Miss Eloise from her chair watched them all for awhile. She could see that very little headway was made, though Jennie as hostess was doing her best to entertain. Billy Potter with round eyes stared straight ahead, taking interest only in the pa.s.sing of an occasional vessel; Mallie, with drooping head responded yes or no to the questions put to her, and both visitors refused to leave their chairs to go anywhere or see anything. Presently Miss Eloise called Jennie softly and she immediately responded.
"You"re having rather a hard time of it, aren"t you dear?" said Miss Eloise.
"Oh, Miss Eloise, you don"t know what sticks they are. I can"t make the little girl say anything but yes and no, and the boy won"t even say that much; we have all tried him."
Miss Eloise laughed. "Do you think you could wheel me up closer?"
"Why, of course I shall be delighted to."
Edna seeing what was taking place, ran to help. "Oh, Miss Eloise," she cried, "are you coming to help us out?"
"I am going to try," she said smiling. And presently the strangers looked up to see a sweet face smiling at them from a nest of silken pillows.
It would be a rare child whom Miss Eloise could not entertain, and in a few moments Billy"s round eyes removed their gaze from the pa.s.sing ships while Mallie was a delighted listener to one of Miss Eloise"s fascinating stories.
Time pa.s.sed so rapidly under this treatment that when, in the course of half an hour, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Ramsey came over to where the group sat, they found no one ready to move until the tale was done, so both ladies sat down to hear its close.
"Gee! but that was a fine story," said the hitherto silent Billy, when the end of the story came. "I wish you could tell "em like that, Mother."
"Oh, my dear, I wish I could," returned Mrs. Potter. "What a gift you have, Miss Newman. I wish more children could have the privilege of hearing you. I quite envy Mrs. Ramsey such an inst.i.tution as a self-working reciter of tales."
The ladies all laughed and Mrs. Ramsey said that her neighbors need not think they could send over and borrow this new inst.i.tution, though she was sure the inst.i.tution was much more entertaining than any phonograph. They were all quite merry over it, and all the time Edna was thinking very hard, and was the most sober one of the company.
After the visitors had departed, the two younger of them quite thawed out, and promising with great readiness to come again, the three little girls returned to their place on the sands.
They were discussing the two Potter children when suddenly Edna sang out: "I see a boat coming."
"There are always boats coming and going," remarked Dorothy; "I don"t think that is anything very unusual."
"But they don"t often come so close to the sh.o.r.e, as if they were making right for this little landing," protested Edna.
Jennie sprang to her feet. "I do believe it is someone coming here,"
she declared, "but I don"t know who it is. I think it is one of the boats from the hotel. There are two pretty big boys in it and a smaller boy. Yes, they are going to land. Shall we stay here or go to the house? I am sure I don"t know them."
The other two were standing up by now. They watched the boat till it came up to the little landing, saw one of the boys, the smaller one, scramble ash.o.r.e and then the others row off. The smaller boy came on directly to where the little girls were standing. As soon as he caught sight of them he took off his hat and walked faster.
Then Edna recognized him: "Why it"s Louis, my cousin Louis," she cried, and ran to meet him. "Why, Louis Morrison," she greeted him as he came up, "where in the world did you come from?"
"From the hotel," responded Louis. "Mother and I are staying there and mother had a letter from your mother telling her that you were here and where you were staying, so when Al and Phil Haines said they were coming out in a boat I got them to leave me here. I say, it"s fine, isn"t it?"
Just what was fine, Edna did not stop to inquire, but turned to her friends to say, "This is my cousin Louis Morrison; Louis, this is Jennie Ramsey and this is Dorothy Evans, my dearest friends."
"What were you doing when I came up?" asked Louis.
"We weren"t doing anything in particular. It is Jennie"s afternoon to choose--we take turns in choosing how we will spend our afternoons, you see--and she hadn"t made up her mind exactly." Edna looked inquiringly at Jennie as if to ask what the program was to be.
Jennie, like the little lady she was, turned to Louis. "What would you like to do?" she asked.
"Oh, I don"t know." Louis looked a little embarra.s.sed at being thus appealed to. "What do you generally do?"
"Sometimes we get Cap"n Si to take us out rowing, sometimes we go for a drive, and if no one else is going to use the automobile, mother will let Mack take us out in that, but I am afraid she is going to use it this afternoon. We could take the pony, though, or we could go out in the boat."
"Have you a boat of your own? I can row," Louis returned.
"No, I haven"t a boat of my own, but papa says I shall have one when I am old enough. He never lets anyone take me out but Cap"n Si."
"Ho," exclaimed Louis, "I could take you as well as not."
Here Jennie became quite dignified and drew herself up to her small height. "I believe it is my afternoon to choose," she said turning to the two girls; "I think we"d better go to drive. I will tell Peter to bring up the pony and cart in half an hour." She walked away toward the stables, Dorothy joined her and Edna was left with her cousin feeling half indignant with Louis and half miffed with the girls. Why couldn"t they have asked her and Louis to go to the stables? They might have known Louis, being a boy, would be interested in the horses.
She was roused from her thoughts by Louis who said, "I say, Edna, you don"t want to go to drive, do you? It"s stupid to just go driving up and down the roads; it"s lots more exciting to go out in a boat. I like a sail-boat, don"t you?"
"I"ve never been in one," said Edna truthfully. "Mr. Ramsey doesn"t think they are very safe, but he says we shall all go on a sailing party some day soon."
"I hope I can go, too," returned Louis. Then, realizing that it would be best for himself if he tried to be more gracious to Edna"s friends, he said, "I reckon after all, it will be nice to take a drive. Perhaps the driver will let me drive a little."
"The driver is Jennie," Edna told him. She began to be a little troubled about this new element which had suddenly come in to disturb the harmony of the days. She knew that Jennie was rather tenacious of her rights in the matter of her pony, though she was generosity itself in other things. She wished that they were going out with Cap"n Si instead of in the pony-cart. She wasn"t sure whether the girls wanted herself and cousin to follow them, and yet she did not like to stand as if waiting. "Let"s go up to the house," she said suddenly.
This proved an excellent move, for they met Mrs. Ramsey just as they were going up the steps, and when Edna explained who her companion was, Mrs. Ramsey said, "Why, that is very nice. I must go and call on Mrs.
Morrison. I was going to the hotel anyhow. Where are the others, Edna?"
"They went to the stable to order Peter to get out the pony and cart so we could all go to drive."
"Wouldn"t you rather go in the motor-car? There is plenty of room, for Miss Newman thinks it better Miss Eloise should not give up her afternoon rest, and will not leave her by herself. I can have Mack leave me at the hotel, and while I am making my calls he can take you children around by the Cape, and you can pick me up on the way back.
How do you like that plan?"
"I think it would be lovely," said Edna looking at Louis for confirmation.
"Suits me down to the ground," said Louis.
"Then I"ll telephone down to the stables and tell Peter never mind about the pony, and I"ll ask him to send Jennie and Dorothy up to me."
Edna was much relieved at this outcome of the difficulty, for she knew there could be no attempt made to drive the motor-car whatever Louis might want to do in the matter of driving the pony. He was an only child and rather a spoiled one, having had his way at home, and being seldom thwarted by his over-indulgent parents. Edna was fond of him in a way, but she feared he would prove a marplot if he spent much time at the Ramsey"s, and she began to wonder how long he and his mother were to be at the hotel. She did not like to ask, and just then the automobile appeared with the other two in it.
"We"re not going in the pony cart after all," explained Jennie. "Did you know, Edna?"
"Yes," she replied, "your mother said so." She felt that the situation was relieved of its awkwardness because Mrs. Ramsey would be with them, and while she wasn"t exactly offended with Jennie and Dorothy, she felt that she ought to be loyal to Louis, and now there would be no need of straining a point either one way or the other. Therefore when she and Louis settled down on the seat by Mrs. Ramsey all promised most favorably, and since Louis was bound to enjoy himself there was no friction.
Leaving Mrs. Ramsey at the big hotel some distance beyond, they enjoyed a spin of half an hour and then returned. Mrs. Morrison came out to greet Edna and to tell Louis he had best remain instead of continuing the drive to the Ramseys.
"Oh, bother," exclaimed Louis, "I don"t see why I can"t go back. I don"t have to hang around here all the time."
"No, but Louis, you will have a long way to return, and besides you have been away all the afternoon."
"Oh, but that doesn"t make any difference," Louis continued to parley.
"I haven"t seen Edna for ages."
"But you can see her again to-morrow. Come in, dear, and I will tell you about a nice plan Mrs. Ramsey has been arranging."