He
said Ellen had gone and made friends with the worst of all the
wicked Winslows, who had shown the white feather and disgraced his
flag. No; I know you are not wicked. And Mr. Griff came all
glittering, like Richard Coeur de Lion, and saved us all that night.
But Ellen cried to think what she had done, and mamma said it showed
what it was to speak to a strange young man; and she has never let
Ellen and me go out of the grounds by ourselves since that day.'
'It is a horrid shame,' exclaimed Martyn, 'that a fellow can't get
into a scrape without its being for ever cast up to him.'
'_I_ like him,' said Anne. 'He gave Mary Bell a nice pair of boots,
and he made a new pair of legs for poor old Arabella, and she can
really sit down! Oh, he is VERY nice; but'--in an awful whisper--
'does he tell stories? I mean fibs--falsehoods.'
'Who told you that?' exclaimed Martyn.
'Mamma said it. Ellen was telling them something about the picture
of the white-satin lady, and mamma said, "Oh, if it is only that
young man, no doubt it is a mere mystification;" and papa said,
"Poor young fellow, he seems very amiable and well disposed;" and
mamma said, "If he can invent such a story it shows that Horace was
right, and he is not to be believed." Then they stopped, but I
asked Ellen who it was, and she said it was Mr. Clarence, and it was
a sad thing for Emily and all of you to have such a brother.
Pages:
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169