Toni, the Little Woodcarver Read online

  CHAPTER FOURTH

  IN THE SANITARIUM

  The doctor of the sanitarium was sitting with his family around the familytable, engaged in merry conversation on various subjects. Even the ladyfrom Geneva, who spent several hours a day with the family, seemed to-daya little infected by the children's gayety. She had never before taken solively a part in the discussion, which the school-children carried onabout different interests.

  This lady's beloved and gifted son had died not long before; on thisaccount she had fallen into such deep sadness that her health had sufferedgreatly and therefore she had been brought to the sanitarium to recover.

  The animated conversation was suddenly interrupted by a letter which washanded to the doctor.

  "A letter from an old friend, who is sending me a patient to thesanitarium. He is a young boy, hardly as old as our Max--there, read it."Whereupon the doctor handed the letter to his wife.

  "Oh, the poor boy!" exclaimed his wife. "Is he here? Bring him in. Perhapsit will do him good to see the children."

  "I think he is quite near," said the doctor; he went out, and soon came inagain with the sexton and Toni. He led the former into a bay window andbegan talking with him in a low tone. Meanwhile the doctor's wife drewnear to Toni, who on entering had pressed into the nearest corner. Shespoke kindly to him and invited him to come to the table and eat somethingwith her children. Toni did not move. Then lively little Marie jumped downfrom her chair and came to Toni with a large piece of bread and butter.

  "There, take a bite," she said encouragingly.

  Toni remained motionless.

  "See, you must do so," and the little girl bit a good piece from the breadand held it to him, then again a little nearer, so he only needed to biteinto it. But he stared in front of him and made no motion. This silentresistance frightened Marie and she drew back quietly.

  Then the doctor came, took Toni by the hand and went out followed by thesexton.

  Poor Toni's appearance had made a great impression on the children. Theyhad become perfectly quiet.

  Later when they had gone to bed and the two women were sitting alonetogether, the doctor came back again. In reply to their urgent questionshe informed them about all that the sexton had told him concerning Toni'sillness and his life with his mother, and that no one had ever noticedanything wrong with the boy before, only he had always been a quiet,gentle child and more slenderly built than any of the other villagechildren.

  The women asked how he had come into this condition in the summer up onthe beautiful mountain, and the doctor explained that it was not sostrange, if one knew how terrible the thunder storms were up in themountains. "Besides," he concluded, "a delicate child, such as this boy,all alone without a human being near, for whole weeks, even months long,without hearing a word spoken, might well be so terrified through fear andhorror in the awful loneliness that he would become wholly benumbed."

  Then the lady from Geneva, who took an unusual interest in poor Toni'sfate, exclaimed in great excitement:

  "How can a mother allow such a thing to happen to her child! It is whollyinconceivable, quite incomprehensible!"

  "You really can have no idea," replied the doctor soothingly, "what poormothers are obliged to let happen to their children. But don't believethat it causes them less pain than others. You see how many suffer that weknow nothing about, and how hard poverty oppresses."

  "Will you be able to help the poor young boy?" asked the lady from Geneva.

  "If I can only bring out the right emotion in him," he replied, "so thatthe spell, which holds him imprisoned, can be broken. Now everything inhim is numbed and lifeless."

  "Oh, do help him! Do help him!" begged the sick lady imploringly. "Oh, ifI could do something for him!" And she walked to and fro thinking about away to help, for Toni's condition went deeply to her heart.

  It was the second week of August, when Toni came to the sanitarium. Dayafter day, week after week passed and the doctor could only bring the samesad news to the two women, who every morning awaited his report with greatanxiety. Not the slightest change was noticed. Every means was tried toamuse the boy, to see if he would perhaps laugh. Other attempts weredevised to disturb him, to make him cry. They performed all kinds oftricks to attract his attention. All, all were in vain; no trace ofinterest or emotion was aroused in Toni.

  "If he could only be made to laugh or to cry once!" repeated the doctorover and over again.

  When he had been four weeks in the sanitarium all hope disappeared, forthe doctor had exhausted every means.

  "Now I will try one thing more," he said one morning to his wife. "I havewritten to my friend, the Pastor, and asked him if the boy was very muchattached to his mother, and if so, to send for her right away. Perhaps tosee her again would make an impression on him."

  The two women looked forward in great suspense to Elsbeth's arrival.

  In the first week of September the last guests left the hotel inInterlaken where Elsbeth had spent the summer. She immediately started onher way home, for she wanted to get everything in order before Toni camedown from the mountain. She never thought but that he was still up there,and had no suspicion of all that had happened. When she reached home, shewent at once to the Matten farm to enquire for Toni and to bring the goathome.

  The farmer was very friendly, and thought her goat was now by far one ofthe finest, because she had had good fodder so long. But when Elsbethasked after her Toni, he broke off abruptly and said he had so much to do,she must go to the Pastor, for he would have the best knowledge about theboy. It immediately seemed to Elsbeth that it was a little strange for thePastor to know best what happened up on the mountain and while she wasleading home the goat, and thinking about the matter, a feeling of anxietycame over her and grew stronger and stronger. As soon as she reached home,she quickly tied the goat, without going into the cottage at all, and ranback the same way she had come, down again to Kandergrund.

  The Pastor told her with great consideration, how Toni had not borne thelife on the mountain very well and they had been obliged to bring himdown, and since it seemed best for him that he should go at once to a goodphysician for the right care, he had sent the boy immediately to Bern.

  His mother was very much shocked and wanted to travel the next day to seefor herself if her child was very ill.

  But the Pastor said that would not do, but that she should wait until thedoctor allowed a visit, and she could be sure that Toni was receiving thebest care.

  With a heavy heart Elsbeth went back to her cottage. She could do nothingbut leave it all to the dear Lord, who alone had been her trust for somany years. But it was only a few days later when the Pastor sent her wordthat she was to go to Bern at once, as the doctor wished her to come.

  Early the following day Elsbeth started. About noon she reached Bern andsoon was standing in front of the door of the sanitarium.

  She was led to the doctor's living-room and here received with greatfriendliness by his wife and with still keener sympathy by the lady fromGeneva, who had so lived in the history of poor Toni and his mother thatshe could hardly think of anything else but how to help these two. She hadhad only the one child and could so well understand the mother's trouble.She had even asked the doctor to allow her to be present when he took theboy to his mother, in order to share in the joy, if the poor boy's delightat seeing her again would affect him as they hoped.

  Soon the doctor appeared, and after he had prepared the mother not toexpect Toni to speak at the first moment, he brought him in. He led him bythe hand into the room, then he let go and stepped to one side.

  The mother ran to her Toni and tried to seize his hand. He drew back andpressed into the corner staring into vacancy.

  The women and the doctor exchanged sad looks.

  His mother went up to him and caressed him. "Toneli, Toneli," she saidagain and again in a tender voice, "don't you know me? Don't you know yourmother any more?"

  As always before Toni pressed against the wall, made
no motion and staredbefore him.

  In tender tones the mother continued mournfully:

  "Oh, Toneli, say just a single word! Only look at me once! Toneli, don'tyou hear me?"

  Toneli remained unmoved.

  Still once again the mother looked at him full of tenderness, but only methis staring eyes. It was too much for poor Elsbeth, that the onlypossession she had on earth, and the one she loved with all her heart, herToni, should be lost to her, and in such a sad way! She forgot everythingaround her. She fell on her knees beside her child, and while the tearswere bursting from her eyes, she poured out aloud the sorrow in her heart:

  Oh God of Love, oh Father-heart, In whom my trust is founded, I know full well how good Thou art-- E'en when by grief I am wounded.

  Oh Lord, it surely can not be That Thou wilt let me languish In hopeless depths of misery And live in tears of anguish.

  Toni's eyes took on a different expression. He looked at his mother. Shedid not see him and went on imploring in the midst of her tears:

  Oh Lord, my soul yearns for thine aid In this dark vale of weeping; For Thee I have waited, hoped and prayed, Assured of thy safe keeping.

  Suddenly Toni threw himself on his mother and sobbed aloud. She threw herarms around him and her tears of sorrow turned to loud sobs of joy. Thechild sobbed aloud also.

  "It is won," said the doctor in great delight to the women, who, deeplymoved, were looking on at the mother and boy.

  Then the doctor opened the door of the next room and beckoned Elsbeth togo in there with Toni. He thought it would be good for both to be alonefor a while. In there after a while Toni began to talk quite naturallywith his mother and asked her:

  "Are we going home, Mother, to the stone hut? Shan't I have to go up onthe mountain any more?"

  And she quieted him and said she would now take him right home, and theywould stay there together. Soon all Toni's thoughts came back again quiteclearly, and after a while he said:

  "But I must earn something, Mother."

  "Don't trouble about that now," said Elsbeth quietly; "the dear Lord willshow a way when it is time."

  Then they began to talk about the goat, how pretty and fat she had grown,and Toni gradually became quite lively.

  After an hour the doctor brought them both into the living-room back tothe ladies. Toni was entirely changed, his eyes had now an earnest butquite different expression. The lady from Geneva was indescribablydelighted. She sat down beside him at once, and he had to tell her wherehe had been to school and what he had liked to study.

  But the doctor beckoned to Elsbeth to come to him.

  "Listen, my good woman," he began, "the words which you repeated made adeep, penetrating impression on the boy's heart. Did he know the hymnalready?"

  "Oh, my Lord," exclaimed Elsbeth, "many hundred times I have repeated itbeside his little bed, when he was very small, often with many tears, andhe would weep too, when he didn't know why."

  "He wept because you wept, he suffered because you suffered," said thedoctor. "Now I understand how he was aroused by these words. With suchimpressions in early childhood it is no wonder he became a quiet andreserved boy. This explains to me much in the past."

  Then the lady from Geneva came up for she wanted to talk with the mother.

  "My dear, good woman, he certainly must not go up on the mountain again.He is not fit for it," she said in great eagerness. "We must findsomething different for him. Has he no taste for some other occupation?But it must be light, for he is not strong and needs care."

  "Oh, yes, he has a great desire to learn something," said his mother."From a little boy he has wished for it, but I hardly dare mention it."

  "There, there, my good woman, tell me right away about it," said the ladyencouragingly, expecting something unheard-of.

  "He wants so much to be a wood-carver, and has a good deal of talent forit, but the cost of board and instruction together is more than eightyfrancs."

  "Is that all?" exclaimed the lady in the greatest surprise, "is that all?Come, my boy," and she ran to Toni again, "would you really like tobecome a wood-carver--better than anything else?"

  The joy which shone in Toni's eyes, when he answered that he would, showedthe lady what she had to do. She had such a longing to help Toni, that shewanted to act immediately that very hour.

  "Would you like to learn at once, go to a teacher right away?" she askedhim.

  Toni gladly replied that he would.

  But now came a new thought. She turned to the doctor. "Perhaps he ought torecover his health first?"

  The doctor replied that he had been already thinking about that. Themother had told him that she knew a very good master up in Frutigen. "NowI think," he went on to say, "that carving is not a strenuous work, andone of the most important things for Toni is to have for some time good,nourishing food. In Frutigen there is a very good inn, if he only could--"

  "I will undertake that, Doctor, I will undertake that," interrupted thelady. "I will go with him. We will start to-morrow. In Frutigen I willprovide for Toni's board and lodging and for everything he needs." In hergreat delight the lady shook hands with both the mother and the boyrepeatedly, and went out to instruct her maid about preparations for thejourney.

  When the mother with her boy had been taken to their room, the doctor saidwith great delight to his wife:

  "We have two recoveries. Our lady is also cured. A new interest has cometo her, and you will see she will have new life in providing for thisyoung boy. This has been a beautiful day!"

  On the following morning the journey was made to Frutigen, and the littlecompany were so glad and happy together that they reached there beforethey were aware of it.

  At the wood-carver's the lady was told everything that would be needed forthe work, and after he had showed them all kinds of instruments, hethought a fine book with good pictures, from which one could work, wouldbe useful.

  After the lady had charged him to teach Toni everything in any waynecessary for the future, they went to the inn. Here the lady engaged agood room with comfortable bed, and herself arranged with the host a billof fare for every day in the week. The host promised, with many bows, tofollow everything exactly, for he saw very well with whom he had to deal.

  Then Toni and his mother had to eat with the lady in the inn, and duringthe meal she had much more to say. She was going now, she said, the nextday, home to Geneva, where there were large shops, in which nothing wassold but carvings. There she would immediately arrange for Toni to sendall his articles, so he could begin to work with fresh zeal. Moreover, sheinsisted that Toni should remain, not two, but three months with thecarver, so that he could learn everything from the foundation. He could gofrom here to visit his mother on Sundays, or she could come to him.

  Elsbeth and Toni were so full of gratitude, they could find no words toexpress it, but the lady understood them nevertheless and bore home ahappy heart, such as she had not had for a long time.

  It came about just as the doctor had foreseen. The lady, who had not beenable to think any more about her home now desired to return to Geneva. Shehad so many plans to carry out there, that she could hardly wait for theday when she was to go back.

  The doctor was delighted to consent to her going soon.

  Toni, who had hardly begun with his new teacher, applied himself with somuch zeal and skill to his work, that the carver said to his wife in thefourth week:

  "If he goes on like this, he will learn to do better than I can."

  The three months had come to an end, and Christmas was drawing near. Onemorning Toni waded through the deep snow up to his home. He looked roundand fresh, and his heart was so happy he had to sing aloud as he camealong.

  But when after a long walk, he suddenly saw the stone hut with thefir-tree thickly covered with snow behind it, tears of joy came to hiseyes. He was coming home, home for all time. He ran to the little house,and his mother, who had already seen him, hurried out, and which one ofthe two was
the more delighted, no one could tell; but they were both sohappy, as they sat together again in the cottage, that they could think ofno greater fortune on earth. Their highest wish was fulfilled. Toni was awood-carver, and could carry on his work at home with his mother. And withwhat blessings besides the dear Lord was still overwhelming them! FromGeneva such good things kept coming to Elsbeth, that she no longer had todread anxious days, and with each package came new assurance of the readyacceptance of Toni's work.

  Such a Christmas festival as was celebrated two days later in the stonehut, neither Elsbeth nor Toni had ever known before, for the candles whichhis mother had lighted shone out upon a quantity of things, which Toni hadreceived to wear, and also a whole set of the most beautiful knives forcarving and a book with pictures, of a size and beauty such as Toni hadnever in all his life seen before. His master's book was a mere child'stoy beside it. Elsbeth too was lovingly provided for. The lady from Genevahad planned everything, and the bright reflection from it fell backradiantly into her own heart.

  The most beautiful deer and huntsman and the wonderful eagles on the rock,standing in the high show-window in Geneva was carved by Toni, and wasconsidered by him to be a particularly successful piece, so it went, notto the dealer in Geneva, but to the lady for whom Toni preserved athankful heart all his life long.