CHAPTER VI
VACATION'S LAST FLING
"Gid-ap!" cried Betty, waving a willow switch, but not touching her oldhorse with it. Four or five girls were urging their gentle steeds alongthe pretty country road near the camp to which Betty Lee and Kathryn hadcome for their last fling before school.
"This is like old days at the farm," remarked Betty, rather jerkily, asher horse picked up his pace and stride and jolted her. One of the girlsthat Betty had recently met at camp passed now with a clatter of horse'shoofs and a flapping of girl elbows.
"She can't ride any better than we can," cried Kathryn, grinning. "It'sus for riding lessons this fall, isn't it Betty?"
Betty only nodded. This was great fun, riding up hill and down dale inthe country-side near the camp to which Betty had duly come, althoughall that they had planned had not been carried out. Mr. Lee had notbrought Mrs. Lee and Amy Lou to New England, since business in New Yorkheld him there. But the Penroses, driving up to the Maine village toinvestigate all its delights, of which they were hearing in letters fromGwen and cards from their sons, left at the psychological moment, Gwensaid, to take Kathryn and Betty with them.
It was a little hard to leave Carolyn behind. She had given up all ideaof camp and Betty really did not see how any one could leave the oceanunless she had to. But the restless boys had been making ready to leaveon some other trip, by boat, if Larry Waite had his way. There would besome scattering.
Betty and Kathryn were taken by car to Boston, where they embarked forNew York, going on a "delirious" jaunt by a coast steamer to New York.There they joined the Lees, Amy Lou doing the honors of the city withgreat dignity and telling the girls where to see different things ofimportance. Betty would not spoil Amy Lou's enthusiasm by reminding herthat she had been there before. That was one pleasant custom in the Leefamily, to give each member a fair chance with enthusiasms oraccomplishments. To take the wind out of anybody's sails--well, that wastoo deadly!
But Betty and Kathryn had a gay time for a a week. They ate lobster inone delightful place and had French dainties in another. And both agreedthat no summer which they ever should have could come up to this one.Here they were now in this wonderful camp; and Betty declared thathaving seen her father and mother and Amy Lou had been quite enough tostave off any homesickness. She never _would_ want to go home now.Imagine! School!
This was more like school in numbers, this Indiana camp of GirlReserves. The group in the Maine village had been more or less anexclusive, or small one. Here were about sixty girls, only a few of whomBetty knew, though there were some from other high schools in her homecity. And were they _friendly_--and _noisy_, at certain times? So Bettyqueried in her home letter written the day after arrival. But it wasonly the camp freedom, supervised, to be sure, that found expressionhere as in all camps.
Betty and Kathryn, rather expecting this to be something of ananti-climax after Maine, were pleasantly disappointed. Why, it was"gorgeous!" And it may be that the extravagant expressions of youth werejustified. It was "like being away to school--and without lessons!"Betty's only other camp experience had been a week-end attendance upon aFall Retreat. That she had "loved" and it had made her happy in herinterest in Lyon "T," but it did not last long enough. By arrangementshe was here for three weeks and would see some changes in the personnelof the girls. Many of them came for only a week; some, for two weeks.
The camp had been a gift to the Y. W. C. A., and consisted of thebuildings and grounds of a country resort, close to a tiny country town.The main building, originally a country hotel or club house, was athree-story structure and had been adapted to its present use, very muchlike a girls' dormitory. Wide porches, a large room with a fireplace forthe open fires they sometimes had in cool evenings, an immense diningroom, a big "back porch" which was practically a large room and nowglassed in and screened, to be thrown open often--all these wereprominent features.
There were several small cottages and because the next group of GirlReserves was a large one, Kathryn and Betty had been placed in one ofthese, as they were to stay over into the next period. The girls were atfirst a trifle disappointed, but when they found that a phoebe wasnesting on the ledge above their very door, undisturbed with theirpassing in and out, they were quite delighted.
Main building, cottages and all were perched on a wooded bluff above thebanks of a beautiful little river. It was not the ocean, to be sure, butBetty was satisfied when she first realized the loveliness of the place,its tall trees, the birds nesting close by and their songs in themorning. And oh, the nice space! Little country roads, deep hollows,thick woods, all sorts of growths with the wild flowers of the lateseason! There was a safe backwater in which to swim and bathe--and thewater was warm, and did not taste salty! Inland country had a beauty ofits own. Moreover, there was some one to tell you about everything.
A young science instructor from one of the colleges had charge of anature interest group, for which Betty and Kathryn promptly signed.Betty joined the dramatic group and Kathryn signed up for handicraft.Both were in the recreation group, and they concluded that a poetry clubwould be "instructive."
Yet it was not in the least like school and classes. The nature groupmet out under the trees and planned or executed a hike. The recreationgroup played tennis, volley ball and other outdoor games or scamperedover the country on horseback, as Betty and Kathryn were doing now. Thedramatic group took the lead in the funny plays or masquerades or stuntswith which the whole camp was entertained.
And now the girls were jogging slowly home from their ride. The horseswould be given a little rest and another set of riders would have theirturn.
"I had a note from Ramon this morning, Kathryn," said Betty, as she tiedher horse to the proper place and joined Kathryn in a stroll down thehill to the bridge that crossed the river. "I haven't had a good chancebefore to tell you without somebody around."
"Then he's still alive," said Kathryn, her eye on a rabbit that poppedout of the bushes and went scurrying down the little road.
"He was when he wrote it," giggled Betty. Then she sobered, thinkingthat it was not very nice of her to make a joke of anything connectedwith that harassed boy.
"You didn't tell us much about your talk with Ramon, Betty," remarkedKathryn, with an air of inviting confidences.
"There was so little of it," musingly returned Betty. "Look! There'sthat Kentucky warbler that we've been trying to see! I didn't know thatthey nested here till Miss Davenport told us."
"Well, Kentucky is the name of it, and if this _is_ Indiana, camp isn'tso far north of the Ohio River."
Even the girls' low voices had made the bird whisk out of sight again.Quiet indeed must she who follows the birds learn to be! There was nofurther conversation while the girls stealthily tiptoed to a vantagepoint and watched the thick bushes that concealed the warbler. Then--ohjoy!--there were both of the mates. First the male bird flew from thebush to a tree above. On a lower limb, in plain sight, he rested for afew moments, a ray of sunlight catching the bright yellow of his breastand showing clearly the black markings of the head. But whisk--they wereboth there on the same limb for a second, then gone! Bird study was likethat!
"Now you see them and now you don't see them!" said Betty, wishing thatshe had her notebook. "Don't let me forget, Kathryn, to put all thatdown for our reports, and about the little field sparrow's nest we foundat the foot of that tree. Gracious! I'm afraid now of _stepping_ on somenest when we dash around!"
"Go on about Ramon, Betty."
The girls stopped on the great bridge and leaned on its railing to lookdown at the water below. A little green heron started from a thicketclose to the river and a spotted sandpiper flew close to the sands orgravel upon a "sand-bar" and kept on its low flight for some distance upthe stream.
"I suppose I told you how relieved he was to hear that his mother andsister were found and all right. I tried to get him to see how much morehis mother would want him tha
n any money, but he doesn't look at it thatway."
"Maybe there's some reason we don't know, Betty. Then folks aredifferent about those things. Perhaps they _do_ care about the jewelsand their family and all more than about _living_, without them."
Betty considered. "I suppose they do hate to be taken advantage of and Isuppose awful things must have happened through that old scoundrel."Betty looked around almost as if she expected to see him. "Oh, let'sforget about it. Ramon Sevilla-sky will just have to have his oldadventures if he will be so obstinate. All he said in his letter wasthat he _was_ still alive and on the trail. He just wrote to thank mefor everything, he said, and he could write to Father later on, if hehad any success."
Kathryn, who had laughed at Betty's combination of Ramon's name,repeated meaningly "_if he has any success_!"
When the girls went back to headquarters again, they found thingshumming as usual in the merry beehive of activity. Bernadine Fisher, oneof the dramatic group, handed them each a large scrap of brown paper,torn in irregular shape and written upon with a very black pencil. Thiswas the invitation to a barn dance, to take place that evening. "Look ascrazy as you can," said Bernadine. "And after the barn dance we're goingto put on our masterpiece. Don't forget, Betty, that you are the heroinethat gets kidnapped and everything. Ask Miss Mercer about costume. Youremember we talked about that."
"Yes--but what do I _say_?"
"Oh, make it up! The heroine doesn't have to say much. She will probablybe gagged anyhow if she is kidnapped!"
"Yes, but I'm one of the villains," said Kathryn, "and we didn't writeup anything but the plot!"
"That's all right. We almost never do for a stunt like this. Just getthe general idea and work out the details as you do it."
Kathryn and Betty looked at each other with large-sized smiles asBernadine left them, though Betty was thinking to herself thatkidnapping and being gagged was not so funny in real life. She had seenRamon after such an experience.
"This goes in my stunt-book," said Kathryn, holding up the artisticallytorn piece of brown paper. "It's loads of fun, Betty, but I guess we'dbetter see Miss Mercer about when to come in with our speeches. Itwouldn't do to be standing around waiting for each other before theaudience. What did I ever let you work me into this play for?"
"You know you wouldn't miss it, Gypsy! Oh, yes, Miss Davenport, I shouldsay we _will_ help you put up the bird pictures! Wait till I get thethumb tacks for you. Have we really seen that many?"
On the big sun porch Kathryn and Betty were soon busy helping put up,from the excellent portfolio of bird pictures published by the New YorkState Museum or the "University of the State of New York," such picturesas represented birds actually seen by the nature group in camp. "We havenot as many as we would see in the migration season," Miss Davenportexplained, "but it is easy enough to get at least fifty birds that nestabout here on our list. I'm making a tree list now for the camp; anddon't forget to report all the wild flowers, girls."
The play that night was a great success, a few bad moments for theactors, when something wrong was done, resulting only in shrieks ofdelight and enjoyment from the audience. It was rather entertaining tohear several startled and perfectly distinct remarks from a heroine thatwas supposed to be unable to speak or call for aid. But Betty thoughtshe was going to be dropped by the excited villains and spoke before shethought. "Oh!" she finished much mortified, and Kathryn saved the day byclapping a hand over the heroine's mouth and calling for "another gag."
"She will rouse the neighbors yet!" cried Kathryn with a dramaticgesture, "and all will be lost! See, varlets, that you make a good jobof it this time!" True, "varlets" and "job" scarcely seemed to belong tothe same vernacular, but what mattered a little thing like that?Besides, they were giving a "real play" at the end of the week.
Ah, the fun they had, the friendships they made and the lessons theylearned in "good sportsmanship" and living together! From reveille totaps they went from one activity to another, or slept in rest hour, orsang at meals. Two things Betty declared that she could never forget.One was a wet evening when a fire in the big fireplace was comfortable.It was their hearth fire and camp fire in one and the girls sat aroundon the floor before it or ranged themselves in comfortable seats at agreater distance, while one of the young teachers who was a finestory-teller told all that they asked for of the old tales, and moreamusing or thrilling newer ones.
The other great moment came during the beautiful ceremonial at the endof the period. Betty and Kathryn had been leaders in the schoolorganization and found themselves useful here. Both received honors atthe recognition service. And oh, that lovely night, with its moon, itsfirelight outdoors, its lights carried by the girls among the shadowsand its inspiration!
"I like you, Betty Lee," facetiously, yet truthfully said one of thecamp directors as Betty bid her goodbye on the big bridge. A wholeprocession of girls was walking across it to take the train at thevillage station and a loaded old truck was ahead of them with suitcasesgalore.
The young director withdrew her arm which she had linked with Betty's asshe strolled with the girls as far as the bridge.
"I mean it," laughed she. "You are a wholesome, happy girl, and I likeyour influence upon other girls. I hope you'll be president of Lyon 'Y'this year again."
Betty shook her head in the negative, looking ahead at Kathryn who waswalking with one of their many new friends. "No--I've had that and Iwant Kathryn in this year, if possible. But I'll work for it just ashard and all the more for having been here! Thank you for your goodopinion of me--I'll try to deserve it. And we all just love _you_! Thankyou for everything! I've had just the _happiest_ time!"
"I'm glad of that, my dear. Come back next year for we have bigger plansthan ever. Remember, Betty Lee, that wherever you go you are going tohave an influence you do not realize on other girls."
"Mercy, Miss Dale, don't tell me that! I don't _want_ to! If there'sanything I hate it's trying to manage anybody!"
"I don't mean that," smiled Miss Dale. "You may find out what I do meansome day."
But Betty dismissed this thought. The train was late and as thecrowd of girls waited they sang _Skin-a-ma-rink-a-dink-a-dink_,_Sing-a-linga-ling_, _Yawning_, and other camp classics, varied by theirown versions and their hiking and goodbye songs. A tear or two had to bewiped away over a few sentimental partings. But after the train came in,demure and bright-eyed travelers happily boarded it.