CHAPTER II. OLD TOM AND NANCY
In the little attic room Nancy swept and scrubbed vigorously, payingparticular attention to the corners. There were times, indeed, when thevigor she put into her work was more of a relief to her feelings thanit was an ardor to efface dirt--Nancy, in spite of her frightenedsubmission to her mistress, was no saint.
"I--just--wish--I could--dig--out the corners--of--her--soul!" shemuttered jerkily, punctuating her words with murderous jabs of herpointed cleaning-stick. "There's plenty of 'em needs cleanin' all right,all right! The idea of stickin' that blessed child 'way off up here inthis hot little room--with no fire in the winter, too, and all this bighouse ter pick and choose from! Unnecessary children, indeed! Humph!"snapped Nancy, wringing her rag so hard her fingers ached from thestrain; "I guess it ain't CHILDREN what is MOST unnecessary just now,just now!"
For some time she worked in silence; then, her task finished, she lookedabout the bare little room in plain disgust.
"Well, it's done--my part, anyhow," she sighed. "There ain't no dirthere--and there's mighty little else. Poor little soul!--a pretty placethis is ter put a homesick, lonesome child into!" she finished, goingout and closing the door with a bang, "Oh!" she ejaculated, bitingher lip. Then, doggedly: "Well, I don't care. I hope she did hear thebang,--I do, I do!"
In the garden that afternoon, Nancy found a few minutes in which tointerview Old Tom, who had pulled the weeds and shovelled the pathsabout the place for uncounted years.
"Mr. Tom," began Nancy, throwing a quick glance over her shoulder tomake sure she was unobserved; "did you know a little girl was comin'here ter live with Miss Polly?"
"A--what?" demanded the old man, straightening his bent back withdifficulty.
"A little girl--to live with Miss Polly."
"Go on with yer jokin'," scoffed unbelieving Tom. "Why don't ye tell methe sun is a-goin' ter set in the east ter-morrer?"
"But it's true. She told me so herself," maintained Nancy. "It's herniece; and she's eleven years old."
The man's jaw fell.
"Sho!--I wonder, now," he muttered; then a tender light came into hisfaded eyes. "It ain't--but it must be--Miss Jennie's little gal! Therewasn't none of the rest of 'em married. Why, Nancy, it must be MissJennie's little gal. Glory be ter praise! ter think of my old eyesa-seein' this!"
"Who was Miss Jennie?"
"She was an angel straight out of Heaven," breathed the man, fervently;"but the old master and missus knew her as their oldest daughter. Shewas twenty when she married and went away from here long years ago. Herbabies all died, I heard, except the last one; and that must be the onewhat's a-comin'."
"She's eleven years old."
"Yes, she might be," nodded the old man.
"And she's goin' ter sleep in the attic--more shame ter HER!" scoldedNancy, with another glance over her shoulder toward the house behindher.
Old Tom frowned. The next moment a curious smile curved his lips.
"I'm a-wonderin' what Miss Polly will do with a child in the house," hesaid.
"Humph! Well, I'm a-wonderin' what a child will do with Miss Polly inthe house!" snapped Nancy.
The old man laughed.
"I'm afraid you ain't fond of Miss Polly," he grinned.
"As if ever anybody could be fond of her!" scorned Nancy.
Old Tom smiled oddly. He stooped and began to work again.
"I guess maybe you didn't know about Miss Polly's love affair," he saidslowly.
"Love affair--HER! No!--and I guess nobody else didn't, neither."
"Oh, yes they did," nodded the old man. "And the feller's livin'ter-day--right in this town, too."
"Who is he?"
"I ain't a-tellin' that. It ain't fit that I should." The old man drewhimself erect. In his dim blue eyes, as he faced the house, there wasthe loyal servant's honest pride in the family he has served and lovedfor long years.
"But it don't seem possible--her and a lover," still maintained Nancy.
Old Tom shook his head.
"You didn't know Miss Polly as I did," he argued. "She used ter be realhandsome--and she would be now, if she'd let herself be."
"Handsome! Miss Polly!"
"Yes. If she'd just let that tight hair of hern all out loose andcareless-like, as it used ter be, and wear the sort of bunnits withposies in 'em, and the kind o' dresses all lace and white things--you'dsee she'd be handsome! Miss Polly ain't old, Nancy."
"Ain't she, though? Well, then she's got an awfully good imitation ofit--she has, she has!" sniffed Nancy.
"Yes, I know. It begun then--at the time of the trouble with her lover,"nodded Old Tom; "and it seems as if she'd been feedin' on wormwood an'thistles ever since--she's that bitter an' prickly ter deal with."
"I should say she was," declared Nancy, indignantly. "There's nopleasin' her, nohow, no matter how you try! I wouldn't stay if 'twa'n'tfor the wages and the folks at home what's needin' 'em. But someday--some day I shall jest b'ile over; and when I do, of course it'll begood-by Nancy for me. It will, it will."
Old Tom shook his head.
"I know. I've felt it. It's nart'ral--but 'tain't best, child; 'tain'tbest. Take my word for it, 'tain't best." And again he bent his old headto the work before him.
"Nancy!" called a sharp voice.
"Y-yes, ma'am," stammered Nancy; and hurried toward the house.