The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Golden House, by Mrs. Woods Baker

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Title: The Golden House

Author: Mrs. Woods Baker

Release Date: March 17, 2009 [EBook #28349]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE GOLDEN HOUSE ***

Produced by Al Haines

[Frontispiece: Nono and the princess]

[Illustration: Vignette]

THE GOLDEN HOUSE

BY MRS. WOODS BAKER

LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK

THOMAS NELSON AND SONS

1903

_CONTENTS_

I. Black Eyes and Blue
II. Karin's Flock
III. Aneholm Church
IV. No Secrets
V. An Artist
VI. The Boys
VII. A Young Teacher
VIII. In Alma's Room.
IX. Karin's Fete
X. The Little Cottage
XI. The Slide
XII. A Pedestrian Trip
XIII. The Princess
XIV. Where?
XV. The Birthday Gift
XVI. Spectacles
XVII. Questionings
XVIII. Nono's Plans, and Plans for Nono
XIX. Pietro
XX. The Opened Door

_LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS._

Nono and the princess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frontispiece.

Nono's gift to Alma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vignette.

"He thrust out both hands as if throwing gifts in lavish profusion"

The baptismal service

"The first verse of a hymn was dictated to him"

The model house

Frans admonished

"She had seen the hand-organ man from the window"

THE GOLDEN HOUSE.

CHAPTER I.

BLACK EYES AND BLUE.

A dreary little group was trudging along a Swedish highroad one bright
October morning. It was a union between north and south, and like many
other unions, not altogether founded on love. The bear, the prominent
member of the party, was a Swede, and a Swede in a very bad humour.
The iron ring in his torn nose, and the stout stick in the hand of one
of his Italian masters, showed very plainly that he needed stern
discipline. Now he dragged at the strong rope attached to the iron
ring, and held back, moving his clumsy legs as if his machinery were
out of order, or at least as if goodwill were lacking to give it a fair
start.

The broad hats of the two men were gloomily slouched over