september had come, and busy days! for overlook had to be closed, the city home cleaned and aired and made ready; barbara must be sent away to college and the younger children started off in school.
"i feel all sort of queer inside," said peggy, astride of a trunk, "the way you do when you hear sad songs. i wish it was always summer and nothing but play."
"and no school," chimed in billy. he was on his knees packing toys. "i don't see what good school does, anyway! if nobody went to school it'd all be the same."
"i just hate beginning and then i love it," cried alice.
"you won't love it when you get into fractions," retorted billy, "'course its fun down in the baby grades!" he spoke from the lofty distinction of a sub-freshman in the technical high. some day billy was going to make boilers like his father.
"i don't mind school, but it's the fuss getting things ready. i just despise dressmakers! you wait, ken, until mother gets after you and you stand by the hour and have miss harris fit you! the only fun is watching to see how many pins she can put in her mouth without swallowing any. did that governess make your clothes?"
keineth described the funny little shop where tante took her twice a year. "they kept my measurements there and tante would just look at the materials."
"and you never decided as to what color you wanted or had ribbons and things?" cried peggy wonderingly.
keineth's face colored a little. "madame henri thought plain things better," she explained.
"that's what mother says, but that plain things can be pretty, too. she always lets us choose our color because she says it trains our tastes. and this year, if i don't have a pink dress for best i'm going to make an awful fuss!" "i'd like a pink dress," keineth agreed shyly, "i never had one!"
peggy jumped off the trunk.
"let's tease for pink dresses just alike; and now what do you say to a last game of tennis?"
"make it doubles! i'll play with alice," cried billy, eagerly dropping his work. and with merry laughter they rushed away.
to close overlook was an almost sacred task to the lee family. each did his or her part tenderly, reluctantly. mrs. lee and barbara folded away the pretty hangings; billy made the garden ready for the fall fertilizing, took gyp to his winter home at a nearby farm, and put the barn in order; the younger girls helped nora polish and cover the kitchen utensils.
and never had the days seemed more glorious nor inviting, filled with the hazy september glow that turned everything into gold.
"it's always just the nicest when we have to go to the city," peggy complained sadly. they were gathered for the last time on the veranda watching the sunset. on the morrow they would return to town. mr. lee looked over the young faces--the tanned cheeks and the eyes glowing with health; the straight backs and limbs strong and supple from the summer's exercise.
"you're a fine-looking bunch to begin the winter's work," he laughed. "it ought to be very easy to you youngsters."
"how lucky we are to be able to live like this," barbara said with a little sigh. she was thinking as she said it that she was often going to be very lonesome for home and this dear circle. eager as she was to begin her new life in college, she could not bear the breaking of the home ties.
and bravely she had decided she would tell no one of this heartache, for one day she had surprised her mother gently crying over the piles of undergarments they had made ready. mrs. lee had tried to laugh as she wiped away her tears.
"i'm just foolish, darling, only it seems such a little while ago that you were a baby, my first baby--and here you are going off to college, away from me!"
so not for the world would barbara have distressed her mother by showing the ache in her own heart. in answer she had thrown her arms about her mother's neck in a passion of affection.
"i'll always, always, always love home best," she vowed.
and this would not be hard, for the lees' home, made beautiful by love rather than wealth, was of the sort that would always be "home," and no matter how far one of them might travel or in what gay places linger, would always be "best of all!"
the lees' city home was not at all like keineth's old home in new york, nor like aunt josephine's pretentious house on riverside drive. though it seemed right in the heart of the city and only a stone's throw from the business centre, it was on a quiet, broad street and had a little yard of its own all around it. the house was built of wood and needed painting, but the walks and lawns were neatly kept. within it was simple and roomy, with broad halls and wide windows, shaded by the elms outside. its walls were brown-toned, and yellow hangings covered the white frilled curtains at the windows. there was one big living-room, with rows and rows of bookshelves, easy chairs and soft rugs, a worn davenport in front of the fire, tables with lamps, and books and magazines spread out upon them in inviting disorder. there were flowers here, too, as at overlook, and peggy's bird had its home in the big bay of the dining-room, where he welcomed each morning's sunshine with glad song.
each little girl had a room of her own, too, hung with bright chintz, with covers on the bureau and bed to match. peggy's and keineth's had a door opening from one to the other. billy with his beloved wireless and other things that peggy called "truck" was happily established in the back of the house.
in a twinkling the entire family was settled in the city, "just as though we'd never been away," peggy declared. then two days later barbara started off for college.
the parting was merry. the girls had helped her pack her trunks; sitting on her bed they had superintended the important process of "doing up" her hair; and then had taken turns carrying to the station the smart patent-leather dressing-case which had been her father's gift. everyone smiled up to the last moment before the train pulled out of the station--then everyone coughed a great deal and mr. lee blew his nose and mrs. lee wiped her eyes and peggy sighed.
"i'd hate to be grown-up," she admitted, and as she walked away she held her mother's hand tightly.
although barbara's going made a great gap in the little circle, everyone was too busy to grieve. school began and with it home work; there was basket-ball and dancing school and shopping, hats and shoes to buy. miss harris arrived for her annual visit and much time was spent over samples and patterns. and peggy and keineth got their pink dresses! then there were old friends to see, new ones to make and relatives to visit. in this whirl of excitement the overlook days were soon forgotten!
with the city life a little of keineth's shyness had returned. she felt lost among peggy's many friends; the hours when peggy was in school dragged a little. the simplicity of the lees' city home had made her homesick for the big house in washington square--for its very emptiness! so because of this loneliness she spent hours at the piano eagerly practicing the technic that under tante had been so tiresome. mrs. lee had engaged one of the best masters in the city and keineth went almost daily to his funny little studio. at first she had been a little afraid of him. he was a pole, a round-shouldered man with long gray hair that hung over his collar and queer eyes that seemed to look through and through one. but after she had heard him play she lost her shyness, for in his music she heard the voices she loved. he called her "little one," and told her long stories of liszt and chopin and the other masters. "they are the people that live forever," he would say.
one rainy afternoon after school peggy went to keineth's room and found its door shut. peggy was cross because a cold had kept her home from basket-ball, and she deeply resented this closed door.
"i s'pose you're doing something you don't want me to know." her ear had caught the quick rustle of paper. in a moment keineth had opened the door, but peggy was turning away with a toss of her head.
"oh, if you don't want me--"
"please, peg," begged keineth. she pulled her into the room. "i didn't know you were home, honest!"
peggy glimpsed the corner of a paper half hidden under some books. upon it were written bars of music.
"you have got a secret," she cried excitedly, "you're writing music! keineth randolph, if you don't tell your very best friend, now!"
keineth, her face scarlet, drew out the tell-tale paper.
"it's just a little thing," she explained shyly. "your mother showed me how to write last summer, but i wanted to surprise everybody. i was going to tell you, though, when it was done. peg, i'm going to try to sell it!"
"sell it! get real money?" cried peggy.
"yes--that's what the masters did--only they were nearly always starving. 'course i'm not, but i would like to earn some money." "oh, wouldn't it be fun?" peggy caught keineth's elbows and whirled her around. "what would you ever do with it? but where do you sell music? and what is its name?"
"i call it 'the castle of dreams,'" answered keineth with shining eyes. "and mr. cadowitz told me there's a music house right here in the city--brown and co."
"let's go there together! let's go now! mother's away and it's just the time!"
the sore throat was forgotten. peggy helped keineth arrange the sheets in a little roll and together they started forth on their secret errand. they found the music house without any difficulty, but keineth's courage almost failed her when she found herself confronted by a long line of clerks. to the one who came forward she explained her errand. she wanted to see the manager--she had some music she wished to sell!
at his amused glance her face flushed scarlet.
"why, you're just a kid!" he answered impudently. "mr. brown's pretty busy!" then it suddenly occurred to him that it would be something like a joke on the "boss" to take these two children to his busy office. the clerk was not overfond of the head of the firm.
"well, come along," he concluded, winking at the other men. he led the two girls through a labyrinth of offices and up a stairway to the manager's door.
"two young ladies to see you!" he announced and shut the door of the office quickly behind him.
keineth, frightened, had to swallow twice before she could make a sound. then, holding the manuscript out, she explained her errand to the manager. tipped back in his chair he listened with a smile; however, he took the roll from her and, opening it, glanced over it indifferently.
"let me play it for you," begged keineth desperately.
he led them into an inner room in the centre of which stood an open grand piano. keineth went straight to it and began to play. he listened through to the end.
"wait a moment;" he waved her back to the stool. "i want gregory to hear you." the tone of his voice had changed.
in answer to a summons gregory came in, a thin, tired-looking man. the manager turned to him:
"this girl has brought in some music! i want you to hear it," and he nodded to keineth to begin.
she played it through again while the two men held the manuscript between them and read as she played. the man called gregory nodded again and again. his face had suddenly lost its tired look!
"why, we've found a little gem!" peggy heard him mutter. then to keineth: "what did you say your name was?" keineth repeated it and the manager wrote it down with mr. lee's address. he took the sheets of music, rolled them, and put them in a drawer and locked it.
"we will consider it and let you know in a few weeks," he said. then he shook hands with keineth and peggy. "and if you write anything more, please bring it to us."
"oh, peg, wouldn't it be grand if i could sell lots?" cried keineth later, in an ecstasy of ambition.
"if i wasn't on the street i'd whoop," and peggy squeezed her friend's arm. "why, ken--maybe you'll be a master!"
"and remember, don't tell a soul, peg! honor bright, cross your heart!"
"honor bright, cross my heart!" peggy promised.
