[Illustration: UP THE MOUNTAIN TO GRANDFATHER]

HEIDI

by

JOHANNA SPYRI

ILLUSTRATED BY
ALICE CARSEY

WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
RACINE · CHICAGO

COPYRIGHT 1916 BY
WHITMAN PUBLISHING CO.
RACINE · CHICAGO

INTRODUCTION

This is a careful English translation of Heidi, one of the most beloved works by the great Swiss author Johanna Spyri. Details about her life are hard to find, but we do know this much: she was born Johanna Heusser in Zurich on June 12, 1827. She wrote nothing as a young woman. She married happily to a lawyer named Spyri. Later, the Franco-Prussian War (a conflict between France and Prussia in 1870–71) inspired her to write a book meant to raise money for charity. That book's success revealed the writing career that lay ahead of her. She died at her home in Zurich in 1891. Her reputation has spread to nearly every country, and her many books have delighted not only the children she wrote them for, but also adults who love children and care about their happiness.

As for Heidi itself—wherever mountains are seen or read about, this simple story of a Swiss child's early life, lived amid the beauty of a home she loved deeply, will remain a favorite among young readers and anyone seeking a good book.

Johanna Spyri lived among the very landscapes she described so gracefully in her stories. Running through all her work is a clear purpose: to protect young readers from being misunderstood, and from the kind of well-meaning but mistaken care that can get in the way of a child's happiness and natural growth.

Her many other works include: Arthur and His Squirrel, On Sunday, From the Swiss Mountains, A Scion of the House of Lesa, The Great and the Small All May Aid, From Near and Far, Cornelius, Lost but Not Forgotten, Gritli's Children (two volumes), Without a Country, What Shall Then Become of Her?, Sina, From Our Own Country, Ten Stories (two volumes), In Leuchtensa, Uncle Titus, A Golden Saying, The Castle Wildenstein, What Really Happened to Her, In the Valley of the Tilonne, and The Hauffer Mill.

M. H. M.

CONTENTS

I. Heidi's First Mountain Climb — 13
II. A New Home with Grandfather — 22
III. Little Bear and Little Swan — 29
IV. Shooting Down the Mountain Side — 40
V. A Railroad Journey — 52
VI. Clara, the Patient Little Invalid — 60
VII. The Unfriendly Housekeeper — 67
VIII. Surprises for the Children — 79
IX. Mr. Sesemann Takes Heidi's Part — 87
X. Clara's Lovable Grandmother — 91
XI. Home-Sickness — 98
XII. "My House Is Haunted" — 102
XIII. At Home Again on the Mountain — 112
XIV. The Coat with the Silver Buttons — 126
XV. A Great Disappointment — 135
XVI. The Doctor Comes with Presents — 140
XVII. Excursions Over the Mountains — 149
XVIII. A New Home for the Winter — 157
XIX. Heidi Teaches Obstinate Peter — 167
XX. A Strange Looking Procession — 176
XXI. Happy Days for the Little Visitor — 191
XXII. Wicked Peter and the Unlucky Chair — 199
XXIII. Good-Bye to the Beautiful Mountain — 217

ILLUSTRATIONS

Up the Mountain to Grandfather (color) — FRONTISPIECE
Heidi Tenderly Stroked the Two Goats in Turn — 27
Heidi Drank in the Golden Sunlight, the Fresh Air and the Sweet Smell of the Flowers (color) — 33
Heidi Now Began to Give a Lively Description of Her Life with the Grandfather (color) — 48
"Why, There Is Nothing Outside but the Stony Streets" — 72
Miss Rottermeyer Jumped Higher Than She Had for Many Long Years (color) — 80
Grandmother's Kind Advice Brings Comfort to Heidi (color) — 96
Heidi Learns to Make Doll Clothes — 99
The Doctor Discovers Heidi's Home-Sickness — 109
"Our Milk Tastes Nicer Than Anything Else in the World, Grandfather" — 123
It Was Not Long Before the Fir Trees Began Their Old Song (color) — 144
A Strange-Looking Procession Was Making Its Way Up the Mountain (color) — 192
The Little Invalid Finds That She Is Able to Walk — 208
"We Must Not Overdo It," He Said, Taking Clara Up in His Arms — 212
Peter Went Rolling and Bumping Down the Slope — 222
"Are You Really My Little Clara?" (color) — 232

[Illustration: HEIDI]

CHAPTER I

HEIDI'S FIRST MOUNTAIN CLIMB

On a bright June morning, two figures—a tall girl and a small child—climbed the narrow mountain path that winds up from the pretty village of Mayenfeld to the high slopes of the Alm mountain. Despite the summer heat, the child was dressed as though braving the harshest winter frost. She looked no older than five, though it was hard to guess her true size under all her clothing: she seemed to be wearing two dresses, one on top of the other, plus a heavy red wool shawl. Thick, nail-studded mountain boots covered her small feet.

When the travelers reached the hamlet of Doerfli, halfway up the mountain, people greeted them from every side—this was the older girl's home village. As they were leaving Doerfli, a voice called out, "Wait a moment, Dete! If you're heading up the mountain, I'll come along."

Dete stopped walking. The child instantly let go of her hand and sat down on the ground.

"Are you tired, Heidi?" Dete asked.

"No, I'm hot," the child answered.

"We'll reach the top soon. Just keep walking bravely a little longer—take good, long steps—and we'll be there in another hour," said Dete.

A stout, cheerful-looking woman soon joined them, and the two women walked on ahead together, old friends catching up.

"Where are you taking the child?" the newcomer asked. "I suppose she's the one your sister left behind?"

"Yes," Dete answered. "I'm bringing her up to Uncle's place. She'll be staying with him."

"That child—staying up there with Alm-Uncle? Have you lost your mind, Dete? How could you even think of it! The old man will send the two of you straight back down again!"

"He can hardly do that," said Dete, "seeing as he's her grandfather. He'll have to do something for her. I've taken care of the child until now, and I'm not about to give up a good job opportunity that's finally come my way, just for her sake."

"That would all be fine if he were like other people," said Barbel, "but you know what he's like. What is he supposed to do with a child, especially one so young? She can't possibly live with him. But where are you headed yourself?"

"To Frankfurt—I've got an excellent position waiting for me there," Dete replied.

"I'm glad I'm not that child," Barbel exclaimed. "Nobody up there knows a thing about the old man. He won't have anything to do with anyone, and he hasn't set foot in a church in years. When he does come down once in a while, everyone gets out of his way. Just the sight of him—those bushy gray eyebrows and that huge beard—is enough to frighten anyone. All sorts of stories are told about him. Surely you've heard plenty from your sister, Dete."

"Yes, but I'm not going to repeat any of it. If it ever got back to him, I'd be in no end of trouble."

Barbel linked arms with Dete, leaning in close. "Come on, just tell me what's wrong with the old man. Was he always shunned like this, always so bad-tempered? I promise I'll keep quiet if you tell me."

"All right, I'll tell you—just wait a moment," Dete said, looking around for Heidi, who had slipped away unnoticed.

"There she is!" Barbel exclaimed, pointing to a spot well off the footpath. "Climbing up that slope with Peter and his goats. But go on—tell me about the old man. Did he ever own anything besides those two goats and his hut?"

"I should say so," Dete replied eagerly. "He once owned one of the biggest farms in Domleschg, where my mother used to live. But he drank and gambled away his entire fortune, and when his parents found out, the shock killed them—first one, then the other, shortly after. With nothing left but a ruined reputation, Uncle vanished, and word came back that he'd gone to Naples to serve as a soldier. Twelve or fifteen years later, he reappeared in Domleschg with a young son, trying to place the boy with relatives. But every door was shut in his face—no one wanted anything more to do with him. Bitter over this treatment, he swore never to set foot in Domleschg again and settled instead in Doerfli with his little boy. His wife had died shortly after the child was born. He must have saved some money during his years away, because he apprenticed his son Tobias to a carpenter—arranged for the boy to learn the trade by working under one. Tobias turned out to be a steady, well-liked young man, welcomed by everyone in Doerfli. His father, though, was still regarded with suspicion, and there were even rumors that he'd killed a man in a fight back in Naples."

"But why does everyone call him Uncle?" Barbel asked. "Surely he isn't uncle to the whole village."

"Our grandmothers were related, so we always called him Uncle," Dete explained. "And since my father had family ties to so many people in Doerfli, the habit of calling him Uncle just spread to everyone."

"And what became of Tobias?" Barbel asked, clearly caught up in the story.

"Tobias finished learning his trade in Mels, and once his apprenticeship was done, he came back to Doerfli and married my sister Adelaide. But their happiness didn't last. Two years into their marriage, Tobias died in an accident. His wife was so overwhelmed with grief that she fell ill with a fever she never recovered from. She'd always been somewhat frail, prone to strange spells where no one could tell if she was awake or asleep. Two months after Tobias was buried, she followed him to the grave. Everyone for miles around talked about