There was a hush over the room for an instant, then Gay whispered to Lyman,—
"Brace up and ask Miss Ethel."
Lyman obeyed and that set the ball rolling.
"I will play," said Miss Celia.
"And, auntie, will you call?" said Gay.
"I will call," said Miss Linn, taking her place by the piano.
Miss Celia struck the first chord and the game began. There were plenty of mistakes at first but they only served to break the ice of conventionality. The boys behaved admirably; so, strangely enough, did Gay; while the girls, led by Julia and Ethel, soon became gracious and natural. When they tired of the game Miss Linn undertook to initiate them into the mysteries of some old-fashioned games she had played in her youth, and with intervals for rest, the fun continued with increased enjoyment until they went out into the dining-room.
White frock and sash entitled Gay to a seat; but having played the active part of a boy for eleven years it was hard for him to relapse into the passive condition of a girl; to sit down and be waited upon. So he threw conventionality to the winds and flew about, serving the girls and helping the boys do their duty.
"Auntie," Gay said to Miss Celia, when everybody was chattering and laughing, and when even austere Sadie was actually eating a bon-bon with a member of the "common" Carver family, "I think they are having a good time, don't you?"
"Yes," said Aunt Celia, "you make a nice hostess, dear."