After London | Page 2

you think that we may take
this pole? It seems to me as though some wood-cutter had left it here to
prop a tree."
"Oh, yes," he answered, "it belongs to the wheelwright to whom I am
taking you. All the wood around here belongs to him, and he will be
glad to have this pole so handy." So saying, he hurried to get the pole
and helped the coachman fasten it in place. The horses then drew the
carriage slowly over the rocky road, while the coachman walked
alongside.
The family, however, followed the footpath, which led between tall
elms and blooming shrubbery along the edge of a babbling brook.
The silence was broken now and then by the plaintive song of a
nightingale. The Duchess and her two children seated themselves upon
the trunk of a fallen tree and listened to the music till it ceased. A
gentle wind sighed softly through the leaves of the trees, and merrily
flowed the near-by brook. As the nightingale repeated its song, they all
listened intently.
When the song was ended, the Duchess said: "I would give twenty
pounds if I had such a bird in my garden. I have heard many
nightingales sing in the city, but here in the country, in this wooded
region and deep stillness, and at this twilight hour, its song seems
doubly enchanting. Oh, that I might hear it sing in the little bower near
my villa."
"Hm," whispered the stable-boy, who stood near her oldest son, Alfred,

"those twenty pounds could be easily earned."
Alfred nodded, and motioned to the boy to be still, for just then the
nightingale began to sing. When the song ceased the Duchess arose to
continue her way. Alfred, however, lagged behind with the stable-boy,
with whom he was soon busily engaged in earnest talk.
"A nightingale in a cage is not what my mother wants; what she wants
is a nightingale that is at liberty, to sing and nest and fly as it pleases in
our beautiful garden, and to return to us in the spring from its winter
home."
"I understand very well what you mean. I should not want to catch a
bird and deliver it into captivity." After questioning Alfred more
closely about the trees near his villa, the boy said: "I feel sure that I can
get a nightingale and its nest for you. I know just how to go about it.
You will soon hear its song resound from all parts of your garden--
possibly not this week, but surely next."
Alfred stood still for a moment and looked at the boy--clothed in a
shabby suit, with his hair protruding from his torn hat. Then he asked,
wonderingly, "What would you do with the money?"
"Oh," said the boy, and the tears stood in his eyes, "twenty pounds
would help us out of our troubles. You see, my father is a day-laborer.
He is not a very strong man, and I was just on my way to visit him, and
do what I could to help him. My foreman has given me a few days'
leave of absence. I don't earn much, but it helps my father a little. I
often feel that it would be a great help to him if I could earn more. I
certainly should like nothing better than to be a wheelwright. It must be
grand to be able to take the wood that lies here in the forest, and make a
beautiful carriage out of it, like the one you own. I have often talked
with the wheelwright, but he will not take me as an apprentice until I
have a certain amount of money. Besides, I should need money to buy
tools. It would cost twenty pounds, and my father and I haven't as much
as that together.
"Poor boy," thought Alfred, "if what he says is true, we must help him."

Then he said aloud, "Bring me a written recommendation from your
schoolmaster; and if the wheelwright really wants to take you, I will
give you ten pounds as soon as the nightingale sings in our garden; and
I know that the missing ten pounds will soon be forthcoming. But you
must say nothing about this to anyone until my mother's wish is
gratified. I should like to give her an unexpected pleasure."
Soon they struck the main road again, and the rest of the distance was
quickly covered.
While the wheelwright was repairing the carriage, Alfred engaged him
in conversation concerning the stable-boy, all of whose statements the
man corroborated. He also showed a willingness to apprentice the boy
on the terms stated.
The damage had now been repaired, so the Duchess paid the charges,
giving the stable-boy a few coins, and seated herself in the