“No, no, she does not do that,” the Director assured “The child is not in the least ill-natured, at least, I do not think so. But I am afraid that you are right in saying that she does not resemble her mother in the least. Her education, I mean her lack of education, may have something to do with it. That is why I am so grateful to you both for coming here. I am sure that with your influence the child will change and gain much, and I do not think that it will be hard for Cornelli to learn.
“I can travel now with a light heart, cousin, for I know that I can leave my child, the house and the servants in your care. You do not know in what a difficult position I am sometimes. I ought to go away frequently, and am not able to do so because there is nobody to take care of the house for me. The servants have to be kept in good humor, and the house has to be ruled with authority and judgment. I cannot thank you enough for making this trip possible for me.”
When they had returned from their walk they separated. Mr. Hellmut had still plenty of preparations to make for his journey, and the ladies retired to their rooms to get settled there. At supper everybody met again. The ladies and their host appeared punctually and dinner was served at once.
“Where is your daughter? Does she not come to supper, too?” asked Miss Dorner.
“Yes, of course. Do you know where she is, Miss Mina?” the father asked.
At that moment the door opened and Cornelli, with cheeks aglow, ran into the room. She sat down quickly at her seat.
“Did you creep through a hedge?” the cousin asked her.
“No, I was in the hen house,” replied Cornelli.
“That is no reason to look the way you do. Go to your room first and have your hair combed by Miss Mina. She will also give you some soap, for this is quite necessary.”
Cornelli glanced at her father. This was something new and she waited for his approval.
“Quickly, Cornelli! Why do you hesitate?” he admonished her. “You have to obey your cousin absolutely, for she is taking my place now. I hope that everybody here understands that clearly,” he added with a glance at Miss Mina.
The latter wanted to follow the child, but Cornelli called back: “I can do it myself.”
When the child came back her face and hands were washed very thoroughly, but her hair looked most peculiar. She had combed it in such a way that one could not tell what belonged to the left and what to the right side, what to the front and what to the back.
The cousin laughed and said: “Your head looks like a windblown hay field. Tomorrow Miss Mina will part your hair properly for you.”
Cornelli frowned so deeply that her eyes came quite close together. She did not look up any more from her plate.
Next day quite early the Director departed.
The village of Iller-Stream, where the church and the school house were, was quite a distance from the iron works. Cornelli could not go to school there every day because it was much too far. She therefore had lessons at home, and the teacher her father had chosen came every morning and taught her in all the necessary subjects. In the afternoon she was free, except for the work which she had to do for the following day. That took little time and till now the child had really had a very free existence. She had always found time for a daily visit to Martha and a long conversation with her old friend. She could also wander freely about the lovely beech wood and along the mountain side. Her time was never parcelled out for her.
There were many wonderful things to find in the fields and woods, and Cornelli never tired of them as long as the sun was shining. If rain or snow prevented her from her strolls, she spent her afternoons in Martha’s cosy chamber. There she had the most pleasant times, for the old woman’s conversation and tales were for Cornelli a never ending source of enjoyment.
The teacher had just left the house. Owing to her father’s departure, there had been plenty of material for sentences in her grammar lesson. All the child’s answers to his questions had come so promptly today that the teacher had ended his lesson on the stroke of the hour. He also gave Cornelli special praise for the excellent work she had done. Then he heartily shook her hand.
The two were the best of friends and the teacher knew his pupil well. Whenever she was very bright and lively, he would work very hard with her and in a short time accomplish three times more than usual. In order not to spoil their mutual pleasure he would let her off most punctually. But whenever Cornelli was absentminded and unwilling to work, he progressed slowly and carefully, treating her as if she were the least bit weak minded.
He would keep up this procedure till the hand of the clock showed a quarter, a half, or even three-quarters of an hour more than the set time for the lessons. Then Cornelli had hardly more than a quarter of an hour’s time before lunch to run over to the garden, the stable and the hen house, something she always planned to do. The teacher would finally stop and say in his most friendly manner: “I had to stay so long today because we did not do
