was full of boys. There were boys everywhere, upstairs and downstairs; big boys, little boys, and middle-sized boys. Two large rooms on the right were evidently schoolrooms. An open fire burned on the hearth, and several indolent lads lay on their backs before it. A tall boy was practising on the flute in one corner. Two or three others were jumping over the desks.
In the room on the left a long supper-table was seen, with great pitchers of new milk, piles of brown and white bread. A flavor of toast was in the air, also suggestions of baked apples.
The hall, however, was the most inviting prospect of all. One landing was devoted to marbles, the other to checkers, while the stairs were occupied by a boy reading, a girl singing a lullaby to her doll, two puppies, and a kitten.
One very lively boy came down so swiftly that he could not stop himself and fell off the banisters, with a crash. Nat ran up to the fallen rider. The boy, however, only winked rapidly and said, “Hello!”
“Hello!” returned Nat.
“What’s your name?”
“Nat Blake.”
“Mine’s Tommy Bangs. Demi, here’s a new one. Come here.”
At his call, the boy reading on the stairs looked up with a pair of big brown eyes, and after an instant’s pause, he put the book under his arm, and came soberly down to greet the newcomer.
“Have you seen Aunt Jo?” he asked.
“I haven’t seen anybody yet but you boys; I’m waiting,” answered Nat.
“Did Uncle Laurie send you?” proceeded Demi, politely, but gravely.
“Mr. Laurence did.”
“He is Uncle Laurie; and he always sends nice boys.”
Nat smiled. He did not know what to say next. A little girl came up with her doll in her arms. “This is my sister, Daisy,” announced Demi.
The children nodded to one another; and the little girl’s face dimpled with pleasure, as she said affably:
“I hope you’ll stay. We have such good times here; don’t we, Demi?”
“Of course, we do.”
“It seems a very nice place indeed,” observed Nat.
“It’s the nicest place in the world, isn’t it, Demi?” said Daisy.
“No, I think Greenland, where the icebergs and seals are, is more interesting. But I’m fond of Plumfield, and it is a very nice place as well,” said Demi.
The servant returned and said,
“All right; you will stay here.”
“I’m glad; now come to Aunt Jo,” Daisy took him by the hand.
Demi returned to his beloved book, while his sister led the newcomer into a back room, where a stout gentleman was frolicking with two little boys on the sofa, and a thin lady was just finishing the letter.
“Here he is, aunty!” cried Daisy.
“So this is my new boy? I am glad to see you, my dear, and hope you’ll be happy here,” said the lady.
She was not at all handsome, but she was merry. She saw the little tremble of Nat’s lips as she smoothed his hair, and her keen eyes grew softer.
“I am Mother Bhaer, that gentleman is Father Bhaer, and these are the two little Bhaers. Come here, boys, and see Nat.”
The stout man, with a chubby child on each shoulder, came up to welcome the new boy. Rob and Teddy merely grinned at him, but Mr. Bhaer said, in a cordial voice:
“There is a place for you, my son; sit down and dry thy wet feet.”
Mrs. Bhaer gave him warm slippers. He said “Thank you, ma’am”; and said it so gratefully that Mrs. Bhaer’s eyes grew soft, and she said something merry.
“There are Tommy Bangs’ slippers; but he never will remember to put them on in the house; so he won’t have them. They are too big; but that’s better; you can’t run away from us fast.”
“I don’t want to run away, ma’am.”
“That’s good! Now I am going to warm you, and try to get rid of that ugly cough. How long have you had it, dear?” asked Mrs. Bhaer.
“All winter. I got cold.”
“No wonder. He were living in that damp cellar on a rag!” said Mrs. Bhaer, in a low tone[1] to her husband, who was looking at the boy.
“Robin, go to Nursey, and tell her to give you the medicine and the liniment,” said Mr. Bhaer.
Nat looked a little anxious at the preparations, but forgot his fears in a hearty laugh, when Mrs. Bhaer whispered to him, with a droll look:
“The syrup I’m going to give you has honey in it; and Ted wants some.”
A bell rang, and a loud tramping through the hall announced supper. Bashful Nat quaked at the thought of meeting many boys, but Mrs. Bhaer held out her hand to him, and Rob said, patronizingly,
“Don’t be afraid; I’ll take care of you.”
Twelve boys, six on a side[2], stood behind their chairs, while the tall flute-playing boy was trying to curb their ardor. But no one sat down till Mrs. Bhaer was in her place behind the teapot, with Teddy on her left, and Nat on her right.
“This is our new boy, Nat Blake.”
As she spoke everyone stared at Nat. The boys did their best to obey. But there are times when hungry boys cannot be repressed without real cruelty, and Saturday evening, after a half-holiday, was one of those times.
“Let them have one day in which they can howl and racket and frolic. A holiday isn’t a holiday without plenty of freedom and fun,” Mrs. Bhaer used to say.
Nat sat with Tommy Bangs and Mrs. Bhaer.
“Who is that boy next the girl down at the other end?” whispered Nat to his young neighbor.
“That’s Demi Brooke. Mr. Bhaer is his uncle. He knows much and reads a lot.”
“Who is the fat one next him?”
“Oh, that’s Stuffy Cole. His name is George, but we call him Stuffy because he eats so much. The little fellow next Father Bhaer is his boy Rob, and then there’s big Franz his nephew; he teaches something.”
“He plays the flute, doesn’t he?” asked Nat.
Tommy nodded, and said,
“Yes. And we dance sometimes, and do gymnastics to music[3]. I like a drum myself, and want to learn as soon as I can.”
“I like a fiddle best; I can play one too,” said Nat.
“Can you?” and Tommy. “Mr. Bhaer’s got an old fiddle, and he’ll let you play on it if you want to.”
“Oh, I would like it ever so much. You see, I used to go round fiddling with my father, and another man, till he died.”
“Wasn’t that fun?” cried Tommy, much impressed.
“No, it was horrid; so cold in winter, and hot in summer. And I got tired; and they were cross sometimes; and I didn’t get enough to eat. But I loved my little fiddle, and I miss it. Nicolo took it away when father died.”
“You’ll belong to the band[4] if you play good.”
“Do you have a band here?” Nat’s eyes sparkled.
“Yes we do; a jolly band, all boys; and they have concerts. You just see what happens tomorrow night.”
After this pleasantly exciting remark, Tommy returned to his supper.
Mrs. Bhaer heard all they said. She put roly-poly[5] Nat next to Tommy, because she wanted to get the key to the new boy’s character. In the letter which Mr. Laurence had sent with Nat, he had said:
“Dear