They had milk to drink too, and water, which they got from a spring not far from Mary Jay’s seat. Lucy went there to get some water; and, as she was coming back to her seat, bringing it carefully, she saw Royal doing something on the shore of the little pond. She put down her mug, and went to see.
He was making a vessel of a small piece of board. He had a large leaf fastened up for a sail. He secured the leaf, by making a slender mast, and running this mast through the leaf, in and out, as you do with a needle in sewing; and then, leaving the leaf upon the mast, he stuck the end of the mast into the board. Then he loaded his vessel with a cake, and some blueberries, and said that he was going to send it over to the other side, to Charlotte, who was waiting there to receive it. The children all gathered around to see it sail. It went across very beautifully, and Charlotte ate the cargo.
Then they brought the ship round back again, to load it again; and at this time, when it was nearly loaded with other things, Marielle brought the saucer of an acorn which she had gathered from a neighboring tree, and filled it with milk, and then set it carefully upon the stern of the vessel. She said that she wanted Charlotte to have something to drink. But just before they got ready to sail the vessel, they heard a little bell ring at the table, which they all understood at once to be a summons from Mary Jay to them to go there, and attend to what she had to say to them.
So those who were at the water left it at once, and the others came in from the places where they were playing; and all gathered around the table.
“Now, children,” said Mary Jay, “we’ll clear away the table, and then you will have an hour and a half to play before it will be time to go home. First, put all the fragments carefully into the large basket under the table.”
The children looked under the table, and saw a good-sized basket there; and they took all that was left upon the table, and put it carefully in. Then Mary Jay told them to fold up the cloth, and put that in; and they did it. Then William and Royal took the board which formed the table, and carried it up towards the house, and stood it up by the stile at the foot of the garden; the other children carried the basket which was under the table, and the cloth, and all the other baskets, and put them down, in regular order, near the same place. When the children came back, they found that Mary Jay had moved to her stone seat, where she sat waiting for them.
“Now,” said Mary Jay, “the things are all ready to be carried home, and the ground is clear for our plays.”
“What shall we play?” said several voices.
“We’ll see presently,” said Mary Jay, “when you get ready.”
So the children all collected around Mary Jay, some standing and some sitting in various places, upon the flat stones.