“No; it’s from Peg,” returned her companion, already scanning the paper in her hand. Her brows were drawn into a serious line and her full red lips puckered as she scrutinized the page.
“Anything wrong?” Julia asked.
“Not wrong, but—here read it——” Grace handed over the letter, and her companion read the lines.
“Well, that’s all right,” said Julia, glancing up. They were seated in the canoe and delaying to read their personal mail. “If she doesn’t want any companions I don’t see why we should force ourselves upon her.”
“But don’t you see, Jule, she says she does appreciate our friendship, but that just now she is not free to follow her own pleasure? Can’t you easily see that the girl is worried about something and afraid to even have friends?”
“Yet, Gracie, why should we intrude?”
“Because if ever a girl needed friends she does, and I need not remind you of our Scout pledge,” replied Grace. “I don’t usually look for trouble, Bobbs, but I think I see it in that page, and I would like to help Peg to some little bit of summer happiness. You know how much attention we give to making city children happy at Christmas; and here is a girl all alone in a mountain cabin, with no playmates except Shag and her pony Whirlwind, and she says plainly how much she enjoyed our campfire on that one, stingy little night. Now Julie, I couldn’t let her slip out of our entire summer with one campfire and a chocolate cake.”
This was so entirely “Gracious” that Julia laughed outright.
“All right, Buddie; just tell me what to do and I’ll help you any way I can. I believe you are right, of course. Anyone can see that Peg is tugging away with some sort of claim holding her down. Do you think there can be anyone ill, or perhaps sick mentally and hidden in her cabin?”
“Oh, no, I never thought of that. You mean an insane person?”