The House in Town

"And American history too?" ventured Matilda.

"Well, yes; but you see we haven't a great deal of history yet, Pink; because we are a young people."

"A young people?" said Matilda, puzzled. "What do you mean by that?"

"Why yes; it was only in 1776 that we set up for ourselves."

"Seventeen seventy six," repeated Matilda. "And now it is eighteen" —

"Near a hundred years; that is all."

Matilda pondered a little.

"Where must I begin, Norton?"

"O with Romulus and Remus, I guess. And then there's grammar, Pink; did you ever study grammar?"

"A little. I didn't like it."

"No, and I don't like it; but you have to learn it, for all that. And geography, Pink?"

"O I was drawing maps, Norton; but then I had to come away from school, and I was busy at aunt Candy's, and I have forgot nearly all I knew, I am afraid."

"Never mind," said Norton delightedly; "we'll find it again, and a great deal more. I'll get you some nice sheets of paper for your maps, and a box of colours; so that you can make a pretty affair of them. I declare! I don't know whether we can begin, though, before Christmas."

"O yes, Norton. I have more time than I know what to do with. I would like to begin about Romus" —

"Romulus. Yes, you shall. And now, if we turn round here we shall not have too much time to get home, I'm thinking."

CHAPTER X

Matilda hardly knew whether to welcome Sunday. Her mind was in such a whirl, she was half afraid to have leisure to think. There was little chance however for that in the morning; late breakfast and dressing disposed of the time nicely. The whole family went to church to-day, David alone excepted; and Matilda was divided between delight in her new cloak and rich dress, and a certain troubled feeling that all the sweetness which used to belong to her Sundays in church at Shadywalk was here missing. Nothing in the service gave her any help. Her dress, to be sure, was merged in a crowd of just such dresses; silks and laces and velvets and feathers and bright colours were on every side of her and other brilliant colours streamed down from the painted windows of the church. They were altogether distracting. It was impossible not to notice the dash of golden light which lay across her own green silk dress and glorified it, so far; or to help watching the effect of a stream of crimson rays on Judy's blue. What a purple it made! The colouring was not any more splendid or delicious indeed than one may see in a summer sunset sky many a day; but somehow the effect on the feelings was different. And when Matilda looked up again at the minister and tried to get at the thread of what he was saying, she found she had lost the connection; and began instead to marvel how he would look, if the streak of blue which bathed his forehead were to fall a little lower and lie across his mouth and chin. Altogether, when the service was ended and the party walked home, Matilda did not feel as if she had got any good or refreshment out of Sunday yet; more than out of a kaleidoscope.

"I'll go to Mr. Rush's Sunday school this afternoon" – she determined, as she was laying off her cloak.

There was no hindrance to this determination; but as Matilda crossed the lower hall, ready to go out, she was met by Norton.

"Hollo," said he. "What's up now?"

"Nothing is up, Norton."

"Where are you going?"

So Matilda told him.

"Nothing else'll do, hey," said Norton. "Well, – hold on, till I get into my coat."

"Why, are you going?"

"Looks like it," said Norton. "Why Pink, you are not fit to be trusted in New York streets alone."

"I know where to go, Norton. But I am very glad you will go too."

"To take care of you," said Norton. "Why Pink, New York is a big trap; and you would find yourself at the wrong end of a puzzle before you knew it."

"I have only got two blocks more to go, Norton. I could hardly be puzzled. Here, we turn down here."

It was no church, nor near a church, the building before which the two paused. They went up a few steps and entered a little hare vestibule. The doors giving further entrance were closed; a boy stood there as if to guard them; and a placard with a few words on it was hung up on one of them. The words were these

"And the door was shut."

"What sort of a place is this?" said Norton.

"This is the Sunday school," said Matilda. "They are singing; don't you hear them? We are late."

"It seems a queer Sunday school," said Norton. "Don't they let folks in here?"

"In ten minutes" – said the boy who stood by the door.

"Ten minutes!" echoed Norton. "It's quite an idea, to shut the door in people's faces and then hang out a sign to tell them it is shut!"

"O no, Norton; —that door isn't this door."

"That isn't this?" said Norton. "What do you mean, Pink? Of course I know so much; but it seems to me this is this."

"No, Norton; it means the door spoken of in the Bible – in the New Testament; – don't you know? don't you remember?"

"Not a bit," said Norton. "I can't say, Pink, but it seems to me this is not just exactly the place for you to come to Sunday school. Don't look like it."

"Mr. Richmond told me to come here, you know, Norton."

But Norton looked with a disapproving eye upon what he could see of the neighbourhood; and it is true that nobody would have guessed it was near such a region as Blessington avenue. The houses were uncomely and the people were poor; and more than that. There was a look of positive want of respectability. But the little boy who was keeping the door was decent enough; and presently now he opened the door and stood by to let Norton and Matilda pass in.

There they found a large plain room, airy and roomy and light, filled with children and teachers all in a great breeze of business. Everybody seemed to be quite engrossed with something or other; and Norton and Matilda slowly went up one of the long aisles between rows of classes, waiting and looking for somebody to speak to them. The children seemed to have no eyes to give to strangers; the teachers seemed to have no time. Suddenly a young man stood in front of Norton and greeted the two very cordially.

"Are you coming to join us?" he asked with a keen glance at them. And as they did not deny it, though Norton hardly made an intelligible answer, he led them up the room and at the very top introduced them to a gentleman.

"Mr. Wharncliffe, will you take charge of these new comers? For to-day, perhaps it will be the best thing."

So Norton and Matilda found themselves at one end of a circular seat which was filled with the boys and girls of a large class. Very different from themselves these boys and girls were; belonging to another stratum of what is called society. If their dress was decent, it was as much as could be said of it; no elegance or style was within the aim of any of them; a faded frock was in one place, and a patched pair of trowsers in another place, and not one of the little company but shewed all over poverty of means and ignorance of fashion. Yet the faces testified to no poverty of wits; intelligence and interest were manifest on every one, along with the somewhat spare and pinched look of ill supplied appetites. Norton read the signs, and thought himself much out of place. Matilda read them; and shrank a little from the association. However, she reflected that this was the first day of her being in the school; doubtless when the people saw who and what she was they would put her into a class more suited to her station. Then she looked at the teacher; and she forgot her companions. He was a young man, with a very calm face and very quiet manner, whose least word and motion however was watched by the children, and his least look and gesture obeyed. He sent one of the boys to fetch a couple of Bibles for Matilda and Norton, and then bade them all open their books at the first chapter of Daniel.

The first questions were about Nebuchadnezzar and his kingdom of Babylon. Unknown subjects to most of the members of the class; Mr. Wharncliffe had to tell a great deal about ancient history and geography. He had a map, and he had a clear head of his own, for he made the talk very interesting and very easy to understand; Matilda found herself listening with much enjoyment. A question at last came to her; why the Lord gave Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into the hands of the king of Babylon? Matilda did not know. She was told to find the 25th chapter of Jeremiah and read aloud nine verses.

"Now why was it?" said the teacher.

"Because the people would not mind the Lord's words."

The next question came to Norton. "Could the king of Babylon have taken Jerusalem, if the Lord had not given it into his hands?"