“By starting the dancing immediately,” replied Jack, practically. “Marie Louise, I claim your first dance.”
And for the rest of the evening Marjorie and all the other girls put aside their responsibilities.
CHAPTER VII
PREPARATIONS
The Scott house was a scene of great activity on the morning following the party. John Hadley, who took upon himself to assume the leadership of the boys, and Jack Wilkinson, an able lieutenant, had put their heads together on the way home the night before. Before taking leave of the other boys, John cautioned them to get excused from work—it was Saturday, and a half holiday—and to be on hand early. “Wear your old clothes,” he warned them. Having the keys in their possession, he and Jack accompanied by Mrs. Hadley, were the first to arrive. Like a good commander, John had planned ahead—in his Ford he had a collection of buckets, scrub-brushes, brooms, and other implements with which to give the place a thorough scouring. The other boys, arriving soon after, and seeing the array of implements lined upon the porch, realized that they had not come to play.
Consequently, when the girls came to the scene of action in Lily’s car about an hour later, they found the work progressing rapidly under the direction of Mrs. Hadley. The windows all over the house were open wide to admit the air and sunshine. A medley of sounds greeted their ears: singing, whistling, the boys’ voices calling back and forth in the empty house. But over all the swish of the broom and the scrub-brush predominated.
The appearance of the girls caused a momentary cessation in the work. John and Jack, who had been removing the barricade of boards from the lower windows and doors and were storing them in the stable, came around to the front of the house; boys’ heads appeared at the windows here and there. And when Marjorie, who was the first out of the car, ran up the porch steps, Mrs. Hadley stepped from the doorway to welcome her. Looking inside, the girl saw the two new boys, Pierce Ellison and Eugene Schofield, grinning out at her, their hands laden with soap, cleaning rags, and scrub-brushes.
“Behold! The Gold Dust Twins!” cried Lily.
“But you have progressed marvellously!” exclaimed Marjorie.
“Regular Brownies, cleaning up while we slept,” said Ethel.
“Girls, before we do another thing, let’s go on a tour of inspection,” suggested Marjorie. “I want to see everything.”