“There you are, girls,” he said as he laid them on the table; “there are the pictures I promised you. I think you’ll find something about every place you’re going to visit.”
Alice and Mary both grabbed for folders and in two minutes time they had spread them out on the floor in front of the cozy fireplace and were peering through them eagerly. Mr. and Mrs. Merrill, who had taken the same trip before, explained in just what order the pictures should be put and told stories of their trip.
“Can’t we take these along with us?” asked Mary Jane; “that would be fun.”
“It might be fun,” agreed Mr. Merrill, “but it would also be a nuisance because we’ll have plenty to carry as it is. Let’s fold them up—it’s bed time now you see, girls—and put them in the table drawer here. Then first thing when you come back you can get them out and see if you really saw all we think you are going to.”
Mary Jane thought of course she never, never, never would go to sleep because she kept thinking about riding on the train and what she would order in the dining car and her new hat and lunch at the hotel the next day (Mary Jane loved to eat at a hotel) and those queer looking alligators she had seen pictures of and everything. But she must have slept, for in about a minute (or so it seemed) she sat straight up in bed and there was the sun shining straight on to her out-of-door bed and father out at the garage was locking the door and saying, “There, I guess that’s all done!”
She dashed into the house and bathed and dressed in a jiffy. Mother had laid out her things so she put on everything she would wear on the trip except the dress. Of course she wouldn’t put on her new traveling dress till the last minute—an old frock would do till then. Just as she was going down the stairs she met Alice coming up.
“There you are,” said Alice, “I was just coming up to call you, breakfast’s ready!”
After breakfast each person helped and in short order the dishes were washed and put away, the living room tidied and the upstairs set in order. By half past nine, folks were dressed and ready to go. It surely seemed good to get out into the sunshine because with the furnace fire out so Father could be sure there was no danger of fire, the house was beginning to get pretty shivery.
“Think about the flowers you’ll see Saturday, girls,” said Mr. Merrill, “and dance around a bit to warm up. The car will be along in a minute.”
“Won’t we see flowers till Saturday?” asked Mary Jane. “I thought we were going to-day.”