CHAPTER IX.
A STRANGE LETTER AND A PROPOSED VISIT TO LONDON.
Primrose was always direct in her movements--she made up her mindquickly; from her earliest childhood she was in the habit of actingwith decision.
After her short interview with Mr. Danesfield she went straight home,and without paying any attention to the clear voice of her pet Daisy,who called to her from the garden, or to Jasmine's littleimpatient--"Sister, I want you to help me to arrange the trimming onmy new black skirt," she ran upstairs, and locked herself into hermother's room.
There she once more opened the old davenport, and took from it thethick packet, which contained a shabby little desk, inside of whichlay a letter directed to herself.
Now at last she opened the letter, and in her own great perplexityread the message from the grave.
The letter was dated about three months back, and was in her mother'sneatest and most easily read writing.
"My dear daughter," it began, "I have no present reason to supposethat my life will be cut short, therefore I cannot tell whether thisletter will be read by you now, while you are young, or years hence,when your youth is over.
"One thing I have resolved--you shall not know the little secret itcontains during my lifetime. I keep it from you, my darling, because Icould not bear you to speak of it to me, because at the time it gaveme such agony that I have locked it up in my heart, and no one, noteven my own child, must open the doors where my dead secret lies.
"Primrose, whenever I die, this letter will reach you--you will findit in the ordinary course of things in my cabinet; but even in thisletter I cannot tell you all the story--you must go to Hannah forparticulars--she has been with me all my married life, and knows asmuch as I do.
"Once, when you were a little child of only six years old, I came intothe room where you slept, and I heard her saying to you, as she tuckedyou up for the night--
"You must be very good to your mamma, Miss Primrose, for she has knowntrouble."
"Neither you nor she saw me, and you raised your dear eyes to herface, and I heard you say--
"'What is trouble, nursey Hannah?'
"'Trouble is a burden too heavy to be borne,' Hannah answered, 'butwhen you came, Missy, it went away--you were like the spring to mymissus, and that is why she called you Primrose.'
"That night I called Hannah aside, and I made the faithful creaturepromise that she would never again allude to my trouble to any of mychildren. She promised, and kept her word.
"Now, darling, you shall learn what nearly broke my heart; what wouldhave quite broken it had God not sent me my three girls.
"Primrose, something more bitter than death came to your mother. Yourfather is dead--I know where his bones lie--I know that I shall meethim again, and I don't rebel. My other trouble was far, far worse thanthat--
"Darling, you are not my eldest child--you are not the first bonnybaby who lay in my arms. Years before you were born I had a son. Oh!how can I speak of him?--he seemed to be more beautiful than any otherchild--he had ways--he had looks--Primrose, I can't go on, you mustask Hannah to tell you what my boy was like. I had him for five years,then I lost him; he did not die--he was stolen from me. Can you wondernow that your mother sometimes looks sad, and that even you andJasmine and Daisy fail now and then to make me smile?
"My bonny boy was stolen. I never saw him dead; I never could go tohis grave to put flowers there--twenty years ago now he was taken fromme, and I have had neither trace nor tidings of him.
"Hannah will tell you particulars, Primrose, for I cannot. My troublefar surpassed the bitterness of death. Only for you three, I could nothave lived--
"Your mother, "Constance Mainwaring."
Primrose had scarcely finished reading this letter, and had by nomeans taken in the full meaning of its contents, when light, softfootsteps paused outside the room, and she heard the handle of thedoor being very softly turned.
Cramming the letter into her pocket, and shutting the lid of thelittle cabinet, she ran and unlocked the door. Jasmine was standingwithout.
"I looked for you everywhere, Primrose, and I did not mean really todisturb you here; I thought you might be here, and I tried the handlevery softly, meaning to steal away again. Are you very busy,Primrose?"
"I can come with you if you want me for anything, Jasmine," answeredPrimrose, putting her hand to her head in a dazed sort of way.
Jasmine's brow cleared, and her face grew bright instantly.
"It's rather exciting," she said; "I'm so glad you can come. It isabout Poppy Jenkins--Poppy is downstairs--she is going away--she hascome to say good-bye. Do you know, Primrose, that she is actuallygoing to London?"
Jasmine looked so delighted and eager that Primrose could not helpsmiling, and taking her sister's hand, they ran downstairs together.
Poppy, who had very black eyes, cheeks with a brilliant color, andhair like a raven's wing, was standing in the drawing-room twistingher apron strings and chatting volubly to Daisy. She had known thegirls all her life, and not only loved them dearly, but respected themmuch. To Poppy Jenkins there never were three such beautiful andaltogether charming young ladies as the Misses Mainwaring.
When Primrose appeared she dropped her a curtsey--perhaps sherespected Primrose the most, and loved her the least.
"It's to say good-bye, miss," she began, "I called in, hoping for lastwords with you three dear young ladies. I is summoned to London, MissPrimrose."
Nothing could exceed the air of modest pride with which Poppy madethis declaration; she quite expected Primrose to be both startled anddazzled, and said afterwards that it was rather like a little streamof cold water trickling down her back when Miss Mainwaring repliedquietly--
"London is a long way off, Poppy--why are you going there?"
"I has an aunt in the boarding-house way, Miss Primrose--she keeps avery select establishment; and most particular; don't admit nogentlemen. It's for ladies only, aunt's boarding-house is, miss, andshe wrote to mother that it's a flourishing concern, and she wants agirl who will be honest, and handy, and country-bred, to help wait onthe ladies. She has offered the situation to me, miss, as in dutybound, I being her own niece, and mother is pleased to accept. I callsit a dazzling prospect, Miss Primrose."
"I am delighted," began Primrose; but Jasmine interrupted her."Dazzling," she repeated, "of course it is dazzling, Poppy. I am sovery glad you are going. I only wish I were going. If there is awonderful, delightful, charming place, it is London. I have read aboutit, and I have dreamed about it, and I have pictured it. What fun youwill have! Of course your aunt will take you to see all the sights.Oh, do sit down. Primrose, we ought to tell her about the places sheshould see, ought we not?"
Primrose nodded, and Poppy dropped on to the edge of the nearestchair, and, clasping her red and hard-worked hands in front of her,prepared herself to listen.
"First of all, Poppy," began Jasmine, after waiting for her sister tospeak; but Primrose was strangely silent.
"First of all, Poppy, you must go to the places which improve yourmind; now, I do hope you are not going to be giddy, running just afterpretty things; but I suppose your aunt, who is so wise, and who keepsthe boarding-house, will see to that. Well, first of all you hadbetter go to Westminster Abbey. Oh, Poppy! I have read such gloriousdescriptions of it--the lights from the painted windows--thewonderfully ancient look of the old pillars, and then the music; itpeals down the aisles and echoes through the fretted roofs; you willbe greatly overpowered at Westminster Abbey, Poppy; but you mustremember that you are a very privileged person, and be thankful forbeing permitted to see with your own eyes such a lovely, lovely,glorious place!"
"It do sound, from your description, very awe-inspiring, MissJasmine," answered Poppy. "Is there no other place where one might getmore, so to speak, into the festive mood, miss?"
"Oh yes, you silly Poppy, lots and lots; but we'll come to thosepresently. You'll have to see the Houses of Parliament, where our lawsare made--if y
ou don't feel grave there, you ought. Then you mustvisit the Tower, where people's heads were cut off--it's very solemnindeed at the Tower; and, of course, you will pay a visit to the Zoo,and you can see the lions fed, and you can look at the monkey-house."
"I likes monkeys," said Poppy, whose face had been growing graver andgraver while Jasmine was talking; "and if you'll throw in a little bitof gazing into shop windows, Miss Jasmine, and learning the newestcuts of a bonnet, and the most genteel fit of a mantle, why, then,I'll do even that dreadful Tower, as in duty bound. My mother callsLondon a vast sea and a world of temptation, and nothing but vanityfrom end to end; but when I thinks of the beautiful ladies in aunt'sboarding-house, and of the shop windows I feels that it is dazzling."
"I wish that I were going," repeated Jasmine, whose cheeks wereflushed, and her starry eyes brighter than usual; "I wish I weregoing. Oh, Primrose, think of you, and Daisy, and me saying ourprayers in the Abbey!"
"We must not think of it," said Primrose; "God hears our prayerswherever we say them, Jasmine, darling."
"Yes," answered Jasmine; "and I am not going to complain. Well, Poppy,you are a very lucky girl, and I hope you'll be as good as gold, andas happy as the day is long."
"And if ever you does come to London, Miss Jasmine," said Poppy, risingto her feet, "you'll remember aunt's boarding-house, for ladies only;and proud I'll be to wait on you, miss."
"But we can't come, Poppy dear--we are very poor now--we have only gotthirty pounds a year to live on."
To Poppy, who had never been known in her life to possess thirtypence, this sum sounded by no means modest.
"Might I make bold to inquire, miss," she asked, "if the thirty poundsis once for all, or if it's a yearly recurrence?"
"Oh, it's an income, Poppy--how stupid you are!"
"Then I'll consult my aunt in town, miss, and try to find out if youthree dear young ladies couldn't contrive a London visit out of partof the savings."
After this sapient speech Poppy bade the Mainwarings good-bye. Theylooked after her retreating form down the street with many regrets,for they were very fond of her, and Jasmine at least envied her.