A Soldier's Son Page 5

  CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS.

  The days which followed were quiet and uneventful, the peaceful, happydays which imperceptibly glide into weeks and months. Carol workeddiligently at his lessons. He had so much lost time to make up.

  Miss Markham was surprised at the progress he made. Whatever tasks sheset him he mastered with ease, and never manifested fatigue orweariness. He was still so slight, even fragile, in appearance, shesometimes feared lest she was overtaxing his strength. Once, expressingfear lest this should be so, Carol answered lightly, "It is quite right,Miss Markham, the more work I do, the more I shall be able to do.Cousin Alicia is helping me every day."

  "Miss Desmond is in Devonshire, Carol, how can she help you?"

  "I am sorry, Miss Markham, I forgot you do not understand," he said.

  He had been so perfectly obedient to Miss Desmond's wishes in nevertalking about Christian Science, that, excepting Mrs. Mandeville, no oneremembered anything about it in connection with the boy. But,gradually, all the household were realizing there was somethingstrangely different about the boy from other children. No one everheard him complain of an ache or pain. No one ever heard him speak anunkind or angry word; and if, as sometimes, though seldom, amongst theMandeville children, little dissensions or bickerings arose, if Carolwas near, they passed as a ripple on water, and all was harmony andpeace again.

  Nurse loved to have him in the nursery. Miss Markham missed him when hewas absent from the school-room. On one occasion when he was in thenursery a heavy box-lid was accidentally allowed to fall on Rosebud'sfingers. The child screamed terribly with the pain, but before Nursecould do or say anything Carol seized her in his arms, and ran out ofthe room with her. In less than ten minutes he brought her back again,laughing merrily.

  "Naughty fingers don't hurt Rosebud now," she said.

  Nurse wondered, but, like Miss Markham, she did not understand.

  It happened only a few days afterward that Mrs. Mandeville did not comeas usual to the school-room immediately after breakfast, and everyonewas sorrowful when it was known that Mother had one of her old nervousheadaches. They knew it meant not seeing her for two or three days.She suffered terribly at times with her head, and had to lie in adarkened room, unable to bear the least noise. The children hushedtheir laughter and trod softly, though the school-room and nurserieswere too far removed from Mrs. Mandeville's apartments for any sound toreach her.

  After morning school, without saying a word to any one, Carol crept sonoiselessly into the darkened room that Mrs. Mandeville was unaware ofhis presence, until he softly touched her with his hand, and said:

  "Auntie, I am so sorry you are suffering. I do want to help you. CouldI--would you let me?"

  "Dear boy, how sweet of you! I have frequently suffered with headacheslike this for many years. Nothing can be done, dear. I can only bestill and bear the pain until it passes."

  Mrs. Mandeville spoke as if every word she uttered tortured her.

  "Auntie, dear, won't you let me try to help you?"

  "Do you mean, dear, you want to say a Christian Science prayer for me?"

  "Yes, Auntie."

  "Why, of course, darling, if you wish it. It is so very sweet of you!"

  Carol softly kissed the hand she put out to him, and left the room, asnoiselessly as he had entered, closing the door after him. He knew whatpain was. He went straight to his own room and closed that door too.He did not leave his room until the gong sounded for the school-roomdinner. His cousins exclaimed as he rejoined them,

  "Wherever have you been all this time, Carol?"

  But Carol did not say.

  In the afternoon while the children were still seated round thetea-table, the school-room door opened, and Mrs. Mandeville entered theroom. There was one vociferous exclamation of surprise and delight.

  "Mother! Are you better?"

  "I am quite better," she said, "I fell asleep. I must have slept a longtime, and when I woke I felt quite well."

  No one noticed the flush of joy that came to Carol's face. His handswere clasped, his eyes downcast as he silently breathed, "I thank Thee,my Father."

  Before she left the room again, Mrs. Mandeville caressingly laid herhands on the boy's shoulders, and bent over to kiss his brow, but shedid not allude to his visit to her room. Neither did he. Some sad dayswere to pass over the Manor household before Mrs. Mandevilleacknowledged the help she had received.

  Carol had not been long at Mandeville before he became almost as wellacquainted with the villagers as his cousins. He frequently accompaniedthe three little girls and the second nurse, when they were deputed tocarry a basket of good things to any house in the village where therewas need. In this way he became acquainted with the village shoemaker,Mr. Higgs, who, in his younger days, had also acted as verger at thechurch. He explained to Carol the "rheumatiz" was so bad in his legs hehadn't been able to walk to church for months. He was often to be seensitting at the open cottage door in the summer evenings, with an openBible on his knees, his hands folded on it, for the print was too smallfor his failing eyesight.

  Carol was thoughtful as he walked home. When Mrs. Mandeville paid herusual visit to his bedroom in the evening, she found him sitting up inbed, waiting for her. He was always awake when she came, but since shehad desired him not to read in bed he never had a book in his hand. Sooften he greeted her with the words, "Auntie, I have been thinking."

  "Well, darling, what have you been thinking about to-night?" she askedbefore he spoke, well knowing from his attitude that he had beenthinking either of some pleasing or some perplexing subject.

  "I have been thinking of something I can do, Auntie, if you will let me.It is only a very little thing, but if we do not begin with littlethings, we shall not be able some day to do big things, shall we? I sooften think about Jesus when he was twelve years old, he said, 'I mustbe about my Father's business.' I am twelve years old, and God is myFather, too. I want to be about His business. When I was talking to oldMr. Higgs this morning, he told me he cannot walk to church now, and hiseyes are so bad he cannot see to read the Bible. I thought I would liketo go sometimes and read it to him, and help him to understand it.Would you let me, Auntie dear? It is such a little thing."

  "Why, of course, dear; there can be no reason why you should not, if youwish to. I don't think Uncle Raymond can have any possible objection.Anyway, if I give you permission, that will be sufficient, will it not?"

  "Oh, yes, Auntie; thank you so very much. May I go every Sundayevening?"

  "Yes, dear; and perhaps it may not be such a little thing as you think."

  Mrs. Mandeville thought of her own two boys. How different Carol was!

  Neither of them would have dreamed of doing such a thing. "But," shemused, "his long illness has changed him."

  "Auntie, I often try to picture Jesus in his humble home at Nazareth. Iwish we knew more. When he returned with Joseph and Mary after thevisit to the Temple, and was always obedient to them, I sometimes wonderif they kept him back from going about his Father's business, becausethey did not understand; and if he played on the hillsides with theother village boys, and no one knew until he was a man, that he wasJesus the Christ."

  "There are many legends of his boyhood, dear, but they are only legends.We cannot accept anything except what is narrated in the Gospels. Youmust read Canon Farrar's 'Life of Christ.' That will help you tounderstand that the Apostles were, without doubt, divinely instructed torecord so little of the boyhood of Jesus. There is a copy in thelibrary. I will look it out for you."

  "Thank you so much, Auntie. I shall be glad to read it."

  Then clinging both arms round her neck, as she stooped to kiss him, hesaid:

  "I do love your coming to my room like this, Auntie. I always keepawake till you come."

  "I, too, enjoy our little talks, dear. You often give me a beautifulthought to take away with me: something I have not thought of before."

  The boy lay awake a long
time after Mrs. Mandeville left him, thinkingjoyfully of the work that had come to him, wondering how he should openthe pages of that wonderful book, as they had been opened to him."Teach me, Father-Mother God, the words of Truth that will help him," heprayed. Finally, he fell asleep with the words on his lips of the boySamuel: "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth."