And indeed it had been a busy week in the Merrill household. On Wednesday of the week before Mr. Merrill had announced that business would take him on a two weeks’ trip South and that he would take all the family with him. It seemed such a good chance to give the two girls, Alice, a big girl of twelve, and Mary Jane, a busy kindergartner of five, a glimpse of the tropical part of their country and a better understanding of the geography Alice was already studying and Mary Jane would soon begin.
But a week gave very little time to make ready so everybody had to help. There were gingham dresses from last summer’s wardrobe to get out and let down; each little girl had to have a new bathing suit, for who wants to go South without a swim in the ocean? New hats must be purchased because the velvet hats Alice and Mary Jane were wearing would be very heavy in the warm southern sunshine. Then the house must be shut up for its two weeks’ vacation, and everything must be made snug so that cold weather would do no damage. Mary Jane was so busy helping do errands and getting things out of drawers and closets and helping to pack that it’s no wonder she thought the time went quickly.
“Better plan so you can get along without your trunk some days,” suggested Mr. Merrill as he came into the house Tuesday evening, “because when we’re on the jump as we will be you can’t always be sure of getting your trunk every time.”
“Then I think I’ll have to take another hand bag,” said Mrs. Merrill thoughtfully.
“Goody! Goody! Goody!” shouted Mary Jane. She was coming down the front stairs as she heard her father speak and she dashed back up again, hunted out the little black grip she was sure her mother meant to take and began packing.
“She’ll want pencils in it, and paper and my Marie Georgannamore ’cause I don’t ever have time to play with her when I’m in school,” said the little girl as she packed the things. “And rubbers, Mother always thinks about rubbers and—” but by that time Mary Jane was so excited, she piled everything from the top of her dresser pell-mell into the bag, and then hurried down stairs.
“Here it is, Mother,” she cried gayly, “you don’t have to pack it ’cause I’ve got it all done—every bit.” And she set the bag on the living room table.
Mrs. Merrill glanced at Mary Jane’s flushed face and saw how eager she was to help but that all the excitement and hustling were making her a little tired so she said, “That’s the grip I want, Mary Jane, and thank you for bringing it down to me. But before we pack it suppose you and Alice sit down by me and plan just what we want to take.”
“Yes, only I want to carry it,” said Mary Jane; “I’m plenty bigger ’nough to carry my own grip.”
“Why, Mother,” exclaimed Alice, “you wouldn’t let her carry a grip of her own, would you? She’s too little. I’ll be the one to carry it.”