The Girl Scouts at Camp Comalong; Or, Peg of Tamarack Hills

by Lilian Garis

  CHAPTER VI

  OPENING DAY

  "Everything is ready. Miss Mackin has sent our application toheadquarters so that we may go on record, and now all we have to dois----"

  Louise interrupted Corene. "I've got to move all the dishes for myprecious dining-room, and who can spare a car to lug them out?"

  "We'll pick you up and your tin pans on our way out this afternoon,"replied Grace, quite breathless from the excitement. "And I've got topress out my uniform for the celebration."

  "Come along, I guess we have everything for this trip," said Corene,gathering up a few more "odds and ends." What wouldn't that campcontain?

  "Come along!" repeated Cleo. "I'm so glad we named it that, for I canjust fancy we will make that our slogan. 'Come-a-long,'" she mimickedagain, "and don't spill the eats, whatever you do."

  Out at the fork in the roadway they were met by the rest of theBobbies, and the camp on this, the opening day, was to receive a fullpatrol of eight members. Miss Mackin had been made official director,Corene was leader, and the other members were Louise, Grace, Julia,Cleo, Margaret, and Madaline, the last two being visitors, but alsoregular Scouts in the home troop.

  Miss Mackin had already taken up her place in the camp and was nowfully responsible, according to the best standards of the generalorganization; but in spite of that she allowed the girls to make thecamp as they thought best, realizing that their plans were affordingthem a splendid chance to express individuality, and it was theirproud boast that Camp Comalong was entirely theirs, from flagpole tothe spring ditch, and from tent roof to the pine-needle pillows whichJulia insisted should be used.

  And they were really moving in!

  A little gasp of anticipation sort of choked Cleo as she realized shewas going to sleep with that oft-mentioned thin "rag of canvas twixther and the stars." She wondered what they would do when it rained,and was glad the good, strong board floor was raised high enough tocrawl under should a storm get too furious.

  Benny called this the cyclone-cellar, and it was stored with enoughfurniture which could not be utilized "just now" to give it a rathercyclonic appearance.

  The blankets on the eight nicely arranged cots had not been foldedjust as Corene had directed, so this detail was the first thingattended to now.

  "You see," she explained, "an awful lot depends upon the beds. Theyare our chief decoration, you might say," as she proceeded to makeeach bed very pretty indeed, with a diamond-shaped blanket in gaycolors throwing its brilliancy clear up to the brown canvas ceiling.

  Bits of waste paper seemed to come from nowhere and settle everywhere,and these kept the Scouts busy, for this was to be a model camp andfit for inspection "always."

  "Now we'll all go home and take a bathtub bath," suggested MissMackin, "and be back promptly at two-thirty for the flag-raising."

  If anyone doubts girls' ability to make life ideal in the open, such aone has surely a limited experience with life's loveliest creatures,for girls are naturally "little animals," and who-ever tried to teacha bunny how to dig its burrow?

  At two o'clock Benny rounded up the Boy Scouts, and when these cametogether they formed quite a company, in which were five fifes, threewere tin horns, several drums, a few being homemade and of recentproduction, besides mouth-organs and other varieties of noise-makinginstruments. Benny himself, being brother to Grace, was chosencolor-bearer, and he started his company off for Tamarack Hills withmany compliments following in the wake of the trusty, valiant BoyScouts.

  Friends and relations of the girls had gathered also, and it was adistinguished line of autos that parked down at the foot of the hillwhen the girls themselves, hiking now and disdaining car-rides,marched along to take formal possession of Camp Comalong.

  The inspection came first and everyone took part in it Mothers wereenthusiastic and even craved "camps like this" for the whole family.Those fathers who could do so also attended the opening, and manliketalked proudly of their girls being the real thing in the Scout line.

  The boys "drummed and fifed" madly, and of course drew a crowd.

  "After this one afternoon," said Corene to Cleo's mother, "we aregoing to be strictly Girl Scouts, and we will only have visitors onregular days."

  Miss Mackin was conducting one of the visiting school-teachers allover the grounds, for the fame of this girl-made camp had spreadbeyond its limits. Then the signal was given, and Grace pulled therope that raised Old Glory over Tamarack Hills!

  That moment was reverently solemn.

  Every Girl and Boy Scout stood at attention, while the otherspectators evinced their respect for the country's glorious emblem.Then the salute was given and the strains of "Star-Spangled Banner"stole out, first timidly, then assuringly, over the hills to the softaccompaniment of the lake's gentle swish against the rocky shore.

  The hours that followed were too well-filled with excitement andinterest to bear commonplace reporting, but the capable director, MissMackin, or "Mackey," as she had already been affectionately dubbed bythe Scouts, managed to get the grounds fairly well cleared of visitorsin time for supper preparations to be begun before sunset, andpresently the girls found themselves alone with their beloved scheme,"Camping in the Woods."

  "We will have a cold supper to-night," said Mackey, "and we have twoquarts of lovely fresh milk--a donation from the Boy Scouts."

  "We might have treated them," said Grace. "They did so much for us,and their music was really splendid!"

  "Indeed it was," agreed the director, "and some afternoon we will givethem all a treat. But to-night we have to try things out, so we willkeep to schedule. I think everything went beautifully, and I want tocongratulate you all. My friends from Camp Norm were very muchimpressed, and envied me my comfortable quarters," she addedconsiderately.

  "They don't know the squad," laughed Corene, "and we had on our bestbehavior to-day. Wait, just wait until things get going."

  "We'll get the water," volunteered Cleo, taking the nice, shiny newpail from its peg in the tree closet. There was a row of these treeclosets, being small wooden boxes nailed low enough to reach easily,and holding all the kitchen pans and pots. No one claimed these, andas Corene announced early in the plans, each should take turns, justlike the K. P., or Kitchen Police, in military parlance.

  Up the hill to the spring now romped Cleo and Grace. It was joyous tobegin, really, to start this first meal in camp. Fleet-footed were thehappy Scouts on the initial errand, and if Grace stumbled and Cleotripped it was small wonder, considering their excited state of mind.

  They were within a few feet, or bushes, of the spring when they saw afigure leaning over it.

  "Look!" whispered Cleo. "It's Peg!"

  "Come on and let's speak to her," suggested Grace sociably.

  "She might not like it," demurred Cleo.

  "Let's try, anyhow," insisted Grace, quickening her pace.

  The girl leaning over the spring must have heard the steps, for shejumped up quickly and snatched her hat from the big stone.

  "Hello!" called out Grace cheerily. "Did you come down to our campexercises?"

  The brown felt hat was pulled down very suddenly and firmly on theblack hair, and for an instant the face under it flashed defiance. Thenext, a frank smile brought the answer.

  "I did not exactly come to them, but I heard from the hill. Itseemed--very nice."

  "Oh, it was. I'm sorry you didn't come," pressed Grace. "Let usintroduce ourselves." She waved her pail nervously. "This is Cleo andI'm Grace of the Bobolinks. You may call us the Bobbies if you will."

  Peg smiled again and scratched her heavy shoes quite like anembarrassed youth might do. She hesitated quite a while beforeanswering:

  "And I'm Peg--you may, if you will" (she pleasantly imitated the voiceGrace had used), "just call me Peg," she finished rather shyly.

  It was such an agreeable surprise to find her approachable.Immediately both Scouts fell to talking of their camp prospects, andvery naturally asked Peg to call.

  "We kn
ow you are the original Scout of these hills," Gracecomplimented, "and I hope you don't mind our trespassing."

  "Oh, no," replied Peg, but the voice was a little guarded. "The hillsare big enough for us all," she added, "and I don't think you couldhave found a prettier spot. You can see clear across the lake fromyour front door," and she smiled at the classification.

  But she did not reply to the invitation. Both girls noticed theomission.

  Cleo dipped her pail in the spring pool and brought it out filled. Shewanted to rinse the new tin, although Corene had boiled it beforebringing it out to camp, but to rinse it would cool it, and now Cleolooked about for a spot to throw the waste water.

  "Toss it over this way," suggested Peg, who was moving away. "There'sa water-cress bed here. Don't forget to try them when you want asalad," and before the Scouts could thank her she was racing over thenext hill and waving good-bye.

  "So we met Peg!" said Cleo, her pail of water spilling over her newsneaks.

  "And she's a dear," announced Grace emphatically.

  Then they carried a newly dipped pail of fresh spring water back tocamp, for their first supper under the tamarack trees.