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Page 56
On entering the gardens, Mrs. Stanhope said again that they must all
keep together. No one must linger behind, nor hurry before, or they
might get lost; and they must not touch anything in the garden.
This was a blow to Fred, and took away most of his satisfaction in
seeing the animals; and his martyrdom did not cease while they were in
the gardens. Here he heard great buzzing and humming in a bush, and he
longed to see the wonderful insects that made it. There he saw
bright-colored butterflies fluttering about the flowers; on one side
red-gold beetles were creeping in the grass before his eyes; on the
other some huge lizards were sunning themselves on a rock. He must pass
by all these attractions; not stop a moment to examine them, not touch
one of all this multitude of treasures. It was almost too much for him.
He could scarcely keep his hands off.
Elsli walked silently along, scarcely able to enjoy anything she saw,
for thinking:--
"They are all waiting for me; and I shall not come all day."
And so it was that all five, in spite of the enjoyments of the day, went
to bed at night with the feeling, "What a shame!"
But the next morning the thoughts of disappointment had passed away, and
they came out to their recreation in the garden with happy plans for the
day.
Oscar had a great deal of business on hand. He must see the Fink boys
and fix the day for the Festival. Then, Feklitus was to come to-day, and
he must be met at the station. They had put off the Festival till his
arrival, for he would be one countryman more, and that was worth
counting. Oscar had written him that there were three good hotels near
the station; the Bunch of Grapes, the Eagle, and the Morning Star. A
little farther on, down by the Rhine, was a magnificent house, as large
as the church and the school-house at home put together; yes, and six
dwelling-houses besides. It was called the Crown Prince. There were
Rhine baths there, and many guests came for the sake of the bathing;
perhaps this hotel was rather more expensive than the others.
Mr. and Mrs. Bickel immediately decided in favor of the Crown Prince, on
account of the name, which certainly suited perfectly for their son, and
also because of the acquaintances he might make there. Of course, there
would be only the best of company there, since only those would go who
could afford to pay high prices. It was proper, too, to show people
that their son was a person who could afford to stay at the most
expensive place. Oscar was therefore requested to engage a room for
Feklitus at the Crown Prince.
When the time came for the children to go out and occupy themselves as
they pleased, Oscar went off like a shot. He and the Fink brothers were
now such fast friends that they could not pass one day without meeting,
and had promised to remain intimate all their lives long. Oscar had
never had such friends before. When they were together the hours flew
like minutes, for they had a thousand interests in common--their plays,
their plans, their wishes for the future; they talked over everything
together.
When the hour came for Feklitus to arrive, they started for the station
together. In spite of the friendliness with which the Fink boys met the
new-comer, the greeting was rather a one-sided affair, for Feklitus was
not accustomed to making friends with strangers. His trunks were handed
over to the omnibus-driver, and the four boys proceeded to the hotel on
foot. Here he was shown to a very large room, furnished in splendid
bright red satin, and with windows higher than the doors of most
Buchberg houses.
Oscar began directly to tell Feklitus the arrangements that were to be
made to-day in preparation for the great Festival to-morrow. The
flag-staff must be set in a hole in the ground, and held firm by stones
placed close around its base, so that there would be no delay in the
morning. Then he told him whom he had found to join the society and take
part in the Festival.
Feklitus' nose went up in scorn.
"A fine set of people you have collected! and all from the small
cantons, too!" he exclaimed.
"What do you mean?" cried Oscar, angrily. "Who was it that wanted to
put on the banner, 'Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity'?"
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