GUARD mount was over, and the Barlows with their guest were on their way back to their cottage. Gretel had enjoyed the morning very much. The soldiers, the bright music, and the crowds of people, had all combined to make the hour of guard mount a most delightful occasion. Then, too, she was beginning to find her new friends very entertaining. Geraldine chatted away incessantly, and Jerry, although much less talkative than his twin, was so amusing that Gretel had found herself laughing almost every time he opened his lips. Mr. and Mrs. Barlow had soon been joined by some acquaintances, and after that the children had been left pretty much to their own devices. Mr. Barlow kept a watchful eye upon the twins, but his wife became so much interested in her conversation with a friend, that she appeared to forget all about everything else. Gretel caught snatches of this conversation, in which the words “Montessori System”—“Law of Love” and “Wonderful Spiritual Experience” were frequently repeated.
It was when they were walking home from the fort that Geraldine suddenly remarked in a tone of regret—
“The parade was nice, wasn’t it? I’m rather sorry we wouldn’t let Miss Heath come.”
“Who is Miss Heath?” Gretel inquired with interest.
“She’s our teacher. Mother said we lost so much time having scarlet fever that we must have lessons down here, so she brought an old teacher along.”
“She isn’t old,” declared Jerry, in his hoarse little voice; “she’s real pretty, and I wanted you to let her come, but you said it was against rules.”
“Well, so it was,” maintained his sister. “You see,” she added, by way of explanation to Gretel, “when Mother said we had to take a teacher with us, we made an awful row. We said it wasn’t fair to have to study when we weren’t in New York, so at last Mother made a compromise. She said if we promised to study for two hours every day, we could have all the rest of the time to ourselves. We needn’t even see the old teacher if we didn’t want to, and she wasn’t to interfere in anything we did. So when Miss Heath came, we explained things to her, and made her sign a paper we wrote out.”
“Did she mind?” Gretel asked. She was thinking that Miss Talcott might have rather enjoyed such an arrangement.
“No; I don’t think so; she laughed a good deal, and said we were funny kiddies. She told Mother she would be glad of the extra time, because she wanted to study her music. She offered to give us music lessons, but that was something we wouldn’t stand. Arithmetic and history are bad enough, but music! Oh, my goodness!”
“Don’t you love music?” inquired Gretel in astonishment.