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Page 11
As Oscar drew near home, he came suddenly upon his brother Fred, who was
kneeling down in the vegetable garden and digging in the earth with
both hands, as if seeking a hidden treasure.
"Where is Emma?" asked Oscar; adding hurriedly, "Oh, don't touch me with
those hands!"
"Well, I should scarcely mistake you for a grub, and that's what I want
to 'touch' with these hands," said Fred, rather scornfully. "As to Emma,
I don't know where she is; but one thing I do know, and that is that one
of you two has carried off all the paper again, so that when a fellow
wants to do his exercises he may whistle for it! I know that much."
"I haven't used any," said Oscar; "but Emma is getting up some new
scheme; I am sure of that, and I suppose she has taken the paper. I
don't know what will happen if somebody doesn't put a stop to her
carrying-on!"
With which negative kind of a prophecy, Oscar went into the house.
CHAPTER IV.
FARTHER PROCEEDINGS IN BUCHBERG.
Oscar's suspicions were correct; as soon as the school-house door was
opened, the nimble Fani had slipped out among the very first; and had
joined Emma, who at once claimed his attention by saying:--
"Come, Fani, I know of a splendid tree for you to draw, and I have the
paper and everything all ready."
Fani was more than willing; and off they scampered, first down the road,
and then by a path across the meadow to a small green hill, known as
Oak-ridge. As they slackened their pace in the ascent, Emma explained
her plan. A short time before, the two higher classes in the school had
begun to take drawing lessons, a new experiment. Emma and Elsli were in
the fifth class, and so was the studious Fred, who, though more than a
year younger, was so much in advance of those of his age that he had
quite outstripped the fourth class to which he properly belonged, and
was, indeed, more clever than most of the members of the fifth. Not in
drawing, however. In that, Fani led the whole school, and he was,
indeed, so successful with his pencil that the teacher often said to
him:--
"Now, Fani, just see what you can do, if you only try! You could do far
better than this, even, if you would only take pains, and not be so
indifferent and light-minded."
On this very day the teacher had said that he should like to have the
children sketch something from nature; a tree or a flower, perhaps; and
he assured Fani that he copied trees remarkably well, and that he
would, probably, succeed out-of-doors. Emma was very much interested in
Fani's drawing; and he had made several pictures especially for her,
which she used for book-marks; a rose and a bunch of strawberries, a
fisherman, rod in hand, seated by a stream under a tree.
So now Emma told Fani how excited she was when she heard what the
teacher said, and how she instantly bethought herself of a splendid
oak-tree that she had noticed a few days before when walking with her
mother in the meadow, not far from the village; and how impatient she
felt to carry Fani off, the moment school was over, that he might set to
work that very day to copy it. Talking thus, they reached the top of the
ridge and the tree was before them. It was, in truth, a magnificent
sight, as it stood on the brow of the hill, and threw its heavy shadow
far out all round on the short meadow grass. Fani stood gazing with
wonder up into its rich foliage.
"Oh, how beautiful!" he exclaimed. "I'm so glad, Emma, that you thought
of it; it is splendid to draw! I'll begin directly; not exactly here,
but a little farther off." And Fani stepped slowly back till he had
reached the right point of view. There he sat down on the ground, and
Emma, placing herself at his side, drew out from her satchel a perfect
wealth of paper and pencils.
"There's paper enough there to make a great many sketches," said the
boy, as he looked with longing eyes at all this fine material.
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