"A-ha, a criminal!" cried Walter.
"That only makes him the more romantic," declared Paul.
"It doesn"t help our case one bit," said Jack. "Haven"t you heard of how women will deck a murderer"s cell with flowers?"
"I don"t think he"d have the nerve to be a murderer," remarked Belle.
"His specialty is stealing purses."
And while the boys listened intently and threw in occasional indignant exclamations, the girls told of the young man"s attempt to sc.r.a.pe acquaintance, and of how later he had almost succeeded in getting possession of Cora"s purse.
"The cur!" growled Jack. "I wish I"d happened along when he was trying to get fresh!"
"You helped me out just the same, even if you weren"t there," replied Cora. "You ought to have seen how he made tracks for his buggy when I said my brother would be along shortly."
"You see," said Jack, throwing out his chest, "how the terror of my name has preceded me."
"It"s comforting anyway," chimed in Walter. "It proves that we men are good for something."
"And that the girls ought to have us with them all the time as trusty knights and va.s.sals," added Paul.
"You"re too ready to jump to conclusions," rebuked Cora. "But now we"d better be hurrying along. It"s getting towards dark, and we"ll have all we can do to get to Aunt Margaret"s in time for dinner."
"Dinner!" exclaimed Jack. "Where have I heard that word before? Lead me to it!"
"Do you think you can keep up with us in that car?" asked Cora wickedly.
"If not, I"ll give you a tow."
"Listen to her rubbing it in!" moaned Paul.
"It wasn"t enough to beat us," complained Walter.
"I guess that fellow was right," remarked Jack, "who said that Indians and women were alike. They both scalp the dead."
CHAPTER V A GROUP OF VAGABONDS
The two cars rolled along smartly, for the various happenings of the day had put the Motor Girls behind the schedule they had hoped to make. But despite their best efforts, dusk was settling down and the stars beginning to peep out when they drove up to the Kimball"s Aunt Margaret"s door.
She greeted them affectionately, and after they had washed off the dust of travel they were seated at the sumptuous meal she had had prepared in antic.i.p.ation of their coming. After dinner was over, a number of young people in the neighborhood who had been invited to meet the tourists dropped in, and there was music and dancing. But Aunt Margaret"s watchfulness over her charges prevented this from being prolonged to an unseasonable hour, and by eleven o"clock all the tired travelers were sleeping the dreamless sleep of vigorous, healthy youth.
They needed a good sleep, for the longest lap of their journey still lay before them. And it was at an early hour the next morning that, after a hearty breakfast and cordial thanks and good-byes to their gracious hostess, they climbed into their cars and drove off.
"Off at last for the Adirondacks!" cried Jack gaily, as he drew in great draughts of the fresh morning air.
"And for Camp Kill Kare!" added Paul.
The girls had started off a little ahead of them, but the boys soon drew alongside and Jack signaled for Cora to stop.
"I would have speech with thee, fair maiden," he remarked, as his sister obeyed.
"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Cora in pretended vexation. "Here are those rude boys interrupting us just when we were having the loveliest talk."
"I guess you weren"t talking about anything very important," replied Jack.
"No," said Bess, dimpling, "we were talking about you boys."
"And saying what a lovely thing it was to be all by ourselves for a little while," put in Belle.
"Girls," exhorted Walter solemnly, "remember that if there was an Ananias there was also a Sapphira."
"We"re not so keen on having a stag party ourselves," explained Jack, "and we thought it would be a dandy thing if one of you girls would come into our car and one of us fellows go to yours. That would make life one grand sweet song."
"It all comes from what Cora said yesterday about the refining influence of feminine society," said Walter. "I feel the need of that. In fact, I have a consuming desire to become refined. And I can"t be, as long as I a.s.sociate with these two low-brows. So you"d better let me ride in your car."
"And leave us in our native coa.r.s.eness?" queried Paul. "Not on your life, old man! I need refinement just as much as you do."
"Peace, brethren," interposed Jack. "We"ll do this thing on the level. My claims to coa.r.s.eness are just as strong as either of yours, but do you see me engaging in unseemly brawls? Nay and again nay. We"ll pull straws for it and may the coa.r.s.est man win."
"I don"t know that we want any of you," said Cora. "We don"t take incurable cases."
"Don"t be too harsh, Cora," said Belle. "You know they say there"s a spark of good in the very lowest."
"While the lamp holds out to burn The vilest sinner may return,"
hummed Bess.
There were no straws at hand, but some matches served as well, and Walter proved to be the lucky one. Belle agreed to go to Jack"s car, and Walter took her place alongside of Bess.
"Hurrah!" cried Walter, as he availed himself of his good fortune. "I"m saved. I"m doomed to refinement."
"Doomed?" laughed Cora.
"Did I say doomed?" Walter answered. "How careless of me! Of course I meant destined to refinement."
"I suppose you"ll be eating lotus blossoms and water lilies before long,"
called out Jack, as the cars started up again.
"Watch me when lunch time comes," grinned Walter. "But I don"t mind what you fellows say. I"ve got two refining influences while you have only one."
"You need all you can get," was Jack"s parting shot.
With merry chaff and banter, the time flew by as though on wings. They had lunch at a quaint little inn by the roadside, and Walter proved that the charms of feminine society had not yet begun to affect his appet.i.te.
But then, as he explained, the cure would be all the more effective if it were gradual, and he had plenty of time yet to climb to higher planes.
In the early afternoon they were turning a bend in the road, when Cora gave a sudden exclamation.