Carey’s blacks! Clara, you ought to be out there with those young folks. You really ought. Why didn’t they come and ask you? It’s just the night for a sleighing party.”
Clara kept turning the leaves of the songbook as if she had not heard a word. Her apple lay forgotten on top of the melodeon. The sound of the sleigh bells still shivered and sang in the frosty air outside the window, and Nero still barked and ran from door to window begging to be let out.
“Let’s let him go,” said Tom. “They’ve no business coming across our place at night. Let Nero run them off.”
“Steady, Tom,” Father said. “They’re friends and neighbors. Let them use the road.”
“If they are friends and neighbors,” said Mother tartly, “why don’t they ask
my
daughter on their parties, too? Clara’s old enough to go. They’ll use our road, but they won’t invite our daughter.”
“Oh, Mother,” cried Clara, “I wouldn’t go—I wouldn’t go if it was the last sleigh left on earth!”
“I know why they don’t ask her,” said Caddie. “Charles Carey is always mooning around waiting to talk to Clara, and she won’t look at him at all. She’ll hardly speak to him. I don’t blame him for getting up a party and leaving her out.”
“I think she really likes Charles too,” piped Hetty. “I don’t know why she acts so ornery to him.”
“If I liked a boy,” said Caddie, “the way Clara does Charles, and he had a nice bobsleigh and a couple of spankingblacks, I wouldn’t act the way Clara does. I’d say, ‘Hello, Charles. When are you going to take me riding in your sleigh?’ I’d say.”
“Oh, you would, would you?” said Tom between large bites of apple. “And what if he’d say he didn’t want you, Miss Forward Face?”
“Well, then,” said Caddie, “I’d know how he felt about me anyway, and I could go ahead and put tacks in his chair or sand in his hair or whatever I wanted to do to get even with him. The trouble with Clara is she’s too shy.”
Suddenly and most unaccountably Clara burst into tears.
“Oh, oh, oh!” she sobbed. “What have I ever done to deserve such a family? Why can’t you leave me alone?”
And she ran out of the room and slammed the door behind her so hard that her apple was jarred off the melodeon and rolled unheeded across the floor.
“My goodness! Whatever is the matter with Clara?” said Caddie in surprise. “We were just talking things over in the simplest kind of way. Now the whole evening’s spoiled.”
It was, indeed. The sound of sleigh bells had suddenly spoiled everything.
Mother started to go up to Clara, but Father laid his hand gently on her arm.
“Leave the girl alone a little while, Harriet,” he said. “We’ve been too much for her this evening. We’ve all been too free with our tongues.”
“We didn’t say anything but what was true,” said Tom. “She behaves the queerest way to Charley Carey. It’s her own fault if she doesn’t get asked. I expect he drove acrossour place on purpose to let her hear he could have some fun without her—that’s what I think.”
“We should have set Nero on them,” said Caddie.
“It’s too bad,” piped Hetty, “if Clara and Charles have got to quarrel, because the apple peelings say that Clara’s going to marry Charles. If they’re going to fight like cats and dogs it’s just too bad.”
“What do you mean about the apple peelings?” asked Father gravely.
“It’s that silly nonsense the girls play, about throwing apple peelings over the shoulder and seeing what initials drop,” said Warren. “It’s more fun to tease Clara because it makes her blush. You couldn’t make Caddie blush if you soaked her head in red paint, so it’s no fun teasing her.”
Father looked at them seriously, his brow puckered.
“You mean to say that you’ve been plaguing Clara about Charley Carey just to see her blush?”
“Well, it was only for fun,” Caddie said.
“I’m surprised
Clara kept turning the leaves of the songbook as if she had not heard a word. Her apple lay forgotten on top of the melodeon. The sound of the sleigh bells still shivered and sang in the frosty air outside the window, and Nero still barked and ran from door to window begging to be let out.
“Let’s let him go,” said Tom. “They’ve no business coming across our place at night. Let Nero run them off.”
“Steady, Tom,” Father said. “They’re friends and neighbors. Let them use the road.”
“If they are friends and neighbors,” said Mother tartly, “why don’t they ask
my
daughter on their parties, too? Clara’s old enough to go. They’ll use our road, but they won’t invite our daughter.”
“Oh, Mother,” cried Clara, “I wouldn’t go—I wouldn’t go if it was the last sleigh left on earth!”
“I know why they don’t ask her,” said Caddie. “Charles Carey is always mooning around waiting to talk to Clara, and she won’t look at him at all. She’ll hardly speak to him. I don’t blame him for getting up a party and leaving her out.”
“I think she really likes Charles too,” piped Hetty. “I don’t know why she acts so ornery to him.”
“If I liked a boy,” said Caddie, “the way Clara does Charles, and he had a nice bobsleigh and a couple of spankingblacks, I wouldn’t act the way Clara does. I’d say, ‘Hello, Charles. When are you going to take me riding in your sleigh?’ I’d say.”
“Oh, you would, would you?” said Tom between large bites of apple. “And what if he’d say he didn’t want you, Miss Forward Face?”
“Well, then,” said Caddie, “I’d know how he felt about me anyway, and I could go ahead and put tacks in his chair or sand in his hair or whatever I wanted to do to get even with him. The trouble with Clara is she’s too shy.”
Suddenly and most unaccountably Clara burst into tears.
“Oh, oh, oh!” she sobbed. “What have I ever done to deserve such a family? Why can’t you leave me alone?”
And she ran out of the room and slammed the door behind her so hard that her apple was jarred off the melodeon and rolled unheeded across the floor.
“My goodness! Whatever is the matter with Clara?” said Caddie in surprise. “We were just talking things over in the simplest kind of way. Now the whole evening’s spoiled.”
It was, indeed. The sound of sleigh bells had suddenly spoiled everything.
Mother started to go up to Clara, but Father laid his hand gently on her arm.
“Leave the girl alone a little while, Harriet,” he said. “We’ve been too much for her this evening. We’ve all been too free with our tongues.”
“We didn’t say anything but what was true,” said Tom. “She behaves the queerest way to Charley Carey. It’s her own fault if she doesn’t get asked. I expect he drove acrossour place on purpose to let her hear he could have some fun without her—that’s what I think.”
“We should have set Nero on them,” said Caddie.
“It’s too bad,” piped Hetty, “if Clara and Charles have got to quarrel, because the apple peelings say that Clara’s going to marry Charles. If they’re going to fight like cats and dogs it’s just too bad.”
“What do you mean about the apple peelings?” asked Father gravely.
“It’s that silly nonsense the girls play, about throwing apple peelings over the shoulder and seeing what initials drop,” said Warren. “It’s more fun to tease Clara because it makes her blush. You couldn’t make Caddie blush if you soaked her head in red paint, so it’s no fun teasing her.”
Father looked at them seriously, his brow puckered.
“You mean to say that you’ve been plaguing Clara about Charley Carey just to see her blush?”
“Well, it was only for fun,” Caddie said.
“I’m surprised
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