The Four Corners Abroad

by Amy Ella Blanchard

  CHAPTER XVII

  GOOD-BYE MUNICH

  FOR the rest of the time things went smoothly enough, the greatestexcitement being the letter which was finally received from HansMetzger. Frau Pfeffer gave Nan the news one day when she stopped tomake inquiries of the switch-tender. The man had written to his sisterbefore leaving the country, had told her of his illness in Dresden, butthis letter Frau Pfeffer had never received. Now he wrote that he hada good place, better than he had ever dared think he could have, andwould soon be able to send for his family.

  "His family," exclaimed Mary Lee when Nan told her. "Is the wholeoutfit going? Frau Pfeffer and all those children?"

  "I imagine so. Frau Pfeffer could not remember the name of the placewhere he is, but she says she will send the letter to us to read."

  Bertha appeared the next day, her little thin face beaming. She lookedvery neat and clean, her cheeks fairly shining from soap and water,and her light hair drawn tightly back in two braids. The graciousladies would please read the letter and she would wait to take it backagain, for it was very precious.

  Nan and Mary Lee sat down, their heads together. Nan was moreproficient in deciphering German script than her sister and was thefirst to recognize a certain name which was prominent on the page. Shegave a little scream of surprise. "Of all things! Mary Lee, do see."

  "What?" Mary Lee did not quite take in what was meant.

  "Why, look here, the man with whom Hans went over to America is Mr.Pinckney's superintendent, Mr. Wheeler. You know he came over toconsult Mr. Pinckney on business matters and it is Mr. Pinckney's bigplace in New Jersey that Hans has gone to. Did you ever know anythingso strange?"

  "I truly never did. Are you sure, Nan, that it is the same?"

  "Why of course it is. There is the name of the place at the head ofthe paper." She turned over the sheet and pointed out the heading. "Ididn't think to look at it at first. Mr. St. Nick's place is named 'TheCedars' and there is the same post-office address. I know perfectlywell, for we wrote to Miss Dolores when she was there one time. Ishould think you would remember that, Mary Lee."

  "I do remember, of course, only I couldn't make out the name in thatqueer writing. It can't help being the same place. We must write to Mr.St. Nick and tell him all about it. He will be so interested, and Ishouldn't wonder but he would ship the whole family right off; you knowhow he did about Christine and her grandfather. Let's tell Bertha."

  They explained as well as they could, telling the little girl that herfather was in a fine place and that they would all meet in America. Asthey had expected, Mr. Pinckney was greatly interested and there came aday not long after when Frau Pfeffer turned her last switch, discardedher green hat, picked up her feather bed and with her children set sailfor America to the great satisfaction of the Corners, Jack and Jeanbeing specially pleased that they had a hand in the matter.

  A last walk in the Englischer Garten, a last look in the windows ofthe toy shops, a final farewell to the pigeons on the Odeonsplatz, onemore promenade on the Parada and they said good-bye to Munich, to kindFraeulein Bauer, to the Hoyts, to the flock of schoolboys with whom theyhad had so many jolly times. Dr. Paul took the five damsels as far asInnsbruck and there delivered them into the hands of Miss Helen, whocame thus far to meet them. Mrs. Corner had gone on to Verona, wherethey would make their next stop. The Hoyts, with a perfect phalanx ofboys, stood on the platform to see them off, the boys sending a wildmountain cry after them to the scandal of the gatekeeper who frowned atthe savage Americans.

  Innsbruck was a fascinating enough place to call for a stop oftwenty-four hours and Dr. Paul lingered with them during that time.

  "I don't know how we are going to get along without you," declared Nanwhen he had put them all on the train for Verona and the time had cometo part. "Aunt Helen, he has been such a comfort; just like a nice bigbrother, he is always looking out for us. We shall certainly miss you,Dr. Paul."

  "Perhaps you don't think I shall miss you all," he said, "but I shallkeep telling myself that it will not be so very long before we allshall meet again. Why couldn't we be fellow passengers across the sea?I shall be sailing from Genoa and you from Naples about the same time.Have you taken passage yet, Miss Helen?"

  "Yes, we sail from Naples on the first of June by the North GermanLloyd. Our steamer is the _Koenig Albert_, I believe."

  "I'll look up my own passage then and see if I can book for the sametrip, and we'll call this simply _auf wiedersehn_." So they parted, heto return to Munich, which would seem sadly empty now, and they to goon to the delights of Italy.

  At the hotel in Verona there was a glad meeting with their _mutter_,from whom they had been separated for all these weeks. There was somuch to tell, that at first there was no desire to go out sightseeing,but the second day they began to wake up to the fact that the city heldsights for them, and then they went forth to behold them.

  "What is there to see here, Miss Helen?" Jo asked.

  "A number of things. The Piazza delle Erbe, where used to be the oldforum, is one of the most picturesque squares in Italy. You know thatit was this city which received Dante after he was banished fromFlorence. You will see here many of the pictures of Pablo Caltari, thelast really great master of the Venetian school; you all will know himbetter as Paul Veronese. And of course you know this was the home ofRomeo and Juliet. A tomb is shown which is said to be Juliet's, thoughit is doubtful if it really is, and the house of her parents is pointedout."

  "Were they real people? I never knew that," said Jo.

  "The play is said to be founded on fact, and we are told that it wasin the fourteenth century that the two lovers lived and died. It maynot be absolutely true, but tradition says that there were actualhappenings in Verona which resembled those of which Shakespeare wrote.I think we can spend a couple of days here very pleasantly, for it is ahandsome city as well as an interesting one."

  "And then for San Marco and the gondolas," cried Nan.

  "Where shall we go in Venice, to a hotel or a _pension_?" Mary Leeasked.

  "We are going to a pleasant place on the Riva degli Schiavoni where weshall have rooms and breakfast with whatever other meals we choose tohave served. We shall sometimes be at too great a distance to get backpromptly to meals, so we can always have our midday meal, at least,wherever we choose."

  "I like that way of doing things," declared Jo. "One doesn't have tobreak one's neck in order to get back in time and there is a sort ofexcitement in the uncertainty of what you are going to get and the kindof place you will strike."

  For two days they wandered about Verona, looking at the old paintedhouses, the palaces, the churches, and then the expectant hearts of atleast three of the girls beat high as they neared Venice.

  "I see a red sail," cried Mary Lee, looking from the car window.

  "And there is a yellow one," announced Jean. "Oh, look, there are lotsand lots of boats and more colored sails."

  "Are we going in a gondola first thing?" asked Jack. "If the streetsare all water we shall have to, shan't we?"

  "Yes," her mother told her. "The gondolas are the cabs of Venice andwill take us anywhere we want to go."

  "I'm just crivering," said Jean as they stepped aboard the black craftwhich Mrs. Corner had selected.

  "Sit down with your crivers," directed Nan. "Isn't it too delicious foranything? I foresee where all my spending money goes; hiring gondolasand just drifting up and down between these old palaces."

  "But you must buy beads. You promised half a dozen girls to bring themsome," Mary Lee reminded her.

  "Don't talk to me of beads yet. Look at that red cloth hanging out fromthat balcony, Jo. Now I know we are in Venice. It looks exactly likethe pictures. I am sure that church we are coming to is the Santa Mariadella Salute."

  "Where are the pigeons?" asked Jean.

  "They are on the Piazza San Marco; we haven't come to that yet," Nantold her. "Do we turn off here? What is that place over there, AuntHelen?"

  "That is the l
ittle island and church of San Giorgio Maggiore, and nextto it across that broad canal is the island of Giudecca. The canal hasthe same name; the church is called the Redentore."

  The gondola turned out of the Grand Canal into the canal of San Marcoand soon its passengers alighted in front of a house on the Riva degliSchiavoni where they were expected and where they found letters waitingfor them.

  "When can we go to the glass factory? When can we go to the bead shop?How soon are you going to take us to feed the pigeons? When shall we beready for another ride in a gondola?" were the questions showered onMiss Helen by her nieces as soon as they had looked their rooms overand had decided where they would put their belongings.

  "We can't do all those things at once, you badgering youngsters. Letme see what time it is. No bead shop and no glass factory, anyhow,to-day. If it isn't too late we will walk over to the Piazza and ifthe pigeons are there they shall be fed. As for the gondola, we'll seeabout that later."

  The light had not left the sky when they stood on the Piazza San Marco.The rich mosaics of the beautiful church caught the rays of the settingsun, the pigeons were wheeling about overhead, and settling down incrowds upon the pavement.

  "It beats anything I have ever seen yet," said Jo admiringly. "Justlook at those great horses over the church door. Where did they comefrom? Tell us, Miss Helen."

  Miss Helen turned over the leaves of her Baedeker. "They are five feethigh and are among the finest of ancient bronzes. They probably onceadorned the triumphal arch of Nero and after of Trajan. Constantinesent them to Constantinople. The Doge Dandolo brought them to Venice in1204. In 1797 Napoleon carried them to Paris where later they adornedthe triumphal arch in the Place du Carousel. In 1815 they were restoredto Venice and set up where you now see them."

  The older girls listened attentively while the younger ones wereabsorbed in watching the pigeons who had not yet gone to roost underthe arches of the church.

  "I am glad they were brought back here," said Nan, "and I hope theywill never be taken away again. They give such an air to the church,a triumphal note, and are quite a different decoration from those youusually see on churches. Are we going inside, Aunt Helen?"

  "I think we'd better wait till morning to do that. We shall probablywant to come here many times. Just now we will enjoy the outside of thechurch and the Piazza, for it is the centre of interest here, and thereis always something to see."

  "I should think there was," said Jack, whose attention had been drawnfrom the pigeons to the clock tower where the two bronze giants werepreparing to strike the hours. Jean with a pigeon on each shoulder andone pecking at the peas in her hand was perfectly happy, but at Jack'swords turned her eyes toward the tower at which they were all looking.

  "There do seem to be a lot of people here," said Jo when the laststroke of the giants' hammers had ceased. "But I thought the Rialto wasthe great meeting-place. Don't you know the common expression, 'I'llmeet you on the Rialto'?" Then after a pause, "What is the Rialto,anyhow, Miss Helen?"

  "What we mean by the Rialto now is the great bridge which for manyyears was the only connecting one between the east and west sectionsof the city. Formerly it meant the section of the city where ancientVenice was built, and Baedeker says it was this section and not thebridge which is referred to in 'The Merchant of Venice,' and theexpression to which you just referred is from the play."

  "Dear me," said Jo, "when you get at the core of things how much moreinteresting they are."

  "Of course we shall go to the Rialto," said Nan. "How do you get there,Aunt Helen?"

  "From where we are we can go under the clock tower and walk up theMerceria, which is the principal business street of Venice, and has anumber of good shops on it."

  "Is it a real street? Do we have to go from shop to shop in a gondola?"Jo asked.

  "No, indeed, we walk along comfortably on dry ground."

  "But I thought Venice was all water."

  "There is a part of it which is quite like any other city, and whereyou will find no suggestion of water for quite a distance. This part iswhere the ancient city was founded, and is an island which was known asRivoalto. You will read about it in a history of Venice."

  "Then I suppose Rialto is a contraction of the name of the island,Rivoalto," remarked Nan.

  "Exactly. Over by the bridge there is a market which you will like tosee, for you will find many Venetian types there, and moreover canbuy excellent fruit. There are some odd sorts of shops, too, that areinteresting to look into."

  "Well," said Jo after a pause, "I am flabbergasted. I had such avery different idea of the city. I thought it was all like the GrandCanal, and that what shops there were must be reached by skipping overbridges, unless one went in a gondola. I am quite curious to see thatpart you speak of."

  "We shall go there more than once before we get through, and you willfind that there will be some little bridges to cross even in that partof the city. You will want to go to Santa Maria Formosa to see the St.Barbara, which is one of Nan's favorites. She has always admired thephotograph which I have of it and now she can see the original."

  Nan beamed. "Oh, I am so glad I am here. I believe, now I think of it,that I have always wanted to see Venice more than any other place, andI am actually here."

  "What is the matter with Jean?" said Mary Lee, for Jean had given asudden cry of pleasure, had scattered her dried peas to right and leftand had flown off in the direction of the clock tower.

  All turned to look and were surprised to see Mary Lee, too, followingJean's example.

  "If it isn't Mr. St. Nick and Miss Dolores," cried Nan, who being thetallest had first caught sight of the couple toward whom the other twowere making their way.

  All hurried forward to greet these good friends. "When did you come?and where are you staying, and why didn't you let us know?" Thequestions came thick and fast.

  It turned out that the Pinckneys had been in Venice for two days, werestopping at a hotel near the Palace of the Doges. They had written tothe Corners, but the letter had probably arrived in Munich after thegirls had left.

  "Well, well, this is more fun than a barrel of monkeys!" Mr. Pinckney'sjolly laugh rang out. "Just stay long enough on the Piazza and you'resure to meet every one you know, I was just saying to Dolores. Now,what's on for this evening? It is going to be a glorious night. Whycan't we all go out and take it easy in a gondola or so? It is plentywarm enough and will be no exertion, either, that's what pleases me.There'll be music; we can listen to it when we choose and when wedon't choose we can talk. What do you all say?"

  "Please, please, please," came a chorus of entreaty from the girls.

  "I think it is a lovely plan," agreed Miss Helen. "What do you say,Mary?"

  Mrs. Corner did not object. There would be nothing wearisome about itbut quite the contrary. So they parted to meet later at the steps ofthe Ducal palace.

  It was the softest of spring nights with a faint afterglow in the skyand a rising moon when they set out. Long beams of light trembled onthe dark waters, light from the windows of palaces, from prows ofgondolas, from the moonlit skies. The party divided since they were toomany for one gondola. Mary Lee and Jean elected to go with Mrs. Cornerand Miss Dolores; the others chose Miss Helen and Mr. Pinckney ascompanions. It was a new and exciting experience but to none more thanto Nan and Jo. Mary Lee was absorbed in Miss Dolores; Jack in chattingto Mr. Pinckney.

  "Isn't it wonderful?" Nan whispered to her aunt. "I feel as if Iwere living a hundred years ago, and that these old palaces were notmelancholy places given over for _pensions_ and tourists."

  "They're not all that, Nan."

  "No, of course not, but the old glory has passed. Yet, how beautiful itstill is here."

  "It is beautiful under any circumstances, and what a history the placehas had. With how many different nations has Venice been connected, andwhat changes she has seen!"

  "When was she at the height of her glory?"

  "In the fifteenth century, and a great repu
blic she was then, but hermagnificence began to wane in the sixteenth century. She has sincetwice belonged to Austria, has belonged to Italy, has been a republic,and at last was again united to Italy."

  "I don't like to think of her as anything but Italian."

  "She has had many Oriental influences which are still very evident andmake her different from other Italian cities. She used to be the centrewhere the traffic of both the East and West met and under her Dogesheld many Eastern possessions. We must get some books, Nan, and read upso you will become better acquainted with the past of the queen of theAdriatic."

  "Indeed, I do want to do that. I should love to have seen that ceremonyof wedding her to the sea."

  "We live in too late an age for all the old romances and poetry exceptwhat still lingers through association and imagination. So quiet, Jo?It isn't like you not to have a word to say."

  "I'm listening, Miss Helen, and am having such a good time that I amhugging myself for want of a better way to express my delight. I dolove all this so much better than I expected to. I'm afraid I hadn'tgiven much thought to the places over here till I actually came. Theywere names that I ticked off something like this: Paris--gay streetsand shops; good place to get smart clothes. London--fogs, omnibuses,Dickens' stories; Munich--beer, picture-galleries. Venice--gondolas;all water."

  Miss Helen laughed. "That is the way those places appear in the mindsof a good many persons, I'm afraid. You are glad you came, Jo, aren'tyou? I remember Nan said you were not very enthusiastic at first."

  "You bet I'm glad." Jo spoke with more force than elegance. "I couldbat my head against the wall when I think of what a goose I was aboutcoming. What an ignoramus I was not to study up more before I came.Nan enjoys things and gets so excited over them lots of times when Idon't know what in the world she is driving at. Then by the time Ihave learned a little history and stuff it is time to leave, and thereis not any chance for my enthusiasm to break out. I can't imagine howDaniella kept up with her party. You all are way ahead of me when itcomes to literature and pictures and things, and what must she havebeen?"

  "At least she got a taste of the sweets," said Miss Helen, "and I havenot a doubt but that it will awaken her ambition as nothing else coulddo."

  "She always had plenty of ambition," said Nan, "but she knew scarcelyanything of what was outside a very small world."

  "And the way she will work to keep up with her new self will be acaution," said Jo. "Dear me," she sighed, "there's the trouble; whenyou don't know and haven't seen you feel twice as complacent. You havea few rather nice ideas and some little knowledge, Jo Keyes, I pattedmyself on the head and said, but now, gracious! I feel as if I didn'tknow as much as one of the San Marco pigeons."

  "So much the better," Miss Helen told her. "There is nothing sohopeless as self-complacency. You will forge ahead now, Jo, with twicethe ardor you did before."

  Just then a sudden hail from a passing gondola startled them all.Some one was standing up waving his hat violently. "Hallo, Nan Corner!Hallo, Jack!" came a voice as the gondola swung alongside.

  Jack peered into the neighboring bark and cried out, "Carter! It'sCarter, Nan. I know it is."

  "Is that you, Carter Barnwell?" asked Nan leaning forward. "Of allthings!"

  "That's just who," was the reply; "and another friend of yours."

  "Who?" Nan again leaned forward.

  "Howdy, Miss Nan," came a second greeting.

  "It's Harold Kirk, my cousin, you know," Carter said.

  "Well, I declare! Aunt Helen, it is Carter and Mr. Kirk."

  "I wish there were room in here for you boys," said Miss Helen.

  "Can't we divide up?" asked Carter. "One of us will get in there withyou and some of you can come in here with us."

  "Rather a difficult proceeding," said Miss Helen laughing.

  "I didn't mean that exactly," said Carter laughing, too. "Who all arein there?"

  "Nan, Miss Jo Keys and Jack, besides Mr. Pinckney and myself," MissHelen told him. Mr. Pinckney had given but a word of formal greeting.

  "Suppose I get in," proposed Carter, with a look at his companion. "Whowill change with me?"

  "I'm willing to," Nan offered, "if Aunt Helen will come with me." So itwas arranged. The gondolas were brought together and the exchange made.

  The third gondola was lagging a considerable distance in the rear ofthe others, so that its occupants were not yet seen. As Mr. Pinckneyand his party were about to start ahead, Mr. Pinckney peremptorilyordered the gondolier to take second place, so it was Mr. Kirk and hisfriends who led the way.

  CHAPTER XVIII

  JACK AS CHAMPION]