Поллианна / Pollyanna. Элинор Портер

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СКАЧАТЬ a moment Pollyanna stood quite still. Then she turned her wide eyes to the bare wall, the bare floor, the bare windows and fell on her knees, covering her face with her hands.

      Nancy found her there when she came up a few minutes later.

      “There, there, you, poor lamb,[18]” she crooned, drawing the little girl into her arms.

      “Oh, Nancy, I’m so wicked,” she sobbed. “I just can’t understand why God and the angels need my father more than I do.”

      “There, there, child, let’s have your key and we’ll get inside this trunk and take out your dresses.”

      Pollyanna produced the key.

      “There aren’t very many there,” she faltered.

      “Then they’re all soon be unpacked,” declared Nancy.

      “It’s such a nice room! Don’t you think so?” Pollyanna stammered.

      There was no answer. Nancy was very busy with the trunk.

      “And I can be glad there isn’t any looking-glass here, too, because where there ISN’T any glass I can’t see my freckles.”

      A few minutes later, Pollyanna clapped her hands joyously.

      “Oh, Nancy, look at these trees and the houses and that lovely church spire, and the river. Oh, I’m so glad now she let me have this room!”

      To Pollyanna’s surprise, Nancy burst into tears.

      “Why, Nancy – what is it?” she cried; “This wasn’t – YOUR room, was it?”

      “My room!” stormed Nancy. “You are a little angel straight from Heaven!”

      After that Nancy sprang to her feet and went down the stairs.

      Left alone, Pollyanna went back to her “picture,” as she mentally designated the beautiful view from the window. The next moment she opened the window. She ran then to the other window and opened it too. Then Pollyanna made a wonderful discovery – against this window there was a huge tree. Suddenly she laughed aloud.

      “I believe I can do it,” she chuckled. The next moment she climbed to the window ledge. From there it was easy to step to the nearest tree-branch. Then she reached the lowest branch and dropped to the ground.

      She was at the back of the house. Then Pollyanna reached the path that ran through the open field.

      Fifteen minutes later the great clock struck six. At the last stroke Nancy sounded the bell for supper.

      One, two, three minutes passed. Miss Polly frowned. She rose to her feet, went into the hall, and looked upstairs. For a minute she listened; then she turned and went to the dining room.

      “Nancy,” she said, “my niece is late. You need not call her,” she added. “I told her what time supper was, and now she will have to suffer the consequences.[19] She must learn to be punctual. When she comes she may have bread and milk in the kitchen.”

      “Yes, ma’am.”

      At the possible moment after supper, Nancy crept up to the attic room.

      She softly pushed open the door. The next moment she gave a frightened cry. “Where are you?” she panted, and flew to Old Tom in the garden.

      “Mr. Tom, Mr. Tom, that blessed child’s gone,[20]” she cried.

      The old man stopped, straightened up and pointed at the slender figure on top of a huge rock.

      Chapter V. The Game

      “Miss Pollyanna, what a scare you did give me,[21]” panted Nancy, hurrying up to the big rock.

      “Scare? Oh, I’m so sorry; but you mustn’t, really, ever get scared about me, Nancy,” said Pollyanna and slid down the rock.

      “I didn’t see you go, and nobody didn’t. I guess you flew right up through the roof; I do, I do. Poor little lamb, you must be hungry, too. I–I’m afraid you’ll have to have bread and milk in the kitchen with me. Your aunt didn’t like it – because you didn’t come down to supper.”

      “But I couldn’t. I was up here. But I’m glad.”

      “Glad! Why?”

      “I like bread and milk, and I’d like to eat with you. I don’t see any trouble about being glad about that.”

      “You don’t seem to see any trouble being glad about everything,” retorted Nancy.

      Pollyanna laughed softly.

      “Well, that’s the game, you know, anyway.”

      “The – GAME?”

      “Yes; the ‘just being glad’ game.[22]”

      “Whatever in the world are you talking about?”

      “Why, it’s a game. Father told it to me, and it’s lovely. We’ve played it always, ever since I was a little, little girl. I told the Ladies’ Aid, and they played it – some of them… Only sometimes it’s almost too hard especially when your father goes to Heaven… I suppose, though, it’ll be a little harder now, as long as I haven’t anybody to play it with. Maybe Aunt Polly will play it, though,” she added.

      “See here, Miss Pollyanna, I’m not sure that I’ll play it very well, and I don’t know how but I’ll play it with you, I will!”

      “Oh, Nancy! That’ll be splendid!”

      “Maybe,” said Nancy, in open doubt. “You mustn’t count too much[23] on me but I’ll try to play it with you,” she finished, as they entered the kitchen together.

      Pollyanna ate her bread and milk with good appetite and went into the sitting room, where her aunt sat reading. Miss Polly looked up coldly.

      “Have you had your supper, Pollyanna?”

      “Yes, Aunt Polly.”

      “I’m very sorry, Pollyanna, to have been obliged so soon to send you into the kitchen to eat bread and milk.[24]”

      “But I was really glad you did it, Aunt Polly. I like bread and milk, and Nancy, too. You mustn’t feel bad about that.”

      Aunt Polly sat suddenly a little more erect in her chair.

      “Pollyanna, go to bed. It was a hard day, and tomorrow we must plan your hours and go over your clothing to see what it is necessary to get for you. Nancy will give you a candle. Breakfast will be at half-past seven. Good night.”

      Pollyanna came straight to her aunt’s СКАЧАТЬ