the four barges were to leave the “salisbury school” at precisely half-past eight o'clock the next morning. miss salisbury was always very particular about being prompt, so woe be to any girl who might be late! there was great scurrying, therefore, to and fro in the homes of the day scholars. and the girls hurried off with maids behind carrying their baskets; or, as the case might be, big family carriages filled with groups of girls collected among those of a set; or in little pony carriages. all this made the thoroughfares adjacent to the “salisbury school” extremely busy places indeed.
mother fisher sent polly's basket over to the school, at an early hour, polly preferring to walk, several of the girls having called for her. so they all, with jasper, who was going as far as the corner with them, set out amidst a chatter of merry nonsense.
“oh girls, i am so glad we are going to the187 glen!” exclaimed polly, for about the fiftieth time.
“so am i,” cried all the others in a chorus.
“why, you haven't ever been to any other place for your picnic, have you, polly?” cried jasper, with a laugh.
“no,” said polly, “we never have. but suppose miss salisbury had decided to try some other spot this year; oh, just suppose it, jasper!” and her rosy color died down on her cheek. “it would have been just too dreadful for anything.”
“we couldn't have had our picnic in any other place,” declared rose harding; “it wouldn't be the same unless it was at the glen.”
“dear old glen!” cried polly impulsively. “jasper, it's too bad you boys can't all come to our picnics.”
“i know it. it would be no end jolly if we only could,” said jasper regretfully, to whom it was a great grief that the picnic couldn't take in the two schools.
“yes,” said polly, with a sigh, “it would, jasper. but miss salisbury never will in all this world let the boys' school join.”
“no, i suppose not,” said jasper, stifling his188 longing; “well, you must tell me about it to-night, the same as always, polly.”
“yes, i will, jasper,” promised polly. so he turned the corner, to go to his school. but presently he heard rapid footsteps back of him. “oh jasper,” cried polly, flushed and panting, as he whirled about, “tell phronsie i won't forget the little fern-roots. be sure, jasper.”
“all right; i will,” said jasper. “dear me! do hurry back, polly. you'll be late.”
“oh no, there are oceans of time,” said polly, with a little laugh. “i've the tin case in my picnic basket, jasper, so they will keep all fresh and nice.”
“yes; do hurry back,” begged jasper. so polly, with a merry nod, raced off to the corner where the girls were drawn up in a knot, impatiently waiting for her.
every bit of the fuss and parade in getting the big company started—for all the scholars went to the annual picnic—was a special delight to the girls. the only trouble was that the seats were not all end ones, while the favorite places up by the driver were necessarily few in each vehicle.
“come on, polly,” screamed alexia. everybody had agreed that she should have one of189 these choice positions because of her lame arm, which dr. fisher had said must be carried in its sling this day. so there she was, calling lustily for polly pepper, and beating the cushion impatiently with her well hand. “oh, do hurry up!”
polly, down on the ground in a swarm of girls, shook her head. “no,” her lips said softly, so that no one but alexia, who was leaning over for that purpose, could possibly hear, “ask cathie.”
“oh bother!” exclaimed alexia, with a frown. then she smothered it up with a “come, polly,” very persuasively.
“can't,” said polly; “i'm going back here.” and she moved down to the end of the barge.
“then i'm going back too.” alexia gave a frantic dive to get down from the barge.
miss salisbury saw it; and as she had planned to give alexia just that very pleasure of riding on the front seat, she was naturally somewhat disturbed. “no, no, my dear,” seeing alexia's efforts to get down, “stay where you are.”
“oh dear me!” alexia craned her long neck around the side of the vehicle, to spy polly's movements. “i don't want to be mewed up here,” she cried discontentedly. but miss salisbury, feeling well satisfied with her plan for190 making alexia happy, had moved off. and the babel and tumult waged so high, over the placing of the big company, all the girls chattering and laughing at once, that alexia, call as she might, began to despair of attracting polly's attention, or cathie's either for that matter.
“you better set down,” said the driver, an old man whom miss salisbury employed every year to superintend the business, “and make yourself comfortable.”
“but i'm not in the least comfortable,” said alexia passionately, “and i don't want to be up here. i want to get down.”
“but you can't,”—the old man seemed to fairly enjoy her dismay,—“'cause she, you know,” pointing a short square thumb over his shoulder in the direction of miss salisbury, “told ye to set still. so ye better set.”
but alexia craned her neck yet more, and called insistently, “polly—oh, polly!”
miss anstice looked up from the bevy of girls she was settling in another barge. “alexia rhys,” she said severely, “you must be quiet; it is impossible to get started unless all you girls are going to be tractable and obedient.”
“miss anstice,”—alexia formed a sudden191 bold resolve,—“please come here. i want you very much,” she said sweetly.
miss anstice, pleased to be wanted very much, or indeed at all, left her work, and went over to the front barge where alexia was raging inwardly.
“miss anstice, i need polly pepper up next to me,” said alexia, “oh, so much. she knows all about my arm, you know; her father fixed it for me. will you please have her come up here? then if i should feel worse, she could help me.”
miss anstice peered here and there in her nearsighted fashion. “i don't see polly pepper,” she said.
“there she is; there she is,” cried alexia, trembling in every limb, for her plan could not be said to be a complete success yet, and pointing eagerly to the end of her barge; “she's the fourth from the door, miss anstice. oh, how lovely you are!”
miss anstice, quite overcome to be told she was lovely, and especially by alexia, who had previously given her no reason to suppose that she entertained any such opinion, went with great satisfaction down the length of the barge, and192 standing on her tiptoes, said very importantly, “polly pepper, i want to place you differently.”
so polly, quite puzzled, but very obedient, crawled out from her seat, where she was wedged in between two girls not of her set, who had been perfectly radiant at their good fortune, and clambering down the steps, was, almost before she knew it, installed up on the front row, by alexia's side.
“oh polly, what richness!” exclaimed that individual in smothered accents, as miss anstice stepped off in much importance, and hugging polly. “i'm so glad my sling is on, for i never'd gotten you up here without the old thing,” and she giggled as she told the story.
“oh alexia!” exclaimed polly, quite shocked.
“well, i may get a relapse in it, you don't know,” said alexia coolly, “so you really ought to be up here. oh my goodness me! i forgot this man,” she brought up suddenly. “do you suppose he'll tell?” she peered around anxiously past polly.
“ef you'll set still, i won't tell that teacher,” said the old man with a twinkle in his eye, “but ef you get to carryin' on, as i should think you could ef you set out to, i'll up an' give the whole thing to her.”193
“oh, i'll sit as still as a mouse,” promised alexia. “oh polly, isn't he a horrible old thing!” in a stage whisper under cover of the noise going on around them.
“hush,” said polly.
“well, i'm not going to hush,” cried alexia recklessly; “i'm going to have a good time at the picnic to-day, and do just everything i want to, so there, polly pepper!”
“very well,” said polly, “then when we get to the glen, i shall go off with the other girls, alexia,” which had the desired effect. alexia curled up into her corner, and hanging to polly pepper's arm, was just like a mouse for quiet. and off they went; the old man's whip going crack—snap! as he led the way with a grand flourish, as much better than his efforts of former years, as was possible!
the road led through winding, woodsy paths, redolent of sweet fern; the girls never tired of its delights, exclaiming at all the sights and sounds of country life at all such moments as were not filled to the brim with the songs that ran over from their happy hearts. so on and up they went to the glen, a precipitous ravine some fifteen miles out from the city.194
when the barges finally drew up with another grand flourish at the entrance, a smooth grassy plateau shaded by oaks and drooping elms, they simply poured out a stream of girls from each conveyance; the old man and his companion drivers laughing to see them tumble out. “pretty quick work, eh, bill?” said old man kimball, “no screaming for first places now.”
“it's the same beautiful, dear old glen!” exclaimed polly, with kindling eyes and dancing feet. “oh alexia, come on!” and seizing the well hand, they spun round and round, unable to keep still, having plenty of company, all the other girls following suit.
polly looked at her little watch. “in five minutes we must stop. it'll be time to get the flowers.”
“oh, can we?” cried alexia. “misery me! i'm so tired cooped up in that barge, i feel stiff as a jointed doll, polly pepper.”
“well, i don't,” said polly, dancing away for dear life. “oh alexia, when miss salisbury gives the signal to explore, won't it be just fun!”
“i should say,” cried alexia, unable to find words that would just express the case.
there was always one routine to be observed195 in the annual picnic of the “salisbury school,” and no one thought for a moment of deviating from it. the maids collected the baskets taken from the wagons, and set them in a cool, shady place among the rocks just within the glen. the girls ran hither and thither to collect flowers and ferns to drape miss salisbury's seat of honor, and one as near like it as possible for miss anstice. these were big crevices in the rocks, that were as comfortable as chairs, and having backs to them in the shape of boulders, they were truly luxurious. indeed, miss salisbury had declared, when the seats were discovered by polly pepper at the first picnic after she joined the “salisbury school,” that she never sat in one more comfortable; and she was so pleased when she was led to it and inducted therein, all flower-trimmed with little vines trailing off, and arching over her head.
“why, my dears!” she exclaimed, quite overcome. “oh, how pretty! and how did you think of it?”
“it was polly pepper who thought of it,” said a parlor boarder. and polly, blushing rosy red, a new girl as she was, was led up, and miss salisbury set a kiss on her round cheek. polly never forgot how happy she was that day.196
and afterward, when the girls were busy in various little groups, miss salisbury had beckoned polly to her side where she reposed on her throne; for it was beautiful and stately enough for one, and quite worthy of royalty itself.
“polly,” said miss salisbury, in quite a low tone only fitted for polly's ear, “do you think you could find a seat, like this beautiful one of mine, for sister? i should really enjoy it so very much more if sister had one also and she would prize the attention very much, polly, from you girls.”
so polly, fired with the laudable desire to find one exactly like miss salisbury's very own, for “sister,” at last was just so fortunate. so that was also flower-trimmed, with trailing vines to finish it off with. and every year, the first thing the girls did after dancing around a bit to rest their feet after the long drive, was to set to work to collect the vines and ferns, and decorate the two stone seats.
then with quite a good deal of pomp and ceremony, the girls escorted the two teachers to their thrones, unpacked the little bag of books and magazines, and arranged some cushions and shawls about them. and then miss salisbury197 always said with a sweet smile, “thank you, my dears.” and miss anstice said the same; although, try as hard as she would, her smile never could be sweet like miss salisbury's. and then off the girls would go to “exploring,” as they called rambling in the glen, the under-teachers taking them in charge.
and now polly pepper ran to her hamper, which she saw in a pile where the baskets had been heaped by the maids. “there it is,” pointing to the tag sticking up; “oh, help me,—not you, alexia,” as alexia ran up as usual, to help forward any undertaking polly pepper might have in mind. “dear me! you might almost kill your arm.”
“this old arm,” cried alexia,—“i'm sick and tired of it.”
“well, you better take care of it,” cried polly gaily, “and then it won't be an old arm, but it will be as good as brand new, alexia. oh, one of the other girls, do come and help me.”
“what do you want, polly?” cried some of the girls, racing up to her.
“i want to get out my hamper,” said polly, pointing to the tag sticking up “high and dry” amid a stack of baskets. “my tin botany case198 is in it; i must get the ferns i promised to bring home to phronsie.”
“you stand away, all of ye.” the old man kimball, his horses out of the shafts, and well taken care of, now drew near, and swept off with his ample hand the bunch of girls. “which one is't? oh, that ere one with the tag,” answering his own question. “well, now, i'll git that for you jest as easy as rolling off a log. one—two—three—there she comes!”
and, one, two, three, and here she did come! and in a trice polly had the cover up, and out flew the little green tin botany case; and within it being an iron spoon and little trowel, off flew polly on happy feet to unearth the treasures that were to beautify phronsie's little garden; a bunch of girls following to see the operation.
the magazine fell idly to the lap of miss salisbury. she sat dreamily back, resting her head against the boulder. “sister,” she said softly, “this is a happy custom we have started. i trust nothing will ever prevent our holding our annual picnic.”
“yes,” said miss anstice absently. she was very much interested in a story she had begun, and she hated to have miss salisbury say a word.199 although she had on a stiff, immaculate white gown (for on such a festival as the annual picnic, she always dressed in white), still she was not in the same sweet temper that the principal was enjoying, and she held her thumb and finger in the place.
“yes, the picnic is very good,” she said, feeling that something was expected of her, “if we didn't get worms and bugs crawling over the tablecloth.”
“oh sister!” exclaimed miss salisbury, quite shocked; “it is no time to think of worms and bugs, i'm sure, on such a beautiful occasion as this.”
“still, they are here,” said miss anstice; “there is one now,” looking down at the hem of her gown. “ugh! go right away,” slapping her book at it. then her thumb and finger flew out, and she lost her place, and the bug ran away, and she added somewhat tartly, “for my own taste, i should really prefer a festival in the schoolroom.”
when it came to spreading the feast, not one of the maids was allowed to serve. they could unpack the hampers, and hand the dishes and eatables to the girls, and run, and wait, and tend.200 but no one but the salisbury girls must lay the snowy cloth, dress it up with flowers, with little knots at the corners, concealing the big stones that kept the tablecloth from flapping in any chance wind. and then they all took turns in setting the feast forth, and arranging all the goodies. and some one had to make the coffee, with a little coterie to help her. the crotched sticks were always there just as they had left them where they hung the kettle over the stone oven. and old man kimball set one of the younger drivers to make the fire—and a rousing good one it was—where they roasted their corn and potatoes. and another one brought up the water from the spring that bubbled up clear and cold in the rocky ravine, so when all was ready it was a feast fit for a king, or rather the queen and her royal subjects.
and then miss salisbury and “sister” were escorted with all appropriate ceremonies down from their stone thrones,—and one had the head and the other the foot of the feast spread on the grass,—to sit on a stone draped with a shawl, and to be waited on lovingly by the girls, who threw themselves down on the ground, surrounding the snowy cloth. and they sat two or three201 rows deep; and those in the front row had to pass the things, of course, to the back-row girls.
“oh, you're spilling jelly-cake crumbs all down my back,” proclaimed alexia, with a shudder. “rose harding,” looking at the girl just back of her, “can't you eat over your own lap, pray tell?”
“well, give me your seat then,” suggested rose, with another good bite from the crumbly piece in her hand, “if you don't like what the back-row girls do.”
“no, i'm not going to,” said alexia, “catch me! but you needn't eat all over my hair. ugh! there goes another,” and she squirmed so she knocked off the things in her neighbor's as well as her own lap.
“oh dear me! keep your feet to yourself, alexia rhys,” said the neighbor; “there goes my egg in all the dirt—and i'd just gotten it shelled.”
“all the easier for the bugs,” observed alexia sweetly; “see, they're already appropriating it. and i guess you'd kick and wriggle if some one put jelly cake down your back,” returning to her grievance,—“slippery, slimy jelly cake,” twisting again at the remembrance.202
“well, you needn't kick the things out of my lap. i didn't put the jelly cake down your back,” retorted the neighbor, beginning to shell her second egg.
oh dear! was ever anything quite so good in all this world as that feast at the “salisbury picnic!”
“i didn't suppose those baskets could bring out so much, nor such perfectly delicious things,” sighed polly pepper, in an interval of rest before attacking one of philena's chocolate cakes.
“polly, polly pepper,” called a girl opposite, “give me one of your little lemon tarts. you did bring 'em this year, didn't you?” anxiously.
“yes, indeed,” answered polly; “why, where are they?” peering up and down the festal, not “board,” but tablecloth.
“don't tell me they are gone,” cried the girl, leaning over to look for herself.
“i'm afraid they are,” said polly; “oh, i'm so sorry, agatha!”
“you should have spoken before, my child,” said a parlor boarder, who had eaten only three of mrs. fisher's tarts, and adjusting her eyeglasses.
“why, i've only just gotten through eating203 bread and butter,” said agatha. “i can't eat cake until that's done.”
“a foolish waste of time,” observed the parlor boarder; “bread and butter is for every day; cake and custards and flummery for high holidays,” she added with quite an air.
“hush up, do,” cried alexia, who had small respect for the parlor boarders and their graces, “and eat what you like, penelope. i'm going to ransack this table for a tart for you, agatha.”
she sent keen, bird-like glances all up and down the length of the tablecloth. “yes, no—yes, it is.” she pounced upon a lemon tart hiding under a spray of sweet fern, and handed it in triumph across. “there you are, agatha! now don't say i never did anything for you.”
“oh, how sweet!” cried agatha, burying her teeth in the flaky tart.
“i should think it was sour,” observed amy garrett; “lemons usually are.”
“don't try to be clever, amy child,” said alexia, “it isn't expected at a picnic.”
“it's never expected where you are,” retorted amy sharply.
“oh dear, dear! that's pretty good,” cried alexia, nowise disconcerted, as she loved a joke204 just as much at herself as at the expense of any one else, while the others burst into a merry laugh.
“there's one good thing about alexia rhys,” the “salisbury girls” had always said, “she can take any amount of chaff, and not stick her finger in her eye and whimper.”
so now she smiled serenely. “oh dear, dear! i wish i could eat some more,” she said. “i haven't tasted your orange jelly, clem, nor as much as looked at your french sandwiches, silvia. what is the reason one can eat so very little at a picnic, i wonder?” she drew a long breath, and regarded them all with a very injured expression.
“hear that, girls!” cried silvia; “isn't that rich, when alexia has been eating every blessed minute just as fast as she could!”
“i suppose that is what we all have been doing,” observed alexia placidly.
miss salisbury had been a happy observer of all the fun and nonsense going on around her, and renewing her youth when she had dearly loved picnics; but it was not so with miss anstice. at the foot of the festal tablecloth, she had been viewing from the corners of her eyes the205 inroads of various specimens of the insect creation and several other peripatetic creatures that seemed to belong to no particular species but to a new order of beings originated for this very occasion. she had held herself in bravely, although eating little, being much too busy in keeping watch of these intruders, who all seemed bent on running over her food and her person, to hide in all conceivable folds of her white gown. and she was now congratulating herself on the end of the feast, which about this time should be somewhere in sight, when a goggle-eyed bug, at least so it seemed to her distraught vision, pranced with agile steps directly for her lap, to disappear at once. and it got on to her nerves.
“oh—ow! take it off.” miss anstice let her plate fly, and skipped to her feet. but looking out for the goggle-eyed bug, she thought of little else, and stepped into some more of the jelly cake—slipped, and precipitated herself into the middle of the feast.
