Our Boys | Page 5

next day he rebelled again and had to go the whole
length of the field where they planted jewsharps, on his knees. And so
it was about every other day for the whole year.
One of the brothers had to be set apart in a meditating cell to invent
new penances; for they had used up all on their list before the Prince
had been with them three months.
The Prince became dreadfully tired of his convent life, and if he could
have brought it about would have run away. Peter, on the contrary, had
never been so happy in his life. He worked like a bee, and the pleasure
he took in seeing the lovely things he had planted come up, was
unbounded, and the Christmas carols and chimes delighted his soul.
Then, too, he had never fared so well in his life. He could never
remember the time before when he had been a whole week without
being hungry. He sent his wages every month to his parents; and he
never ceased to wonder at the discontent of the Prince.
"They grow so slow," the Prince would say, wrinkling up his handsome
forehead. "I expected to have a bushelful of new toys every month; and
not one have I had yet. And these stingy old Monks say I can only have
my usual Christmas share anyway, nor can I pick them out myself. I
never saw such a stupid place to stay in my life. I want to have my
velvet tunic on and go home to the palace and ride on my white pony
with the silver tail, and hear them all tell me how charming I am." Then
the Prince would crook his arm and put his head on it and cry.
Peter pitied him, and tried to comfort him, but it was not of much use,
for the Prince got angry because he was not discontented as well as
himself.
Two weeks before Christmas everything in the garden was nearly ready
to be picked. Some few things needed a little more December sun, but
everything looked perfect. Some of the Jack-in-the-boxes would not
pop out quite quick enough, and some of the jumping-Jacks were
hardly as limber as they might be as yet; that was all. As it was so near
Christmas the Monks were engaged in their holy exercises in the chapel

for the greater part of the time, and only went over the garden once a
day to see if everything was all right.
The Prince and Peter were obliged to be there all the time. There was
plenty of work for them to do; for once in a while something would
blow over, and then there were the penny-trumpets to keep in tune; and
that was a vast sight of work.
One morning the Prince was at one end of the garden straightening up
some wooden soldiers which had toppled over, and Peter was in the
wax doll bed dusting the dolls. All of a sudden he heard a sweet little
voice: "O, Peter!" He thought at first one of the dolls was talking, but
they could not say anything but papa and mamma; and had the merest
apologies for voices anyway. "Here I am, Peter!" and there was a little
pull at his sleeve. There was his little sister. She was not any taller than
the dolls around her, and looked uncommonly like the prettiest,
pinkest-cheeked, yellowest-haired ones; so it was no wonder that Peter
did not see her at first. She stood there poising herself on her crutches,
poor little thing, and smiling lovingly up at Peter.
"Oh, you darling!" cried Peter, catching her up in his arms. "How did
you get in here?"
"I stole in behind one of the Monks," said she. "I saw him going up the
street past our house, and I ran out and kept behind him all the way.
When he opened the gate I whisked in too, and then I followed him into
the garden. I've been here with the dollies ever since."
"Well," said poor Peter, "I don't see what I am going to do with you,
now you are here. I can't let you out again; and I don't know what the
Monks will say."
"Oh, I know!" cried the little girl gayly. "I'll stay out here in the garden.
I can sleep in one of those beautiful dolls' cradles over there; and you
can bring me something to eat."
[Illustration: The boys at work in the Convent Garden.]

"But the Monks come out every morning to look over the garden, and
they'll be sure to find you," said her brother, anxiously.
"No, I'll hide! O Peter, here is a place where there isn't any doll!"
"Yes; that doll did not come up."