They all gathered around her on the porch after lunch and she told them about her coming.
"You see it was this way," she began. "It was so stifling in the city that I was perfectly exhausted by the heat and the doctor told my sister I must get away if possible, but neither of us could see where or how, and poor sister was so worried she didn"t know what to do. Then all of a sudden, just as if she knew all about our difficulties, came a letter from Mrs. Ramsey asking us to come up here, and arranging it all so nicely that there seemed no reason in the world why I could not make the journey comfortably. So we decided that we would try it. Mr.
Ramsey sent the automobile that took us to the wharf and we came all the way by boat to Boston where Mrs. Ramsey met us, and from there we took another boat which brought us to the wharf here. Sister was so afraid I would be seasick, but I was not, in fact it was the most glorious trip I ever had, and we can go back the same way. It is all so wonderful that I haven"t recovered from the wonder of it yet. I am so much stronger that I can walk about a very little, and don"t have to sit in a rolling chair all day."
All this did seem very wonderful to the little girls who had been accustomed to seeing Miss Eloise always in an invalid"s chair wheeled from room to room. "Do you think you will be able to walk more and more?" asked Edna interestedly.
"The doctor--Mrs. Ramsey"s doctor--thinks I may be able to as I get stronger. He has encouraged me so much that I begin to think anything possible."
All this was very pleasant news, but here Miss Newman interfered by saying, "Ellie, darling, you know you must not overtax your strength and now you must be taking a rest. The salt baths are doing her a world of good," she turned to the children to say, "but we must not go beyond her strength." So she bore off Miss Eloise and the little girls were left to themselves.
There were so many pleasures in sight that they found it hard to choose, but finally it was decided among them that each should take her turn in making plans for the afternoons, and that they would draw lots for first choice. This they did with three slips of paper. Dorothy drew the longest, therefore to her fell the choice for that day. Jennie drew the second longest and she was to take the next day. As Edna"s was the shortest she came last and after that it was easy enough, for they were to keep it up in this order.
After much discussion, Dorothy decided that the very nicest and most unusual thing to do would be to go out in a boat for a row.
"I think that will be perfectly lovely," declared Edna, who had been wavering in her own mind between a preference for the water and a drive behind the little pony.
"I"m sure I shall like it," Jennie said, "and we shall have a good time, I know. Mother always lets me go when we can get old Cap"n Si to take us, for he is perfectly safe and is such a funny old fellow.
"Who is he?" asked the others.
"He is an old fisherman who used to have a fishing vessel of his own, but now he is too old to go to the Banks, so he just fishes around a little, and takes people out rowing or sailing when they don"t want to go too far. He lives in that little old house over on that point."
Dorothy and Edna looked to where she indicated and saw a little low brown house very near the water. They could distinguish someone sitting in the doorway.
"What is he doing?" asked Dorothy.
"He is mending his nets."
"How will he know we want him? Do we have to go over and tell him?"
"No, I will tell you how we manage. Come with me."
The two followed her to the bath-house, one side of which was used as a boat-house. From a nail inside the door Jennie took down a tin horn, which she blew l.u.s.tily, then looked intently in the direction of Cap"n Si"s house. "He hasn"t heard," she said presently, and blew another blast. At this Cap"n Si shaded his eyes, and then waved his hand.
"He hears," said Jennie. "Now I must let him know the time." She went to where a flag-pole displayed a blue and white pennant. This she raised and lowered three times. "Now he will know that he is to come at three o"clock," she told the others.
Cap"n Si evidently understood, for he waved his hand three times.
"I think that is a fine way to let him know," said Edna. "How did you ever think of it?"
"Oh, I didn"t think of it, Cap"n Si did. He always sits out there on that bench pleasant afternoons, and he told me just how I could let him know when I wanted him. I think I will get him to take us to Sh.e.l.ly Beach; it is such a nice place."
"Are there really sh.e.l.ls there?"
"Oh, yes, ever so many, and some of them are so pretty, tiny little pinky ones."
This sounded so fascinating that Edna declared that if it had been her afternoon to choose she could have selected nothing more to her mind than this expedition.
"We must go tell mother where we are going," said Jennie, "so she won"t be anxious."
Mrs. Ramsey was in the library at a desk writing letters. She looked up as the children came in. "I am just sending a line to your mothers, dearies," she said to Edna and Dorothy. "I thought they would be anxious to know of your safe arrival. What is on hand for this afternoon?"
"We are going to get Cap"n Si to take us to Sh.e.l.ly Beach," Jennie told her.
"Then be sure to take some warm wraps and be back before six."
"Oh, you know Cap"n Si never keeps us out late."
"No, I realize that he can be relied upon. I think that will be a very nice expedition for you. Would you like to take along some biscuits or something? You can ask Emma to give you something of that kind if you like."
"Could we have some hard-boiled eggs, too?"
"If there is time to boil them. Let me see. Oh, yes, it is only half past two. Well, run along and make your preparations. Have a good time."
"Isn"t she dear?" said Dorothy, when they were out of the room. "Does she always let you have anything you want, like that?"
"Oh, yes, generally. If she doesn"t it is because there is some good reason why I shouldn"t. I will take some extra salt and maybe Cap"n Si will get some fish and cook them for us on hot stones. He does that sometimes, and they do taste so good. I"ll get Emma to pack everything in a little basket."
"Where do we go to get in the boat?" asked Edna. "Do we have to go to the steamboat wharf?"
"No, indeed, he will come right to our little landing there beyond the boat-house."
This all seemed most convenient, and what with watching Emma pack the basket and with hunting up wraps the time went very rapidly and they were surprised to hear Mrs. Ramsey call to them, "Come along, children.
Here comes Cap"n Si."
Although the sun was hot it did not seem so intolerable as it did at home, for here was the cool sea-breeze always blowing, and even the way to the beach did not seem an uncomfortable walk. Cap"n Si, a grizzly, toothless old man with a pleasant smile and twinkling blue eyes had already drawn his boat up on the sands when they reached him. He gave a quick nod of greeting as the three came up.
"These are my friends Dorothy Evans and Edna Conway," said Jennie.
Cap"n Si jerked his head to each one. "Glad to see ye," he said. "Where be ye going, Jinny?"
"We thought we would like to go to Sh.e.l.ly Beach. It isn"t too far, is it?"
"No, "m, "tain"t. Good weather, too. Hot down your way?" He turned to Edna to ask.
"It has been scorching hot," she told him, "but it wasn"t quite so dreadful when we came away."
"Ever been to these parts before?"
"No, and we never saw the ocean, not the real ocean till now."
Cap"n Si looked at her as if she were a strange species of animal.
"Wal, I swan," he e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed. "Ain"t it queer how folks kin live "slong as that and not see the ocean," he said, turning to Jennie.
"I guess I"d die ef you was to take me out of sight and sound of the water. Lived right here all my life." He turned to Edna again. "Born in that there little house, and ain"t never lived nowhere else, less you call it living on board a fishing vessel. I"ve seen a good bit of towns and been to considerable many ports, but I ain"t seen nawthin"
I"d swop this place fur." He took the basket and stowed it safely away, gave directions about their getting in the boat, shoved it off and came aboard himself without seeming to mind the fact that he had walked through two feet of water.
Edna and Dorothy thought him a most interesting person with his red face, his white tuft of beard under his chin and his great knotty hands. He had a fund of stories to tell them about the sea and the creatures that lived in it, and he used so many queer expressions that they thought him very amusing and determined to remember all his funny sayings that they might tell the boys when they returned home.