Heidi Read online

  CHAPTER I

  HEIDI'S FIRST MOUNTAIN CLIMB

  On a bright June morning two figures--one a tall girl and the othera child--could be seen climbing a narrow mountain path that winds upfrom the pretty village of Mayenfeld, to the lofty heights of the Almmountain. In spite of the hot June sun the child was clothed as if tokeep off the bitterest frost. She did not look more than five yearsold, but what her natural figure was like would be hard to say, forshe had on apparently two dresses, one above the other, and over thesea thick red woolen shawl. Her small feet were shod in thick, nailedmountain-shoes.

  When the wayfarers came to the hamlet known as Doerfli, which issituated half-way up the mountain, they met with greetings from allsides, for the elder girl was now in her old home. As they wereleaving the village, a voice called out: "Wait a moment, Dete; if youare going on up the mountain, I will come along with you."

  The girl thus addressed stood still, and the child immediately let goher hand and seated herself on the ground.

  "Are you tired, Heidi?" asked her companion.

  "No, I am hot," answered the child.

  "We shall soon get to the top now. You must walk bravely on a littlelonger, and take good, long steps, and in another hour we shall bethere," said Dete.

  They were now joined by a stout, good-natured looking woman, who walkedon ahead with her old acquaintance.

  "And where are you going with the child?" asked the one who had justjoined the party. "I suppose it is the child your sister left?"

  "Yes," answered Dete. "I am taking her up to Uncle, where she muststay."

  "This child stay up there with Alm-Uncle! You must be out of yoursenses, Dete! How can you think of such a thing! The old man, however,will soon send you both packing off home again!"

  "He cannot very well do that, seeing that he is her grandfather. Hemust do something for her. I have had the charge of the child till now,and I can tell you, Barbel, I am not going to give up the chance whichhas just fallen to me of getting a good place, for her sake."

  "That would be all very well if he were like other people," saidBarbel, "but you know what he is. And what can he do with a child,especially with one so young! The child cannot possibly live with him.But where are you thinking of going yourself?"

  "To Frankfurt, where an extra good place awaits me," answered Dete.

  "I am glad I am not the child," exclaimed Barbel. "Not a creature knowsanything about the old man up there. He will have nothing to do withanybody, and never sets his foot inside a church from one year's endto another. When he does come down once in a while, everybody clearsout of his way. The mere sight of him, with his bushy, grey eyebrowsand immense beard, is alarming enough. All kinds of things are saidabout him. You, Dete, however, must certainly have learnt a good dealconcerning him from your sister."

  "Yes, but I am not going to repeat what I heard. Suppose it should cometo his ears. I should get into no end of trouble about it."

  Barbel put her arm through Dete's in a confidential sort of way, andsaid: "Now do just tell me what is wrong with the old man. Was healways shunned as he is now, and was he always so cross? I assure you Iwill hold my tongue if you will tell me."

  "Very well then, I will tell you--but just wait a moment," said Dete,looking around for Heidi who had slipped away unnoticed.

  "I see where she is," exclaimed Barbel, "look over there!" and shepointed to a spot far away from the footpath. "She is climbing up theslope yonder with Peter and his goats. But tell me about the old man.Did he ever have anything more than his two goats and his hut?"

  "I should think so indeed," replied Dete with animation; "he was atone time the owner of one of the largest farms in Domleschg, where mymother used to live. But he drank and gambled away the whole of hisproperty, and when this became known to his mother and father they diedof sorrow, one shortly after the other. Uncle, having nothing left tohim but his bad name, disappeared and it was heard that he had goneto Naples as a soldier. After twelve or fifteen years he reappearedin Domleschg, bringing with him a young son whom he tried to placewith some of his kinspeople. Every door, however, was shut in hisface, for no one wished to have any more to do with him. Embitteredby this treatment, he vowed never to set foot in Domleschg again, andhe then came to Doerfli where he lived with his little boy. His wife,it seemed, had died shortly after the child's birth. He must haveaccumulated some money during his absence, for he apprenticed his sonTobias to a carpenter. He was a steady lad, and kindly received byevery one in Doerfli. His father, however, was still looked upon withsuspicion, and it was even rumored that he had killed a man in somebrawl at Naples."

  "But why does everyone call him Uncle? Surely he can't be uncle toeveryone living in Doerfli," asked Barbel.

  "Our grandmothers were related, so we used to call him Uncle, and asmy father had family connections with so many people in Doerfli, sooneveryone fell into the habit of calling him Uncle," explained Dete.

  "And what happened to Tobias," further questioned Barbel, who waslistening with deep interest.

  "Tobias was taught his trade in Mels, and when he had served hisapprenticeship he came back to Doerfli and married my sister Adelaide.But their happiness did not last long. Two years after their marriageTobias was killed in an accident. His wife was so overcome with griefthat she fell into a fever from which she never recovered. She hadalways been rather delicate and subject to curious attacks, duringwhich no one knew whether she was awake or sleeping. And so two monthsafter Tobias had been carried to the grave, his wife followed him.Their sad fate was the talk of everybody far and near, and the generalopinion was expressed that it was a punishment which Uncle deservedfor the godless life he had led. Our minister endeavored to awakenhis conscience, but the old man grew only more wrathful and stubbornand would not speak to a soul. All at once we heard that he had goneto live up on the Alm mountain and that he did not intend to come downagain. Since then he has led his solitary life up there, and everyoneknows him now by the name of Alm-Uncle. Mother and I took Adelaide'slittle one, then only a year old, into our care. When mother died lastyear, and I went down to the Baths to earn some money, I paid old Urselto take care of her. So you see I have done my duty, now it's Uncle'sturn. But where are you going to yourself, Barbel? We are now half wayup the Alm."

  "We have just reached the place I wanted," answered Barbel. "I must seePeter's mother who is doing some spinning for me. So, good-bye, Dete,and good luck to you."

  She went toward a small, dark brown hut, which stood a few steps awayfrom the path in a hollow that afforded it some protection from themountain wind.

  Here lived Peter, the eleven-year-old boy, with his mother Brigitta andhis blind grandmother who was known to all the old and young in theneighborhood as just "Grandmother."

  Every morning Peter went down to Doerfli to bring up a flock of goatsto browse on the mountain. At sundown he went skipping down themountain again with his light-footed animals. When he reached Doerflihe would give a shrill whistle, whereupon all the owners of the goatswould come out to take home the animals that belonged to them.

  Dete had been standing for a good ten minutes looking about her inevery direction for some sign of the children and the goats. MeanwhileHeidi and the goatherd were climbing up by a far and roundabout way,for Peter knew many spots where all kinds of good food, in the shapeof shrubs and plants, grew for his goats. The child, exhausted withthe heat and weight of her thick clothes, panted and struggled afterhim, at first with some difficulty. She said nothing, but her littleeyes kept watching first Peter, as he sprang nimbly hither and thitheron his bare feet, clad only in his short, light breeches, and thenthe slim-legged goats that went leaping over rocks and shrubs. All atonce she sat down on the ground, and began pulling off her shoes andstockings. Then she unwound the hot red shawl and took off her frock.But there was still another to unfasten, for Dete had put the Sundaydress on over the everyday one, to save the trouble of carrying it.Quick as lightning the everyday frock followed the other, and now the
child stood up, clad only in her light short-sleeved under garment. Shestretched out her little bare arms with glee. Leaving all her clothestogether in a tidy little heap, she went jumping and climbing up afterPeter and the goats as nimbly as any of the party.

  Now that Heidi was able to move at her ease, she began to enter intoconversation with Peter. She asked him how many goats he had, where hewas going to with them, and what he had to do when he arrived there.At last, after some time, they came within view of Dete. Hardly hadthe latter caught sight of the little company climbing up towards herwhen she shrieked out: "Heidi, what have you been doing! What a sightyou have made of yourself! And where are your two frocks and the redwrapper? And the new shoes I bought, and the new stockings I knittedfor you--everything gone! not a thing left! What can you have beenthinking of, Heidi; where are all your clothes?"

  The child quietly pointed to a spot below on the mountain side andanswered, "Down there."

  "You good-for-nothing little thing!" exclaimed Dete angrily, "whatcould have put it into your head to do that? What made you undressyourself? What do you mean by it?"

  "I don't want any clothes," said Heidi.

  "You wretched, thoughtless child! have you no sense in you at all?"continued Dete, scolding and lamenting. "Peter, you go down and fetchthem for me as quickly as you can, and you shall have something nice,"and she held out a bright new piece of money to him that sparkled inthe sun. Peter was immediately off down the steep mountain side, takingthe shortest cut, and was back again so quickly with the clothes thateven Dete was obliged to give him a word of praise as she handed himthe promised money. Peter promptly thrust it into his pocket and hisface beamed with delight, for it was not often that he was the happypossessor of such riches.

  "You can carry the things up for me as far as Uncle's, as you are goingthe same way," went on Dete, who was preparing to continue her climbup the mountain side, which rose in a steep ascent immediately behindthe goatherd's hut. Peter willingly undertook to do this, and followedafter her. After a climb of more than three-quarters of an hour theyreached the top of the Alm mountain. Uncle's hut stood on a projectionof the rock, exposed indeed to the winds, but where every ray of suncould rest upon it, and a full view could be had of the valley beneath.Behind the hut stood three old fir trees, with long, thick, unloppedbranches. Beyond these rose a further wall of mountain, the lowerheights still overgrown with beautiful grass and plants.

  Against the hut, on the side looking towards the valley, Uncle had putup a seat. Here he was sitting, his pipe in his mouth and his handson his knees, quietly looking out, when the children, the goats, andDete suddenly clambered into view. Heidi was at the top first. She wentstraight up to the old man, put out her hand, and said, "Good-evening,Grandfather."

  "So, so, what is the meaning of this?" he asked gruffly, as he gavethe child an abrupt shake of the hand, and gazed at her from underhis bushy eyebrows. Heidi stared steadily back at him in return withunflinching gaze. Meanwhile Dete had come up, with Peter after her.

  "I wish you good-day, Uncle," said Dete, as she walked towards him,"and I have brought you Tobias and Adelaide's child. You will hardlyrecognize her, as you have never seen her since she was a year old."

  "And what has the child to do with me up here?" asked the old mancurtly. "You there," he then called out to Peter, "be off with yourgoats, you are none too early as it is, and take mine with you."

  Peter obeyed on the instant and quickly disappeared.

  "The child is here to remain with you," Dete made answer. "I have donemy duty by her for these four years, and now it is time for you to doyours."

  "That's it, is it?" said the old man, as he looked at her with a flashin his eye. "And when the child begins to fret and whine after you,what am I to do with her then?"

  "That's your affair," retorted Dete. "If you cannot arrange to keepher, do with her as you like. You will be answerable for the result ifharm happens to her, though you have hardly need to add to the burdenalready on your conscience."

  Now Dete was not quite easy in her own conscience about what she wasdoing, and consequently was feeling hot and irritable, and said morethan she had intended. As she uttered her last words, Uncle rose fromhis seat. He looked at her in a way that made her draw back a step ortwo, then flinging out his arm, he said to her in a commanding voice:"Be off with you this instant, and get back as quickly as you can tothe place whence you came, and do not let me see your face again in ahurry."

  Dete did not wait to be told twice. "Good-bye to you then, and to youtoo, Heidi," she called, as she turned quickly away and started todescend the mountain at a running pace, which she did not slacken tillshe found herself safely again at Doerfli.