CHAPTER XV--THE FOUNDLING
The sad story told the girls, about their friend Mr. Dalken, filled themwith love and compassion for the great-hearted man, and they wonderedhow they could do _something_ for him that would not only show theirappreciation of his kindness to them, but at the same time give himpleasure or happiness. But there seemed no material thing that heneeded, and really, nothing that one could do for him.
"There must be times when he sits alone brooding over his boy and howdifferent things might have been had he married a different type ofwoman," remarked Eleanor, one evening, after leaving their newclass-room.
"Yes; but it seems to me he should have been able to see through such ashallow thing as that woman must have been, when he returned fromcollege and found her apparently waiting for him," Polly replied.
"But he's so tender-hearted, you see, he couldn't bear to give her anypain or trouble. That must have been the only reason why he allowed herto get him."
"I suppose so. Why, even now, he is an easy prey to the scheming peoplewho know he has barrels of money, and who simply pretend to be friendlyfor what they can get out of him."
"It's too bad he can't be satisfied with just Mr. Ashby and Mr. Fabianfor man friends, and we few women for his women friends," mused Eleanor."We'd love him for himself."
Polly smiled. "Wouldn't you and I give him a gay time--with high-schoolkeeping us employed every week-day, and art class every other night inthe week, to say nothing of lectures, exhibitions, and other things thatMr. Fabian has us do, in line with our work."
The two girls had crossed Madison and Fourth avenues by this time, andwere slowly walking down the street towards the Studio. It was abeautiful Fall night, and the moon was almost full, hence they were inno hurry to reach home and go indoors.
"I hear Anne singing--she must have company," said Polly as they nearedthe house.
HE WAS A CHUBBY LITTLE FELLOW.]
"Yes; the windows are open in the living-room, and I can peep under theshades and see Anne at the piano," whispered Eleanor.
Just then the breeze wafted one of the shades back from the window, andthe girls recognised Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Latimer as the guests of Anne.
"Let's hurry in!" exclaimed Eleanor, suddenly turning from the frontwindow and darting into the vestibule.
The outside door was open wide, and as Eleanor ran up the one step thatraised the tiled entrance from the sidewalk, she stumbled over a softbundle that seemed pushed against the wall.
By this time, Polly also reached the vestibule, but the inside doorbeing closed and locked for protection, it was too dark in the vestibulefor either of the girls to see what the huge bundle contained.
"It feels like a bundle of old clothes. Maybe some servant hid it herefor a time--she may be going to come back for it," observed Eleanor,prodding the bundle with her foot.
But to the surprise of both girls, a little squeal issued from the roll.In the semi-darkness, they stood spell-bound and gazed at each other.
"It's a baby--of all things!" cried Polly, hastily trying the handle ofthe door.
"Ring--ring the bell like mad. I'll pick it up!" Eleanor exclaimed,excitably.
"Open the door--Anne--hurry up! We've found a baby!" called Polly,leaning over the iron rail that projected over the area door, in frontof the windows.
Both girls forgot that they had latch keys, but Mrs. Evans sat nearestthe window where Polly stood, and quickly answered her call. Eleanor,meanwhile, had carefully picked up the rolled-up baby and, the momentthe door was flung open, carried it indoors.
"Where did you find it?" exclaimed four amazed women.
"Right at our door--in the vestibule," said Eleanor, placing her bundleon the divan and proceeding to open it.
"Wasn't anyone in sight?" asked Mrs. Latimer, cautiously.
"Not that we noticed; but, of course, we never thought to look, when wefound what was in the bundle," explained Polly, nervously eager toassist Eleanor in what she was doing.
Before the swaddling blankets were released from the baby, it began toutter baby-talk. The females, grouped closely in front of the divan,smiled appreciatively.
Finally the last wrapper, which was of mosquito netting, came off, andthere lay a chubby little fellow of about fifteen months. He had a fistin his mouth, and with the other dimpled hand he clutched at Polly'shair as she leaned over him.
"Oh! Isn't he a darling! He must belong to a neighbor!" exclaimed Mrs.Stewart.
"He certainly is not starved or poorly cared for," added Mrs. Evans,with experienced voice.
"But he only has on his nightie! Not another stitch to be found," saidAnne, carefully rolling the baby over to see if he had any clothes underhim.
"There's a note--pinned on the blanket!" cried Polly, anxiously removingthe pin and taking the paper over to the light.
"It says--just one word--'Billy.' Did you ever!" exclaimed Polly,glancing from one to the other of the friends who were waitingexpectantly to hear about the boy.
"Let's see!" demanded Eleanor, frowning at such a short explanation.
Polly handed the slip of paper to her friend and joined Anne at thedivan where she was divesting the boy of his nightie to see if furtherclues might be found. About his fat neck was a very fine gold chain, andsuspended from that was a tiny flat heart-shaped locket. It did notopen, but on the plain gold face was a monogram of three letters: B--D-- W--.
"Now we've got something to work on! 'B' stands for Billy, of course,but what can 'D' and 'W' mean?" Eleanor said excitedly.
"No child is christened 'Billy,'" Anne contradicted. "He would be'William'--and that is what the 'W' is for. Children are nicknamed'Billy' or 'Willy' later. Now his middle and last name must begin withthe 'B' and 'D'--or vice versa."
"Shake out the blankets carefully--perhaps another paper is pinned toone of them," said Polly, eagerly.
But there was no other message in the blankets.
"Let's take off his flannel shirt! There may be something there,"ventured Mrs. Stewart.
In less than a minute, the pins were out and the woven shirt of Merinowas removed, but no further information rewarded the anxious seekers. Sothe shirt was carefully replaced and the boy's nightie slipped over hishead again.
"It's all hand-made of fine linen," remarked Mrs. Latimer, as she feltof the hem at the bottom.
"And one can see that he is no slum child," added Mrs. Evans.
"_Who_ can he be? and why should anyone want to leave him?" were theperplexing questions Polly asked of the others.
They all shook their heads and wondered. But the boy had no use for suchcondolences; he crawled over the divan and when he found not what he wasin search of, he screwed up his dimpled face and began a lusty call.
Anne instantly took him up and began to chirp to him. He smiled acheerful thanks and showed eight little front teeth. That brought allhis new friends to his feet--metaphorically speaking.
"_Isn't_ he a dear!" declared Mrs. Stewart to no one in particular.
"Yes, but we have to advertise him at once. It may be that a villainkidnapped him and ran away with him just to get a reward. He may havebeen seen, or chased by the police, and then dropped the baby in ourvestibule," said Mrs. Latimer.
Anne laughed. "Which analysis shows that one of us married alawyer--Mrs. Latimer gives us good advice."
"Or he may belong to a young mother who cannot longer earn a living forhim," added Mrs. Stewart.
"That's not likely, mother," returned Anne. "As the child would lookthin and sickly if a mother found it hard to support it. I rather thinkit is a babe that belongs to some distracted mother in the neighborhood.He has evidently been put to bed for the night. Possibly a vindictivenurse-girl took him from his home to make his parents seek for him andthen left him at the most convenient door."
"Anne's reason sounds the most plausible, and we'd better 'phone thepolice-stations at once. Billy's parents may even now be wild withdespair, for we do not know how long he was in the vestibule. All
weknow is, he was not there when we came in, about eight o'clock," saidMrs. Evans.
So she telephoned the police-stations, near by, and also asked themorning papers to run a short notice under a suitable caption. Beforeshe had finished this work, however, Master Billy began his complaintsagain, and now he was beginning to look as impatient as such agood-natured baby could.
"Maybe he's hungry?" suddenly suggested Mrs. Stewart.
"That's just what ails him--but we haven't any bottle!" exclaimed Mrs.Evans.
"Perhaps he drinks from a cup--he is old enough to have been weaned, youknow," ventured Mrs. Latimer.
A cup of warmed milk was brought in short order, and Mrs. Stewart heldit out to Anne, as she was still holding the baby. The moment Billy sawthe cup, he almost leaped from Anne's arms, and immediately begangurgling for very glee.
Everyone laughed at his antics, and Anne was about to hold the cup tohis lips, when two fat hands clutched at it in a hungry endeavor toreach the contents. Of course, part of the milk spilled on his nightiebut the remainder he drank greedily.
"He's well-trained--whoever he is. I should say that he has had everyattention in the past, to have him act like this at his age," said Mrs.Latimer.
"But we don't know how old he is. He may be months older than we thoughtfor," argued Mrs. Evans.
"Well, he isn't more than eighteen months at the most," declared Mrs.Stewart.
Polly and Eleanor stood silently by listening to these experiencedmothers, but Anne smiled indulgently at them, and kept her opinions toherself.
Dr. Evans and Mr. Latimer stopped for their wives, and when they hadheard and been shown the fine boy, they gave their masculine opinions.
"A baby who was boarded out, and the parents hadn't paid up recently. Sothe woman left him on the first door-step to get rid of him," was thedoctor's verdict.
"There spoke the doctor who knows of such cases," said Anne.
"That isn't it, however," remarked Mr. Latimer. "I am of the opinionthat this child is of wealthy parentage. He likely is a stumbling-blockfor some heirs, who wish him safely out of the way so they may claim theestate."
Anne laughed again. "There speaks the attorney. But you should have hadthe jealous heirs remove this monogramed locket before they tried to getrid of all evidence of a barrier to their inheritance."
"Reckon we'd better stop romancing and put Billy to bed," said Polly, ina matter-of-fact voice.
Her common sense caused a general laugh, and Dr. Evans added: "Well,ladies! Come on, if we are to get home to-night."
With a last look at the sleepy cherub, and a good-night to the friendsliving in the Studio, the four New Yorkers went out.
"Where shall he sleep to-night?" asked Anne.
"Let me have him?" cried Polly.
"Oh--I found him first--let me have him," begged Eleanor.
"No, girls; babies should sleep absolutely alone. I will get a drawerfrom the high-boy and rig him up a nice little bed therein. To-morrownight he will be in his own home, most likely," explained Mrs. Stewart.
So saying, she hurried upstairs, and in a short time returned, carryingthe drawer. Anne and the two girls helped cushion it softly, and thenthey placed Billy in it.
He was asleep almost before the bed was ready, and the moment his headsank into the soft pillow, he closed his eyes.
"He seems unusually good, Anne," ventured Mrs. Stewart, as the fourfoster mothers stood gazing down at the flushed little baby-face.
"And very pretty for a young child," added Anne.
"Well," sighed Polly, "I suppose we'll have to hand him back in themorning."
"Some time during the night, most likely," grumbled Eleanor. "The policewill tell his folks where he is, and they will be at our door tenminutes later."
But no one called for Billy, that night, and in the morning the paperstold the story of the foundling. A minute description of his appearanceand clothing was given, and the telephone number of the family where hewas to be found. Mrs. Evans had wisely refrained from giving any namesof the tenants of the Studio.
Before seven o'clock that morning, the telephone began ringing. Anneanswered it, but described the baby left on their door-step differentlyfrom what the anxious mother on the other end of the wire had expected.
By eight-thirty, the telephone had called Anne or Polly five times. Atlast Polly said: "My goodness! how can five mothers lose boys like oursin one evening? Can't they take care of them?"
Eleanor then said, "Why, in Chicago, there are records of more than ascore of babies lost every day. Most of them find their parents again,but lots of them don't."
"What happens to the poor tots who can't find their folks again?" askedPolly, horrified.
"They go to the orphan asylum--or the Children's Home."
With a gasp, Polly glanced at their laughing little Billy. Then shelooked anxiously at her three companions. They had all thought of thesame thing, it seems.
"I just couldn't let him go to a foundling home," Polly whimpered.
"We can afford to keep him, Polly. You and I can adopt him," declaredEleanor.
But Anne did not seem to approve of the plan. She shook her head as shegazed at the curly-haired boy who was banging the breakfast table with ateaspoon. "That would never do for you, girls."
But another ring on the telephone interrupted further argument on thatsubject. Anne described Billy all over again--"Large brown eyes, verysoft silky hair--yellow and curly. About thirty pounds weight, eightfront teeth, aged about sixteen months."
Before she had completed her description of the foundling, thedistracted mother at the other end of the wire sighed: "He's notmine--thank you."
"Polly and I are not going to school this morning, Anne," Eleanor nowinformed the young teacher.
"I don't see why not?" demanded she.
"First, your mother can't be chasing back and forth to the 'phone allday; and secondly, we do not propose having a stranger calling andstealing our baby. Unless the parents present perfectly satisfactoryevidence that Billy is theirs, no one shall get him."
Anne smiled, but seeing that it was almost nine o'clock, she consentedto the two girls remaining home that session; furthermore, she promisedto explain to Mrs. Wellington about the magnet that had kept them athome.
Later in the morning, Dr. Evans stopped in to see if any one had calledfor the baby. Polly and Eleanor were in the midst of giving Billy hisbath in the large tub. Such laughing and shouting had never been heardin that bathroom before. Even Mrs. Stewart laughed in sympathy, as shetold the doctor what a fine well-behaved child Billy was.
"I'll call again this evening, Mrs. Stewart. If he has not been claimedby that time, I will see what I can do to relieve you of his care."
"Oh--he is no care whatever, doctor; and I doubt whether the girls willconsent to your taking him to a home--for a few days, at any rate. Theythink someone will call for him."
"But you haven't any clothes or other necessities for him, have you?"asked the doctor.
"We didn't have at first, but Nolla and Polly ran to a department storeon Fifth avenue--it's only a few blocks over, you know,--and bought himeverything he needs. When he had his shoes on he stood up and beganwalking about while he held fast to the chairs. He certainly is a brightchild."
"Well, the girls ought not to go silly over him. Buying clothes andshoes and everything--until they know who he is."
"If no one ever calls, Billy has to have clothes; anyway, we thought weought to get them, now, instead of later."
"I can see, Mrs. Stewart, that you are as foolish about the baby, as thetwo girls are themselves," laughed Dr. Evans, as he took up his hat todepart.
Mrs. Stewart laughed, but the moment the doctor was out of the frontdoor, she hurried upstairs to help dress the boy after his bath.
Once he was dressed in his new clothing, and had had a full cup of warmmilk and gruel, he cuddled down for his nap.
"Now, no use talking! he is a wonder!" declared Eleanor.
"We
can keep him, as well as not. He isn't one mite of trouble," addedPolly.
Having waited until Billy was fast asleep, Mrs. Stewart tip-toed fromthe bedroom, beckoning the girls to follow her out.
The police-department had sent their detective to get all the facts fromEleanor and Polly, and the press had sent to find out if there was anyother clue or information about the boy; then, no further interruptionstook place that day.
The two girls sat out under the locust tree in the yard, because therethey could hear the first whimper from Billy, when he awoke from hisnap. As they sat there, they discussed his future.
"If no one ever calls for him, what _shall_ we do with him?' askedPolly, giving Eleanor a penetrating look.
"You've got something on your mind--what is it?" countered Eleanor.
"Yes, I have, but I want to hear what _you_ have to say."
"I'd love to keep him, Polly--at least as long as we are in New York. Isuppose it would be impossible to take him abroad with us, next summer,"returned Eleanor.
"Yes--impossible. And if we keep him with us, we will have to hire anurse-maid, as poor Mrs. Stewart can't look after a lively youngster allday, while we are at school."
"What was your idea, then?" wondered Eleanor.
"Can't you guess, Nolla? And his name is Billy, too!"
For an instant Eleanor's face looked too surprised to allow her tospeak. Then she stammered: "Well--of all things!"
"What do you make of it?" laughed Polly.
"Wonderful--but what is your plan?"
"Seeing his name is Billy, and his eyes are dark brown and his hairgolden curls, and he is about sixteen months old--all of which are inhis favor to advance my little scheme, I should say that we try to keephim a few weeks, right now, and see if we can add to Billy's winsomeways. Meanwhile, we will use every effort to find if he has anyrelatives; then should he be a veritable foundling, we will present himto dear Mr. Dalken for his very own."
"Splendiferous! Perfectly great!" cried Eleanor, slapping her friend onthe back in her delight.
"We will quietly advertise for and select a fine elderly nurse forBilly, right off, and when we have him all ready to be given away, hewill be a little wonder that no one can refuse."
"Oh, Mr. Dalken won't think of refusing him, I know! He will be so happyto have a boy again," Eleanor said, enthusiastically.
Several times during the day, the telephone rang and someone asked for adescription of the baby. Also a number of wild looking people called atthe address to have a look at the child, but all departed with forlornhopes.
As that night was not a class-evening, the girls were free to do as theyliked with their time. Anne and her mother were amusing themselves, asmuch as the baby, by teaching him to say 'Billy.' Polly and Eleanor wereeagerly watching results. But harshly upon this sweet scene, thedoor-bell jangled.
"I'll go!" called Eleanor, and in another minute she had opened thedoor.
"Oh, Mr. Fabian. Do come in and see our baby!"
Then another admirer joined the circle of worshippers around Billy'sfeet. Mr. Fabian had heard the story from Dr. Evans and dropped in tosee if the boy was still with his friends.
"He is a dear little shaver, isn't he?" laughed Mr. Fabian. "But whatwill you do with him if no one claims him?"
"We really haven't thought of that," said Anne.
"I'm afraid, if we keep him here with us a week, or more, we won't wantto give him up again," added Mrs. Stewart.
Mr. Fabian saw, from the corner of his eye, that Polly was behind himtrying to draw his attention. So he managed to turn his head withoutattracting Anne's or Mrs. Stewart's attention, and saw the two girlsshake their heads wisely, meantime their fingers rested upon their lipsin sign of keeping silence.
Consequently no more was said, that evening, about Billy, and when Mr.Fabian was ready to leave, Polly and Eleanor said they believed theywould walk to the corner with their old friend. The baby had been in bedfor some time, and Anne was busy writing manuscript, so no one objectedto the proposal. Mrs. Stewart merely remarked: "Don't go any fartherthan the corner, dearies. And hurry right back home."