time that he might not feel lonely. Dan did not love to read, but
soon got so interested that he was surprised when the boys came
home. Daisy brought him a nosegay of wild flowers, and Nan
insisted on helping bring him his supper, as he lay on the sofa with
the door open into the dining-room, so that he could see the lads at
table, and they could nod socially to him over their bread and
butter.
Mr. Bhaer carried him away to his bed early, and Teddy came in
his night-gown to say good-night, for he went to his little nest with
the birds.
“I want to say my prayers to Danny; may I?” he asked; and when
his mother said, “Yes,” the little fellow knelt down by Dan’s bed,
and folding his chubby hands, said softly,
“Pease Dod bess everybody, and hep me to be dood.”
Then he went away smiling with sleepy sweetness over his
mother’s shoulder.
But after the evening talk was done, the evening song sung, and
the house grew still with beautiful Sunday silence, Dan lay in his
pleasant room wide awake, thinking new thoughts, feeling new
hopes and desires stirring in his boyish heart, for two good angels
had entered in: love and gratitude began the work which time and
effort were to finish; and with an earnest wish to keep his first
promise, Dan folded his hands together in the Darkness, and softly
whispered Teddy’s little prayer,
“Please God bless every one, and help me to be good.”
CHAPTER XI UNCLE TEDDY
For a week Dan only moved from bed to sofa; a long week and a
hard one, for the hurt foot was very painful at times, the quiet days
were very wearisome to the active lad, longing to be out enjoying
the summer weather, and especially difficult was it to be patient.
But Dan did his best, and every one helped him in their various
ways; so the time passed, and he was rewarded at last by hearing
the doctor say, on Saturday morning,
“This foot is doing better than I expected. Give the lad the crutch
this afternoon, and let him stump about the house a little.”
“Hooray!” shouted Nat, and raced away to tell the other boys the
good news.
Everybody was very glad, and after dinner the whole flock
assembled to behold Dan crutch himself up and down the hall a
few times before he settled in the porch to hold a sort of levee. He
was much pleased at the interest and good-will shown him, and
brightened up more and more every minute; for the boys came to
pay their respects, the little girls fussed about him with stools and
cushions, and Teddy watched over him as if he was a frail creature
unable to do anything for himself. They were still sitting and
standing about the steps, when a carriage stopped at the gate, a hat
was waved from it, and with a shout of “Uncle Teddy! Uncle
Teddy!” Rob scampered down the avenue as fast as his short legs
would carry him. All he boys but Dan ran after him to see who
should be first to open the gate, and in a moment the carriage
drove up with boys swarming all over it, while Uncle Teddy sat
laughing in the midst, with his little daughter on his knee.
“Stop the triumphal car and let Jupiter descend,” he said, and
jumping out ran up the steps to meet Mrs. Bhaer, who stood
smiling and clapping her hands like a girl.
“How goes it, Teddy?”
“All right, Jo.”
Then they shook hands, and Mr. Laurie put Bess into her aunt’s
arms, saying, as the child hugged her tight, “Goldilocks wanted to
see you so much that I ran away with her, for I was quite pining for
a sight of you myself. We want to play with your boys for an hour
or so, and to see how ‘the old woman who lived in a shoe, and had
so many children she did not know what to do,’ is getting on.”
“I’m so glad! Play away, and don’t get into mischief,” answered
Mrs. Jo, as the lads crowded round the pretty child, admiring her