The Story Hour: A Book for the Home and the Kindergarten
Page 6
MOUFFLOU.
Adapted from Ouida.
"We tell too few stories to children, and those we tell are storieswhose heroes are automata and stuffed dolls,"--Froebel.
Lolo and Moufflou lived far away from here, in a sunny country calledItaly.
Lolo was not as strong as you are, and could never run about and play,for he was lame, poor fellow, and always had to hop along on a littlecrutch. He was never well enough to go to school, but as his fingerswere active and quick he could plait straw matting and make baskets athome. He had four or five rosy, bright little brothers and sisters, butthey were all so strong and could play all day so easily that Lolo wasnot with them much; so Moufflou was his very best friend, and they weretogether all day long.
Moufflou was a snow-white poodle, with such soft, curly wool that helooked just like a lamb; and the man who gave him to the children, whenhe was a little puppy, had called him "Moufflon," which meant sheep inhis country.
Lolo's father had died four years before; but he had a mother, who hadto work very hard to keep the children clean and get them enough to eat.He had, too, a big brother Tasso, who worked for a gardener, and everySaturday night brought his wages home to help feed and clothe the littlechildren. Tasso was almost a man now, and in that country as soon as yougrow to be a man you have to go away and be a soldier; so Lolo's motherwas troubled all the time for fear that her Tasso would be taken away.If you have money enough, you can always pay some one to go in yourplace; but Tasso had no money, and neither had the poor mother, so everyday she was anxious lest her boy might have to go to the wars.
But Lolo and Moufflon knew nothing of all this, and every day, whenLolo was well enough, they were happy together. They would walk up thestreets, or sit on the church, steps, or, if the day was fair, wouldperhaps go into the country and bring home great bundles of yellow andblue and crimson flowers.
The tumble-down old house in which the family lived was near a tall,gray church. It was a beautiful old church, and all the children lovedit, but Lolo most of all. He loved it in the morning, when the peoplebrought in great bunches of white lilies to trim it; and at noon, whenit was cool and shady; and at sunset, when the long rays shone throughthe painted windows and made blue and golden and violet lights on thefloor.
One morning Lolo and Moufflou were sitting on the church steps andwatching the people, when a gentleman who was passing by stopped to lookat the dog.
"That's a very fine poodle," he said.
"Indeed he is," cried Lolo. "But you should see him on Sundays when heis just washed; then he is as white as snow."
"Can he do any tricks?" asked the gentleman.
"I should say so," said Lolo, for he had taught the dog all he knew. "Hecan stand on his hind legs, he can dance, he can speak, he can make awheelbarrow of himself, and when I put a biscuit on his nose and countone, two, three, he will snap and catch the biscuit."
The gentleman said he should like to see some of the tricks, andMoufflou was very glad to do them, for no one had ever whipped him orhurt him, and he loved to do what his little master wished. Then thegentleman told Lolo that he had a little boy at home, so weak and sosick that he could not get up from the sofa, and that he would like tohave Lolo bring the poodle to show him the next day, so he gave Lolosome money, and told him the name of the hotel where he was staying.
Lolo went hopping home as fast as his little crutch could carry him, andwent quickly upstairs to his mother.
"Oh, mamma!" he said. "See the money a gentleman gave me, and allbecause dear Moufflou did his pretty tricks so nicely. Now you can haveyour coffee every morning, and Tasso can have his new suit for Sunday."Then he told his mother about the gentleman, and that he had promised totake Moufflou to see him the next day.
{Illustration: He will snap and catch the biscuit}
So when the morning came, Moufflou was washed as white as snow, and hispretty curls were tied up with blue ribbon, and they both trotted off.Moufflou was so proud of his curls and his ribbon that he hardly likedto put his feet on the ground at all. They were shown to the littleboy's room, where he lay on the sofa very pale and unhappy. A brightlittle look came into his eyes when he saw the dog, and he laughed whenMoufflou did his tricks. How he clapped his hands when he saw him makea wheelbarrow, and he tossed them both handfuls of cakes and candies!Neither the boy nor the dog ever had quite enough to eat, so theynibbled the little cakes with their sharp, white teeth, and were veryglad.
When Lolo got up to go, the little boy began to cry, and said, "Oh, Iwant the dog. Let me have the dog!"
"Oh, indeed I can't," said Lolo, "he is my own Moufflou, and I cannotlet you have him."
The little boy was so unhappy and cried so bitterly that Lolo was verysorry to see him, and he went quickly down the stairs with Moufflou. Thegentleman gave him more money this time, and he was so excited and soglad that he went very fast all the way home, swinging himself over thestones on his little crutch. But when he opened the door, there was hismother crying as if her heart would break, and all the children werecrying in a corner, and even Tasso was home from his work, looking veryunhappy.
"Oh! what is the matter?" cried Lolo. But no one answered him, andMoufflon, seeing them all so sad, sat down and threw up his nose in theair and howled a long, sad howl. By and by one of the children told Lolothat at last Tasso had been chosen to be a soldier, and that he mustsoon go away to the war. The poor mother said, crying, that she did notknow what would become of her little children through the long, coldwinter.
Lolo showed her his money, but she was too unhappy even to care forthat, and so by and by he went to his bed with Moufflou. The dog hadalways slept at Lolo's feet, but this night he crept close up by theside of his little master, and licked his hand now and then to show thathe was sorry.
The next morning Lolo and Moufflon went with Tasso to the gardens wherehe worked, and all the way along the bright river and among the greentrees they talked together of what they should do when Tasso had gone.Tasso said that if they could only get some money he would not have togo away to the wars, but he shook his head sadly and knew that no onewould lend it to them. At noon Lolo went home with Moufflon to hisdinner. When they had finished (it was only bean soup and soon eaten),the mother told Lolo that his aunt wanted him to go and see her thatafternoon, and take care of the children while she went out. So Lolo puton his hat, called Moufflou, and was limping toward the door, when hismother said:&&
"No, don't take the dog to-day, your aunt doesn't like him; leave himhere with me."
"Leave Moufflou?" said Lolo, "why, I never leave him; he wouldn't knowwhat to do without me all the afternoon."
"Yes, leave him," said his mother. "I don't want you to take him withyou. Don't let me tell you again." So Lolo turned around and went downthe stairs, feeling very sad at leaving his dear Moufflou even for ashort time. But the hours went by, and when night-time came he hurriedback to the little old home. He stood at the bottom of the long, darkstairway and called "Moufflou! Moufflou!" but no doggie came; then heclimbed half-way up to the landing and called again, "Moufflou!" but nolittle white feet came pattering down. Up to the top of the stairs wentpoor tired Lolo and opened the door.
"Why, where is my Moufflou?" he said.
The mother had been crying, and she looked very sad and did not answerhim for a moment.
"Where is my Moufflou?" asked Lolo again, "what have you done with mydear Moufflou?"
"He is sold," the mother said at last, "sold to the gentleman who hasthe little lame boy. He came here to-day, and he likes the dog so muchand his little boy was so pleased at the pretty tricks he does, that hetold me he would give a great deal of money if I would sell him the dog.Just think, Lolo, he gave me so much money that we can pay somebody nowto go to the war for Tasso."
But before she had finished talking, Lolo began to grow white and coldand to waver to and fro, so that his little crutch could hardly supporthim. When she had done he called out, "My Moufflou--my Moufflou sold!"and he thre
w his hands up over his head and fell all in a heap on thefloor, his poor little crutch clattering down beside him. His mothertook him up and laid him on his bed, but all night long he tossed to andfro, calling for his dog. When the morning came, his little hands andhis head were very, very hot, and by and by the doctor came and said hehad a fever. He asked the mother what it was the little boy was callingfor, and she told him that it was his dog, and that he had been sold.The doctor shook his head, and then went away.
Day after day poor Lolo lay on his bed. His hair had been cut short, hedid not know his brothers and sisters, nor his mother, and his littleaching head went to and fro, to and fro, on the pillow from morning tillnight. Once Tasso went to the hotel to find the gentleman. He wasgoing to tell him to take the money and give him back the dog; but thegentleman had gone many miles away on the cars and taken Moufflou withhim. So every day Lolo grew weaker, until the doctor said that he mustdie very soon.
One afternoon they were all in the room with him. The windows were wideopen. His mother sat by his bed and the children on the floor besideher; even Tasso was at home helping to take care of his littlebrother. All was so still that you could hear poor Lolo's faint breath,when--suddenly--there was a scampering and a pattering of little feeton the stairs, and a white poodle dashed into the room and jumped on thebed. It was Moufflou! but you would never have known him, for he wasso thin that you could count all his bones. His curls were dirty andmatted, and full of sticks and straws and burrs; his feet were dusty andbleeding, and you could tell in a moment that he had traveled a greatmany miles. When he jumped on the bed, Lolo opened his eyes a little.He saw it was Moufflou, and laid one little thin hand on the dog'shead; then he turned on his pillow, closed his eyes, and went quietly tosleep. Moufflou would not get off the bed, and would eat nothing unlessthey brought it to him there. He only lay close by his little master,with his brown eyes wide open, looking straight into his face. By and bythe doctor came, and said that Lolo was really a little better, andthat perhaps he might get well now. The mother and Tasso were very gladindeed, but they knew that the gentleman would come back for his dog,and they scarcely knew what to do, nor what to say to him. Lolo grew alittle stronger every day, and at the end of a week a man came upstairsasking if Moufflou was there. They had taken him a long way off, buthe had run away from them one day, and they had never been able to findhim. Tasso asked the messenger to let Moufflou stay until he had seenthe gentleman, and he took the money and put on his hat and went withhim to the hotel. The sick boy was in the room with his father, andTasso went straight to them and told them all about it: that Lolo nearlydied without his dear Moufflon, that day after day he lay in his bedcalling for the dog, and that at last one afternoon Moufflon came backto them, thin and hungry and dirty, but so glad to see his little masteragain. Nobody knew, said Tasso, how he could have found his way so manymiles alone, but there he was, and now he begged the gentleman to beso kind as to take back the money. He would go and be a soldier, if hemust; but Lolo and his dog must never be parted again.
The gentleman told Tasso that he seemed to be a kind brother, and thathe might keep the money and the dog too, if only he would find themanother poodle and teach him to be as wise and faithful as Moufflou was.Tasso was so glad that he thanked them again and again, and hurried hometo tell Lolo and his mother the good news. He soon found a poodle almostas pretty as Moufflou, and every day Lolo, who has grown strong now,helps Tasso to teach him all of Moufflon's tricks.
Sometimes Lolo turns and puts his arms around Moufflon's neck andsays,&&
"Tell me, my Moufflou, how you ever came back to me, over all therivers, and all the bridges, and all the miles of road?"
Moufflou can never answer him, but I think he must have found his wayhome because he loved his master so much; and the grown people alwayssay, "Love will find out the way."