GUESTS FOR ALL
As the guests would reach the Dorrance Domain by daylight, Leicester's
plan of illuminating the grounds was scarcely feasible. But he had hung
the Chinese lanterns on the veranda, and among the trees, and had put
candles inside them, so they could light them up, and have their
celebration in the evening.
It was arranged that the twins should row down to meet the _Mamie Mead_
and then get on board, and escort the guests up the lake, towing their
own rowboat.
Dorothy preferred to stay at home, to attend to some last important
details in the kitchen, and Fairy said she would sit with grandma on the
veranda, and await the arrival.
Soon after four o'clock, Fairy ran into the house screaming to Dorothy
that the _Mamie Mead_ was in sight. This gave Dorothy ample time to run
up-stairs for a final brush to her hair, and a final adjustment of her
ribbons, and there was no air of a flurried or perturbed housekeeper
about the calm and graceful girl who sauntered out on the veranda to
greet her guests.
Fairy danced half-way down the steps to the dock, and then danced back
again hand-in-hand with Gladys Miller. The others came up more slowly,
and Grandma Dorrance rose with pleasure to welcome her dear friend Mrs.
Thurston.
Then there was a general chorus of excited greetings all around.
The newcomers were so astonished and delighted at the novelty of the
situation, that they could not restrain their enthusiasm; and the
residents of the Dorrance Domain were so proud and happy to offer such
unusual hospitality, that they too, were vociferously jubilant.
But the stranger among the newcomers was of such appalling proportions
that Dorothy couldn't help staring in amazement.
Tessie's mother was quite the largest woman she had ever seen, and
Dorothy privately believed that she must be the largest woman in the
whole world. She was not only very tall, and also very broad, but she
had an immense frame, and her muscles seemed to indicate a powerfulness
far beyond that of an ordinary man.
To this gigantic specimen of femininity Dorothy advanced, and said
pleasantly: "I suppose this is Kathleen?"
"Yis, mum; an' it's proud I am to be wid yez. The saints presarve ye,
fur a foine young lady! An' wud yez be's afther showin' me to me
daughter? Och, 'tis there she is! Tessie, me darlint, is it indade
yersilf?"
Tessie had caught sight of her mother, and unable to control her
impatience had run to meet her. Though Tessie was a fair-sized girl she
seemed to be quite swallowed up in the parental embrace. Her mother's
arms went 'round her, and Leicester exclaimed, involuntarily, "Somebody
ought to rescue Tessie! she'll have every bone cracked!"
But she finally emerged, unharmed and beaming with happiness, and then
she led her mother away to the kitchen, the big woman radiating joy as
she went.
"She jars the earth," said Jack Harris; "as long as she's on this side,
the lake is liable to tip up, and flood this place of yours. But I say,
Less, what a magnificent place it is! Do you run the whole
shooting-match?"
"Yes, we do," said Leicester, trying to look modest and unostentatious.
"It isn't really too big, that is,--I mean,--we like it big."
"Like it? I should think you would like it! It's just the greatest ever!
I say, take me in the house, and let me see that, will you?"
The girls wanted to go too, and so leaving the elder ladies to chat on
the veranda, the children ran in, and the Dorrance Domain was exhibited
to most appreciative admirers.
Jack Harris was eager to see it all; and even insisted on going up
through the skylight to the roof. This feat had not before been thought
of by the Dorrance children, and so the whole crowd clambered up the
narrow flight of stairs that led to the skylight, and scrambled out on
the roof. Dorothy's dignity was less observable just now, and she and
Edith Putnam romped and laughed with the other children as if they were
all of the same age. The view from the roof was beautiful, and the place
really possessed advantages as a playground. There was a railing all
around the edge, and though the gables were sloping, many parts of the
roof were flat, and Jack declared it would be a lovely place to sit on a
moonlight night.
Then down they went again, and showing the guests to their various
rooms, made them feel that at last they were really established in the
Dorrance Domain. This naturally broke the party up into couples, and
Leicester carried Jack off to his own room first, to show him the many
boyish treasures that he had already accumulated.
Fairy flew around, as Jack Harris expressed it, "like a hen with her
head off," and everywhere Fairy went, she dragged the more slowly moving
Gladys after her, by one hand. Gladys was devoted to Fairy, and admired
her thistledown ways; but being herself a fat, stolid child, could by
no means keep up to Fairy's pace.
Dorothy took Edith Putnam to her room, and being intimate friends the
two girls sat down together, and became so engrossed in their chat, that
when nearly a half-hour later, Lilian and May Lewis came in to talk with
them, Edith had not yet even taken off her hat.
Although dear friends of the Dorrances', Edith and May were of very
different types.
Edith Putnam was a round, rosy girl, very pretty and full of life and
enthusiasm. She was decidedly comical, and kept the girls laughing by
her merry retorts. She was bright and capable, but disinclined for hard
work, and rather clever in shifting her share of it to other people's
shoulders.
May Lewis, on the other hand, was a plain, straightforward sort of girl;
not dull, but a little diffident, and quite lacking in self-confidence.
Not especially quick-witted,--yet what she knew, she knew thoroughly,
and had no end of perseverance and persistence. She was of a most
unselfish and helpful disposition, and Lilian well knew that without
asking, May would assist her at her household tasks during the visit,
and would even do more than her share.
Dorothy frankly explained to the girls what the household arrangements
were in the Dorrance Domain, and said, that since certain hours of the
day must be devoted to regular work by the Dorrance sisters, the guests
would at such times be thrown upon their own resources for
entertainment.
"Not I!" cried Edith; "I shall help you, Dorothy, in everything you have
to do while I'm here. Indeed, I just think I'll do up your chores for
you, and let you take a rest. I'm sure you need one. Not that you look
so; I never saw you look so fat and rosy in your life; but you mustn't
work too hard just because you have company. You mustn't do a single
thing extra for us, will you?"
"You mustn't dictate to your hostess, miss," returned Dorothy, gaily;
"and I hardly think you can assist me very much, for I look after the
cookery part, and I think you've given me to understand that you detest
cooking. Also, I most certainly shall do extra things while you're
here. It is my pleasure to entertain my guests properly," and Dorothy
smiled in her most grown-up manner.
"Good gracious! Dorothy Dorrance, did your manners come with your
Domain, or where did you get that highfalutin air of yours?"
"Oh, that was put on purposely to impress you with my importance," said
Dorothy, dimpling into a little girl again. "But truly, I must skip down
to the kitchen now, and see if my Parker House rolls are rising, rose or
having risen. No, you can't come, Edith; you'd spoil the rolls,--though
you'd do it in a most well-meaning way. Now you girls all go out, and
disport yourselves on the lawn, while I do my noble duty. Though I'm
free to confess I'm scared to death of that awe-inspiring mother-person
that Tessie has imported."
"I think she'll be helpful," said May Lewis. "She came up with us you
know, and really she's wonderful. She looked after us all, and she's as
funny as a red wagon."
"Red wagon!" exclaimed Edith; "she's nearer the size of a red
automobile, and she has the same kind of energy that automobiles are
said to have. I don't own one myself, so I don't know."
"I don't own one either," said Dorothy, "so I don't know how to manage
one. But I suppose I must make a try at managing the bulky Kathleen,--so
I may as well start."
The whole troop ran down the wide staircase, except Fairy, who slid down
the banister, and leaving the others in the hall, Dorothy ran away to
the kitchen.
There she found Kathleen proceeding in a manner quite in accordance with
her appearance. She had assumed immediate and entire charge of the
supper preparations, and was ordering Tessie about in a good-natured,
but domineering way.
"Lave me have a bit o' red pepper, darlint," she was saying, as Dorothy
came in; "this dhressin' is flat for the want of it. Ah, Miss Dorothy,
is that you, thin? an' I'm jist afther shlappin' together yer
salad-dhressin'. I obsarved the things all shtandin' ready an' I
whacked 'em up."
"Why, that was very kind of you, Kathleen," said Dorothy; "it has helped
me a great deal. Where are my rolls, Tessie?"
"They was risin' too fast, miss," said Kathleen, entirely ignoring her
daughter's presence, "an' I set 'em in the pantry forninst, to kape 'em
back."
"Good for you, Kathleen! you're a jewel. I was afraid those things would
get too light. Now, if you'll get them for me, I'll mould them over."
"Shure, I moulded them over, miss. They're all ready to bake, an' it's
Kathleen as'll bake 'em for ye."
"Well," said Dorothy, laughing, "there doesn't seem to be anything left
for me to do. Will you dress the salad, Kathleen?"
"I will that, miss! Now don't bother yer purty head anny more about the
supper. Shure, it's Kathleen will attind to it all, intoirely. This
shcapegrace, Tessie, will show me where things do be, an' yez needn't
show so much as the tip av yer nose, until it's all on the table."
"Kathleen, you're an angel in disguise, and not much disguised at that.
Now look here, I'm very practical, and if you're going to stay here a
week, we may as well understand each other from the start. I'd be
delighted to leave this supper entirely in your hands; but are you sure
that you can do everything satisfactorily? I'm rather particular, as
Tessie can tell you, and to-night, I want everything especially nice,
and well-served, in honor of my guests."
"Now, there's talk for ye! You're the right kind of a lady to wurruk
for. But, ye need have niver a fear; Kathleen'll do iverything jist as
foine as yersilf or yer lady grandmother cud be afther desirin'."
"Very well, Kathleen, I shall trust you with the whole affair then. You
can broil chickens, of course?"
"To a turrn, miss." Kathleen's large face was so expressive as she said
this (and there was so much room on her face for expression), that
Dorothy felt no further doubts as to the chickens.
She ran from the kitchen, laughing, and joined the group on the veranda.
"I'm a lady of leisure," she announced gaily; "that large and altogether
delightful piece of architecture, called Kathleen, insists upon cooking
the supper, over which I had expected to spend a hard-working hour."
"Jolly for Kathleen!" exclaimed Leicester, throwing his cap high in the
air, and catching it on his head; "I do hate to have Dot working for her
living, while we're all enjoying ourselves."
"Jolly for Kathleen!" echoed Jack Harris; "the lady of magnificent
distances."
And though Grandma Dorrance did not join audibly in the general hurrah,
she was no less glad that her pretty Dorothy was relieved from household
drudgery on that particularly merry occasion.