Tully sighed with relief when Frances told her she was from another 'Virginia City', although she was a little surprised that there was another, not to mention a state called that, too! No matter, she was safe from discovery, and that was what mattered.
"Is that Aunt Steeza that gal with th' bouncy yellow hair?" she asked. She wasn't sure how aunts worked, but she knew they were some sort of relatives to folks, if you had those. Still, she had thought that an aunt would be older. "Can't you teach me ta read? With my fingers like that?"
She put her fingers on the page again, lightly, and concentrated, although she still couldn't make heads nor tails out of it. "I can spell Tully Nevada," she told the other girl, "an' th' others, I just recognize how it looks. Reckon I know some'a th' letters, but don't really know what they are." As for the ones in her name, she was basically just reciting them, without any real understanding how it all worked.
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows" - Helen Keller
"Is that Aunt Steeza that gal with th' bouncy yellow hair?" she asked. She wasn't sure how aunts worked, but she knew they were some sort of relatives to folks, if you had those. Still, she had thought that an aunt would be older.
"I'm afraid I don't know whether her hair is yellow or bounces" Frances answered truthfully "But it's the girl who brought you up the first time... when I am afraid you ran away. But oh Tully, it's not Aunt Steeza, it's Anæsthesia: A-N-AshAE-S-T-H-E-S-I-A. She is very particular about the Ash-AE, that is like an old fashioned way of gluing an A and an e together, though I'm not sure what good it does to glue one's letters together!" she laughed.
"It is certainly a curious name, isn't it? Anæsthesia - it means something that puts you to sleep: just like when she read that Treasure Island book to me. Oh well, maybe if I was able to see a pirate, I might find them more exciting." To be honest, most of them sounded like the sort of man who had attacked herself and Tully.
She had, out of politeness, not added that Tully was a pretty weird name too!
The girl with the weird name had a question:
"Can't you teach me ta read? With my fingers like that?"
"Perhaps you should learn reading with your eyes first" suggested the blind girl, happy, though, that the waif was taking an interest in her New York Point book. "What can you spell out yourself already?" she asked, wondering just how literate or otherwise Tully was as the girl felt over the page of her book.
"I can spell Tully Nevada," she told the other girl, "an' th' others, I just recognize how it looks. Reckon I know some'a th' letters, but don't really know what they are." As for the ones in her name, she was basically just reciting them, without any real understanding how it all worked.
Frances smiled and reached out to where she guessed Tully's hand was.
"You really should get somebody sighted to teach you to read and write, it really is a great advantage in life. The most important thing to learn to write, of course, is Frances!" she smiled "And always remember, it is F-R-A-N-C-E-S for a girl and I-S at the end for a boy! It's a good job I can't actually see anybody spelling it wrong or I might say something rather unpleasant that I might regret!" she frowned.
"F-R-A-N-C-E-S," Tully murmured to her self, to the tune of 'Camptown Races', a trick she used to help memorize things, then she grinned. "Them's all new letters, nary a one in 'Tully Nevada'!" Again, what that meant, she wasn't sure, nor what Frances meant about 'i-s' and boys!
"F-R-A-N-C-E-S," she sang again, because she didn't want to make her new friend upset by saying the letters wrong. "I reckon I could let Annashezah try'n teach me some, if ya'd like that." She reached for one of the magazines and thumbed through the pages. "'Course, I can tell ya what's in th' pictures, if ya want."
Well, maybe. There were some things she wasn't quite sure what they were, but she'd give it a try!
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows" - Helen Keller
"F-R-A-N-C-E-S," Tully murmured to her self, to the tune of 'Camptown Races', a trick she used to help memorize things, then she grinned. "Them's all new letters, nary a one in 'Tully Nevada'!" Again, what that meant, she wasn't sure, nor what Frances meant about 'i-s' and boys!
"Except 'N and E and A'" corrected Frances, but then wished she hadn't, because she didn't want to rain on Tully's parade.
"F-R-A-N-C-E-S," she sang again, because she didn't want to make her new friend upset by saying the letters wrong.
Then Frances sang it, too, adding some more to it.
"F-R-A-N-C-E-S, doo-dah, doo,dah
F-R-A-N-C-E-S, oh doo-dah-day
Frances run all night
Tully run all day
Bet my dollar on a bob-tailed nag, somebody bet on de bay!"
Singing left her breathless and a little in pain now, as did the little laugh she gave afterwards, but it was worth it.
"I reckon I could let Annashezah try'n teach me some, if ya'd like that."
"You should ask her... if you want to. It's not about pleasing me. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to read books and write letters to people? If you could read, you could read me out the letters in the 'Dear Miss Hathaway' advice column in The Lady. Some of them are hilarious, but Anæsthesia won't read any that are too... well, outré! You can't imagine how frustrating to have her read out 'Dear Miss Hathaway, I have a very embrarrassing pimple on my...' and then be told 'oh no, that one is not very interesting!'" She did a wicked impersonation of the Miss Orr. "I'd bet you a million dollars that they are the most interesting ones of all!"
She reached for one of the magazines and thumbed through the pages. "'Course, I can tell ya what's in th' pictures, if ya want."
That sounded like a good idea: it would be a few years before newspapers and magazines would be printing photographs, but The Lady was full of pictures - engravings based on photographs, both to illustrate the stories and articles, and as part of advertisements for all sorts of products.
"Oooh, yes please! Although, I don't imagine that there is an illustration of that poor girl's pimple." giggled the invalid blind girl.
Tully giggled as Frances continued her song, humming along, then giving a little clap at the end, pleased that Frances saw the game in it. As for the reading, it did sound nice to be able to do that, if one had the time for such frivolities. Couldn't hurt, so long as she was here anyway.
Then Frances agreed to the picture idea, so she picked up the top magazine and opened it, studying the picture, and now wishing that she could read so she knew what the words at the bottom were...likely some sort of explanation.
"All right...so, it looks kinda like maybe winter, I think that's supposed ta be snow...looks like nighttime, maybe a storm? There's big ol' dark clouds in th' back." She grinned. "An' it looks like some kids runnin' away from church! There's that church way back there, then two boys, one's carryin' an umbrella, an' th' other one has his open...he must be th' smart one!" She giggled again.
"All right, now, runnin' ahead'a them boys is two girls, they got one real big umbrella, an' th' little one's carryin' a book or somethin'? Maybe they stole that from th' church an' them boys are tryin' ta get it back? It's got some big secret in it or somethin'! I hope they can read!"
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows" - Helen Keller
"All right...so, it looks kinda like maybe winter, I think that's supposed ta be snow...looks like nighttime, maybe a storm? There's big ol' dark clouds in th' back." She grinned. "An' it looks like some kids runnin' away from church! There's that church way back there, then two boys, one's carryin' an umbrella, an' th' other one has his open...he must be th' smart one!" She giggled again.
Frances laughed, holding her poorly ribs as she did so. It occurred to her that she could just ask Tully to read out the separate letters in the legend beneath the illustration, and she could spell out what they said: but listening to the homeless girl's vivid description and commentary on what was happening was much more fun!
"I sort of like the less smart one best!" Frances said shyly "I think his name is 'Sam'"
"All right, now, runnin' ahead'a them boys is two girls, they got one real big umbrella, an' th' little one's carryin' a book or somethin'? Maybe they stole that from th' church an' them boys are tryin' ta get it back? It's got some big secret in it or somethin'! I hope they can read!"
"I don't - it's Sam's secret diary! And in it he's written that he is madly in love with the bigger girl!" Frances answered playfully, but as she went on with her imaginary explanation of the picture that was being described to her, her voice got more excited; frantic even!
"... and... and they have to get the diary back before she opens it discovers his embarrassing secret... because then everybody will know and they shall laugh at him terribly in the playground, even... no... especially the bigger girl... and... and... Oh Tully, I have a terrible secret to tell you... Mister Reeve has asked me to marry him!!"
Tully laughed at Frances' elaboration on the story, starting to add her own as she turned the page. "Well, look there, it's th' grandpappy, with wings'n all, an' there, they're tossin' snowballs at that snow-lady, so they won't think Sam's in love, an' then..."
And then the rest of what Frances said caught up with her and Tully frowned. "He...huh?" Well, he did seem a nice man, he'd helped that awful night, and...
"He's fine ta look at, that's certain!" Tully giggled, then asked, "Well, what'd ya think of him? He's kind, an' took care'a me, too, instead'a just castin' me aside like nothin'." Something she was accustomed to. Most people didn't even seem to notice her, not that she minded.
(This is what I've been looking at)
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1172434091/godeys-ladies-book-and-magazine-1873
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows" - Helen Keller
Tully laughed at Frances' elaboration on the story, starting to add her own as she turned the page. "Well, look there, it's th' grandpappy, with wings'n all, an' there, they're tossin' snowballs at that snow-lady, so they won't think Sam's in love, an' then..."
For a second Frances thought Tully merely hadn't heard her as she continued to describe the pictures in the journal, and was only half relieved. The secret was burning inside her and she needed to let it out.
And then the rest of what Frances said caught up with her and Tully frowned. "He...huh?"
"You heard... he asked me to marry hm!" she repeated, lest there be any misapprehension about what she had revealed.
"He's fine ta look at, that's certain!" Tully giggled.
"I'll take your word for it." Tully didn't seem like the over-romantical type, so she was probably being accurate in her assessment.
"Well, what'd ya think of him? He's kind, an' took care'a me, too, instead'a just castin' me aside like nothin'."
"Oh..." Frances looked disgruntled "... I was hoping you would tell me something bad about him, to make me feel better. I said 'no' of course." she revealed. "I want you to tell me I've done the right thing. I mean... I hardy know him!"
"Well...can't think'a nothin', but if ya want...he's a might on th' short side, an' goes kind pasty when he sees blood?" Of course, that hadn't stopped him from helping them, nor from protecting Arabeller from the horror. "He kinda looks at ya with googly-eyes, like a moon-sick calf."
Tully shrugged. Frances could do worse, that was certain. "Not like ya ain't got nothin'," she added her tidbit of wisdom, "not that yer not pretty an' sweet'n all, but I mean, ya ain't got no money nor nothin' that he could be tryin' ta get his mitts inta, so he must be genuine. How do you feel about him?"
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows" - Helen Keller
"Well...can't think'a nothin', but if ya want...he's a might on th' short side..."
"Really? Oh dear. I suppose that I've been horizonal ever since I met him, so I never even noticed." pondered Frances. She might be blind, but she had her fair portion of womanly vanity. She didn't want people laughing at her walking arm in arm down the street with a dwarf.
"... an' goes kind pasty when he sees blood?" Of course, that hadn't stopped him from helping them, nor from protecting Arabeller from the horror. "He kinda looks at ya with googly-eyes, like a moon-sick calf."
"Ha ha, how ridiculous!" laughed Frances, pleased. But not pleased. Oh dear, it was all a bit complicated, wasn't it?
Tully shrugged. Frances could do worse, that was certain. "Not like ya ain't got nothin'," she added her tidbit of wisdom, "not that yer not pretty an' sweet'n all, but I mean, ya ain't got no money nor nothin' that he could be tryin' ta get his mitts inta, so he must be genuine. How do you feel about him?"
"He's very nice to me... but you can't just marry someone because they're nice to you. He probably just feels sorry for me because I'm blind and because of the awful thing that happened to us." she philosophised. Then she looked a little sad.
"Besides, I don't want to get hurt again. I recently became quite close to a Mister Vaughn, or so I thought. Then he dropped me like a hot brick. I began to think I must smell or something!" she revealed.
"Have you ever had a gentlemen friend, Tully?" Frances asked, conspiratorially.