Anne Shirley (Complete 14 Book Collection). Люси Мод Монтгомери

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СКАЧАТЬ the fun he can before he begins to be a minister, ‘cause he doesn’t expect to have much afterwards. I ain’t going to be a minister. I’m going to be a storekeeper, like Mr. Blair, and keep heaps of candy and bananas. But I’d rather like going to your kind of a heaven if they’d let me play a mouth organ instead of a harp. Do you s’pose they would?”

      “Yes, I think they would if you wanted it,” was all Anne could trust herself to say.

      The A.V.I.S. met at Mr. Harmon Andrews’ that evening and a full attendance had been requested, since important business was to be discussed. The A.V.I.S. was in a flourishing condition, and had already accomplished wonders. Early in the spring Mr. Major Spencer had redeemed his promise and had stumped, graded, and seeded down all the road front of his farm. A dozen other men, some prompted by a determination not to let a Spencer get ahead of them, others goaded into action by Improvers in their own households, had followed his example. The result was that there were long strips of smooth velvet turf where once had been unsightly undergrowth or brush. The farm fronts that had not been done looked so badly by contrast that their owners were secretly shamed into resolving to see what they could do another spring. The triangle of ground at the cross roads had also been cleared and seeded down, and Anne’s bed of geraniums, unharmed by any marauding cow, was already set out in the center.

      Altogether, the Improvers thought that they were getting on beautifully, even if Mr. Levi Boulter, tactfully approached by a carefully selected committee in regard to the old house on his upper farm, did bluntly tell them that he wasn’t going to have it meddled with.

      At this especial meeting they intended to draw up a petition to the school trustees, humbly praying that a fence be put around the school grounds; and a plan was also to be discussed for planting a few ornamental trees by the church, if the funds of the society would permit of it … for, as Anne said, there was no use in starting another subscription as long as the hall remained blue. The members were assembled in the Andrews’ parlor and Jane was already on her feet to move the appointment of a committee which should find out and report on the price of said trees, when Gertie Pye swept in, pompadoured and frilled within an inch of her life. Gertie had a habit of being late … “to make her entrance more effective,” spiteful people said. Gertie’s entrance in this instance was certainly effective, for she paused dramatically on the middle of the floor, threw up her hands, rolled her eyes, and exclaimed, “I’ve just heard something perfectly awful. What DO you think? Mr. Judson Parker IS GOING TO RENT ALL THE ROAD FENCE OF HIS FARM TO A PATENT MEDICINE COMPANY TO PAINT ADVERTISEMENTS ON.”

      For once in her life Gertie Pye made all the sensation she desired. If she had thrown a bomb among the complacent Improvers she could hardly have made more.

      “It CAN’T be true,” said Anne blankly.

      “That’s just what I said when I heard it first, don’t you know,” said Gertie, who was enjoying herself hugely. “I said it couldn’t be true … that Judson Parker wouldn’t have the HEART to do it, don’t you know. But father met him this afternoon and asked him about it and he said it WAS true. Just fancy! His farm is side-on to the Newbridge road and how perfectly awful it will look to see advertisements of pills and plasters all along it, don’t you know?”

      The Improvers DID know, all too well. Even the least imaginative among them could picture the grotesque effect of half a mile of board fence adorned with such advertisements. All thought of church and school grounds vanished before this new danger. Parliamentary rules and regulations were forgotten, and Anne, in despair, gave up trying to keep minutes at all. Everybody talked at once and fearful was the hubbub.

      “Oh, let us keep calm,” implored Anne, who was the most excited of them all, “and try to think of some way of preventing him.”

      “I don’t know how you’re going to prevent him,” exclaimed Jane bitterly. “Everybody knows what Judson Parker is. He’d do ANYTHING for money. He hasn’t a SPARK of public spirit or ANY sense of the beautiful.”

      The prospect looked rather unpromising. Judson Parker and his sister were the only Parkers in Avonlea, so that no leverage could be exerted by family connections. Martha Parker was a lady of all too certain age who disapproved of young people in general and the Improvers in particular. Judson was a jovial, smooth-spoken man, so uniformly goodnatured and bland that it was surprising how few friends he had. Perhaps he had got the better in too many business transactions… which seldom makes for popularity. He was reputed to be very “sharp” and it was the general opinion that he “hadn’t much principle.”

      “If Judson Parker has a chance to ‘turn an honest penny,’ as he says himself, he’ll never lose it,” declared Fred Wright.

      “Is there NOBODY who has any influence over him?” asked Anne despairingly.

      “He goes to see Louisa Spencer at White Sands,” suggested Carrie Sloane. “Perhaps she could coax him not to rent his fences.”

      “Not she,” said Gilbert emphatically. “I know Louisa Spencer well. She doesn’t ‘believe’ in Village Improvement Societies, but she DOES believe in dollars and cents. She’d be more likely to urge Judson on than to dissuade him.”

      “The only thing to do is to appoint a committee to wait on him and protest,” said Julia Bell, “and you must send girls, for he’d hardly be civil to boys … but I won’t go, so nobody need nominate me.”

      “Better send Anne alone,” said Oliver Sloane. “She can talk Judson over if anybody can.”

      Anne protested. She was willing to go and do the talking; but she must have others with her “for moral support.” Diana and Jane were therefore appointed to support her morally and the Improvers broke up, buzzing like angry bees with indignation. Anne was so worried that she didn’t sleep until nearly morning, and then she dreamed that the trustees had put a fence around the school and painted “Try Purple Pills” all over it.

      The committee waited on Judson Parker the next afternoon. Anne pleaded eloquently against his nefarious design and Jane and Diana supported her morally and valiantly. Judson was sleek, suave, flattering; paid them several compliments of the delicacy of sunflowers; felt real bad to refuse such charming young ladies … but business was business; couldn’t afford to let sentiment stand in the way these hard times.

      “But I’ll tell what I WILL do,” he said, with a twinkle in his light, full eyes. “I’ll tell the agent he must use only handsome, tasty colors … red and yellow and so on. I’ll tell him he mustn’t paint the ads BLUE on any account.”

      The vanquished committee retired, thinking things not lawful to be uttered.

      “We have done all we can do and must simply trust the rest to Providence,” said Jane, with an unconscious imitation of Mrs. Lynde’s tone and manner.

      “I wonder if Mr. Allan could do anything,” reflected Diana.

      Anne shook her head.

      “No, it’s no use to worry Mr. Allan, especially now when the baby’s so sick. Judson would slip away from him as smoothly as from us, although he HAS taken to going to church quite regularly just now. That is simply because Louisa Spencer’s father is an elder and very particular about such things.”

      “Judson Parker is the only man in Avonlea who would dream of renting his fences,” said Jane indignantly. “Even Levi Boulter or Lorenzo White would never stoop to that, tightfisted as they are. They would have too much respect for public opinion.”

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