SUNDAY MORNING BREAKFAST.
It was quite the custom at Wellington for girls to prepare breakfasts
on Sunday morning in their rooms. There was always the useful boneless
chicken to be creamed in one's chafing dish; and in another, eggs to be
scrambled with a lick and a promise, at these impromptu affairs; and it
was a change from the usual codfish balls of the Sunday house breakfast.
[Illustration: It was quite the custom for girls to prepare breakfast in
their rooms.--_Page 152._]
On this particular Sunday morning, Judy was very busy; for the breakfast
party was of her giving, in Molly's and Nance's room; her own
"singleton" being too small. She was also very angry in her tempestuous
and unrestrained way, and having emptied the vials of her wrath on
Molly's head, she was angrier with herself for giving away to temper.
Although it was Judy's party, Molly, as usual kind-hearted and grandly
hospitable, had invited Frances Andrews. Then she had gone and
confessed her sins to Judy, who flared up and said things she hadn't
intended, and Molly had wept a little and owned that she was entirely
at fault. But what could be done? Frances was invited and had accepted.
To atone for her sins, poor Molly had made popovers as a surprise and
arranged to bake them in Mrs. Murphy's oven. But the hostess being
gloomy, the company was gloomy, since the one is apt to reflect the
humor of the other. However, as the coffee began to send forth its
cheerful aroma from Judy's Russian samovar, discord took wings and
harmony reigned. It was a very comfortable and sociable party. Most of
the girls wore their kimonos, it being a time for rest and relaxation;
but when Frances Andrews swept into the room in a long lavender silk
_peignoir_ trimmed with frills of lace, all cotton crepe Japanese
dressing gowns faded into insignificance.
"There is no doubt that college girls are a hungry lot," remarked
Margaret Wakefield, settling herself comfortably to dispose of food and
conversation and arouse argument, a thing she deeply enjoyed.
"So much brain work requires nourishment," observed Mabel Hinton.
"There is not much brain nourishment at Queen's," put in Frances
Andrews. "I've been living on raw eggs and sweet chocolate for the last
week. The table has run down frightfully."
Sallie Marks was a loyal Queen's girl, and resented this slur on the
table of the establishment which was sheltering her now for the third
year.
"The food here is quite as good as it is at any of the other houses,"
she said coldly to the unfortunate Frances, who really had not intended
to give offence.
"Pardon me, but I don't agree with you," replied Frances, "and I have
a right to my own opinion, I suppose."
Judy gave Molly a triumphant glance, as much as to say, "You see what
you have done."
Everybody looked a little uncomfortable, and Margaret Wakefield, equal
to every occasion, launched into a learned discussion on how many ounces
of food the normal person requires a day.
Once more the talk flowed on smoothly. But where Frances was, it would
seem there were always hidden reefs which wrecked every subject, no
matter how innocent, the moment it was launched.
"Molly, I can trade compliments with you," put in Jessie Lynch, taking
not the slightest notice of her roommate's discourse. "It's one of those
very indirect, three-times-removed compliments, but you'll be amused by
it."
"Really," said Molly, "do tell me what it is before I burst with
curiosity."
"I said 'trade,'" laughed Jessie, who liked a compliment herself
extremely.
"Oh, of course," replied Molly. "I have any number I can give you in
exchange. How do you care for this one? Mary Stewart thinks you are very
attractive."
"Does she, really? That's nice of her," exclaimed Jessie, blushing with
pleasure as if she hadn't been told the same thing dozens of times
before. "I think she's fine; not exactly pretty, you know, but fine."
"I suppose you don't know how her father made his money?" broke in
Frances.
There was a silence, and Molly, feeling that she was about to be
mortified again by something disagreeable, cried hastily:
"Oh, dear, I forgot the surprise. Do wait a moment," and dashed from the
room.
While she was gone, Nance and Judy began filling up the intervals with
odd bits of conversation, helped out by the other girls, and Frances
Andrews did not have another opportunity to put in her oar. Suddenly she
rose and swept to the door.
"You would none of you feel interested to know, I suppose, that Mary
Stewart's father started life as a bootblack----"
"That's what I'm starting life as," cried Molly, who now appeared
carrying a large tray covered with a napkin. "I am the official
bootblack of Queen's, and I make sometimes one-fifty a week at it. I
hope I'll do as well as Mr. Stewart in the business. Have a popover?"
She unfolded the napkin and behold a pile of golden muffins steaming
hot. There were wild cries of joy from the kimonoed company.
"And now, Jessie, I'll take my second-hand, roundabout compliment----"
she began, when Judy interrupted her.
"Won't you have a popover, Miss Andrews?" she asked in a cold,
exasperated tone.
"Thanks; I eat the European breakfast usually--coffee and roll----"
"Yes, I've been there," answered Judy.
"I'll say good morning. I've enjoyed your little party immensely," and
Frances marched out of the room and banged the door.
"I should think you would have learned a lesson by this time, Molly
Brown," cried Judy hotly. "There is always a row whenever that girl is
around. She can't be nice, and there is no use trying to make her over."
"I'm sorry," said Molly penitently. "I wish I could understand why she
behaves that way when she knows it's going to take away what few friends
she has."
"I think I can tell you," put in Mabel Hinton. "Nobody likes her, and
nobody expects any good of her. If you are constantly on the lookout
for bad traits, they are sure to appear. It's almost a natural law.
Everybody was expecting this to-day, and so it happened, of course. If
we had been cordial and sweet to her, she never would have said that
about Mary Stewart or the food at Queen's, either."
"Dear me, are we listening to a sermon," broke in Judy flippantly.
But, in spite of Judy's interruption, Mabel's speech made an impression
on the girls, some of whom felt a little ashamed of their attitude
toward Frances Andrews.
"Did you ever see a dog that had been kicked all its life?" went on
Mabel; "how it snarls and bites and snaps at anybody who tries to pet
it? Well, Frances is just a poor kicked dog. She's done something she
ought not to have done, and she's been kicked out for it, and she's so
sore and unhappy, she snarls at everybody who comes near her."
"Mabel, you're a brick!" exclaimed Sallie Marks. "I started the fight
this morning and I'm ashamed of it. I'm going to make a resolution to be
nice to that poor girl hereafter, no matter how horrid she is. It will
be an interesting experiment, if for no other reason."
"Let's form a society," put in Molly, "to reinstate Frances Andrews, and
the way to do it will be to be as nice as we can to her and to say nice
things about her to the other girls."
"Good work!" cried Margaret Wakefield, scenting another opportunity to
draw up a constitution, by-laws and resolutions. "We will call a first
meeting right now, and elect officers. I move that Molly be made
chairman of the meeting."
"I second the motion," said Sallie heartily. "All in favor say 'aye.'"
There was a chorus of laughing "ayes" and a society was actually
established that morning, Molly, as founder, being elected President. It
consisted of eight members, all freshmen, except the good-natured Sallie
Marks, who condescended, although a junior, to join.
"Suppose we vote on a name now," continued Margaret who wished to leave
nothing undone in creating the club. "Each member has a right to suggest
two names, votes to be taken afterward."
It was all very business-like, owing to Margaret's experienced methods,
but the girls enjoyed it and felt quite important. As a matter of fact,
it was the first society to be established that year in the freshman
class, and it developed afterward into a very important organization.
Among the various names suggested were "The Optimists," "The Bluebirds,"
"The Glad Hands," mentioned by Sallie Marks, and "The Happy Hearts."
"They are all too sentimental," said the astute Margaret, looking
them over. "There'll be so many croaks about us if we choose one of
these names that we'll be crushed with ridicule. How about these
initials--'G.F.' What do they stand for?"
"Gold Fishes," replied Mabel Hinton promptly. The others laughed, but
the name pleased them, nevertheless. "You see," went on Mabel, "a gold
fish always radiates a cheerful glow no matter where he is. He is the
most amiable, contented little optimist in the animal kingdom, and he
swims just as happily in a finger bowl as he does in a fish pond. He was
evidently created to cheer up the fish tribe and I'm sure he must
succeed in doing it."
The explanation was received with applause, and when the votes were
taken, "G.F." was chosen without a dissenting voice.
It was decided that the club was to meet once a week, it's object, to
be, in a way, the promotion of kindliness, especially toward such people
as Frances Andrews, who were friendless.
"We'll be something like the Misericordia Society in Italy," observed
Judy, "only, instead of looking after wounded and hurt people, we'll
look after wounded and hurt feelings."
It was further moved, seconded and the motion carried that the society
should be a secret one; that reports should be read each week by
members who had anything to report; and, by way of infusing a little
sociability into the society, it was to give an entertainment, something
unique in the annals of Wellington; subject to be thought of later.
It was noon by the time the first meeting of the G. F. Society was ready
to disband. But the girls had really enjoyed it. In the first place,
there was an important feeling about being an initial member of a club
which had such a beneficial object, and was to be so delightfully
secretive. There was, in fact, a good deal of knight errantry in the
purpose of the G. F.'s, who felt not a little like Amazonian cavaliers
looking for adventure on the highway.
"Really, you know," observed Jessie, "we should be called 'The Friends
of the Wallflowers,' like some men at home, who made up their minds one
New Year's night at a ball to give a poor cross-eyed, ugly girl who
never had partners the time of her life, just once."
"Did they do it?" asked Nance, who imagined that she was a wallflower,
and was always conscious when the name was mentioned.
"They certainly did," answered Jessie, "and when I saw the girl
afterward in the dressing room, she said to me, 'Oh, Jessie, wasn't it
heaven?' She cried a little. I was ashamed."
"By the way, Jessie, I never got my compliment," said Molly. "Pay it to
me this instant, or I shall be thinking I haven't had a 'square deal.'"
"Well, here it is," answered Jessie. "It has been passed along
considerably, but it's all the more valuable for taking such a
roundabout route to get to you. I'll warn you beforehand that you will
probably have an electric shock when you hear it. You know I have some
cousins who live up in New York. One of them writes to me----"
"Girl or man?" demanded Judy.
"Man," answered Jessie, blushing.
There was a laugh at this, because Jessie's beaux were numerous.
"His best friend," she continued, "has a sister, and that sister--do you
follow--is an intimate friend----"
"'An intimate friend of an intimate friend,'" one of the girls
interrupted.
"Yes," said Jessie, "it's obscure, but perfectly logical. My cousin's
intimate friend's sister has an intimate friend--Miss Green----"
"Oh, ho!" cried Judy. "Now we are getting down to rock bottom."
"And Miss Green told her intimate friend who told my cousin's intimate
friend's sister--it's a little involved, but I think I have it
straight--who told her brother who told my cousin who wrote it to me."
"But what did he write," they demanded in a chorus.
"That one of Miss Green's brothers was crushed on a charming red-headed
girl from Kentucky."
Molly's face turned crimson.
"But Dodo is crushed on Judy," she laughed.
"It may be," said Jessie. "Rumors are most generally twisted."
The first meeting of the G. F.'s now disbanded and the members scattered
to dress for the early Sunday dinner. They all attended Vespers that
afternoon, and in the quiet hour of the impressive service more than one
pondered seriously upon the conversation of the morning and the purpose
of the new club.