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The Little Princess Chapter 11 - Ram Dass · The Frances Hodgson Burnett Library

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  Speaker 1: CHAPTER XI. ROM DOS There were fine sunsets even in
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  Speaker 1: the square sometimes. One could only see parts of them, however,
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  Speaker 1: between the chimneys and over the roofs. From the kitchen
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  Speaker 1: windows one could not see them at all, and could
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  Speaker 1: only guess that they were going on because the bricks
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  Speaker 1: looked warm and the air rosy or yellow for a while,
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  Speaker 1: or perhaps one saw a blazing glow strike a particular
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  Speaker 1: pane of glass somewhere. There was, however, one place from
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  Speaker 1: which one could see all the splendor of them, the
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  Speaker 1: piles of red or gold clouds in the west, or
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  Speaker 1: the purple ones edged with dazzling brightness, or the little
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  Speaker 1: fleecy floating ones tinged with rose color and looking like
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  Speaker 1: flights of pink doves scurrying across the blue in a
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  Speaker 1: great hurry, if there was a wind. The place where
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  Speaker 1: one could see all this, and seem at the same
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  Speaker 1: time to breathe a purer air, was, of course, the
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  Speaker 1: attic window. When the square suddenly seemed to begin to
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  Speaker 1: glow in an enchanted way, and look wonderful in spite
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  Speaker 1: of its sooty trees and railings, Sarah knew something was
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  Speaker 1: going on in the sky, and when it was at
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  Speaker 1: all possible to leave the kitchen without being missed or
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  Speaker 1: called back, she invariably stole away and crept up the
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  Speaker 1: flights of stairs. and climbing on the old table, got
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  Speaker 1: her head and body as far out of the window
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  Speaker 1: as possible. When she had accomplished this, she always drew
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  Speaker 1: a long breath and looked all round her. It used
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  Speaker 1: to seem as if she had all the sky and
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  Speaker 1: the world to herself. No one else ever looked out
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  Speaker 1: of the other attics. Generally the skylights were closed, but
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  Speaker 1: even if they were propped open to admit air, no
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  Speaker 1: one seemed to come near them. And there Sarah would stand,
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  Speaker 1: sometimes turning her face upward to the blue, which seemed
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  Speaker 1: so friendly and near, just like a lovely vaulted ceiling,
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  Speaker 1: sometimes watching the West and all the wonderful things that
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  Speaker 1: happened there, the clouds melting or drifting or waiting softly
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  Speaker 1: to be changed pink or crimson or snow-white or purple
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  Speaker 1: or pale dove-gray. Sometimes they made islands or great mountains
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  Speaker 1: enclosing lakes of deep turquoise-blue or liquid amber or chrysoprase green.
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  Speaker 1: Sometimes dark headlands jutted into strange, lost seas. Sometimes slender
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  Speaker 1: strips of wonderful lands joined other wonderful lands together. There
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  Speaker 1: were places where it seemed that one could run or
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  Speaker 1: climb or stand and wait to see what was next coming,
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  Speaker 1: until perhaps, as it melted, one could float away. At
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  Speaker 1: least it seemed so to Sarah, and nothing had ever
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  Speaker 1: been quite so beautiful to her as the thing she
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  Speaker 1: saw as she stood on the table, her body half
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  Speaker 1: out of the skylight, the sparrows twittering with sunset softness
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  Speaker 1: on the slates. The sparrows always seemed to her to
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  Speaker 1: twitter with a sort of subdued softness just when these
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  Speaker 1: marvels were going on. There was such a sunset as this,
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  Speaker 1: a few days after the Indian gentleman was brought to
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  Speaker 1: his new home, and, as it fortunately happened that the
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  Speaker 1: afternoon's work was done in the kitchen, and nobody had
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  Speaker 1: ordered her to go anywhere or perform any task, Sarah
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  Speaker 1: found it easier than usual to slip away and go upstairs.
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  Speaker 1: She mounted her table and stood looking out. It was
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  Speaker 1: a wonderful moment. There were floods of molten gold covering
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  Speaker 1: the west, as if a glorious tide was sweeping over
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  Speaker 1: the world. A deep, rich yellow light filled the air.
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  Speaker 1: The birds flying across the tops of the houses showed
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  Speaker 1: quite black against it. it's a splendid one said Sarah
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  Speaker 1: softly to herself it makes me feel almost afraid as
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  Speaker 1: if something strange was just going to happen the splendid
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  Speaker 1: ones always make me feel like that she suddenly turned
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  Speaker 1: her head because she heard a sound a few yards
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  Speaker 1: away from her it was an odd sound like a
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  Speaker 1: queer little squeaky chattering it came from the window of
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  Speaker 1: the next attic someone had come to look at the
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  Speaker 1: sunset as she had There was a head and a
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  Speaker 1: part of a body emerging from the skylight, but it
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  Speaker 1: was not the head or body of a little girl
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  Speaker 1: or a housemaid. It was the picturesque, white-swathed form and dark-faced, gleaming-eyed,
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  Speaker 1: white-turbaned head of a native Indian manservant.' Alaska!' Sarah said
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  Speaker 1: to herself quickly, and the sound she heard came from
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  Speaker 1: a small monkey he held in his arms, as if
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  Speaker 1: he were fond of it, and which was snuggling and
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  Speaker 1: chattering against his breast.' As Sarah looked toward him, he
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  Speaker 1: looked toward her. The first thing she thought was that
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  Speaker 1: his dark face looked sorrowful and homesick. She felt absolutely
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  Speaker 1: sure he had come up to look at the sun,
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  Speaker 1: because he had seen it so seldom in England that
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  Speaker 1: he longed for a sight of it. She looked at
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  Speaker 1: him interestedly for a second, and then smiled across the slates.
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  Speaker 1: She had learned to know how comforting a smile, even
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  Speaker 1: from a stranger, may be. Hers was evidently a pleasure
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  Speaker 1: to him. His whole expression altered, and he showed such
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  Speaker 1: gleaming white teeth as he smiled back that it was
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  Speaker 1: as if a light had been illuminated in his dusky face.
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  Speaker 1: The friendly look in Sarah's eyes was always very effective
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  Speaker 1: when people felt tired or dull. It was perhaps in
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  Speaker 1: making his salute to her that he loosened his hold
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  Speaker 1: on the monkey. He was an impish monkey and always
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  Speaker 1: ready for adventure, and it is probable that the sight
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  Speaker 1: of a little girl excited him. He suddenly broke loose,
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  Speaker 1: jumped onto the slates, ran across them chattering, and actually
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  Speaker 1: leaped onto Sarah's shoulder, and from there down into her
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  Speaker 1: attic room. It made her laugh and delighted her, but
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  Speaker 1: she knew he must be restored to his master. If
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  Speaker 1: the Laskar was his master, and she wondered how this
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  Speaker 1: was to be done. Would he let her catch him,
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  Speaker 1: or would he be naughty and refuse to be caught,
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  Speaker 1: and perhaps get away and run off over the roofs
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  Speaker 1: and be lost? That would not do at all. Perhaps
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  Speaker 1: he belonged to the Indian gentleman, and the poor man
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  Speaker 1: was fond of him. She turned to the Lasker, feeling
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  Speaker 1: glad that she remembered still some of the Hindustani she
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  Speaker 1: had learned when she lived with her father. She could
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  Speaker 1: make the man understand. She spoke to him in the
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  Speaker 1: language he knew. Will he let me catch him? she asked.
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  Speaker 1: She thought she had never seen more surprise and delight
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  Speaker 1: than the dark-faced expressed when she spoke in the familiar tongue.
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  Speaker 1: The truth was, that the poor fellow felt as if
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  Speaker 1: his gods had intervened, and the kind little voice came
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  Speaker 1: from heaven itself. At once Sarah saw that he had
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  Speaker 1: been accustomed to European children. He poured forth a flood
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  Speaker 1: of respectful thanks. He was the servant of Missy Sahib.
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  Speaker 1: The monkey was a good monkey and would not bite,
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  Speaker 1: but unfortunately he was difficult to catch. He would flee
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  Speaker 1: from one spot to another like the lightning. He was disobedient,
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  Speaker 1: though not evil. Ram Dass knew him as if he
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  Speaker 1: were his child. and Ram Dass he would sometimes obey,
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  Speaker 1: but not always. If Missy Sahib would permit Ram Dass,
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  Speaker 1: he himself could cross the roof to her room, enter
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  Speaker 1: the windows, and regain the unworthy little animal. But he
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  Speaker 1: was evidently afraid Sarah might think he was taking a
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  Speaker 1: great liberty and perhaps would not let him come. But
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  Speaker 1: Sarah gave him leave at once.' Can you get across?'
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  Speaker 1: she inquired.' In a moment,' he answered her.' Then come,'
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  Speaker 1: she said.' He's flying from side to side of the
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  Speaker 1: room as if he was frightened. Ram Dass slipped through
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  Speaker 1: his attic window and crossed to hers as steadily and
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  Speaker 1: lightly as if he had walked on roofs all his life.
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  Speaker 1: He slipped through the skylight and dropped upon his feet
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  Speaker 1: without a sound. Then he turned to Sarah and salaamed again.
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  Speaker 1: The monkey saw him and uttered a little scream. Ram
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  Speaker 1: Dass hastily took the precaution of shutting the skylight and
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  Speaker 1: then went in chase of him. It was not a
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  Speaker 1: very long chase. The monkey prolonged it a few minutes
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  Speaker 1: evidently for the mere fun of it, but presently he
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  Speaker 1: sprang chattering on to Ram Dass's shoulder and sat there
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  Speaker 1: chattering and clinging to his neck with a weird little
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  Speaker 1: skinny arm. Ram Dass thanked Sara profoundly. She had seen
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  Speaker 1: that his quick native eyes had taken in at a
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  Speaker 1: glance all the bare shabbiness of the room, but he
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  Speaker 1: spoke to her as if he were speaking to the
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  Speaker 1: little daughter of a rajah and pretended that he observed nothing.
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  Speaker 1: He did not presume to remain more than a few
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  Speaker 1: moments after he had caught the monkey, and those moments
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  Speaker 1: were given to further deep and grateful obeisance to her,
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  Speaker 1: in return for her indulgence. This little evil one, he said,
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  Speaker 1: stroking the monkey, was in truth not so evil as
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  Speaker 1: he seemed, and his master, who was ill, was sometimes
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  Speaker 1: amused by him. He would have been made sad if
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  Speaker 1: his favorite had run away and been lost. Then he
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  Speaker 1: salaamed once more, and got through the skylight and across
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  Speaker 1: the slates again, with as much agility as the monkey
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  Speaker 1: himself had displayed. When he had gone, Sarah stood in
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  Speaker 1: the middle of her attic and thought of many things
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  Speaker 1: his face and manner had brought back to her. The
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  Speaker 1: sight of his native costume and the profound reverence of
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  Speaker 1: his manner stirred all her past memories. It seemed a
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  Speaker 1: strange thing to remember that she, the drudge whom the
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  Speaker 1: cook had said insulting things to an hour ago, had
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  Speaker 1: only a few years ago been surrounded by people who
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  Speaker 1: all treated her as Ram Dass had treated her, who
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  Speaker 1: salaamed when she went by, whose foreheads almost touched the
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  Speaker 1: ground when she spoke to them, who were her servants
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  Speaker 1: and her slaves. It was like a sort of dream.
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  Speaker 1: It was all over, and it could never come back.
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  Speaker 1: It certainly seemed that there was no way in which
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  Speaker 1: any change could take place. She knew what Miss Minchin
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  Speaker 1: intended that her future should be. So long as she
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  Speaker 1: was too young to be used as a regular teacher,
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  Speaker 1: she would be used as an errand girl and servant,
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  Speaker 1: and yet expected to remember what she had learned, and
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  Speaker 1: in some mysterious way to learn more. The greater number
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  Speaker 1: of her evenings she was supposed to spend at study,
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  Speaker 1: and at various indefinite intervals, she was examined— and knew
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  Speaker 1: she would have been severely admonished if she had not
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  Speaker 1: advanced as was expected of her. The truth, indeed, was
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  Speaker 1: that Miss Minchin knew that she was too anxious to
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  Speaker 1: learn to require teachers. Give her books, and she would
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  Speaker 1: devour them, and end by knowing them by heart. She
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  Speaker 1: might be trusted to be equal to teaching a good
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  Speaker 1: deal in the course of a few years. This was
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  Speaker 1: what would happen. When she was older, she would be
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  Speaker 1: expected to drudge in the schoolroom, as she drudged now
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  Speaker 1: in various parts of the house. They would be obliged
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  Speaker 1: to give her more respectable clothes, but they would be
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  Speaker 1: sure to be plain and ugly and to make her
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  Speaker 1: look somehow like a servant. That was all there seemed
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  Speaker 1: to be to look forward to, and Sarah stood quite
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  Speaker 1: still for several minutes and thought it over. Then a
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  Speaker 1: thought came back to her which made the color rise
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  Speaker 1: in her cheek and a spark light itself in her eyes.
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  Speaker 1: She straightened her thin little body and lifted her head.
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  Speaker 1: Whatever comes, she said, cannot alter one thing. If I
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  Speaker 1: am a princess in rags and tatters, I can be
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  Speaker 1: a princess inside. It would be easy to be a
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  Speaker 1: princess if I were dressed in cloth of gold, but
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  Speaker 1: it is a great deal more of a triumph to
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  Speaker 1: be one all the time, when no one knows it.
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  Speaker 1: There was Marie Antoinette when she was in prison, and
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  Speaker 1: her throne was gone, and she had only a black
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  Speaker 1: gown on, and her hair was white, and they insulted her,
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  Speaker 1: and called her Widow Capet. She was a great deal
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  Speaker 1: more like a queen than they when she was so
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  Speaker 1: gay and everything was so grand. I like her best, then.
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  Speaker 1: Those howling mobs of people did not frighten her. She
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  Speaker 1: was stronger than they were, even when they cut her
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  Speaker 1: head off. This was not a new thought, but quite
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  Speaker 1: an old one by this time. It had consoled her
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  Speaker 1: through many a bitter day, and she had gone about
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  Speaker 1: the house with an expression in her face which Miss
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  Speaker 1: Minchin could not understand— and which was a source of
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  Speaker 1: great annoyance to her, as it seemed as if the
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  Speaker 1: child were mentally living a life which held her above
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  Speaker 1: the rest of the world. It was as if she
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  Speaker 1: scarcely heard the rude and acid things said to her, or,
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  Speaker 1: if she heard them, did not care for them at all. Sometimes,
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  Speaker 1: when she was in the midst of some harsh, domineering speech,
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  Speaker 1: Miss Minchin would find the still, unchildish eyes fixed upon
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  Speaker 1: her with something like a proud smile in them. At
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  Speaker 1: such times she did not know that Sarah was saying
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  Speaker 1: to herself, you don't know that you were saying these
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  Speaker 1: things to a princess, and that if I chose, I
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  Speaker 1: could wave my hand and order you to execution. I
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  Speaker 1: only spare you because I am a princess, and you
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  Speaker 1: are a poor, stupid, unkind, vulgar old thing, and don't
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  Speaker 1: know any better. This used to interest and amuse her
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  Speaker 1: more than anything else, and, queer and fanciful as it was,
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  Speaker 1: she found comfort in it, and it was a good
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  Speaker 1: thing for her. While the thought held possession of her,
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  Speaker 1: she could not be made rude and malicious by the
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  Speaker 1: rudeness and malice of those about her.' A princess must
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  Speaker 1: be polite,' she said to herself. And so, when the servants,
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  Speaker 1: taking their tone from their mistress, were insolent and ordered
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  Speaker 1: her about, she would hold her head erect and reply
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  Speaker 1: to them with a quaint civility which often made them
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  Speaker 1: stare at her.' She' s got more airs and graces than
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  Speaker 1: if she come from Buckingham Palace, that young one,' said
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  Speaker 1: the cook, chuckling a little sometimes. I lose my temper
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  Speaker 1: with her often enough, but I will say she never
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  Speaker 1: forgets her manners. If you please, cook. Will you be
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  Speaker 1: so kind, cook? I beg your pardon, cook. May I
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  Speaker 1: trouble you, cook? She drops them about the kitchen as
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  Speaker 1: if they was nothing. The morning after the interview with
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  Speaker 1: Ram Dass and his monkey, Sarah was in the schoolroom
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  Speaker 1: with her small pupils. Having finished giving them their lessons,
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  Speaker 1: she was putting the French exercise books together. and thinking,
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  Speaker 1: as she did it, of the various things royal personages
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  Speaker 1: in disguise were called upon to do. Alfred the Great,
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  Speaker 1: for instance, burning the cakes and getting his ears boxed
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  Speaker 1: by the wife of the neat-herd. How frightened she must
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  Speaker 1: have been when she found out what she had done.
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  Speaker 1: If Miss Minchin should find out that she, Sarah, whose
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  Speaker 1: toes were almost sticking out of her boots, was a princess,
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  Speaker 1: a real one. The look in her eyes was exactly
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  Speaker 1: the look which Miss Minchin most disliked. She would not
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  Speaker 1: have it. She was quite near her, and was so
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  Speaker 1: enraged that she actually flew at her and boxed her ears,
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  Speaker 1: exactly as the Neidherd's wife had boxed King Alfred's. It
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  Speaker 1: made Sarah start. She wakened from her dream at the shock,
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  Speaker 1: and catching her breath, stood still a second. Then, not
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  Speaker 1: knowing she was going to do it, she broke into
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  Speaker 1: a little laugh.' What are you laughing at, you bold,
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  Speaker 1: impudent child?' Miss Minchin exclaimed. It took Sarah a few
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  Speaker 1: seconds to control herself sufficiently to remember that she was
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  Speaker 1: a princess. Her cheeks were red and smarting from the
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  Speaker 1: blows she had received. I was thinking, she answered. Beg
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  Speaker 1: my pardon immediately, said Miss Minchin. Sarah hesitated a second
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  Speaker 1: before she replied. I will beg your pardon for laughing
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  Speaker 1: if it was rude, she said then, but I won't
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  Speaker 1: beg your pardon for thinking. What were you thinking? demanded
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  Speaker 1: Miss Minchin. How dare you think? What were you thinking?
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  Speaker 1: Jessie tittered, and she and Lavinia nudged each other in unison.
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  Speaker 1: All the girls looked up from their books to listen. Really,
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  Speaker 1: it always interested them a little when Miss Minchin attacked Sarah.
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  Speaker 1: Sarah always said something queer and never seemed the least
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  Speaker 1: bit frightened. She was not in the least frightened now,
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  Speaker 1: though her boxed ears were scarlet and her eyes were
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  Speaker 1: as bright as stars. I was thinking... she answered grandly
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  Speaker 1: and politely, that you did not know what you were doing.
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  Speaker 1: That I did not know what I was doing? Miss
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  Speaker 1: Minchin fairly gasped. Yes, said Sarah, and I was thinking
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  Speaker 1: what would happen if I were a princess and you
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  Speaker 1: boxed my ears, what I should do to you, and
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  Speaker 1: I was thinking that if I were one you would
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  Speaker 1: never dare to do it, whatever I said or did,
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  Speaker 1: and I was thinking how surprised and frightened you would
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  Speaker 1: be if you suddenly found out. She had the imagined
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  Speaker 1: future so clearly before her eyes that she spoke in
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  Speaker 1: a manner which had an effect even upon Miss Minchin.
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  Speaker 1: It almost seemed for the moment to her narrow, unimaginative
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  Speaker 1: mind that there must be some real power hidden behind
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  Speaker 1: this candid daring.' What?' she exclaimed.' Found out what?'' That
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  Speaker 1: I really was a princess,' said Sarah,' and could do
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  Speaker 1: anything— anything I liked.' Every pair of eyes in the room
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  Speaker 1: widened to its full limit. Lavinia leaned forward on her
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  Speaker 1: seat to look.' Go to your room!' cried Miss Minchin breathlessly.'
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  Speaker 1: This instant! Leave the schoolroom! Attend your lessons, young ladies!'
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  Speaker 1: Sarah made a little bow.' Excuse me for laughing if
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  Speaker 1: it was impolite,' she said and walked out of the room,
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  Speaker 1: leaving Miss Minchin struggling with her rage and the girls
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  Speaker 1: whispering over their books. Did you see her? Did you
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  Speaker 1: see how queer she looked? Jessie broke out. I shouldn't
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  Speaker 1: be at all surprised if she did turn out to
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  Speaker 1: be something. Suppose she should. End of chapter 11