Mildred's New Daughter. Finley Martha

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      The brothers exchanged glances of relief and pleasure.

      “Yes, Mr. Coote,” replied the elder Mr. Eldon, “we ourselves are wanting just such a home and caretaking for the orphan children of a deceased brother; four little ones – the eldest eight, the youngest about three years of age.”

      “Possible?” cried Coote, simulating delighted surprise, laughing in a gleeful way and rubbing his hands together with a look of great satisfaction. “Well, sirs, you may rest assured that if committed to my care and that of my estimable wife they will not long miss their departed parents, and will be trained up in so godly a manner that they will no doubt be reunited to them in a better world.”

      “Not too soon, I hope,” observed Mr. Albert dryly. “I desire them to live to years of maturity, becoming happy, honorable, and useful citizens of this free land which we have adopted as our own.”

      “Oh, certainly, sir,” responded Coote, “and I’m thinking they’ll be more likely to live and thrive in the wholesome air of the country town in which I am located than here in the city.”

      “I hope so indeed,” said the elder Mr. Eldon; “but if we trust them to you and Mrs. Coote it must be with the distinct understanding that they are to be well fed and clothed, and to receive truly parental care and affection.”

      “Oh, certainly, certainly, sir,” again responded Coote; “my wife and I will look upon and treat the poor little orphans quite as if they were our own.”

      “Better, I trust, than some people treat their own,” returned Mr. Eldon. “Well, sir, if my brother approves, we will, I think, give you an opportunity to show yourself a kind and wise guardian to these little ones who, as the offspring of our deceased brother, are very near and dear to us.”

      In reply Mr. Coote gave renewed assurances that he felt a great interest in the little orphans, and that he and his wife would be as father and mother to them, doing for them all that the best of parents could do.

      The uncles then consented to put them in his care for an indefinite period, reserving the right to remove them if at any time they saw reason to be dissatisfied with the treatment they received.

      “I certainly shall give you no occasion for it,” remarked Coote suavely; “as I have said, my wife and I will be as tender and careful of the little darlings as though, they were our own flesh and blood.”

      “How soon will you be ready for them?” asked Mr. George Eldon.

      “At once, sir, at once. And if you please I should greatly prefer to take them with me on my return this afternoon. It would save me another trip to the city, and in my circumstances that expense would count.”

      “And since the change has to be made it would perhaps be as well to make it at once,” remarked Mr. Eldon thoughtfully, adding, “I hope the poor little creatures may be happier with you, Mr. Coote, than they have been with us, if only for the simple reason that the whole four will be together; for I never saw children fonder of each other than they are.”

      “Nor I,” assented his brother; “and Ethel, young as she is, seems very like a mother to Harry and Nannette, poor child! I am really sorry to part with her. I’ll go up with you, Coote, explain matters to her, bid good-by to the whole four, and see them off.”

      Things had gone very wrong that morning with Blanche and Harry, and Ethel was nearly heartbroken over the sore punishment meted out to them by Mrs. George. That made the news her Uncle Albert brought her much less distressing than it would otherwise have been; for how, she asked herself, was it possible things could go worse anywhere than here? And it seemed a blessing indeed that she and all three of the younger ones would be together again.

      She loved Uncle Albert, clung tearfully to him for a moment when he had told her of the new arrangement, then almost cheerfully gathered together the few small possessions of herself, brother, and sisters.

      By direction of the aunts the children’s trunk had been already packed with the most of their clothing, so that it was the work of but a few minutes to get everything in readiness for their hasty departure.

      The little ones were almost dazed by the suddenness of the thing, and scarcely realized what had happened till they found themselves in the cars alone with their new and unknown guardian. Their Uncle Albert had gone with them to the train, and in bidding them good-by he laid a box of candies in Ethel’s lap, saying, “That is for you and your brother and sisters to eat on the way;” and bestowed a large, luscious orange on each, of the four.

      Ethel threw her arms about his neck and held him tight for a moment, while her sobs came thick and fast.

      “Oh, Uncle, dear Uncle Albert,” she cried chokingly, “won’t I ever see you any more?”

      “Yes, yes, dear child,” he said soothingly, “I shall run up to look at you and the others one of these days, when business grows slack; and perhaps – who knows but you’ll be back with us again some day? But there, I must go now. Be good children, all of you, and Uncle Albert won’t forget you at Christmas time.”

      And with a hasty caress bestowed on each of the others he hurried from the car.

      Ethel dried her eyes, opened the box, gave a bit of the candy to each of the other three, then seeing that Mr. Coote was eying them as though he too would like a share, she held out her box to him, asking timidly, “Will you have a piece too, sir?”

      His only reply was to seize the box, help himself to half its contents, then hand it back with a gruff, “Candy isn’t at all good for children, and if your uncle had consulted me he wouldn’t have wasted his money buying it for you.”

      “Oh, dear, that man’s got most all of our candy; and Uncle Albert said it was for us,” wailed Harry, taking a peep into the half-emptied box.

      “Be quiet, sir!” commanded Coote, turning a flushed and angry face upon the little boy.

      “Give back that candy and I’ll be quiet enough,” returned Harry sturdily.

      “What a hog of a man to be robbing those poor little children of their candy!” exclaimed a motherly-looking country woman in the next seat, apparently addressing her remark to a young girl at her side, but speaking loud enough for Coote and other near-by passengers to hear.

      The train was just starting. Coote leaned over the back of the seat, bringing his mouth near to Harry’s ear.

      “You keep quiet, you young dog,” he said savagely, “or I’ll pitch you out the window and let the train run over you and kill you.”

      “Oh, you wicked, wicked man!” cried Ethel, with a burst of tears, putting her arm round Harry and holding him close; “if you do you’ll get hung for murder.”

      “Take care, miss; it wouldn’t take long to send you after him,” was the threatening rejoinder, and Coote leaned back in his seat again, took a newspaper from his pocket, and sat looking over it while devouring with evident enjoyment the candy of which he had robbed the children.

      CHAPTER VI

      It was a lovely day early in October, and the children enjoyed gazing out upon the landscape, so new to them, the gorgeous coloring of the forest trees particularly attracting their attention. They were close together, having possession of a corner near the door of the car, where two seats at right angles gave them abundance of room to СКАЧАТЬ