CHAPTER IV.

THE PRODIGIOUS CAKE.

Yet theirs the joy That lifts their steps, that sparkles in their eyes; That talks or laughs, or runs, or shouts, or plays, And speaks in all their looks, and all their ways.

Crabbe.

Next day after the fire, Laura could think of nothing but what she was to do with the shilling that uncle David had given her; and a thousand plans came into her head, while many wants entered her thoughts, which never occurred before; so that, if twenty shillings had been in her hand instead of one, they would all have gone twenty different ways.

Lady Harriet advised that it should be laid bye till Laura had fully considered what she would like best; reminding her very truly, that money is lame in coming, but flies in going away. "Many people can get a shilling, Laura," said her grandmama; "but the difficulty is to keep it; for you know the old proverb tells that 'a fool and his money are soon parted.'"

"Yes, Miss! so give it to me, and I shall take care of your shilling!"

added Mrs. Crabtree, holding out her hand to Laura, who fell that if her money once disappeared into that capacious pocket, she would never see it again. "Children have no use for money! that shilling will only burn a hole in your purse, till it is spent on some foolish thing or other.

You will be losing your thimble soon, or mislaying your gloves; for all these things seem to fly in every direction, as if they got legs and wings as soon as they belong to you; so then that shilling may replace what is lost."

Mrs. Crabtree looked as if she would eat it up; but Laura grasped her treasure still tighter in her hand, exclaiming,

"No! no! this is mine! Uncle David never thought of my shilling being taken care of! He meant me to do whatever I liked with it! Uncle David says he cannot endure saving children, and that he wishes all money were turned into slates, when little girls keep it longer than a week."

"I like that!" said Harry, eagerly; "it is so pleasant to spend money, when the shopkeeper bows to me over the counter so politely, and asks what I please to want."

"Older people than you like spending money, Master Harry, and spend whether they have it or no; but the greatest pleasure is to keep it. For instance, Miss Laura, whatever she sees worth a shilling in any shop, might be hers if she pleases; so then it is quite as good as her own. We shall look in at the bazaar every morning, to fix upon something that she would like to have, and then consider of it for two or three days."

Laura thought this plan so very unsatisfactory, that she lost no time in getting her shilling changed into two sixpences, one of which she immediately presented to Harry, who positively refused for a long time to accept of it, insisting that Laura should rather buy some pretty plaything for herself; but she answered that it was much pleasanter to divide her fortune with Harry, than to be selfish, and spend it all alone. "I am sure, Harry," added she, "if this money had been yours, you would have said the same thing, and given the half of what you got to me; so now let us say no more about that, but tell me what would be the best use to make of my sixpence?"

"You might buy that fine red morocco purse we saw in the shop window yesterday," observed Harry, looking very serious and anxious, on being consulted. "Do you remember how much we both wished to have it?"

"But what is the use of a purse, with no money to keep in it!" answered Laura, looking earnestly at Harry for more advice. "Think again of something else."

"Would you like a new doll?"

"Yes; but I have nothing to dress her with!"

"Suppose you buy that pretty geranium in a red flower-pot at the gardener's!"

"If it would only live for a week, I might be tempted to try; but flowers will always die with me. They seem to wither when I so much as look at them. Do you remember that pretty fuchsia that I almost drowned the first day grandmama gave it me; and we forgot for a week afterwards to water it at all. I am not a good flower doctor."

"Then buy a gold watch at once," said Harry, laughing; "or a fine pony, with a saddle, to ride on."

"Now, Harry, pray be quite in earnest. You know I might as well attempt to buy the moon as a gold watch; so think of something else."

"It is very difficult to make a good use of money," said Harry, pretending to look exceedingly wise. "Do you know, Laura, I once found out that you could have twelve of those large ship biscuits we saw at the baker's shop for sixpence. Only think! you could feed the whole town, and make a present to everybody in the house besides! I dare say Mrs. Crabtree might like one with her tea. All the maids would think them a treat. You could present one to Frank, another to old Andrew, and there would still be some left for these poor children at the cottage."

"Oh! that is the very thing!" cried Laura, running out of the room to send Andrew off with a basket, and looking as happy as possible. Not long afterwards, Frank, who had returned from school, was standing at the nursery window, when he suddenly called out in a voice of surprise and amazement,

"Come here, Harry! look at old Andrew! he is carrying something tied up in a towel, as large as his own head! what can it be?"

"That is all for me! these are my biscuits!" said Laura, running off to receive the parcel, and though she heard Frank laughing, while Harry told all about them, she did not care, but brought her whole collection triumphantly into the nursery.

"Oh fancy! how perfect!" cried Harry, opening the bundle; "this is very good fun!"

"Here are provisions for a siege!" added Frank. "You have at least got enough for your money, Laura!"

"Take one yourself, Frank!" said she, reaching him the largest, and then, with the rest all tied in her ap.r.o.n, Laura proceeded up and down stairs, making presents to every person she met, till her whole store was finished; and she felt quite satisfied and happy because everybody seemed pleased and returned many thanks, except Mrs. Crabtree, who said she had no teeth to eat such hard things, which were only fit for sailors going to America or the West Indies.

"You should have bought me a pound of sugar, Miss Laura, and that might have been a present worth giving."

"You are too sweet already, Mrs. Crabtree!" said Frank, laughing. "I shall send you a sugar-cane from the West Indies, to beat Harry and Laura with, and a whole barrel of sugar for yourself, from my own estate."

"None of your nonsense, Master Frank! Get out of the nursery this moment! You with an estate indeed! You will not have a place to put your foot upon soon except the topmast in a man-of-war, where all the bad boys in a ship are sent."

"Perhaps, as you are not to be the captain, I may escape, and be dining with the officers sometimes! I mean to send you home a fine new India shawl, Mrs. Crabtree, the very moment I arrive at Madras, and some china tea-cups from Canton."

"Fiddlesticks and nonsense!" said Mrs. Crabtree, who sometimes enjoyed a little jesting with Frank. "Keep all them rattle-traps till you are a rich nabob, and come home to look for Mrs. Frank,--a fine wife she will be! Ladies that get fortunes from India are covered all over with gold chains, and gold muslins, and scarlet shawls. She will eat nothing but curry and rice, and never put her foot to the ground except to step into her carriage."

"I hope you are not a gipsey, to tell fortunes!" cried Harry, laughing; "Frank would die rather than take such a wife."

"Or, at least, I would rather have a tooth drawn than do it," added Frank, smiling. "Perhaps I may prefer to marry one of those old wives on the chimney-tops; but it is too serious to say I would rather die, because n.o.body knows how awful it is to die, till the appointed day comes."

"Very true and proper, Master Frank," replied Mrs. Crabtree; "you speak like a printed book sometimes, and you deserve a good wife."

"Then I shall return home some day with chests of gold, and let you choose one for me, as quiet and good-natured as yourself, Mrs.

Crabtree," said Frank, taking up his books and hastening off to school, running all the way, as he was rather late, and Mr. Lexicon, the master, had promised a grand prize for the boy who came most punctually to his lessons, which everybody declared that Frank was sure to gain, as he had never once been absent at the right moment.

Major Graham often tried to teaze Frank, by calling him "the Professor,"--asking him questions which it was impossible to answer, and then pretending to be quite shocked at his ignorance; but no one ever saw the young scholar put out of temper by those tricks and trials, for he always laughed more heartily than any one else, at the joke.

"Now show me, Frank," said uncle David, one morning, "how do you advance three steps backwards?"

"That is quite impossible, unless you turn me into a crab."

"Tell me, then, which is the princ.i.p.al town in Caffraria?"

"Is there any town there? I do not recollect it."

"Then so much the worse!--how are you ever to get through life without knowing the chief town in Caffraria! I am quite ashamed of your ignorance. Now let us try a little arithmetic! Open the door of your understanding and tell me, when wheat is six shillings a bushel, what is the price of a penny loaf. Take your slate and calculate that."

"Yes, uncle David, if you will find out, when gooseberries are two shillings the pint, what is the price of a threepenny tart. You remind me of my old nursery song--

'The man in the wilderness asked me, How many strawberries grew in the sea; I answered him, as I thought it good, As many red herrings as grew in the wood.'"

Some days after Laura had distributed the biscuits, she became very sorry for having squandered her shilling, without attending to Lady Harriet's good advice, about keeping it carefully in her pocket for at least a week, to see what would happen. A very pleasant way of using money now fell in her way, but she had been a foolish spendthrift, so her pockets were empty, when she most wished them to be full. Harry came that morning after breakfast into the nursery, looking in a great bustle, and whispering to Laura, "What a pity your sixpence is gone! but as Mrs. Crabtree says, 'we cannot both eat our cake and have it!'"

"No!" answered Laura, as seriously as if she had never thought of this before, "but why do you so particularly wish my money back to-day?"

"Because such a very nice, funny thing is to be done this morning. You and I are asked to join the party, but I am afraid we cannot afford it!

All our little cousins and companions intend going with Mr. Harwood, the tutor, at twelve o'clock, to climb up to the very top of Arthur's Seat, where they are to dine and have a dance. There will be about twenty boys and girls of the party, but every body is to carry a basket filled with provisions for dinner, either cakes, or fruit, or biscuits, which are to be eat on the great rock at the top of the hill. Now grandmama says we ought to have had money enough to supply what is necessary, and then we might have gone, but no one can be admitted who has not at least sixpence to buy something."

"Oh! how provoking!" said Laura, sadly, "I wonder when we shall learn always to follow grandmama's advice, for that is sure to turn out best in the end. I never take my own way without being sorry for it afterwards, so I deserve now to be disappointed and remain at home; but, Harry, your sixpence is still safe, so pray join this delightful party, and tell me all about it afterwards."