ARLINE'S PLAN
"It was beautiful to be at home, but it is nice to be here, too. If it
wasn't for mid year exams, I could be happy," sighed Grace Harlowe, as
she rearranged three new sofa pillows she had brought from home, the
gifts of Oakdale friends. Grace and Anne had invited Arline Thayer and
Ruth Denton to dinner, and Miriam and Elfreda had dropped in for a brief
chat before the dinner bell rang.
"We'll all survive even mid year," predicted Miriam confidently.
"We had a perfectly lovely time in New York, didn't we, Arline?" asked
Ruth Denton, looking at the little curly-haired girl with fond eyes.
Arline nodded. "I wish our vacation had been two weeks longer," she
remarked wistfully. "I just begin to get acquainted with Father, when it
is time to go back to college again. Have you seen many of the girls?"
"Only the Morton House girls and you," answered Arline. "This is the
first call I've made outside the house. Are all the Wayne Hall girls
here?"
"Miss Taylor hasn't come back yet," said Elfreda. "Do you girls happen
to know where she spent her vacation?"
"No," said Grace. "I didn't see her before I left. When first she came
to Wayne Hall she seemed to like me. At the sophomore reception I hurt
her feelings, unintentionally you may be sure. I am afraid she has never
forgiven me, for since then she has avoided me."
"She must have very sensitive feelings," remarked Elfreda bluntly. "What
did you do to hurt them?"
"I missed asking her to dance," explained Grace. "I didn't see her until
late that evening, and when I apologized and asked to see her card she
refused, saying coldly that my forgetting to ask her to dance was of no
consequence. Since then she has hardly spoken to me."
"Why didn't you tell me that before?" asked Elfreda quickly. "That
accounts for certain things."
"Don't be mysterious, Elfreda," put in Miriam. "Tell us what you mean by
'certain things'?"
"You girls know that on several occasions before Christmas Alberta Wicks
and Mary Hampton were invited here to dinner. Who invited them? Miss
Taylor. So Alberta Wicks retaliated by taking Miss Taylor home with her
for the holidays."
"Really?" asked Miriam, in surprise. "Who told you?"
"They went home on the same train with Emma Dean," returned Elfreda.
"She sat two seats behind them. Has any one seen the Anarchist?"
No one answered.
"Why don't we change the subject and talk about something pleasant,"
complained Arline Thayer.
"Do you remember saying to me the night before we went home that you had
thought of a lovely plan?" reminded Grace.
"Yes," returned Arline. "I am glad you reminded me of it while we are
all here. Just before I went home for my vacation the idea popped into
my head that we ought to organize some kind of society for helping these
girls who come to Overton with little or no money and who depend on the
work they find to do here to help them through college."
"Like me," put in Ruth slyly.
"Don't interrupt me," retorted Arline, smiling at Ruth. "When I went
home I had a talk with Father, and he has promised to give me five
hundred dollars with which to start a fund. Now, what I propose to do is
to organize a little society of our own with this same object in view.
There is one society of that kind here at Overton, but it is always so
besieged with requests for help that I don't imagine it more than keeps
its head above water. There is room for another, at any rate. I don't
see why we can't be the girls to organize it." Arline looked
questioningly about the circle of interested faces.
"I think it would be splendid," said Miriam emphatically. "I know my
mother would contribute toward it."
"So would Pa and Ma," declared Elfreda. "Suppose we all write home
to-night."
"What do you think of it, Grace and Anne?" asked Arline. "So far neither
of you has said a word."
"Neither has Ruth made any remarks," replied Anne. "Why don't you ask
her? I think she has something to say on the subject."
All eyes were immediately turned on Ruth, who flushed, looked almost
distressed, then said slowly, "Could the girls who asked for help borrow
the money and return it as soon as they were able?"
"Of course," responded Arline. "Don't be afraid that you are going to
have charity thrust upon you, Ruth."
"That would be the only basis on which we could establish a society of
that kind," commented Miriam. "An Overton girl would hesitate to make
use of the money except as a loan."
"What would we call ourselves?" asked Elfreda abruptly.
"We can decide on a name later," said Arline. "The thing to decide now
is, shall we or shall we not form this society? Answer yes or no?"
"Yes," was the chorus.
"Don't you think," said Grace after a slight deliberation, "that it
would be nicer if we could finance this society ourselves, instead of
asking our fathers and mothers for money? It isn't any particular effort
for most of us to write home for money. How much better it would be if
we could say that we had earned the money ourselves, or saved it from
our allowances."
"But what about my five hundred dollars?" questioned Arline plaintively.
"As the originator of this scheme I claim the privilege of putting in as
much capital as I please. I am going to be the exception that proves the
rule. Besides, Father has already promised me the money. Take the five
hundred dollars for the basis of our fund, then we will pledge ourselves
hereafter to earn or contribute whatever money we put into it."
"What do you say to that, girls?" asked Grace.
"I think Arline ought to be allowed to give the five hundred dollars if
she wishes," said Miriam. "It is her money and her plan. Besides, we
need the money!"
"I think so, too," echoed Elfreda. "We might call the society the
'Arline Thayer Club.'"
"If you dare--" began Arline.
"Save your breath, my child, I didn't mean that seriously," drawled
Elfreda. "However, we had better begin our society here, to-night. There
are six of us. Shall we add to our number or let well enough alone?"
"I'd like to have Gertrude Wells in it," said Arline. "Shall we make it
strictly a sophomore affair?"
"I think it would be better," replied Grace.
"Then let us ask Emma Dean, Elizabeth Wade, Marian Cummings and Elsie
Wilton," pursued Arline.
"Seven, eight, nine, ten," counted Anne.
"Let us make it a dozen," suggested Miriam.
"Then who shall the other two members be?"
"Why not ask the Emerson Twins?" suggested Arline. "They would be good
material, and they are both splendid on committees. Julia Emerson nearly
worked her head off for the sophomore reception last fall."
"Very well, we will ask them," agreed Grace. "In case any one of the
girls we have named but haven't yet interviewed should not wish to
belong to our society we can propose some one else to take her place. In
the meantime you must each be thinking of a name for our little club. We
can meet in the library after the last class to-morrow afternoon, and go
from there to Vinton's to talk it over. Arline, you must tell Gertrude
Wells, Elizabeth Wade and Marian Cummings. We can easily see the
others."
"The dinner bell! Thank goodness!" exclaimed Elfreda fervently. "I am
almost starved. I hope dinner will be better than last night's offering.
Everything we had to eat was warranted to fatten one."
"Never mind, Elfreda," consoled Arline. "Think how nice it will be when
you make the team. That will be a reward worth having."
"Yes, if I make it," grumbled the stout girl.
"We will go on with our new plan after dinner," said Grace. Then as an
afterthought she added: "Don't say anything about it at the table.
Suppose we keep it a secret until our society is in running order?"
"Hello, children," greeted Emma Dean, as they entered the dining room
that night. "Has the board of directors been holding a meeting? I see
you are all here."
Several girls already seated at the table looked up smilingly as the six
girls slipped into their places. Laura Atkins returned Arline's friendly
nod with a cold bow. She did not appear to see the others. During the
progress of the meal she said little, keeping up a pretense of
indifference as to what went on around her. Nevertheless her eyes
strayed more than once toward the end of the table where Elfreda was
entertaining the girls sitting nearest to her with a ludicrous account
of what had happened to her on her way back to Overton. Miriam
accidentally intercepted one of these straying glances. In it she
fancied she read reproach. A quick flush rose to Laura Atkins's cheeks.
Drawing down her eyebrows she scowled defiantly at Miriam, then turned
her head away, and went on with her dinner.
After dinner the discussion of the proposed club was renewed with
energy. Emma Dean's innocent allusion at dinner to the meeting of the
board of directors had brought smiles to the faces of the six girls.
After they had again gathered in Grace's room, Elfreda was despatched to
Emma's room with orders to bring her to the council, no matter what her
engagements or obligations might be.
"I knew something was going to happen," was Emma's calm announcement as
she followed Elfreda into the room. "To quote my esteemed friend, Miss
Briggs, 'I could see' it in your eyes at dinner. I have a theme to
write, a dressmaker to see, and four letters to answer, but, still, I am
here."
"We can readily understand how deeply it must have grieved you to shun
the dressmaker, put off writing your theme, and tear yourself away from
your correspondence," sympathized Miriam Nesbit, her eyes twinkling.
"Then, as long as you understand it, we won't say anything more about
it," was Emma's hasty reply. "I move that we avoid personalities and
proceed to business."