CHAPTER VI
SUSAN, RILLA, AND DOG MONDAY MAKE A RESOLUTION
The big living-room at Ingleside was snowed over with drifts of whitecotton. Word had come from Red Cross headquarters that sheets andbandages would be required. Nan and Di and Rilla were hard at work.Mrs. Blythe and Susan were upstairs in the boys' room, engaged in amore personal task. With dry, anguished eyes they were packing up Jem'sbelongings. He must leave for Valcartier the next morning. They hadbeen expecting the word but it was none the less dreadful when it came.
Rilla was basting the hem of a sheet for the first time in her life.When the word had come that Jem must go she had her cry out among thepines in Rainbow Valley and then she had gone to her mother.
"Mother, I want to do something. I'm only a girl--I can't do anythingto win the war--but I must do something to help at home."
"The cotton has come up for the sheets," said Mrs. Blythe. "You canhelp Nan and Di make them up. And Rilla, don't you think you couldorganize a Junior Red Cross among the young girls? I think they wouldlike it better and do better work by themselves than if mixed up withthe older people."
"But, mother--I've never done anything like that."
"We will all have to do a great many things in the months ahead of usthat we have never done before, Rilla."
"Well"--Rilla took the plunge--"I'll try, mother--if you'll tell me howto begin. I have been thinking it all over and I have decided that Imust be as brave and heroic and unselfish as I can possibly be."
Mrs. Blythe did not smile at Rilla's italics. Perhaps she did not feellike smiling or perhaps she detected a real grain of serious purposebehind Rilla's romantic pose. So here was Rilla hemming sheets andorganizing a Junior Red Cross in her thoughts as she hemmed; moreover,she was enjoying it--the organizing that is, not the hemming. It wasinteresting and Rilla discovered a certain aptitude in herself for itthat surprised her. Who would be president? Not she. The older girlswould not like that. Irene Howard? No, somehow Irene was not quite aspopular as she deserved to be. Marjorie Drew? No, Marjorie hadn'tenough backbone. She was too prone to agree with the last speaker.Betty Mead--calm, capable, tactful Betty--the very one! And UnaMeredith for treasurer; and, if they were very insistent, they mightmake her, Rilla, secretary. As for the various committees, they must bechosen after the Juniors were organized, but Rilla knew just who shouldbe put on which. They would meet around--and there must be noeats--Rilla knew she would have a pitched battle with Olive Kirk overthat--and everything should be strictly business-like andconstitutional. Her minute book should be covered in white with a RedCross on the cover--and wouldn't it be nice to have some kind ofuniform which they could all wear at the concerts they would have toget up to raise money--something simple but smart?
"You have basted the top hem of that sheet on one side and the bottomhem on the other," said Di.
Rilla picked out her stitches and reflected that she hated sewing.Running the Junior Reds would be much more interesting.
Mrs. Blythe was saying upstairs, "Susan, do you remember that first dayJem lifted up his little arms to me and called me 'mo'er'--the veryfirst word he ever tried to say?"
"You could not mention anything about that blessed baby that I do notand will not remember till my dying day," said Susan drearily.
"Susan, I keep thinking today of once when he cried for me in thenight. He was just a few months old. Gilbert didn't want me to go tohim--he said the child was well and warm and that it would be fosteringbad habits in him. But I went--and took him up--I can feel that tightclinging of his little arms round my neck yet. Susan, if I hadn't gonethat night, twenty-one years ago, and taken my baby up when he criedfor me I couldn't face tomorrow morning."
"I do not know how we are going to face it anyhow, Mrs. Dr. dear. Butdo not tell me that it will be the final farewell. He will be back onleave before he goes overseas, will he not?"
"We hope so but we are not very sure. I am making up my mind that hewill not, so that there will be no disappointment to bear. Susan, I amdetermined that I will send my boy off tomorrow with a smile. He shallnot carry away with him the remembrance of a weak mother who had notthe courage to send when he had the courage to go. I hope none of uswill cry."
"I am not going to cry, Mrs. Dr. dear, and that you may tie to, butwhether I shall manage to smile or not will be as Providence ordainsand as the pit of my stomach feels. Have you room there for thisfruit-cake? And the shortbread? And the mince-pie? That blessed boyshall not starve, whether they have anything to eat in that Quebecplace or not. Everything seems to be changing all at once, does it not?Even the old cat at the manse has passed away. He breathed his last ata quarter to ten last night and Bruce is quite heart-broken, they tellme."
"It's time that pussy went where good cats go. He must be at leastfifteen years old. He has seemed so lonely since Aunt Martha died."
"I should not have lamented, Mrs. Dr. dear, if that Hyde-beast had diedalso. He has been Mr. Hyde most of the time since Jem came home inkhaki, and that has a meaning I will maintain. I do not know whatMonday will do when Jem is gone. The creature just goes about with ahuman look in his eyes that takes all the good out of me when I see it.Ellen West used to be always railing at the Kaiser and we thought hercrazy, but now I see that there was a method in her madness. This trayis packed, Mrs. Dr. dear, and I will go down and put in my best lickspreparing supper. I wish I knew when I would cook another supper forJem but such things are hidden from our eyes."
Jem Blythe and Jerry Meredith left next morning. It was a dull day,threatening rain, and the clouds lay in heavy grey rolls over the sky;but almost everybody in the Glen and Four Winds and Harbour Head andUpper Glen and over-harbour--except Whiskers-on-the-moon--was there tosee them off. The Blythe family and the Meredith family were allsmiling. Even Susan, as Providence did ordain, wore a smile, though theeffect was somewhat more painful than tears would have been. Faith andNan were very pale and very gallant. Rilla thought she would get onvery well if something in her throat didn't choke her, and if her lipsdidn't take such spells of trembling. Dog Monday was there, too. Jemhad tried to say good-bye to him at Ingleside but Monday implored soeloquently that Jem relented and let him go to the station. He keptclose to Jem's legs and watched every movement of his beloved master.
"I can't bear that dog's eyes," said Mrs. Meredith.
"The beast has more sense than most humans," said Mary Vance. "Well,did we any of us ever think we'd live to see this day? I bawled allnight to think of Jem and Jerry going like this. I think they're plumbderanged. Miller got a maggot in his head about going but I soon talkedhim out of it--likewise his aunt said a few touching things. For oncein our lives Kitty Alec and I agree. It's a miracle that isn't likelyto happen again. There's Ken, Rilla."
Rilla knew Kenneth was there. She had been acutely conscious of it fromthe moment he had sprung from Leo West's buggy. Now he came up to hersmiling.
"Doing the brave-smiling-sister-stunt, I see. What a crowd for the Glento muster! Well, I'm off home in a few days myself."
A queer little wind of desolation that even Jem's going had not causedblew over Rilla's spirit.
"Why? You have another month of vacation."
"Yes--but I can't hang around Four Winds and enjoy myself when theworld's on fire like this. It's me for little old Toronto where I'llfind some way of helping in spite of this bally ankle. I'm not lookingat Jem and Jerry--makes me too sick with envy. You girls are great--nocrying, no grim endurance. The boys'll go off with a good taste intheir mouths. I hope Persis and mother will be as game when my turncomes."
"Oh, Kenneth--the war will be over before your turn cometh."
There! She had lisped again. Another great moment of life spoiled!Well, it was her fate. And anyhow, nothing mattered. Kenneth was offalready--he was talking to Ethel Reese, who was dressed, at seven inthe morning, in the gown she had worn to the dance, and was crying.What on earth had Ethel to cry about? None of the Reeses were in khaki.Rilla wanted to cry, too--but she would n
ot. What was that horrid oldMrs. Drew saying to mother, in that melancholy whine of hers? "I don'tknow how you can stand this, Mrs. Blythe. I couldn't if it was my poreboy." And mother--oh, mother could always be depended on! How her greyeyes flashed in her pale face. "It might have been worse, Mrs. Drew. Imight have had to urge him to go." Mrs. Drew did not understand butRilla did. She flung up her head. Her brother did not have to be urgedto go.
Rilla found herself standing alone and listening to disconnected scrapsof talk as people walked up and down past her.
"I told Mark to wait and see if they asked for a second lot of men. Ifthey did I'd let him go--but they won't," said Mrs. Palmer Burr.
"I think I'll have it made with a crush girdle of velvet," said BessieClow.
"I'm frightened to look at my husband's face for fear I'll see in itthat he wants to go too," said a little over-harbour bride.
"I'm scared stiff," said whimsical Mrs. Jim Howard. "I'm scared Jimwill enlist--and I'm scared he won't."
"The war will be over by Christmas," said Joe Vickers.
"Let them European nations fight it out between them," said Abner Reese.
"When he was a boy I gave him many a good trouncing," shouted NormanDouglas, who seemed to be referring to some one high in militarycircles in Charlottetown. "Yes, sir, I walloped him well, big gun as heis now."
"The existence of the British Empire is at stake," said the Methodistminister.
"There's certainly something about uniforms," sighed Irene Howard.
"It's a commercial war when all is said and done and not worth one dropof good Canadian blood," said a stranger from the shore hotel.
"The Blythe family are taking it easy," said Kate Drew.
"Them young fools are just going for adventure," growled NathanCrawford.
"I have absolute confidence in Kitchener," said the over-harbour doctor.
In these ten minutes Rilla passed through a dizzying succession ofanger, laughter, contempt, depression and inspiration. Oh, peoplewere--funny! How little they understood. "Taking it easy," indeed--wheneven Susan hadn't slept a wink all night! Kate Drew always was a minx.
Rilla felt as if she were in some fantastic nightmare. Were these thepeople who, three weeks ago, were talking of crops and prices and localgossip?
There--the train was coming--mother was holding Jem's hand--Dog Mondaywas licking it--everybody was saying good-bye--the train was in! Jemkissed Faith before everybody--old Mrs. Drew whooped hysterically--themen, led by Kenneth, cheered--Rilla felt Jem seize her hand--"Good-bye,Spider"--somebody kissed her cheek--she believed it was Jerry but neverwas sure--they were off--the train was pulling out--Jem and Jerry werewaving to everybody--everybody was waving back--mother and Nan weresmiling still, but as if they had just forgotten to take the smileoff--Monday was howling dismally and being forcibly restrained by theMethodist minister from tearing after the train--Susan was waving herbest bonnet and hurrahing like a man--had she gone crazy?--the trainrounded a curve. They had gone.
Rilla came to herself with a gasp. There was a sudden quiet. Nothing todo now but to go home--and wait. The doctor and Mrs. Blythe walked offtogether--so did Nan and Faith--so did John Meredith and Rosemary.Walter and Una and Shirley and Di and Carl and Rilla went in a group.Susan had put her bonnet back on her head, hindside foremost, andstalked grimly off alone. Nobody missed Dog Monday at first. When theydid Shirley went back for him. He found Dog Monday curled up in one ofthe shipping-sheds near the station and tried to coax him home. DogMonday would not move. He wagged his tail to show he had no hardfeelings but no blandishments availed to budge him.
"Guess Monday has made up his mind to wait there till Jem comes back,"said Shirley, trying to laugh as he rejoined the rest. This was exactlywhat Dog Monday had done. His dear master had gone--he, Monday, hadbeen deliberately and of malice aforethought prevented from going withhim by a demon disguised in the garb of a Methodist minister.Wherefore, he, Monday, would wait there until the smoking, snortingmonster, which had carried his hero off, carried him back.
Ay, wait there, little faithful dog with the soft, wistful, puzzledeyes. But it will be many a long bitter day before your boyish comradecomes back to you.
The doctor was away on a case that night and Susan stalked into Mrs.Blythe's room on her way to bed to see if her adored Mrs. Dr. dear were"comfortable and composed." She paused solemnly at the foot of the bedand solemnly declared,
"Mrs. Dr. dear, I have made up my mind to be a heroine."
"Mrs. Dr. dear" found herself violently inclined to laugh--which wasmanifestly unfair, since she had not laughed when Rilla had announced asimilar heroic determination. To be sure, Rilla was a slim, white-robedthing, with a flower-like face and starry young eyes aglow withfeeling; whereas Susan was arrayed in a grey flannel nightgown ofstrait simplicity, and had a strip of red woollen worsted tied aroundher grey hair as a charm against neuralgia. But that should not makeany vital difference. Was it not the spirit that counted? Yet Mrs.Blythe was hard put to it not to laugh.
"I am not," proceeded Susan firmly, "going to lament or whine orquestion the wisdom of the Almighty any more as I have been doinglately. Whining and shirking and blaming Providence do not get usanywhere. We have just got to grapple with whatever we have to dowhether it is weeding the onion patch, or running the Government. Ishall grapple. Those blessed boys have gone to war; and we women, Mrs.Dr. dear, must tarry by the stuff and keep a stiff upper lip."