The Dorrance Domain

by Carolyn Wells

  CHAPTER XIX

  THE VAN ARSDALE LADIES

  The Van Arsdale ladies did decide to come. On the receipt of Mrs.Faulkner's note they concluded that the Dorrance Domain was just theplace for them, and they immediately began to make preparations forleaving the Horton House.

  "Though it's a very queer thing, Amanda," the elder Miss Van Arsdalesaid to her sister, "it's a very queer thing for a young girl to beproprietor of a hotel. I must confess I don't understand it. And I'm notsure I want to be mixed up with any such ridiculous doings."

  "But Mrs. Faulkner says that it's all right; and that we four will bethe only boarders. That seems to me very exclusive. You know theFaulkners are all right,--her mother was a Frelinghuysen. I'm not afraidto risk it, as long as they recommend it."

  "Well, we'll try it for a week, as Mrs. Faulkner advised; and if wedon't like the girl proprietor, we won't have to stay any longer."

  "I don't know what she can be, I'm sure. She can't be of our kind."

  Judging from the effect presented to the eye, the Van Arsdale ladies andDorothy Dorrance were not of the same kind.

  They were both elderly spinsters of the type that looks older than itreally is, yet tries to seem younger. They were tall and spare with highcheek bones, and aquiline, aristocratic noses. These noses seemed toturn up at everything; and though literally they didn't turn up at all,yet the effect of turning up was always there. Their large, light blueeyes were capable of a powerful and penetrating gaze, that was apt to beextremely disconcerting to the object of their stare. Both ladies hadreally beautiful hair of a soft, gray color, which they wore rolled overhigh pompadours. They were wealthy, and though economical and evenpenurious in some respects, each possessed an inordinate love of dress,and was willing to spend large sums for gorgeous fabrics made up in thelatest styles. The incongruity of these middle aged and far frombeautiful spinsters, trailing around soft exquisite robes of daintycoloring, and exquisitely made, afforded much scope for wonderment andcuriosity wherever they went.

  But the sisters cared little or nothing for the comments passed uponthem. They bought their clothes, and wore them, purely for their ownselfish enjoyment; and met with stares of cold contempt, thehalf-sarcastic praises offered by some daring ladies at the hotel.

  The day that the Van Arsdales were expected at the Dorrance Domain,Dorothy and Leicester were prepared to receive them as they had theothers. Lilian and Fairy were allowed to witness the performance thistime, on the strict conditions that they were not to laugh, and none ofthe four were to look at each other.

  And so when the Horton House stage came over for the second time,Grandma Dorrance, the three Dorrance girls, and the two Faulkners wereon the veranda, while Leicester stood nobly at his post in the office.

  Mr. Hickox appeared duly, and made everything all right as usual. Butwhen he assisted the Van Arsdale ladies out of the stage, he remarked tohimself that his wife would certainly be surprised if she could see themdresses.

  The elder Miss Van Arsdale wore a silk of the exquisite shade known aspastel blue; it was made with a jaunty little jacket, opening over anelaborate white lace waist. A long gold chain hung around her neck, fromwhich depended innumerable lockets, charms, pencils, purses andvinaigrettes, in a bewildering array. Her blue hat was decked with whiteostrich plumes, and though Dorothy had been prepared by Mrs. Faulknerfor this display, yet she had not expected quite such a gorgeousspectacle.

  Miss Amanda Van Arsdale followed her sister; she wore a liberty silkgown of an old rose color, and a hat with long black ostrich feathers.She wore no necklace, but from her belt was suspended a large square bagmade entirely of overlapping plates of gold, in which doubtless shecarried the various impedimenta that her sister exhibited.

  Though over-elaborate, these costumes were made in the latest fashion,and they looked like beautiful and costly gowns, which by some absurdmistake had been put on the wrong wearers.

  The two advanced with a haughty and somewhat supercilious air, and Mr.and Mrs. Faulkner rose to greet them. Introductions to the Dorrancesfollowed, and then Miss Van Arsdale raised her _lorgnon_, and treatedDorothy to a prolonged inspection.

  "And you are the proprietor of this hotel?" she said.

  "Yes," said Dorothy, smiling; "I am."

  "Well," said Miss Van Arsdale, "you can't fool me. You look to me quitecapable of being the proprietor of anything."

  And somehow, in spite of her peculiar appearance and her brusque ways,Dorothy felt at once a decided liking for Miss Marcia Van Arsdale.

  Mrs. Faulkner gave a little nod of satisfaction as she saw the goodunderstanding between these two, and Mr. Faulkner said, genially:

  "Yes, we think our proprietor a very capable young woman."

  Then Dorothy ushered the ladies in to the office and paused at the desk.

  Leicester confessed afterwards that he almost fell off his stool when hesaw Dorothy bringing in two Birds of Paradise, with their feathersfreshly painted. But at the time he preserved a straight face, andpolitely offered the register and the pen.

  Miss Marcia, in a bold, dashing hand, signed for them both, and thenDorothy went herself to their rooms with them,--the faithful Hickoxbringing up the rear.

  On reaching the rooms, Dorothy offered to assist the ladies in removingtheir hats and veils, but Miss Marcia only stared at her. "Send me amaid," she said; "a lady's maid."

  Then Dorothy, who was acting under Mrs. Faulkner's direction, saidquietly:

  "Miss Van Arsdale, this is not a fully equipped hotel, and we do nothave ladies' maids. The chambermaid, Tessie, will attend to your rooms,and such outside service as you may require. Also, my sisters and I willbe glad to help you occasionally, as we often help one another. But aregular ladies' maid to assist at your toilet, we cannot provide. May Ihelp you unpin your veil?"

  Miss Marcia Van Arsdale looked at Dorothy again through her glasses.

  "You're the right sort," she said, "and I like your plain speaking. I'mplain-spoken myself. We'll get along all right, and I shall send for myparrot."

  "Oh," exclaimed Dorothy, "have you a parrot?"

  "Yes, a very beautiful and valuable bird. But I never take her anywhere,until I know just what sort of a place it's going to be. I shall sendfor her to-morrow."

  Not knowing the high esteem in which Miss Van Arsdale held her parrot,Dorothy did not fully appreciate the magnitude of this compliment. Soshe merely said, "We shall be very glad to welcome Polly."

  "I do not allow her to be called Polly," said Miss Van Arsdale, with asudden return to her supercilious manner. "My bird's name is Mary,--andI strongly disapprove of nicknames of any sort."

  A parrot named Mary struck Dorothy as very funny, but she was learningto control her sense of humor when necessary, and she replied: "Verywell, Miss Van Arsdale, we shall be glad to welcome Mary."

  "Thank you," said Miss Van Arsdale, formally; "and I will ask you tohave her cage moved about at my direction, during the day, in accordancewith the sun and the weather."

  Dorothy considered a minute, and concluded that this was one of thetimes to humor Miss Van Arsdale.

  So she said, "I will see to it that the cage is placed wherever youdesire."

  The repetition of this conversation to the others caused great hilarity.

  "Mary!" cried Leicester; "a parrot called Mary! but _I_ should not darebe so familiar with the bird as to call her Mary. I shall say Miss Mary,and shall always address her with my best dancing-school bow."

  The parrot arrived duly, and proved to be such a superior bird, and sointeresting and attractive, that the children all fell in love with her.The name of Polly was entirely unsuited to such a dignified creature,and Mary seemed far more appropriate.

  The bird's plumage was of brilliant coloring, and Lilian declared thatthe Van Arsdale ladies copied their own clothes from Miss Mary's. Theparrot was an exceedingly fine talker, and readily picked up newphrases.

  Whenever the Van Arsdale ladies entered the room, Mary would remark,"Hurra
h for Miss Marcia!" or, "Hurrah for Miss Amanda!" as the casemight be. This hurrahing was quite in line with the Dorrances' own modeof expression, and they soon taught Mary to hurrah for each of them byname.

  Although on the whole, the Misses Van Arsdale were satisfactoryboarders, they were far more difficult than the easy-going Faulkners.Miss Marcia had a most irritating way of popping out of her room, andcalling over the banister, "Clerk, clerk!"

  Since the moment of registration, she had looked upon Leicester as theofficial clerk of the hotel, and applied to him a dozen times a day forthings that she wanted or thought she wanted.

  Usually these applications were made by screaming from the head of thestaircase. Sometimes the request was for stationery,--again for hotwater, warm water, cold water, or ice water. Miss Amanda, too, madesimilar demands, and was given to calling for a glass of milk at fiveo'clock in the morning, or a few sandwiches after everybody had retiredfor the night.

  But Dorothy was learning that the way to success is not always aprimrose path, and she cheerfully did her best to accede to such ofthese demands as she considered just and reasonable. And she tried, too,to look at the justice and reasonableness from the standpoint of herguests' rather than her own opinions.

  The children had agreed that whenever Miss Marcia desired Mary's cagemoved, any one of the four was to do it. And it was fortunate that thetask was thus divided, for Miss Marcia was fussy, and twenty times aday, or more, one of the Dorrances might be seen carrying the large cagefrom the hall to the veranda, from the veranda to the parlor, from theparlor to the upper balcony, and so on.

  But as careful attention to Mary's welfare was one of the principalconditions of the Van Arsdales' continued stay at the Dorrance Domain,and too, as the children were one and all devoted to the bird, this workwas not objected to.

  Dorothy was most anxious to keep her four boarders through the rest ofthe summer. For the plan was working successfully, and though providinga well-spread and even bounteous table, Dorothy found she could save alittle money. She was not avaricious nor mercenary, but she longed to beable, at the close of the season, to present Grandma Dorrance with atleast a small sum of money, to help pay their winter expenses.

  And so, when Miss Marcia one day made a proposition to her, Dorothyhailed it with delight.

  The suggestion was that Miss Van Arsdale should ask her niece to come upto the Dorrance Domain to board, and to bring her whole family.

  The family consisted of Mrs. Black, three small children and two nurses;Mr. Black might possibly come up occasionally, but would remain only afew days at a time.

  Children! Dorothy remembered only too well, how children were objectedto in boarding-houses, and she wondered if she dare undertake to havethem in her hotel. She realized, too, that six or seven more peoplewould necessitate some radical changes in her methods, and in herhousehold appointments. Indeed, it meant a change from an experiment tothe real thing. It meant assuming obligations much more formal than shewas under towards her present guests.

  On the other hand, Mrs. Black was wealthy, Miss Van Arsdale said, andquite willing to pay generously for all she received.

  "I want to do it, Miss Marcia," said Dorothy,--"I want to do it verymuch; but it is a big question to decide. So I'll take twenty-four hoursto think it over, and to discuss it with the others, and to-morrow Iwill let you know."