The Wide, Wide World

e, that com'st

kesp

dows opening to the east, through which, morning by morning, the sun looked in; that was another blessing. But the floor was without the sign of a carpet, and the bare boards looked to Ellen very comfortless. The hard-finished walls were not very smooth nor particularly white. The doors and wood-work, though very neat, and even carved with some attempt at ornament, had never known the touch of paint, and had grown in the course of years to be of a light brown colour. The room was very bare of furniture, too. A dressing-table, pier-table, or what-not, stood between the windows, but it was on

llen, "if I can ever get it off to see! Pretty good,

ad restored strength and spirits; and the bright morning light made it impossible to be dull or down-hearted, in spite of the new cause she thought she had found. She went on quick with the business of the toilet; but when it came to the washing, she suddenly discovered that there were no conveniences for it in her room-no sign of pitcher or basin, or stand to hold them. Ellen was slightly dismayed, but presently recollected her arrival had not been looked for so soon, and probably the preparations for it had not been completed. So she finish

and odorous cooking was going on. A tall tin coffee-pot stood on some coals in the corner of the fireplace, and another little iron vessel in front also claimed a share of Miss Fortune's attention, for she every now and then leaned forward to give a stir to whatever was in it, making each time quite a spasmodic effort to do so without quitting her ho

ing her slices of pork. "How do you do thi

at she felt a gr

k on the fire. And Ellen could hardly answer, "Quite warm, ma'am

s over before I say what I want to. I can'

wn away, being fit for nothing but the pigs. But Miss Fortune didn't think so, for she darted into some pantry close by, and returning with a cup of cream in her hand, emptied it all into the pork fat. Then she ran into the pantry again for a little round tin box, with a cover full of holes, and shaking this gently over the pan, a fine white s

idly, "I haven't washed yet;

y sign of hearing; she went on dishing

'am, to show me wher

denly standing erect, "you'll

am," said Ellen

rations. But in another moment she arose and said, "Just open that door there behind you, a

ou be as good as to give me a

ence she presently returned with a clean towel which she

the cellar, which, running under the other part of the house, was on a level with this kitchen. It had no furniture but a table and two chairs. The thick heavy door stood open. Passing out, Ellen looked around her for water; in what shape or form it was to present itself she had no very clear idea. She soon spied, a few yards distant, a little stream of water pouring from the

can't catch any water in my hands, it runs too fast. If

much. The morning air came playing about her; its cool breath was on her cheek with health in its touch. The early sun was shining on tree, and meadow, and hill; the long shadows stretched over the grass, and the very brown out-houses looked bright. She thought it was the loveliest place she ever had seen. And that sparkling trickling water was certainly the purest and sweetest she had ever tasted. Where could it come from? It poured from a small trough made of the split trunk of a tree with a little groove or channel two inches wide hollowed out in it. But at the

he spout?" aske

, ma

w do you

indeed," said Ellen. "I

thing so excellent as the brown bread and butter, both as sweet as bread and butter could be; neither was any cookery so entirely satisfactory as Miss Fortune's fried pork and potatoes. Yet her teaspoon was not silver; her knife could not boast of being either sharp or bright; and her fork was certainly made for any

he had finished, and stood a few

ly, "if you've no objection, I should li

ere you like; I'll give you a week

her bonnet; "a week's a long time. I suppose," thou

ew yards from the shed door was the little gate through which she had stumbled in the dark, and outside of that Ellen stood still awhile. It was a fair, pleasant day, and the country scene she looked upon was very pretty. Ellen thought so. Before her, at a little distance, rose the great gable end of the barn, and a long row of outhouses stretched away from it towards the left. The ground was strewn thick with chips; and the reason was not hard to find, for a little way off, under an old stunted apple-tree, lay a huge log, well chipped on the upper surface, with the axe resting against it; and close b

asant in stopping the supply of the spout, and seeing the water trickling over where it had no business to go; and she did not heed that some of the drops took her frock in their way. She stooped her lips to the trough and drank of its sweet current,-only for fun's sake, for she was not thirsty. Finally, she set out to follow the stream up to its head. But poor Ellen had not gone more than half way towards the fence, when she all at once plunged into the mire. The green grass growing there had looke

et on the table. "Well, what's the matter?" she said, when she saw Ellen's face; but as her glance reached the floor, her

expl

tly, as she thrust a chair down on the hearth before the fire; "I should

e any ditch,

ing off Ellen's shoes and stockings with her forefinger and thumb. "

Ellen; "one part just like another; and th

t all for?" said Miss

he water came from, and

at those stockings! Ha'n't you got never a pair of coloured st

ma'

ou never wore any but

I never had

ped up and went off without saying anything more. She presently came back with an

white stockings h

ew ones just before I came away, and I

tockings you have got. There's a pair of old slippers you can put on till your s

for me," thought Ellen; but she said nothing. She gathered all her sto

im there, and tell him I want him to bring me some white maple b

few minutes came back. "

s the

t, and I can't open them.

must go in at the little cow-house door, at the

and with many a fearful glance to the right and left, lest some terrible horned animal should present itself, Ellen made her way across the cow-house, and through the barn-yard, littered thick with straw, wet and dry, to the lower barn-floor. The door of this stood wide open. Ellen looked with wonder and pleasure when she got in. It was an immense room-the sides showe

r? On every side, to every corner, her eyes turned without finding him. She looked up at last. There was t

you come out here to

im what she

in his slow way, "I'll bring it.

he house; and yet more, when her aunt set her t

with them, Aunt Fortune?"

when the t

gue notion that by some mysterious means her stockings

do as I

nshine was out of Ellen's heart too. She went to the window and opened it, but there was nothing to keep it open; it slid down again as soon as she let it go. Baffled and sad, she stood leaning her elbows on the window-sill, looking out on the grass-plat that lay before the door, and the little gate that opened on the lake, and the smooth meadow and rich broken country beyond. It was a very fair and pleasant scene in the soft sunlight of the last of October;

a table. Oh, what a place! I'll shut my trunk and put it

s, and scarcely was the last "a" finished, when the pen was dashed down, and flinging away from the desk, she threw herself on the floor in a passion of grief. It seemed as if she had her mother again in her arms, and was clinging with a death-grasp not to be parted from her. And then the feeling that she was parted! As much bitter sorrow as a little heart can know was in poor Ellen's no

eed, but I am afraid it will be very hard without you or him, or anybody else to help me. You couldn't have been kinder yourself, mamma; he kissed me at night when I bid him good-bye, and I was very sorry indeed. I wish I could see him again. Mamma, I will always love that gentleman, if I never see him again in the world. I wish there was somebody here that I could love, but there is not. You will want to know what sort of a person my Aunt Fortune is. I think she is very good-looking, or she would be if her nose was not quite so sharp; but, mamma, I can't tell you what sort of a feeling I have about her; it seems to me as if she was sharp all over. I am sure her eyes are as sharp as two needles. And she don't walk like other people; at least sometimes. She makes queer little jerks and starts and jumps, and flies about like I don't know what. I am afraid it is not right for me to write so about her; but may I not tell you, mamma? There's nobody else for me to talk to. I can't like Aunt Fortune much yet, and I am sure she don't like me; but I will try to make her. I have not forgotten what you said to me about that. Oh, dear mamma, I will try to mind everything you ever said to me in your life. I am afraid you won't like what I have written about Aunt Fortune; but indeed I have don

fectiona

t very nicely. She looked at it fondly a minute when all was done, thinking of the dear fingers that would hold and open it; her next movement was to sink her face in her hands, and pray most e

he table, and so was the old lady, whom Ellen had not seen

"I hope you feel better f

aid Ellen; "a gr

e you bee

een writi

ing w

en writing

f her tea was good; took care she had plenty of the bread and butter, and excellent cheese, which was on the table; and lastly cut her a large piece of the pumpkin pie. Mr. Van Brunt t

tune, seating herself before it, threw in all Ellen's stockings except one pair, which she flung over to her, saying, "There, I don't care if you keep that one." Then, tucking up her sleeves to the elbows, she fished up p

, when she had got two or three chairs round the fire pre

e it at all,

ockings would you like to drive into t

in surprise; "I didn't

I can tell you, and so must you. I suppose you've lived all your life among people that thoug

nvinced of t

thinking of?" said M

rning cotton," said Ellen. "I mig

nd or in t

he sk

it. I'll warrant I'll fix it so

could lay hands on. She seemed in imagination to see all her white things turning brown. She

entirely upon herself; Ellen had no fancy for such handiwork. She went to sleep in somewhat the same dissatisfied mood with which the day had been begun; displeasure at her coarse heavy coverlid and cotton sheets again taking i