I much wondered that my dear little friend José had never been to see me since we parted, but hoping for the best, I took the road I had so often before traversed on his shoulder, and found myself, after numerous frights and escapes, at the door of my old home. Think how distressed I was, when on entering, I perceived my dear little friend seated by the fire side, looking very pale, and so changed since I had last seen him! Uttering a cry of agony, I jumped into his arms. He was greatly surprised, and exclaimed, while he tenderly caressed me with his emaciated hand, “My poor, poor Pierrot! you are as much changed as I am. What can have happened?” added he on observing my bruises which were not yet quite recovered, “The wicked little Simon! can he have done this? Mother, mother,” cried he, as the old dame entered the room, “look! here is poor Pierrot returned all beaten and bruised, I am sure he has been very ill treated.”
I soon learned from the conversation of little José and his mother, that his present illness had been caused by a fall from a rock, while seeking for crystals; and that he had dislocated his ankle, which had caused him much pain. I was treated with the greatest kindness by my old friends, and the remedies which the old dame applied to my aching sides, together with the abundant food which I now enjoyed, soon restored my good looks; but alas! I was destined to suffer new misfortunes; for Simon, furious at my having escaped his power, and thinking I might have returned to my old master, came in search of me. Unluckily, he arrived one morning when I was playing before the door in the sun. It was now winter; the snow was thick upon the hills, and the ponds and rivers were covered with ice; you will wonder that I should have been playing out of doors instead of sleeping as is usual with the Marmottes in winter; but when well fed and kept warm, this sleepiness does not affect us. As I before said, I was outside the door, and a short distance from the cottage, when Simon arrived, and gently advancing towards me with a piece of cake in his hand, persuaded me foolishly to go quite close to him. Oh! how silly I was to trust myself so near this wicked boy who had before treated me so ill! But I never imagined he could intend to hurt me, till I discovered myself once more in his cruel hands; I then began to tremble, but it was too late, for I was in his power, and there was no way of escaping. I whistled as loud as I could, in the hope of attracting the attention of little José, but he was still so lame that I might have been killed before he could have arrived. Conceive then my horror on finding myself carried away towards a great pond at a short distance from the cottage. I gave myself up for lost, when I saw the malicious grin with which Simon looked at me; and my fears were but too truly verified, for on approaching the pond, he made a little hole in the ice, which was very thick, and notwithstanding all my efforts to the contrary, pushed me into it, and would, I doubt not, have kept me there till I should have died of cold and suffocation, had it not been for the lucky arrival of my friend José, who, attracted by my cries, had followed us as fast as his ankle would allow him, and came just in time to save me from instant death.
How is it possible that little boys and girls can reconcile themselves to the idea of willingly inflicting pain on poor unoffending animals committed to their care, and formed for their benefit; but alas! it is, I fear, too often the case; children are sometimes so very naughty; but hoping my little readers possess kind dispositions and feeling hearts, which would shudder at the idea of giving pain to a poor dumb animal, I will leave this disagreeable subject, and continue my own melancholy story. On seeing José approach, Simon dragged me out of the water, and throwing me half dead on the ground, ran away as fast as possible, knowing, I suppose, that he had been very wicked, and no doubt fearing to be punished for it by my little protector, who was older and much stronger than him. I now lost all power of seeing or hearing, and laid for several days in a deep sleep. José feared very much I should die: he watched over me with the greatest anxiety and kindness, for he was really very fond of me; and when at length I recovered sufficiently to open my eyes, his joy knew no bounds; he sung, whistled, clapped his hands, and jumped and danced with delight. (for his ankle had quite recovered during my illness) He fetched me some bread and milk, which by his entreaties I was at length induced to eat; and it did me a great deal of good, for I was soon able to move about; and being kept in the warm kitchen by the fire side, was quite recovered before spring arrived, with its delightful warm sun, which made me gayer and merrier than ever.
The cruel Simon was shunned by all the village; for no good little child would play with him after he had behaved so wickedly to a poor animal which could not defend itself.
One day, while at Aosta, a pretty town seated at the foot of the Alps, on the river Dora, capital of the valley of the same name, whither I had accompanied my Master on a visit to his friends, as I was sitting outside the window, waiting the return of José, who had gone on a message, my attention was attracted by an ugly sallow-looking boy, who spoke so strange a language, I could not at all understand him: induced by my curiosity, which is a most shocking propensity in little boys and girls, as well as in animals, I went close to him, hoping to discover what he was saying. He looked at me very earnestly, and I foolishly imagined he admired my beauty. I think I hear you say, “How could so ugly an animal as a Marmotte, think itself handsome?” but my dear little friends you will, I fear, often meet with examples of this kind of folly.
Not in the least fearing his approach, I allowed him to stroke my head and smooth down my hair; when, Oh! dreadful misfortune! he seized me in his great hands, and, before I well knew what had happened, I found myself in a large bag, hanging from his back.
The unfeeling monster, regardless of my cries and efforts to escape, whistled a gay tune, and continued his road down one street and up another, till I was quite tired; at length we stopped at a house; (so at least I supposed, for I could not see any thing out of the bag in which I was inclosed,) but instead of going up stairs, we descended flight after flight, until we arrived in a dark damp-looking room, which I afterwards discovered to be a cellar. I was released from my prison and placed on the floor, which was covered with hare and rabbit skins, bird cages, boxes, and rubbish of every description. Oh! how bitterly did I now regret that idle curiosity which had led me to approach this stranger, who had perhaps separated me for ever from my dear little José.
I felt sure I should die if left long in this horrible place, where the cold and disagreeable smell of the hare and rabbit skins made me feel quite ill: I crept into the corner the farthest from them, but here again a new and still more dangerous object presented itself in the form of a large dog lying fast asleep.
We Marmottes have as great an antipathy to dogs as cats have; judge then of my horror on seeing this one, which I doubted not would attack me as soon as I should be perceived. I gave myself up for lost, for it was so much larger and stronger than I was, that I should have had no chance had we come to blows; therefore, curling myself up into a ball, I took refuge behind a great barrel, and now anxiously desired the presence of the ugly sallow-faced boy, whose departure had given me so much pleasure a few minutes before; but it was a long long time before he returned: however the great dog did not awake, and I was delighted when the boy took me in his arms and carried me out of this horrible dungeon, which I hoped most earnestly never again to enter.
What pleasure did I feel in again enjoying the bright light of the sun, hoping, if once able to effect my liberty, to discover José, who I had not for an instant ceased to think of; but I forgot the streets at Aosta were more numerous, and not so well known to me, as those of Courmayeur: however I had no opportunity of trying my sagacity, for on being taken up into the kitchen, I was given to a little boy who was going to Paris to seek his fortune, as many little boys from this country do.