CHAPTER VII
A SAILING PARTY
"What a time you have been done!" exclaimed Jennie when Edna appeared."How did you happen to go to the bungalow? Come in and tell us allabout it. Mother, here's Edna," she sang out.
"Come in to the fire," said Mrs. Ramsey from the door of theliving-room. "These sea-turns chill one to the marrow. Was that Rudolphwho brought you over? That was very nice of him. I was just about totell Mack he'd better go for you."
Edna entered the house and stood before the fire. Dorothy who wasestablished near at hand, looked up from the book she was reading."Hallo, Edna," she said, and then returned to her book.
"How did you happen to go to the bungalow?" Jennie repeated herquestion, coming over to where Edna stood.
"It was the fog," Edna told her, and then she went on to give anaccount of her adventures. She had not proceeded very far before downwent Dorothy's book, and she was as interested a listener as Jennie andher mother.
"Oh, Edna," she said, when the tale was ended, "how dreadful it allwas, and here we were half mad with you and not knowing anything aboutwhat was happening. Suppose, just suppose, that the tide had come upand, oh dear, oh dear, Edna I am so sorry we were hateful to you thismorning."
"But you were not hateful," Edna protested, "and I don't suppose Iought to have gone off with Louis, but you see--"
"Yes, we do see," Jennie interrupted her, "and nobody was to blame butLouis. Wasn't he the one, Mother?"
"I am afraid so," responded Mrs. Ramsey, "though my dear, I think youshould have remembered that both Edna and Louis were your guests andthat the proper thing to do was to propose some play in which you couldall join. Little boys are not expected to play with dolls, you know."
Jennie hung her head, but Edna gave Mrs. Ramsey a grateful look, forwhat she said was very true. But seeing that Jennie looked quitedowncast Edna spoke up cheerfully. "Well, it is all over now, andI did have a very nice time at the bungalow. I had lunch out of therefrigerator, and Miss Eloise told me a lovely story. No, she didn'teither, she didn't but half tell it for Louis came before it was done.Oh, Jennie, I wore Miss Eloise's shoes and stockings while mine weregetting dry, and they were only a little bit too big for me. I wore herblue kimono, too."
"I'm awfully glad you had a good time," said Jennie earnestly, "butif I had known what was going on I should have been very unhappy. Wedidn't have a very good time as it was, did we, Dorothy?"
"No, we didn't," Dorothy agreed. "We missed you, Edna, and we were outof sorts all the time. Please stay with us next time."
"I think Edna will do that," said Mrs. Ramsey gently, "for I think wemust make a rule that no one of you is to go anywhere that you cannotall go, and then you will all be safer."
Edna felt that this was a very good rule, and was sure that Mrs. Ramseyhad made it for her protection, since now she could always say toLouis, "No, I can't go unless the others do." So she looked up in Mrs.Ramsey's face and said, "I like that rule."
Mrs. Ramsey smiled down at her. "I am glad you do."
However, so far as Louis went, there was little need of rules, for hekept away several days, having found a playmate in the person of a boyof about his own age who had come to the hotel to spend a few weeks."The boy's father had a boat, a sail boat," Louis informed the girlswhen he saw them, and Louis was invited to go out every day in it, soany other amusement which they could offer paled before this.
At the end of the week Mr. Ramsey came up for a longer stay thanbefore, and who should appear in the harbor about the same time butEdna's big boy cousin, Ben Barker. Everybody liked Ben, for he was anentirely different sort of somebody from Louis. He had come up withsome of his college friends on a yacht, but was frequently ashore.
"I thought no one less than the King of Spain had arrived," declaredMr. Ramsey when he beheld the tumultuous welcome given Ben by the threelittle girls.
"He is much nicer than the King of Spain," Jennie told him.
"And this from my own daughter whose father has just arrived," said Mr.Ramsey laughing. "You are certainly a popular young man, Mr. Barker."
"Oh, don't call him Mr. Barker; call him Ben; we do," said Jennie.
"That is as he likes, my dear."
"Oh, everybody calls me Ben," the young man told him.
"Ben be it, then. And where are you staying, Ben?"
"On the yacht with the boys, sir. We are cruising up the coast, andthought this would be a good place to anchor for a few days. We're notall boys, for the father of one of my chums, the fellow who owns theyacht, is with us, so is one of the college professors, and Edna, youwill never guess who is one of the party."
"Who?"
"Guess."
"Celia, my sister Celia."
"Wrong. No ladies aboard."
"Then, let me see--not papa?"
Ben shook his head. "You're a little warmer."
"One of the boys; Frank or Charlie."
"No small fry."
"Then, please tell, I can't possibly guess."
"Your Uncle Justus."
"Oh, Ben, really?"
"Yes, ma'am, thy servant speaketh truly."
"But where is he? and why didn't he come up with you?"
"Because I wasn't sure how far it might be to this house, or howdifficult it might be to get here."
"You don't mean that it is Professor Horner of whom you are speaking,"said Mr. Ramsey.
"Yes, sir, Mr. Justus Horner."
"Well, well, well. Certainly we must have him over here. I will gospeak to Mrs. Ramsey about it. How did you come over, Ben?"
"I rowed over."
"Then, if you will permit me to take an oar I will go back with you andcall upon your goodly company. Whose is the yacht, did you say?"
"Clem McAllister's."
"Son of Davis McAllister? Why, I know his father well, and his fatheris on board, too, I believe you said. A double reason for my going." Hehurried off to speak to his wife while Ben and the three little girlscontinued the conversation.
"What do you think we saw in the water last night?" Ben asked them.
"Oh what?" they asked in a breath. "Was it a whale?" said Jennie.
"No."
"Not a man? Oh, Ben, was it, and had he fallen overboard?"
"No, it wasn't a man."
"Then maybe it was a shark." This from Dorothy. "I'd hate to see ashark; it would scare me to death."
"It wasn't a shark."
"Then perhaps it was only a porpoise. They do come in quite nearsometimes," Jennie ventured this.
"No, it was nothing of a fishy nature."
"Then we can't guess. Tell us, Ben," Edna begged.
"All give it up?"
"Yes, yes, yes."
"It was a--" he paused and looked impressively at each one, "a--Ihardly know how to describe it, for it seemed to be amphibious, havingonce lived on land, and yet I doubt if it will live there ever again."
"Do you mean it will never be on land again?" Dorothy asked.
"I didn't say that. I said I doubted its ever living on land. I reallydon't see how it could, though of course it might possibly be there.This is a case when there is a difference between being and living."
"What was it doing when you saw it?" asked Jennie.
"It was headed for the harbor, I should say."
"Then it might have been a ship or a boat." Jennie began to think shewas getting some light.
"You are a very clever child, Miss Ramsey, but your intuitions fail youupon this occasion."
"Then we give it up. We did give it up, Ben, you know, and then youstarted us guessing again. What was it?"
"It was about five feet long, I should judge," Ben went onthoughtfully, and as if he had no idea of their having stoppedguessing. "Its body was reared some distance above the water, but itwas making its way very successfully, I thought."
"It was a dog!" cried Edna triumphantly.
"Of course it was," echoed the others.
Ben heaved a long sigh. "
How mistaken persons can be when they are surethey are right. I admit that if I were writing about this object youmight think I was writing about a dog, but I wouldn't be because it wasnot a dog."
"Then it was a horse or some kind of animal." Dorothy was very sure ofthis.
Ben slowly shook his head. "On the wrong track, my dear Dorothy."
"But you said it had lived on land, though you doubted if it ever woulddo so again."
"Yes, verily, so said I."
"Then we won't guess any more, will we girls? We gave it up and it hasto stay given up."
"Do you really want to know?"
"Oh, we're not particular," replied Dorothy, with a little toss of herhead.
"Oh, well, then," said Ben, "I won't bother myself to tell you." Hepicked up the morning paper as if the last word had been said on thesubject.
"Ben Barker, you are just the worst tease," said Edna, tousling hishair. "You've just got to tell us after rousing our curiosity."
"Oh, I am willing to tell you if you really want to know, but I thoughtyou didn't. It was a large piece of driftwood."
"Oh, you mean, mean thing!" Edna began to pommel him with her fist andthe others joined in.
"See here," cried Ben, "three against one isn't fair, is it, Mr.Ramsey?" he appealed to that gentleman who just then came in.
Mr. Ramsey laughed. "I see it is high time to come to your rescue. Areyou ready? If so, I am at your service."
Ben shook himself free of the little girls, picked them up one afteranother and tossed them in a heap among the cushions of the divan, thenstrode off in Mr. Ramsey's wake.
The girls, laughing and squealing, crawled out from the cushions to runafter the departing figures, but these had already gone too far to beovertaken and they returned to watch them row off.
In about an hour they were back again, bringing a third person. It wasEdna who first caught sight of the approaching boat. "I see the boatcoming," she sang out, "and there are three persons in it. Oh, girls, Iknow who is coming; it is Uncle Justus. I know him by his whiskers andhis eyebrows, though he isn't wearing a hat, but a funny cap. Do comeand see."
"Let's go down to the landing and meet them," proposed Jennie.
This was at once agreed upon and the three little girls went flyingacross the sands, so as to be on hand when the boat should come up. Itseemed very queer to see Uncle Justus in yachting cap and flannels whenhe had always appeared in most severe dress, and never on any occasionwore such a frivolous thing as a cap. He appeared to have thrown offsome of his dignity, too, for he stepped ashore with much agility andactually ran up the long board landing to meet Edna.
"Well, well, well, little girl," he cried, "isn't this a great meeting?"
"It is just fine," returned Edna. "I am mighty glad to see you, UncleJustus. Are you glad to see me?"
"Not a doubt of it. Did you ever expect to see your old uncle sportingaround with a lot of college boys? I am continually surprising myselfby saying or doing something I had forgotten, and which belongsproperly to youth. They are a great set, those college boys."
By this time Jennie and Dorothy had come up and were given heartygreetings. Professor Horner in the character of a yachtman was rathera different person from the grave and severe schoolmaster whose schoolthey attended. As for Edna, she was so divided between her desire tobe with her favorite cousin Ben and with Uncle Justus, of whom shewas very fond, that she swung between her two desires like a pendulumtill Ben caught her and pretended he was going to throw her overboardbecause she would not walk with him up to the house. By the timethis pretended squabble was over Uncle Justus was well ahead with Mr.Ramsey, so the three little girls attended Ben like satellites.
"You're going to stay to dinner, Mr. Horner said so," Jennie told Benin a satisfied voice.
"And do you know what we are going to do to-morrow?"
"No. What are you going to do?"
"We are going to have our breakfast on the yacht." Ben gave thisinformation as if it were a great piece of news.
"But I thought you always did that."
"So we do."
Jennie looked puzzled, but Edna laughed. It was so like cousin Ben todo that way. "It is so nice to have you here," said Edna, fondling thehand that held hers. She and the others had settled it that as Ben washer own cousin she had prior claim to his right hand and the other twohung on his left arm, getting in one another's way a great deal in aneffort to establish an equal right.
Ben's presence at the lunch table kept the little girls in a state ofgiggles, which was aggravated by the inquiring look Uncle Justus wouldgive them over his spectacles once in a while, as if he would say, Whyall this merriment when there is no apparent cause?
It was at the lunch table that Mr. Ramsey proposed a sailing party forthe next afternoon. "I have been promising these young people for sometime that I would take them out," he said. "Old Cap'n Si has a goodboat, and Mrs. Ramsey has promised we shall have a supper to take withus. Gosling Island is a pretty place, and I think you will all enjoythe sail. What do you say, Mr. Horner? Will you and Ben go with us?"
"I cannot speak for my young friend," replied Mr. Horner, "but formyself, I should be delighted to go, especially as you and your goodlady are to be my shipmates."
At the words "good lady," Ben opened his eyes very wide at Edna and shecollapsed into a fresh attack of giggles while Ben turned gravely toMr. Ramsey to say, "And I shall be delighted, too, Mr. Ramsey. I thinkit will give the boys on the yacht a treat if I spare them my presencefor one afternoon."
"Now, Benjamin, you are entirely too modest," said Mr. Horner. "He isquite the life of the party, Mr. Ramsey, I assure you. They will notmiss an old fogy like me, but young blood like Ben's gives a greatinfusion of spirits."
The little girls stole a glance at Ben. He had meekly folded his handsand was looking down with such an expression of humility that not onlythe little girls but Mrs. Ramsey had to laugh. Truly it was anythingbut a solemn meal.
The next day dawned bright and fair to the delight of three ratheranxious little girls who were fearful lest gray skies would put a stopto any plans for the sailing party. But alas, as the day wore on itbecame more and more doubtful whether one of the three little maidswould be able to go, for Edna, who waked with a little headache, becameworse and worse, and by lunch time found it would be impossible forher to eat anything, and could be comfortable only when lying down.She was so disappointed and tried to persuade herself that the feelingof dizziness would pass away, and that she would be better by the timethey were ready to start.
However, it was Mrs. Ramsey who finally decided that she must not thinkof going. "Dearie," she said, "I am much afraid you would be worse forgoing. It isn't everyone who can go in a sailing vessel without beingseasick, and I am a little doubtful for Dorothy and Miss Eloise, butin your present condition I am very sure it would be anything but apleasure to you."
Jennie who stood by listening with much concern, spoke up. "Couldn't weput it off, Mother?"
"I think we can promise to go another time, but not with the sameparty, for the yacht will continue her cruise up the coast, so Bentells me, and will not be here after to-morrow morning. Your fatherwants particularly to have Mr. Horner go with us, you see--"
"Then I'm not going," said Jennie decidedly.
Edna raised herself on her elbow. "Indeed you must," she said. "I thinkit is lovely of you, Jennie, to want to stay, but you see, I couldn'tplay or do anything but lie still, and I should be very unhappy if youwere to stay on my account. Please say she must go, Mrs. Ramsey. Ifshe stays, then Dorothy will think she must and it will spoil it for somany that it wouldn't do at all."
"I think Jennie ought to go," said Mrs. Ramsey, after a moment'sthought, "for we have asked Mrs. Duncan and her little girl, but Ishall stay to take care of you."
Edna raised her head again. "Oh, but Mrs. Ramsey, that will be just asbad. I am not so ill as that, indeed I am not. It is only that I feeldizzy when I raise my head. If I keep very quiet I may
be well by thetime you can get back. Besides, if it isn't polite for Jennie to stayhome because you have invited Grace Duncan, then it wouldn't be politefor you because you have invited Mrs. Duncan."
Mrs. Ramsey smiled at this laying down of the law, but continued,"I am sure our friends will understand why I am not going when it isexplained to them."
"Oh, but," Edna went on, "I shall be much sicker if you stay, because Ishall feel as if it were all on my account. It makes me sicker just tothink of it. Please, dear Mrs. Ramsey, go. Emma can take care of me andI shall not want anything, but just to keep still."
She looked so imploring and was really so distressed that Mrs. Ramseywavered. "I am sure it is not a very serious illness," she admitted,"and Emma is really a very good nurse. I could leave word with her totelephone for the doctor if you were to grow worse, I suppose."
"Oh, yes, that will be all right, and I shall not be any worse unlessyou stay at home."
"In that case," returned Mrs. Ramsey smiling, "it would seem the wisestplan for me to go. I will tell Emma to keep within hearing. She cantake her mending in the next room and sit there, or would you ratherlie on the divan in the living-room?"
"I'll stay here for awhile, and if I get better I can go down there,"Edna decided.
So, in due course of time they all left her, with many protestations,and loving farewells. "If you can get to sleep," said Mrs. Ramsey, "Ithink you will wake up feeling better. Emma can darken the room and itwill be very quiet."
So off they went, and Edna turned with a little sigh of regret andtried to compose herself to sleep. She closed her eyes and presentlyheard Emma tip-toeing about the room, softly drawing down the shades.After all it was rather pleasant and restful to lie there undisturbed,to know that nothing was expected of her, and that she did not have topretend to feel better than she really was. Her head did not ache sobadly when she kept perfectly still, and there was Emma near at handif she should want anything. She heard the gentle plash of the wateron the beach, and once in a while the distant "Putter, putter" of amotor-boat, but that was all. She wondered if Ben would miss her. Shewas sure Uncle Justus would. They were all getting in the boat now,and now they were sailing off, sailing off, and presently Edna herselfsailed off, too, into the sea of Dreams.