BETTY RUNS AWAY
The days now passed very quickly for Ruth and her friends. Every day
Betty Hastings, Winifred, Ruth and Gilbert were in the Merrill's' garden
or stable at work on the costumes for "America Conquers the Foe." Ned
Ferris, a boy not much older than Ruth, had promised Gilbert to play on
his drum, and to march at the head of the "army;" he would not need to
rehearse, so would not come until the day decided on for the play. Ned
had also offered the loan of his brown pony, a much larger animal than
Fluff, for "Washington" to ride; and now Gilbert, Winifred and Ruth were
all sure that the play would be a success. Betty Hastings was not so
confident. She had begun to fear that it would be no easy matter to
borrow the scarlet coat without the owner's knowledge: and she was even
more doubtful in regard to her mother's fine cape and bonnet; but she
said nothing of this to the others.
If she had known that Gilbert had invited her mother, as well as a
number of other friends of Mrs. Merrill's, to what he described as "a
birthday surprise for my mother," Betty would doubtless have given up
her part; but Gilbert had asked each guest to keep the invitation a
secret; and it was probable that a surprise was in store for
"Cornwallis" as well as for Gilbert's mother.
Mrs. Pernell returned home from Germantown on the very morning of Mrs.
Merrill's birthday, and Ruth was so delighted at her arrival that she
nearly forgot to ask her mother to come to the play that afternoon, as
Gilbert had requested. Gilbert had said that he wished Mistress Deborah
Farleigh would come with Ruth's mother, but added: "It isn't any use to
ask her, for Quakers don't believe in plays."
"But this is different; I'm sure she will come," Ruth had responded
eagerly; and had been greatly pleased when Aunt Deborah agreed, saying
that, "'Twas surely a patriotic lesson that she would like well to
see."
Mrs. Pernell also praised Gilbert's cleverness, and promised to be ready
in good season. "Perhaps I had best wear my brown silk to do credit to
Mrs. Merrill's birthday party," she said, and wondered why Ruth became
so silent and looked so sober. For a moment Ruth was tempted to tell her
mother the whole story of her visit to General Howe; but she resisted
the impulse. "It would spoil everything to make Mother feel bad the very
day she has come home," the little girl assured herself; but she no
longer felt light-hearted, and when her mother patted Hero's head, and
said that she knew he had taken good care of everything in her absence,
Ruth grew even more serious.
Aunt Deborah was very quiet; but now and then her eyes rested on Ruth a
little questioningly.
"I suppose Aunt Deborah is thinking I ought to tell Mother," thought
Ruth, and was glad to hurry away as soon as they finished dinner, saying
she must be in good season, as Gilbert had set three o'clock as the hour
for the arrival of his audience.
"You must come in through the alley," Ruth reminded her mother and aunt;
for Gilbert had decided that the guests were to be a part of the
surprise for his mother.
Gilbert was arranging seats for the company just inside the door of the
stable behind a rope stretched from the front to the door of Fluff's
stall. On the previous day the children had made an excursion to Fair
Mount, and had brought home a quantity of blossoming boughs of the white
dogwood, branches of pine, and of flowering elder, and these were used
to make a background for the seats intended for the guests, to hide a
part of the grain-bin, from which Lady Washington was to wave, and made
the stable a very attractive and pleasant place. The guests could look
through the open door into the garden where blue iris, yellow daffodils
and purple lilacs were already in bloom.
When Ruth came running to the stable Winifred called out to her from the
top of the grain-bin: "Look, Ruth! Look!" and Ruth stopped in the
doorway with an exclamation of surprise. For there was Winifred wearing
Mrs. Hastings' beautiful blue mantle of rich silk, and a bonnet with
soft blue plumes, and beside her sat two other figures that, for a
moment, Ruth believed to be two strange ladies. Then she realized that
Winifred had "dressed up" bundles of hay in two old gowns of her
mother's, with their "heads" crowned by wreaths of leaves and flowers.
Winifred laughed delightedly at Ruth's astonishment. "You see, Josephine
and Cecilia were not tall enough; and of course Lady Washington ought to
have company," she explained.
Gilbert, dressed in a blue coat, yellow knee-breeches, and with a
crimson and white scarf pinned across his coat, came to the door. He
wore a cocked hat, and a wooden sword was fastened at his side, and he
endeavored to stand as tall as possible.
"Betty is waiting for you behind the lilac bushes," he said, and
vanished; and Ruth ran off to the bunch of lilacs behind the stable
where Betty, in a scarlet coat that covered her completely, was holding
Fluff's bridle-rein, and close by stood Ned Ferris beside his brown
pony.
"Here is your coat and hat, 'Lafayette,'" said Betty, pointing to a
bundle, which Ruth hastened to open.
The coat was of blue velvet. It was one that Betty had found in a trunk
in her mother's attic. There were ruffles of yellowed lace at the
wrists, and tarnished gilt buttons and braid on the shoulders. This old
velvet coat had belonged to Betty's grandfather, and was highly valued
by her father. But Betty had not asked permission to take it.
Ruth tied up her hair and put on the cocked hat that she had helped
Winifred make; then with Betty's aid she slipped on the velvet coat, and
with the addition of a wooden sword which Gilbert had made for her she
was ready for her part in the play.
The guests all arrived in good season, and were escorted to their seats
by "Washington" himself, who then ran to the house to announce to his
mother that some friends of hers were in the garden.
Mrs. Merrill, greatly to Gilbert's satisfaction, did not seem to notice
that he was not dressed as usual, and walked beside him down the garden
path; as a turn in the path brought them in sight of the stable door
Gilbert said:
"This is a birthday surprise for you, Mother. It's a play, and here is
the programme," and he handed her a strip of white paper bordered with
a row of stars cut from gilt paper. At the top Gilbert had printed:
"_AMERICA CONQUERS THE FOE_"
_A Play
by
Gilbert Merrill
for Mother's Birthday_
_ACT FIRST_
_Cornwallis Begs For Mercy_
_Cornwallis B. Hastings
Washington G. Merrill_
_ACT SECOND_
_Washington's Triumphant Army Enters
Philadelphia_
_Washington G. Merrill
Lafayette R. Pernell
Lady Washington Miss Winifred Merrill_
_Army Band._
Mrs. Merrill read the programme admiringly.
"It is indeed a wonderful birthday surprise, my dear boy," she said
smilingly, "and I am proud of you," and she hurried forward to greet and
welcome her friends, while Gilbert ran to summon "Cornwallis" to be
ready for the first act.
An old horse-blanket, suspended from the hay-loft in the rear of the
stable, served as a curtain behind which knelt Betty in the scarlet
coat. Gilbert now took his place beside her, trying to look stern and
noble. At Gilbert's whistle Winifred, who was in the hay-loft, was to
pull up the blanket by the long strings that Gilbert had skilfully
arranged.
The whistle sounded clearly. Up rose the curtain. There was an approving
murmur from the audience at the sight of "Cornwallis" on his knees.
"Spare me, noble Washington!" said Betty, but in rather a feeble voice.
Washington's right hand was stretched over the head of his conquered
foe.
"Arise, Cornwallis. Flee for your life. My army is at hand," responded
Washington; and Betty, stumbling a little, escaped from the rear door,
while Washington marched out to meet his army, and the audience
applauded.
Betty's mother had noticed the red coat, and wondered what English
soldier had consented to lend it for such a purpose. It did not occur
to her that Betty had taken it from their lodger's closet.
When Betty had entered the stable by the rear door and knelt according
to Washington's directions she could hear the murmur of voices.
"Who is with your mother?" she whispered to "Washington," but there had
been no time to answer, and Betty found herself facing not only
Gilbert's mother but a dozen other ladies of whom her mother was one;
and it was a very anxious and troubled Betty who joined the little group
behind the lilac bushes and, slipping off the red coat, put on an old
coat and hat belonging to Gilbert's father, and with the dressed up
broomsticks, took her place behind Fluff as the "Army."
Ned Ferris sounded a measured "rat-a-tat-tat" on his drum and strode
toward the entrance to the stable, followed by Washington and Lafayette,
the "Army," and the docile Hero. Lady Washington scrambled from the
hay-loft to the top of the grain-bin, drew her fine silk mantle about
her, and smiled graciously down upon the assembled guests. Mrs. Hastings
looked up at her. "For pity's sake!" her seatmate heard her murmur, "my
best mantle and bonnet!"
But at that moment came the quick beat of a drum. Washington's pony, a
little annoyed and nervous, and Fluff, determined to reach his stall as
quickly as possible, although "Lafayette" endeavored to guide him in the
appointed course, entered the stable.
"Washington" drew rein beneath the grain-bin and lifted his hat to Lady
Washington, who leaned forward to wave in response; but unfortunately
her bonnet strings were not fastened, and the fine bonnet with its blue
plumes fell from her head and went tumbling down almost on Hero's brown
head. In a second the dog had seized it, and forgetting his part in the
procession, jumped this way and that, shaking this new plaything with
delighted satisfaction.
Mrs. Hastings kept her seat resolutely. It would have been an easy
matter to have stepped from her seat and rescued the bonnet. But Mrs.
Hastings knew that such a movement on her part would have brought
Gilbert's play to an untimely end, and spoiled the pleasure of all the
guests, as well as of the children who took part. So she did not move,
even when Hero fled out into the garden with the plumes grasped in his
teeth. Betty, Ruth and Winifred never forgot that moment, nor the fact
that Mrs. Hastings had apparently not seen what happened. Even in her
fright at the results of her "borrowing" Betty Hastings was very proud
of her mother.
The drummer played on. The two ponies were swung around face to face;
Washington and Lafayette clasped hands for a moment; then side by side,
with drum playing, but with a silent army, the little procession
vanished through the rear door.
Gilbert was delighted with his success. It seemed to him that everything
had gone very well, and he was especially grateful to Betty Hastings for
securing the English officer's coat.
But Betty, having seen the ruin of the bonnet, had suddenly realized
that it was a serious matter to take the belongings of other people
without their permission; and her first thought was of the officer's
coat. Whatever happened she must return that coat to the closet from
which she had taken it as soon as possible. Then she would try and
explain to her mother that she had not meant any harm should befall the
borrowed articles. So, grasping the red coat, Betty opened the door into
the alley and started off as fast as she could go; while Ruth, still
wearing the fine velvet coat, crouched down behind the lilac bushes, too
unhappy to care if the play had been a success or not; for as
"Lafayette" faced the audience she had seen that her mother was wearing
the brown silk dress.