The Third Miss St Quentin Read online

  Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England

  The Third Miss St QuentinBy Mrs MolesworthPublished by Hatchards, Piccadilly, London.This edition dated 1888.

  The Third Miss Quentin, by Mrs Molesworth.

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  ________________________________________________________________________THE THIRD MISS QUENTIN, BY MRS MOLESWORTH.

  CHAPTER ONE.

  SIX YEARS OLD.

  A very little girl was sitting on the rug in front of a brightly burningfire. She was amusing herself with picture books, a number of whichwere scattered about her, but her small face was flushed, her eyes wereheavy, and she seemed restless and dissatisfied. She was suffering froma very bad cold.

  "I can't read, and I can't see the picshures," she said complainingly,"my eyes hurts, and my head too. You read to me, Harvey."

  The nurse to whom she spoke was busied in putting away the breakfastthings.

  "You must wait a bit, Miss Ella. I've got ever so many things to dothis morning."

  Ella looked far from pleased.

  "Things must wait, not me," she said imperiously. "Mamma always readsto me this minute."

  "Your mamma's ill, Miss Ella; and when there's illness in the housethere's plenty for everybody to do without wasting one's time overnonsense."

  Ella's face grew scarlet with anger.

  "'Tisn't nonsense," she said; "I'm ill too. I've got a cold, and youshould amoose me."

  But before Harvey had time to reply, except by a short laugh, the dooropened, and both the occupants of the nursery looked round to see whowas there. A young girl of thirteen or fourteen, but with something inher air and manner which made her seem older, came in quickly. She wastall and slight, and though very plainly dressed, one could not havepassed her by without noticing her.

  "Harvey," she said, and her tone, though not ungentle, was cold and evena very little haughty, "how is Miss Ella to-day? Mrs St Quentin isvery anxious about her."

  Harvey glanced round with a sort of affectation of indifference that wasirritating.

  "There's not the least need in the world to be anxious, miss," she said."The child's got a cold, like everybody else in this changeableweather. There was no need for her mamma to hear nothing about it."

  The girl looked at her still more severely.

  "It is your fault that she has a cold, and you know it," she said. "Shewas out far too late the day before yesterday. I certainly do not wishMrs St Quentin to be troubled, but if you are not more careful I shallspeak to my father; I warn you plainly." Ella had been listeningopen-mouthed to this discussion, and in the interest of it had forgottenher own tribulations. She got up from the floor, and moved by thegenerous childish impulse of defending the oppressed, resenting too,perhaps, that her sister had taken no direct notice of her sinceentering the room, she ran to Harvey and caught hold of her hand.

  "Naughty Maddie," she said, "you're not to scold poor Harvey; I don'tlike you, Maddie. Go away; I'll tell mamma."

  Madelene glanced at the little girl, opened her lips as if to speak, butclosed them again.

  "If she is kind to Ella it is a good thing, I suppose, and perhaps Ishould not have said anything before the child," was the reflection thatrapidly passed through her mind.

  "You don't understand, Ella dear," she said quietly, and with unusualself-control, though her fair face coloured a little. "I am very gladthat you don't like Harvey to be scolded."

  And without saying more, she left the room.

  "`Scolded' indeed, by a upsetting piece of goods like her. Very fine,Miss Madelene, but you're not mistress yet, nor never shall be to _me_,I can promise you," muttered Harvey.

  But Ella was clinging to her.

  "You must read to me now," the child urged. "I'm very good to you,Harvey. I wouldn't let sister Maddie scold you, so you should be niceto me."

  A slight and not pleasant smile crossed the maid's face.

  "Come along then, Miss Ella," she said. "If you'll be very good and notworrit-worrit if I'm out of your sight for half a minute, I'll read toyou for a little. What is it you want?"

  She seated herself comfortably in a rocking chair by the fire, and tookthe child on her knee.

  "Here now," she said, carelessly picking up the first picture book thatcame to hand, "I'll read you some of these nursery rhymes--`Little BoyBlue.'"

  "No," said Ella crossly, "I don't like singy stories. Read me realones. `Laddin's' very nice." But Harvey's eyes had caught sight ofanother of the bright-coloured books.

  "Oh, no," she exclaimed, with a little malicious laugh, "we'll have`Cinderella,' Miss Ella. `Cinderella, Miss Ella,' there's a rhyme foryou! It's like your name, and she's like you too. She had two bigsisters, and her mamma was--" Here she coughed and stopped short.

  "Her mamma was dead. I know the story," put in Ella, "_my_ mamma isn'tdead, so it isn't like me. You're talking nonsense, Harvey," and shepushed the book aside and began to wriggle about impatiently.

  "I'm not talking nonsense," said Harvey sharply. "Just listen now, MissElla. Cinderella had two big sisters, and they were very cross to her--at least not always perhaps, but pretty often, and they'd come and scoldfor nothing at all."

  "Like Maddie this morning," said Ella; "but it wasn't me she scolded.It was you. The story isn't like me; you're very silly, Harvey."

  Harvey began to lose her temper; she was not going to be called "silly"even by a baby.

  "Just you take care what you say, Miss Ella," she said roughly, "youdon't know anything about it. The story doesn't say the big sisterswere bad to her when she was a little girl like you. But some dayyou'll grow up and be a young lady, and then you'll see. How would youlike to have all the dirty work to do and old shabby clothes to wear,while Miss Maddie and Miss Ermie went flaunting about in silks andsatins and feathers?"

  And as she spoke she opened the book at one of the pictures, where thesisters were arraying themselves for the ball, while sweet Cinderellacrouched forlorn in a corner.

  Ella stared at the book with an attention she had never before bestowedupon it, her face very solemn indeed. Suddenly her expression changed.

  "No," she said, "it's not like me and Maddie and Ermie. _Her_ sistersare very ugly, and they've horrid black curls. Maddie and Ermie aren'tugly, and they haven't nasty cross faces. No; they'd never be sonaughty," and she looked up in triumph, though there was a little quaverof anxiety in her voice still.

  "Oh, very well," said Harvey, "if you're so fond of your sisters as allthat, however unkind they are to poor Harvey--"

  "I didn't say _you_--I think Maddie was very naughty to scold you, dearHarvey. I only said they wouldn't be so c'uel to me if I was big--notlike these _piggy_ sisters in the book," said Ella, using the strongestlanguage in her repertory.

  "Oh, well, you're not big yet. Perhaps you'll wish for poor Harvey allthe same some day, though you don't care for her now. Of course poorHarvey's only a servant, and Miss Maddie and Miss Ermie are grand, richyoung ladies."

  "And I shall be a grand, rich young lady too," said Ella.

  Harvey only laughed.

  Ella grew very excited.

  "Harvey, say I shall be. You _must_ say it," she repeated, shaking themaid's arm.

  "Miss Ella, for shame. What a little fury you are. How can I say whatyou'll be? You should be a grand, rich young lady if _I_ was yoursister, but I can't speak for others."

  "What do you mean?" cried Ella. "_Mamma_ will let me be a grand younglady. Maddie and Ermie aren't over mamma. Harvey, do you hear?"

  "Hush," said the nurse, suddenly changing her tone, "your mamma's veryill, Miss Ella, and if you make such a no
ise they'll all think you verynaughty. I was only joking--of course you'll be a beautiful young ladytoo, some day."

  But Ella was not to be so easily smoothed down.

  "You weren't joking," she said resentfully. "I'll ask Maddie if it'strue," and she began to scramble down. "I'll take the book and tell heryou said it was like me and them."

  Harvey caught hold of her.

  "If