Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1915-06-09
ALL STAR FEATURES
Evening Stars S
Daily Story
HER MODEL SCHOLAR
By KEITH KENYON

through the windows of the school,
room where Elsin Dorr taught and
played with her kindergarten babies
DIR. Dorr had gladly given the great
bow-windowed room on the second
floor to his only daughter, and so
Blsin found her vocation in opening
the first kindergarten Wildwood had
ever known.
There were fifteen of the young
sters sitting in their little chairs
around the wide circle chalked on the
schoolroom floor and Elsin, at the
piano, led them in singing Good
Morning Merry Sunshine; How Do
You Do Today?"
The first line was barely finished
when Elsin became conscious of a
new voice-a little boys strong treble
without the faintest appreciation of
tune.
At the end of the first verse Elsin
turned to the circle and discovered
the cause of the futter of excitement
among her pupils as well as the
owner of the discordant voice.
Seated crosslegged on the floor, in
the middle of the circle, was q strange
little boy, a winsome-faced laddie of
five years, with big brown eyes and q
curly mop of f1axen hair. He wore a |
Russian blouse of blue serge and bore
every appearance of having come
from comfortable home and the
loving hands of a mother.
Good morping!'' cried Elsin, lit
he breathfessly. I'VE are very glad
to see you. Will you come and tell
me your name?"
The small visitor got up and came
TO Elsin's knee, putting up a wistful
mouth to be kissed.
Tell me your name, dear" urged
Elsin.
Jonathan Ferdinand Marbridge,"
returned the child.
THAT Is a very nice name, Jona-
than" said Elsin. ''Now you must
tell me who brought you to school
this morning"
81 came myself-Dobbin is down in
the yard"
WHO Is Dobbin, dear?''
HE Is my pony. Don't you know
him? I told him l was coming this
morning and so he bringed me. I've
been wanting to come for a long, long
time. and Daddy said he'd see about
it, but he is very busy man." Jona-
than puffed out his chest and looked
very important.
Very well, Jonathan, you may fetch
little, chair into the circle and will
send word to your father that you are
here.'
But it was difficult matter to dis
cover the residence of Jonathan Fer
dinand Marbridge and Dobbin, his
piebald pony. No one in Wildwood
appeared to recognize the name of
Marbridge, and even the central tele
phone exchange could give no clew to
the identity of the little boys parents.
But Jonathan stout1y maintained
that he lived In big red house in
the wood, and that Dobbin knew the
way. So, after the little pupils had
scattered to their homes, Elsin In
vited Jonathan to lunch, and then,
buttonfng him into the scarlet wool
sweater and cap which he had worn,
she helped him upon Dobbin's back.
ct will hold the bride and Dobbin
must show me the way to your
house." said Eisin, pulling her white
woolly cap over her bronze-brown
hair.
.Dobbinaknows the way" said Jona-
than confidently, and SO 1t appeared,
for as soon as they reached the end
of the street in which the DORIS lived
Dobbin turned HIS white nose into a
winding road that led straight into
the woods.
lB lIlS tllC way yOh NoiiO, oNe1A
asked Elsin. ,
Yes, Miss Elsin. Dobbin didn't
mind the snow at all-his feet went
squash, squash all the way Listen"
The woods were very silent and the
wood road was untracked save for the
single line of footprints made by the
pony when he brought Jonathan to
the kindergarten.
'Tt Is all so strange" thought Elsin, |
glancing at the erect, scarlet clad |
figure on the pony. TT seems as If he |
had stepped out of a fairy story and |
I expect he will vanish any moment"
She smiled whimsically, not knowing
that She too, added to the picturesque
cavalcade in her white wool skirt and
sweater, with her glowing cheeks and
sparkling blue eyes. Elsin Dorr was
a remarkably pretty girl.
Then the strange road leading to
where she knew not was another mys-
terry. She had lived In wildwood all
her life and she had never set foot N, 1
this wood road before. She had seen
carriers coming from it with loads of
cordwood, and she knew that 1T led in, i
some devious way to a section called
Oakland Plains, where there were
many handsome country estates. But
she had never approached Oakland
Plains by this path.
do you live in Oakland Plains,
Jonathan?" she asked after awhile,
for she was growing uneasy.
Eyes, Miss Elsin," he said in a sur
prised tone "Of course Il do"
HAS Your father got telephone
m the house%
'Yes, Miss Elsin."
"And your mother, dear? Won't
she worry about your"
IT haven't any mother any more, |
Miss EIsin--ehe is with God. There's
no one 'cept daddy and Mrs Wickham
and Sarah and the other servants"
"And you are very lonely little
boy, dear?" asked Elsin.
sYes, Miss Elsin. dear / was driv-
ing past one day and all the children
were going into your house and daddy
said he would bring rpe. too, but got
ON Dobhip and told him where want
ed to go--.a1ld hA went We bought |
Dobbin from Mr., Hawkins, who lives
on your street. SO be knows the way
there,n he added paively.
''Then Mr.. Hawkins would know I
where you I've exclaimed Elsin, |
1--WE must go back and ask him, Jona-
than"
"Dobbins knows, too" objected |
Jonathan "See, he is turning into
this little path among the Christmas
trees, and 1t comes out incur woods"
So Bebiafn led tie way, and finally |
they emenged into a tan oak woods |
and In the distance ysas ., szfow-sweptI |
stretch Of lawn wtfb great groups of
ramnGfng red brick mansion.
"Ehats my house" cried Jonathan /
axcitediv Hand there fs Daddy. rln- |