by Oliver Optic
VIII
PLANNING THE BAZAAR
Brenda at the dinner-table that evening had much to say about theexpedition of the afternoon. Or rather, she had much to tell aboutManuel and his cunning little ways, about his mother and the poverty ofthe family and what she intended to do for them. Her mother smiled, herfather looked interested and said,
"Well, I'm glad that you have found a use for your pocket money. I won'tbegrudge it to you as long as it does not all go into Schuyler's candy."
Julia cried, "Oh, Brenda, how I should love to have gone with you," whenBrenda spoke of the old church and the old streets. "Do tell just whatthe church was like."
But Brenda's ideas were less definite on these points. She wasn'texactly sure what Paul Revere had done--for history was not her strongpoint--and she was a little annoyed at Julia's surprise at her lack ofinterest. Julia did not mean to show any surprise, but it did seemstrange to hear Brenda say rather impatiently in answer to a questionabout the church,
"Oh, well, it was a brown church,--no, I think it was gray, with asteeple, but I didn't notice much. Nora quoted some poetry, but I was ina hurry to go on to see Manuel, and I think that it's very tiresome tohave to dig up history and things like that out of school."
Mr. Barlow frowned at this. "Before you go to the North End again I hopeyou will have your history and your Longfellow fresh in mind. It israther a shame for a Boston girl to be ignorant of historic places inher own city."
"Julia must go with you next time," said Mrs. Barlow, wishing to divertthe conversation from Brenda's shortcomings.
"You'll let me know, won't you," interposed Julia pleasantly, and Brendagave a careless "Yes" as she turned to her father and said,
"Oh, papa, I wish that you would let me buy a carpet and a lot of thingsfor Manuel's mother. You have no idea how poor they seem. Do give me themoney, that's a dear. You never will miss it in the world."
"How much, Brenda, does your modesty lead you to think you need?" askedMr. Barlow.
"Oh, I don't know," answered Brenda, whose ideas of the value of moneywere very vague indeed. "You might let me buy the things and have themcharged."
"Dear me! that would be worse than giving you the money--worse for mypocket. I suppose you'd want to do your shopping in some reallyfashionable Boylston Street establishment?"
"Now, papa, you're laughing at me!"
"Perhaps I am," replied her father. "But really, Brenda, I don't believethat Manuel's mother would thank you for a carpet. Didn't you say theyall lived in one room? A bare floor is easier to keep clean."
"Oh, well, I must buy them something, and my pocket money won't go far.Besides, I've spent all you gave me this month."
"Well, Manuel and his mother and all those brothers and sisters havelived in Boston very comfortably for several years without any help fromyou. If you should give them a carpet they might grow discontented. Thenext thing they would want might be a piano, and from what you say Ihardly think that room would hold a piano as well as the whole familyand the cook-stove."
"Oh, papa, I believe that you are making fun of me."
"No, indeed, I am not, but I wish you to be reasonable."
"If there's anything in the world I hate it's that word reasonable. Italways means that I'm not to have what I want."
"There you are _un_-reasonable," answered Mr. Barlow. "We will talk nomore about it now, but some day perhaps your mother will go down withyou to see Manuel, and then you can both tell me whether the Rosas oughtto have a piano as well as a carpet."
With this Brenda had to be content, but the next afternoon when the FourClub had its regular weekly meeting she and Nora grew excited as theydescribed the poverty of the Rosas to the other two.
"At any rate we can do a lot of fancy-work this winter," said Brenda,"and I shouldn't wonder if we were to have a very successful Fair."
"Oh, don't call it a 'Fair,'" said Belle, "that sounds so awfullycommon. Bazaar, or Sale--no, Bazaar is best. Let's always speak of it asa Bazaar."
The others assented, for really they hardly ever dared dissent fromBelle when she laid down the law in this way.
"Well, what else shall we call it, The Busy Bees' Bazaar?" asked Nora.
"Oh, no, that would be dreadful! We needn't decide about the rest of thename just yet."
"No, I think that it would be better to wait until we have somethingready," said Edith, at which the other three looked up somewhatsurprised. They had never heard Edith make a remark that sounded sonearly sarcastic.
"Now, Edith, you know very well that we shall have plenty to sell. Justthink how much we'll do if we meet every week ourselves. Then every girlin school ought to make at least one thing, and we can get any amountfrom older people. Really it's the duty of older people to help us allthey can. I should think we might have four large tables just loadedwith fancy-work, besides refreshments and flowers--and--oh, dear me--Ifeel quite dizzy when I think of it," cried the sanguine Brenda.
"Aren't you going to ask Julia to join the Four Club?" queried Edith,turning to Brenda.
"How silly," said the latter. "Of course not. It wouldn't be a Four Clubthen."
"But don't you think it must seem a little strange to Julia. We runupstairs past her room every Thursday, and no one asks her to come."
"Oh, she doesn't care," interposed Belle. "I don't believe that shecares for anything but study and music."
"Yes," added Brenda, "it drives me half crazy to hear her piano goinghalf the time."
"Ah, _that's_ what drives you crazy," said Nora, mischievously. "Ithought you had seemed a little queer lately."
Brenda tossed her head, but before she had time to answer this, Edithreturned to the question of Julia.
"Really and honestly, Brenda, I feel very uncomfortable about Julia. Weought at least to invite her to join us. I dare say she wouldn't comeevery week, but I _do_ think that she ought to be asked. It doesn't seemto me polite to leave her out--or kind."
Again Belle spoke for Brenda. "Really, Edith, you're awfully Puritanic;that's what everybody says: you're always thinking about the wrong andright of things."
"Well, why shouldn't I? I'm sure we all intend to do what is right."
"Yes, of course, in a way. But you don't have to keep thinking about italways. People have to enjoy themselves sometimes, and if we can't enjoyourselves in this Four Club we might as well give it up at once."
"Do you mean that Julia would prevent our enjoying ourselves if shecame?" Nora's voice sounded ominously severe.
"I didn't say that, but--well what's the good of talking?" cried Belle,who saw that she was getting into deep water.
"Yes," chimed in Brenda, "that's what I say too." But Edith continued ina rather grave voice,
"Of course it's your house, Brenda, and you and Belle started the Club,and no one can compel you to invite any one you don't want. But I'm sureif I had my way Julia should be here this minute, and I'm not sure thatI'll stay in the Club if she isn't asked."
"Do you mean you won't work for the Bazaar?" exclaimed Nora in surprise,thinking of Manuel, and of the dainty needlework at which Edith was soskilful.
"I haven't said exactly what I'll do," replied the quiet Edith, withmore spirit than she generally displayed. "Only I can tell you that I'mnot going to see Julia left out of things the way she has been."
"Oh, Julia's all right," said Brenda scornfully. "She doesn't know howto do fancy-work, and she'd just feel bored if she came to the Club. Ifyou want a 'cause' Edith, you'd better adopt a smaller orphan thanJulia."
"Like Manuel," said Edith, with a bright smile, for, determined thoughshe was when she had made up her mind about a thing, she was also apeacemaker. Even when Brenda and Belle most annoyed her, she hesitatedto say sharp things to them, remembering that "A soft answer turnethaway wrath."
"Yes, like Manuel," said Nora, taking up Edith's words. "I won't giveManuel up to you, for you know that I mean to adopt him myself, but hehas a sister, or two of them for that matter, and I should
n't wonder ifeither of them would give you enough to do."
"Oh, yes," said Brenda, "they both looked as if they needed lots ofclothes. But they have the _sweetest_ black eyes."
"Well, then, why shouldn't we make dresses or aprons or something likethat, before we get started on our work for the Bazaar?" asked Edith.
"Oh, how can you?" cried Belle. "Horrid calico dresses and things likethat--I should just hate them."
"There, don't get excited," said Nora. "I've thought of that myself. Butmy mother says there are plenty of Societies and Sewing Circles we canget clothes from, if the Rosas really need clothes. She says it would bebad to begin giving them things."
"Well, then, what are we going to have a Bazaar for?" asked Brenda.
"For fun," responded Belle, so promptly that Nora looked at her a littlesuspiciously.
"No," replied Nora, "not for fun, but we've got to have an object in aClub of this kind, and besides there'll probably be other things we cando for the Rosas."
"Send them to the country in the summer, perhaps," said Edith.
"There are the Country Week people," cried Belle. "They always do thingslike that."
"Let's wait until we get the money," said Brenda, grandly. "Perhapswe'll have enough to buy them a house--or----"
"Or a horse and carriage," laughed Edith. "Oh, Brenda, you _are_ sounpractical."
"There, there," said Nora, who saw another cloud rising over the horizonof the Four Club. "Let's talk of something sensible."
"What are you working at, Belle?"
Belle held up a pretty piece of blue denim on which she had begun tooutline a pattern in white silk. "This is to be a sofa cushion," shesaid in answer to Nora's question. "People always like to buy them, andthis shade of blue goes with almost anything."
"Oh, it's too sweet for anything," said Nora, enthusiastically.
"Yes, indeed," added Edith, with perfect sincerity. "You do such perfectneedlework that I really envy you."
Both Nora and Edith were glad to praise Belle's skill, for although theyknew that they themselves had been in the right, they realized thatBelle would not feel very kindly toward them for not siding with her inthe matter of Julia. Nora, like Edith, was a peacemaker, and both wishedthe afternoon to end as pleasantly as possible.
Belle was by no means indifferent to the praise of her friends. Shereally could do very fine embroidery and she took considerable pride inher work.
"I never _could_ have patience to do anything like that," said Nora,whose specialty was crocheting. "I like to do something that I needn'tlook at all the time. I could crochet an afghan almost in the dark."
"Yes, but an afghan is such an endless piece of work."
"Well, I don't suppose I'll make _many_ of them for the Bazaar."
"I should say not," said Edith. "What are you going to do first, Brenda?You haven't had a needle in your hand this afternoon."
"I know it, I know it," cried Brenda, the heedless. "But I can't thinkwhat to begin first," and she opened the bottom drawer of her bureau,where were displayed a tangled heap of linen and floss and gold threadand silk plush and other materials for fancy work which she had boughtat different times. There were cushion covers and doilies in which a fewstitches had been taken, only to be thrown aside for something else, andsome of them were in so soiled a condition that they were not likely tobe good for anything.
"Oh, what a wicked waste of money, Brenda Barlow," exclaimed Nora, asshe looked at the contents of the drawer.
"Well, at any rate it shows that I have had good intentions," saidBrenda.