A CELEBRATION AT BARETTI'S.
The Lookouts' plan to entertain their friends at either Baretti's or the
Colonial on their first evening at Hamilton was over-ruled by Leila and
Vera. As Hortense Barlow, Robina Page and Portia Graham were still
missing from their circle of friends, they agreed to postpone their own
celebration until the missing ones should have returned to Hamilton.
Thus Vera and Leila gained their point and were in high glee over it.
Privately they were glad to have the Lookouts to themselves for the
evening, with the addition only of Katherine and Helen.
The warm September day had vanished into a soft, balmy night, garnished
by a full, silvery moon. The road to Baretti's was light as day and the
nine girls, clad in delicate-hued summer frocks, added to the pale
beauty of the night. They were in high spirits, as the incessant murmur
of their voices, punctuated by frequent ripples of light laughter, amply
testified.
Entering the quaint, stately restaurant, the Lookouts stopped to pay
courteous respects to Guiseppe Baretti, the proud proprietor, a small,
somber-eyed Italian. Their frequent patronage of Baretti's during their
freshman year had made them very welcome guests. Signor Baretti's solemn
face became wreathed with smiles as he greeted them.
"It is certainly good to be here again!" exclaimed Jerry. By
appropriating two extra chairs from a nearby vacant table, the nine
diners had managed to seat themselves without crowding at one table.
"Isn't it, though?" Vera Mason glanced happily around the circle. "I
miss Baretti's dreadfully during vacations. There is really no other
restaurant quite like it."
"We missed it too, this summer. Our main standby in Sanford was
Sargeant's. You and Leila made its acquaintance when you were in Sanford
last Easter. We used to go there so often after school. I wonder we ever
had an appetite for dinner when we went home. Of course it can't be
compared with Baretti's, as it is merely a confectioner's shop. We had
happy times there, though," Marjorie concluded.
"It was a regular conspirator's shop," Jerry supplemented. "Whenever we
had anything special to talk over, the watchword was, 'On to
Sargeant's.'"
"We settled a great many weighty affairs of state at Sargeant's."
Muriel smiled reminiscently. "I suppose Baretti's will grow dearer to us
as we plod along our college way. I like it better than the Colonial,
which lacks the air this place has. Besides, the Sans monopolize it so
that I had rather come here."
"Why did the Sans turn from Baretti's to the Colonial?" Lucy asked
tersely. Her analytic mind had not for an instant lost sight of Vera's
earlier remark concerning the proprietor. "What happened?"
"Oh, it took a large number of straws to break the camel's back. When it
broke----"
"Bing!" obligingly supplied Jerry. "I can picture the wrath of an
outraged Baretti."
"He was wrathful more than once before he said a word. The Sans used to
be awfully noisy when they dined or lunched here. Guiseppe did not like
that. They used to reserve tables by telephone, then, when they reached
here for dinner, they would claim he had not reserved the tables they
had asked for. That was a trick of Leslie Cairns. She would tell him
that he ought not charge extra for the tables as he had not complied
with her order properly. There were all sorts of little points like that
which the Sans used to argue with him. They used to tease him purposely
to see him get angry. When he is very angry he says not a word. He
clenches his hands and his face turns fiery red. His eyes snap and he
looks as though he would like to turn inside out. He half opens his
mouth, then turns on his heel and scuttles off.
"One evening in February," Vera continued, "Leila and I came here for
dinner. One of the sophs had a birthday and she was giving a dinner to
eighteen of her classmates. Remember, Leila? They had those three tables
over there." Vera nodded toward the opposite side of the room. "The room
was quite well filled, when in came Leslie Cairns, Joan Myers and
Natalie Weyman with three girls who had come from a prep. school to
spend a week-end with Joan. There wasn't a single table at which they
all could sit. Instead of calling Guiseppe, Leslie Cairns walked
straight to the soph who was giving the dinner, and claimed she had
taken a table which Joan had reserved by telephone. The soph should
simply have stayed away upon her dignity and called Signor Baretti. She
was indignant, naturally, and began to argue the matter with Miss
Cairns. They both grew furious and talked so loudly you could hear them
all over the room. Natalie Weyman undertook to champion Leslie, and
Leslie told her to shut her mouth and mind her own affairs. She is _so_
uncouth when she loses her temper. Honestly, a regular pow-wow went on
for a few minutes."
Vera stopped her narrative to laugh as she recalled that very stormy
altercation. Leila was also laughing. Nor could the other listeners fail
to be amused.
"I can imagine how that poor soph felt to be jumped on so unexpectedly,
when she was playing the agreeable hostess at her own birthday party."
Jerry's sympathy for the injured sophomore did not prevent her from
laughing. The funny side of such tragedies invariably struck Jerry
first. "How did the pow-wow end?"
"Very likely an enraged Baretti swooped down on them and read them the
law in broken and indignant English," guessed Ronny, with a glance
toward the cashier's desk, where the stolid little proprietor sat
counting the day's receipts.
"Did he?" emphasized Vera. "He crossed the floor as though he had wings
attached to his shoes. He stopped directly in front of Leslie Cairns. We
couldn't hear what he said to her. It wasn't more than half a dozen
sentences. They must have been strictly to the point. She glared at him
and he glared back. Then she said loudly enough to be heard all over the
room: 'Come on, girls. Let the dago have his hash house. I hope it burns
down tonight.' The six of them went out of the restaurant, laughing.
Guiseppe was wild. He swore they should never be allowed to set foot in
this place again. They stayed away until after Easter. Gradually they
drifted back, and he didn't reopen the quarrel. They have been on their
good behavior here since then."
"Quite a collegiate performance. What?" Leila gave an exact imitation of
Leslie Cairns' manner of uttering the interrogation. "Take the truth
from me, our freshie year was full of just such scenes put over by those
girls."
"The soph who had the fuss with Leslie Cairns is a senior this year. You
may believe the Sans will get no favors from her and her party crowd.
The Sans will find out some day that they can't sow tares and expect to
reap flowers," concluded Vera with some warmth.
"Yes, but it will take them such a very long time to find it out,"
Muriel said impatiently. "If we don't stand up for the honor of our Alma
Mater, who will?"
"Well, we've done some good," sturdily asserted Jerry. "We wouldn't
allow the Sans to rag Katherine. The Beauty contest was an awful damper
to them, especially Miss Weyman. It put a crimp in her sails. She needed
to be suppressed. Then came the trouble about basket ball. The Silverton
House girls deserve most of the credit for that _coup de grace_. It
certainly brought the freshman class together with a snap. There are
only about twelve or fifteen of the present sophs who are Sans
worshippers. Miss Reid won't dare interfere with sports this year."
"A strong blow you freshies struck for fairness in college sports,"
commended Leila. "They will be properly managed this year."
"Miss Reid is to have only light gymnastics and folk dancing from this
on," announced Helen. "There is to be a new gym instructor; a young man.
He is a physical culture expert and an acrobat. He is to teach bar and
trapeze work."
"You don't mean it!" Leila puckered her lips into a soft whistle. "What
is to become of Miss Bailey? She is a better teacher of folk dancing
than Miss Reid. Who told you, Helen?"
"Miss Bailey herself. I came up from town with her the other day in a
taxi. She seems pleased with the new arrangement. She is to assist both
Miss Reid and the new instructor. You know she is an athletic wonder for
a woman. She does very difficult acrobatic work and understands teaching
balance. That is so difficult to teach."
"Who knows? This may be Miss Reid's last year with us," Leila said with
a tinge of laughing malice. "It is said a change of that kind for a
teacher at college generally precedes a violent drop. If true, we must
try to bear our loss. It takes time to recover from such losses. How we
do ramble from the subject. Let us be turning back to our freshies'
good works."
"Muriel stopped at that basket ball affair last winter," prompted
Katherine. "I'll mention it before Lucy has a chance. She isn't the only
one who can keep tab on things."
"I see I shall have to keep you in the background." Lucy bent a severe
eye on Katherine. "You are out to steal my glory."
"Just tell her to subside, a la Leslie Cairns," suggested Helen. "What a
shame that I missed that lovely party row at Baretti's. I heard echoes
of it on the campus for a week afterward. Let me tell you, I admire
Ronny for the way she wound up that tale the Sans started against
Marjorie last March. It was the best thing that could have been done."
"Something had to be done." Ronny's gray eyes grew flinty. "Those
particular girls took an unusually bold stand against her. I am
surprised that they did not attempt to haze her earlier in the year."
"It probably did not occur to them," was Vera's opinion. "If it had,
they might have tried it. It is strictly forbidden here. The hazers
would certainly be expelled. President Matthews is down on it with both
feet. A niece of his was hazed at college and contracted pneumonia. She
died of it and he has been doubly opposed to it since then."
"I am glad I was saved midnight visits from sheeted ghosts or some such
eerie horror," laughed Marjorie. "It wouldn't have done them
any good if ever they had hazed me. I would have refused to do one
single thing they told me to do. It wouldn't have been a specially
pleasant experience to waken suddenly and find the room inhabited by
spooks. Still I wouldn't have been afraid of them. I am glad to be a
soph. I am past the grind and hazing stage. Do tell the girls about
Row-ena Farnham, Jeremiah. You promised them you would."
"And so I will," affably consented Jerry. "I think I'll save it for
dessert, though."
"I think you won't," quickly objected Leila. "Be nice and tell us now.
Dessert is afar off. The sherbet and the salad stand between it."
Having come to a speedy selection of their dinner, immediately they were
seated at table, they were now finishing the toothsome old-fashioned
chicken pot-pie and its palatable accompaniments which was one of
Baretti's most popular specialties.
"All right children, I will humor you," Jerry made gracious concession,
as other protesting voices arose. "Understand this is no news to the
Lookouts here assembled."
"We don't mind hearing it again. We're the pattern of amiability,"
Muriel made light assurance.
"Charmed, to be sure," beamed Ronny.
"I'll take your word for it." Jerry did not appear specially impressed
by such overwhelming forbearance. "To begin with, the Macys spend their
summers at Severn Beach. The Farnhams have a regular castle at
Tanglewood, a resort about ten miles from Severn Beach. It is needless
to say that Row-ena and I do not exchange visits. I am happy to say I
never saw her at Severn Beach. Think what the beach has been spared."
"One afternoon Hal took me to Tanglewood in his sailboat. He went to see
a couple of his chums about arranging for a yacht race. I didn't care to
go with him to the cottage. I knew they didn't want me butting in while
they planned their race. I stayed down on the sands near the boat. Hal
had promised to be back by four o'clock.
"I watched the bathers for a while. There were only a few in the water
that day," Jerry continued. "Finally, I thought I would go up to a large
pavilion at the head of the pier for an ice. I sat in the pavilion
eating a pineapple ice as peacefully as you please. All of a sudden I
realized someone had stopped beside my chair; two someones by the way.
One of them was Row-ena Quarrelena Fightena Scrapena; the other," Jerry
paused impressively, "was our precious hob-goblin, Miss Cairns."