"Why not?" asked Percy.
"Cause there was things to do," said Polly. "But sometimes when it rained, and he couldn"t go out and work, and there wasn"t anything to do in the house--then we"d have--oh!" and she drew a long breath at the memory, "such a time, you can"t think!"
"Didn"t you wish it would always rain?" asked Van, still gazing at the picture.
"Dear, no!" began Polly.
"I didn"t," broke in Joel, in horror. "I wouldn"t a-had it rain for anything!--only once in a while," he added, as he thought of the good times that Polly had spoken of.
""Twas nice outdoors," said little Davie, reflectively; "and nice inside, too." And then he glanced over to his mother, who gave him a smile in return. "And "twas nice always."
"Well," said Van, returning to the picture, "I do wish you"d tell me how to draw, Ben. I can"t do anything but flowers," he said in a discouraged way.
"Flowers aren"t anything," said Percy, pleasantly. "That"s girls" work; but dogs and horses and cars--those are just good!"
"Will you, Ben?" asked Van, looking down into the big blue eyes, so kindly turned up to his.
"Yes, indeed I will," cried Ben, "that is, all I know; "tisn"t much, but everything I can, I"ll tell you."
"Then I can learn, can"t I?" cried Van joyfully.
"Oh, tell me too, Ben," cried Percy, "will you? I want to learn too."
"And me!" cried d.i.c.k, bending forward, nearly upsetting Phronsie as he did so. "Yes, say I may, Ben, do!"
"You"re too little," began Percy. But Ben nodded his head at d.i.c.k, which caused him to clap his hands and return to his original position, satisfied.
"Well, I guess we"re going to, too," said Joel. "Dave an" me; there isn"t anybody goin" to learn without us."
"Of course not," said Polly, "Ben wouldn"t leave you out, Joey."
Phronsie sat quite still all this time, on the corner of the table, her feet tucked up under her, and her hands clasped in her lap, and never said a word. But Ben looking up, saw the most grieved expression settling on her face, as the large eyes were fixed in wonder on the faces before her.
"And there"s my pet," he cried in enthusiasm, and reaching over the table, he caught hold of one of the little fat hands. "Why we couldn"t think of getting along without her! She shall learn to draw--she shall!"
"Really, Bensie?" said Phronsie, the sunlight breaking all over the gloomy little visage, and setting the brown eyes to dancing. "Real, true, splendid pictures?"
"Yes, the splendidest," said Ben, "the very splendidest pictures, Phronsie Pepper, you ever saw!"
"Oh!" cried Phronsie; and before any one knew what she was about, she tripped right into the middle of the table, over the papers and everything, and gave a happy little whirl!
"Dear me, Phronsie!" cried Polly catching her up and hugging her; "you mustn"t dance on the table."
"I"m going to learn," said Phronsie, coming out of Polly"s embrace, "to draw whole pictures, all alone by myself--Ben said so!"
"I know it," said Polly, "and then you shall draw one for mamsie--you shall!"
"I will," said Phronsie, dreadfully excited; "I"ll draw her a cow, and two chickens, Polly, just like Grandma Bascom"s!"
"Yes," whispered Polly, "but don"t you tell her yet till you get it done, Phronsie."
"I won"t," said Phronsie in the loudest of tones--but putting her mouth close to Polly"s ear. "And then she"ll be so s"prised, Polly! won"t she?"
Just then came Jasper"s voice at the door. "Can I come in?"
"Oh, do, j.a.ppy," cried Polly, rushing along with Phronsie in her arms to open the door. "We"re so glad you"ve got home!"
"So am I," said Jasper, coming in, his face flushed and his eyes sparkling; "I thought father never would be through downtown, Polly!"
"We"re going to learn to draw," said Percy, over by the table, who wouldn"t on any account leave his seat by Ben, though he was awfully tired of sitting still so long, for fear somebody else would hop into it. "Ben"s going to teach us."
"Yes, he is," put in Van, bounding up to Jasper and pulling at all the b.u.t.tons on his jacket he could reach, to command attention.
"And us," said Joel, coming up too. "You forgot us, Van."
"The whole of us--every single one in this room," said Van decidedly, "all except Mrs. Pepper."
"Hulloa!" said Jasper, "that is a cla.s.s! Well, Professor Ben, you"ve got to teach me then, for I"m coming too."
"You?" said Ben, turning around his chair, and looking at him; "I can"t teach you anything, j.a.ppy. You know everything already."
"Let him come, anyway," said Polly, hopping up and down.
"Oh, I"m coming, Professor," laughed Jasper. "Never you fear, Polly; I"ll be on hand when the rest of the cla.s.s comes in!"
"And Van," said Mrs. Pepper, pausing a minute in her work, and smiling over at him in a lull in the chatter--"I think flowers are most beautiful!" and she pointed to a little framed picture on the mantel, of the bunch of b.u.t.tercups and one huge rose that Van had with infinite patience drawn, and then colored to suit his fancy.
"Do you?" cried Van, perfectly delighted; and leaving the group he rushed up to her side. "Do you really think they"re nice, Mrs. Pepper?"
"Of course I do," said Mrs. Pepper briskly, and beaming on him; "I think everything of them, and I shall keep them as long as I live, Van!"
"Well, then," said Van, very much pleased, "I shall paint you ever so many more--just as many as you want!"
"Do!" said Mrs. Pepper, taking up her work again. "And I"ll hang them every one up."
"Yes, I will," said Van; "and I"ll go right to work on one to-morrow.
What you mending our jackets for?" he asked abruptly as a familiar hole caught his attention.
"Because they"re torn," said Mrs. Pepper cheerfully, "an" they won"t mend themselves."
"Why don"t you let Jane?" he persisted. "She always does them."
"Jane"s got enough to do," replied Mrs. Pepper, smiling away as hard as she could, "and I haven"t, so I"m going to look around and pick up something to keep my hands out of mischief as much as I can, while I"m here."
"Do you ever get into mischief?" asked little d.i.c.k, coming up and looking into Mrs. Pepper"s face wonderingly. "Why, you"re a big woman!"
"Dear me, yes!" said Mrs. Pepper. "The bigger you are, the more mischief you can get into. You"ll find that out, d.i.c.key."