Lottie (A Little Princess)

01Chapter 4.

02Lottie.

03If Sarah had been a different kind of child, the life she led at Miss Minchin's Select Seminary for the next few years would not have been at all good for her.

04She was treated more as if she were a distinguished guest at the establishment than as if she were a mere little girl.

05If she had been a self-opinionated, domineering child, she might have become disagreeable enough to be unbearable through being so much indulged and flattered.

06If she had been an indolent child, she would have learned nothing.

07Privately Miss Minchin disliked her, but she was far too worldly a woman to do or say anything which might make such a desirable pupil which to leave her school.

08She knew quite well that if Sarah wrote to her papa to tell him she was uncomfortable or unhappy, Captain Crewe would remove her at once.

09Miss Minchin's opinion was that if a child were continually praised and never forbidden to do what she liked, she would be sure to be fond of the place where she was so treated.

10Accordingly, Sarah was praised for her quickness at her lessons, for her good manners, for her amiability to her fellow-pupils, for her generosity if she gave sixpence to a beggar out of her full little purse.

11The simplest thing she did was treat it as if it were a virtue, and if she had not had a disposition and a clever little brain, she might have been a very self-satisfied young person.

12But the clever little brain told her a great many sensible and true things about herself and her circumstances, and now and then she talked these things over to Ermengarde as time went on.

13Things happen to people by accident, she used to say.

14A lot of nice accidents have happened to me.

15It just happened that I always liked lessons and books, and could remember things when I learned them.

16It just happened that I was born with a father who was beautiful and nice and clever, and could give me everything I liked.

17Perhaps I have not really a good temper at all.

18But if you have everything you want, and everyone is kind to you, how can you help but be good-tempered?

19I don't know, looking quite serious, how I shall ever find out whether I am really a nice child or a horrid one.

20Perhaps I am a hideous child, and no one will ever know, just because I never have any trials.

21Lavinia has no trials, said Ermengarde stolidly, and she is horrid enough.

22Sarah rubbed the end of her little nose reflectively as she thought the matter over.

23Well, she said at last, perhaps—perhaps that is because Lavinia is growing.

24This was the result of a charitable recollection of having heard Miss Melia say that Lavinia was growing so fast that she believed it affected her health and temper.

25Lavinia, in fact, was spiteful.

26She was inordinately jealous of Sarah.

27Until the new pupil's arrival, she had felt herself the leader in the school.

28She had led because she was capable of making herself extremely disagreeable if the others did not follow her.

29She domineered over the little children, and assumed grand airs with those big enough to be her companions.

30She was rather pretty, and had been the best-dressed pupil in the procession, when the select seminary walked out two by two, until Sarah's velvet coats and sable muffs appeared.

31Combined with drooping ostrich feathers, and were led by Miss Minchin at the head of the line.

32This, at the beginning, had been bitter enough.

33But as time went on, it became apparent that Sarah was a leader too, and not because she could make herself disagreeable, but because she never did.

34I must speak French to Lady Pitkin.

35Her accent is so perfect.

36She didn't learn her French at the seminary, at any rate.

37And there's nothing so clever in her knowing it.

38She says herself she didn't learn it at all.

39She just picked it up because she always heard her papa speak it.

40And as to her papa, there is nothing so grand in being an Indian officer.

41The little ones, who were accustomed to being disdained and ordered out of the way by mature ladies aged ten and twelve, were never made to cry by this most envied of them all.

42She was a motherly young person, and when people fell down and scraped their knees, she ran and helped them up and patted them, or found in her pocket a bon-bon or some other article of soothing nature.

43She never pushed them out of her way, or alluded to their years as a humiliation and a blot upon their small characters.

44"'If you are four, you are four,' she said severely to Lavinia, on an occasion of her having—it must be confessed—slapped Lottie, and called her a brat.

45"'But you will be five next year, and six the year after that.

46And,' opening large, convicting eyes, "'it takes sixteen years to make you twenty.' "'Dear me,' said Lavinia, "'how we can calculate?' In fact, it was not to be denied that sixteen and four made twenty, and twenty was an age the most daring were scarcely bold enough to dream of.

47So the younger children adored Sarah.

48More than once she had been known to have a tea-party made up of these despised ones in her own room.

49And Emily had been played with, and Emily's own tea-service used—the one with cups which held quite a lot of much-sweetened weak tea, and had blue flowers on them.

50No one had seen such a very real doll's tea-set before.

51From that afternoon, Sarah was regarded as a goddess and a queen by the entire alphabet class.

52Lottie Lay worshipped her to such an extent, that if Sarah had not been a motherly person, she would have found her tiresome.

53Lottie had been sent to school by a rather flighty young papa, who could not imagine what else to do with her.

54Her young mother had died, and as the child had been treated like a favourite doll, or a very spoiled pet monkey, or lap-dog ever since the first hour of her life, she was a very appalling little creature.

55When she wanted anything, or did not want anything, she wept and howled.

56And, as she always wanted the things she could not have, and did not want the things that were best for her, her shrill little voice was usually to be heard uplifted in wails in one part of the house or another.

57Her strongest weapon was that in some mysterious way she had found out that a very small girl who had lost her mother was a person who ought to be pitied and made much of.

58She had probably heard some grown-up people talking her over in the early days after her mother's death.

59So it became her habit to make great use of this knowledge.

60The first time Sarah took her in charge was one morning when, on passing a sitting-room, she heard both Miss Minchin and Miss Amelia trying to suppress the angry wails of some child who, evidently, refused to be silenced.

61She refused so strenuously, indeed, that Miss Minchin was obliged to almost shout, in a stately and severe manner, to make herself heard.

62What is she crying for?

63she almost yelled.

64Oh!

65Oh!

66Oh!

67Sarah heard.

68I haven't got any ma-ma!

69Oh, Lottie!

70screamed Miss Amelia.

71Do stop, darling!

72Don't cry!

73Please don't!

74Oh!

75Oh!

76Oh!

77Oh!

78Oh!

79Lottie howled tempestuously.

80Haven't got any ma-ma!

81She ought to be whipped, Miss Minchin proclaimed.

82You shall be whipped, you naughty child!

83Lottie wailed more loudly than ever.

84Miss Amelia began to cry.

85Miss Minchin's voice rose until it almost thundered.

86Then suddenly she sprang up from her chair in impotent indignation, and flounced out of the room, leaving Miss Amelia to arrange the matter.

87Sarah had paused in the hall, wondering if she ought to go into the room, because she had recently begun a friendly acquaintance with Lottie, and might be able to quiet her.

88When Miss Minchin came out and saw her, she looked rather annoyed.

89She realized that her voice, as heard from inside the room, could not have sounded either dignified or amiable.

90Oh!

91Sarah!

92she exclaimed, endeavouring to produce a suitable smile.

93I stopped, explained Sarah, because I knew it was Lottie, and I thought perhaps—just perhaps—I could make her be quiet.

94May I try, Miss Minchin?

95If you can, you are a clever child, answered Miss Minchin, drawing in her mouth sharply.

96Then, seeing that Sarah looked slightly chilled by her asperity, she changed her manner.

97But you are clever in everything, she said, in her approving way.

98I dare say you can manage her.

99Go in.

100And she left her.

101When Sarah entered the room, Lottie was lying upon the floor, screaming and kicking her small fat legs violently, and Miss Amelia was bending over her in consternation and despair, looking quite red and damp with heat.

102Lottie had always found, when in her own nursery at home, that kicking and screaming would always be quieted by any means she insisted on.

103Poor, plump Miss Amelia was trying first one method, and then another.

104Poor darling!

105she said one moment.

106I know you haven't any, Mama.

107Poor—then in quite another tone.

108If you don't stop, Lottie, I will shake you.

109Poor little angel!

110There!

111You wicked, bad, detestable child!

112I will smack you!

113I will!

114Sarah went to them quietly.

115She did not know at all what she was going to do.

116But she had a vague inward conviction that it would be better not to say such different kinds of things quite so helplessly and excitedly.

117Miss Amelia, she said in a low voice, Miss Minchin says I may try to make her stop.

118May I?

119Miss Amelia turned and looked at her hopelessly.

120Oh, do you think you can?

121she gasped.

122I don't know whether I can, answered Sarah, still in her half-whisper, but I will try.

123Miss Amelia stumbled up from her knees with a heavy sigh, and Lottie's fat little legs kicked as hard as ever.

124If you will steal out of the room, said Sarah, I will stay with her.

125Oh, Sarah!

126almost whispered Miss Amelia.

127We never had such a dreadful child before.

128I don't believe we can keep her.

129But she crept out of the room, and was very much relieved to find an excuse for doing it.

130Sarah stood by the howling, furious child for a few moments, and looked down at her without saying anything.

131Then she sat down on the floor beside her and waited.

132Except for Lottie's angry screams, the room was quite quiet.

133This was a new state of affairs for little Miss Lay, who was accustomed, when she screamed, to hear other people protest and implore and command and coax by turns.

134To lie and kick and shriek, and find the only person near you not seeming to mind in the least, attracted her attention.

135She opened her tight-shut streaming eyes to see who this person was.

136And it was only another little girl.

137But it was the one who owned Emily and all the nice things.

138And she was looking at her steadily, and as if she was merely thinking.

139Having paused for a few seconds to find this out, Lottie thought she must begin again.

140But the quiet of the room, and of Sarah's odd, interested face, made her first howl rather half-hearted.

141I haven't any ma-ma-ha—she announced.

142But her voice was not so strong.

143Sarah looked at her still more steadily, but with a sort of understanding in her eyes.

144"'Neither have I,' she said.

145This was so unexpected that it was astounding.

146Lottie actually dropped her legs, gave a wriggle, and lay and stared.

147A new idea will stop a crying child when nothing else will.

148Also, it was true that while Lottie disliked Miss Minchin, who was cross, and Miss Amelia, who was foolishly indulgent, she rather liked Sarah, little as she knew her.

149She did not want to give up her grievance, but her thoughts were distracted from it, so she wriggled again, and after a sulky sob said, "'Where is she?' Sarah paused a moment.

150Because she had been told that her ma-ma was in heaven, she had thought a great deal about the matter, and her thoughts had not been quite like those of other people.

151"'She went to heaven,' she said.

152"'But I am sure she comes out sometimes to see me, though I don't see her.

153So does yours.

154Perhaps they can both see us now.

155Perhaps they are both in this room.' Lottie sat bolt upright and looked about her.

156She was a pretty, little, curly-headed creature, and her round eyes were like wet forget-me-nots.

157If her ma-ma had seen her during the last half-hour, she might not have thought her the kind of child who ought to be related to an angel.

158Sarah went on talking.

159Perhaps some people might think that what she said was rather like a fairy story, but it was all so real to her own imagination that Lottie began to listen in spite of herself.

160She had been told that her ma-ma had wings and a crown, and she had been shown pictures of ladies in beautiful white nightgowns who were said to be angels.

161But Sarah seemed to be telling a real story about a lovely country where real people were.

162"'There are fields and fields of flowers,' she said, forgetting herself as usual when she began, and talking rather as if she were in a dream.

163"'Fields and fields of lilies, and when the soft wind blows over them it wafts the scent of them into the air, and everybody always breathes it, because the soft wind is always blowing.

164And little children run about in the lily-fields, and gather armfuls of them, and laugh and make little wreaths.

165And the streets are shining, and people are never tired, however far they walk.

166They can float anywhere they like.

167And there are walls made of pearl and gold all round the city, but they are low enough for the people to go and lean on them, and look down into the earth, and smile, and send beautiful messages.' Whatsoever story she had begun to tell, Lottie would, no doubt, have stopped crying, and been fascinated into listening.

168But there was no denying that this story was prettier than most others.

169She dragged herself close to Sarah, and drank in every word until the end came, far too soon.

170When it did come, she was so sorry that she put up her lip ominously.

171"'I want to go there,' she cried.

172"'I haven't any mama in this school.' Sarah saw the danger signal, and came out of her dream.

173She took hold of the chubby hand, and pulled her close to her side with a coaxing little laugh.

174"'I will be your mama,' she said.

175"'We will play that you are my little girl, and Emily shall be your sister.' Lottie's dimples all began to show themselves.

176"'Shall she?' she said.

177"'Yes,' answered Sarah, jumping to her feet.

178"'Let us go and tell her, and then I will wash your face and brush your hair.' To which Lottie agreed quite cheerfully, and trotted out of the room and upstairs with her, without seeming even to remember that the whole of the last hour's tragedy had been caused by the fact that she had refused to be washed and brushed for lunch, and Miss Minchin had been called in to use her majestic authority.

179And from that time Sarah was an adopted mother.

180End of chapter 4