CHAPTER X.SUCCESS FOR POLLY.
THE grand extra concert, the best of the year, given by the Symphony Orchestra, with Mrs. Jasper King as pianist, was over, and only a delightful memory. Every member of the orchestra declared no such performer on the piano had it ever been their good fortune to accompany, and musical critics went a little wild in their efforts to find adequate expressions to describe her treatment of the theme she had chosen.
It was a great society event; all the fashionable world of Berton being in evidence, with good sprinklings from New York and other towns to overcrowd the house. But Polly, although her heart responded, most especially for Jasper’s sake, to these tokens of cordial interest and admiration, felt her whole soul drawn to the old friends who, here and there, were in conspicuous seats among the audience. They were all there, as far as waspossible. Miss Salisbury, who had left her school and the duties that never before allowed her to wander, recklessly dropped all this time into the sub-principal’s hands, and went off to hear her dear old pupil, Polly Pepper.
Cathie Harrison, living in the South with her grandmother, made that old lady pick up her belongings, and take a two weeks’ jaunt, that included Berton on its return. Amy Loughead in New York, under the care of her aunt, Mrs. Montgomery, of course was there; the two happening to take the same train on with the Rev. Joel Pepper, who had collected his friend Robert Bingley for that very purpose.
The Cabots and Van Meters, besides Ben Pepper, who represented that house now, the Alstynes, Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton Dyce, and a score or more of other old friends, all turned up at the last minute, and electrified Polly with swift glances of recognition across the crowded hall, that cheered her on over the difficult passages better than any applause could possibly have done. Charlotte Chatterton seemed to be the only one left out. She was in Europe, turning out something wonderful, if accounts were true, with her voice—“unlockedby Phronsie’s golden key,” Charlotte always said, in telling how Phronsie’s generous gift of a portion of old Lady Chatterton’s money had made it possible for her to cultivate her one talent. Charlotte’s love for Phronsie was so passionate it seemed to outrun her love for music, making it a dreary exile for her to stay and study abroad. Only the hope of seeing Dr. Fisher and Mother Fisher kept her from running off with a homesick heart to the dear old friends.
Mr. and Mrs. Mason Whitney of course were there, and Van, mightily proud of being in his father’s business, and engaged to one of the sweetest girls born and brought up in his set, “the little blue-and-white creature,” whom Joel so desperately entertained at the Welcome-Home-party years ago. Van had regularly offered himself to Phronsie at any and every opportunity that had presented itself in the past three years, to be as regularly but more gently refused. And now he had wisely concluded to pass that pleasing attention down to Dick, or rather Dick had taken it upon himself, with small care whether or no Mr. Van passed it along. And Van had looked around for the best way to settle in life, toget ready for that partnership with his father which he fondly hoped was just ahead of him; so he proposed and was accepted promptly by Gladys Ray, who had, it seems, been waiting for him all the time; and everybody was delighted; and Van was so important with it all, his mother having brought along little Miss Ray in the party, that Percy, a newly fledged lawyer with his shingle just out, who was in the party also, found it hard to bear with equanimity his unimportance, and the trouble of his monocle, just assumed.
Dick brought along a whole lot of his jolly brother collegians, among them the three who figured in Phronsie’s car episode, and who trusted not to be recognized; but Dick, not knowing anything of it, hauled along this identical trio, after the concert, and presented them, “Mr. Fox, Mr. Beresford, and Mr. Sargent,” when they immediately had the appearance of desiring to melt away again.
Dick was here, there, and everywhere on this occasion, bubbling over with jubilation. Was he not to go into the house of Marlowe & King “the very day after graduation—yes, sir!” to begin his dream of being a publisher.
But the best of all, in Polly’s eyes, was the presence of Jasper’s and her dear friend David Marlowe, who sat in one of the front rows. Mr. Marlowe never took his eyes from Polly; but sat quietly through it all, when it became impossible for the other friends to control their intense interest. But how his keen gray eyes glistened! And when it was all over, he put his good right hand on Jasper’s, “My boy!” said he in that strong, clear voice of his; and Jasper knew all his friend’s heart better than if many words had been uttered.
The only disappointment in certain quarters was that Polly had issued her command that no flowers should be given, thus throwing Dick, as well as some other friends, into incipient rebellion.
“No, indeed,” said Polly, who dearly loved to be elegant in just the right way, when some inkling of Dick’s extravagant plans had come to her, “not so much as a solitary sprig—now remember, Dicky,” one glance of her brown eyes, and Dicky and everybody else knew that offence in this respect meant a terrible thing.
But afterward, when they got Polly away from “the mob,” as the collegians called it, of thoseswarming up to congratulate, then Jasper took matters into his own hands, and disclosed the surprise he had planned for Polly; and with Mr. Marlowe’s aid, he piloted all the old friends, and a goodly number of new ones, to the special cars waiting for them, and away they all went for dinner, and to top off the evening at “The Oaks.”
Phronsie had sent a very special invitation to Mr. and Mrs. Carroll Atherton, to Mrs. Drysdale and to Bella, and also to “Cousin Charley Swan;” so they all came. And Miss Willoughby was there, and she found an old schoolfellow in Miss Salisbury before the evening was half out; and everything went merrily as possible in every section of the big company.
And Alexia, whose little “Pumpkin” was bursting with guests, up for the occasion,—she having stipulated that Cathie Harrison and Cathie Harrison’s grandmother should be part of her especial share,—was there in full force, helping, with Mrs. Fargo and Pickering, to receive and do the honors, having “told the baby all about it before,” and consigned him to Bonny’s tender mercies.
And when the dinner had proceeded to the toasts, Jasper looked across the table into hiswife’s eyes, “Yes, Polly,” he said to her questioning look, “I cabled Mamsie the very minute you finished playing.”
“Indeed he did!” cried Mr. Marlowe, smiling into her rosy face.
“O Jasper, how lovely of you!” cried Polly with dewy eyes. “And is that what you signalled the usher for?”
“Yes, dear,” he said, smiling at her; “I had it all written before. You didn’t think I could leave the dear Mamsie a minute longer than was necessary without the news?”
“No, Jasper,” she said; “but oh, how lovely in you to do it!”
Phronsie, opposite Grandpapa, who was stately and resplendent at the head of one of the other tables, looked over happily, “O Jasper!” she exclaimed, clasping her hands, “does Mamsie really know it now?”
“Yes, Phronsie,” said Jasper, beaming at her; “she really does.”
Phronsie sat quite still, her hands remaining clasped. It was as if the dear Mamsie’s face was really there before her, with the light and cheer that always made everything bright; and a tenderlook came into Phronsie’s eyes and around the curves of her mouth. And then her face drooped; and the dreadful longing that she had had every minute since Mother Fisher had sailed, just to see her again, settled down upon her. “Mamsie!” she breathed slowly, but in a way to make everybody turn and look at her.
Just then the heavy brass knocker on the front door clanged sharply. One of the maids brought in a yellow envelope, which she handed to Jasper. He tore it open quickly. “O Polly!” and across the table it sped to her. “Give it to Phronsie; let her read it first, dear. It’s from Mamsie!”
When they all came out of the babel of confused delight, Phronsie still sitting with clasped hands but radiant face, Jasper stood up and read:—
“To my dear Polly, I send my proud and loving word. I knew she would do it. And give my love to Phronsie.Mamsie.”
“To my dear Polly, I send my proud and loving word. I knew she would do it. And give my love to Phronsie.
Mamsie.”
“We’ll drink her health,” cried Jasper. “Simmons, pass the loving-cup.”
So the butler took down the massive silverloving-cup, that had been for generation after generation in the King family, from the oaken sideboard, and filled it with pure cold water to the brim, “The only thing worthy of it,” said Polly; and all the company stood up, and Jasper lifted it high, with “Our Mamsie, now as always our guide, our comfort, and our delight; we pledge ourselves anew to her in loyal love.” And then the cup went around silently to every one.
The loving-cup was filled with pure cold water to the brimThe loving-cup was filled with pure cold water to the brim, “The only thing worthy of it,” said Polly.
The loving-cup was filled with pure cold water to the brim, “The only thing worthy of it,” said Polly.
The loving-cup was filled with pure cold water to the brim, “The only thing worthy of it,” said Polly.
And Ben proposed Father Fisher, and everybodydrank his health and happiness; and then Polly turned a happy face over toward old Mr. King. “Our dear Grandpapa waseverything,” she said; “I don’t know what we should ever have done without him.”
And around went the loving-cup again. And this neat little speech so touched the old gentleman that he got out of his chair, and responded right gallantly to his daughter, and to the rest of the “Five Little Peppers.” And Jasper’s eyes shone with proud delight, and everybody applauded to the echo. And then Davie, the new instructor in literature at a Western university, and already booked in the minds of all present for the professor’s chair, was called out for a speech; and a right good one it was too, the Rev. Joel pounding vigorously his approval above all the others on the festal board.
And Hamilton Dyce tried his hand at talking a bit, and brought down the house with many funny reminiscences; and Mr. Marlowe said, as he always did, exactly the right word in the right place; and Joel was called for loudly, but he had slipped away just then, so several of the others talked; and then Jasper brought downhis improvised gavel, the handle of Grandpapa’s cane, “Speeches declared over! We will now adjourn to the little brown house;” and Polly led off proudly with Grandpapa, as was quite right, Phronsie and Mr. Marlowe following, the rest of the company falling in as they chose, with Jasper at the rear corralling all the stragglers into line.
“Let’s march all around it, father dear,” whispered Polly, gleefully as a child. So they led off in the moonlight the long procession around and around the little brown house, till some one proposed unwinding and going the other way. But they didn’t do it, but just broke ranks, and rushed unceremoniously into the old kitchen.
And there were Polly’s two hundred candles she longed for in the old days, all alight most merrily, which explained the Rev. Joel’s absence from the last part of the speech-making; and after that there was no more quiet. The old kitchen resounded to the babel of happy voices, until at last everybody drew up in a circle of chairs, getting the Peppers in the centre, whom they besieged for stories of those old times.
“I’m a Pepper!” cried Jasper, scramblinginto the charmed circle. “I was in those happy days.”
“Yes, Jappy belongs to us,” said Phronsie.
“Jap always felt so smart,” declared Van enviously, “because he knew the Peppers first.” Percy looked as if he wanted to say as much, but concluded to keep still, and only readjusted his monocle to his satisfaction.
“We shouldn’t any of us have had or done anything if it hadn’t been for Jappy; hey, old fellow,” declared Ben, clapping him on the shoulder.
“And dear Grandpapa,” cried Phronsie, with a world of affection in her eyes, looking over at him.
“Well, Phronsie did it with her gingerbread boy,” said Jasper quickly. “It was Phronsie, after all, who brought us all together.”
And then everybody clamored for the story of the gingerbread boy again; so off they rushed on that, old Mr. King edging his chair a little nearer to the Pepper circle. And then Polly’s old stove had to come in for a share of attention, and how she had to stuff all the cracks with paper, and Ben stuffed it with putty, and— “Davie gave boot-tops,” broke in Joel, grimly even nowat the remembrance of how he felt because he hadn’t any to give.
And then that brought up Mamsie’s birthday cake, and the momentous work of getting ready for its baking; and how Phronsie’s toe was pounded; and how good Grandma Bascom was, and how she wasn’t able now to get out of her bed because of the rheumatism, but that those guests who stayed over were to go down the lane to see her to-morrow.
And how the cake, compounded after “Mirandy’s weddin’ receet” was at last made, and hidden in the old cupboard.
“Joe was such a precious nuisance in those days,” said Jasper, “always poking and peering around; I suppose they were afraid he’d find it out.”
“We truly had a dreadful time,” said Polly, shaking her head, “to keep him away from that cupboard.”
“That old cupboard!” declared Joel, bounding out of the circle to swing wide the upper door. “Oh, what a lot of conniving, and how many dark conspiracies it might tell!”
And how the dreadful measles fell upon thewhole Pepper flock, and the dear mother was almost in despair, and how good dear Doctor Fisher was, and how he saved Polly’s eyes, and then got her her stove. And then how the wonderful Christmas had come from Jappy and Grandpapa, and Polly had her bird and her flowers, and Ben had made a Santa Claus wig out of the hair in Mamsie’s old cushion, sprinkling it snowy white with flour. And how Mamsie had hidden all the splendid presents over at Parson Henderson’s.
“Such a time as we had,” breathed both the parson and his wife, who had run up from the Orphan Home at Dunraven for the occasion.
Well—and how Phronsie had her doll, such a gorgeous affair she was afraid for days to show her to Seraphina, for fear of hurting the feelings of the latter. And then Phronsie had to get out of her chair, and make her way out of the circle surrounding the Pepper group, and go into the bedroom, where, kneeling down before the old bureau, she drew with a loving hand from the lowest drawer the two dolls.
“Bring the little red-topped shoes, too, Phronsie,” called Polly; “do, dear.”
With her arms full, Phronsie entered the kitchenWith her arms full, Phronsie entered the kitchen.
With her arms full, Phronsie entered the kitchen.
With her arms full, Phronsie entered the kitchen.
So Phronsie reached back into the farthest corner, and carefully drew out a tissue paper bundle that held the precious shoes, just as she had worn them last; and with her arms full, she was just entering the kitchen, all eyes upon her,when Polly said in answer to some question, “Yes, Mamsie wrote they would be in Rome next month.”
Grace Tupper sprang suddenly from her chair. “O Mrs. King! will they, will they? Then perhaps they will see my cousin Roslyn May.”