He wanted to open his heart to her and complain of his aunt's treatment,
but she had not the courage to comfort him. So he went into the kitchen
where the maids consoled him with a handful of currants.
From this day on he was no longer allowed to sleep in the nursery with
his sisters, but his mother had his bed removed to her own bedroom. He
found his mother's room stuffy and the new arrangement dull; she
frequently disturbed his sleep by getting up and coming to his bed in
the night to see whether he was covered up; then he flew into a rage
and answered her questions peevishly.
He was never allowed to go out without being carefully wrapped up by
someone, and he had so many mufflers that he never knew which one to
put on. Whenever he tried to steal out of the house, someone was sure
to see him from the window and call him back to put on an overcoat.
By and by his sisters' games began to bore him. His strong arms no
longer wanted to play battledore and shuttlecock, they longed to throw
stones. The squabbles over a petty game of croquet, which demanded
neither muscle nor brain, irritated him.
The governess was another one of his trials. She always spoke to him
in French and he invariably answered her in Swedish.
Pages:
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261