Rosanna called “Come,” in answer to his knock in quite her usual tone of voice, and Uncle Robert heaved a sigh of relief.
He stuck his head in the door, and said in a meek tone: “I thought I would come up to call on you, Princess. Mother is expecting a bridge party, and it is no place for me.”
“That is what I thought,” said Rosanna. “Besides I wanted to think.”
“Well, I am known as a hard thinker myself,” said Uncle Robert. “If you will invite the part of me that is out here in the hall to follow my head, I will be glad to help you if I can.”
“I don’t see why I shouldn’t tell you about things anyway,” mused Rosanna. “You are not a parent, are you?”
“No, ma’am, I am not,” said Uncle Robert. “Nary a parent! Why?”
He came in without a further invitation and sat down in Rosanna’s biggest chair. At that it squeaked in an alarming manner, and Uncle Robert made remarks about furniture that wouldn’t hold up a growing boy like himself. When he appeared to be all settled and comfortable, and Rosanna had shoved an ash tray over in a manner that Uncle Robert said made him feel like an old married man, he said, “Now fire ahead!” and Rosanna did.
She told him all about Gwenny and her family—her mother and Mary and selfish Tommy, and good little Myron, and Luella and the heavy baby, and the story was so well told that Uncle Robert had hard work holding himself down. He felt as though the check book in his pocket was all full of prickers which were sticking into him, and in another pocket a bank book with a big, big deposit, put in it that very day, kept shouting, “Take care of Gwenny yourself!” so loudly that he was sure Rosanna must hear.
But Uncle Robert knew that that was not the thing for him to do. He could not take all the beauty and generosity out of their effort when their dear little hearts were so eagerly trying to find a way to help.
He hushed the bank book up as best he could and said to Rosanna, “I don’t worry a minute about this thing, Rosanna. I know perfectly well that you will think up some wonderful plan that will bring you wads of money, and as long as I am not a parent, I don’t see why I can’t be your councillor. There might be things that I could attend to. I could take the tickets at the door or something like that.”