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O. HENRY, THE LAST LEAF^ Entnommen aus:
HEINEMANN ELT GUIDED READERS
O. Henry, The Last Leaf and Other Stories.
ISBN 3-19-002712-
In the 1890s, many artists lived in Greenwich Village, inNew York City. 1
Sue and Johnsy were artists. The two girls met each other in the month of May, at a restaurant in GreenwichVillage.
‘I’m from the State of Maine,’ Sue said to Johnsy. ‘I draw pictures for stories in magazines.’
‘I’m from California,’ Johnsy said to Sue. ‘But I want to go to Italy. I want to paint a picture of the Bay of Naples!’
The two girls talked happily for an hour – about art, about clothes, about food.
Soon after their first meeting, Sue and Johnsy moved into a studio apartment together. Their rooms were at thetop of an old brick house in Greenwich Village.
In December, it was very cold in New York. Snow fell and there was ice in the ground. Many people in the citybecame ill. The illness was called pneumonia. The doctorstried to help the sick people, but many of them died.
That month, Johnsy had pneumonia. She was very ill. She lay in her bed and she did not move. A doctor visitedher every day. But Johnsy was not getting better.
One morning, the doctor spoke quietly to Sue outside Johnsy’s room.
‘I can’t help her,’ the doctor said. ‘She is very sad. She doesn’t want to live. Someone must make her happy again.What is she interested in?’
‘She’s
an
artist,’
Sue
replied.
‘She
wants
to
paint
a
picture of the Bay of Naples.’
‘Painting!’ said the doctor. ‘That won’t help her!’The doctor left the apartment.Sue went into her own room and she cried quietly for a few minutes. Then she picked up her drawing board andsome pencils. She started to sing a happy song and walkedinto Johnsy’s room.
Johnsy lay silently in her bed. Her face was thin and white. She was looking towards the window.
‘Johnsy is asleep,’ Sue thought.She stopped singing and she sat down in a corner of the room. Then she started to draw a picture for a magazine.Suddenly, Sue heard a quiet sound. She went quickly to theside of the bed. Johnsy’s eyes were open. She was lookingout of the window and she was speaking quietly.
O. HENRY, THE LAST LEAF^ Entnommen aus:
HEINEMANN ELT GUIDED READERS
O. Henry, The Last Leaf and Other Stories.
ISBN 3-19-002712-
‘Twelve,’ Johnsy said. A little later, she said ‘eleven’. Thenshe said ‘ten’. Then ‘nine’. And then she said ‘eight’ and‘seven’ almost together. She was counting backwards. 2
What was Johnsy looking at? What was she counting? Sue looked out of the window.
Outside the window, Sue saw the brick wall of the next house. An old vine grew against the wall. There were veryfew leaves on its branches.
‘Six,’ Johnsy said. ‘They’re falling faster. Three days ago, there was almost a hundred. Ah, there goes another! Thereare only five now.’
‘Five? What are you talking about, Johnsy?’ Sue asked. ‘Please tell me.’
‘There are only five leaves on the vine now,’ said Johnsy. ‘The last leaf will fall soon and then I’ll die. Didn’t the doctortell you about the leaves?’
‘Don’t say that! You’re not going to die!’ Sue said. ‘You’re going to get better. The doctor told me that this morning. I’llbring
you
some
soup
and
I’ll
draw
my
picture.
The
magazine will pay me quickly. Then I’ll buy us some nicefood.’
Johnsy was still looking at the vine. ‘There are only four leaves now,’ she said. ‘I don’t want any soup. The last leafwill fall soon.’
‘Johnsy, dear,’ Sue said. ‘Please close your eyes and go to sleep. I have to finish this drawing by tomorrow. And Idon’t want you to look at those leaves any more.’
Johnsy closed her eyes. ‘But I want to watch the last leaf,’ she said again. ‘It will fall soon. The leaves are tired.I’m tired too. I want to die.’
‘Please
try
to
sleep,’ Sue
said.
‘I’m
going
to
talk
to
Behrman for a minute. I must have a model for my drawing.Behrman will be my model.’
Old Behrman lived downstairs. He was also an artist, but he had never painted a good picture. He was sad about thisand he was angry about it too.
‘One day, I will paint a wonderful picture,’ Behrman often said. ‘One day, I will paint a masterpiece.’
But he had never painted a masterpiece. And he was more than sixty years old.Sue found the little old man in his dark room. She told himabout Johnsy and the vine leaves.
O. HENRY, THE LAST LEAF^ Entnommen aus:
HEINEMANN ELT GUIDED READERS
O. Henry, The Last Leaf and Other Stories.
ISBN 3-19-002712-
you to die.’Johnsy did not answer.The leaf stayed on the vine all day. That night, there was more wind and rain.
In the morning, Johnsy woke early again. ‘Pull up the shade,’ she said.
The leaf was still on the vine. Johnsy lay in her bed and she looked at it for a long time. Then she called to Sue.
‘I’ve been a very foolish girl, Sue,’ she said. ‘I wanted to die. But the last leaf has stayed on the vine. It has taughtme a lesson. Please, bring me a bowl of soup now.’
An hour later, Johnsy spoke again.Sue, my dear,’ she said. ‘One day, I’m going to paint a picture of the Bay of Naples!’
The doctor visited the girls in the afternoon. He looked atJohnsy carefully and he held Sue’s thin hand.‘Take good care of your friend,’ he said. ‘She is going to getwell. Now I have to go downstairs. I have to visit Mr
Behrman. He has pneumonia too. I must send him to thehospital.’
The next day, the doctor spoke to Sue again.
‘Your friend will soon be well,’ he said. Then he told her some other news.
That afternoon, Sue went into Johnsy’s room and she put her arm around her friend’s shoulders. ‘Mr Behrmandied this morning, in the hospital,’ she said. ‘Two days ago,one of the neighbours found him in his bedroom. Behrmanwas very ill. His shoes and clothes were cold and wet. Theneighbour sent for the doctor. Later, the neighbour found aladder outside in the yard. There was a lamp next to it. Andthere were brushes, and some yellow and green paint.’‘Johnsy, look out of the window,’ Sue said quietly. ‘Look atthe last leaf on the vine. It’s still there. It has never moved inthe wind. Didn’t that surprise you? It’s Behrman’smasterpiece, dear. He painted it on the night of the storm.’
