The Peterkin papersHale, Lucretia P. (Lucretia Peabody)
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The Peterkin papers
Hale, Lucretia P. (Lucretia Peabody)
Family life -- Juvenile fiction; Humorous stories
But there was an unexpected difficulty in getting the Russian gentleman
into the same carriage with the teacher of Arabic, for he was a Turk,
sitting with a fez on his head, on the back seat! They glared at each
other, and began to assail each other in every language they knew, none
of which Mr. Peterkin could understand. It might be Russian, it might be
Arabic. It was easy to understand that they would never consent to sit
in the same carriage. Mr. Peterkin was in despair; he had forgotten
about the Russian war! What a mistake to have invited the Turk!
Quite a crowd collected on the sidewalk in front of the hotel. But the
French gentleman politely, but stiffly, invited the Russian to go with
him in the first carryall. Here was another difficulty. For the German
professor was quietly ensconced on the back seat! As soon as the French
gentleman put his foot on the step and saw him, he addressed him in
such forcible language that the German professor got out of the door the
other side, and came round on the sidewalk, and took him by the collar.
Certainly the German and French gentlemen could not be put together, and
more crowd collected!
Agamemnon, however, had happily studied up the German word “Herr,” and
he applied it to the German, inviting him by signs to take a seat in the
other carryall. The German consented to sit by the Turk, as they neither
of them could understand the other; and at last they started, Mr.
Peterkin with the Italian by his side, and the French and Russian
teachers behind, vociferating to each other in languages unknown to
Mr. Peterkin, while he feared they were not perfectly in harmony, so
he drove home as fast as possible. Agamemnon had a silent party. The
Spaniard by his side was a little moody, while the Turk and the German
behind did not utter a word.
At last they reached the house, and were greeted by Mrs. Peterkin
and Elizabeth Eliza, Mrs. Peterkin with her llama lace shawl over her
shoulders, as a tribute to the Spanish teacher. Mr. Peterkin was careful
to take his party in first, and deposit them in a distant part of the
library, far from the Turk or the German, even putting the Frenchman and
Russian apart.
Solomon John found the Italian dictionary, and seated himself by his
Italian; Agamemnon, with the German dictionary, by the German. The
little boys took their copy of the “Arabian Nights” to the Turk. Mr.
Peterkin attempted to explain to the Russian that he had no Russian
dictionary, as he had hoped to learn Sanscrit of him, while Mrs.
Peterkin was trying to inform her teacher that she had no books in
Spanish. She got over all fears of the Inquisition, he looked so sad,
and she tried to talk a little, using English words, but very slowly,
and altering the accent as far as she knew how. The Spaniard bowed,
looked gravely interested, and was very polite.
Elizabeth Eliza, meanwhile, was trying her grammar phrases with the
Parisian.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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