The Secret Garden

en Mary looked out of her window the moor was almosthidden

cottage when it rains li

r's feet mostly,"Martha answered. "

mpered woman but she

oes out in th' cow-s

t mind th' wet. He

says he sees thingson rainy days as

owned in its hole and hebrought it home

out an' th' rest o' th' litter was dead. He's got it atho

lies about withhim everywhere."The time had come when Mary had forgotten to resentMartha's famil

uite unlike those Martha had to tell aboutthe moorland cottage which held fou

t and amuse themselveslike a litter

ttracted by the m

what "mother" said or did th

uld play with it,"said Mary. "But I h

a' knit?"

answer

ad?""Yes.""Then why doesn't tha,

rs. Medlock'd let theego into th' library, there's thousands o' books there."Mary did not ask where the library was, because she wassuddenly inspired by a new idea. She m

ce one scarcely eve

r was away they lived a luxuriouslife below stairs, where there was a hu

eatenevery day, and where a great deal of lively r

nd Martha waited on her,but no one trou

every day or two,but no one inquired

In India she had always been attendedby her Ayah, who had followed her abo

lf because Martha looked as though she thought she wassilly and

aid once, when Maryhad stood waiting

ometimes tha' looks fair soft in th' head."Mary had worn her contrary scow

had swept up the hearth for the last timeand gone downstairs. She was thi

cause she had read very few books; but to hear of it bro

ally locked and whatshe would find

nd seehow many doors she could count? It would be som

hing at all about authority, so she wouldnot have thought it necessary to a

egan her wanderings. It was a long corridorand it branched into other corri

s, but oftenest they were portraitsof men and women in queer, grand costumes made of satinand velvet. She found herself i

egirls in thick satin frocks which reached to their feetand stood out about them, and boys with puffed sleevesand lace collars and long hair, or with big ruffs aroundtheir necks. She always stopped to look at the childre

ad a sharp,

live now?" said

ely no other little girl eve

wn small self, wandering about upstairsand down, through narrow passages a

must have livedin them, but it all seemed so

the handle of a door. All the doorswere shut, as Mrs. Medlock had said they

that it turned without difficulty and that when she pu

door and opened i

e wall, and inlaidfurniture such as she

nd over the mantel was another portrait of the stiff,plain li

e doors and more. She sawso many rooms that she became quite tired and beganto think that there must be a hundred, thou

of furniture and curiousorna

the hangings were all embroidered velvet, and in a cabi

or palanquins on their backs. Some were much bigger than t

door of the cabinetand stood on a footstool and played with these for quitea long ti

ed thecabinet door she heard a tiny rustling sound. It madeher jump and look around at the sofa by the fireplace,from which it seemed to come. In the corner

esbelonged to a little gray mouse, and the mouse had eaten

f therewas no one else alive in the hundred rooms

frightened I would take th

ost her way by turning down the wrong corridorand was obliged to ramble up and down until she foundthe right one; but at

d,standing still at what seemed the end of a short passag

as standing here and just after shehad said t

had heardlast night; it was only a short one, a fre

near her,and then sprang back, feeling quite startled. The tapestrywas the covering of a door which fell open and showedher that there was

aryby the arm and pulled her away. "What did I tell y

some one crying."She quite hated Mrs. Medlock

ything of the sort,"

she took her by the arm and half pushed, half pulledher up one passag

ayor you'll find yourself locked up. The master hadb

eeds some one to lo

room and slammed the door after her,and Mary

cry, but gro

ying--there was--there w

wice now, and someti

and at any rateshe had had something to amuse her all the time, and shehad played with the