Patty's Summer Days

Bertha got her camera, and giving Elise a small, light chair to carry, they all ran back to Abiram’s kennel.

They found the little bear peacefully sleeping in the sun, and when Bertha shook him awake he showed no resentment, and graciously allowed himself to be put into the clothes they had brought. His forepaws were thrust through the openings left for the purpose, and the stiff white bows sticking up from his black shoulders, made the girls scream with laughter. The ruffled sunbonnet was put on his head, and coquettishly tied on one side, and the string of blue beads was clasped around his fat neck.

Although Abiram seemed willing to submit to the greatness that was being thrust upon him, he experienced some difficulty in sitting up in the chair in the position which Bertha insisted upon.

However, by dint of Patty’s holding his head up from behind, she herself being screened from view by a tree trunk, they induced Abiram to hold the rattle long enough for Bertha to get a picture.

Although a successful snapshot was only achieved after many attempts, yet the girls had great fun, and so silly and ridiculous did the little bear behave that Patty afterward declared she had never laughed so much in all her life.

After luncheon Mrs. Warner took her guests for a drive, declaring that after their automobile tour she felt sure that a carriage drive would be a pleasant change.

After the drive there was afternoon tea in the library, when the men appeared, and everybody chatted gaily over the events of the day.

Then they all dispersed to dress for dinner, and Patty suddenly realised that she was living in a very grown-up atmosphere, greatly in contrast to her schoolgirl life.

Bertha was a year or two older than Patty, and though as merry and full of fun as a child, she seemed to have the ways and effects of a grown-up young lady.

Elise also had lived a life which had accustomed her to formality and ceremony, and though only a year older than Patty in reality, she was far more advanced in worldly wisdom and ceremonious observances.

But Patty was adaptable by nature, and when in Rome she was quite ready to do as the Romans did.

So she put on one of her prettiest frocks for dinner, and allowed Bertha to do her hair in a new way which seemed to add a year or so to her appearance.

There were a few other guests at dinner, and as Patty always enjoyed meeting strangers, she took great interest in all the details of entertainment at Pine Branches.

At the table she found herself seated between Bertha and Winthrop. This pleased her, for she was glad of an opportunity to get better acquainted with the young man, of whom she had seen little during the day.

Although frank and boyish in some ways, Winthrop Warner gave her the impression of being very wise and scholarly.

She said as much to him, whereupon he explained that he was a student, and was making a specialty of certain branches of scientific lore. These included ethnology and anthropology, which names caused Patty to feel a sudden awe of the young man beside her.

But Winthrop only laughed, and said, “Don’t let those long words frighten you. I assure you that they stand for most interesting subjects, and some day if you will come to my study, I will promise to prove that to you. Meantime we will ignore my scientific side, and just consider that we are two gay young people enjoying a summer holiday.”

The young man’s affable manner and kind smile put Patty quite at her ease, and she chatted so merrily that when the dinner hour was over she and Winthrop had become good friends and comrades.

CHAPTER XV

MISS AURORA BENDER

After a visit of a few days, it was decided that Mr. and Mrs. Farrington and Roger should continue the motor-trip on to Boston, and to certain places along the New England coast, while Patty and Elise should stay at Pine Branches for a longer visit.

The girls had expected to continue the trip with the others, but Bertha had coaxed them to stay longer with her, and had held out such attractive inducements that they decided to remain.

Patty, herself, was pleased with the plan, because she still felt the effects of her recent mental strain, and realised that the luxurious ease of Pine Branches would be far more of a rest than the more exciting experiences of a motor trip.

So the girls were installed for a fortnight or more in the beautiful home of the Warners, and with so many means of pleasure at her disposal, Patty looked forward to a delightful period of both rest and recreation.

One morning, Bertha declared her intention of taking the girls to call on Miss Aurora Bender.

“Who is she?” inquired Patty, as the three started off in Bertha’s pony-cart.

“She’s a character,” said Bertha, “but I won’t tell you anything about her; you can see her, and judge for yourself.”

A drive of several miles brought them to a quaint old-fashioned farmhouse.

The house, which had the appearance of being very old, was built of stone and painted a light yellow, with white trimmings. Everything about the place was in perfect repair and exquisite order, and as they drove in around the gravel circle that surrounded a carefully kept bit of green lawn, Bertha stopped the cart at an old-fashioned carriage-block, and the girls got out. Running up the steps, Bertha clanged the old brass knocker at what seemed to Patty to be the kitchen door. It was opened by a tall, gaunt woman, with sharp features and angular figure.

“Well, I declare to goodness, Bertha Warner, if you aren’t here again! Who’s that you’ve got with you this time? City folks, I s’pose. Well come in, all of you, but wipe your feet first. As you’ve been riding, I s’pose they ain’t muddy much, but it’s well to be on the safe side. So wipe ’em good and then troop in.”

Miss Aurora Bender had pushed her heavy gold-bowed glasses up on the top of her head, and her whole-souled smile of welcome belied the gruffness of her tone, and the seeming inhospitality of her words.

The girls took pains to wipe their dainty boots on the gaily-coloured braided rug which lay just outside the door.

Then they entered a spacious low-ceiled room, which seemed to partake of the qualities of both kitchen and dining-room. At one end was an immense fireplace, with an old-fashioned swinging crane, from which depended many skillets and kettles of highly polished brass or copper.

On either side of the room was a large dresser, with glass doors, through which showed quantities of rare old china that made Patty’s eyes shine with delight. A quaint old settle and various old chairs of Windsor pattern stood round the walls. The floor was painted yellow, and here and there were braided mats of various designs.

“Sit down, girls, sit down,” said Miss Bender, cordially, “and now Bertha, tell me these young ladies’ names,—unless, that is to say, you’d rather sit in the parlour?”

“We would rather sit in the parlour, Miss Bender,” said Bertha, quickly, and as if fearing her hostess might not follow up her suggestion, Bertha opened a door leading to the front hall, and started toward the parlour, herself.

“Well,” said Miss Bender, with a note of regret in her voice, “I s’pose if you must, you must; though for my part, I’m free to confess that this room’s a heap more cozy and livable.”

“That may be,” said Bertha, who had beckoned to the girls to follow quickly, “but my friends are from the city, as you suspected, and they don’t often have a chance in New York to see a parlour like yours, Miss Bender.”

As Bertha had intended, this bit of flattery mollified the old lady, and she followed her guests along the dark hall.

“Well, if you’re bound to have it so,” she said, “do wait a minute, and let me get in there and pull up the blinds. It’s darker than Japhet’s coat pocket. I haven’t had this room opened since Mis’ Perkins across the road had her last tea fight. And I only did it then, ’cause I wanted to set some vases of my early primroses in the windows, so’s the guests might see ’em as they came by. Seems to me it’s a little musty in here, but land! a room will get musty if it’s shut up, and what earthly good is a parlour except to keep shut up?”

As Miss Bender talked, she had bustled about, and thrown open the six windows of the large room, into which Bertha had taken the girls.

The sunlight streamed in, and disclosed a scene which seemed to Patty like a wonderful vision of a century ago.

And indeed for more than a hundred years the furniture of the great parlour had stood precisely as they now saw it.

The furniture was entirely of antique mahogany, and included sofas and chairs, various kinds of tables, bookcases, a highboy, a lowboy and other pieces of furniture of which Patty knew neither the name nor the use.

The pictures on the wall, the ornaments, the books and the old-fashioned brass candlesticks were all of the same ancient period, and Patty felt as if she had been transported back into the life of her great-grandmother.

As she had herself a pretty good knowledge of the styles and varieties of antique furniture, she won Miss Bender’s heart at once by her appreciation of her Heppelwhite chairs and her Chippendale card-tables.

“You don’t say,” said Miss Bender, looking at Patty in admiration, “that you really know one style from another! Lots of people pretend they do, but they soon get confused when I try to pin ’em down.”

Patty smiled, as she disclaimed any great knowledge of the subject, but she soon found that she knew enough to satisfy her hostess, who, after all, enjoyed describing her treasures even more than listening to their praises.

Miss Aurora Bender was a lady of sudden and rapid physical motion. While the girls were examining the wonderful old relics, she darted from the room, and returned in a moment, carrying two large baskets. They were of the old-fashioned type of closely-woven reed, with a handle over the top, and a cover to lift up on either side.

Miss Bender plumped herself down in the middle of a long sofa, and began rapidly to extract the contents of the baskets, which proved to be numerous fat rolls of gayly-coloured cotton material.