The Pleasures of the Country: Simple Stories for Young People

MRS. HARRIET MYRTLE.

WITH EIGHT ILLUSTRATIONS BY JOHN GILBERT.

Second Edition.

London: ADDEY AND CO., 21, OLD BOND STREET.

A VISIT TO THE OLD HALL.

Edward and Kate lived in a country town. It was a cheerful, clean town, with wide streets, and an old church that had large trees round it, and ivy growing up the tower. Their house had a garden behind it, in which they used to play very happily, drive their hoops round the walks, and run and jump about on the grass-plot. They also made many pleasant little excursions into the country round, when their sister Laura was able to go with them.

One of their favourite walks was through the woods belonging to an ancient manor-house, always called "The Old Hall," about a mile from the town. It belonged to a rich nobleman; but nobody had lived in it for a long time. The gardens and park were, however, kept in fine order; and it was said, that some day the house would be put in repair and furnished. As it was now, people could walk by the paths through the woods close up to it.

One of these paths was just outside the wall of the flower garden, and led up to the portico of a sort of summer house or pavilion, partly gone to ruin. The door of this pavilion was always closed; but it was so shady and pleasant all round there, that it was a favourite place for Edward and Kate to play in, while Laura sat under a tree reading; and they would often look up at the beautiful roses, jasmines, and other creepers that hung over the top of the wall, and wish they might go into the garden and see all the lovely flowers they thought must be there.

They longed the more to be admitted within the wall, and see not only the garden, but the Old Hall itself, because a young carpenter, who was at work for their papa, putting up a book-case, had told them a great deal about it. This carpenter, John Wilson, was a great friend of theirs. He made a whole fleet of boats for them, which they sailed in the water-butt, in the garden, and taught them how to saw, and plane, and knock in nails; and while all this was going on, he would describe the painted windows and carved ceilings and walls in the Old Hall; and he knew all its wonders quite well, for he had worked there for several months, repairing some parts of the rooms that were going to destruction; and he said he hoped his lordship would soon have it all thoroughly done, and that he should be employed to do the work.

After all this, Kate and Edward were quite pleased, when, one day, John brought them permission to go and see it, from Mrs. Hollis, the housekeeper, who lived in one of the lodges, and was allowed to shew the place to visitors. If they went to the door of the pavilion in their favourite path, and rang the bell, she would admit them, he said. They thanked John very much for getting such a pleasure for them, and then ran to their mama to ask her leave to go, which she gave them directly; and, as the next day was very fine, they set out after their early dinner, in high spirits, accompanied by Laura. To add to their pleasure, their mama had told them they might order a donkey-chaise in the village, near the Hall gates, to bring them home, because she was sure they would be tired; and this was a thing they enjoyed extremely.

"Since you are going into the village, Master Edward, will you be so kind as to ask at the post-office if there's a letter for me?" said John Wilson, when Edward went to bid him good-bye. "Perhaps you will bring me good luck."

Edward readily promised to ask for the letter, and then whispered to Kate, "It's from his father he wants to hear, I know. He told me he should never be happy till he did. I wish we could bring him one."

But it was of no use to wish. There was no letter for John Wilson. So they ordered the donkey-chaise to be at the pavilion in three hours, and went on to the appointed place, and rang the bell.

Mrs. Hollis did not keep them long waiting; and when she came, she looked at them very kindly, and asked them to walk in. She was a formal little old lady, with a black silk gown on, that rustled as she moved, and wore a very white starched cap and handkerchief.

They liked the inside of the pavilion very much. The floor they trod on was made of squares of black and white marble, and there were seats and a round marble table. A long flight of white polished steps in front of it led down to a broad gravel walk that bounded one end of the flower garden. The garden was curiously laid out, in an old-fashioned style, and the green lawn in the middle looked so smooth and tempting, that they could not resist running down the steps towards it the moment they saw it; and Mrs. Hollis and Laura followed them.

Their feet sank in the thick velvet-like grass as they walked over it. In the middle there was a large round pond, with a fountain which sprung up into the air and then fell again in showers of sparkling drops, that ruffled the surface of the water, and made it glance in the sun as if it were all over diamonds. It was so clear, that, though it was deep, they could see every blade and leaf of the green mossy weeds among the white pebbles at the bottom; and presently they saw skimming through it a shoal of gold and silver fish. Little Kate had a slice of bread in the pocket of her apron, that her mama had given her in case they should feel hungry before they got home; so, as Mrs. Hollis told her the fish would come up to the surface to eat crumbs, she quickly threw some in for them, and up they came, one after another, and swallowed the pieces in their gaping mouths, while their bright scales flashed like fire as they caught the sunlight.

It was some time before the children could leave this delightful pond; but when they did, they saw that at each end there was a smaller one, both of which had their fountains, that sprung up, as if in imitation of the larger one; and that, between the centre pond and each of these, there was a large oval flower bed, and, at all the four corners of the lawn, a round one. These flower beds were bordered with ivy, so carefully pegged down that it formed thick wreaths of dark-green leaves, and made a beautiful setting for the bright flowers within. White lilies, tiger lilies, and tall lupins were in the middle; carnations, white and scarlet geraniums round them, with brilliant blue salvias, mignonette, fuchsias, and many other lovely things.

Besides these beds, there were at regular distances tree roses on the lawn, with round bushy heads, full of splendid flowers of many different shades, sending out the most delicious scent; and the wall which bounded the gravel walk, and which they had so often looked at from the outside, was covered with all manner of creepers, trained roses, honeysuckle, maurandia, jasmine, passion-flowers, and many others.

As soon as they could make up their minds to go out of this bright garden, Mrs. Hollis shewed them that one side of it was formed by a wing of the house, and that large windows opened into it: but these were all shut at present; so she led them by a gateway in the wall to a long straight walk, which led under two tall cedar trees, whose branches met over their heads, to the principal entrance of the mansion. She then, with a large key which hung from her waist, together with several smaller ones, opened the great heavy door, and they all went in.

At first the light seemed so dim that they scarcely saw well around them; for their eyes had been looking at bright flowers, sparkling waters, and green trees and grass basking in the sun; but they soon saw that they were in a lofty square entrance hall, with beautiful painted glass windows, that threw rich colours, blue, red, purple, yellow, and green on the marble floor; and that the stone frames of the windows were carved and ornamented, and the stone walls and roof also; and that iron and steel armour of knights, with lances and helmets, were ranged in niches round the walls; and that long galleries, with many doors into different rooms, and more painted windows went off on each side; and that opposite to them was a wide staircase, all the steps of which were of dark oak, with carved rails, on the top of which were figures of animals reared up on their hind legs, and wreaths of fruit and flowers all carved in dark oak.

Then they went through many large rooms, with walls and ceilings of the same dark oak, beautifully carved in squares and other forms, to represent flowers and fruit, birds, and angels with wings; and these rooms had immense fire-places without grates, meant to burnt logs of wood. Kate and Edward went under the richly ornamented mantel-pieces and looked up the wide chimneys. Then the windows--they liked them better than all; for the walls were so thick that each window seemed to be at the end of a little room of its own; and others were bay windows, and these seemed to be in still larger rooms; and the frames were richly carved; and they looked over the wide park with its green slopes and spreading trees, sweeping the grass with their long branches, and towering up towards the bright blue sky, and casting deep shadows on the sunny grass; and a clear river went winding among them; and all looked so lovely, that every time the children passed one of these windows, it seemed to them that they saw a new picture set in a dark frame.

At last, when they had gone through so many rooms, that they began to keep very close to Laura, lest they should be lost, and had been up the wide staircase and through other rooms above, they heard, with joy, that they were next to go into the park. They followed Mrs. Hollis through a court and an old gateway, and here she bid them good-bye; and, after thanking her with all their hearts for her kindness, they turned round, and lost not a moment, but away they ran over the grass to the banks of the river.

It was delightful to stand in the shade and watch the running water rippling and tinkling over rocky stones that had the brightest green moss on them; and to see the taper points of the weeping willows, that dipped in the stream, and were always waving and trembling as it carried them with it. Sometimes a trout or perch would dart through the deep parts and disappear in an instant. They threw leaves and little sticks in, and watched them sailing away, and wished they had brought some of John's boats with them; then they dipped in their hands to feel the cool refreshing water glide through their fingers. Suddenly their appeared round a point two lovely white swans. On they came, arching their necks and ruffling their wings. Kate took out her bread again, and threw piece after piece to them, till all was gone, while they swam about catching them in their black beaks.

Now Laura called to the children to look at the trees. What great trees they were! Those round the church, which they had thought so large, would only make one arm of these. They crept under the branches of the beeches and limes, and there they were in a green little world,--green leaves above and all round, and green grass under foot, and the flickering sunlight peeping through upon them. Then they crept out again, and clambered up steep knolls, and ran down sloping banks, and every now and then stopped in wonder before some giant tree, with an enormous trunk, that when they took hold of each other's hands, and then Laura's, and all three stretched out their arms to the utmost, they had still not grasped half of. They could not decide which kind of tree was the most beautiful,--the oak, with its rough bark, strong arms, and deep rich green; the beech, with smooth, shining stem and graceful sweeping branches; the tufted elms; or the limes, so light and feathery. Then there were Spanish chesnuts, and horse-chesnuts, and dark firs, and birches with bark as white as silver. It was impossible to know which was most beautiful.