Dating (Social customs) -- Juvenile fiction; Friendship -- Juvenile fiction; Young women -- Social life and customs -- Juvenile fiction
“Right-o! And who else?” Marjorie persisted, still keeping sight shut
off from the chuckling victim.
“That’s easy,” boasted Miss Susanna. “Leila and Vera—yes—and Robin Page.
Since you’re here, child, she must be here, too. And Kathie. She’s a
fixture on the campus. Now drop those hands and let me have a look at
you,” impatiently commanded the old lady.
CHAPTER XI.—OUT OF THE PAST
The prisoning hands fell away from Miss Hamilton’s eyes revealing five
laughing girls clustered at one side of the historic chair in which the
old lady sat, her expression one of keen enjoyment. She immediately held
out her arms to Marjorie who slipped into them and kissed Miss Susanna
on the forehead and on both cheeks.
“My dear, dear child. So you surprised me after all, though I have been
on the watch for you. It was all Jonas’ fault. He fixed up this scheme.”
Miss Susanna heartily returned Marjorie’s caress with every evidence of
affection. Next she motioned each of the others to her and kissed her on
the cheek, a mark of favor they had not expected from the matter-of-fact
mistress of the Arms.
“You stole a march on me, and Jonas helped you!” she exclaimed when the
first babel of greeting had subsided. “I’m glad you found me here. I’m
going to do something for you now that I think you’ll like. Come, guess
what. You made me guess.”
“Show us something of interest that was Mr. Brooke Hamilton’s,” Marjorie
made instant guess.
“Um-m-m; partly right,” Miss Susanna put on a baffling expression.
“It’s a letter, or one of those papers,” hazarded Vera. “I mean what you
are going to show us.”
“Right again, but not altogether right.” Miss Susanna was enjoying the
moment of suspense.
“It’s tea I can read in your eye, and I’ll guess again it’s been put off
till this time each night this week,” Leila slyly asserted. “Oh, I have
a fine reasoning power.” Leila showed her white teeth affably, “though
there are those who do not believe it.”
“Clever Leila!” Miss Susanna clapped her hands. “You’ve guessed the
other half of my intention. I decided to have my tea late this week in
case you girls dropped in on me. Kathie said that Marjorie would
probably arrive when she came on the late afternoon train. I guessed the
firm of Page and Dean would meet at the station,” she said with humor.
“We did,” Marjorie’s light tone grew serious. “Oh, Miss Susanna, we
_saw_, coming to the campus. We hardly know how to begin to thank you
for the help you’ve given us. It means so much to us, who wish the work
on the dormitory to progress, but even more to the girls who will live
in the dormitory when it is completed.” Marjorie had re-taken the old
lady’s hands in hers, pressing them gratefully.
Her friends and Jonas stood looking on at the fond little scene between
the once crabbed mistress of the Arms and the gentle girl whose high
principles and unfailing courtesy had won her the friendship of the
difficult, embittered last of the Hamiltons.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account