Darry and Burd seemed to have little time to spend ashore these days.
They said that they had a lot to do to fix up the _Marigold_ for the
proposed trip seaward. But Amy accused them of being afraid of Belle
Ringold and Sally Moon.
"Belle is determined that she shall get an invitation to sail aboard
your yacht, Darry," teased his sister. "Don't forget that."
"Not if we see her first," responded Burd, promptly. "And don't you ring
her in on us, for if you do we'll not let you aboard the _Marigold_
either. How about it, Darry?"
"Good enough," agreed Amy's brother. "Oh, I promise not to ring Belle
Ringold in on you," giggled Amy.
"It is perfectly disgraceful how you boys teach these girls slang," Mrs.
Drew remarked with a sigh.
"Why, Mother!" cried Darry, his eyes twinkling, "they teach it to us.
You accuse Burd and me wrongfully. We couldn't tell these girls a single
thing."
This was at breakfast at the Norwood bungalow. After breakfast the young
folks separated. But Jessie and Amy had no complaint to make about the
boys. They had their own interests. This day they had agreed to explore
the island with Nell Stanley as far as the hotel grounds.
They took Henrietta and Sally Stanley along, and carried a picnic lunch.
The older girls were rather curious to see the extent of "Henrietta's
domain," as Amy called it. The pastures included in the Hackle Island
Golf Club grounds covered all the middle of the island, and consisted of
hills and dells, all "up-and-down-dilly," Amy observed, and from a
distance, at least, seemed very attractive.
Of course, they could not go fast with the two smaller girls along,
although Henrietta seemed tireless.
"But Sally ain't a tough one, like me," declared the little girl who
thought she was going to own an island. She approved of Sally Stanley
very much because the minister's little girl was dainty, and kept her
dresses clean, and was soft-spoken. "I got to run and holler once in a
while or I thinks I'm choking," confessed Henrietta. "But your mamma,
Miss Jessie, says I'll get over that after a while. She says I'll go to
school and learn a lot and that _maybe_ I'll be as nice as Sally some
day."
"I hope you will," said Jessie warmly. "That's hardly to be expected,"
Henrietta rejoined in her old-fashioned way. "Sally was born that way.
But I always was a tough one."
"There is a good deal in that," sighed Jessie to the other Roselawn
girls. "The poor little thing! She never did have a chance. But Momsy is
already talking about sending her away to school to have her toned down
and----" "Suppose the Blairs won't hear to it?" suggested Amy. "Leave it
to Momsy to work things out her way," said Jessie, more gaily.
They soon left the sand dunes behind them and marched up over what the
natives of the island called "the downs" to a scrubby pasture at the
edge of the golf links. Crossing the links watchfully they only had to
dodge a couple of times when the players called "Fore!" and so got
safely past the various greens and reached the patch of wood between the
club premises and the hotel grounds.
There was a spring here which they had been told about, and it was near
enough noon for lunch to occupy an important place in their minds. They
spent an hour here; but after that, much as she had eaten, Henrietta
began to run around again. She could not keep still.
Her voice was suddenly stilled and she halted in the path and stood like
a pointer flushing a covey of birds. The older girls were surprised. Amy
drawled:
"What's the matter, Hen? You don't feel sick, do you?"
"I hear something," declared Henrietta, her freckled face clouding. "I
hear somebody talk that I don't like."
"Who is that?" asked Nell.
"She makes me feel sick, all right," grumbled the little girl. "Oh, yes!
It's her. And if she says again that she owns my island, I'll--I'll----"
"Belle Ringold!" exclaimed Amy, much amused. "Can't we go anywhere
without Belle and Sally showing up?"
The two girls whom they all considered so unpleasant appeared at the top
of the small hill and came down the path. They were rather absurdly
dressed for an outing. Certainly their frocks would have looked better
at dinner or at a dance than in the woods. And they strutted along as
though they quite well knew they had on their very best furbelows.
"Oh, dear me! there's that awful child again," drawled Belle, before she
saw the older girls sitting at the spring.
"She must be lost away up here," said Sally Moon, idly. "Say, kid, run
get this folding cup filled at the spring."
"What for?" demanded Henrietta.
"Why, so I can drink from it, foolish!"
"You bring me a drink first," said the freckle-faced girl stoutly.
"Nobody didn't make me your servant to run your errands--so now!"
"Listen to her!" laughed Belle. "She waits on Jess Norwood and Amy Drew
hand and foot. Of course she is a servant."
"You ain't a servant when you wait on folks for _love_," declared
Henrietta, quickly.
Amy clapped her hands together softly at this bit of philosophy. Jessie
stood up so that the girls from the hotel could see her.
"Oh! Here's Jess Norwood now," cried Sally. "You might know!"
Little Henrietta was backing away from the two newcomers, but eyeing
them with great disfavor. She suddenly demanded of Jessie:
"Is this spring on a part of my land, Miss Jessie?"
"It may be," said Amy, quickly answering before Jessie could do so.
"Like enough all this grove is yours, Hen."
"Why," gasped Belle Ringold, "my father is just about to take possession
of this place. He is going to have surveyors come on the island and
survey it."
"This is my woods!" cried Henrietta. "It's my spring! You sha'n't even
have a drink out of it--neither of you girls!"
"What nonsense!" drawled Belle. "Who will stop us, please?" and she came
on down the path toward the spring.
The other girls had now got up. Jessie tried to reach out and seize
Henrietta; but the latter was so angry that she jerked away. She stood
before Belle and Sally with flashing eyes and her hands clenched tight.
"You go away! This is my woods and my spring! You sha'n't have a drink!"
"The child is crazy," said Belle, harshly. "Let me pass, you mean little
thing!"
At that Henrietta stooped and caught up dirt in each grubby hand. It was
a little damp where she stood, and the muck stuck to her palms. She
shrieked hatred and defiance at Belle and, running forward, smeared the
dirt all up and down the front of the rich girl's fine dress.
Belle shrieked quite as loudly as the angry Henrietta and threatened all
manner of punishment. But she could not catch the freckled girl, who was
as wriggly as an eel.
"I'll--I'll have you whipped! You ought to be spanked hard!" panted Belle
Ringold. "And it is your fault, Jess Norwood. You egged her on."
"I did not," said Jessie, angrily.
But she was vexed with Henrietta, too. She ran after and caught the
panting, sobbing little thing. She really was tempted to shake her.
"What do you mean, Henrietta Haney, by acting this way and talking so?
Do you want to disgrace us all? For shame!"
"I don't talk no worse than the Ringold one," declared Henrietta.
Jessie tried a new tack. She said more quietly: "But _you_ know better,
Henrietta."
"Yes, ma'am."
"And perhaps she doesn't," ventured Jessie.
"Well--er--she's got money," pouted Henrietta. "Why doesn't she hire
somebody to teach her better? You know I never did have any chance, Miss
Jessie."
She felt she was in disgrace, however, and the older girls let her feel
this without compunction. Belle was frightfully angry about her frock.
She sputtered and threatened and called names that were not polite.
Finally Jessie said:
"If you feel that way about it, Belle, send the dress to the cleaner's
and then send the bill to my mother. That is all I can say about it. But
I think you brought it on yourself by teasing Henrietta."
In spite of this speech to Belle, Henrietta felt that she was in
disgrace as Jessie marched her away from the spring. Little Sally
Stanley came to her other side and squeezed Henrietta's dirty hand in
sympathy.
"Huh!" snuffled Henrietta. "It's too bad you've got the same name as
that Moon girl, Sally. Why don't you ask the minister to change it for
you? He christens folks, doesn't he?"
"Why, yes," murmured Sally, uncertainly. "But I was christened, you
know, oh, years and years ago."
"That don't cut no ice," replied Henrietta, unconscious that her
language was not all it ought to be. "You just have him do it over
again. And don't be no 'Sally,' nor no more 'Belle.'"