CHAPTER VIII
CROSSTREES CAMP
The summer plans of the two families were decidedly changed by theaccidents to the two little girls.
It was the custom of the Fayres to spend the summer at a hotel in themountains or at the seashore, for Mrs. Fayre declared she needed ayearly rest from housekeeping duties.
The Rose family, preferring a different sort of enjoyment, spent theirsummers at their camp in the Adirondacks, for they loved the informalout of door life and the freedom from all conventionalities.
The doctor had said that the two girls would be entirely restored tohealth and strength and quite ready to go anywhere by the first ofAugust, but not much before that date. So during July the question wasdiscussed frequently and at length as to where Dotty and Dolly would go,for they begged and besought their parents that they might be together.
Now Mrs. Rose was more than willing to take Dolly to camp with herfamily, and Mrs. Fayre would have been very glad to have Dotty with themat the hotel, but neither mother wanted her own little girl to go awayfrom her. The question seemed very difficult of decision, for the twofamilies could not agree upon a summer resort that would please themboth.
But after many long talks and various suggested plans it was finallydecided that Dolly Fayre should go with the Roses for the first twoweeks of August and that Dotty Rose should spend the last two weeks ofthe month with the Fayre family.
"It is the best plan," said Mrs. Rose, "for a fortnight in camp will dothe girls lots of good and make them strong and rosy again. Then theywill better enjoy a fortnight at a big hotel."
The two D's were enchanted at the prospect.
"You'll just love it!" said Dotty, enthusiastically; "we'll just wearshort skirts and middy blouses, and spend all our time in the woods oron the lake."
Dolly wanted to go to the camp, but she had never before been away fromher mother for more than a day or two at a time, and she felt somemisgivings about being homesick.
"Nonsense!" said Bert. "A great big girl like you homesick! Why,Towhead, you're too big for such things. You'll have a gorgeous time inthe camp, there's more fun in a camp than in any other place on earth. Iwish they had asked me."
"Of course they wouldn't ask you," said Dolly, "because Bob Rose won'tbe there. Not at first, anyway; he's going to visit some school friend.He's going to the camp later. But Bob, what's a camp like? Don't youhave to sleep on old dry twigs and things? I want to be with Dotty, butI don't believe I'll like sleeping in a tent or whatever they have."
"Ah, be a sport, Towhead. You're altogether too finicky about yourfoolish comforts. Learn to rough it,--it'll be good for you. You're aswhite as a sheet, and you ought to be all brown and red and freckled andlook like a real live girl instead of a wax doll. I'm going to coax Dadto go camping next year. It's loads of fun. Maybe if Bob Rose gets upthere before you leave they'd ask me up for a couple of days."
"Or they might ask you after I've left," said Dolly; "you boys couldhave a lot of fun even if we girls weren't there."
"You bet we could! Girls are not a necessity to a fellow's pleasure ifhe has fishing and boating and swimming and such things to do."
"Well, I can't swim and I hate to fish,--but I do like boating. Whatkind of boats will they have, Bob?"
"Oh, motor boats and canoes and rowboats and sail boats and every oldkind. Don't get drowned, Dolly, and don't break any more of your bones,but I guess there's nothing much else that can happen to you, if youbehave yourself. But don't try to do everything Dotty suggests. She's ahummer, that girl, and I'll bet you in camp she'll run wild. You'll haveto hold her back a little."
Dolly's parents gave her practically the same advice. But they feltlittle fear of Dolly's likelihood of rushing into madcap adventures evenif Dotty urged it. For Dolly was slow of movement and slower still inmaking up her mind; while Dotty was quick as a flash in thought andaction.
Mrs. Fayre sighed a little as she selected Dolly's wardrobe. She dearlyloved to array her pretty daughter in muslins and organdies with daintylaces and ribbons; but camp life called for stout frocks of tweed orgingham, heavy walking boots and no fripperies.
"I shall put in one or two pretty dresses," Mrs. Fayre said, "in caseyou are invited to a party or any such affair. And the rest of yoursummer things I will have ready for you, when you come back and join usat the seashore."
* * * * *
And so the first of August, Mr. and Mrs. Rose and their two daughterswith Dolly as the guest started for the Crosstrees Camp.
It was a sad parting between Dolly and her mother and at the last Dollydeclared flatly she would not go, and throwing herself in her mother'sarms burst into tears.
"Rubbish!" cried Rob, who was dancing about in his efforts to get Dollystarted. "I'm ashamed of you, Towhead! Brace up now, and have a nerve.One final wrench and off you go!"
The boy literally tore Dolly from Mrs. Fayre's arms and boosted her into the Roses' motor car which was waiting to take them to the station.
"All aboard! Go ahead!" Bob called out, waving his hand to the chauffeurand the car started off at a brisk rate.
"You know you needn't go, Dolly, even yet, if you don't want to," andMrs. Rose smiled kindly at the little girl, as they flew down theavenue.
"I do want to go, Mrs. Rose, and I am ashamed of myself for acting sobad, but I will brace up now. It was just saying good-bye to Mother thatsomehow sort of seemed to shake my heart."
Dolly smiled through her tears and determinedly began to chatter gaily.
"That's the ticket!" said Mr. Rose, smiling approval at her. "That'sthe brave little girl. Now when you get to Crosstrees you'll be sodelighted and interested, that you won't think of home and Mother fortwo weeks, except to write a postcard now and then."
"You won't hardly have time for that!" cried Dotty, "there's so much todo from morning till night, and that makes you so tired that you sleepfrom night till morning. Oh, Dollyrinda, we will have the mostgorgeousest times ever!"
"It's beautiful to have Dolly with us," said Genie, her big black eyesdancing with anticipation; "we can show her all our fav'rite places, andall the islands and woodses and everything! But two weeks is an awfulshort time."
"We'll make it longer next year," said Mr. Rose. "If our two woundedsoldiers hadn't been wounded, we would have started a month ago."
"Why do you call it Crosstrees camp?" asked Dolly.
"You'll see when you get there," and Mr. Rose smiled at his littlevisitor.
* * * * *
Sure enough when they arrived, Dolly discovered the meaning of thestrange name. The gateway was formed by two trees which had started togrow parallel, but in some way had been bent toward one another untiltheir trunks crossed about ten feet above ground. The trees had gone ongrowing this way, and formed an "N," covered with branches and foliage.The party had landed from their train at a small station near one end ofa long lake. They had traversed this lake in a swift motor boat, fortheir camp was at the other end. It was nearly dark when they reachedtheir own pier and all clambered out and climbed a flight of narrow wetsteps.
"Hang on to the railing, Doll," said Dotty; "the steps are slippery, alittle."
Passing under the crosstrees, to which Mr. Rose drew Dolly's attentionas the name of the camp, they came to a sort of bungalow or long, lowhouse.
"Is this the camp?" said Dolly, in surprise. "I thought it was tents.You said so, Dot."
"There are tents, too. Only on stormy nights we sleep inside. Come onin, Doll. Isn't it fine?"
Dolly Fayre looked around at the bare boarded rooms, the scant furnitureand rough walls of the cabin, for it was little more than that.
She was cold and rather hungry, but underneath these discomforts was afar more troublesome one which she tried not to think about, but whichshe felt sure was going to develop into an acute case of homesickness.
"Run up to your rooms, girlies, and take off your things," said Mrs.Rose, cheeril
y. "We'll eat inside to-night, and Maria will make us someof her good flap-jacks for supper."
Maria was an old coloured servant and the only one who accompanied theRose family to camp. Other help that might be needed they procured fromsome of the natives who were glad to do odd jobs for the summer people.
Dolly followed Dotty and Genie upstairs where there was a long row oftiny bedrooms opening onto a narrow hall. These bedrooms had ceilingswhich slanted right down to the floor, so one could not stand uprightafter advancing a few feet into the room.
"Aren't they funny rooms?" said Dotty, laughing with glee at Dolly'sblank-looking countenance. "But you'll get used to them soon. Of courseyou have to bend double, except just here by the door, but that'snothing. This one is yours, Dolly, and mine is right next and thenGenie's. Mother and Father have a room downstairs. But we won't sleephere, we'll sleep in the open tent to-night, it's plenty warm enough.Oh, it's _such_ fun!"
Dolly didn't know what sleeping in an open tent meant, but she smiled inresponse and soon the three girls went downstairs together.
Mr. and Mrs. Rose were bustling around, happily engaged in unpacking andarranging books and pictures and various trifles to make the bigliving-room more homelike.
"Looks a little bare now," said Mr. Rose, as he placed his smoking setin position near his own particular easy chair, "but in a day or twowe'll have it looking like a little Paradise on earth. Just you wait,Miss Dolly, till you see this desert blossom like a rose,--like a wholeRose family, in fact!"
"These things help a lot," and Mrs. Rose deftly arranged half a dozensofa pillows on a big inviting-looking couch.
"And to-morrow we'll put up a swing, and the hammocks, won't you,Daddy?" said Genie.
"Course I will, chickabiddy," and Mr. Rose whistled in gay contentmentas he took books from their boxes and arranged them on the table.
When supper was announced, Maria informed the family that she hadn'tbeen able to manage the flap-jacks that night.
"But you-all sho'ly will hab 'em for breakfast, dat you will,--yousuttinly will. But you see huccum I jes' didn't hab de propercontraptions unpacked for 'em to-night."
"That's all right, Maria," said Mr. Rose, good-naturedly; "we don't mindwhat we have to-night. To-morrow we'll get a good fair start. Sit down,children, we'll manage to make out a supper."
The supper was sort of a makeshift of sardines and herring and crackers,with coffee for the older people.
Dolly had no wish to be critical, but the viands were not tempting andshe ate very little, being conscious all the time of an ever-growinglump in her throat. She tried hard to be merry and gay, but she couldn'tfeel the enthusiasm with which the others overflowed.
"Shall we have a fire to-night, Daddy?" asked Dotty as they left thetable.
"Oh, not to-night. It's pretty late, and we're all tired out. We'llleave that for to-morrow night. You see, Dolly Fayre, the curtaindoesn't really rise on the glories of Camp Crosstrees until to-morrow.Can you wait?"
"Yes, indeed, Mr. Rose," and Dolly smiled bravely. "Where is it thatwe're going to sleep?"
"I'll show you," said Mrs. Rose, and amid shouts of glee and peals oflaughter, Dotty and Genie ran upstairs, and returned with their armsfull of blankets and other things.
"Grab a pillow and come on," shouted Dotty as she herself picked up apillow from the couch. Genie took one, too, and Dolly did also and thenthe whole tribe left the house.
They walked across some very uneven ground and Dolly would have stumbledin the darkness had not Mrs. Rose clasped her arm firmly.
"Here we are!" she said, and Dolly saw a large tent, but it wasn'texactly a tent. It was a platform of boards raised not more than a footabove the ground. It had a roof and three sides of canvas, but the frontwas entirely open. On the floor were piles of balsam boughs and on thesethe Roses arranged the blankets they had brought.
"I envy you girls," said Mrs. Rose, as she tucked up the impromptu beds."It is Heavenly to sleep out here, but we older people dare not riskrheumatism. You'll love it, Dolly. Perhaps you'll hear an owl or twohooting you a lullaby."
In less than half an hour the three girls were put to bed and Mrs. Rosehad said good-night and left them.
Dotty and Genie had murmured sleepy good-nights and had snuggled downinto their spicy-smelling nests of branches.
Dolly lay with wide open eyes staring out at the stars. She had neverexperienced this sort of thing before, and she was frightened anduncomfortable. Although mid-summer, the air was chilly, and she did notlike the feeling of the rather coarse blankets. Moreover she was wearinga thick, clumsy, flannel nightgown, and the bed of branches seemed to befull of knots and lumps. She longed for her own pretty room with itsdainty appointments and soft bed clothing.
She looked across at Dotty and Genie. She could see them but dimly, butshe knew they were sound asleep. She felt alone, utterly alone in thatdreadful place, with the forest trees making a sad murmur and the silentstars winking solemnly at her. She thought of her mother and father andTrudy and Bert and she had the most dreadful wave of homesickness rollover her. Then the tears came, hot, scalding tears that rolled down hercheeks in ever increasing number. She made no noise, lest she waken theother girls but the effort to stifle her sobs made her cry harder, andshe buried her face in the rough worsted of the sofa pillow and wipedher eyes with the harsh blanket.
"Oh, Mother," she said, to herself, "I _can't_ stay here. This is adreadful place. Why did you let me come? I knew I would hate a camp. Howcan anybody like these awful beds? And I'm cold,--and I'm not coldeither, but I'm all shivery and I feel horrid! I'm--I'm--oh, I'm justlonesome and homesick and I want Mother!"
After a time Dolly stopped crying from sheer exhaustion and spent withher sobs, she lay there gazing at the stars. She felt sure there werebears and wolves among the trees, and soon they would come out andattack the camp.
Moreover, she was dreadfully hungry. She had a box of candy in hersuitcase, but that was upstairs in the bungalow. She could not get itwithout disturbing Mr. and Mrs. Rose and that was not to be thought of.
The poor child lay for a time in her misery, every moment getting moreand more homesick and with a deeper longing to get back to her motherand never leave home again.
At last a spirit of desperation took hold upon her. It wascharacteristic of Dolly Fayre to endure patiently and bravely thegreatest trials that might come to her, but when the strain became toogreat it was in her nature to rebel, suddenly and decidedly.
And now, when it seemed that she simply could not stand the dreadfulnessanother moment, she sat straight up in bed, and said clearly, "I'm goinghome."
The sound of her own voice startled her and she looked round quickly tosee if the other girls had heard her. She fully expected to see one orboth heads pop up in amazement at her speech. But neither dark headmoved, and listening to their regular breathing, she knew the two Rosegirls were still sound asleep.
With her white face set and a desperate look in her wide open blue eyes,she put one foot out of bed and then the other. She had on herstockings, as Mrs. Rose had advised her to wear them all night. Silentlyand swiftly she discarded the flannel nightgown, which was one ofDotty's, and with flying fingers, which trembled with a nervous chill,she rapidly dressed herself in the garments she had worn when shearrived.
Her hat and coat were at the bungalow, but she did not stop for them.She was determined to go home that very minute, and she would letnothing interfere.
Fully dressed she went over and looked down at the sleeping Dotty. Itseemed awful to go away and leave her like that, but Dolly knew if shewaited till morning the Roses would not let her go. And yet she mustleave word of some sort or they would think her very rude andungrateful.
She had with her a little shopping bag, which, as it contained somemoney, she had put under her pillow. Luckily there was paper and pencilin this on which she had planned to write a letter to her mother.
So with an uncertain hand, in the dim light, she traced the words: "Dear
Dotty, I can't stay here, I've got to go back to Mother. Good-bye.Dolly."
This she slipped gently beneath Dotty's pillow, and then stepping softlyto the open edge of the tent she stepped down to the ground and walkedswiftly toward the lake.