Helen glanced up hesitatingly.
"Oh, I"m not asleep," laughingly. "I was thinking. You have a fine voice, so strong and clear, and not aggressive. Don"t you sing?"
"Oh, yes. When I am out in the fields I sing with the birds."
"But you have never had lessons in elocution?"
"Mr. Warfield taught me that the best reading was entering into the spirit of the writer, imagining yourself in the scenes that are described, or taking part in any conversation. And he said when I recited that last day of school, I must be the Captains and Herve Riel, just as if I was leading in the ships."
Her face was in a glow, her eyes luminous.
"How old is Mr. Warfield?"
Helen Grant"s father had married one of his young pupils, Mrs. Van Dorn remembered.
"Oh, I don"t know, a real young man. He has only been at the Center a year."
Mrs. Van Dorn nodded with her chin, a way she had.
"He is quite in earnest about your going to the High School?" she continued.
"He thinks I could teach, and I should like that so much."
She flushed daintily recalling the other half secret she had touched upon with Mrs. Dayton.
"The girl is capable of love and all that nonsense," thought Mrs. Van Dorn. Why should she not come to love her?
CHAPTER VI
HOW THEY ALL PLANNED
"Helen," began Mrs. Dayton, "I was thinking if you would like to go home on Sat.u.r.day and make your visit it might be a good thing. We have made no real plans about the winter as yet, but we might like to presently."
There was a half mirthful, half meaning light in her eyes.
"Oh!" Helen said. She was not longing for the visit. Her cool reception by her aunt had really hurt her.
"Time is going so fast. Why, here it is only two weeks and a half to September."
"If you think I had better," very soberly.
"Yes, I do. It would look rather underhand if you went home and said nothing when we had settled upon certain intentions."
"Yes, I understand."
Mrs. Van Dorn objected, but when she found it was a matter of duty, rather than delight, she gave in with a few little grumbles. Uncle Jason was so full of satisfaction he hugged Helen to his heart and kissed her.
So she said good-by and had a pleasant drive over, heard all the small _on dits_ of the farm; that two hens had stolen nests and brought off twenty-three chickens between them; and old Bose, the dog, had died suddenly, and they had a mastiff pup eight months old; that they were building a new fence on the back of the barn lot, and that there would be no end of apples this fall. He really didn"t know what they would do when Jenny went away, and he wished girls didn"t want to get married.
But she, Helen, would come home and that would liven up things a bit.
They turned into the lane and when they were by the kitchen she sprang out. One child carried the news to another, and they huddled about her so that she could hardly walk.
"Here"s Helen, mother!"
"Well, I declare! How do you do, child! You never could come in a better time! I had a good mind to tell Uncle Jason to bring you home, and I guess he just scented it. Children, don"t eat Helen up, this hot night,"
exclaimed their mother.
"She isn"t cooked," said Tom.
"But she"ll be stewed or steamed, and there"s plenty for supper. We"re going to have a houseful to-morrow. Aunt Sarah and Uncle John and the girls, and Martha"s beau. She"s been long enough about it, twenty-five, if she"s a day, and I"d been married six years before I was as old as that. But she"s going to do real well, though he"s a widower with two children. And Joe as usual. Though we all went down there to supper last Sunday. Jenny"s going to have things nice, I tell you! Did you bring another frock, Helen? I"ve been making "Reely wear out your old clothes.
And gracious me! how you have grown! You won"t have a thing to wear in the fall."
"I left my bundle in the wagon," as Aunt Jane made a little halt in her talk.
"Nat, you run and get it. "Reely, do begin settin" that table. "Reely isn"t worth a rye straw about housework. She"s Mulford all over, and you"ve got to keep pushing the Mulfords along or they"d fall asleep in their tracks. Here she"s past eleven. My, the work I did when I was eleven! Now Helen, you just put on something commoner and help round a bit and we"ll have supper."
Helen ran upstairs and changed her dress. She was glad of the cordial welcome. But as she looked around she wondered if she had been really content here. Did children suddenly come to some mental growth and understanding? Whom did she take after? It was queer, but when Aunt Jane said of one child "she was all c.u.mmings, or all Mulford," it was the same heredity that they discussed at Mrs. Dayton"s.
Where did she get her finer instincts from? For she had them long ago, only she was afraid to bring them out and have them laughed at. Her little white covered cot at Mrs. Dayton"s looked so sweet and wholesome, everything was put in a closet, the table held a few books, a work-basket, often a bowl of flowers. This was all littered up, the candlestick decorated with piles of grease, the faded and worn bed quilt put on awry, shoes here and there, garments hung anywhere, and Fan"s dolls and stuff of all kinds in the corner. Of course Jenny"s room was more orderly, but it lacked something, the suggestion of refinement.
Uncle Jason and Sam had come in, and it seemed as if the kitchen was full. They scrambled round the table, pushing and crowding.
"Do keep still, children!" begged their father.
""Reely, you haven"t put on a bit of salt. I think every time you forget it I ought to make you eat a spoonful," said her mother.
"I haven"t any fork!" declared Nathan.
"And if we made her eat a fork, it might disagree with her, and we"d have one fork less," commented Sam.
"Can"t I have a piece of bread and b.u.t.ter? Why can"t we have some b.u.t.ter down here?" cried Tom.
"I"ll spread it for you. Sam, will you please pa.s.s me the b.u.t.ter?" said Helen in a quiet tone.
"Me too, Helen," entreated f.a.n.n.y, holding up her piece of bread.
"It"s so nice to have you again," and "Reely squeezed Helen"s arm.
Uncle Jason helped to the meat and potatoes. There was a great clatter of pa.s.sing plates, and the confusion of several voices at a time. Aunt Jane scolded, then she gave Tom a slap.
"There comes Joe and Jen," announced Sam.
Jenny left work at four on Sat.u.r.day and went to the house. Joe was keeping himself, and they had a cup of tea, some bread and b.u.t.ter, cold meat and blackberries together.
"How do, Helen. You"re a big stranger. Let"s sit out on the porch, Joe.