“But we haven’t time, dears,” chirped Nancy. “Look! Here come three autos. Now, ladies, step lively,” and the way they stepped was lively enough to be called trotting.
“Yes, sure enough,” Ruth agreed, “they are coming here, and they’re here!”
CHAPTER X
STILL THEY CAME
Before the girls could pull their faces straight a young man dashed up the steps and was in the store.
“Well, this is great!” he declared heartily. “I see by your window card you carry Mackinaw’s goods and I haven’t been able to get them nearer than the city.” He was addressing all three who stood together back of the counter like a trio in a comedy. The young man looked critically at the show goods in the show counter—the supply left by the travelling salesman.
“Here they are, sure enough!” he exclaimed. “Just give me a half dozen of those plugs, and of those dry flies, and a dozen of those bobbers—”
Nancy set out the boxes and the customer helped himself. He knew exactly what he wanted, and the girls marvelled at his quick selection of the fancy colored artificial minnows, the little feather flies, used to decoy the poor fish, and the bobbers, of which article Nancy had as pretty a selection as might have been in a really large shop.
“You don’t know what an accommodation this is,” went on the young man, putting down a twenty dollar bill to pay for his purchases. “No, don’t bother to put paper on the boxes,” he objected, as all three attempted to wrap the goods. “I’ll put them right in the car. You see, I’m at the fishing club over on the lake, and when we want supplies there we want them instantly,” he concluded.
And he was gone before the surprised clerks had time to realize that the sale had almost cleared out all the fancy tackle, and there were coming in at the door two elderly gentlemen, who looked exactly as if they would want fancy flies.
One of the gentlemen poked his head in the door so comically, the girls all giggled.