clothing. Not so much for Warren do I fear, for he is quiet and sensible, very wise indeed for his age; but for the wild, stormy Georgia. Oh, madam, do something for her, and my dying thanks will be yours!"
"Well, there, don"t take on! I"ll see what can be done," said Miss Jerusha, fidgeting, and glancing askance at the wild eyed, tempestuous little spirit, "and though you don"t seem to mind it much, still it don"t seem right nor decent for you to die here like I don"t know what,"
(Miss Jerusha"s favorite simile), "so I"ll jest step over to Deacon Brown"s and get him to look arter you, and maybe he will hev an eye to the children, too."
"But you will be exposed to the storm," feebly remonstrated the dying woman.
"Bah! who keers for the storm?" said Miss Jerusha, glancing out of the window with a look of grim defiance. "Besides, its clarin" off, and Deacon Brown"s ain"t more than two miles from here. There, keep up your sperrits, and I"ll be back in an hour or two with the deacon."
So saying, Miss Jerusha, who once she considered it her _duty_ to do anything, would have gone through fire and flood to do it, stepped resolutely out to brave once more the cold, wintry blast.
The storm had abated considerably, but it was still piercingly cold, and Miss Jerusha"s fingers and toes tingled as she walked rapidly over the hard, frosty ground. It had ceased snowing, and a pale, watery moon, appearing at intervals from behind a cloud, cast a faint, sickly light over the way. The high, leafless trees sent long black, ominous shadows across the road, and Miss Jerusha cast apprehensive glances on either side as she walked.
Not the fear of ghosts, nor the fear of robbers troubled the stout-hearted spinster; but the dread of seeing a slight, boyish form, stark and frozen, across her path. In mingled dread and remorse, she thought of what she had done and only the hope of finding him in the old cottage on her return could dispel for an instant her haunting fear.
Deacon Brown"s was reached at last, and great was the surprise of that orthodox pillar of the church at beholding his un-looked-for visitor. In very few words Miss Jerusha gave him to understand the object of her visit, and, rather ruefully, the good man rose to harness up his old gray mare and start with Miss Jerusha on this charitable errand.
A quick run over the hard, frozen ground brought them to the cottage, and, fastening his mare to a tree, the deacon followed Miss Jerusha into the old house.
And there a pitiful sight met his eyes. The fire had gone out, and the room was scarcely warmer than the freezing atmosphere without. Mother and child lay clasped in each other"s arms, still and motionless. With a stifled e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n, Miss Jerusha approached and bent over them. The child was asleep, and the mother was _dead_!
CHAPTER III.
A YOUNG TORNADO.
"She is active, stirring, all fire; Cannot rest, cannot tire; To a stone she had given life."
It was a bright, breezy May morning, just cool enough to render a fire pleasant and a brisk walk delightful. The sunshine came streaming down through the green, spreading boughs of the odorous pine trees, gilding their glistening leaves, and tinting with hues of gold the sparkling windows of Miss Jerusha"s little cottage.
It was yet early morning, and the sun had just arisen, yet Miss Jerusha, brisk, resolute, and energetic, marched through the house, "up stairs, and down stairs, and in my lady"s chamber," sweeping, dusting, scouring, scrubbing and scolding, all in a breath: for, reader, this was Monday, and that good lady was just commencing her spring "house-cleaning."
And Miss Jerusha"s house-cleaning was something which required to be seen to be appreciated. Not that there was the slightest necessity for that frantic and distracting process which all good housekeepers consider it a matter of conscience to make their household suffer once or twice a year, for never since Miss Jerusha had come to the years of discretion had a single speck of dirt been visible to the naked eye inside of those spotless walls. But it was with Miss Jerusha the eleventh commandment and the fortieth article of the Episcopal creed, to go through a vigorous and uncompromising scouring down and scrubbing up every spring and fall, to the great mental agony and bodily torture of the unhappy little handmaiden, Fly, and her venerable cat, Betsey Periwinkle. Since the middle of April Miss Jerusha had shown signs of the coming epidemic, which on this eventful morning broke out in full force.
Any stranger, on looking in at that usually immaculate cottage, might have fancied a hurricane had pa.s.sed through it in the night, or that the chairs, and tables, and pots, and pans, being of a facetious disposition, had taken it into their heads to get on a spree the night before, and pitch themselves in all sorts of frantic att.i.tudes through the house. For the princ.i.p.al rule in Miss Jerusha"s "house-cleaning" was first, with a great deal of pains and trouble, to fling chairs, and stools, and pails, and brooms in a miscellaneous heap through each room, to disembowel closets whose contents for the last six months had been a sealed mystery to human eyes, to take down and violently tear asunder unoffending bedsteads, and with a stout stick inflict a severe and apparently unmerited castigation on harmless mattresses and feather beds. This done, Miss Jerusha, who had immense faith in the hot water system, commenced with a steaming tub of that liquid at the topmost rafter of the cottage, and never drew breath until every crevice and cranny down to the lowest plank on the cellar floor had undergone a severe application of first wetting and then drying.
Awful beyond measure was Miss Jerusha on these occasions--enough to strike terror into the heart of every shiftless mortal on this terrestrial globe, could he only have seen her. With her sleeves rolled up over her elbows, her mouth shut up, _screwed_ up with grim determination of conquering or dying in the attempt, with an eye like a hawk for every invisible speck of dust, and the firm, determined tramp of the leader of a forlorn hope, Miss Jerusha marched through that blessed little cottage, a broom in one hand and a scrubbing-brush in the other, a sight to see, not to hear of.
And then, having brushed, and scrubbed, and scoured, and polished everything, from the "best room" down to the fur coat of Betsey Periwinkle, until it fairly shone, all that could offend the sight was poked back into the mysterious closets again, another revolution swept through every room, returning things to their places, and the whole household was triumphantly restored to its former state of distressing cleanliness. And thus ended Miss Jerusha"s house-cleaning.
"Them there three beds shill all hev to come down this morning," said Miss Jerusha, folding her arms, and regarding them grimly, "and every one of them blessed bedposts hev got to be scalded right out. You, Fly!
is that there fire a-burning?"
"Yes, miss," answered Fly, who was tearing distractedly in and out after wood and water, and as nearly fulfilling the impossibility of being in two places at once as it was possible for a mere mortal to do.
"And is that biler of hot water a-bilin"?"
"Yes, miss."