Betty Vivian: A Story of Haddo Court School

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  Betty Vivian

  _A Story of Haddo Court School_

  By MRS. L. T. MEADE

  Author of

  "The Harmon Girls," "The Princess of the Revels," "Aylwyn'sFriends," "The School Queens," "Seven Maids," Etc.

  A. L. BURT, COMPANY, PUBLISHERSNEW YORK

  CONTENTS

  Chapter Page

  I. YES OR NO 3 II. WAS FANNY ELATED? 14 III. GOING SOUTH 25 IV. RECEPTION AT HADDO COURT 36 V. THE VIVIANS' ATTIC 49 VI. A CRISIS 64 VII. SCOTCH HEATHER 80 VIII. A NEW MEMBER 91 IX. STRIVING FOR A DECISION 104 X. RULE I. ACCEPTED 120 XI. A SPECIALITY ENTERTAINMENT 133 XII. A VERY EVENTFUL DAY 137 XIII. A SPOKE IN HER WHEEL 151 XIV. TEA AT FARMER MILES'S 169 XV. A GREAT DETERMINATION 180 XVI. AFTERWARDS 194 XVII. A TURNING-POINT 224 XVIII. NOT ACCEPTABLE 234 XIX. "IT'S DICKIE!" 246 XX. A TIME OF DANGER 254 XXI. A RAY OF HOPE 266 XXII. FARMER MILES TO THE RESCUE 282 XXIII. RESTORATION 290

  BETTY VIVIAN

  CHAPTER I

  YES OR NO

  Haddo Court had been a great school for girls for many generations. Infact, for considerably over a century the Court had descended frommother to daughter, who invariably, whatever her husband's name, tookthe name of Haddo when she became mistress of the school. The reigningmistress might sometimes be unmarried, sometimes the reverse; but shewas always, in the true sense of the word, a noble, upright, generoussort of woman, and one slightly in advance of her generation. There hadnever been anything low or mean known about the various head mistressesof Haddo Court. The school had grown with the times. From being in thelatter days of the eighteenth century a rambling, low old-fashionedhouse with mullioned windows and a castellated roof, it had graduallyincreased in size and magnificence; until now, when this story opens, itwas one of the most imposing mansions in the county.

  The locality in which Haddo Court was situated was not very far fromLondon; but for various reasons its name will be withheld from thereader, although doubtless the intelligent girl who likes to perusethese pages will be easily able to discover its whereabouts. HaddoCourt, although within a measurable distance of the great metropolis,had such large grounds, and such a considerable area of meadow andforest land surrounding it, that it truly seemed to the girls who livedthere that they were in the heart of the country itself. This was indeedthe case; for from the Court you could see no other house whatsoever,unless it were the picturesque abode of the head gardener or that of thelodge-keeper.

  The school belonged to no company; it was the sole and undividedpossession of the head mistress. It combined the advantages of afirst-class high school with the advantages that the best type ofprivate school affords. Its rooms were lofty and abundantly suppliedwith bright sunshine and fresh air. So popular was the school, and sucha tone of distinction did it confer upon the girls who were educatedthere, that, although Mrs. Haddo did not scruple to expect high feesfrom her pupils, it was as difficult to get into Haddo Court as it wasfor a boy to become an inmate of Winchester or Eton. The girl whosemother before her had been educated at the Court usually put down herlittle daughter's name for admission there shortly after the child'sbirth, and even then she was not always certain that the girl could bereceived; for Mrs. Haddo, having inherited, among other virtues from along line of intelligent ancestors, great firmness of character, maderules which she would allow no exception to break.

  The girls at Haddo Court might number one hundred and fifty; but nothingwould induce her, on any terms whatsoever, to exceed that number. Shehad a staff of the most worthy governesses, many of whom had beeneducated at the Court itself; others who bore testimony to the lamentedand much-loved memory of the late Miss Beale of Cheltenham; and others,again, who had taken honors of the highest degree at the twouniversities.

  Mrs. Haddo never prided herself on any special gift; but she was wellaware of the fact that she could read character with unerring instinct;consequently she never made a mistake in the choice of her teachers. TheCourt was now so large that each girl, if she chose, could have a smallbedroom to herself, or two sisters might be accommodated with a largerroom to share together. There was every possible comfort at the Court;at the same time there was an absence of all that was enervating.Comforts, Mrs. Haddo felt assured, were necessary to the proper growthand development of a young life; but she disliked luxuries for herself,and would not permit them for her pupils. The rooms were thereforehandsomely, though somewhat barely, furnished. There were no superfluousdraperies and few knick-knacks of any sort. There was, however, in eachbedroom a little book shelf with about a dozen of the best and mostsuitable books--generally a copy of Ruskin's "Sesame and Lilies," ofCarlyle's "Sartor Resartus," of Milton's "Paradise Lost"; also one ortwo books by the best writers of the present day. Works of E. V. Lucaswere not forgotten in that collection, and Mrs. Ewing's "Jackanapes" wasa universal favorite.

  The girls had one special library where classical works and books ofreference were found in abundance; also standard novels, such as thebest works of Thackeray and Dickens. In addition to this was a smallerlibrary where the girls were allowed to have their own privatepossessions in the shape of books and drawings. This room was only usedby the girls of the upper school, and was seldom interfered with eitherby the head mistress or the various teachers.

  Out of one hundred and fifty girls it would be impossible to describemore than a few; but at the time when this story opens there was in theupper school a little band of devoted friends who adored each other, whohad high aims and ambitions, who almost worshiped Mrs. Haddo, and, asfar as possible, endeavored to profit by her excellent training. Thenames of the girls in question were Susie Rushworth, who was seventeenyears of age, and would in a year's time be leaving the Court; FannyCrawford, her cousin and special friend--Fanny and Susie were much ofthe same age, Fanny being a little the younger of the two--two sistersnamed Mary and Julia Bertram; Margaret Grant, who was tall, dark, andstately, and Olive Repton, everybody's favorite, a bright-eyed,bewitching little creature, with the merriest laugh, a gay manner, andwith brilliant powers of repartee and a good-natured word for everyone--she was, in short, the life of the upper school.

  None of these girls was under sixteen years of age; all were slightlyabove the average as regards ability, and decidedly above the average asregards a very high standard of morals. They had all been brought upwith care. They knew nothing of the vanities of the world, and theirgreat ambition in life was to walk worthily in the station in which theywere born. They were all daughters of rich parents--that is, with theexce
ption of Olive Repton, whose mother was a widow, and who, inconsequence, could not give her quite so many advantages as hercompanions received. Olive never spoke on the subject, but she had wild,impossible dreams of earning her own living by and by. She was notjealous nor envious of her richer schoolfellows. She was thoroughlyhappy, and enjoyed her life to the utmost.

  Among the teachers in the school was a certain Miss Symes, anEnglishwoman of very high attainments, with lofty ideas, and thegreatest desire to do the utmost for her pupils. Miss Symes was not morethan six-and-twenty. She was very handsome--indeed, almostbeautiful--and she had such a passion for music and such a lovely voicethat the girls liked to call her Saint Cecilia. Miss Arundel was anotherteacher in the school. She was much older than Miss Symes, but not sohighly educated. She only occasionally came into the upper school--herwork was more with the girls of the lower school--but she was kind andgood-natured, and was universally popular because she could bear beinglaughed at, and even enjoyed a joke against herself. Such a woman wouldbe sure to be a favorite with most girls, and Mary Arundel was as happyin her life at the Court as any of her pupils. There were also Frenchand German governesses, and a lady to look after the wardrobes of theolder girls, and attend to them in case of any trifling indisposition.

  Besides the resident teachers there was the chaplain and his wife. Thechaplain had his own quarters in a distant wing of the school. His namewas the Reverend Edmund Fairfax. He was an elderly man, with white hair,a benign expression of face, and gentle brown eyes. His wife was asomewhat fretful woman, who often wished that her husband would seekpreferment and leave his present circumscribed sphere of action. Butnothing would induce the Reverend Edmund Fairfax to leave Mrs. Haddo solong as she required him; and when he read prayers morning and eveningin the beautiful old chapel, which had been built as far back as thebeginning of the eighteenth century, the girls loved to listen to hiswords, and even at times shyly confided their little troubles to him.

  Such was the state of things at Haddo Court when this story opens. Mrs.Haddo was a woman of about thirty-eight years of age. She was tall andhandsome, of a somewhat commanding presence, with a face which wascapable, in repose, of looking a little stern; but when that same facewas lit up by a smile, the heart of every girl in the school went out toher, and they thought no one else like her.

  Mrs. Haddo was a widow, and had no children of her own. Her late husbandhad been a great friend of Mr. Fairfax. At his death she had, aftercareful reflection, decided to carry on the work which her mother had sosuccessfully conducted before her. Everything was going well, and therewas not a trace of care or anxiety on Mrs. Haddo's fine face.

  There came a day, however, when this state of things was doomed to bealtered. There is no Paradise, no Garden of Eden, without its serpent,and so Janet Haddo was destined to experience. The disturbing elementwhich came into the school was brought about in the most natural way.Sir John Crawford, the father of one of Mrs. Haddo's favorite pupils,called unexpectedly to see the good lady.

  "I have just got the most exciting piece of news for you," he said.

  "Indeed!" replied Mrs. Haddo.

  She never allowed herself to be greatly disturbed, but her heart didbeat a trifle faster when she saw how eager Sir John appeared.

  "I have come here all the way from Yorkshire in order not to lose amoment," continued the good baronet. "I don't want to see Fanny atpresent. This has nothing whatever to do with Fanny. I have come to tellyou that a wonderful piece of news has reached me."

  "What can that be?" asked Mrs. Haddo. She spoke with that gracious calmwhich always seemed to pervade her presence and her words.

  "Do relieve my mind at once!" said Sir John. "Is it possible thatyou--you, Mrs. Haddo, of Haddo Court--have at the present moment threevacancies in your school?"

  Mrs. Haddo laughed. "Is that all?" she said. "But they can be filled upto-morrow ten times over, if necessary."

  "But you _have_ three vacancies--three vacancies in the upper school? Itis true--I see it is true by your face. Please assure me on that pointwithout delay!"

  "It happens to be true," said Mrs. Haddo, "although I do not want thematter mentioned. My three dear young pupils, the Maitlands, have beenunable to return to school owing to the fact that their father has beenmade Governor of one of the West India Islands. He has insisted ontaking his family out with him; so I have lost dear Emily, Jane, andAgnes. I grieve very much at their absence. They all came to see me lastweek to say good-bye; and we had quite a trying time, the children areso affectionate. I should have greatly loved to keep them longer; buttheir father was determined to have them with him, so there was nothingto be done but submit."

  "Oh, Mrs. Haddo, what is one person's loss is another person's gain!"

  "I don't understand you, Sir John," was the good lady's reply.

  "If you have three vacancies, you can take three more girls. You cantake them into the school at once, can you not?"

  "I can, certainly; but, as a matter of fact, I am in no hurry. I shallprobably be obliged to fill up the vacancies next term from the list ofgirls already on my books. I shall, as my invariable custom is, promotesome girls from the lower school to the upper, and take three new littlegirls into the lower school. But there is really no hurry."

  "Yes, but there is every hurry, my friend--every hurry! I want you totake three--three _orphan_ girls--three girls who have neither fathernor mother; I want you to take them at once into the upper school. Theyare not specially well off; but I am their guardian, and your termsshall be mine. I have just come from the death-bed of their aunt, one ofmy dearest friends; she was in despair about Betty and Sylvia and HesterVivian. They are three sisters. They have been well educated; and,although I don't know them personally, any girl brought up by FrancesVivian, my dear friend who has just passed away, could not but be in allrespects a desirable inmate of any school. I am forced to go to Indiaimmediately, and must ask you to look after Fanny for me during the nextvacation. Now, if you would only take the Vivians I should go away witha light heart. Do you say 'Yes,' my dear friend! Remember how many of myname have been educated at Haddo Court. You cannot refuse me. I amcertain you will not."

  "I never take girls here on the plea of friendship--even for one likeyourself, Sir John. I must know much more about these children before Iagree to admit them into my school."

  Sir John's face became very red, and just for a minute he looked almostangry.

  "Oh, Mrs. Haddo," he said then, "do banish that alarmingly severeexpression from your face and look kindly on my project! I can assureyou that Frances Vivian, after whom my own Fanny has been called, hadthe finest character in the world. Ah, my dear friend, I have younow--her own sister was educated here. Now, isn't that guarantee enough?Look back on the past, refer to the old school-books, and you will seethe name of Beatrice Vivian in the roll-call."

  "What can you tell me about the girls themselves?" said Mrs. Haddo, whowas evidently softened by this reference to the past. "I rememberBeatrice Vivian," she continued, before the baronet had time to speak."She was a very charming girl, a little older than myself, and she wasundoubtedly a power for good in the school."

  "Then, surely, that makes it quite all right?" said Sir John. "Mrs.Haddo, you must pity me. I have to place these girls somewhere in a weekfrom now. I am responsible for them. They are homeless; they are young;they are good-looking."

  "Tell me something about their characters and dispositions," said Mrs.Haddo.

  "I can tell you nothing. I only saw Betty for two or three minutes; shewas in a state of wild, tempestuous grief, poor child! I tried tocomfort her, but she rushed away from me. Sylvia was nearly as bad;while as to poor Hetty, she was ill with sorrow."

  "Well, I will think the matter over and let you know," said Mrs. Haddo."I never decide anything hastily, so I cannot say more at present."

  The baronet rose. "I had best have a peep at Fanny before I go," hesaid. "I am only going as far as London to-night, so you can wire yourdecision--'Yes'
or 'No'--to the Ritz Hotel. Poor Fanny! she will be introuble when she hears that I cannot receive her at Christmas; but Ileave her in good hands here, and what can any one do more?"

  "Please promise me one thing, Sir John," said Mrs. Haddo. "Do not sayanything to Fanny about the Vivians. Allow me to tell her when I havedecided that they are to come to the school. If I decide against it, sheneed never know. Now, shall I ring and ask one of the servants to sendher to you? Believe me, Sir John, I will do my very utmost to oblige youin this matter; but I must be guided by principle. You know what thisschool means to me. You know how earnestly I have at heart the welfareof all my children, as I call the girls who live at Haddo Court."

  "Yes, yes, I know; but I think, somehow, that you will agree to myrequest."

  "Send Miss Crawford here," said Mrs. Haddo to a servant who appeared atthat moment, and a minute later Fanny entered the room. She gave a cryof delight when she saw her father, and Mrs. Haddo at once left themalone together.

  The day was a half-holiday, and the head mistress was glad of the fact,for she wanted to have a little time to think over Sir John's request.Haddo Court had hitherto answered so admirably because no girl, even ifher name had been on the books for years, was admitted to the schoolwithout the head mistress having a personal interview, first with herparents or guardians, and afterwards with the girl herself. Many anapparently charming girl was quietly but courteously informed that shewas not eligible for the vacancy which was to be filled, and Mrs. Haddowas invariably right in her judgment. With her shrewd observation ofcharacter, she saw something lacking in that pretty, or careless, oreven thoughtful, or sorrowful face--something which might _aspire_, butcould never by any possibility _attain_, to what the head mistressdesired to inculcate in the young lives around her--and now Mrs. Haddowas asked to receive three girls under peculiar circumstances. They wereorphans and needed a home. Sir John Crawford was one of her oldestfriends. The Crawfords had always been associated with Haddo Court, andbeautiful Beatrice Vivian had received her education there. Surely therecould not be anything wrong in admitting three young girls like theVivians to the school? But yet there was her invariable rule. Could shepossibly see them? One short interview would decide her. She lookedround the beautiful home in which had grown up the fairest specimens ofEnglish girlhood, and wondered if, for once, she might break her rule.

  Sir John Crawford had gone to the Ritz Hotel. There he was to await Mrs.Haddo's telegram. But she would not telegraph; she would go to Londonherself. She took the first train from the nearest station, and arrivedunexpectedly at the "Ritz" just as Sir John was sitting down to dinner.

  "I see by your face, my dear, good friend, that you are bringing me thebest of news!" said the eager man, flushing with pleasure as Mrs. Haddotook a seat by his side. "You will join me at dinner, of course?"

  "No, thank you, Sir John. I shall have supper at the Court on my return.I will tell you at once what I have come about. I have, as you must knowwell, never admitted a girl into my school without first seeing her andjudging for myself what her character was likely to be. I shouldgreatly like to help you in the present case, which is, I will admit, apressing one; and girls of the name of Vivian, and also related to you,have claims undoubtedly on Haddo Court. Nevertheless, I am loath tobreak my rule. Is it possible for me to see the girls?"

  "I fear it is not," said Sir John. "I did not tell you that poor Francesdied in the north of Scotland, and I could not possibly get the girls upto London in time for you to interview them and then decide againstthem. It must be 'Yes' or 'No'--an immediate 'Yes' or 'No,' Mrs. Haddo;for if you say 'No' and I pray God you won't--I must see what is thenext best thing I can do for them. Poor children! they are very lonelyand unhappy; but, of course, there _are_ other schools. Perhaps youcould recommend one, if you are determined to refuse them without aninterview?"

  Mrs. Haddo could never tell afterwards why a sudden fit of weakness andcompassion overcame her. Perhaps it was the thought of the otherschools; for she was a difficult woman to please, and fastidious andperhaps even a little scornful with regard to some of the teaching ofthe present day. Perhaps it was the sight of Sir John's troubled face.Perhaps it was the fact that there never was a nicer girl in the schoolthan Beatrice Vivian--Beatrice, who was long in her grave, but who hadbeen loved by every one in the house; Beatrice, whom Mrs. Haddo herselfremembered. It was the thought of Beatrice that finally decided the goodlady.

  "It _is_ against my rule," she said, "and I hope I am not doing wrong. Iwill take the children; but I make one condition, Sir John, that if Ifind they do not fulfill the high expectations which are looked for inevery girl who comes to Haddo Court, I do my best to place themelsewhere."

  "You need not be afraid," said Sir John. His voice shook with delightand gratitude. "You will never regret this generous act; and, believeme, my dear friend, there is no rule, however firm, which is notsometimes better broken than kept."

  Alas, poor Sir John! he little knew what he was saying.