A little maid of old New York
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A Little Maid OF Old New York BY ALICE Turner Curtis AUTHOR OF A Little Maid of Province Town / A Little Maid of Massachusetts Colony A Little Maid of Narragansett Bay A Little Maid of Bunker Hill A Little Maid of Ticonderoga s/ A Little Maid of Old Connecticut A Little Maid of Old Philadelphia A Little Maid of Old Maine Illustratd by Elizabeth Pilsbry THE PENN PUBLISHING COMPANY PHILADELPHIA 1921 COPYRIGHT 1921 BY THE PENN PUBLISHING COMPANY A Little Maid of Old New York DEC -8 1921 ©C1.A653016 Introduction This story of “ A Little Maid of Old New York ” tells of the time when British soldiers were in control of that city, and describes the adventures of a loyal little American girl, An- nette Vincent, and the Tory girl who was her dearest friend. The account of Annette’s first meeting with Sir Guy Carleton, Washington’s entering New York, and the incident connected with the British and American flags should interest deeply the young readers. Girls and boys alike will admire the courage of Annette, and of her sailor cousin John Van Arsdale who raised the American flag on the Battery flagstaff. 3 i ■i j i I / Contents 1. A Picnic Party • • 9 II. A Day of Adventures. 27 III. What Happened to Betty ? 39 IV. Kathy's Secret 52 V. An Unexpected Visitor 64 VI. Annette Starts for Home. — 76 VII. A Peace Treaty. 86 VIII. A Happy Meeting t 98 IX. At the Farm in the Woods IIO X. The Brown Colt. 122 XL Two Little Indian Girls 134 XII. A Dangerous Game H7 XIII. Visitors .... 158 XIV. “ The Other Six 170 XV. Nancy Runs Away 180 XVI. Nancy Vincent 189 XVII. Annette in Peril. 198 XVIII. Washington Praises Annette • 208 s Illustrations PAGE Sir Guy Bowed to Annette . . Front ispiea ‘‘We Can Creep Along at the Edge of the Woods ” 35 It Was a Merry Dinner for the Two Little Friends 70 They Visited THE Duck Pond . . . .114 She Would Take the Doll and Creep Out of THE House 187  Old New York CHAPTER I A PICNIC PARTY It was a pleasant June morning in 1783, and the square brick house, where Annette Vincent lived, on Cherry Street, New York, was flooded with sunshine. The front door was in the centre of the house with two windows on each side; and on the second floor there were five front windows facing the street. There were also five upper windows on the back that overlooked the garden which sloped down to the East River. It was a fine garden. The path to the river was bordered bj^ thrifty growing box; there were locust trees in blossom ; a tall elm, whose branches gave a pleasant shade, stood near the house, and flourishing rose trees, now in full bloom, grew along the wall which separated the garden from that of the neighboring house. 9 10 A LITTLE MAID Beside the many flowers and shrubs there was a well-cared-for plot of vegetables, where Mrs. Vincent often worked in the early morning. But Annette was not thinking of the garden on that June morning as she leaned from one of the upper windows and looked anxiously toward the river. She could hear Lottie, her mother’s negro maid, singing about her work in the rear of the house. Now and then the rumble of a passing cart on Cherry Street could be heard, and there were calls of birds from the garden. But the sounds were all those of a quiet, peaceful morn- ing, and there was nothing to remind the little American girl that the city of New York had been occupied for nearly seven years by British soldiers whose officers lived in the fine houses on Broadway and Wall Street, while the Bowery, on the outskirts of the city, was occupied by the camps of the British soldiers. Annette was only ten years old, and she could not remember the days of 1776, before the great fire that destroyed hundreds of buildings, and when General George Washington had been driven from the city by the superior forces of the English under Sir Henry Clinton. But the little girl had often heard those days described by OF OLD NEW YORK 11 her mother and father. How Sir Henry Clinton had landed his men at Kip’s Bay, and, taking the American troops at disadvantage, had put them to rout, pursuing the fugitives over the fields to Murray Hill, and forcing Washington to retreat into New Jersey. But at Yorktown in 1781 the Ajnericans had defeated the English forces under Cornwallis, with the result that the Eng- lish owned themselves defeated in their struggle to control the United States, and now the loyal Ajnericans of New York believed the time to be near at hand when peace between England and Ajnerica would be established. Annette was very sure that some day she would see General Washington come riding through the city to Bowling Green and watch the British ships sail from New York harbor with all the English sailors on board. As she looked eagerly toward the river, watch- ing for the first glimpse of her Cousin John Van Arsdale’s sailboat, Annette thought to herself that she wished it might come to pass on this very day. ‘‘ It would indeed be even better than a pic- nic at Staten Island to see all those English ships sail away,” thought Annette. Nevertheless the prospect of a sail across the 12 A LITTLE MAID harbor and a picnic dinner with her three best friends, Delia Davidson, Betty Mason, and Katherine Down and Cousin John, was full of delight; and Annette was all -ready to run toward the landing at the foot of the garden when she should see the sail of the Fleetwing, her cousin’s boat, round the point a short distance up the river. Annette was always very proud indeed when her Cousin John asked her to go with him on one of his frequent excursions about the harbor. John, as Annette often reminded Kathy Down, was a “ real sailor,” although not yet sixteen years old; he had voyaged to Cuba, beside visit- ing Jamestown, and other southern ports; and now hoped that the British would soon leave New York and that he might embark on a longer voyage than he had yet undertaken. John, on his part, was always well pleased with his little cousin’s company. She did not jump about in the boat, or meddle with the tiller or the ropes. She was not easily frightened, and obeyed promptly John’s careful directions for her safety. To-day was a special occasion; for John had told Annette that she might ask her three girl friends to go with them for a day’s pic- OF OLD NEW YORK 13 nic to Staten Island. Delia, Betty and Kathy had accepted the invitation with evident enthu- siasm, and they were to be at the Battery at an early hour, as that was a more convenient point for them than the landing on Cherry Street. ‘‘There’s the boat! There’s the Fleetwing Annette exclaimed, as, after a long watchful half hour, she caught her first glimpse of her cousin’s boat rounding the point at the foot of the garden; and in an instant the little girl was running down the stairs and through the lower hall to the back porch where her mother sat sew- ing. “Here is your cape, dear; and Lottie will carry the basket to the landing,” said Mrs. Vincent, smiling at the sight of her little daughter’s happy face. “ Tell John to take great care of his pas- sengers, and bring you all home in good season.” “Yes, yes. Mother dear. You know Cousin John is never careless. Does not Father say that John could navigate a ship if need were,” responded Annette, and the little girl kissed her mother’s cheek, and with a smiling “ good-bye ” ran down the box-bordered path to the river, while Lottie with the well-filled lunch basket followed closely behind her. 14 A LITTLE MAID They reached the landing some minutes be- fore the Fleetwing, and Lottie set the basket down carefully with a warning look toward An- nette. Yo’ sees how keerful I sets this basket down? Wal, den, yo’ take keer dat odder folks be keer- ful wid it,” cautioned Lottie. “An’ ’sides dat yo’ be keerful wid dat clean dress yo’s w-earin’. Nebber min’ if it don’ be yo’ bes’ dress, it be clean,” added Lottie solemnly; and Annette promised to be careful, looking down at the pretty blue checked gingham, and thinking to herself that not even Kathy Down, whose father had one of the finest shops on Smith Street (where the wives and daughters of the British officers bought fine lawns and cambrics, silk aprons, and buttons of silver), could have a bet- ter-ironed gingham or one made more neatly than this. Annette was always well pleased with the simple dresses her mother made for her. Loyal Americans living in New York in 1783 could not have manv fine clothes or luxuries of any kind, and Annette’s mother and father had not faltered in their loyalty to America. Annette’s eyes were brown, nearly the same color as a ripe chestnut; and her hair was a shade OF OLD NEW YORK 15 darker, soft and fine, and hung in smooth curls under the wide hat of coarse white straw which was tied under her chin by a wide blue and white plaided ribbon. She wore white stockings and ankle-tie slippers, and as she stood under the wide spreading oak tree that shaded the landing she made a most pleasant picture. '' Passengers all aboard for Staten Island,” John called smilingly, as he skilfully brought the Fleetwing beside the landing, and held the boat steady for his cousin to step on board. “ Yo’ handle dat basket keerful, Massa John,” warned Lottie, as John reached for the square, well-covered basket. “ Of course I will, Lottie,” responded John gravely, greatly to the approval of the anxious Lottie, who now turned back to the house sure that her excellent spiced cake would not be broken to bits by careless handling. “ Good and heavy,” said John as he set the basket in the tiny cabin. “ There is everything you like best in that basket,” declared Annette soberly, as she care- fully took the seat John pointed out near the tiller. “ No wonder then that it is heavy,” said the 16 A LITTLE MAID boy laughing; “ but I’ll wager it will be light enough when we come back. A good sail gives a good appetite, and there’s a fair breeze this morning. I hope your girl friends will not keep us waiting at the Battery.” “ I am sure they will be there before us,” Annette replied eagerly. “ Kathy Down was at my house yesterday to show me her fine new neck- lace of coral beads, and she said she would surely be at the Battery in good season.” John was busy with sail and tiller, and made no response to his cousin until the boat had cleared the landing and was headed toward the Battery. Then, as the sail of the Fleetwing caught the breeze and the sloop moved swiftly along, he said: ‘‘ Kathy Do^vn’s father is too good a friend of the Tories to suit me, Annette. Why, he says openly that the British officers are his best customers. How happens it that so loyal a girl as you chooses the daughter of such a man for your best friend? ” and John looked down at his little cousin as if she were in some way to blame for Mr. Down’s opinion of the English officers. “ ’Tis not Kathy’s fault that her father is friendly with the British,” responded Annette 17 OF OLD NEW YORK earnestly, “And, Cousin John, how can I help but like her? She is always pleasant, and if you do but look at her she smiles as if she were pleased. Why, my mother says that Kathy has the prettiest manners of any little girl who comes to see me,” and Annette looked pleadingly to- ward her cousin as if hoping he would relent and say that Kathy Down was not to be blamed for the opinions of her father. But the boy’s face did not lose its look of dis- approval. He realized, as it was not possible for Annette to do, all the sacrifices and sufferings that had been endured by the loyal Americans of New York during the past seven years while the British officers and their families had taken the best houses in the city for their own use, and passed their time in a round of gayety. It was well known that Daniel Down kept his best goods for their purchase, and received many favors from the officers. He knew that Kathy often played with the English children, and he was sorry that his cousin was so fond of her. But John was too fair-minded and friendly a lad to cherish any unkindness toward a child, and his face softened as he nodded toward Annette and said: “ I must try and be as well-mannered as 18 A LITTLE MAID Katherine, I suppose, and smile whenever any- one looks at me.” Annette’s face brightened at her cousin’s good- natured response. She was now sure that there would be no cloud on the pleasure of the day; for, no matter what might be thought or said of the loyalty of Mr. Down, Annette was confident that Kathy was her “ best ” friend. There was no other girl who could think of more pleasant games than Kathy, or who was more ready to help carry out the plans suggested by her com- panions. So Annette smiled approvingly at her cousin’s friendly words, and then looked eagerly toward Bowling Green and the Battery, where the English flag floated from the tall flag- staff. “ There they are, John! All three waiting for us. And I can see baskets. We shall have a feast, for Lottie said she had packed a fine luncheon.” John’s face brightened, for he was boy enough, in spite of his long voyages, to be well pleased by the assurance of well-filled picnic baskets, and he waved his blue cap at the little group on the wharf. Betty Mason and Delia Davidson were both 19 OF OLD NEW YORK two years older than Annette and Kathy. They were tall girls for their age, and thought them- selves nearly grown up. They each had blue eyes, and their flaxen hair was neatly braided and nearly hidden from sight under hats of coarse straw, similar to the one Annette wore. They wore simple dresses of blue cotton, and as they stood side by side they might have been taken for sisters. Kathy Down was just behind the two older girls, and not until John had politely handed them to their seats in the boat did she step for- ward. Kathy and Annette were not only the same age but they were nearly the same size and complexion. Kathy’s hair was a little darker than Annette’s and her eyes were gray instead of brown. When she smiled there were dimples in each cheek; and the little girl’s friendly ex- pression and pleasant manners won her the ap- proving regard of the older people as well as of her own playmates. Unlike the other girls, Kathy did not wear a broad-rimmed hat or a cotton dress. Her dress was of thin blue wool, the skirt made somewhat shorter than was then worn by small girls, and the blouse was made loose and straight like those 20 A LITTLE MAID worn by sailors, with a wide white collar; her cap^ too, was shaped like the cap of a sailor, but it was made of scarlet cloth. Annette looked admiringly at her little friend as she stepped on board, and even J ohn gave an approving look at “ the little Tory’s ” sailor-like costume, thinking it much more suitable for a day’s cruise than the ruffled cotton dresses of his other passengers. But Betty and Delia had already confided to each other that they thought Kathy’s dress ‘‘ queer.” They greatly preferred their own flounced gowns and straw hats, and, besides that, the color of Kathy’s cap was exactly the color of the coats of the British officers, a color that even the American children had come to consider as a mark of disloyalty to America. So neither Betty nor Delia felt any admiration for Kathy’s appearance, but regarded her with unsmiling eyes as she took her seat beside them. There were a number of English soldiers loitering about the Battery and they looked at the neat sloop and its passengers with good- natured interest. As J ohn made ready to swing his boat out from the wharf one of the soldiers stepped forward and said pleasantly: “Attend to OF OLD NEW YORK 21 your tiller, young man, and I’ll push your boat clear.” John scowled at the man resentfully, and re- sponded sharply: “ I need no help.” The smile vanished from the face of the red- coated soldier and he frowned a little threaten- ingly as he said sharply: “ You need a lesson in good manners, young sir; I’ve a mind to sink your fine boat and shut you up for a while to teach you your place.” The Fleetwing was now out of reach, and John laughed scornfully. “ Better be getting ready for your voyage to England,” he called back, as the mainsail caught the breeze and sent the boat skimming over the water, leaving a sparkling ripple in her wake. But the little girls were frightened by the sol- dier’s words, and Annette looked at her cousin anxiously, wishing that John had not shown so plainly his dislike toward the redcoat. “ Could he — could he sink the boat and shut you up, John? ” she questioned fearfully. John nodded carelessly, as if being shut up by an English soldier was a very small mat- ter. “ Oh, very likely. New York is a Tory city. 22 A LITTLE MAID in spite of our army having beaten them at Bunker Hill and Yorktown. But it will not be long before the British will be driven out,” he declared, “ and I’d like to be the one to pull down their old flag when they do go,” he added sharply, turning a revengeful glance back to the tall flag- pole on the Battery where the English flag floated in the summer breeze. But John had not the faintest idea that, before six months should pass, he would perform that very service while General Washington looked on. “ I do not believe the English soldier would really ” began Katherine, but John looked at her with such disapproval that the little girl did not venture to continue her excuses for America’s enemy, and she turned toward Betty and Delia only to find that they, too, were re- garding her in surprise. Katherine began to wish that she had not ac- cepted Annette’s invitation. She wondered why her companions were so silent and unfriendly, and had Annette not, at that very moment, ex- claimed ardently: “ Oh, Kathy, you always wear the prettiest things. I wish I had a dress and cap exactly like yours,” Kathy would have felt herself quite deserted. But she was ready to OF OLD NEW YORK 23 smile happily at her little friend, and was about to explain that her mother had made both dress and cap, when Delia said: “ Kathy’s cap is the same color as the coats of the British officers. ’Tis not a color I like to see or wear,” and Delia looked toward John as if ex- pecting a word of approval for her loyal senti- ment. But John had not heard the remark. He was busy shaping the boat’s course, and at that mo- ment he called out: “ Look out for your heads,” and as Kathy and Annette leaned over for the boom to swing to leeward Annette whispered: “ Kathy, I have something lovely to tell you just as soon as I can without the others hearing.” So Katherine was quite her smiling self again, and explained to Delia that her mother had intended making her a cap of blue cloth, but had not enough material. John was singing softly to himself: *‘T'he wind sets fair, The vesseVs stout and tall, Bright Castdbella. A sailor free from care Am I, when the wind sets fair. Bright Castabella,^* 24) A LITTLE MAID as he guided his boat down the harbor, past the British ships that lay at anchor awaiting the com- mands of Sir Guy Carleton, who had already promised Governor Clinton that the British sol- diers should leave New York as soon as possible. Beyond the ships the girls could see the pleas- ant wooded shores of Staten Island, and John headed the Fleetwing toward the eastern end of the island, where there was no settlement near the shore, and where he felt sure no one would disturb them. The place John had selected for a landing was a ledge of rocks that ran out into the deep water. Here the sloop could float easily and would not ground, and the girls could walk from the ledge to the shore without wetting their shoes. Delia and Betty stepped very carefully as they made their way over the ledge. But Kathy clasped Annette’s arm. “ I am going to take off my shoes and stockings and leave them in the boat, then I can run about as I please,” she said. “ I will too,” responded Annette eagerly, with an admiring look at Kathy’s smiling face, and the two little girls put their shoes and stockings and also their hats in the tiny cabin. Delia and Betty looked at the younger girls OF OLD NEW YORK 25 in surprise as Annette and Kathy ran lightly over the warm brown ledges to the grassy slope where J ohn had carried the baskets. Delia would have been glad to follow their example, but Betty’s look was disapproving. Betty felt that she was too nearly a young lady to run about barefooted. The little point toward the eastern end of the island was the very place for a day’s picnic. There was a smooth, grass-grown slope, well shaded by a large beech-tree. Behind this was thick undergrowth and tall trees. Beyond the ledge where they had landed stretched a smooth beach, and Katherine promptly suggested to Annette that they should go wading. “ The water is sure to be warm, and then you can tell me what you did not want the others to hear,” she said, as the two little girls stood to- gether a short distance from the others. “ That will be splendid,” Annette responded quickly. “ Betty Mason has begun to knit al- ready, and she and Delia will never miss us. John is spreading a strip of sail-cloth over that old log for them to sit on, and if he wants us, all he has to do is call and we will be sure to hear him.” 26 A LITTLE MAID “Yes, indeed,” smiled Kathy, and hand in hand the two little girls ran over the smooth, sun-warmed ledges to the sandy beach. As they reached the water’s edge Annette said: “ Now I will tell you, Katherine, and I do hope you will think it as splendid as I do.” CHAPTER II A DAY OF ADVENTURES There was no house to be seen from the little point where the Fleetwing had landed its pas- sengers. But there were many flourishing farms and settlements on Staten Island, and it had been a place of great importance to both the English and American armies. “ It’s not far from here that Lord William Howe landed his thirty thousand troops in Au- gust, 1776,” said John soberly, as he turned to look out across the harbor where the English men-of-war and other ships of the enemy floated at anchor. And those very soldiers landed at Kip’s Bay and drove the American army from New York,” said Betty gravely, looking up from the stocking of white cotton that she was knitting. Mother remembers all about it,” she con- 27 28 A LITTLE MAID tinued. “ She says that there were swarms of British troops everywhere.” “ Of course she remembers it; I remember it myself, and I always shall,” responded John. “ Why, ’tis but seven years ago. And ’twill not be as many months longer now before we’ll see these British ships, with all their redcoats on board, sail out of New York harbor forever, and Washington in New York to stay.” ‘‘ Then my father will come home, for he is with General Washington,” said Betty happily. “ But are you very sure, John, that the English will soon leave New York? ” she added, a little doubtful that such good news could be true. John nodded confidently. “ They can’t stay much longer,” he declared. “ Why, ’tis nearly two years since the Americans drove Cornwallis from Yorktown, and everyone said that ended the war and made America a free nation. But these English stay on here until the United States and England can agree on a Treaty of Peace.” Delia and Betty exchanged a puzzled look. Neither of the girls quite understood what John meant by the word “ treaty,” but both were sure it had something to do with the return of Gen- OF OLD NEW YORK 29 eral Washington to New York, and therefore it must be an excellent word. Neither of them wished to ask John to explain it, so Delia said; “ Yes indeed,” as if agreeing with what John had said, and Betty began counting stitches with great diligence. “ ’Tis too early for lunch,” said John, a little regretfully, with a glance at the well-filled bas- kets. ‘‘ ’Tis not much after ten. I will sail along shore for an hour and maybe catch a cod or two. You girls will not be afraid to be left alone? ” “ No, indeed,” Betty and Delia answered promptly. “Annette and Kathy are running about on the beach within call, and will soon re- turn, and we will begin to spread the' luncheon when we see the Fleetwing headed for shore,” continued Betty. “ I’ll not be away more than an hour or two,” said John, “ unless one of these British ships captures the Fleetwing he added laughingly, and turned back toward his boat, well pleased at the prospect of a further cruise along the wind- ing shore. Bettv and Delia watched John as he ran •/ swiftly over the ledges, and in a few moments 30 A LITTLE MAID they saw the Fleetwing move slowly out into the channel; then Betty returned to her knitting. But Delia drew a long breath of satisfaction. “Goody! Goody! Goody!’’ she exclaimed, jumping about, to Betty’s evident amazement. “ I hope he will stay away for hours, don’t you, Betty? ” “ What for? ” exclaimed Betty. “ I am sure John is a kind and pleasant boy, and ’tis not polite or seemly to wish him away when we would not be here at all save for his kindness,” and Betty looked disapprovingly at her friend. “ Oh! Of course, Betty^ I do not mean any harm of John; only I feared he might think I was too nearly grown up to take off my shoes and stockings and play with Kathy and Annette as I mean to,” and Delia began untying her shoes as she spoke. “ Well, Delia, it does seem like a little girl to wish to do so foolish a thing,” Betty replied dis- approvingly. “ I am very sure I would not think of it even.” “ You are only twelve anyway, Betty Mason,” Delia reminded her, “ and I am sure there is no harm in taking off one’s hat and shoes and stock- ings on so warm a day. Oh! Betty, come on. OF OLD NEW YORK 31 You will have years and years to be grown up,” and Delia looked pleadingly at Betty’s sober face. For a moment Betty made no reply. She was just “ setting the heel ” of the stocking, and was carefully counting stitches. Delia was in no mood to wait patiently, and as she untied the broad hat ribbons she exclaimed: “ Well, sit there and knit then, if that is your idea of a picnic. I am going to find Annette and Kathy and have a good time. I’m not in such a hurry to be an old woman as you are, Betty Mason,” and with a scornful look at her companion, Delia started off toward the shore. The grass was not as soft as Delia had ex- pected, and after a few steps she began to go more cautiously. But once on the smooth ledge she quickened her pace. She could see Annette and Kathy wading in the quiet waters of the cove and was eager to join them. Annette had told Kathy the pleasant news that she had not wished the other girls to hear, and Kathy was as well pleased as Annette had hoped. Annette’s news was an invitation for Katherine to accompany her on a visit to her 32 A LITTLE MAID Grandmother Vincent, who lived in Greenwich Village. “ My grandmother told me to ask any little girl I pleased for company,” Annette had ex- plained eagerly, “ and I would rather have you than anyone, Kathy. She wishes us to come next Saturday and stay a week, and my father will drive us there and come after us.” “ I am sure my mother will be well pleased that I have so kind an invitation,” said Kath- erine, smiling so radiantly that Annette thought, as she so often did, that there was no other girl in all New York as lovely or as friendly as Kathy Down. Before either of the little girls could say another word a loud call made them turn quickly, to see Delia running along the beach toward them. “Isn’t it fun to wade!” she called eagerly, splashing along at the edge of the shore. “ Betty wouldn’t come. She’d rather make-believe she is grown up,” Delia added, as she came up beside the younger girls. “ I wish we all had on old dresses, then we could splash about all we liked,” she said regretfully, holding up her well-starched skirts with both hands. “ John has gone off shore fishing,” she added. OF OLD NEW YORK 33 “And our shoes and stockings and hats are in the Fleetwing^s cabin,” exclaimed Katherine. “ That’s no matter,” Annette hastened to as- sure her friend. “We will not want to put them on until we start for home.” “ Isn’t there some game we can play? ” ques- tioned Delia. “ I think it would be fun to play ‘ Indians.’ We could capture Betty and make her think we really were Indians.” “ How could we do that? We haven’t any blankets or feathers, or anything to hide our dresses,” responded Kathy, laughing at the idea that Betty could be so easily deceived as to take them for Indians. “ Come up the beach a little way and I will tell you just how,” Delia replied soberly, lead- ing the way to dry land, closely followed by Annette and Kathy, who looked at their com- panion wonderingly. “ I can tell you just how we could dress up so that no one would ever know us,” said Delia. “ We could fasten leaves and brakes all over our dresses, and make head-dresses of leaves to cover our heads, and I’m sure we can stain our hands and faces with bits of chestnut bark.” As Delia described her plan her face grew 34 A LITTLE MAID eager, and Annette and Kathy both began to think it would be great fun to dress up in leaves and play “ Indian/’ but they were still doubtful about capturing Betty. “ What would we do with her? ’’ asked Annette. “ Oh, just lead her into the woods and leave her. Then she would call and we would pull off our disguise and run to rescue her, and Betty would tell us that Indians had bound her and taken her to the woods. Afterwards we would tell her all about it. It would be a great joke on Betty,” and Delia smiled at the thought of her friend’s surprise. ‘‘ You see,” she continued, “ we won’t let Betty really see us. We can creep up behind that log and blindfold her ” “ What with? ” interrupted Annette. “ If we use any of our things Betty will know who it is right away.” Delia shook her head. “ Oh, no, she will be too surprised. I can twist my sash about her head so quickly that she won’t have a glimpse of it, and you and Kathy can tie her hands together with your handkerchiefs. We won’t speak, we will just lead her off in silence. Come on, let’s WE CAN CREEP AEONG THE EDGE OF THE WOODS 35 OF OLD NEW. YORK begin to get leaves,” and Delia ran to the sloping bank and began to break off small branches of oak. Annette and Kathy followed her, and in a short time the three girls were busy fastening garlands of leaves together with small twigs. It was an easy matter to make head-dresses of leaves and of the tall green brakes that grew in such quantities a short distance from the shore; but they found it a more difficult matter to cover their skirts with leaves held together by twigs, and finally decided that small branches of maple and birch leaves tied about their waists, with others held about their shoulders by twisted grass, would disguise them sufficiently, as Delia as- sured the younger girls that Betty would not see them at all. “We must hurry and capture her before the Fleetwing gets back,” said Delia. “ We can creep along at the edge of the woods. We may have to say, ‘ Fear not,’ way down in our throats, so Betty will not be too frightened.” “ Betty is never frightened,” Annette declared. “ I heard her say that she would not be afraid of the whole British army.” “ Well, of course she wouldn’t. The whole 36 A LITTLE MAID British army would not hurt one little girl,” Kathy responded quickly, “ but being captured by Indians is different. We must not let Betty be really frightened,” and Kathy looked at Delia a little doubtfully. But the older girl cheerfully agreed with both Annette and Kathy. “ Of course Betty won’t be really frightened, and it is a good chance to find out if she is truly as brave as she pretends,” she said quickly, as she looked at her companions to make sure that their costumes of leaves and brakes was a sufficient disguise. ‘‘ Kow we will creep along at the edge of the woods and come up behind the log as softly as possible,” she continued. “ I will have my sash all ready, and I will bind it over her face and at the same time you girls must tie her hands.” “Yes! Yes! ” agreed Annette and Kathy. “ Then we will lead her into the woods a little way and leave her, and hide and see what she will do,” continued Delia. “ But if she is really frightened we must let her know quickly that it is only a game,” said Annette, and Delia promptly consented; but the older girl thought to herself that both Annette OF OLD NEW YORK 37 and Kathy were rather silly to insist that Betty should not be seriously frightened. Delia con- sidered that in playing “ Indians ” half the fun was that the captured should believe themselves in danger. “ Come on,” said Delia in a husky whisper, “ and if you hurt your feet on the stubbly grass, don’t call out,” and with cautious steps she led the way back to the little clearing. But not by the way of the smooth ledges where Betty might see their approach. Delia crept along close to the thickly growing bushes near the shore, and Annette and Kathy followed closely behind her. The three girls endeavored to walk as much like Indians as possible. Every few steps Delia would stop and look cautiously around as if they might be discovered by unseen enemies. Then she would nod to her followers and move on. The log where Betty had seated herself was screened by a growth of laurel bushes, and it was behind these that the “ Indians ” stopped for a moment’s rest. “ Now creep silently,” whispered Delia, “ and follow me,” and she stepped out close to the log where she had left Betty so short a time ago. Delia stopped suddenly and looked about as 38 A LITTLE MAID if she feared she had come to the wrong place, and Annette and Kathy also stared about with wondering eyes. For Betty was not to be seen. There was the log covered with the strip of sail-cloth, and there lay Betty’s hat and the stocking on which she had been knitting, but Betty and the lunch-baskets had vanished. CHAPTER III WHAT HAPPENED TO BETTY? For a moment the girls looked at each other in amazement, then Delia whispered: ‘‘ Sshh — don’t speak out loud. Betty is close by.” “ But where? ” responded Annette. “ Wait a minute; she is surely not far away,” said Delia, confidently, and the three little girls again crouched silently behind the log where Betty’s hat and work rested. Now and then one of them would cautiously raise her head and peer anxiously about, but there was no sign of Betty, and they were all becoming a little tired of so dis- couraging a game when a loud shout made them all spring up suddenly to find John standing in the middle of the clearing looking about as if he could not understand what had happened to his companions. “ Oh, here you are ! ” he declared with evident relief. “ But you look like small trees walking,” he added, smiling at the girls’ head-dresses of 39 40 A LITTLE MAID nodding brakes and the leafy branches that hid their dresses. “ Where is my luncheon? ” he continued, look- ing about as if expecting to see it spread out on the grassy slope. “ Oh! The baskets are gone too! ” exclaimed Annette in surprise, as she looked in vain for the well-filled luncheon baskets. “‘Gone too?’” questioned John, and' then quickly realized that Betty was missing. Before he could ask a question Annette began to tell him of the game they had planned, and of their dis- covery that Betty had disappeared. John’s face was very grave when the little girl had finished her story. “I see! And while you girls were making ready to take Betty prisoner for a game she really was captured by Indians. They may have been lurking near when we landed, and noticed the luncheon baskets, and seeing Betty alone they thought it too good a chance to miss,” said John, adding: “ It’s my fault. I ought to have stayed on shore.” “It’s my fault!” declared Delia, evidently ready to cry. “ I ought to have stayed with Betty.” OF OLD NEW YORK 41 But J ohn shook his head. “ Then there would be two girls missing instead of one,” he said. “ But we must do our best to find Betty. Per- haps they have not taken her very far. Prob- ably the baskets of food is what they wanted, and they may have left Betty near here. They would not want to be bothered with a small girl.” For a moment the little group looked at each other with anxious eyes. They forgot every- thing except the possibility that Betty might have been taken by some wandering band of In- dians, many of whom still lurked about the islands and unsettled country near New York, often ready to commit mischief, and they were feared by the settlers in lonely places. Although John endeavored not to let the little girls know how seriously he was alarmed by Betty’s disappearance, Annette was quick to see that her cousin was worried and anxious. “ What can we do to find Betty? ” she asked. For a moment John made no answer. He realized that he was resx^onsible for the safety of Annette, Delia and Kathy, as well as for Betty’s return, but he had learned the importance of de- ciding promptly, and it did not take him long to make a plan. 42 'A LITTLE MAID “ First of all I must take you girls on board the Fleetwing he said, moving toward the ledge. “ If I leave you here the Indians may return, and you cannot travel through these woods.” Delia had begun pulling on her stockings, and she picked up her own hat and Betty’s, as well as Betty’s knitting, before following the others toward the boat. 