TOM 'S SCHEME
DESPITE all efforts, not a boy had been able to learn what course the
girls had decided upon during the meeting in. the classroom. Several
of those who were in favor of the sleigh-ride had sisters among the
"ten-centers," and they used every effort to learn what had been the
result of the meeting; but, in each individual case, before the boy had
asked very many questions, he found that his sister was more successful
in getting information from him than he from her.
During that evening the girls kept their secret closely guarded, while
more than one of
the boys had inadvertently divulged enough of Si's great scheme to
enable the girls to judge quite clearly what they proposed to do. Si
had notified his friends and adherents that he would meet them at half-
past eight in the schoolroom, when he expected that each one would be
prepared to pay his share of the cost of the sleigh-ride, and all hands
were in the playground at an early hour next morning, anxious, but
unable to get into the building.
Why it was that the schoolhouse door should be locked so late on this
particular morning,
when it was usually opened as early as seven o'clock, no fellow could
imagine. That the girls were the cause of their being deprived of their
regular place for holding business meetings never occurred to them, and
the only reason they could assign for this remarkable delay on the part
of the janitor was that Deacon Littlefield was ill. They did not really
hope that their teacher was sick; but they would have been willing he
should be slightly indisposed, if, in such case, they would have an
unexpected holiday.
Si did not think it advisable to neglect business simply because they
were obliged to stand out-of-doors instead of being in a warm room, and
he promptly collected twenty-five cents for the proposed sleigh-ride
from each boy who was so fortunate as to have that amount of money with
him.
At ten minutes before nine, the boys, who had begun to grow surprised
because none of the girls had' appeared, were disappointed at seeing
Deacon Littlefield, whom they had believed to be sick, come into the
yard, and in five minutes more they trooped into the schoolroom behind
him, the door having been opened by the janitor from the inside the
moment the teacher stood before it.
All this looked mysterious, and the mystification was complete when the
sleigh-riders saw every individual member of the "ten-centers," with
the single exception of Winny, seated at their desks much as if they
had remained there all night. On going to his seat, each boy found a
letter and a package staring him in the face; and from that time until
the Deacon called the school to order, no sound was heard, save the
rustling of paper as the boys read the missives, .while the girls
appeared to have no thought save for their books, which they were
studying with most remarkable intentness.
No one of the boys had time to compare notes with his neighbor when
Deacon Littlefield
said, after he had rapped vigorously on his desk to command attention:
"It has been suggested to me by such of your parents as I have had time
to call upon, that, in view of the near approach of the holidays, and
of the many plans you may possibly have in mind, school be dismissed
until after the beginning of the New Year. To have followed out my
original intention, we should have continued in session to-day and to-
morrow; but, believing that I should have only your divided attention
during that time, I have concluded to give you two extra holidays,
trusting that, when we assemble here again, you will endeavor to make
up for the time thus lost. You are, therefore, dismissed from
attendance until the day after New Year's."
Under ordinary circumstances, this unexpected announcement would have
been received with cheers by the boys; but so confused were the sleigh-
riders by the letters they had just received, that they remained
quietly in their seats, while the girls walked demurely out of the
building.
Even before Deacon Littlefield had taken his departure the confusion
began, Tom Hardy being the first one to express an opinion. "I tell you
what it is, fellers, the girls have got the best of us, and no
mistake."
"The best of us!" growled Si Kelly. "I call it about as mean a thing as
I know of."
" Is it any meaner than what we did to them?"
" Of course it is. They write as if we couldn't afford to pay ten cents
to go to their old party, an' here the most of us have already given
twenty-five cents for our ride. Ag Morrell can have her calico necktie
back, an' I'm goin' to carry it up to her house before I'm an hour
older ."
"I' wouldn't do that," squeaked Winny, who was secretly delighted at
the turn in affairs.
" If she gets to talkin' about the letter you sent you'll have the
worst of it."
Then everybody spoke at the same time until no one could understand
what the other was
saying, and Deacon Littlefield rushed out of the building to save
himself from premature
deafness.
It was some time before anything like order was restored, and then Tom
Hardy said, impatiently:
"Look .here,. fellers, it's no use for us to stand here cawing like a
lot "of crows, when nobody knows what the one next to him is saying. I
go in for havin' this thing done right, if we're goin' to do it at all.
The girls have got the best of us now, an' if any of you think we can
turn things around, let's go to work shipshape."
" I nominate Tom Hardy president of this meetin', to see how we can get
ahead of the
girls," squeaked Winny; and, to say the least, he was very officious in
so doing, since he was a member of the "ten-centers," and really had
nothing to do with the discomfiture of the sleigh-riders.
In the general excitement, however, no one seemed to remember that
Winny was not one
of them, and all called for Tom Hardy to conduct the meeting. Si Kelly
recognized the fact that he should have been the one to occupy this
proud position; but the leadership seemed to be slipping away from him,
and, shout as he might, no one paid any attention to him. He had led
the boys on to defeat, instead of victory, and since he could suggest
no wiser plan than to return the neckties and letters, all looked to
Tom Hardy for advice.
"Fellers," he said, gravely, as he seated himself in the Deacon's
chair, understanding the
importance of his position, "we've got to do something to get ahead of
the girls, an' I go
in for havin' each one say what he thinks is best. After that we can
pick out a plan. Now,
what do you think we ought to do, Si?"
Master Kelly was very sulky; but he managed to state, as his
conviction, that they could do no less than return the neckties and
letters to the senders, treating the whole matter with silent scorn,
and carry out the idea of the sleigh-ride, as if such insignificant
persons had never had an existence.
Joe Barr thought it best to accept the invitations given, and treat the
whole matter as a good joke whereby each boy had saved ten cents. Joe,
however, had not yet paid the assessment twenty-five cents for the
sleigh-ride, and many ought he had proposed this plan as a way of
rading any outlay of money.
Eben Coulliard was willing to do whatever the others thought best; but
at the same time
he reminded them that a party at Aggie Morrell's house was not a thing
to be "sneezed at," and if the invitation could be accepted graciously,
he thought it would be a pleasant way of spending an evening.
Dan Crockett announced that he was not afraid to say he had rather go
to the party. He had already paid his quarter towards the sleigh-ride;
but he was willing to look upon
hat as so much money thrown away if the others would agree to go to
Aggie's house.
He thought that the money that the girls had spent could be returned to
them in some way, and that the friendly feelings between the boys and
girls of the school could be restored.
Jack Haley and his four intimate friends "did not care a cent what was
done;" they would
agree to anything the other fellows thought best.
Bart Carleton agreed with Si Kelly, but since it was known that he owed
Si four agates and seventeen marbles, to say nothing of three tops, all
believed that his debt had influenced his decision.
All, save Tom Hardy, gave their opinion, and it was found that the boys
were about evenly divided; one party adopting Si's suggestion, and the
other favoring the acceptance of the invitations, if it could be done
so that they would not appear to be "backing down."
It "Now, see here, fellers'," said Tom, when every one looked at him as
if expecting to hear what he thought, "I want you all to understand in
the first place that I am willing to do what the majority think best;
but I've got a little scheme that I think a good one. Let's go on the
sleigh ride, an' go to the party, too."
"Then the girls would think we were smart," growled Si.
"Wait a minute, till you hear the whole of it. About half want to do
one thing, and half another. Now, I say, let's each one write to the
girl who has sent him a necktie, thanking her for the invitation to the
party, and ask her to go on a sleigh-ride with us. We can hire both of
Grout's big sleighs, an' have about as big a time as was ever seen in
this town. I guess the girls won't be much ahead of us then."
"But how about their payin' for our neckties? " asked Dan Crockett.
"We'll let that go as if we was much obliged. to them; but we'll raise
ten cents more apiece, an' buy aunt Betsey wood enough to last her till
summer. If we pay the money now, we can each get a saw, an' have it all
cut up before night. The girls won't have any the best of us then; aunt
Betsey will be just that much better off; we can have our sleigh-ride,
and we can go to the party as well. But if we should do simply one
thing or the other, then the girls would be sure to think we had been
beaten. Now, if all the fellers will agree to that, I'll get my share
of the money right away, an' we'll ask Deacon Littlefield to buy the
wood this morning."
Tom saw, even before he had ceased speaking, that the majority of the
boys were in favor of. his scheme, since by carrying it out they would
miss neither one pleasure nor the other, and would only be obliged to
pay ten cents extra, and to spend a little time sawing wood.
"But we can't get both sleighs for the same price we could one," said
Si; but even this
objection showed that he was favorably inclined towards Tom's scheme,
if it could be accomplished without too great a sacrifice.
"Yes, we can, if we don't take them till the middle of the afternoon.
We will start about
three o'clock, an' come back to Aggie's house in time for the party."
"But how'll you fix it about the letters?" asked Si.
"I'll send this one to Maria Gilman, for she sent me the necktie, an'
you can all copy it."
Then Tom read the following letter, which he had written while the
others had been talking:
DEAR RIE: - I am much obliged for the invitation and the
necktie. I will be there by eight o'clock if you will do a
little favor for me. Us boys have been getting up a sleigh-
ride for Saturday afternoon; we shall start about three
o'clock from the schoolhouse, and get back to Aggie's in
time for the party. Will you go?
I am sure aunt Betsey will feel grateful to you girls when
she knows you each gave twenty cents towards making her
comfortable, and if it had not been for the "lack of
money," we boys would have paid our share.
Your friend, TOM.
"Hurrah! " shouted Dan Crockett. "I reckon that will fix things, an'
when they find that we bought the wood for aunt Betsey, they can't
think that they've got the right to feel very
superior."
"They'll never know but that we meant all the time to do this very
thing," said Tom, "an'
we shall have as good a time as can be had."
There was no question but that this scheme would be carried out, for
even Si Kelly came to understand that it was a very graceful way of
extricating themselves from what, at one time, promised to be a
decidedly disagreeable position, and he announced his decision by
saying:
"Now, every feller must hurry home an' get the ten cents, so's we can
buy the wood quick, an' then there won't be any chance for the girls to
believe that we thought of this after we got their letters."
"Take the money you had collected for the ride, an' we will all make it
up before night,"
suggested Tom.
In another moment Si was running at full speed towards Deacon
Littlefield's house to ask
him to buy the wood, and Tom suggested that each sleigh-rider sharpen
his saw in order to be ready for work as soon as the fuel should be in
aunt Betsey's yard.
Before night the wood had been purchased, , sawed, and split; the
letters had been written
and sent to the girls, and both of Mr. Grout's sleighs engaged for
Saturday afternoon.
The story of the ride, and of the necktie party that followed it,
would, without doubt, be
interesting; but the telling of these pleasant festivities would'
occupy too much space. Suffice it to say that the girls readily
accepted the invitations that were the result of Tom's scheme, and
although they learned from some of the more garrulous sleigh-riders
under just what press of circumstances they had been given, the "ten -
centers" were too generous to hint of what they knew.
Aggie's party was a dazzling success. Every one appeared to have a good
time, and the pairing off of the aprons and neckties caused
considerable amusement, especially when Debby Thompson, the tallest
girl present, found that she must accept the smallest boy - who was
Winny, of course - as an escort.
It is hardly necessary to say that Winny was allowed to become one of
the sleigh-riders; and since he had voluntarily agreed to go to the
party, he was obliged to pay for his necktie, as well as his proportion
of the cost of the sleighride and the wood. Thus it was that his love
for cake proved to be quite expensive to him, owing to the varied
schemes of his friends.
The End
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