Bessie on Her Travels

Bessie looked surprised at this; but Belle clapped her hands, saying, —

“You’ll let me help too, won’t you?”

“But,” said Mrs. Bradford, “I thought you were saving that money for another purpose.”

“Oh, so we were,” said Maggie, biting her underlip; “if I didn’t forget it. What a child I am! always forgetting one thing in another.”

“What is it?” asked Belle.

“To buy a warm cloak and a pair of better spetacles for good Mrs. Granby, who is always being kind to other people, and never thinks about herself,” said Bessie.

“And I suppose it wouldn’t be fair to put by a person we’ve known for so long for people we’re hardly acquainted with, only through water-lilies,” said Maggie. “Oh! I wish, I wish, I wish I had the greatest lots of money that ever were seen, so I could give every one every thing they wanted.”

Maggie was always wishing for lots of money; but it is only justice to her to say that it was generally for the benefit of others, and not for herself.

“Did you promise Mrs. Granby?” asked Belle.

“No, we did not promise, not with words,” said Bessie; “but then, we made up our minds to do it, and we wouldn’t like not to. I think it would seem a little like not being very true in our hearts to Mrs. Granby.”

“Oh, dear!” said Maggie, “there are such lots of things one wants to do; but somehow, one can’t seem to do every thing.”

“Mamma,” said Bessie, “don’t you think papa would like to help this boy? He has enough of money.”

“My dear child,” said mamma, laughing: “you must not think there is no end to papa’s money. He has a good many people to help now, and he cannot do for every one, you know.”

“Well, then,” said Maggie, “we’ll tell Uncle Ruthven and the Colonel, and see what they will do. I don’t mean we’ll ask them to help the lily boy; but we’ll just let them know about him, and then leave it to their own conscience.”

“Uncle Ruthven has a good deal of conscience about poor people; and so has Uncle Horace too,” said Bessie.

But somehow the children could not find an opportunity to tell their uncle and Colonel Rush about the “lily boy.” For the next few days there was a good deal of company coming and going, and they did not care to talk about it before strangers; then papa, Uncle Ruthven, and the Colonel went off yachting, and stayed a week.

Meanwhile, Johnny and Sallie came to the house every morning, bringing their basket of lilies; and when the little girls had bought as many as they wanted for their daily gift to their mother, Mrs. Rush and the other ladies would purchase the remainder. So Maggie and Bessie knew that they were helping Johnny towards his heart’s desire in this way, even if they had devoted their “charity money” to another object.

Early on the morning after the gentlemen had returned, the children had gone down to the sands, and were playing happily together, when Belle came on her daily visit. Belle considered herself almost as much at home in Mrs. Rush’s house as Maggie and Bessie did.

“You live at the Ocean House, don’t you?” asked a little girl one day.

“Oh, no!” said Belle; “I don’t live there. I only sleep there, and eat my breakfast there. I live at Aunt May’s, even when it rains, Maggie and Bessie and I can’t do wifout oneanofer.”

She now came running swiftly over the beach towards Maggie and Bessie; and, as soon as she had kissed them for good-morning, said eagerly, —

“O Maggie and Bessie! what do you fink? It is my birfday next week, and papa told me to choose what he should give me, and I can’t think of any thing I want. Do you know any thing I want?”

“Well, no,” said Maggie. “I think you have about every thing a sensible child could want. I can’t remember a single thing; and that is rather a bad business not to have some thing you want for your birthday present. I think, after all, maybe it is a better economy not to have all you want; but to save up your wishes, so you can think of something when any person tells you to choose a present.”

Maggie said this with her wiseacre air, and Belle and Bessie listened with solemn admiration, believing it to be a speech containing a great deal of wisdom; nor, indeed, do I know that they were far wrong.

“How much is your father going to cost for your present?” asked Bessie.

“I asked him that,” said Belle; “and he said that ’pended on what I wanted. He said if it was a locket or necklace, or any thing that would keep till I was a big girl, he would not mind giving a good deal of money for it, he had to give me a present from mamma and himself too; but if it was only a toy I could break or be tired of in a little while, it would not be right to frow away much money on it. That is just what he said. I ’member it very well. But I don’t want a locket or those kind of things, there’s a whole lot of my own mamma’s pretty things I can have when I’m a big girl. Papa is keeping them for me, and I like those best. And I can’t think of a toy, not one;” and Belle looked quite melancholy over her want of wants.

“Yes,” said Maggie again, “I b’lieve you have every thing in the world a child could want.”

“Not my mamma,” said Belle, with the touch of sadness which always came over her when she thought or spoke of her dead mother.

“Dear Belle,” said Maggie, tenderly. “But then God gives us our mammas; and I only meant things that earth people could give you.”

“And, Belle, darling,” said Bessie, “your mamma is yours yet, even if she has gone to Jesus! It is only that she is more of Jesus’s, and He is more of hers now she is in His home with Him.”

Belle wiped away the tears which had gathered in her eyes; and then, with Bessie’s arm about her neck, and Maggie holding her hand, sat gazing up into the cloudless, blue sky, almost as if she expected to see the face of her “angel-mother” looking down with tender love upon her.

They all three sat silent for a few moments. The waves – they were hardly more than wavelets, on this still, calm day – came up with their gentle murmur upon the beach; and there was a sort of golden haze upon the sea, and far off on the horizon, telling, perhaps, of a coming fog later in the day: but the sky was clear above them now, and all was bright and fair around.

The quiet and the peace stole into all three little hearts, – God’s peace, which He gives to those who love and trust in Him, and who strive to do His work, and bear His will, with simple faith that He knows best, and will order all things right.

Old Daphne and Jane, each with her work, sat at a little distance, but did not interfere with the children more than to see they did not run into any danger; and were occupied with their own conversation, the burden of which, on Daphne’s side, was the extreme loveliness and sweetness of her young mistress; while each story that she told of Belle’s goodness and smartness was immediately matched with one from Jane of the wisdom and droll sayings of her particular young charge. Each bird sang loud in praise of her own nestling; but the little birds themselves neither heard nor heeded.

“Belle,” said Bessie, after a little, “a thought came into my mind just now; no, not into my mind either. I guess it was into my heart, it was such a thought of love.”

“What was it?” asked Belle, looking as if all thoughts of love were in her heart towards the dear Bessie.

“About your mamma,” said Bessie. “You know your papa said he had to give you a present from her. I just thought if maybe you wouldn’t like to have her present something that by and by would be fit to go back to heaven like a jewel for our Father.”

“Yes, I would,” answered Belle, to whom the oft-repeated, oft-referred-to story was nearly as familiar and as dear as it was to Maggie and Bessie. “Yes, I would; but what thing could I ask for that would be like that? If you want any thing or Maggie, I’ll ask papa for it, and give it to you, liever than to have it myself, you’re so dear and good to me. I would, Bessie.”

“Oh, no, Belle!” said Bessie. “I never would hint you to give me a thing. Mamma says that is not a nice thing to do; and I was thinking of something better than that, something that would be a great, great help to some one, and last a great, great while, maybe for ever.”

“Well,” said Belle, “why don’t you tell me what it is? You know I don’t have a great deal of think in me to find out how to do good for ofers; but I b’lieve I have some do in me when I know how.”

“Yes, you have,” said Maggie, “and some day you’ll learn how to think for yourself. You see you have not been quite so much brought up to it as we have. That’s the mercy of having such a papa and mamma as ours.”

“Well,” said Belle rather hurt, “my papa is very such too, and I’d rafer have him than any papa.”

“Oh, yes!” said Maggie quickly, seeing that she had made a mistake, and hastening to heal the wound she had unintentionally given; “to be sure you would, and I didn’t mean the least discompliment to your papa, Belle; but you know he has had a great deal of trouble, and so has not had time to teach you so much as our papa and mamma have taught us.”

“Yes, I know it,” said Belle, quite satisfied with this apology; “but tell me now, Bessie, I can’t think what you mean.”

“Water-lily boy,” said Bessie, willing to give Belle the credit of thinking out the matter for herself.

Belle looked puzzled.

“Lily boy, Johnny, school,” said Bessie, helping her along.

“Oh!” said Belle, as Bessie’s meaning came to her, “do you mean I could ask papa to give the money for Johnny to go to school next winter?”

“Yes, dear,” said Bessie; “and it’s partly your mamma’s present it would seem as if you and she were doing good together, and as if the help for Johnny came from heaven.”

“Bessie! oh, you precious love!” burst forth Maggie. “You need never say another word about my having good ideas. If I have ideas about compositions and things, you have a great deal better ones about living. I never did see such a child as you are, – no, never; and I hope I never will: one of such a kind as you are is quite enough for me;” and Maggie, after gazing at her sister with an air of the most intense pride and satisfaction, threw her arms about her neck and kissed her. “Don’t you think that is lovely, Belle?” she said; “and don’t you want to do it?”