E-text prepared by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustration. See 38029-h.htm or 38029-h.zip: (https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/38029/pg38029-images.html) or (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/38029/38029-h.zip) [Illustration: "Good-bye, Baltie, dear"] THREE LITTLE WOMEN, A STORY FOR GIRLS by GABRIELLE E. JACKSON 1913 CONTENTS CHAPTER I--The Carruths CHAPTER II--"Baltie" CHAPTER III--The Spirit of Mad Anthony CHAPTER IV--Baltie is Rescued CHAPTER V--A New Member of the Family CHAPTER VI--Blue Monday CHAPTER VII--Mammy Generalissimo CHAPTER VIII--Chemical Experiments CHAPTER IX--Spontaneous Combustion CHAPTER X--Readjustment CHAPTER XI--First Ventures CHAPTER XII--Another Shoulder is Added CHAPTER XIII--The Battle of Town and Gown CHAPTER XIV--The Candy Enterprise Grows CHAPTER XV--The Reckoning CHAPTER XVI--United We Stand, Divided We Fall CHAPTER XVII--A Family Council CHAPTER XVIII--"Save Me From My Friends" CHAPTER XIX--"An Auction Extraordinary" CHAPTER XX--Constance B.'s Venture CHAPTER XXI--Constance B.'s Candies CHAPTER XXII--First Steps CHAPTER XXIII--Opening Day CHAPTER XXIV--One Month Later CHAPTER I The Carruths The afternoon was a wild one. All day driving sheets of rain had swept along the streets of Riveredge, hurled against windowpanes by fierce gusts of wind, or dashed in miniature rivers across piazzas. At noon it seemed as though the wind meant to change to the westward and the clouds break, but the promise of better weather had failed, and although the rain now fell only fitfully in drenching showers, and one could "run between the drops" the wind still blustered and fumed, tossing the wayfarers about, and tearing from the trees what foliage the rain had spared, to hurl it to the ground in sodden masses. It was more like a late November than a late September day, and had a depressing effect upon everybody. "I want to go out; I want to go out; I want to go out, _out_, OUT!" cried little Jean Carruth, pressing her face against the window-pane until from the outside her nose appeared like a bit of white paper stuck fast to the glass. "If you do you'll get wet, _wet_, WET, as sop, _sop_, SOP, and then mother'll ask what _we_ were about to let you," said a laughing voice from the farther side of the room, where Constance, her sister, nearly five years her senior, was busily engaged in trimming a hat, holding it from her to get the effect of a fascinating bow she had just pinned upon one side. "But I haven't a single thing to do. All my lessons for Monday are finished; I'm tired of stories; I'm tired of fancy work, and I'm tired of--_everything_ and I want to go _out_," ended the woe-begone voice in rapid crescendo.