wohnzimmer hellblau weiß

chapter xpatty's place the next evening found them treadingresolutely the herring-bone walk through the tiny garden. the april wind was filling the pine treeswith its roundelay, and the grove was alive with robins--great, plump, saucy fellows,strutting along the paths. the girls rang rather timidly, and wereadmitted by a grim and ancient handmaiden. the door opened directly into a largeliving-room, where by a cheery little fire sat two other ladies, both of whom werealso grim and ancient. except that one looked to be about seventyand the other fifty, there seemed little

difference between them. each had amazingly big, light-blue eyesbehind steel-rimmed spectacles; each wore a cap and a gray shawl; each was knittingwithout haste and without rest; each rocked placidly and looked at the girls without speaking; and just behind each sat a largewhite china dog, with round green spots all over it, a green nose and green ears. those dogs captured anne's fancy on thespot; they seemed like the twin guardian deities of patty's place.for a few minutes nobody spoke. the girls were too nervous to find words,and neither the ancient ladies nor the

china dogs seemed conversationallyinclined. anne glanced about the room. what a dear place it was!another door opened out of it directly into the pine grove and the robins came boldlyup on the very step. the floor was spotted with round, braidedmats, such as marilla made at green gables, but which were considered out of dateeverywhere else, even in avonlea. and yet here they were on spofford avenue! a big, polished grandfather's clock tickedloudly and solemnly in a corner. there were delightful little cupboards overthe mantelpiece, behind whose glass doors

gleamed quaint bits of china. the walls were hung with old prints andsilhouettes. in one corner the stairs went up, and atthe first low turn was a long window with an inviting seat. it was all just as anne had known it mustbe. by this time the silence had grown toodreadful, and priscilla nudged anne to intimate that she must speak. "we--we--saw by your sign that this houseis to let," said anne faintly, addressing the older lady, who was evidently misspatty spofford.

"oh, yes," said miss patty. "i intended to take that sign down today.""then--then we are too late," said anne sorrowfully."you've let it to some one else?" "no, but we have decided not to let it atall." "oh, i'm so sorry," exclaimed anneimpulsively. "i love this place so. i did hope we could have got it."then did miss patty lay down her knitting, take off her specs, rub them, put them onagain, and for the first time look at anne as at a human being.

the other lady followed her example soperfectly that she might as well have been a reflection in a mirror."you love it," said miss patty with emphasis. "does that mean that you really love it?or that you merely like the looks of it? the girls nowadays indulge in suchexaggerated statements that one never can tell what they do mean. it wasn't so in my young days.then a girl did not say she loved turnips, in just the same tone as she might havesaid she loved her mother or her savior." anne's conscience bore her up.

"i really do love it," she said gently."i've loved it ever since i saw it last fall. my two college chums and i want to keephouse next year instead of boarding, so we are looking for a little place to rent; andwhen i saw that this house was to let i was so happy." "if you love it, you can have it," saidmiss patty. "maria and i decided today that we wouldnot let it after all, because we did not like any of the people who have wanted it. we don't have to let it.we can afford to go to europe even if we

don't let it. it would help us out, but not for gold willi let my home pass into the possession of such people as have come here and looked atit. you are different. i believe you do love it and will be goodto it. you can have it.""if--if we can afford to pay what you ask for it," hesitated anne. miss patty named the amount required.anne and priscilla looked at each other. priscilla shook her head."i'm afraid we can't afford quite so much,"

said anne, choking back her disappointment. "you see, we are only college girls and weare poor." "what were you thinking you could afford?"demanded miss patty, ceasing not to knit. anne named her amount. miss patty nodded gravely."that will do. as i told you, it is not strictly necessarythat we should let it at all. we are not rich, but we have enough to goto europe on. i have never been in europe in my life, andnever expected or wanted to go. but my niece there, maria spofford, hastaken a fancy to go.

now, you know a young person like mariacan't go globetrotting alone." "no--i--i suppose not," murmured anne,seeing that miss patty was quite solemnly in earnest."of course not. so i have to go along to look after her. i expect to enjoy it, too; i'm seventyyears old, but i'm not tired of living yet. i daresay i'd have gone to europe before ifthe idea had occurred to me. we shall be away for two years, perhapsthree. we sail in june and we shall send you thekey, and leave all in order for you to take possession when you choose.

we shall pack away a few things we prizeespecially, but all the rest will be left." "will you leave the china dogs?" asked annetimidly. "would you like me to?" "oh, indeed, yes.they are delightful." a pleased expression came into miss patty'sface. "i think a great deal of those dogs," shesaid proudly. "they are over a hundred years old, andthey have sat on either side of this fireplace ever since my brother aaronbrought them from london fifty years ago. spofford avenue was called after my brotheraaron."

"a fine man he was," said miss maria,speaking for the first time. "ah, you don't see the like of himnowadays." "he was a good uncle to you, maria," saidmiss patty, with evident emotion. "you do well to remember him." "i shall always remember him," said missmaria solemnly. "i can see him, this minute, standing therebefore that fire, with his hands under his coat-tails, beaming on us." miss maria took out her handkerchief andwiped her eyes; but miss patty came resolutely back from the regions ofsentiment to those of business.

"i shall leave the dogs where they are, ifyou will promise to be very careful of them," she said."their names are gog and magog. gog looks to the right and magog to theleft. and there's just one thing more.you don't object, i hope, to this house being called patty's place?" "no, indeed.we think that is one of the nicest things about it.""you have sense, i see," said miss patty in a tone of great satisfaction. "would you believe it?all the people who came here to rent the

house wanted to know if they couldn't takethe name off the gate during their occupation of it. i told them roundly that the name went withthe house. this has been patty's place ever since mybrother aaron left it to me in his will, and patty's place it shall remain until idie and maria dies. after that happens the next possessor cancall it any fool name he likes," concluded miss patty, much as she might have said,"after that--the deluge." "and now, wouldn't you like to go over thehouse and see it all before we consider the bargain made?"further exploration still further delighted

the girls. besides the big living-room, there was akitchen and a small bedroom downstairs. upstairs were three rooms, one large andtwo small. anne took an especial fancy to one of thesmall ones, looking out into the big pines, and hoped it would be hers. it was papered in pale blue and had alittle, old-timey toilet table with sconces for candles. there was a diamond-paned window with aseat under the blue muslin frills that would be a satisfying spot for studying ordreaming.

"it's all so delicious that i know we aregoing to wake up and find it a fleeting vision of the night," said priscilla asthey went away. "miss patty and miss maria are hardly suchstuff as dreams are made of," laughed anne. "can you fancy them 'globe-trotting'--especially in those shawls and caps?" "i suppose they'll take them off when theyreally begin to trot," said priscilla, "but i know they'll take their knitting withthem everywhere. they simply couldn't be parted from it. they will walk about westminster abbey andknit, i feel sure. meanwhile, anne, we shall be living inpatty's place--and on spofford avenue.

i feel like a millionairess even now." "i feel like one of the morning stars thatsang for joy," said anne. phil gordon crept into thirty-eight, st.john's, that night and flung herself on anne's bed. "girls, dear, i'm tired to death.i feel like the man without a country--or was it without a shadow?i forget which. anyway, i've been packing up." "and i suppose you are worn out because youcouldn't decide which things to pack first, or where to put them," laughed priscilla."e-zackly.

and when i had got everything jammed insomehow, and my landlady and her maid had both sat on it while i locked it, idiscovered i had packed a whole lot of things i wanted for convocation at the verybottom. i had to unlock the old thing and poke anddive into it for an hour before i fished out what i wanted. i would get hold of something that feltlike what i was looking for, and i'd yank it up, and it would be something else.no, anne, i did not swear." "i didn't say you did." "well, you looked it.but i admit my thoughts verged on the

profane.and i have such a cold in the head--i can do nothing but sniffle, sigh and sneeze. isn't that alliterative agony for you?queen anne, do say something to cheer me up." "remember that next thursday night, you'llbe back in the land of alec and alonzo," suggested anne.phil shook her head dolefully. "more alliteration. no, i don't want alec and alonzo when ihave a cold in the head. but what has happened you two?now that i look at you closely you seem all

lighted up with an internal iridescence. why, you're actually shining!what's up?" "we are going to live in patty's place nextwinter," said anne triumphantly. "live, mark you, not board! we've rented it, and stella maynard iscoming, and her aunt is going to keep house for us."phil bounced up, wiped her nose, and fell on her knees before anne. "girls--girls--let me come, too.oh, i'll be so good. if there's no room for me i'll sleep in thelittle doghouse in the orchard--i've seen

it. only let me come.""get up, you goose." "i won't stir off my marrow bones till youtell me i can live with you next winter." anne and priscilla looked at each other. then anne said slowly, "phil dear, we'dlove to have you. but we may as well speak plainly. i'm poor--pris is poor--stella maynard ispoor--our housekeeping will have to be very simple and our table plain.you'd have to live as we would. now, you are rich and your boardinghousefare attests the fact."

"oh, what do i care for that?" demandedphil tragically. "better a dinner of herbs where your chumsare than a stalled ox in a lonely boardinghouse.don't think i'm all stomach, girls. i'll be willing to live on bread and water--with just a leetle jam--if you'll let me come.""and then," continued anne, "there will be a good deal of work to be done. stella's aunt can't do it all.we all expect to have our chores to do. now, you--""toil not, neither do i spin," finished philippa.

"but i'll learn to do things.you'll only have to show me once. i can make my own bed to begin with.and remember that, though i can't cook, i can keep my temper. that's something.and i never growl about the weather. that's more.oh, please, please! i never wanted anything so much in my life--and this floor is awfully hard." "there's just one more thing," saidpriscilla resolutely. "you, phil, as all redmond knows, entertaincallers almost every evening. now, at patty's place we can't do that.we have decided that we shall be at home to

our friends on friday evenings only. if you come with us you'll have to abide bythat rule." "well, you don't think i'll mind that, doyou? why, i'm glad of it. i knew i should have had some such rulemyself, but i hadn't enough decision to make it or stick to it.when i can shuffle off the responsibility on you it will be a real relief. if you won't let me cast in my lot with youi'll die of the disappointment and then i'll come back and haunt you.

i'll camp on the very doorstep of patty'splace and you won't be able to go out or come in without falling over my spook."again anne and priscilla exchanged eloquent looks. "well," said anne, "of course we can'tpromise to take you until we've consulted with stella; but i don't think she'llobject, and, as far as we are concerned, you may come and glad welcome." "if you get tired of our simple life youcan leave us, and no questions asked," added priscilla.phil sprang up, hugged them both jubilantly, and went on her way rejoicing.

"i hope things will go right," saidpriscilla soberly. "we must make them go right," avowed anne."i think phil will fit into our 'appy little 'ome very well." "oh, phil's a dear to rattle round with andbe chums. and, of course, the more there are of usthe easier it will be on our slim purses. but how will she be to live with? you have to summer and winter with any onebefore you know if she's livable or not." "oh, well, we'll all be put to the test, asfar as that goes. and we must quit us like sensible folk,living and let live.

phil isn't selfish, though she's a littlethoughtless, and i believe we will all get on beautifully in patty's place."

Subscribe to receive free email updates: