The Visits of Elizabeth | Page 8

her cap incident,
she might have bitten me. And Uncle said, "Too late, too late for a little
one to sit up--no beauty sleep!" And Aunt Maria said, "Tut, tut!" and I
thought it must be the middle of the night--it felt like it. But do you
know, Mamma, when I got upstairs to my room it was only half-past
ten!
I have such a huge room, with a four-post feather bed in it. I had let
Agnès go to bed directly after her supper, with a toothache, so I had to
get undressed by myself; and I was afraid to climb in from the side, it
was so high up. But I found some steps with blue carpet on them, as
well as a table with a Bible, and a funny old china medicine spoon, and
glass and water-jug on it; and the steps did nicely, for when I got to the
top, I just took a header into the feathers. It seemed quite comfy at first,
but in a few minutes, goodness gracious, I was suffocated! And it was
such a business getting the whole mass on the floor; and then I did not
know very well how to make the bed again, and I had not a very good
night, and overslept myself in the morning. So I got down late for
prayers. Uncle John reads them, and Aunt Maria repeats responses
whenever she thinks best, as she can't hear a word; but I suppose she
counts up, and, from long habit, just says "Amen" when she gets to the
end of--thirty, say--fancying that will be right; and it is generally. Only
Uncle John stopped in the middle to say, "Damn that dog!" as Fido was
whining and scratching outside, so that put her out and brought in the
"Amen" too soon.
[Sidenote: Family Prayers]
After breakfast Aunt Maria jingled a large bunch of keys and said it
was her day for seeing the linen-room, and wouldn't I like to go with

her, as all young people should have "house-wifely" ideas? So I went.
It is so beautifully kept, and such lovely linen, all with lavender
between it; and she talked to the housekeeper, and looked over
everything--she seemed to know each sheet by name! Then we went to
the storeroom, all as neat as a new pin; and from there to interview all
the old people from the village, who were waiting with requests, and
some of them were as deaf as she is. So the housekeeper had to scream
at both sides, and I was tired when we got back, and did want to rush
out of doors; but I had to wait, and then walk between Lady Farrington
and Aunt Maria up and down the path in the sun till lunch at one
o'clock; and after that we went for a drive in the barouche, with the
fattest white horses you ever saw, and a coachman just like Cinderella's
one that had been a rat. He seemed to have odd bits of fur on his face
and under his chin, and Aunt Maria said that he suffered from a sore
throat, that was why, which he caught at Aunt Mary's wedding; and so I
counted up--and as Aunt Mary is your eldest sister, it must have been
more than twenty years ago. I do call that a long sore throat, don't you?
and I wouldn't keep a coachman with a beard, would you?
We went at a snail's pace, and got in at four o'clock, and then there was
tea at half-past, with the nicest bread-and-butter you ever tasted. And
after that I said I must write to you, and so here I am, and I feel that if it
goes on much longer I shall do something dreadful. Now good-bye,
dearest Mamma.--Your affectionate daughter, Elizabeth.
Heaviland Manor,
Friday, August 5th.
Dearest Mamma,--I am glad to-morrow will soon be here, and that I
can come home, but I must tell you about yesterday. First, all the
morning it rained, and what with roaring at Aunt Maria and holding
skeins of wool for Lady Farrington, I got such jumps that I felt I should
scream unless I got out; so after lunch, while they were both having a
nap in their chairs, I slipped off for a walk by myself--it was still
raining, but not much; I took Fido, who is generally a little beast, and
far too fat.

[Sidenote: Lord Valmond Reappears]
We had had a nice scamper, and had turned to come back not far from
the Park, when who do you think came riding up?--Lord Valmond! The
last person one expected to see down here! He never waited a second
when he saw me, but jumped off his horse and beamed--just as if we