Miss Billy — Married by Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter
page 41 of 420 (09%)
page 41 of 420 (09%)
![]() | ![]() |
|
long ago dubbed the home of his boyhood--
been prepared for the coming of Billy, William's namesake: once, when it had been decorated with guns and fishing-rods to welcome the ``boy'' who turned out to be a girl; and again when with pink roses and sewing-baskets the three brothers got joyously ready for a feminine Billy who did not even come at all. The house had been very different then. It had been, indeed, a ``strata,'' with its distinctive layers of fads and pursuits as represented by Bertram and his painting on one floor, William and his curios on another, and Cyril with his music on a third. Cyril was gone now. Only Pete and his humble belongings occupied the top floor. The floor below, too, was silent now, and almost empty save for a rug or two, and a few pieces of heavy furniture that William had not cared to take with him to his new quarters on top of Beacon Hill. Below this, however, came Billy's old rooms, and on these Pete had lavished all his skill and devotion. Freshly laundered curtains were at the windows, dustless rugs were on the floor. The old work-basket had been brought down from the top-floor storeroom, and the long-closed piano stood invitingly open. In a conspicuous place, also, sat the little green god, upon whose |
|