CHAPTER SEVEN

The Governor's Office

Hester Prynne went one day to the house of Governor Bellingham with a handsome pair of gloves, which he had requested she sew. She went to see the governor for a much more important reason than to deliver the pair of gloves, however. She had heard that some leaders in the community wished to take Pearl from her. Some believed that Pearl was an evil child of the devil's. They believed that the child must be given to a Christian family to be raised. One of the main supporters of this idea was Governor Bellingham.

Hester was worried about her child's happiness, but knew that it was her right to raise her daughter. She then left her little cottage with her small companion. Little Pearl, of course, was dressed looking like a tiny princess, with the most elegant material in the area. Hester always dressed her daughter to match the fashion of the scarlet letter on her chest, which she wore as a punishment. And, standing next to her in material just as fancy and elegant, was her child, the scarlet letter in another form; the scarlet letter given life! The mother had tried to show the similarities between the scarlet letter and the clothing she dressed her child in.

As the two came into the town, the children of the Puritans looked up, and spoke to each other.

"Look, there is the woman of the scarlet letter, and the copy of the scarlet letter running along by her side! Come, therefore, and we will throw mud at them!"

But Pearl, who was a fearless child, ran to the children, screaming loudly and kicking her feet. The children ran away immediately. After the children were gone, she returned quietly to her mother, looking up to smile into her face.

They soon reached the house of Governor Bellingham and were led into the house by one of the servants. They were told to wait in the hall for a short time, as the governor was in a meeting. As they waited, the mother and daughter admired the high-class look of the home, with great paintings of Bellingham relatives and swords on the wall. Pearl walked around the room, looking at the decorations, and found a large mirror on one of the walls.

"Mother," cried she, "I see you here. Look! Look!"

As Hester looked into the mirror, she noticed that the scarlet letter in the mirror looked to be the main feature of her appearance. She seemed to be hidden behind it.

"Come along, Pearl," said she. "Come and look into the garden. We shall see some beautiful flowers."

She took Pearl to sit near the window, looking out at the garden. In England, flower gardens were quite popular, but in this old English gentleman's garden, there were no flowers decorating the outside of the home. The ground in the new town was dry and difficult, therefore, the garden had only dull vegetables planted. There were a few rosebushes, however, and a number of apple trees.

Pearl, seeing the rosebushes, began to cry for a red rose, and would not quiet herself.

"Quiet, child, quiet!" said her mother. "Do not cry, dear little Pearl! I hear voices in the garden. The governor is coming, and gentlemen along with him!"

A number of people soon came towards the house. Pearl, wishing to disobey her mother, screamed loudly, then was silent. She was quiet, not to obey her mother, but because she was curious about the appearance of these new people.

(end of section)