InterestedRelatives，Friends，andNeighbours。

Laddie，ATrueBlueStorybyGeneStrattonPorterToLEANDERELLIOTSTRATTON

“TheWaytoBeHappyIstoBeGood“

CHAPTERI

LittleSister“Andcouldanotherchild-worldbemyshare，I’dbeaLittleSisterthere。“

HaveIgotaLittleSisteranywhereinthishouse？“inquiredLaddieatthedoor，inhismostcoaxingvoice。

“Yessir，“Ianswered，droppingthetrousersIwasmakingforHezekiah，mypetbluejay，andrunningasfastasIcould。TherewasnotellingwhatminuteMaymighttakeitintoherheadthatshewasalittlesisterandreachhimfirst。Maybehewantedmetodosomethingforhim，andIlovedtowaitonLaddie。

“Askmotherifyoumaygowithmeawhile。“

“Motherdoesn’tcarewhereIam，ifIcomewhenthesupperbellrings。“

“Allright！“saidLaddie。

Heledthewayaroundthehouse，satonthefrontstepandtookmebetweenhisknees。

“Oh，isitgoingtobeasecret？“Icried。

SecretswithLaddiewerethegreatestjoyinlife。Hewassobigandsohandsome。Hewassomuchnicerthananyoneelseinourfamily，oramongourfriends，thattosharehissecrets，runhiserrands，andlovehimblindlywasthegreatesthappiness。

SometimesIdisobeyedfatherandmother；ImindedLaddielikehisrighthand。

“Thebiggestsecretyet，“hesaidgravely。

“Tellquick！“Ibegged，holdingmyeartohislips。

“Notsofast！“saidLaddie。“Notsofast！Ihavedoubtsaboutthis。Idon’tknowthatIshouldsendyou。Possiblyyoucan’tfindtheway。Youmaybeafraid。Aboveall，thereisnevertobeawhisper。Nottoanyone！Doyouunderstand？“

“What’sthematter？“Iasked。

“Somethingserious，“saidLaddie。“Yousee，Iexpectedtohaveanhourortwoformyselfthisafternoon，soImadeanengagementtospendthetimewithaFairyPrincessinourBigWoods。FatherandIbrokethereapertakingitfromtheshedjustnowandyouknowhowheisaboutFairies。“

IdidknowhowhewasaboutFairies。Hehadn’taparticleofpatiencewiththem。APrincesswouldbetheQueen’sdaughter。

Myfather’speoplewereEnglish，andIhadheardenoughtalktounderstandthat。Iwasalmostwildwithexcitement。

“Tellmethesecret，hurry！“Icried。

“It’sjustthis，“hesaid。“IttookmealongtimetocoaxthePrincessintoourBigWoods。Ihadtofixathroneforhertositon；spreadaMagicCarpetforherfeet，andbuildawalltoscreenher。Now，whatisshegoingtothinkifI’mnottheretowelcomeherwhenshecomes？Shepromisedtoshowmehowtomakesunshineondarkdays。“

“TellfatherandhecanhaveLeonhelphim。“

“ButitisasecretwiththePrincess，andit’sHERSasmuchasmine。IfItell，shemaynotlikeit，andthenshewon’tmakemeherPrinceandsendmeonhererrands。“

“Thenyoudon’tdaretellabreath，“Isaid。

“Willyougoinmyplace，andcarryheralettertoexplainwhyI’mnotcoming，LittleSister？“

“Ofcourse！“Isaidstoutly，andthenmyheartturnedrightover；

forIneverhadbeeninourBigWoodsalone，andneithermothernorfatherwantedmetogo。PassingGypsiessometimeslaiddownthefenceandwenttheretocamp。Fatherthoughtallthewolvesandwildcatsweregone，hehadn’tseenanyinyears，buteveryonceinawhilesomeonesaidtheyhad，andhewasnotquitesureyet。Andthatwasn’tthebeginningofit。PaddyRyanhadcomebackfromthewarwronginhishead。Heworehisoldarmyovercoatsummerandwinter，sleptontheground，andatewhateverhecouldfind。OnceLaddieandLeon，huntingsquirrelstomakebrothformotherononeofherbaddays，sawhiminourBigWoodsandhewaseatingSNAKES。IfIfoundPatRyaneatingasnake，itwouldfrightenmesoIwouldstandstillandlethimeatme，ifhewantedto，andperhapshewasn’ttoocrazytoseehowplumpI

was。Iseemedtoseeswarthy，darkfaces，big，sleekcatsdroppingfromlimbs，andPaddyRyan’smattedgrayhair，theflyingragsoftheoldbluecoat，andasnakeinhishands。

Laddiewasslippingtheletterintomyapronpocket。Mykneesthreatenedtoletmedown。

“MustIlifttheleavesandhuntforher，orwillshecometome？“Iwavered。

“That’sthebiggestsecretofall，“saidLaddie。“SincethePrincessenteredthem，ourwoodsareEnchanted，andthereisnotellingwhatwonderfulthingsmayhappenanyminute。Oneofthemisthis：wheneverthePrincesscomesthere，shegrowsinsizeuntilsheisasbigas，sayourSally，andshefillsalltheplacewithglory，untilyouaresoblindedyouscarcelycanseeherface。“

“Whatisshelike，Laddie？“Iquestioned，sofilledwithaweandinterest，thatfearwasforgotten。

“SheistallerthanSally，“saidLaddie。“Herfaceisoval，andhercheeksarebright。Hereyesarebigmoonlitpoolsofdarkness，andsilkencurlsfalloverhershoulders。Onehairisstrongenoughforalifelinethatwilldrawadrowningmanashore，orstrangleanunhappyone。Butyouwillnotseeher。

I’mpurposelysendingyouearly，soyoucandowhatyouaretoldandcomebacktomebeforesheevenreachesthewoods。“

“WhatamItodo，Laddie？“

“Youmustputonehandinyourapronpocketandtaketheletterinit，andaslongasyouholdittight，nothingintheworldcanhurtyou。GooutourlanetotheBigWoods，climbthegateandwalkstraightbackthewagonroadtothewater。Whenyoureachthat，youmustturntoyourrightandgotowardHoods’untilyoucometothepawpawthicket。Goaroundthat，lookahead，andyou’llseethebiggestbeechtreeyoueversaw。Youknowabeech，don’tyou？“

“OfcourseIdo，“Isaidindignantly。“Fathertaughtmebeechwiththeothertrees。“

“Wellthen，“saidLaddie，“straightbeforeyouwillbeapurplebeech，andunderitisthethroneofthePrincess，theMagicCarpet，andthewallsImade。Amongthebeechrootsthereisastonehiddenwithmoss。Rollthestonebackandtherewillbeapieceofbark。Liftthat，laytheletterintheboxyou’llfind，andscampertomelikeflying。I’llbeatthebarnwithfather。“

“Isthatall？“

“Notquite，“saidLaddie。“It’spossiblethattheFairyQueenmayhavesetthePrincessspinningsilkforthecaterpillarstoweavetheirlittlehouseswiththiswinter；andifshehas，shemayhaveleftalettertheretotellme。Ifthereisone，putitinyourpocket，holditcloseeverystepoftheway，andyou’llbesafecominghomeasyouweregoing。Butyoumustn’tletasoulseeit；youmustslipitintomypocketwhenI’mnotlooking。Ifyouletanyonesee，thentheMagicwillbespoiled，andtheFairywon’tcomeagain。“

“Nooneshallsee，“Ipromised。

“Iknewyoucouldbetrusted，“saidLaddie，kissingandhuggingmehard。“Nowgo！Ifanythinggetsafteryouthatsuchabiggirlasyoureallywouldn’tbeashamedtobeafraidof，climbonafenceandcall。I’llbelistening，andI’llcomeflying。NowImusthurry。Fatherwillthinkit’sgoingtotakemetheremainderofthedaytofindtheboltshewants。“

Wewentdownthefrontwalkbetweentherowsofhollyhocksandtasselledlady-slippers，outthegate，andfollowedtheroad。

Laddieheldoneofmyhandstight，andintheotherIgrippedtheletterinmypocket。SolongasLaddiecouldseeme，andthelanelaybetweenopenfields，Iwasn’tafraid。IwasthinkingsodeeplyaboutourwoodsbeingEnchanted，andatinyFairygrowingbigasourSally，becauseshewasinthem，thatIsteppedoutbravely。

EveryfewdaysIfollowedthelaneasfarbackastheBigGate。

Thisstoodwherefourfieldscornered，andopenedintotheroadleadingtothewoods。Beyondit，IhadwalkedonSundayafternoonswithfatherwhilehetaughtmealltheflowers，vines，andbushesheknew，onlyhedidn’tknowsomeoftheprettiestones；Ihadtohavebooksforthem，andIwasstudyingtolearnenoughthatIcouldfindout。OrIhadriddenonthewagonwithLaddieandLeonwhentheywenttobringwoodforthecookstove，outoven，andbigfireplace。Buttowalk！Togoallalone！NotthatIdidn’twalkbymyselfovereveryotherfootoftheacresandacresofbeautifullandmyfatherowned；butplowedfields，grassymeadows，woodpasture，andtheorchardweredifferent。I

playedinthemwithoutathoughtoffear。

Theonlythingstobecarefulaboutwerealittle，shiny，slendersnake，withaheadasbrightasmother’scopperkettle，andabigthickonewithpatternsonitsbacklikethoseinLaddie’sgeometrybooks，andawholerattleboxonitstail；nottoeatanyberryorfruitIdidn’tknowwithoutfirstaskingfather；andalwaystobesuretomeasurehowdeepthewaterwasbeforeI

wadedinalone。

ButourBigWoods！Leonsaidthewildcatswouldgetmethere。I

satinourcatalpaandwatchedtheGypsiesdrivepasteverysummer。Motherhatedthemashardasevershecouldhateanyone，becauseoncetheyhadstolensomefineshirts，withlinenbosoms，thatshehadmadebyhandforfather，andwasbleachingonthegrass。IfGypsiesshouldbeinourwestwoodsto-dayandstealme，shewouldhatethemworsethanever；becausemymotherlovedmenow，evenifshedidn’twantmewhenIwasborn。

Butyoucouldexcuseherforthat。Shehadalreadybathed，spanked，sewedfor，andrearedelevenbabiessobigandstrongnotoneofthemevereventhreatenedtodie。Whenyouthoughtofthat，youcouldseeshewouldn’tbelikelytoimploretheAlmightytosendheranother，justtomakeherfamilyevennumbers。Ineverfeltmuchhurtather，butsomeoftheothersI

neverhaveforgivenandmaybeIneverwill。Aslongastherehadbeenelevenbabies，theyshouldhavebeensoaccustomedtochildrenthattheyneedn’tallofthemhaveobjectedtome，allexceptLaddie，ofcourse。ThatwasthereasonIlovedhimsoandtriedtodoeverysinglethinghewantedmeto，justthewayhelikeditdone。ThatwaswhyIwasfacingtheonlyspotonourlandwhereIwasintheslightestafraid；becauseheaskedmeto。

Ifhehadtoldmetodanceajigontheridgepoleofourbarn，I

wouldhavetriedit。

SoIclaspedthenote，setmyteeth，andclimbedoverthegate。

Iwalkedfastandkeptmyeyesstraightbeforeme。IfIlookedoneitherside，sureaslifeIwouldseesomethingIneverhadbefore，andbedowndiggingupastrangeflower，chasingabutterfly，orwatchingabird。Besides，ifIdidn’tlookinthefencecornersthatIpassed，maybeIwouldn’tseeanythingtoscareme。Iwasgoingalongfinely，andfeelingbettereveryminuteasIwentdownthebankofanoldcreekthathadgonedry，andstarteduptheothersidetowardthesugarcampnotfarfromtheBigWoods。ThebedwasfullofweedsandasIpassedthrough，away！wentSomethingamongthem。

Besidethecampshedtherewascordedwood，andthefirstthingI

knew，Iwasontopofit。Thenext，myhandwasonthenoteinmypocket。MyheartjumpeduntilIcouldseemyapronmove，andmythroatwentallstiffanddry。Igrippedthenoteandwaited。

FatherbelievedGodwouldtakecareofhim。Iwasonlyalittlegirlandneededhelpmuchmorethanaman；maybeGodwouldtakecareofme。TherewasnothingwrongincarryingalettertotheFairyPrincess。IthoughtperhapsitwouldhelpifIshouldkneelonthetopofthewoodpileandaskGodtonotletanythinggetme。

ThemoreIthoughtaboutit，thelessIfeltlikedoingit，though，becausereallyyouhavenobusinesstoaskGodtotakecareofyou，unlessyouKNOWyouaredoingright。Thiswasright，butinmyheartIalsoknewthatifLaddiehadaskedme，I

wouldbeshiveringontopofthatcordwoodonahotAugustday，whenitwaswrong。Onthewhole，IthoughtitwouldbemorehonesttoleaveGodoutofit，andtaketheriskmyself。ThatmademethinkoftheCrusaders，andthelittlegoldtrinketinfather’schesttill。TherewerefourshellsonitandeachonestoodforatriponfootorhorsebacktotheHolyCitywhenyouhadtofightalmosteverystepoftheway。Thoseshellsmeantthatmyfather’speoplehadgonefourtimes，sohesaid；that，althoughitwasawayfarback，stilleachofushadatinyshareofthebloodoftheCrusadersinourveins，andthatitwouldmakeusbraveandstrong，andwheneverwewereafraid，ifwewouldthinkofthem，wenevercoulddoacowardlythingorletanyoneelsedoonebeforeus。HesaidanyonewithCrusaderbloodhadtobebraveasRichardtheLion-hearted。Thinkingaboutthathelpedeversomuch，soIgrippedthenoteandturnedtotakeonelastlookatthehousebeforeImadeadashforthegatethatledintotheBigWoods。

BeyondourlandlaythefarmofJacobHood，andMrs。HoodalwaysteasedmebecauseLaddiehadgoneracingafterherwhenIwasborn。ShewasinthemiddleofMonday’swashing，andthebluingsettledintherinsewaterandstainedherwhiteclothesinstreaksittookmonthstobleachout。IalwayslikedSarahHoodforcominganddressingme，though，becauseourSally，whowasbigenoughtohavedoneit，wasupstairscryingandwouldn’tcomedown。IlikedLaddietoo，becausehewastheonlyoneofourfamilywhowenttomymotherandkissedher，saidhewasglad，andofferedtohelpher。Maybethereasonhewentwasbecausehehadanawfulscare，butanywayheWENT，andthatwasenoughforme。

Youseeitwasthisway：noonewantedme；astherehadbeenelevenofus，everyonefeltthatwasenough。Maywassixyearsoldandinschool，andmymotherthoughtthereneverwouldbeanymorebabies。Shehadgivenawaythecradleanddividedthebabyclothesamongmybigmarriedsistersandbrothers，andwashavingafinetimeandenjoyingherselfthemostsheeverhadinherlife。Thelandwaspaidforlongago；thehouseshehadplanned，buildedasshewantedit；shehadabigteamofmatchedgraysandacarriagewithsidelampsandpatentleathertrimmings；andsometimestherewasmoneyinthebank。Idonotknowthattherewasverymuch，butanyatallwasamarvel，consideringhowmanyofusthereweretofeed，clothe，andsendtocollege。Motherwasforty-sixandfatherwasfifty；sotheyfeltyoungenoughyettohaveafinetimeandenjoylife，andjustwhenthingsweregoingbest，IannouncedthatIwashalfwayovermyjourneytoearth。