Produced by Suzanne Shell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) HILDEGARDE'S HOME [Illustration: HILDEGARDE AND THE CHINA POTS.--_Frontispiece._] HILDEGARDE'S HOME BY LAURA E. RICHARDS AUTHOR OF "QUEEN HILDEGARDE," "HILDEGARDE'S HOLIDAY," "CAPTAIN JANUARY," ETC. ILLUSTRATED BOSTON ESTES AND LAURIAT PUBLISHERS COPYRIGHT, 1892, BY ESTES AND LAURIAT. TYPOGRAPHY BY J. S. CUSHING & CO., BOSTON. CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGE I. THE HOME ITSELF 11 II. A DISH OF GOSSIP 33 III. MORNING HOURS 51 IV. A WALK AND AN ADVENTURE 71 V. UNCLE AND NEPHEW 100 VI. COUSIN JACK 120 VII. MISS AGATHA'S CABINET 137 VIII. THE POPLARS 155 IX. THE COUSINS 179 X. BONNY SIR HUGH 198 XI. A CALL AND A CONSPIRACY 216 XII. THE SECOND ACT 234 XIII. A PICNIC 255 XIV. OVER THE JAM-POTS 281 XV. AT THE BROWN COTTAGE 292 XVI. GOOD-BY! 309 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE HILDEGARDE AND THE CHINA POTS _Frontispiece_ "IT WAS VERY PLEASANT UP IN THIS AIRY BOWER" 81 "JACK FERRERS APPEARED CARRYING A HUGE BUNCH OF ROSES" 121 "HILDEGARDE HAD BEEN MAKING FRIENDS WITH MERLIN" 175 HILDEGARDE FINDING HUGH AND MERLIN BY THE BROOK 201 HUGH AND COLONEL FERRERS 249 OVER THE JAM POTS 280 "HE GAVE ME A LUNGE IN QUART" 301 HILDEGARDE'S HOME. CHAPTER I. THE HOME ITSELF. IT was a pleasant place. The house was a large, low, old-fashioned one, with the modern addition of a deep, wide verandah running across its front. Before it was a circular sweep of lawn, fringed with trees; beside it stood a few noble elms, which bent lovingly above the gambrel roof. There were some flower-beds, rather neglected-looking, under the south windows, and there was a kitchen-garden behind the house. This was all that Hildegarde Grahame had seen so far of her new home, for she had only just arrived. She stood now on the verandah, looking about her with keen, inquiring eyes, a tall, graceful girl, very erect, with a certain proud carriage of the head. Her dress of black and white shepherd's plaid was very simple, but it fitted to perfection, and there was a decided "air" to her little black felt hat.