AROUND THE COUNCIL FIRE
Tommy's sprightly remarks failed to draw forth the customary laughter that
usually greeted them at breakfast that morning. The faces of most of the
girls wore serious expressions. Mrs. Livingston and the guardians were
grave, speaking in low tones when they spoke at all, as if to impress upon
all the Camp Girls the gravity of the previous night's occurrences. The
suspicion of a laugh was raised, however, by Tommy's remark toward the
close of the meal.
"I with thomebody would laugh," she complained with a queer little
grimace.
"You may laugh if you wish," answered the Chief Guardian pleasantly. But
somehow Tommy couldn't quite bring herself to do so.
Breakfast being finished the daily routine of the camp went on with its
accustomed regularity. Not a word had been spoken about the hazing of the
two new girls. The guardians were following some carefully laid plan, but
Harriet wondered that no inquiry was made. She had fully looked for a
searching investigation to take place immediately after breakfast. None
came.
The first work that the new girls were called upon to do was to gather
sticks from the forest for a campfire.
"A Camp Girl," Miss Partridge had told them, "should first of all know how
to build a fire, the campfire being the family fireside when one is in the
forest. It is the basis of the camp life. Being of the rank of Wood
Gatherers it is your duty to gather the fagots for your own fire."
The girls were instructed in the relative values of different woods as
fuel. They learned too that, as birch bark burned very freely, it should
be used in starting the campfire whenever available.
Having gathered the wood the girls were further instructed in piling it to
the best advantage, leaving an open space at the bottom of the pile so
that a draft might be created. Each girl was called upon to lay the wood
for the fire, then taught to light the fire either in windy or calm
weather. One of the leaders among the more experienced Camp Girls started
a second fire for them by rubbing two sticks together. She explained that
it required dry tinder for this purpose, something seldom found in the
woods.
By the time the lesson had come to an end the luncheon hour had arrived.
There was more conversation at this meal, though it was carried on in low
tones. The same depressing cloud that had been in evidence at the morning
meal, was still present. Harriet noticed, too, that Miss Elting had barely
spoken to Grace and her that morning. This hurt Harriet. She felt it
keenly, though Miss Elting's avoidance of the two girls was because she
did not wish either one to talk with her about the hazing. All inquiry as
to that offense must be left to the Chief Guardian. As yet the Chief
Guardian had made no move looking toward an inquiry into the doings of the
previous night so far as any of the girls knew.
About the middle of the afternoon, however, Harriet saw a large group of
girls gathered about a tree near the camp. The girls appeared to be
laboring under considerable excitement. She hastened over and after a
short time managed to elbow her way close enough to see what it was that
had so excited them.
Nailed to the tree was a piece of white bark. On it was written the
following order:
"A Council Fire will be held this evening at eight o'clock. All
Camp Girls will report promptly, in full ceremonial garb.
"By order of the Chief Guardian."
That was all, but it was sufficient to set the tongues of the Camp Girls
wagging. Those who had been there for some time knew exactly what this
order meant. Harriet did not.
"Oh, there'll be a merry time in Camp Wau-Wau this evening," cried Cora
Kidder.
"Somebody will catch it," nodded Patricia. "Well, we don't have to cry. We
were in our little cots sound asleep, as we can easily prove. Do you
know," she confided in a lower tone to several of her companions, "I
shouldn't be at all surprised if there were more to this than you girls
dream."
"What do you mean?" asked one of the girls.
"I mean that there is something peculiar about the whole affair,"
continued Patricia. "What was there to hinder those two girls from going
out there in the woods and raising a commotion just to attract attention
to themselves? They have been posing ever since they arrived at Camp
Wau-Wau. Some folks like to be martyrs."
"Oh, I don't think that is possible," objected a girl. "They appear to be
such nice girls."
"Mind you, I am not saying that they did purposely raise a commotion,"
hastily explained Patricia. "I am simply saying that they might have done
so. However, we shall see this evening. I hope they will confess their
part in the affair and save us all from suspicion."
Harriet's face burned. She had overheard the entire conversation, though
she felt quite certain that it had not been intended for her ears. She
walked away with head erect, a look in her eyes that might have caused
certain of the young women in camp to feel apprehensive, had they observed
that expression.
Tommy hurried to the tree on which the notice had been posted a few
moments later. She turned up her nose after having read the order to be
present at the Council Fire and wanted to know if the Camp Girls were too
poor to buy paper. She said she had plenty of writing paper and declared
that she would offer it to Mrs. Livingston so the Chief Guardian would
not have to write her orders on bark in the future.
This brought a smile to the faces of those who heard it, and caused them
to exchange significant nods. Later in the afternoon, one by one, several
girls might have been seen entering the tent of the Chief Guardian, their
actions indicating that they sought to escape observation. They were not
wholly unobserved, however, for there were many pairs of bright, keen eyes
in Camp Wau-Wau, but those girls who did observe their companions enter
Mrs. Livingston's tent were discreet enough not to mention what they had
seen.
Dinner that evening brought with it an atmosphere of expectancy. It was
the still atmosphere before the storm when the fall of a knife or a fork
caused nearly every girl at the tables to start nervously. Just before
darkness descended four Fire Makers had piled wood on the Council Fire
until it blazed brightly throwing out considerable heat and a light that
reached far in among the trees.
One by one the girls began to appear from their tents, clad in their
ceremonial costumes. These were of khaki colored galatea cloth. They were
trimmed with fringes of genuine leather, shells and beads. About her neck
each girl wore a string of gayly colored beads. Some of the strings
contained more beads than others, for each bead represented an "honor"
fairly earned by the girl who wore it. On the sleeve of each Camp Girl's
costume was worked an emblem. On those of the Wood Gatherers were the
crossed logs; on the arms of the Fire Makers might be seen the orange and
gold colors representing fire. On the sleeves of the Torch Bearers, the
third grade, a dash of white was added, representing smoke from the
flames.
The Meadow-Brook Girls, however, could not appear in ceremonial costume,
at the Council Fire. Hazel, Margery and Tommy had been measured for their
costumes and were now awaiting them. Harriet had ordered the goods for
hers at a cost of a dollar. Upon the arrival of the goods she intended to
make her own costume. Harriet was an accomplished little needle woman. Not
having their ceremonial dresses ready for the occasion was a keen
disappointment to the Meadow-Brook Girls.
As the other Camp Girls emerged from their tents they stood about in
groups awaiting the arrival of the Chief Torch Bearer.
"There she comes!" cried a voice.
Glancing down the camp street Harriet saw a young woman slowly advancing
toward her. As she passed the tents the girls in the ceremonial dress
fell in behind. The leader held above her head a blazing torch and as she
moved slowly forward she chanted:
"Blazing torch on high now lifted
Flame with magic power now gifted
Flicker, flicker, flicker, flame;
Burn, fire burn!"
It was a weird, but interesting scene. Harriet was so engrossed in
watching it that she forgot to fall in with the procession when it came
her turn to do so. Some one tugged at her skirt, bringing her to an
understanding of what she should do.
[Illustration: The Chief Torch Bearer Led the Way.]
The Torch Bearer led the way to the end of the camp street, then turning
marched slowly to the campfire where she laid the torch upon the ground
then made the hand sign of the early Indians, the fingers of the right
hand laid across the fingers of the left with the first finger of the
right hand slightly raised. The crossed fingers were to indicate crossed
logs and the slightly raised forefinger of the right hand represented the
curving flame rising from the burning logs. This sign was returned by the
Chief Guardian. Then the two turned, facing the girls of the camp who were
standing in a semi-circle about the fire. To them, the Chief Guardian
and the Torch Bearer made the hand sign which was answered in the same way
by all of the Camp Girls.
"Thith giveth me the thiverth," whispered Tommy, groping for Harriet's
hand.
Harriet warned her to be quiet. Then at a gesture from the Chief Guardian
the girls sat down cross-legged on the ground. It had been not only an
unusual ceremony to the Meadow-Brook Girls, but an impressive one. The
real interest, however, was in what lay before them. Harriet had no idea
what was to be done, though she had learned from the stray words that had
been dropped in her presence, that the purpose of the Council Fire was to
make an inquiry into the events of the previous evening, perhaps ending in
the dismissal of one or more girls from the camp. This thought made
Harriet Burrell serious and thoughtful. She was trying to decide upon the
course that she ought to follow. But she had little time to consider this.
She heard her name called.
"Miss Harriet Burrell will please step forward to the Council Fire," was
the order from the Chief Guardian.
Harriet did so. She took her position at one side of the fire so that the
light from it shone full upon her features causing them to stand out in
bold relief against the dark background of the night. It was a trying
position, but Harriet carried herself with dignity and great
self-possession.