Page:Leah Reed--Brenda's summer at Rockley.djvu/347

Rh “Keep the change,” she said. “Come, Julia,” and crossing the street again, the two cousins followed Amy and Miss South through the collections of the Peabody Academy. They had time for little more than a passing glance at all the various treasures,—the curiosities from India  and China and all the East, the models of vessels that had  been famous in the days when Salem led in commerce. There was a genuine palanquin, there were gods that had once been worshipped in real temples, and all the trophies that the old sea-captains had brought back were so carefully classified, according to the country from which they  came, that to Julia, at least, it was tantalizing to have  only this passing glance.

“You can come again,” said Miss South, consolingly. “There is no reason why you should not come over by yourself some day. I am sure that Mrs. Barlow would let you—I should like to come myself, only I really cannot leave my grandmother very often.”

“Julia,” called Brenda, “we are going into this next room for a few minutes; there are some strange fish and  things like that there.”

“We might as well go on, too,” said Miss South. “I believe that they have a very complete collection of the  products of Essex County,—at least, I have read so. I do not know just what there is, at least from observation.”

“Do you really mean that everything here comes from Essex County,—all these minerals; why, see, ‘from an  old Coppermine near Topsfield;’ and here is a garnet; and  it came not so very far from Rockley. I did n’t know