"Why do you keep smiling to yourself, Phebe?" asked Rose, asthey were working together one morning, for Dr. Alec consideredhouse-work the best sort of gymnastics for girls; so Rose tooklessons of Phebe in sweeping, dusting and bed-making.
"I was thinking about a nice little secret I know, and couldn't helpsmiling.""Shall I know it, sometime?""Guess you will.""Shall I like it?""Oh, won't you, though!""Will it happen soon?""Sometime this week.""I know what it is! The boys are going to have fireworks on thefourth, and have got some surprise for me. Haven't they?""That's telling.""Well, I can wait; only tell me one thing is uncle in it?""Of course he is; there's never any fun without him.""Then it's all right, and sure to be nice."Rose went out on the balcony to shake the rugs, and, having giventhem a vigorous beating, hung them on the balustrade to air, whileshe took a look at her plants. Several tall vases and jars stoodthere, and a month of June sun and rain had worked wonders withthe seeds and slips she had planted. Morning-glories andnasturtiums ran all over the bars, making haste to bloom. Scarletbeans and honeysuckles were climbing up from below to meettheir pretty neighbours, and the woodbine was hanging its greenfestoons wherever it could cling.
The waters of the bay were dancing in the sunshine, a fresh windstirred the chestnut-trees with a pleasant sound, and the gardenbelow was full of roses, butterflies and bees. A great chirping andtwittering went on among the birds, busy with their summerhouse-keeping, and, far away, the white-winged gulls were dippingand diving in the sea, where ships, like larger birds, went sailing toand fro.
"Oh, Phebe, it's such a lovely day, I do wish your fine secret wasgoing to happen right away! I feel just like having a good time;don't you?" said Rose, waving her arms as if she was going to fly.
"I often feel that way, but I have to wait for my good times, anddon't stop working to wish for 'em. There, now you can finish assoon as the dust settles; I must go do my stairs," and Phebe trudgedaway with the broom, singing as she went.
Rose leaned where she was, and fell to thinking how many goodtimes she had had lately, for the gardening had prospered finely,and she was learning to swim and row, and there were drives andwalks, and quiet hours of reading and talk with Uncle Alec, and,best of all, the old pain and ennui seldom troubled her now. Shecould work and play all day, sleep sweetly all night, and enjoy lifewith the zest of a healthy, happy child. She was far from being asstrong and hearty as Phebe, but she was getting on; the once palecheeks had colour in them now, the hands were growing plumpand brown, and the belt was not much too loose. No one talked toher about her health, and she forgot that she had "no constitution."She took no medicine but Dr. Alec's three great remedies, and theyseemed to suit her excellently. Aunt Plenty said it was the pills;but, as no second batch had ever followed the first, I think the oldlady was mistaken.
Rose looked worthy of her name as she stood smiling to herselfover a happier secret than any Phebe had a secret which she didnot know herself till she found out, some years later, the magic ofgood health.
"'Look only,' said the brownie,'At the pretty gown of blue,At the kerchief pinned about her head,And at her little shoe,"'
said a voice from below, as a great cabbage-rose came flyingagainst her cheek.
"What is the princess dreaming about up there in herhanging-garden?" added Dr. Alec as she flung back amorning-glory.
"I was wishing I could do something pleasant this fine day;something very new and interesting, for the wind makes me feelfrisky and gay.""Suppose we take a pull over to the Island? I intended to go thisafternoon; but if you feel more like it now, we can be off at once.""I do! I do! I'll come in fifteen minutes, uncle. I must just scrabblemy room to rights, for Phebe has got a great deal to do."Rose caught up the rugs and vanished as she spoke, while Dr. Alecwent in, saying to himself, with an indulgent smile"It may upset things a trifle, but half a child's pleasure consists inhaving their fun when they want it."Never did duster flap more briskly than the one Rose used thatday, and never was a room "scrabbled" to rights in such haste ashers. Tables and chairs flew into their places as if alive; curtainsshook as if a gale was blowing; china rattled and small articlestumbled about as if a young earthquake was playing with them.
The boating suit went on in a twinkling, and Rose was off with ahop and a skip, little dreaming how many hours it would be beforeshe saw her pretty room again.
Uncle Alec was putting a large basket into the boat when shearrived, and before they were off Phebe came running down with aqueer, knobby bundle done up in a water-proof.
"We can't eat half that luncheon, and I know we shall not need somany wraps. I wouldn't lumber the boat up so," said Rose, whostill had secret scares when on the water.
"Couldn't you make a smaller parcel, Phebe?" asked Dr. Alec,eyeing the bundle suspiciously.
"No, sir, not in such a hurry," and Phebe laughed as she gave aparticularly large knob a good poke.
"Well, it will do for ballast. Don't forget the note to Mrs. Jessie, Ibeg of you.""No, sir. I'll send it right off," and Phebe ran up the bank as if shehad wings to her feet.
"We'll take a look at the lighthouse first, for you have not beenthere yet, and it is worth seeing. By the time we have done that itwill be pretty warm, and we will have lunch under the trees on theIsland."Rose was ready for anything, and enjoyed her visit to thelighthouse on the Point very much, especially climbing up thenarrow stairs and going inside the great lantern. They made a longstay, for Dr. Alec seemed in no hurry to go, and kept lookingthrough his spy-glass as if he expected to discover somethingremarkable on sea or land. It was past twelve before they reachedthe Island, and Rose was ready for her lunch long before she got it.
"Now this is lovely! I do wish the boys were here. Won't it be niceto have them with us all their vacation? Why, it begins to-day,doesn't it? Oh, I wish I'd remembered it sooner, and perhaps theywould have come with us," she said, as they lay luxuriously eatingsandwiches under the old apple-tree.
"So we might. Next time we won't be in such a hurry. I expect thelads will take our heads off when they find us out," answered Dr.
Alec, placidly drinking cold tea.
"Uncle, I smell a frying sort of a smell," Rose said, pausingsuddenly as she was putting away the remains of the lunch half anhour later.
"So do I; it is fish, I think."For a moment they both sat with their noses in the air, sniffing likehounds; then Dr. Alec sprang up, saying with great decision"Now, this won't do! No one is permitted on this island withoutasking leave. I must see who dares to fry fish on my privateproperty."Taking the basket on one arm and the bundle on the other, hestrode away towards the traitorous smell, looking as fierce as alion, while Rose marched behind under her umbrella.
"We are Robinson Crusoe and his man Friday going to see if thesavages have come," she said presently, for her fancy was full ofthe dear old stories that all children love so well.
"And there they are! Two tents and two boats, as I live! Theserascals mean to enjoy themselves, that's evident.""There ought to be more boats and no tents. I wonder where theprisoners are?""There are traces of them," and Dr. Alec pointed to the heads andtails of fishes strewn on the grass.
"And there are more," said Rose, laughing, as she pointed to ascarlet heap of what looked like lobsters.
"The savages are probably eating their victims now; don't you hearthe knives rattle in that tent?""We ought to creep up and peep; Crusoe was cautious, you know,and Friday scared out of his wits," added Rose, still keeping up thejoke.
"But this Crusoe is going to pounce upon them, regardless ofconsequences. If I am killed and eaten, you seize the basket andrun for the boat; there are provisions enough for your voyagehome."With that Uncle Alec slipped round to the front of the tent and,casting in the big bundle like a bomb-shell, roared out, in a voiceof thunder"Pirates, surrender!"A crash, a shout, a laugh, and out came the savages, brandishingknives and forks, chicken bones, and tin mugs, and all fell uponthe intruder, pommelling him unmercifully as they cried"You came too soon! We are not half ready! You've spoilt it all!
Where is Rose?""Here I am," answered a half-stifled voice, and Rose wasdiscovered sitting on the pile of red flannel bathing clothes, whichshe had mistaken for lobsters, and where she had fallen in a fit ofmerriment when she discovered that the cannibals were her merrycousins.
"You good-for-nothing boys! You are always bursting out upon mein some ridiculous way, and I always get taken in because I'm notused to such pranks. Uncle is as bad as the rest, and it's great fun,"she said, as the lads came round her, half scolding, halfwelcoming, and wholly enjoying the double surprise.
"You were not to come till afternoon, and mamma was to be hereto receive you. Everything is in a mess now, except your tent; wegot that in order the first thing, and you can sit there and see uswork," said Archie, doing the honours as usual.
"Rose felt it in her bones, as Dolly says, that something was in thewind, and wanted to be off at once. So I let her come, and shouldhave kept her away an hour longer if your fish had not betrayedyou," explained Uncle Alec, subsiding from a ferocious Crusoeinto his good-natured self again.
"As this seat is rather damp, I think I'll rise," said Rose, as theexcitement lessened a little.
Sever............