CHAPTER VII. POLLYANNA AND PUNISHMENTS
At half-past one o'clock Timothy drove Miss Polly and her niece to thefour or five principal dry goods stores, which were about half a milefrom the homestead.
Fitting Pollyanna with a new wardrobe proved to be more or less of anexciting experience for all concerned. Miss Polly came out of it withthe feeling of limp relaxation that one might have at finding oneself atlast on solid earth after a perilous walk across the very thin crust ofa volcano. The various clerks who had waited upon the pair came out ofit with very red faces, and enough amusing stories of Pollyanna tokeep their friends in gales of laughter the rest of the week. Pollyannaherself came out of it with radiant smiles and a heart content; for, asshe expressed it to one of the clerks: "When you haven't had anybodybut missionary barrels and Ladies' Aiders to dress you, it IS perfectlylovely to just walk right in and buy clothes that are brand-new, andthat don't have to be tucked up or let down because they don't fit!"
The shopping expedition consumed the entire afternoon; then came supperand a delightful talk with Old Tom in the garden, and another with Nancyon the back porch, after the dishes were done, and while Aunt Polly paida visit to a neighbor.
Old Tom told Pollyanna wonderful things of her mother, that made hervery happy indeed; and Nancy told her all about the little farm sixmiles away at "The Corners," where lived her own dear mother, and herequally dear brother and sisters. She promised, too, that sometime, ifMiss Polly were willing, Pollyanna should be taken to see them.
"And THEY'VE got lovely names, too. You'll like THEIR names," sighedNancy. "They're 'Algernon,' and 'Florabelle' and 'Estelle.' I--I justhate 'Nancy'!"
"Oh, Nancy, what a dreadful thing to say! Why?"
"Because it isn't pretty like the others. You see, I was the first baby,and mother hadn't begun ter read so many stories with the pretty namesin 'em, then."
"But I love 'Nancy,' just because it's you," declared Pollyanna.
"Humph! Well, I guess you could love 'Clarissa Mabelle' just as well,"retorted Nancy, "and it would be a heap happier for me. I think THATname's just grand!"
Pollyanna laughed.
"Well, anyhow," she chuckled, "you can be glad it isn't 'Hephzibah.'"
"Hephzibah!"
"Yes. Mrs. White's name is that. Her husband calls her 'Hep,' and shedoesn't like it. She says when he calls out 'Hep--Hep!' she feels justas if the next minute he was going to yell 'Hurrah!' And she doesn'tlike to be hurrahed at."
Nancy's gloomy face relaxed into a broad smile.
"Well, if you don't beat the Dutch! Say, do you know?--I sha'n't neverhear 'Nancy' now that I don't think o' that 'Hep--Hep!' and giggle. My,I guess I AM glad--" She stopped short and turned amazed eyes on thelittle girl. "Say, Miss Pollyanna, do you mean--was you playin' that'ere game THEN--about my bein' glad I wa'n't named Hephzibah'?"
Pollyanna frowned; then she laughed.
"Why, Nancy, that's so! I WAS playing the game--but that's one of thetimes I just did it without thinking, I reckon. You see, you DO, lotsof times; you get so used to it--looking for something to be glad about,you know. And most generally there is something about everything thatyou can be glad about, if you keep hunting long enough to find it."
"Well, m-maybe," granted Nancy, with open doubt.
At half-past eight Pollyanna went up to bed. The screens had not yetcome, and the close little room was like an oven. With longing eyesPollyanna looked at the two fast-closed windows--but she did not raisethem. She undressed, folded her clothes neatly, said her prayers, blewout her candle and climbed into bed.
Just how long she lay in sleepless misery, tossing from side to side ofthe hot little cot, she did not know; but it seemed to her that it musthave been hours before she finally slipped out of bed, felt her wayacross the room and opened her door.
Out in the main attic all was velvet blackness save where the moon flunga path of silver half-way across the floor from the east dormer window.With a resolute ignoring of that fearsome darkness to the right and tothe left, Pollyanna drew a quick breath and pattered straight into thatsilvery path, and on to the window.
She had hoped, vaguely, that this window might have a screen, but it didnot. Outside, however, there was a wide world of fairy-like beauty, andthere was, too, she knew, fresh, sweet air that would feel so good tohot cheeks and hands!
As she stepped nearer and peered longingly out, she saw something else:she saw, only a little way below the window, the wide, flat tin roof ofMiss Polly's sun parlor built over the porte-cochere. The sight filledher with longing. If only, now, she were out there!
Fearfully she looked behind her. Back there, somewhere, were her hotlittle room and her still hotter bed; but between her and them lay ahorrid desert of blackness across which one must feel one's way withoutstretched, shrinking arms; while before her, out on the sun-parlorroof, were the moonlight and the cool, sweet night air.
If only her bed were out there! And folks did sleep out of doors. JoelHartley at home, who was so sick with the consumption, HAD to sleep outof doors.
Suddenly Pollyanna remembered that she had seen near this attic windowa row of long white bags hanging from nails. Nancy had said thatthey contained the winter clothing, put away for the summer. A littlefearfully now, Pollyanna felt her way to these bags, selected a nicefat soft one (it contained Miss Polly's sealskin coat) for a bed; and athinner one to be doubled up for a pillow, and still another (which wasso thin it seemed almost empty) for a covering. Thus equipped, Pollyannain high glee pattered to the moonlit window again, raised the sash,stuffed her burden through to the roof below, then let herself downafter it, closing the window carefully behind her--Pollyanna had notforgotten those flies with the marvellous feet that carried things.
How deliciously cool it was! Pollyanna quite danced up and down withdelight, drawing in long, full breaths of the refreshing air. The tinroof under her feet crackled with little resounding snaps that Pollyannarather liked. She walked, indeed, two or three times back and forth fromend to end--it gave her such a pleasant sensation of airy space afterher hot little room; and the roof was so broad and flat that she had nofear of falling off. Finally, with a sigh of content, she curled herselfup on the sealskin-coat mattress, arranged one bag for a pillow and theother for a covering, and settled herself to sleep.
"I'm so glad now that the screens didn't come," she murmured, blinkingup at the stars; "else I couldn't have had this!"
Down-stairs in Miss Polly's room next the sun parlor, Miss Pollyherself was hurrying into dressing gown and slippers, her face white andfrightened. A minute before she had been telephoning in a shaking voiceto Timothy:
"Come up quick!--you and your father. Bring lanterns. Somebody is onthe roof of the sun parlor. He must have climbed up the rose-trellisor somewhere, and of course he can get right into the house through theeast window in the attic. I have locked the attic door down here--buthurry, quick!"
Some time later, Pollyanna, just dropping off to sleep, was startled bya lantern flash, and a trio of amazed ejaculations. She opened her eyesto find Timothy at the top of a ladder near her, Old Tom just gettingthrough the window, and her aunt peering out at her from behind him.
"Pollyanna, what does this mean?" cried Aunt Polly then.
Pollyanna blinked sleepy eyes and sat up.
"Why, Mr. Tom--Aunt Polly!" she stammered. "Don't look so scared! Itisn't that I've got the consumption, you know, like Joel Hartley. It'sonly that I was so hot--in there. But I shut the window, Aunt Polly, sothe flies couldn't carry those germ-things in."
Timothy disappeared suddenly down the ladder. Old Tom, with almost equalprecipitation, handed his lantern to Miss Polly, and followed his son.Miss Polly bit her lip hard--until the men were gone; then she saidsternly:
"Pollyanna, hand those things to me at once and come in here. Of allthe extraordinary children!" she ejaculated a little later, as, withPollyanna by her side, and the lantern in her hand, she turned back intothe attic.
To
Pollyanna the air was all the more stifling after that cool breathof the out of doors; but she did not complain. She only drew a longquivering sigh.
At the top of the stairs Miss Polly jerked out crisply:
"For the rest of the night, Pollyanna, you are to sleep in my bed withme. The screens will be here to-morrow, but until then I consider it myduty to keep you where I know where you are."
Pollyanna drew in her breath.
"With you?--in your bed?" she cried rapturously. "Oh, Aunt Polly, AuntPolly, how perfectly lovely of you! And when I've so wanted to sleepwith some one sometime--some one that belonged to me, you know; not aLadies' Aider. I've HAD them. My! I reckon I am glad now those screensdidn't come! Wouldn't you be?"
There was no reply. Miss Polly was stalking on ahead. Miss Polly, totell the truth, was feeling curiously helpless. For the third time sincePollyanna's arrival, Miss Polly was punishing Pollyanna--and for thethird time she was being confronted with the amazing fact that herpunishment was being taken as a special reward of merit. No wonder MissPolly was feeling curiously helpless.