3. Her face was small and white, she also had candle/freckles.
Chapter 5
“Do you know,” said Anne, “I’ve decided to enjoy this ride. I’m not going to think about returning to the children’s home, I’ll just think about the road. Oh, look, there’s a wild rose. Don’t you think it’s nice to be a rose? Wouldn’t it be nice, if flowers talked? Do you know any girl whose hair was black and then turned another color when she grew up?”
“No, I don’t. And I think your hair won’t turn another color either,” said Marilla.
Anne sighed39.
“If you like talking so much, you can tell me what you know about yourself,” said Marilla.
“What I know is not interesting. Let me tell you what I imagine40.”
“No, I don’t want to hear you imagination. Just tell me the facts.”
“I was eleven last March,” said Anne. “I was born in Bolingbroke. My father was a teacher in a high school. My mother was a teacher too. They were poor and lived in a tiny41 house. My mother died of fever42 when I was three months old. And father died of fever too, four days after her.
Mrs. Thomas, the woman who came in to clean, took me and I lived with her and her children for eight years. I looked after 43her children, there were four of them. But Mr. Thomas fell under the train and died. The mother of Mrs. Thomas took her and her children but she didn’t want me.
Then Mrs. Hammond saw that I could be handy44 with children and took me. She had eight children. I lived with them over two years.
Then Mr. Hammond died, Mrs. Hammond became very poor, divided45 her children among her relatives and went to the United States. I went to the children’s house because nobody wanted to take me. They didn’t want to take me either46, they said there were too many children in the children’s house. But they had to take me and I lived there four months before Mrs. Spencer came.”
Anne finished her story.
“Did you go to school?” asked Marilla.
“Not much. I went a little last year when I lived with Mrs. Thomas. But they lived so far away from school and I couldn’t go there in winter. But I can read pretty well and I know a lot of poems by heart.”
“Were those women, Mrs. Thomas and Mrs. Hammond good to you?” asked Marilla, looking at Anne out of the corner of her eye.
“O-o-h,” said Anne. “I’m sure they wanted to be, but it’s hard sometimes when you have to work so much and have so many children. But I’m sure they wanted to be good.”
Marilla didn’t ask questions anymore and they drove in silence. Suddenly, Marilla felt such a pity47 for the child. Poor unloved child, she thought. No wonder the girl wanted a real home. Maybe they could have her, thought the woman again.
She talked too much, thought Marilla. But we can train her out of that. She’s ladylike48.
“What is that big house ahead of us?” asked the girl.
“Hotel. A lot of Americans come here. But the season hasn’t started yet,” said Marilla.
“I was afraid it might be Mrs. Spencer’s house,” said Anne sadly. “I don’t want to go there.”
Exercise: What are these words?
to sigh
might
to divide
to imagine
tiny
Chapter 6
Mrs. Spencer lived in a big yellow house, and she came to the door with surprise.
“Mrs. Spencer, there was a mistake somewhere and I’ve come to see where. We sent a word, Matthew and I, we told your brother to bring us a boy,” said Marilla.
“But my brother said you wanted a girl. It wasn’t my fault49, you see,” said Mrs. Spencer.
“Anyway, the mistake was made. Can we send the child back?” asked Marilla.
“I think so, but there’s no need sending her back as Mrs. Blewett was here yesterday and asked for a little girl from the children’s house.”
Marilla knew Mrs. Blewett only a little. A thin and very greedy50 woman with a bad temper51.
The doorbell rang and in came Mrs. Bewett. Mrs. Spencer was glad they could decide everything right there. Mrs. Spencer told her that if she still wanted a girl, she could take her.
Mrs. Blewett said that the girl had to earn52 her living, be smart and respect53 her. She was ready to take Anne.
Marilla looked at Anne’s face, so pale and sad. She understood that the girl would again go to the family where she wouldn’t be treated54 right. She also thought that if she left the child right there, she would never forgive55 herself.
“You know, I didn’t come here to send the child back, I just wanted to know how the mistake was made. Anyway, I need to talk with Matthew, I can’t do things without talking to him. I’ll take the child home and if Matthew says he doesn’t want to take the girl, I will send you a note and you can take her,” said Marilla.
Anne smiled when she heard this.
They came back home and Marilla told Matthew that she decided to let the girl stay. “I wouldn’t give a dog to that Blewett woman,” Matthew said.
Exercise: What are these words?
fault
greedy
to decide
to earn
to forgive
Exercise: Answer the questions.
1. What did Marilla feel when she heard Anne’s story?
2. Why did Marilla say she needed to talk with Metthew because she couldn’t decide without him?
Chapter 7
“Now, Anne, I saw that you threw your clothes all over the floor last night. That’s not the right thing to do. You need to fold56 them.”
“I understand. I was so sad that I couldn’t think about it. I’ll fold them nicely tonight.”
“Now, say your prayers57 and go to bed,” said Marilla.
“But I never say prayers.”
“Don’t you know it’s bad when you don’t say prayers before going to bed?” asked Marilla. “Anne, if you leave under my roof, you need to say the prayers.”
“If you want me to, I will,” said Anne. “But I don’t understand why people say their prayers on their knees. If I wanted to say prayers, I would go into the field or into the forest and look at the blue-blue sky.”
When praying, Anne said thank you for what she had and also asked to stay here at Green Gables.
Marilla closed the door and went away to the kitchen. She told Matthew that they needed to teach the child a lot of things and send her to a Sunday school.
Exercise: What are these words?
knees
roof
prayer
to throw
to fold
Chapter 8
Marilla didn’t tell Anne she was going to stay at Green Gables until the next afternoon. She gave her different tasks and watched how she did them. Marilla understood that Anne was smart and didn’t mind the work. Her only problem was daydreaming58 and imagining things.
Anne finished washing the dishes and came to Marilla. “Please, Mrs. Cuthbert, tell me if you are going to keep me or not.”
“You forgot to wash the towel59,” said Marilla. “Please do that and don’t ask any questions.”
Anne washed the towel, came to Marilla and asked her question again.
“Matthew and I decided to keep you. But you need to be a good girl.”
Anne started crying and said she was happy. She told she would do her best. “How should I call you? Mrs. Cuthbert?” asked Anne.
“No, you can just call me Marilla.”
“Marilla, do you think I will have a friend in Avonlea?”
“There’s a girl called Diana, she’s about your age and she lives not far from school. You might be friends. But you need to be a good girl and don’t talk foolish60 things. Her aunt won’t let Diana play with a girl who isn’t nice.”
“What’s Diana like? Her hair isn’t red, is it?” asked Anne.
“Diana is a very pretty little girl. She has black eyes. She’s good and smart. It will be good for you to have a real friend, so you stop your daydreaming.”
“I’m glad she’s pretty. Oh, look, there’s a bee. If I wasn’t a girl, I would like to be a bee.”
“Yesterday you wanted to be a seagull,” sniffed61 Marilla. “Now, stop talking, go to your room, learn the prayer62 and stay there until I call you to help me with tea.”
Exercise: Match the words.
towel
seagull
to sniff
to daydream
foolish
Chapter 9
Anne spent two weeks at Green Gables and then Marilla’s friend, Mrs. Rachel came to visit them.
Mrs. Rachel told Marilla every detail about the flu63 she had had. Then she finally asked about what she came for.
“I’ve heard about you and Matthew. I’ve heard about the mistake with the boy. Couldn’t you send that girl back?” she asked.