THE NEW PLAN.
Although Marjorie felt elated at the girls’ evident desire to go
on with the troop, she was too clever to be deceived by Queenie’s
enthusiasm, too far-seeing to expect miracles from her repentance.
Queenie herself was sincere in her promise, there was no doubt about
that; but the others would probably be only half-hearted. She realized
that a tremendous amount of work lay before her.
She resolved, therefore, to make a fresh start. Mr. Richards had told
her to let him hear from her; she meant to accept his offer. Calling
him upon the telephone, she asked him whether he could spare an evening
from his already busy program to talk the matter over and advise her.
His answer was cordiality itself; he would be delighted to give her his
only free evening that week—which happened to be Wednesday.
Marjorie hesitated a moment; Wednesday was John’s night, and she knew
that he was not in sympathy with her work for this troop, and might
resent her excuse. Nevertheless, the opportunity was too worth-while to
turn down, so she thanked Mr. Richards for his kindness and planned to
see him at eight o’clock.
As usual, however, Lily took John’s part.
“I’m afraid this Mr. Richards is becoming interested in you, Marj,” she
remarked. “And that simply won’t do. It isn’t fair to John——”
“Nonsense, Lil! He has something else to think about! You’re getting as
bad as my girls—thinking every man you see has matrimonial intentions.
But Mr. Richards is just unselfishly interested in scouting, and glad
to offer a helping hand to a beginner like me.”
“We’ll see,” muttered Lily, significantly. “I believe I’ll be on hand
Wednesday night, since I’ve been made lieutenant of the troop. We’ll
watch whether he is pleased with my presence or not.”
“I’ll be delighted to have you, Lil, honestly—though not for
that reason. Two heads are always better than one, and three than
two—we may be able to draw up a very interesting program for those
girls——But why do you think that I oughtn’t to see any other man but
John? You know we’re not engaged——”
“No, but it’s high time you were!”
“Maybe he hasn’t asked me!”
“Maybe he has!”
Marjorie blushed faintly; she never could deceive anyone successfully.
But she felt that it would not be fair to John to tell anyone, not even
Lily. So instead she turned the discussion to the other girl.
“Lil, when are you going to tell me about your engagement?”
It was Lily’s turn to blush.
“How do you know that there’s anything to tell?”
“Because I just do. And—you know you can trust me!”
Lily smiled contentedly; she could count upon Marjorie to keep her
secret. And it would be such a satisfaction to share her happiness with
her chum.
“Well, so long as you have guessed it, I’ll tell you, if you promise
not to breathe to any of the others. Dick and I are going to announce
it at Christmas time. Mother is planning a luncheon for me.”
Marjorie put her arms around Lily and kissed her joyfully. Her
happiness meant almost as much to her as her own.
“Dick Roberts is the luckiest man in the world!” she exclaimed, with
sincerity. “And,” she added, “it certainly will be fun to have a
wedding. Nothing exciting has happened in our old senior patrol since
Mae Van Horn’s wedding—and our trip to the coast.”
“Don’t forget Doris’s baby!” Lily reminded her.
“Oh, yes, of course—and Ethel has been doing wonderful things, too,
with that teaching job of hers. And I really think Daisy’s in line for
a fellowship, next year.”
“So you see we really have been pretty much alive,” Lily concluded.
“Everybody but Alice, and Florence—and me!” sighed the other.
“I won’t agree about the last one,” objected her room-mate, her eyes
filled with admiration. “You’re always doing marvellous things.”
“I’m afraid not, Lil!” An unsatisfied look crept over her face. At
present Marjorie’s powers did not stand high in her own estimation.
“The trouble with me is, I can’t get my scouts’ point of view,” she
remarked, harping back to the old subject. “I can’t seem to realize
that they aren’t our dear old senior patrol, who got a thrill out of
anything connected with scouting. In one way they know so much more
than we ever did—they’re so experienced—but in another they’re
ignorant and blind, and deaf besides. One thing I learned at the
hike—they are bored to death with nature. I might just as well cross
hiking and camping off of my program.”
“Until later, perhaps,” amended Lily. “But it all has to be very
gradual. In the meantime, we’ve got to find something else to interest
them, and keep tests in the back-ground. Then maybe when they get
out with other scouts, they’ll catch the fever.” Marjorie’s eyes
brightened; it meant so much to have some help in this weighty problem.
“Can you think of anything that they would be interested in?”
“How about basket-ball?”
“The very thing! That’s exciting enough. And if we played around, and
visited other teams——”
“Let’s talk it over with Mr. Richards on Wednesday. Maybe he’ll have
something even better to suggest.”
As the intervening days passed, Marjorie found herself banking more
and more upon this interview. She even made little notes in her book,
anxious not to forget anything, or to waste too much of the man’s
valuable time.
Yet when the hour came, and she and Lily walked down to the
reception-room, she was conscious of a strange little feeling of
loneliness. This was John’s night, and she was not to see him, might
even not see him on Saturday, and she missed him more than she had
expected. Suddenly she wondered whether she were not being foolish to
allow such an uncertain undertaking to usurp her time and monopolize
her interest. Was she right in putting John aside for this new fancy,
John, who had meant so much to her all the years of her school life?
She aroused herself sharply from her reverie to answer a question
which Lily was asking her, and managed to stammer some sort of reply.
In another moment they recognized their visitor, entering the wide
door-way, and advanced, smiling, to greet him.
Lily was agreeably surprised by Mr. Richards’ charming manner and
appearance, and immediately took a liking to him. They shook hands
cordially, and sat down by the fire-place.
“I have decided to keep the troop,” Marjorie announced, at the outset.
“But I’m not sure what I shall do with them. So that’s where we need
your advice—I say ‘we,’ for Miss Andrews has promised to be my
lieutenant.”
“You have recovered from your disappointment over the hike?” he asked.
“What decided you in favor of the troop?”
“The patrol leader. She came out to see me Sunday morning, and
apologized. She was so frank, so sincere, that I couldn’t help but
forgive her.”
Mr. Richards nodded, reminiscently.
“I remember her. She seemed like an exceptionally fine girl to me——.
I think, Miss Wilkinson, it would be worth-while going on with the work
for her sake alone. If I am not mistaken, that girl will amount to
something.”
“If she weren’t so flighty!” sighed Lily. “You simply can’t depend on
her. She does the wildest things, on impulse.”
“Remember,” advised the scout-master, “that she is very young. Once she
develops poise——”
“I am glad to hear you say that, Mr. Richards,” put in Marjorie. “And
if you don’t mind, I’ll tell her, for your regard would count for a
good deal in her eyes——. Now tell me how I could keep a hold on these
girls, granted that I once have obtained it!”
“Look at life from their point of view, first of all. Evidently
amusement is their aim—but their pleasures are not yours.”
“What, for instance, do you think their pleasures might be—except
dancing and getting motor rides?”
Mr. Richards was silent for a moment, trying to adapt his own
experiences with boys of that type to girls.
“I always start boys with some sort of athletics, then work them into
the gang spirit of scouting, and last of all interest them in something
serious.”
“Just what I suggested!” cried Lily. “How about basket-ball?”
“Fine! If you could get a floor, and a coach.”
“Yes, the settlement has a floor, and—and—” a sudden inspiration
struck her—“my brother Jack would coach us!”
“That’s the idea,” agreed Mr. Richards. “They’d do more for a man than
for a woman.”
Marjorie was started now; her brain was working with its old-time
rapidity. Somehow when Jack entered into the scheme and Lily,
everything became clearer. Vaguely she wished that she might win John
over to this new cause.
“And then—and then,” she cried, “start a Girl Scout League, and
admit only scouts in good standing—and—and make our troop win the
championship!” Her eyes fairly shone with fire. “Then on to something
serious!”
“You have it, Miss Wilkinson! Go ahead, and you’ll win!”
At last Marjorie believed that she would.