THE MAKING OF MONA
By
MABEL QUILLER-COUCH.
AUTHOR OF "TROUBLESOME URSULA", "A PAIR OF RED-POLLS"
"KITTY TRENIRE," "THE CARROLL GIRLS," ETC., ETC.
ILLUSTRATED BY E. WALLCOUSINS.
1919
This etext prepared from a version published in 1919.
LONDON
SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE
NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
"Granny stood staring at her broken treasures"
CHAPTER LINKS
CHAPTER I.
The kettle sat on the hob, and Mona sat on the floor, both as idle as idlecould be.
"I will just wait till the kettle begins to sing," thought Mona; andbecame absorbed in her book again.
After a while the kettle, at any rate, seemed to repent of its laziness,for it began to hum softly, and then to hum loudly, and then to sing, butMona was completely lost in the story she was reading, and had no mind forrepentance or anything else. She did not hear the kettle's song, nor eventhe rattling of its cover when it boiled, though it seemed to be trying inevery way to attract her attention. It went on trying, too, until at lastit had no power to try any longer, for the fire had died low, and thekettle grew so chilly it had not even the heart to 'hum,' but sat on theblack, gloomy-looking stove, looking black and gloomy too, and, if kettleshave any power to think, it was probably thinking that poor old grannyBarnes' tea would be scarcely worth drinking when she came home presently,tired and hungry, from her walk to Milbrook, for Mona, even if sherealised that the water had boiled, would never dream of emptying it awayand filling the kettle afresh, as she should do.
But Mona had no thought for kettles, or tea, or granny either, for herwhole mind, her eyes, her ears, and all her senses were with the heroineof the fascinating story she was absorbed in; and who could remember firesand kettles and other commonplace things when one was driving through alovely park in a beautiful pony carriage, drawn by cream-coloured ponies,and seated beside an exquisitely dressed little lady who had more moneythan she could count, and insisted on sharing all with h