“I don’t want to be like other people,” laughed Faith, tying up her bleeding finger. “I like being myself. It’s more interesting. Jessie Drew is as good a housekeeper as her mother, but would you want to be as stupid as she is?”
“But our house isn’t right. Mary Vance says so. She says people talk about it being so untidy.”
Faith had an inspiration.
“We’ll clean it all up,” she cried. “We’ll go right to work to-morrow. It’s a real good chance when Aunt Martha is laid up and can’t interfere with us. We’ll have it all lovely and clean when father comes home, just like it was when Mary went away. any one can sweep and dust and wash windows. People won’t be able to talk about us any more. Jem Blythe says it’s only old cats that talk, but their talk hurts just as much as anybody’s.”
“I hope it will be fine to-morrow,” said Una, fired with enthusiasm. “Oh, Faith, it will be splendid to be all cleaned up and like other people.”
“I hope Aunt Martha’s misery will last over to-morrow,” said Faith. “If it doesn’t we won’t get a single thing done.”
Faith’s amiable wish was fulfilled. The next day found Aunt Martha still unable to rise. Carl, too, was still sick and easily prevailed on to stay in bed. Neither Faith nor Una had any idea how sick the boy really was; a watchful mother would have had a doctor without delay; but there was no mother, and poor little Carl, with his sore throat and aching head and crimson cheeks, rolled himself up in his twisted bedclothes and suffered alone, somewhat comforted by the companionship of a small green lizard in the pocket of his ragged nighty.
The world was full of summer sunshine after the rain. It was a peerless day for house-cleaning and Faith and Una went gaily to work.
“We’ll clean the dining-room and the parlour,” said Faith. “It wouldn’t do to meddle with the study, and it doesn’t matter much about the upstairs. The first thing is to take everything out.”
Accordingly, everything was taken out. The furniture was piled on the veranda and lawn and the Methodist graveyard fence was gaily draped with rugs. An orgy of sweeping followed, with an attempt at dusting on Una’s part, while Faith washed the windows of the dining-room, breaking one pane and cracking two in the process. Una surveyed the streaked result dubiously.