Cornelli Part 21

Cornelli gladly agreed.

It was time now for their accustomed evening song, which had been put off longer than usual that day. Agnes was of the decided opinion that it was not suitable to end this day with a mild evening song. She suggested a loud hymn of praise and thanks. She started it with enthusiasm, and all the others soon joined.

The unexpected joy and great friendliness Agnes had shown had made Cornelli so happy and astonished that she sat a long time on her bed in the little room. She was wondering to herself why she could never be quite happy in spite of everybody's goodness, but she knew soon enough why this was so. Her old fear had not left her. She fully realized that she looked different from other children and that her horns would get worse, till they could not be hidden any more. Then everybody would think what Mux had thought, even if they did not say it.

Next morning, when Cornelli had just gotten up, Mrs. Halm entered her room. "Cornelli," she said, taking the child's hand, "you have made us all so happy! You have done much for Dino by helping him to pa.s.s many pleasant hours, and you have entertained my little restless Mux so wonderfully that he can hardly live without you any more. I should like to do something for you now; I should love to make you look festive to-day and get rid forever of everything that disfigures you."

The mother had already begun to smooth out the child's thick hair.

"Oh no, oh no, please don't do it!" Cornelli cried out, "then everything will be lost. I want to go home, oh, I must go home! Oh, they will all laugh at me and they won't like me any more. Oh, you don't know how it is."

"I know everything, dear child," the mother said quietly. "Dino has told me everything. Don't you know, child, that I love you? You know, Cornelli, that I would not do anything that might hurt you the least bit, or that would not help you. I want to free you from an error, Cornelli."

"No, no, it is not an error, surely not," Cornelli called out in her great anxiety. "My cousin said it and Miss Grideelen said it, too.

They saw it, and I know it. Oh, please don't brush my hair away."

"Cornelli," the mother went on calmly, "the ladies told you they saw little horns on your forehead, that got bigger every time you wrinkled up your brow. You are afraid that this is really so and that it is getting worse. You understood it in a way they did not mean. They only wanted to tell you that when you frowned you looked as if you had horns on your forehead, and they said it to keep you from frowning. They meant well by you, but you misunderstood them. But you can understand me. Just let me help you to be happy again.

"Have you any confidence in me, Cornelli? Tell me, do you think that I would do anything that would make you repulsive in the eyes of everyone? Do you believe that? I know you don't, child!" Cornelli only groaned a little.

With nimble hands the mother had in the meantime kept on smoothing and combing the child's heavy hair. It already lay beautifully parted on both sides of her face. The brown, wavy hair framed a snow-white brow, for not a ray of sunshine had penetrated through the hair all summer long. The mother finished the two heavy tresses and wound them about Cornelli's head like a crown. Smilingly the mother looked into Cornelli's face. The great change had thrilled her with joy.

"Now come with me to the children. We shall see if they can notice any change," she said, and taking the little girl's hand, she led her away.

Cornelli was extremely glad to enter the room at the mother's side, for she would not have dared to go alone. When the door opened, she looked shyly at the floor.

Mux had already been waiting for his companion and now ran to meet her. "What have you done, Cornelli?" he cried out in sudden surprise.

"Your forehead looks quite clean and neat, and you have shiny eyes like a canary bird, and you don't look like an owl any more."

"Why Cornelli! You are transformed!" Agnes exclaimed. "Just let me see you. Make a little room, Mux! No, I don't know you any more. It is fortunate you did it, for it is a pleasure to look at you now."

"Your mother has done it," Cornelli explained confusedly, for she was quite overcome at all these manifestations of joy.

Nika also glanced up at her. "You are a different child, Cornelli, and I do not see how you could ever have gotten the way you were."

These words were said in such a charming manner that a deep sensation of well-being filled Cornelli. She tried to fight against it, however, for she did not think it possible that she should suddenly become freed from her horrible, sickening fear.

Agnes was very anxious to practice their song for the festive reception of the newly risen Dino, and Cornelli, too, was filled with ardor. The two children kept up their singing quite a while, for Agnes could not weary of trying the songs for two voices which she had never before been able to use.

Dino did not come until lunch time. Though he was still very pale, he felt extremely lively. "Hurrah, Cornelli!" he cried out as he entered the living room. "Now you look again the way you used to in Iller-Stream when you forgot to pull your curtains over your brow. You even look better than that, Cornelli, you look perfectly splendid! Another hurrah for this great joy!"

The next moment a surprise came for Dino: the lovely festive song which Agnes and Cornelli were singing in his honor. The voice of the latter was full of purity and strength, and Dino kept on signalling to Nika over and over again, saying in a low voice: "Do you hear it? Do you see it? Do you notice it at last?"

It was quite evident that two had not been of the same opinion about Cornelli till that day.

So they all had a merry feast. In Cornelli's heart the feeling of delicious well-being gradually began to drive away all other sensations.

Her old gaiety broke forth boundlessly and roused all the others as well to great merriment and joy. Dino looked quite well again, and his eyes fairly beamed with happiness. Even the mother joined in their gay mood, and she had to glance over and over again at her two daughters, who had seldom shown such unclouded joy. She heaved a secret sigh, however, and asked herself: I wonder how long this happiness will last, for we have hard times before us.

"Wasn't I right, after all?" Dino said to his sisters, when Cornelli had retired and the family separated at bedtime. The sisters till now had made disparaging remarks to him about Cornelli. "We do not see what attracts you in her," they had said. "We don't understand how you can find her entertaining," and so on.

When Cornelli was alone in her room that night, she felt as in a dream.

What had happened to her? Was it really true that the great sorrow which had weighed on her and had taken all her joy away had forever disappeared? The mother had told her firmly that it had been an error, and the children had proved it to be so by their reception of her. So she could be happy again as she had always been. Cornelli was filled with joy and praise to G.o.d at this thought.

"How wonderfully G.o.d has led me," she said in her heart. She remembered how anxiously she had prayed to Him to prevent her from being sent to town. Now she had come to town, but in such a different way from what she had feared! She had been freed from her trouble by going away.

Martha had certainly been right and she would always try to remember this. In the future she would pray to G.o.d that she might do everything according to His will, and she made up her mind that she would never again try to force the fulfilment of her own wishes. She felt that she owed the good Lord in Heaven especial praises, so she lay down to sleep quite late, and because of her happiness, even stayed awake a long time after her prayers were said.

"I have to tell you something, Cornelli," said the mother next day, when all the family was peacefully gathered around the supper table.

"You know that I have written to your father asking him to let you stay here a little longer. He has answered me, saying that he would be very pleased if his little daughter could stay with us for a year and could take all the lessons that my daughters are taking; but he leaves you free to decide about it. So you must write to your father to let him know the answer to his proposal.

"Oh, you must stay here, Cornelli. Won't you please stay?" Dino exclaimed. "Then you can be here till summer time and we two can go back to Iller-Stream together, for it is quite settled that I am going again to our good old Martha."

"And I'll go, too," Mux said with conviction. "Do you know, Cornelli,"

he whispered into her ear, "I'll stay with you all the time in your own house and Dino can go alone to old Martha."

Agnes was simply enchanted with this new prospect. "Oh, how wonderful, how wonderful!" she exclaimed over and over again. "Now we can have singing lessons together and sing again at home. Oh, that is too wonderful!"

Nika also begged Cornelli to stay. "I hope you will tell your father that you intend to remain with us, Cornelli," she said. "We are only just beginning to know you well."

Cornelli's eyes sparkled with pleasure, for now the whole family wanted to keep her with them. Suddenly a thought flashed through her. When her father had threatened to send her to town for a year, she had been terribly upset, and now the year spent in town with this family seemed like pure pleasure. How different everything had been from what she had thought and feared.

"I should love to stay here!" she exclaimed with deep emotion. "Can I write to Papa now?" That suited Mrs. Halm exactly. Sitting down beside Cornelli, she also wrote to Mr. h.e.l.lmut, and both letters were sent at once.

Two days later Mr. h.e.l.lmut was sitting at the breakfast table, looking at his mail. First of all he opened a fat envelope which had come to him from town. There were two letters in it which caused him great surprise. Mrs. Halm wrote that all the members of her family had joyfully received his proposal to leave Cornelli with them for a longer stay. She told him that they had all become so fond of Cornelli that she would have left behind a feeling of real loss.

Cornelli's letter read as follows:

DEAR PAPA:

I should love to stay here, for the mother and all the children are very good to me, and I love them dearly. I should also like to learn lots and lots of things. Nika and Agnes know so much and are so clever, and I should be so glad to learn what they know. I shall be unspeakably happy if you will let me stay. Please give my love to Martha, Esther, and Matthew.

YOUR CORNELLI.

After reading the letters, the Director shook his head. "What on earth has happened?" he said to himself. "A few weeks have hardly pa.s.sed since they told me that this child could not be set to rights, and I have myself seen how stubborn she was and how strangely she behaved.

And what a change already! However, I must not take literally what has probably been written in a moment of excitement."

Mr. h.e.l.lmut was very glad about Cornelli's intention to remain in town, for thus his greatest care had been taken from him. A lovely woman, who with her children had made a most favorable impression on him, had promised to devote herself to his child, and he only wondered how long the present arrangement would last.

Mrs. Halm had soon arranged a regular course of studies for Cornelli.

Agnes was very anxious for her to start music lessons right away, for she thought that that was the most important thing. Cornelli herself was eager to do this, for she wanted to learn everything that Nika and Agnes were learning. So she threw herself with fresh energy into all the fields of study that were opened to her.

Dino also was going to school, for he had entirely recovered. Every morning the four children started out gaily, talking eagerly while they walked down the street, until they finally separated for their various schools. If they met again on their way home, they were still more lively, for they would tell each other all their experiences.

Cornelli surpa.s.sed them all in that respect. She had the talent of describing everything in such a funny and vivid fashion that she made them all laugh.

Mux alone was unhappy in these days, for he had lost his beloved companion. Full of anger, he would meet the four laughing school children when they were coming up the stairs and would say: "If I owned all the schools I would certainly burn them."

"But I hope not all the teachers, too, Mux," said Dino, "for then one would have to tell an even worse tale about you than you were telling about Agnes."

The door between Cornelli's and the sisters' room was always open now, for they all had wished it. There was not a single evening on which they did not make use of the last moment for talking to each other about their mutual interests.