It was many months before Elfie entirely recovered from the nervous shock she had suffered, and came among the girls again. Candace could never be induced to trust her out of her sight except with Marion.
“If dat dere rheumatiz goes an’ curls me up like a whip-snake,” she said, “it sha’n’t hinder me crawlin’ ’round after dat lamby!”
It may be said in passing that the blue Tam o’ Shanter became so interesting to the girls, after hearing the share Miss Manning had in helping, that many of the girls wanted them, and when Marion wrote, according to promise, to tell that friendly lady the sequel to her journey, she had the pleasure of encouraging the church-organ scheme by ordering six blue and as many red caps.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE PRIZE AWARDED.
A whole year had passed since Mr. Bellamy had made the memorable address to the Coventry school in which he offered a prize of three hundred dollars to the most deserving.
He had come from England, as the whole school knew by his telegram to Mrs. Abbott, but business detained him in New York for a few days, as they also learned from the same source.
Now he had come and for hours had been shut in the parlor with Mrs. Abbott, Elfie, and Candace, hearing, the girls all supposed, the history of that year which had brought danger and such blessed deliverance from it to his grandchild. There was very little to do but to wait, for, foreseeing the occupation of her time to-day, Mrs. Abbott had yesterday read the reports, given the averages, made her “little preach,” and attended to all the few ceremonies of school closing.
“‘They also serve who only stand and wait,’ I have understood,” said Lily, “but I don’t believe I like to be a server.”
“‘To wait is to conquer,’” quoted Katie from the commonplace book.