Harum Scarum's Fortune

  *CHAPTER VII.*

  *THE VISITORS ARRIVE.*

  "What is the programme?" asked Maud, catching Toney's enthusiasm.

  "Uncle Evas, and any of us who like, will sit down to dinner here, then,when they are well started, we shall go to dine in the house, and hurrya little to begin the dancing here. Poor people do like having plentyof time to eat, so I think we can manage it all."

  "When is Sir Evas to make his speech?"

  "Just between their meat and pudding. It will help them to digest, andthey do like to hear speeches, so I'm going to make one, and anybodyelse who feels moved. Won't you, Mr. Waycott?"

  "But they are not my tenants, Toney."

  "But they are your neighbours, and we ought to love our neighbour asourself."

  "I expect my people will be very jealous!" answered Lewis laughing.

  "Then you can have a party of your own. I'll come and help you inreturn."

  "That's a promise, but I don't know what Aunt Honoria would say!"

  "Oh! My visitors are going to---- No, I won't tell you as you mightlet it out to Aunt Dove. Uncle Evas gave leave, but----"

  At this moment Sir Evas walked in, followed by Lady Carew.

  "Oh! what a fairy palace!" exclaimed her ladyship. "Where is MissWhitburn? I've come to beg you to let me see all the fun, but I didn'texpect this! My husband is coming later, but I rebelled."

  Lady Carew's face was all smiles. She had never forgotten Toney's firsttea-party at Aldersfield, besides the story of Toney's fortune and hercoming of age was known to everyone for miles round. Toney gave one ofher quick searching looks and settled that Lady Carew meant all shesaid.

  "Well, that is nice of you! You haven't come because I've got such aheap of money! Oh dear! Uncle Evas, I do believe I see somebodyarriving in the distance."

  Sir Evas looked too.

  "Good heavens, Toney! it's the _avant garde_. Much too early!"

  "But you are glad they should enjoy themselves as long as possible,aren't you, and you said you wanted them to see your house, and youknow---- Did you tell Mr. Diggings!"

  "Tell him what, Toney?" whispered Lewis, who was prepared for asurprise.

  "That the house is open to _everybody_ to-day! Fancy, Lady Carew, everso many of uncle's tenants have never been in the house at all! So nowUncle Evas has been awfully kind, and said Aldersfield should be thrownopen, only----"

  Sir Evas had hurried off.

  "Only what?" laughed Lewis, who had jumped to conclusions.

  "He wouldn't tell Aunt Dove, so I want my friends to act as sentinels ather door! and we must all take parties round. No one is to see thisfairy palace till six!"

  "Doesn't Lady Dove know?" asked Lady Carew smiling, "pray let mepersonally conduct as I have never seen all the house either. I knowthere are fine pictures."

  "Well, no, Aunt Dove doesn't know. She would just have squirmed a bitat seeing so many of them all about. I've just run round to open allthe doors, but I posted a warning near Aunt Dove's door. Oh, I do hopeshe is safe for a long time. She said she was going to rest, and MissGrossman is reading to her."

  Maud and Lady Carew could not help laughing.

  "Won't they do funny things?" asked Maud "You know, Lewis, your auntswouldn't let your tenants roam about the house!"

  "I'm afraid Toney will insist, but please let it be in the summer-time."

  "It would be nicer for them, but I couldn't help my birthday, could I?Just look down the drive, it's getting black with people. I'll runround here first. Mr. Waycott, will you see if the children's room isdone, then we must all work and just talk and explain everything, andplease, Lady Carew pretend you know them all as there isn't time tointroduce."

  In another moment there was a scuffle and rush round, which Trick seemedto think, judging by his barking, was done specially to amuse him, andthen at the open front door and on the top of the stone steps, Toney,Trick, and their special friends might be seen with very smiling faces,standing to receive the first batch of visitors, though looking down thedrive the stream seemed continuous and thick. It must be owned that theguests were very quiet and very shy, and the procession resembled afuneral much more than the beginning of a most novel party. Never hadhalf the visitors come so near the big house, but then never had theybeen invited. They all clutched their invitation cards as if they weretalismen. Toney had stationed the young footman at the bottom of thestairs to receive the cards, but there the first hitch occurred.

  A very sheepish labourer in his very best clothes shook his head as thefootman held out his hand to receive the card.

  "'Tis only to show you, young man," he said in a loud whisper.

  "Will you kindly give it to me," was the answer. "I have to collectthem."

  "No, that you b'aint, I'm a-going to keep it; I've promised my lad I'llframe it for 'im."

  The second guest seeing the difficulty refused even to show his card.

  "We be a-going to frame it too. If you can't a-read it just to get thename in your head, I can't help you no further."

  "Miss Whitburn said they were to be collected."

  These two rebels had stopped the stream, and Lewis, seeing something washappening, dashed down to the rescue.

  "Afternoon, sir; the young man wants my card of invitation from MissToney herself. I'd rather not come than give it to 'im."

  Lewis was convulsed but soon set matters right.

  "Pray keep them, but just show them as you come up. Miss Whitburn iswaiting up there for you."

  "'T'aint likely we'd give it up to _he_," said yet another visitor,casting looks of contempt on the footman who had tried to steal theirprecious cards.

  The children, open-mouthed, clung to their parents, but the Thomas girlshad been put first as they knew Miss Toney so well.

  Up they came, men, women, and children, all sizes, dressed in variedcostumes, and all staring hard at Toney, who, in her simple morningdress, was beaming with pleasure, and her eyes seemed to dance withglee.

  "How do you do? How do you? Oh, Mr. Grant, it is good of you to comewith your lame foot. Mrs. Chapman, the children are to go to their bigroom straight, lots of amusements for them, and they'll be well takencare of. Lady Carew and Miss Maud Hamilton have come to entertain you.Oh please, Mrs. Curtis, do shake hands (Mrs. Curtis was curtseying).What a lovely nosegay! How kind of you. Now, Miss Hamilton, will youtake the first party round the house. There are about thirty here," andMaud went off.

  "How do you do? This is nice of you to come. You're to go round thehouse anywhere except in Lady Dove's room, she's got a headache orsomething."

  "Shan't we hurt the carpets, miss, with our boots?" said a patientlooking woman, "and here's some of our last roses, miss, for yourbirthday. I'm sure we all wish you a very, very long life."

  "Thank you ever so much," and Toney was already holding an arm-full ofvery tight posies. "Now, Mr. Waycott, will you take the second party.Show them my little room at the top of the house for they can see thetops of their cottages and chimneys from there. Sir Evas is comingsoon. He had to see a bit to everything. Dinner's very punctual at six,so please don't stop too long."

  Lewis Waycott obeyed. He had come there to obey to-day, and it was nogood to think of shyness with Toney there. She was really happy withthese people, and could not have been condescending to them had shetried. These poor cottagers, whose dull lives were seldom varied, wereto have a real good day, and enjoy themselves, that was the idea thatfilled Toney's mind. Her one anxiety was the fear that Lady Dove wouldwake and come forth. At last the stream left off and only a fewstragglers appeared. Toney was keeping the last batch for herself, andthe children were now safely housed in the barn house, listeningspell-bound to a ventriloquist with Mrs. Faber in charge. She wasindeed happy, there was a great affinity between herself and children.The tea-tables were spread, and the enjoyment of the little ones wasdoubled by secret glances at the good things which would
soon find theirway down their throats.

  "Hulloa!" called out the ventriloquist, putting his head up a chimney,"are you there, Bill, why don't you come down? I say, what's to day?""A coming of old age." "You silly, not old age, a coming of age.""Whose coming?" "Well, it ain't my coming, for I ain't a-coming foranyone"--and so on till the children clapped and shouted, for suddenlyMiss Toney herself appeared like a sudden burst of sunshine, and stayedten minutes making fun.

  "Oh, Chum, aren't they happy?"

  "I should think they were," echoed Mrs. Faber.

  Yes, the children were happy and tea followed very soon, and after tea aconjurer, and then the children were all fetched home by the neighboursfrom the other half of the village or by elder girls. After this Mrs.Faber slipped away to get ready for the dinner and the dance.

  In the meanwhile the multitude of fathers and mothers were trampinground the great house with wide open eyes and cautious feet. To walk onTurkey carpets and look at the beautiful pictures and china the gentrylooked at every day, was a new experience. It must be said that Toney'sparty had a real treat, because she did showman in a very amusing style.

  "It must be nice, miss, to live in such a wonderful house," said a poorwoman whose home was not a thing of joy.

  "It's a job to keep it clean though," said Toney, "for my part I'drather have a wee cottage if I had the work to do. I used to keep ourcottage nice, and I would rather be you for that, but I guess if wecan't keep a cottage nice we should make a poor hand at keeping a bigplace like this spick and span."

  "Don't seem worth while, miss, to spend time on our poor places."

  "Oh, but it is. Pups used to say that a cottage was the most healthyplace in the world if the doors and windows were always open to let inGod's sunshine, and if God's sunshine found no dust when it did get inthere. I'll tell you what, Mrs. Smith, we'll start a society for thebrightest cottage in uncle's part of the village. I'll give a beautifulprize for the best kept and you must win it."

  "Oh, miss!" exclaimed Mrs. Smith of the sorrowful countenance, "thechildren do dirty things so."

  "But they'll want you to win the prize. We'll have a model village,never fear. I'm first-rate at cleaning kettles and can teach you."Mrs. Smith began mentally scrubbing at once. Toney had another questionto answer.

  "If you please, miss," said a labourer, nodding towards a picturerepresenting nymphs dancing, very scantily clothed, "it must be a warmcountry where ladies have so little clothing on for dancing. I suppose'tis the fashion there." Toney laughed.

  "Oh, they are not real people, the artist just wanted to think of thespirit of the wood. He means to represent all the happy thoughts onehas in a lovely lonely wood."

  The man shook his head slowly. He found it difficult to grasp the newidea of making your happy thoughts dance in light clothing.

  "They be wonderfully tricky, the painters, miss. There was a gentlemanwho come to paint in the village last summer, and who took our Ann'spicture without shoes nor stockings. I begged him not to show it to theneighbours as our Ann never do go bare-foot."

  "But it's very healthy, Mr. Carter. I used to run about without shoesand stockings when I was young. I wish I could now, but you see----"

  At this moment there was a cry heard from the end of the passage, whereToney and her party and Mr. Waycott and his party were just converging.

  "Antonia! Antonia!"

  Toney was in front of a paper on which was written, "Please walk ontip-toe down this passage." Now the tip-toes of many persons are notnoiseless and in the gathering twilight it had not been observed.

  "Gracious stars!" exclaimed Tony darting down the passage, "it's AuntDove who has done her rest!"

  It was indeed Lady Dove and Miss Grossman who were standing in thedoorway, looking at the retreating figures with faces full ofdispleasure.

  "Antonia, who are these people?"

  "Please, Aunt Dove, don't be frightened. They are not robbers, it'syour own tenants you know, just taking a peep round. But they are goingdown now, and it's just dinner-time. Won't you come and see the entry?"

  "Certainly not. I am quite upset enough. Our dinner is at half-pastseven, and I hope you will be ready. As to all those common peopletramping on my carpets----"

  "Please don't let them hear you, Aunt Dove," pleaded Toney, "they wouldbe so distressed, for, honour bright! they've behaved better thanprinces and princesses."

  "I do not think your education or your bringing up ever brought you incontact with princes, Antonia--Miss Grossman, pray read on again, themaids are all taken from me and I shall not be able to dress till justbefore dinner."

  Miss Grossman looked most unwilling to accede to the request.

  "I do not object for once to reading for twenty minutes longer, LadyDove, after that I must have my free time."

  Toney did not wait to hear the stormy discussion that followed.

  "It is lucky Aunt Dove won't appear," thought Toney. "Oh, Mr. Waycott,follow me on tip-toe, please, or a bomb will explode, but they haveenjoyed themselves."

  Lewis literally obeyed, and Toney, smothering her laughter, hurrieddownstairs with him.