CHAPTER XVI
DRESSING FOR THE BALL
"How are Miss Ella and Louise going?" asked Douglas, as she stooped fora parting glance in the mirror which the sloping ceiling necessitatedhanging so low that a girl as tall as Douglas could not see above hernose without bending double.
"In their phaeton," answered Helen. "They don't mind driving themselves.I asked them. You see with Sam gone they can't get out the big oldrockaway."
"They must keep along near the hay wagon. Such old ladies should not bealone on the road," said Douglas.
"I dare you to tell them that! They have no fear of anything or anybody.They say they have lived alone in this county for so many, many yearsthat they are sure nobody will ever harm them."
"Well, I am sure nobody ever would," said Nan.
The girls had decided that the only way to take care of so many guestswas to double up "in layers," as Lucy called it. Bobby was sent overinto the new house with Lewis and Bill, his old tent mates, for whom Nanand Lucy had vacated their room while they came over to the old houseand brought Tillie Wingo with them.
"Three in a double bed and two in a single bed wouldn't be so bad aftera ball," Nan had declared.
Dressing for the ball was the more difficult feat, however. The ceilingwas so low and sloping and Tillie Wingo did take up so much room withher fluffy ruffles. The Carter girls were glad to see the volubleTillie. She was such a gay, good-natured person and seemed so pleased tobe included in this pleasure party. She looked as pretty as a pink in amuch beruffled painted chiffon; and while they were dressing, sheobligingly showed Helen the very latest steps in dancing.
Helen was charming in her birthday present dress. Nan declared shelooked like the princess in the fairy tale with the dress like themoonlight.
"With all my finery, I don't look nearly so well as you do, Douglas,"Helen declared.
Indeed Douglas was beautiful. She had on the graduating dress, the priceof which had caused her so much concern the spring before. With carefulripping out of sleeves and snipping down of neck, Mrs. Carter hadconverted it into an evening dress with the help of a wonderful lacefichu, something left over from her own former splendor.
The sight of her eldest daughter all dressed in the ball gown broughttears of regret to poor Mrs. Carter's eyes.
"What a debutante you would have made!" she sighed. "You have a queenlysomething about you that is quite rare in a debutante and might havemade the hit of the season."
"Oh, Mumsy, I'm a much better district school teacher!" and Douglasblushed with pleasure at her mother's rare praise.
The girl had seen a subtle difference in her mother's manner to her eversince she had felt it her duty to take a stand about their affairs. Mrs.Carter was ever gentle, ever courteous, but Douglas knew that she lookedupon her no longer as her daughter somehow,--rather as a kind oftaskmistress that Fate had set over her.
The young men were gathered in the living-room waiting for the girls andwhen they burst upon them in all the glory of ball gowns they quitedazzled them.
"Douglas!" gasped Lewis in an ill-concealed whisper, "you somehow makeme think of an Easter lily."
"Well, I don't feel like one a bit. I can't fancy an Easter lily'sdancing, and I mean to dance every dance I get a chance and all theothers, too."
"I reckon I can promise you that," grinned her cousin.
Bill Tinsley made no ado of taking the pretty Tillie in his arms andopening the ball with a whistled fox trot.
"I'm going to get the first dance with you, and to make sure I'll justtake it now, please."
"Don't you like my dress?" asked Helen, twirling around on her toebefore Dr. Wright, whose eyes plainly showed that he not only liked thedress but what was in the dress rather more than was good for the peaceof mind of a rising young nerve specialist.
"Lovely!" he exclaimed, not looking at the dress at all, but at thecharming face above the dress.
"Douglas gave it to me for a birthday present,--it was her extravagance,not mine. I think she is about the sweetest thing in all the world. Theonly thing that worries me is mashing it all up in the Suttons' haywagon."
"Are the roads so very bad? Why not go in my car?"
"They are pretty bad, but no worse than the road from Richmond. Itcertainly is strange how that road changes. It was fine when the agentbrought us out here to see the place. Wasn't it?"
"It was, but I don't think it is such a very bad road now. It may bebecause I like to travel on it. But come on and go with me in my car. Ifyou will trust your dress and neck to me."
"I will, since you put my dress first! Somehow that makes me feel youwill be careful of it and respect it."
A rattle of wheels and Billy Sutton came driving up in a great hay wagonfilled with nice, clean straw, and close on his heels were Mr. and Mrs.Sutton in their carriage, which was to take Mr. and Mrs. Carter sedatelyto the ball.
"Helen and I are going in my car. Does anyone want to occupy the backseat?" asked George Wright, hoping he would be paid for his politenessby a refusal.
"No indeed, I adore a hay wagon! It's so nice and informal," criedTillie.
Douglas did want to go, but felt perhaps it was up to her to chaperonethe youngsters in the hay wagon, so for once Dr. Wright thought he wasto get Helen for a few moments to himself.
"Chloe must go with us," declared Helen. "She wants to stop in Paradiseto see her mother."
Dr. Wright cracked a grim joke to himself which concerned Chloe and theantipodes of Paradise, but he smothered his feelings and opened the doorfor the delighted colored girl, who had never been in an automobilebefore.
What a gay crowd they were in that hay wagon! Billy Sutton had contrivedto get Nan on the front seat with him, where she was enthroned highabove the others, looking down on the horses' backs as they strained andpulled the great wagon through the half-frozen mud. Billy had somefriends out from town who immediately attached themselves to TillieWingo, who was to beaux just as a honey-pot to bees. They stopped andpicked up two families of young folks on the way to the count's, and bythe time they got them all in, the wagon was quite full.
"I am glad Helen didn't trust her new dress to this," Douglas whisperedto Lewis.
"Well, I am glad you didn't have on such fine clothes and came thisway," he whispered back. "Wright is too reckless for me on these countryroads. Not that I am afraid myself, but I certainly should hate to seeyou turned over."
"Whar Miss Ellanlouise?" asked Chloe, when she could get her breathafter the first mad plunge into the delights of motoring.
"Oh, there! How selfish of me! I should have thought of it and askedthem to go with us," said Helen.
"We can go back for them," suggested the doctor, who had begun to feelthat he never would have a chance to see Helen alone.
"Oh, no, we needn't mind. They are coming in their phaeton, and no doubthave started long before this. They are so good to me, I should havethought of them."
Chloe was put out at Paradise, assuring her mistress she would come upthrough the woods in a few moments and no doubt be at her post in thedressing-room before the guests should arrive.
Paradise was very dark and lonesome. The few scattered cabins showednot a gleam. There was a dim light trickling from the windows of theclub, but as they approached that rickety building, that disappeared.Helen saw some dark forms up close to the wall when she looked backafter passing that place of entertainment.
"I reckon they are going to initiate someone tonight," she thought.
"Chloe had such a strange talk with me today," she told her companionand then repeated the conversation she had had with the colored girl. "Ican't quite understand her."
"Perhaps this count is instilling some kind of silly socialistic notionsin their heads," suggested the doctor, who held the same opinion LewisSomerville did of the gentleman who was to be their host for theevening. Indeed, he so cordially mistrusted him that only the fact hewas to be with Helen had reconciled him to spending an evening under hisroof.
"Oh, no, I can hardly think that, and besides, the count does not do theteaching. That is done by a Mr. Herz, his secretary. He is an American,born in Cincinnati. He seems to be very intelligent and certainly hastaken a shine to Douglas. I don't know just what she thinks of him, butshe lets him walk home from school with her every now and then."
"I don't like the name much!"
"Well, the poor man can't help his name. You speak as though we werealready at war with Germany. I am trying to preserve our neutralityuntil war is declared."
"My neutrality has been nothing but a farce since I have realized thatGermany is at war with us."
"You sound just like Douglas and Father. Will you go to war if itcomes?"
"Why, of course! Would you have me do otherwise?"
"I--I--don't know," and Helen wished she had not asked the question thathad called forth this query. This night was to be one of pleasure,feasting and dancing. War had no place in her thoughts when she had onher new dress and the music was coming from Richmond.