10 Extraordinary News

CHAPTER 10 Extraordinary News The truth was that Mrs. Errol had found many sad things in the village of Erlesboro. The people were poor and sick and feeling hopeless. When Mrs. Errol had first visited, it made her shudder. It was crowded and dirty and sad. As she watched the sick children running around with ragged clothes on their backs, she thought of her own son, spending his days in a splendid castle, living like a prince. And it gave her a bold idea. Cedric had the good fortune of being the

earl's favorite companion. The earl wanted to please the boy however he could. If there was something that Cedric wanted, the earl would not refuse him. Mrs. Errol knew she could trust her son's kind, innocent heart. So she told him the story of Earl's Court. She told him everything. She felt sure that he would mention it to his grandfather. The earl heard Cedric's story, but didn't know what to say at first. He knew he wasn't a good person. But he loved that his grandson thought he was good, and admired him for it. What could he do? Look into those warm brown eyes and say, "I am a selfish old rascal. I never did a good thing in my life, and I don't care about Earl's Court or the poor people"? He couldn't say that. And so he called for Newick. They decided that they would tear down the horrible

houses in Earl's Court and build new ones. "It is Lord Fauntleroy who wants this," the earl told Newick. "You can tell the tenants that it was his idea." It happened just as Mrs. Errol had hoped it would. Soon enough, workers had come to tear down the dirty cottages. Everyone in the village knew that little Lord Fauntleroy had helped them again. If the boy only knew how they talked about him and praised him everywhere, how astonished he would have been! But he never realized. He lived his simple, happy life as usual. He played in the gardens. He read wonderful books and talked about them with the earl. He wrote long letters to Dick and to Mr. Hobbs. He rode his pony into town at his grandfather's side. Cedric and the earl often rode over to Earl's Court together to watch the cottages

being built. Cedric liked to learn about building and bricklaying. He asked many questions, and ended up making friends with all the workers. When he left, the workers would talk about him. They would go home and tell their wives about him. And the women would tell one another. Soon, almost everyone in the village knew some story about little Lord Fauntleroy. And they knew that the "wicked earl" had found someone he cared for at last. Someone had finally warmed his bitter old heart. But no one knew quite how much it had warmed. Day by day, the earl found himself caring more for his grandson, the only creature who had ever trusted him. The earl looked forward to the day the boy would grow up. He wondered what he'd become. The boy can do anything! he would tell

himself. One evening, just before the Earl's Court cottages were finished, there was a grand dinner party at Dorincourt Castle. There had not been a dinner party there for a long time. The earl had even invited his sister, Lady Lorridaile. They hadn't spoken in many, many years. But when she and her husband received the invitation to go to the castle and meet the earl's heir, she couldn't resist. Lady Lorridaile had heard a great many things about her brother over the years. She knew that he had paid very little attention to his children. And she knew how he had disliked them when they were older, especially the first two boys. She knew how ashamed of them he had been. She had met only the earl's youngest son, Captain Errol. He had come to visit her on his own. Lady Lorridaile's kind heart had

warmed through and through at the sight of him, and she had made him stay with her for a week. He was so sweet and light-hearted that she hoped to see him again. But when the earl found out about the stay, he told his son to never visit again. Lady Lorridaile always remembered Captain Errol tenderly. She had heard about his marriage in New York and agreed that it was too quick, but she was very angry to hear that her brother had disowned him. Then came news of the captain's death. And then his two older brothers had died. And soon after came the story of the American child who had been brought to England to be Lord Fauntleroy. Lady Lorridaile had become even angrier when she learned how the earl treated the little Lord Fauntleroy's mother. It was a disgrace. The stories of the kind, generous Lord Fauntleroy and what he had done for the