“I’ll take my coffee now,” announced Jack, sitting back in the cushions, and flicking an imaginary speck from his sweater.
“Now, you must wait,” Cora ordered. “We have not caught up to you yet. We are only at the entree.”
Lottie declared she never had such a splendid time in her life, and the brightness of her cheeks catching the flame from her eyes bore out this statement. Marita, too, seemed to have “shook her cocoon,” Jack said, his economy of language scarcely making up for the little difference in “shook” and “shaken.” Certainly she managed to climb from one boat to another with remarkable alertness, while Bess, Belle and Cora acted like up-to-date society maidens, only they acted a little in advance of the “date” usually adhered to.
“And do we have to leave these shores?” wailed Ed, sipping a real good cup of coffee. “Why not anchor here for now and for eternity!”
“I thought you liked camping,” said Belle. “Surely you are not tired of housekeeping. Doesn’t it run smoothly?”
“Sure,” replied Ed, “but the grub is the trouble. I wonder why mammas, with good moral intentions, train little boys to eat?”
“Do you see those clouds,” remarked Cora, “they are just swooping down on us, and we are miles from home. My, but it is going to be a quick shower!”
The young people had been enjoying themselves so much that not until Cora spoke did they realize that the sky had become overcast.
“Oh, I’m scared to death,” cried Marita. “Those clouds are so near—you would think they would touch the water!”
“Oh, aren’t they black!” gasped Belle.