But one week remained now of all the long summer vacation—then school must be taken up again, and the labor of learning must become both work and play for our young friends.
Dorothy and Tavia were to go back to Glenwood. Mrs. White had decided that the girls should not be separated, and consequently she provided the funds that were lacking on the part of the Travers family; for Tavia’s father had not been as prosperous in business during the past summer as he had formerly been, and in spite of many heroic efforts on his part, it was found impossible to get the necessary money together to send Tavia back to Glenwood.
It was on the very evening that Dorothy came in from her walk with Urania, that the school affairs were definitely decided upon. Mrs. White had received from Mr. Travers an answer to her letter regarding the school question, and so, when dinner was over, and stolen pigeons fully and finally discussed (they had not come home, however), Dorothy, Tavia and Mrs. White—the boys being rigorously excluded—adjourned to the sitting room to make notes and give notes, necessary in the formality of getting ready for boarding school.
Mrs. White was a beautiful woman, and her very presence seemed an inspiration to young girls, she was so gentle, so kind, so charming and so correct, without being prudish. Even the careless, frivolous Tavia “went down” beneath Aunt Winnie’s power, and was bound to admit it was “nice” to be well dressed, and “attractive” to have good manners.
On this particular evening Mrs. White was gowned in the palest lavender—a delicate orchid shade, and in her hair was a wild flower that Dorothy had brought in from the woods, the tints of this little spray toning exactly with the shade of the soft, silky gown.
Dorothy, too, was becomingly dressed. She wore her favorite light green—the one that Tavia always declared made Dorothy look like a lily, for her fair head above the “green stalk” easily suggested the comparison. Tavia, as usual, picked out the first dress that brushed her face as she entered the wardrobe, but it happened to be a pretty one, a bright plaid in fine Scotch gingham, that suited Tavia’s high color and light brown hair admirably.
“Now, my dears,” began Mrs. White, “I think we had best all go to town together, and then there will be no mistakes made about the sizes of your school things. The boys will leave for Cadet Hall in a few days, and after that we will be at liberty to take a whole day in town without neglecting any one. Major and the little boys” (Dorothy’s brothers) “will not be home for a week yet, schools do vary so in the time of opening, so that the thing for us to do now is, first: get Nat and Ned off, then attend to the shopping. After that we will just have time for a little reunion with the major and the boys, then it will be time to pack my girls off. Dear me,” said she, laughing, “I have quite a large family nowadays, but their care seems to agree with me.”
“You never looked better, Aunt Winnie,” declared Dorothy, with evident sincerity. “I hope I will grow tall and—straight like you.”
“You are doing your best now, girlie,” her aunt assured her, as she glanced at Dorothy’s slender form, that made such a pretty picture against the dark portieres she happened to cling to.
“But I’m getting fat,” groaned Tavia. “My clothes won’t button, and, oh, I do hate fat!”