Understood Betsy Read online

  CHAPTER IV

  BETSY GOES TO SCHOOL

  Elizabeth Ann was very much surprised to hear Cousin Ann's voicecalling, "Dinner!" down the stairs. It did not seem possible that thewhole morning had gone by. "Here," said Aunt Abigail, "just put that paton a plate, will you, and take it upstairs as you go. I've got all I cando to haul my own two hundred pounds up, without any half-pound ofbutter into the bargain." The little girl smiled at this, though she didnot exactly know why, and skipped up the stairs proudly with her butter.

  Dinner was smoking on the table, which was set in the midst of the greatpool of sunlight. A very large black-and-white dog, with a great bushytail, was walking around and around the table, sniffing the air. Helooked as big as a bear to Elizabeth Ann; and as he walked his great redtongue hung out of his mouth and his white teeth gleamed horribly.Elizabeth Ann shrank back in terror, clutching her plate of butter toher breast with tense fingers. Cousin. Ann said, over her shoulder: "Oh,bother! There's old Shep, got up to pester us begging for scraps! Shep!You go and lie down this minute!" To Elizabeth Ann's astonishment andimmense relief, the great animal turned, drooping his head sadly, walkedback across the floor, got upon the couch again, and laid his head downon one paw very forlornly, turning up the whites of his eyes meekly atCousin Ann.

  Aunt Abigail, who had just pulled herself up the stairs, panting, said,between laughing and puffing: "I'm glad I'm not an animal on this farm.Ann does boss them around so." "Well, SOMEbody has to!" said Cousin Ann,advancing on the table with a platter. This proved to have chickenfricassee on it, and Elizabeth Ann's heart melted in her at the smell.She loved chicken gravy on hot biscuits beyond anything in the world,but chickens are so expensive when you buy them in the market that AuntHarriet hadn't had them very often for dinner. And there was a plate ofbiscuits, golden brown, just coming out of the oven! She sat down veryquickly, her mouth watering, and attacked with extreme haste the bigplateful of food which Cousin Ann passed her.

  At Aunt Harriet's she had always been aware that everybody watched heranxiously as she ate, and she had heard so much about her light appetitethat she felt she must live up to her reputation, and had a very naturaland human hesitation about eating all she wanted when there happened tobe something she liked very much. But nobody here knew that she "onlyate enough to keep a bird alive," and that her "appetite was SOcapricious!" Nor did anybody notice her while she stowed away thechicken and gravy and hot biscuits and currant jelly and baked potatoesand apple pie--when did Elizabeth Ann ever eat such a meal before! Sheactually felt her belt grow tight.

  In the middle of the meal Cousin Ann got up to answer the telephone,which was in the next room. The instant the door had closed behind herUncle Henry leaned forward, tapped Elizabeth Ann on the shoulder, andnodded toward the sofa. His eyes were twinkling, and as for Aunt Abigailshe began to laugh silently, shaking all over, her napkin at her mouthto stifle the sound. Elizabeth Ann turned wonderingly and saw the olddog cautiously and noiselessly letting himself down from the sofa, oneear cocked rigidly in the direction of Cousin Ann's voice in the nextroom. "The old tyke!" said Uncle Henry. "He always sneaks up to thetable to be fed if Ann goes out for a minute. Here, Betsy, you'renearest, give him this piece of skin from the chicken neck." The big dogpadded forward across the room, evidently in such a state of terrorabout Cousin Ann that Elizabeth Ann felt for him. She had afellow-feeling about that relative of hers. Also it was impossible to beafraid of so abjectly meek and guilty an animal. As old Shep came up toher, poking his nose inquiringly on her lap, she shrinkingly held outthe big piece of skin, and though she jumped back at the sudden snap andgobbling gulp with which the old dog greeted the tidbit, she could notbut sympathize with his evident enjoyment of it. He waved his bushy tailgratefully, cocked his head on one side, and, his ears standing up atattention, his eyes glistening greedily, he gave a little, beggingwhine. "Oh, he's asking for more!" cried Elizabeth Ann, surprised to seehow plainly she could understand dog-talk. "Quick, Uncle Henry, give meanother piece!"

  Uncle Henry rapidly transferred to her plate a wing-bone from his own,and Aunt Abigail, with one deft swoop, contributed the neck from theplatter. As fast as she could, Elizabeth Ann fed these to Shep, whowoofed them down at top speed, the bones crunching loudly under hisstrong, white teeth. How he did enjoy it! It did your heart good to seehis gusto!

  "Oh, he's asking for more'" cried Elizabeth Ann]

  There was the sound of the telephone receiver being hung up in the nextroom--and everybody acted at once. Aunt Abigail began drinkinginnocently out of her coffee-cup, only her laughing old eyes showingover the rim; Uncle Henry buttered a slice of bread with a grave face,as though he were deep in conjectures about who would be the nextPresident; and as for old Shep, he made one plunge across the room, histoe-nails clicking rapidly on the bare floor, sprang up on the couch,and when Cousin Ann opened the door and came in he was lying in exactlythe position in which she had left him, his paw stretched out, his headlaid on it, his brown eyes turned up meekly so that the whites showed.

  I've told you what these three did, but I haven't told you yet whatElizabeth Ann did. And it is worth telling. As Cousin Ann stepped in,glancing suspiciously from her sober-faced and abstracted parents to thelamb-like innocence of old Shep, little Elizabeth Ann burst into a shoutof laughter. It's worth telling about, because, so far as I know, thatwas the first time she had ever laughed out heartily in all her life.For my part, I'm half surprised to know that she knew how.

  Of course, when she laughed, Aunt Abigail had to laugh too, setting downher coffee-cup and showing all the funny wrinkles in her face screwed uphard with fun; and that made Uncle Henry laugh, and then Cousin Annlaughed and said, as she sat down, "You are bad children, the whole fourof you!" And old Shep, seeing the state of things, stopped pretending tobe meek, jumped down, and came lumbering over to the table, wagging histail and laughing too; you know that good, wide dog-smile! He put hishead on Elizabeth Ann's lap again and she patted it and lifted up one ofhis big black ears. She had quite forgotten that she was terribly afraidof big dogs.

  After dinner Cousin Ann looked up at the clock and said: "My goodness!Betsy'll be late for school if she doesn't start right off." Sheexplained to the child, aghast at this sudden thunderclap, "I let yousleep this morning as long as you wanted to, because you were so tiredfrom your journey. But of course there's no reason for missing theafternoon session."

  As Elizabeth Ann continued sitting perfectly still, frozen with alarm,Cousin Ann jumped up briskly, got the little coat and cap, helped herup, and began inserting the child's arms into the sleeves. She pulledthe cap well down over Elizabeth Ann's ears, felt in the pocket andpulled out the mittens. "There," she said, holding them out, "you'dbetter put them on before you go out, for it's a real cold day." As sheled the stupefied little girl along toward the door Aunt Abigail cameafter them and put a big sugar-cookie into the child's hand. "Maybeyou'll like to eat that for your recess time," she said. "I always didwhen I went to school."

  Elizabeth Ann's hand closed automatically about the cookie, but shescarcely heard what was said. She felt herself to be in a bad dream.Aunt Frances had never, no NEVER, let her go to school alone, and on thefirst day of the year always took her to the new teacher and introducedher and told the teacher how sensitive she was and how hard tounderstand; and then she stayed there for an hour or two till ElizabethAnn got used to things! She could not face a whole new school allalone--oh, she couldn't, she wouldn't! She couldn't! Horrors! Here shewas in the front hall--she was on the porch! Cousin Ann was saying: "Nowrun along, child. Straight down the road till the first turn to theleft, and there in the cross-roads, there you are." And now the frontdoor closed behind her, the path stretched before her to the road, andthe road led down the hill the way Cousin Ann had pointed. ElizabethAnn's feet began to move forward and carried her down the path, althoughshe was still crying out to herself, "I can't! I won't! I can't!"

  Are you wondering why Elizabeth Ann didn't turn right aro
und, open thefront door, walk in, and say, "I can't! I won't! I can't!" to CousinAnn?

  The answer to that question is that she didn't do it because Cousin Annwas Cousin Ann. And there's more in that than you think! In fact, thereis a mystery in it that nobody has ever solved, not even the greatestscientists and philosophers, although, like all scientists andphilosophers, they think they have gone a long way toward explainingsomething they don't understand by calling it a long name. The long nameis "personality," and what it means nobody knows, but it is perhaps thevery most important thing in the world for all that. And yet we knowonly one or two things about it. We know that anybody's personality ismade up of the sum total of all the actions and thoughts and desires ofhis life. And we know that though there aren't any words or any figuresin any language to set down that sum total accurately, still it is oneof the first things that everybody knows about anybody else. And that isreally all we know!

  So I can't tell you why Elizabeth Ann did not go back and cry and soband say she couldn't and she wouldn't and she couldn't, as she wouldcertainly have done at Aunt Harriet's. You remember that I could noteven tell you why it was that, as the little fatherless and motherlessgirl lay in bed looking at Aunt Abigail's old face, she should feel socomforted and protected that she must needs break out crying. No, all Ican say is that it was because Aunt Abigail was Aunt Abigail. Butperhaps it may occur to you that it's rather a good idea to keep a sharpeye on your "personality," whatever that is! It might be very handy, youknow, to have a personality like Cousin Ann's which sent Elizabeth Ann'sfeet down the path; or perhaps you would prefer one like Aunt Abigail's.Well, take your choice.

  You must not, of course, think for a moment that Elizabeth Ann had theslightest INTENTION of obeying Cousin Ann. No indeed! Nothing wasfarther from her mind as her feet carried her along the path and intothe road. In her mind was nothing but rebellion and fear and anger andoh, such hurt feelings! She turned sick at the very thought of facingall the staring, curious faces in the playground turned on the newscholar as she had seen them at home! She would never, never do it! Shewould walk around all the afternoon, and then go back and tell CousinAnn that she couldn't! She would EXPLAIN to her how Aunt Frances neverlet her go out of doors without a loving hand to cling to. She wouldEXPLAIN to her how Aunt Frances always took care of her! ... it was easierto think about what she would say and do and explain, away from CousinAnn, than it was to say and do it before those black eyes. AuntFrances's eyes were soft, light blue.

  Oh, how she wanted Aunt Frances to take care of her! Nobody cared athing about her! Nobody UNDERSTOOD her but Aunt Frances! She wouldn't goback at all to Putney Farm. She would just walk on and on till she waslost, and the night would come and she would lie down and freeze todeath, and then wouldn't Cousin Ann feel ... Someone called to her,"Isn't this Betsy?"

  She looked up astonished. A young girl in a gingham dress and a whiteapron like those at Putney Farm stood in front of a tiny, squarebuilding, like a toy house. "Isn't this Betsy?" asked the young girlagain. "Your Cousin Ann said you were coming to school today and I'vebeen looking out for you. But I saw you going right by, and I ran out tostop you."

  "Why, where IS the school?" asked Betsy, staring around for a big brick,four-story building.

  The young girl laughed and held out her hand. "This is the school," shesaid, "and I am the teacher, and you'd better come right in, for it'stime to begin."

  She led Betsy into a low-ceilinged room with geraniums at the windows,where about a dozen children of different ages sat behind their desks.At the first sight of them Betsy blushed crimson with fright andshyness, and hung down her head; but, looking out the corners of hereyes, she saw that they, too, were all very red-faced and scared-lookingand hung down their heads, looking at her shyly out of the corners oftheir eyes. She was so surprised by this that she forgot all aboutherself and looked inquiringly at the teacher.

  "They don't see many strangers," the teacher explained, "and they feelvery shy and scared when a new scholar comes, especially one from thecity."

  "Is this my grade?" asked Elizabeth, thinking it the very smallest gradeshe had ever seen.

  "This is the whole school," said the teacher. "There are only two orthree in each class. You'll probably have three in yours. Miss Ann saidyou were in the third grade. There, that's your seat."

  Elizabeth sat down before a very old desk, much battered and hacked upwith knife marks. There was a big H. P. carved just over the inkwell,and many other initials scattered all over the top.

  The teacher stepped back to her desk and took up a violin that laythere. "Now, children, we'll begin the afternoon session by singing'America,'" she said. She played the air over a little very sweetly andstirringly, and then as the children stood up she came down close tothem, standing just in front of Betsy. She drew the bow across thestrings in a big chord, and said, "NOW," and Betsy burst into song withthe others. The sun came in the windows brightly, the teacher, too, sangas she played, and all the children, even the littlest ones, openedtheir mouths wide and sang lustily.