Connie hesitated, but finally pa.s.sed it over.
"I"ll take it to my own room and read it if you don"t mind. What are you going to do with it now?"
"Burn it."
"Let me have it, won"t you? I"ll hide it and keep it for a souvenir."
"Will you keep it hidden? You won"t pa.s.s it around for the family to laugh at, will you?"
Carol gazed at her reproachfully, rose from the bed in wounded dignity and moved away with the story in her hand. Connie followed her to the door and said humbly:
"Excuse me, Carol, I know you wouldn"t do such a thing. But a person does feel so ashamed of a story--when it comes back."
"That"s all right," was the kind answer. "I know just how it is. I have the same feeling when I get a pimple on my face. I"ll keep it dark."
More eagerly than she would have liked Connie to know, she curled herself upon the bed to read Connie"s masterpiece. It was a simple story, but Connie did have a way of saying things, and--Carol laid it down in her lap and stared at it thoughtfully. Then she called Lark.
"Look here," she said abruptly. "Read this. It"s the masterpiece."
She maintained a perfect silence while Lark perused the crumpled ma.n.u.script.
"How is it?"
"Why, it"s not bad," declared Lark in a surprised voice. "It"s not half bad. It"s Connie all right, isn"t it? Well, what do you know about that?"
"Is it any good?" pursued Carol.
"Why, yes, I think it is. It"s just like folks you know. They talk as we do, and--I"m surprised they didn"t keep it. I"ve read "em a whole lot worse!"
"Connie"s disappointed," Carol said. "I think she needs a little boost.
I believe she"ll really get there if we kind of crowd her along for a while. She told me to keep this dark, and so I will. We"ll just copy it over, and send it out again."
"And if it comes back?"
"We"ll send it again. We"ll get the name of every magazine in the library, and give "em all a chance to start the newest author on the rosy way."
"It"ll take a lot of stamps."
"That"s so. Do you have to enclose enough to bring them back? I don"t like that. Seems to me it"s just tempting Providence. If they want to send them back, they ought to pay for doing it. I say we just enclose a note taking it for granted they"ll keep it, and tell them where to send the money. And never put a stamp in sight for them to think of using up."
"We can"t do that. It"s bad manners."
"Well, I have half a dollar," admitted Carol reluctantly.
After that the weeks pa.s.sed by. The twins saw finally the shadow of disappointment leaving Connie"s face, and another expression of absorption take its place.
"She"s started another one," Lark said, wise in her personal experience.
And when there came the starry rapt gaze once more, they knew that this one, too, had gone to meet its fate. But before the second blow fell, the twins gained their victory. They embraced each other feverishly, and kissed the precious check a hundred times, and insisted that Connie was the cleverest little darling that ever lived on earth. Then, when Connie, with their father and aunt, was sitting in unsuspecting quiet, they tripped in upon her.
[Ill.u.s.tration: We enclose our check for forty-five dollars]
"We have something to read to you," said Carol beaming paternally at Connie. "Listen attentively. Put down your paper, father. It"s important. Go on, Larkie."
"My dear Miss Starr," read Lark. "We are very much pleased with your story,"--Connie sprang suddenly from her chair--"your story, "When the Rule worked Backwards." We are placing it in one of our early numbers, and shall be glad at any time to have the pleasure of examining more of your work. We enclose our check for forty-five dollars. Thanking you, and a.s.suring you of the satisfaction with which we have read your story, I am,
"Very cordially yours,"--
"Tra, lalalalala!" sang the twins, dancing around the room, waving, one the letter, the other the check.
Connie"s face was pale, and she caught her head with both hands, laughingly nervously. "I"m going round," she gasped. "Stop me."
Carol promptly pushed her down in a chair and sat upon her lap.
"Pretty good,--eh, what?"
"Oh, Carol, don"t say that, it sounds awful," cautioned Lark.
"What do you think about it, Connie? Pretty fair boost for a struggling young author, don"t you think? Family, arise! The Chautauqua salute! We have arrived. Connie is an author. Forty-five dollars!"
"But however did you do it?" wondered Connie breathlessly.
"Why, we sent it out, and--"
"Just once?"
"Alas, no,--we sent it seven times."
"Oh, girls, how could you! Think of the stamps! I"m surprised you had the money."
"Remember that last quarter we borrowed of you? Well!"
Connie laughed excitedly. "Oh, oh!--forty-five dollars! Think of it. Oh, father!"
"Where"s the story," he asked, a little jealously. "Why didn"t you let me look it over, Connie?"
"Oh, father, I--couldn"t. I--I--I felt shy about it. You don"t know how it is father, but--we want to keep them hidden. We don"t get proud of them until they"ve been accepted."
"Forty-five dollars." Aunt Grace kissed her warmly. "And the letter is worth a hundred times more to us than that. And when we see the story--"
"We"ll go thirds on the money, twins," said Connie.
The twins looked eager, but conscientious. "No," they said, "it"s just a boost, you know. We can"t take the money."
"Oh, you"ve got to go thirds. You ought to have it all. I would have burned it."
"No, Connie," said Carol, "we know you aren"t worth devotion like ours, but we donate it just the same--it"s gratis."