She was an ultra-fashionable lady and reminded Patty a little of Aunt Isabel St. Clair. But though elaborately dressed, her gown was in far better taste than Aunt Isabel’s gorgeous raiment, and though her manner was a little conventional, her voice was low and sweet and her smile was charming.
She did not talk to the girls individually, but greeted them as a whole, and welcomed them prettily as friends of her daughter.
Then she presented each one with a beautiful little pin made of green enamel in the design of a cricket.
“It is a real English cricket, or grig,” she said, “and I instructed the jeweller to make it a merry one.”
Her orders had been carried out, for the little green grigs were jolly looking affairs, with tiny eyes of yellow topaz that fairly seemed to wink and blink with fun. The girls were delighted and all agreed that Mrs. Farrington had conferred the highest possible honour on the society of Grigs.
CHAPTER XV
A PLEASANT SATURDAY
At half-past five Mrs. Farrington sent the girls home in her carriage. The four who lived farthest were sent first and this left the two Hart girls and Patty to wait for the second trip.
They had returned to the Farrington house and were waiting in the library. Roger was there, and also two of Elise’s younger sisters. Patty was glad to see more of the Farrington family and chatted pleasantly with the little girls. But before she went away Roger found an opportunity to speak to her again.
“I say, you know,” he began, “I don’t know just how to express it, but I want to thank you for the way you talked to me. It wasn’t so much what you said, but that brave, plucky kind of talk does brace a fellow up wonderfully and I’m no end obliged to you.”
“You’re more than welcome, I’m sure,” said Patty, smiling; “but I didn’t say anything worth while. I wish I could really help you, but if you’ll just look on the bright side, you know you can help yourself a whole lot.”