CHAPTER XVROMANCE AND MISS COMFORT
They did, even Ned allowing that, if certain obstacles already indicated by him could be surmounted, and if Miss Comfort could be persuaded to adopt a nautical life, the scheme had merit.
“All right,” said Laurie, “Then the next thing is to sound out Miss Comfort. You can do that better than any of the rest of us, Ned.”
“Me? Where do you get that stuff?” demanded Ned. “It’s your scheme.”
“But I haven’t your—your powers of description and—er—persuasion, old-timer.”
“Nothing doing,” replied Ned implacably. “I’ll go with you and help out, but it’s your idea, and you’ve got to spring it.”
“Yes, Laurie,” agreed Polly, “I think you can explain it more clearly than Ned can, because you’ve thought it all out so wonderfully. But we’ll all go with you, of course.”
“All right,” assented Laurie. “Let’s go and get it over with. I dare say she won’t listen to it, though.”
“You can’t tell,” said Polly. “Miss Comfort is awfully—well, courageous, Laurie, and she thinks you’re so wonderful that—”
“Huh,” muttered Ned. “Wonder where she got that notion.”
“Compared to the poor-farm,” declared Mae, “I think thePequot Queenis a perfect paradise!”
“Well, you just mention that to Miss Comfort, will you?” requested Laurie gloomily as they started back.
“Guess there’s another thing we haven’t considered,” said Bob thoughtfully.
“What are you doing?” asked Laurie disgustedly. “Stealing Ned’s stuff?”
“No, but look here; Miss Comfort will be an awful long way from folks who buy her cake and stuff, won’t she? Think they’ll hike way down here?”
A short silence ensued. Then said Polly, “That is so, Laurie, but maybe—”
“Sure, it’s so,” was the answer, “but will youallow me to remind the gentleman that this place down here is just about a mile and a half nearer than the poor-farm?”
“Never thought of that,” laughed Bob.
“Anyway,” said Polly cheerfully, “I don’t believe it will matter much. If folks want Miss Comfort’s cakes they’ll come for them, or send for them. As for what we buy, why, I wouldn’t mind coming for it a mite. It—it’s just a nice walk!”
They found Mrs. Deane and Miss Comfort having tea in the sitting-room when they reached the little blue house, and their errand must needs be postponed until more cups and saucers and more sweet crackers had been distributed. At last, however, with four pair of eyes fixed on him with embarrassing attentiveness, Laurie set down his cup, drew a long breath, and broke the moment’s silence with an explosive “Miss Comfort!”
That poor lady was so startled that she nearly upset her tea. Laurie plunged on hurriedly.
“I suppose you haven’t heard any more from your brother-in-law, have you?”
“Why—why, no! No, I haven’t, Mr. Laurie.”
“Thought so,” resumed Laurie. “Well, now,here’s—here’s something that it seemed to me—to all of us that maybe would be something that you might sort of take into consideration if nothing better turned up, because, after all, that poor-farm isn’t any place for a lady like you, and being on the water isn’t anything at all if you’re hitched up tight to the land and know you can’t sink, which you couldn’tpossibly, Miss Comfort, because there wouldn’t be enough water under you.”
Laurie paused for breath and realized with confusion that he had made an extremely poor start. Miss Comfort looked bewilderedly from him to Mrs. Deane, to Polly, to Ned, and back to Laurie. “Sakes alive!” she gasped. “What in the world is he talking about?”
Mae’s giggle came as a welcome diversion.
“Laurie,” said Polly, “you’ll have to start right at the beginning, you know.” She turned to Miss Comfort. “He has a perfectly wonderful idea, Miss Comfort, and we’re all just crazy about it. Now, Laurie.”
The interlude had allowed the exponent of the wonderful idea not only to recover his breath but to rearrange his thoughts, and now he beganover and explained very creditably just what the idea was. Occasionally one of the others threw in a helpful word, Miss Comfort, who had taken up her crocheting after setting her tea-cup aside, soon laid it down. Her face brightened as Laurie’s idea became clearer to her and her eyes sparkled more than ever. She leaned forward in rapt attention, and did not interrupt once. Even when Laurie had said all he could think of and Polly had added an enthusiastic postscript, Miss Comfort said no word for several silent moments. Then she gave a deep sigh and clasped her thin hands tightly above her crocheting.
“And I wouldn’t have to go to that place!” she breathed wonderingly.
“Laurie, what did I tell you?” cried Polly joyously.
“I’m sure,” said Mrs. Deane, “it would be very nice, Pansy—” three startled gasps followed—“but would you feel quite—quiteat easeon aboat?”
“I should,” replied Miss Comfort with surprising emphasis. “I’ve always been fond of the sea, all my life. Maybe it’s because my grandfather on my mother’s side was a sea-captain.That Spode tea-cup that you admired so much was a part of a set that he brought back from one of his voyages. Yes, ever since I was a child I’ve longed for the sea and for ships. Once I almost took a trip from New York to Fall River on a steamer, but just at the last moment mother decided to go by train instead. I was tragically disappointed. And now to think that after all these years I’m to—to go to sea!”
“But, you know,” said Ned, breaking the little silence that followed, “it wouldn’t be exactly going to sea, Miss Comfort, for, of course, the boat would be tied to the—the land, and—”
“It would be for me,” replied Miss Comfort softly. “I’d be living on a boat with the water all around me. And I could watch the steamers and the ships come and go. And there’d be the smell of the salt water all the time, too. Oh, my dears, I’d love it! It—it sounds far, far too good to be true, Mr. Laurie. Are you sure that—that everything can be arranged?”
Miss Comfort felt for a square of linen with a narrow black border and gently dabbed her eyes. Laurie felt it his duty to acknowledge that he wasn’t sure at all, but he did nothing of thesort. He scowled surreptitiously at Ned and answered firmly: “Absolutely, Miss Comfort. There isn’t a doubt!”
And then, to Laurie’s surprise, Ned said just as convincedly, “It’s as good as fixed right now, ma’am.”
Miss Comfort sighed happily and beamed about the circle. “Well, I just can’t believe it,” she said, laughing tremulously at her own emotion. “Why, I can’t think of anything that would make me happier than to live on a real boat right on the water! Just think of going to sleep with the lapping of the waves all about, and of waking up in the morning and seeing the blue, blue ocean—no, I should say river—stretching away and away! Oh, my dears, there’s romance about the sea that I’ve always longed to know. Maybe, at my time of life, I shouldn’t be talking about romance, but—”
“Fiddlesticks!” exclaimed Mrs. Deane vehemently. “Fiddlesticks, my dear! At your time of life, indeed!” It seemed to the others that the Widow might have borrowed Miss Comfort’s handkerchief and put it to good use. Laurie cleared his throat.
“That’s right,” he said gruffly. “I guess folks can enjoy things like that just as much at eight—sev—sixty as they can any time!” Aware of Polly’s horrified look, he subsided. Miss Comfort, though, was far too absorbed in the joyous prospect to heed.
“I must go and see it,” she went on animatedly. “Is it very far, Mr. Laurie? I suppose,” she concluded, with a sigh, “it’s too late to go to-day.”
“Yes’m,” assented Laurie. “I guess you’d better wait until to-morrow. It’s quite a walk for—er—for any one.”
“We’ll all go down to-morrow morning,” announced Polly, “every one of us. Yes, you will, too, mama. I’ll get Miss Billings to tend the store for an hour. If we start at eight I can get back in time for school.”
“Eight!” exclaimed Laurie.
“Of course. We’re all through breakfast at half-past seven, and—”
“But, Polly, maybe that would be too early for the boys, dear,” interposed her mother. “Perhaps they don’t have breakfast—”
“It’s all right, Mrs. Deane,” said Ned. “We’ll meet you over at the school corner ateight. Laurie was just thinking that perhaps we ought to start earlier, weren’t you, old son?”
“Er—oh, yes! Sure! Still, eight will do, I guess.”
“Then that’s arranged,” said Polly. “Now let’s talk about the boat some more.”
The next morning they all set out according to schedule to show Miss Comfort thePequot Queen. Laurie had doubts as to the wisdom of this, for he thought it would have been better if they could have fixed up the boat a little before exhibiting it. But, as Polly said, Miss Comfort would never have waited. Laurie need not have entertained any uneasiness. Even the river threw Miss Comfort into a tremor of delight, and after that she walked so fast that Mrs. Deane had hard work to keep up with her. When, while still at a distance, Laurie pointed out thePequot Queenwith a few stammered words of apology, Miss Comfort stopped still, clasped her hands, this morning adorned with black silk mitts, and gazed long and silently. The boys viewed her doubtfully and anxiously, but doubt and anxiety speedily fled, for the little lady’s face expressed something very close to rapture. The boyslooked away. Ned whistled a few tuneless notes softly. Then they went on, Miss Comfort walking faster than ever and saying no word.
“Well,” said Laurie later, “you’ve got to hand it to her for imagination. Why, when I said to her, ‘Here’s where the stove goes,’ or ‘You could put your bureau here, Miss Comfort,’ blessed if I don’t think she actually saw them there! Once, after she’d decided to put the kitchen table over on the further side of the cabin, she was over there a few minutes later and sort of feeling around just like she was trying to find the rolling-pin or something!”
“And wasn’t she pleased?” asked Bob. “Gosh, you’d have thought we’d presented her with a million-dollar castle! The old girl is certainly happy!”
“Cut out the ‘old girl’ stuff,” growled Ned. “She’s a lady.”
“Sure, I didn’t mean anything, Ned. And as for being old, gee, I’ve seen a heap of younger folks that couldn’t have shown half her pep!”
A visit to the town hall obtained for them the information that the tract of land between road and river behind the old bulkhead was town property,and their informant assured them that no one would object to the contemplated gangway.
Laurie got back to No. 16 alone to discover Kewpie, sweatered and unkempt of hair, lolling in the Morris chair and fondling glove and ball. “Say, where the dickens have you been?” Kewpie demanded aggrievedly. “I’ve been waiting hours!”
“Hello!” said Laurie blankly. “Where—where did you drop from?”
“Came on the ten twenty, of course. Wanted to get some work in before dinner. Thought you’d be all ready for me, too!”
Laurie returned the other’s reproachful gaze with one even more reproachful, “Oh, gosh,” he sighed. “I was hoping you’d forget to come back!”