Clarence thus cajoled, followed willingly. "Show me which is your mother," said Nan to him.
"She's over there," Clarence told her; "the one with a feather in her hat talking to the old lady."
Nan nodded. "I see. All right, you stay here so she'll know where to find you."
Mrs. Opdyke, over-dressed, voluble, and full of theories was just the kind of woman whose affairs abroad compelled neglect at home. Clarence ran wild while she went from club to meeting, from meeting to tea, from tea to club again. Her voice was always ready to argue, to set forth opinions, to state conditions. She was a star member of the many organizations to which she belonged, but the less said about the fulfilment of her duties as mother the better. It was because of this that Mrs. Roberts thought it would be a good thing to throw Clarence into the society of four nice little girls. Of his passage at arms with Jack she knew nothing, and it was Carter who finally told her of it. This was after all had departed and the tired ladies were enjoying a peaceful hour. The girls were being served with their share of the dainties at a small table at which Mr. Pinckney jovially presided and they were having a royal time.
"Mrs. Opdyke is a most interesting woman," said Mrs. Roberts, "and Clarence is a bright boy, but full of mischief. His spirits must have some outlet and as his mother has not the time to direct his amusements he does all manner of things he should not. This chance meeting to-day is certainly a funny sequel to that first conflict."
"I didn't like the little rat when I first saw him," said Carter, "and I'm not sure now that I wouldn't like to take him out and give him a good thrashing. He needs a healthy system of discipline."
"Poor little chap," said Miss Helen commiseratingly. "What we ought to do, Carter, is to teach him how he ought to behave. You could gain a great influence over him, for there is nothing a small boy so much admires and so much wants to imitate as a young person who has not forgotten what it is to be a boy and yet is what he considers a young man. Give a youngster like Clarence plenty of good healthy interests and he will not get into mischief."
"I'm not so sure that he is a subject for reform," said Carter with the intolerance of youth. "He will have to improve his views of how a girl should be treated before he gets any consideration from me."
"What could you expect," said Mrs. Corner, "when Jack did not act like a girl? She did not command courtly attention, I am sure."
Carter laughed. "Well, perhaps not, but he will have his eyes opened before I am through with him."