“Oh, can’t we help fix it?” said Jack.
“No; I’ve plenty of help in here, and you must keep out and not bother.”
Then the door was shut and locked again, and the young folks laughed to find themselves with occupation gone.
“All right; let’s get up a surprise for her,” said Betty.
“Oh, yes!” cried Jack; “just the thing! What’ll it be?”
“Wait. I’ll have to think. Oh, I’ll tell you, Jack; you go down to the flower place, and get a lot of white carnations—just heaps of ’em. And then get a lot of holly, and bring ’em all up, and I’ll show you. Oh, wait—get the biggest holly wreath you can find, and a paper of pins!”
Obediently Jack went off, and as the big hotel was able to supply such demands, he brought back everything Betty asked for.
“It won’t be much,” said Betty, as she tied a big towel over her pretty frock for an apron. “Come in my room, all of you, so she won’t see it if she comes out.”
The other three followed Betty, and she disclosed her plan. First she filled the center of the big wreath with white carnations, having first crisscrossed it closely with string, to keep the blossoms in place. Then she set the others to work picking off the red berries from the bunch of holly Jack had brought, sticking a pin through each. With these prepared berries Betty formed letters on the white background, and as she deftly did her task they saw the words grow under her fingers, “Merry Christmas to Mother.”
“Fine!” cried Stub. “Betty, you’re a real genius! I declare it’s the prettiest wreath I ever saw!”