CHAPTER XI
AN INNOCENT SNEAK-THIEF
The little dog had slept all night, but when morning came he wanted togo out for a romp. Patricia tied him to the leg of the bed, gave himsome breakfast and sat on the floor beside him to stop him if he beganto bark.
Thus far he had been very quiet, only softly growling, and stopping thatwhen Patricia held up her finger and told him he must "keep still."
"Why do we have to review?" Patricia said as Arabella took up a book.
"The idea of looking into my history to see when Virginia was settled atJamestown when any one _knows_ it was in fourteen ninety-two!"
"O my, Patricia! That's wrong," Arabella said, "That's when Columbusdiscovered America."
"Well, for goodness' sake! Couldn't he have landed in Virginia, andsettled it at the same time?" demanded Patricia. She was desperatelyangry, but Arabella persisted.
"Don't you _know_, Patricia, it _couldn't_ have been settled in fourteenninety-two?"
"Oh, don't bother me about that!" said Patricia, and Arabella, peeringat her through her goggles decided that it would be wise to do no morecorrecting.
"I don't think Miss Fenler is fair," said Patricia, "for she marked myhistory paper only forty-two, and I just _know_ it ought to have beenhigher than that. And my spelling she marked only thirty-eight lastmonth, and all because I put an r in water, spelling it 'warter,' andI'm sure that's not bad."
"You put two t's in it, too," said Arabella.
"I will again if I want to," snapped Patricia.
"There's the breakfast-bell. He's sure to bark while we're down-stairs,"Arabella said. She hoped that he would, so that he might be given otherquarters. He looked up as the door closed, and was about to bark when hesaw one of Arabella's slippers, and grabbing it, retired under the bedto chew it.
It was a rule that the maids should make the beds, and put the rooms inorder while the pupils were at breakfast, and on that morning it fell toMaggie's share of the work to care for the only room now occupied.
She was a good-natured Irish girl, and she entered the room singing:
"'Now, Rory, be aisy, don't tase me no more, 'Tis the--'"
"Och, murther! Murther! There's a man under the bed, an' he grabbed meby me shoe,--oh! oh!"
Down-stairs she ran, screaming all the way, declaring that there was aman up-stairs, and calling for some one brave enough to "dhrive himout."
Her terror was very real, and Marcus was called in to oust the intruder.
"It must be a sneak-thief," said Miss Fenler.
"It _am_ a sneak-thief," said Marcus, appearing with the small dog inhis arms.
"He stole a slipper, an den sneaked under der bed ter chew on it. Sure,he am a sneak-thief, but I knows a cullud gemman what wants a dog, an'I guess he's 'bout the right size. Dey has a pow'ful small house, an'him an' his wife, an' seben chilluns lib in dem two rooms, so hecouldn't want no bigger dog dan dis yar."
"Why nobody can give that dog away!" shrieked Patricia. "I bought himyesterday, and paid the man two dollars for him. He's mine!"
"Do you mean to tell me, Patricia, that you bought that dog anddeliberately brought him here, when you knew that it was against therules of the school?" Mrs. Marvin asked.
"You kept the cat," said Patricia.
"Because I let the cat remain, you decided that it would be safe to dopractically the same thing again, did you?" Mrs. Marvin's usually kindvoice sounded very cold now.
"He isn't a cat, so 'tisn't the same," Patricia said with a pout.
"We must find an owner for him, Marcus," Mrs. Marvin said.
"I _won't_ let him go!" screamed Patricia.
"You cannot keep him here."
"Then I'll go back to my aunt's house at Merrivale, and take him withme," said Patricia.
"Do as you like about that," Mrs. Marvin said quietly, "but you mustchoose."
"I've _choosed_, I mean 'chosen,'" said Patricia. "I'll go rightstraight off, and take the dog with me."
It looked like haste and anger, but for weeks Patricia had been so farbehind the others of her class, that she believed that any day Mrs.Marvin would send her home with a letter stating that she had beenneglecting study, and must give up her place to some ambitious pupil.Patricia preferred to go of her own choice, so she rushed to her room,and began to pack her belongings.
Arabella stood watching her as if not fully realizing that she waslosing her chum.
She was not quite so dull as she appeared. She was sorry to havePatricia go, and she was not at all sure that she would like her roomall to herself. At the same time she was comforting herself with thethought that there would be no one to make her eat things that she atefor the sake of peace and that nearly always made her ill, or to dragher into mischief that she, herself would never have thought of. WhenPatricia's trunk was strapped to the back of the carriage, and she stoodon the porch, her suit-case in one hand, her other hand holding thedog's leash, she turned to Arabella.
"Well, aren't you going to say something, now I'm ready to start?" sheasked.
"Do'no' what to say," drawled Arabella.
Arabella had spoken the truth, which, however, was not complimentary,and Patricia was offended.
Arabella, looking after her tried to decide just how she felt. She wouldmiss Patricia, because at times she was a lively chum, but she was quickto take offense, and Arabella was always doing something that displeasedher.
Then, too, Arabella had a very small allowance, while Patricia spentmoney with a free hand, and always "shared" with Arabella. But what joywas there in eating the oddly chosen "treats"?
Arabella decided that as there was but a short time before the closingof school, it was, perhaps, the best thing that could have happened,that Patricia had decided to go back to Merrivale. It seemed strangethat she should prefer to be with her aunt in Merrivale, rather thanwith her mother, at their home in New York, but those who knew were notsurprised.
Mrs. Levine was as strange in some respects, as her little daughter wasin others. If Patricia enjoyed being away from home, Mrs. Levine,flighty, and weak-willed, was glad to be free from the care of Patricia.
The aunt was very glad of the money paid for Patricia's board, so everyone concerned seemed satisfied.
Surely Patricia was having but little training, but who was there tocomplain?
Being away from home had one decided advantage, Patricia thought.
She could ask for money when she needed clothing, and when she receivedit she could make her own choice of hats, coats, or dresses, and what alively choice it was!
She had rightly earned the title of the "Human Rainbow."
She had heard the name, and she liked it. She thought that it impliedthat her costumes were gay, rather than dull colored.
Mrs. Marvin breathed a sigh of relief when Patricia had actually leftGlenmore, and Miss Fenler remarked that Arabella was really too slow toget into mischief, now that she had no one to assist her.
* * * * *
The ride had been a long one, and the car had been hot after the earlymorning. Vera complained that she was fairly roasted, while Elf declaredthat she had breathed smoke from the open windows until she believedthat she would smell smoke for a week. Dorothy and Nancy made littlefuss about either smoke or heat, bearing the discomforts of the trippatiently, and laughing when Vera fumed.
"Well, I know, if I were a man," said Vera, "I could make some kind ofan engine that would go like lightning, and have neither smoke norcinders. I told Rob that, and he said, 'Oh, don't let it stop youbecause you're not a man. Just go ahead, Pussy Weather-vane, and planit. The companies won't refuse to use it because it wasn't invented by aman!'
"Now, isn't that just like a boy? What time do I have to do things likethat? Doesn't he know that I have lessons, and all sorts of things thathinder me?"
"Why do you girls laugh at everything I say, just as Rob does?" sheconcluded, looking in surprise, from one merry face to the other.
"Oh, but Vera, you are funny when you sputter," said Elf.
"I s'pose I am," agreed Vera, "and I don't much care. I'm sure I'drather make you laugh, than make you look sober."
"Look! Look!" cried Dorothy.
"We're almost to Glenmore!"
"Not yet," said Vera.
"Oh, but Dorothy is right," said Nancy, "for look there where the riverglistens in the sun."
"And see that big Club House right over there," Dorothy said, pointingtoward a handsome building of which the town of Glenmore was justlyproud.
"But it doesn't seem quite like--"
Vera's remark was interrupted by the trainman, who opened the door andshouted, "Glenmore! Glenmore!"
"I guess it did look like it," Vera said, as she sprang out on theplatform, followed by her three laughing companions. Marcus was waitingfor them.
"Yo'-all git in, an' we'll git dar as quick as we kin. Mis' Marvin, shesay all the other pupils is arriv, an' she hopes you fo' will be someprompt."
"We came as soon as the train would bring us," said Elf.
"But dat train am an hour later dan de time-table say."
"Do you believe that?" Elf asked of the others, as they rode along.
"They must have changed the time-table," Nancy said.
Marcus turned his head to shout:
"No, miss, no. Nobody doesn't neber chane nuffin' in Glenmore!"
Mrs. Marvin was on the porch, as the carriage turned in at the gateway,and she stepped forward to greet them as they sprang out on the walk.
"I was beginning to wonder what had detained you, when I was delightedto see the carriage coming around the bend of the road. You are just intime to go to your rooms and 'freshen up' a bit before dinner, and--Why, Arabella Correyville! What does this mean?"
A drenched and bedraggled figure was mounting the steps. Her hair, andgarments were dripping, she had lost her goggles, and without them hereyes had a frightened stare.
"I didn't mean to look like this," she said, "but I lost the key to myroom. I'd locked the door when I went out, and I wanted to study somebefore dinner. I climbed up onto the edge of that hogshead that theworkmen had left right beside the trellis that runs up by my window. Imeant to get in at my window, but I fell and got into a hogshead ofdirty water. 'Twasn't very pleasant," she drawled.
One might have thought, from the manner in which she said it that mostpeople would have enjoyed the "ducking"!
Mrs. Marvin looked discouraged. This was the girl that _could not_ getinto a scrape, now that she had no one to drag her in!
"Miss Fenler, will you assist Arabella in making herself presentablebefore six? It is after five-thirty now."
Miss Fenler looked anything but pleased, but she dared not refuse.Arabella seemed quieter than ever when she came down the stairway, herwet garments exchanged for dry ones, and her straight hair primlybraided, thanks to Miss Fenler.
Doubtless she had not recovered from her surprise when she foundherself in the hogshead. It always required time for Arabella to recoverfrom any new idea, or unusual happening.
The other girls were giving the four who had just returned a gaywelcome, and Dorothy slipped her arm around Betty Chase, and told herthe fine news that during the summer they were both to be at Foam Ridge.
"Oh, Dorothy!" cried Betty, her dark eyes shining, "I was delighted whenmother wrote that we were going there, just because I so love to be atthe shore, and now to think that you and Nancy are to spend the summerthere,--oh, it is such a dear surprise."
"But listen, every one!" cried Valerie Dare. "That's all very fine forBetty, but the other bit of news isn't quite so nice. Dorothy Dainty andNancy Ferris are to leave Glenmore two weeks earlier than the rest ofus. Say! Do you think we'll miss them?"
"Oh, Dorothy Dainty! Why do you go so soon?"
"And take Nancy with you, too! Say, do you have to?"
"Can't you stay longer?"
These and many more were the queries called forth by Valerie'sstatement.
It was small comfort for them to listen when Dorothy explained.
The fact remained, that they did not want to have her leave beforeschool closed. She had endeared herself to her classmates, and to manyothers whom she met at socials, and after school sessions. Nancy sharedher popularity, and both prized the loving friendship that had madetheir stay at Glenmore so pleasant.