Part 14 (1/2)

With good speed she soon reached the house, hurriedly told her mother what had befallen Rosy and the condition she had found things in at the negro settlement, and then, telling her she would be back in a few moments, she flew post-haste across the road to Mrs. Morrow's house.

Here the Pioneers with eager, expectant faces were all talking animatedly, their brown uniforms, red ties, and broad-brimmed hats suggestive of the good time in store for them.

”Oh, here she comes!” sang out Helen, as she spied Nathalie hastening up the path towards the veranda. ”Why, where have you been? We began to think you were not coming.”

”I had to go on an errand for Mother!” Then with glowing eyes she told them of the visit to the colored settlement and about the lost Rosy, the grief of her mother, and how there was no one looking for the child.

”Oh, girls,” she ended in a quiver of excitement, ”let's give up the bird-hike for to-day, and see if we cannot find little Rosy!”

CHAPTER IX-SEARCHING FOR ROSY

An oppressive silence followed, while each girl looked blankly at her neighbor. The new Pioneer's face flushed, and her eager, excited eyes shadowed, as she quickly realized that in her eagerness to follow the law of kindliness she had been too officious. She stood in dismayed embarra.s.sment, the chill of an unpleasant surprise benumbed her. With a faint hope she turned her eyes appealingly towards Helen, surely her level head and kind heart would prompt her to second her. Helen caught the look and smiled faintly.

Edith, who was always the first one to either second or down a proposition, broke the silence by exclaiming in an aggrieved tone, ”Why, the idea, Nathalie Page! we can't give up the bird-hike, we've all brought our lunches!”

”I should say not,” interposed Lillie Bell with flas.h.i.+ng eyes. ”Why, it would take the whole morning, and there could be no hike for to-day, and next week I can't go, I-”

”Oh, they have probably found the child by this time!” ventured Barbara North, to Nathalie's surprise, as she had always found her of a kindly nature.

”Well, _I_ for _one_ don't think it is our place to look for the child, anyway,” a.s.serted Jessie, decisively. ”Let the men of the town do it.

There are three policemen hanging around all day with nothing to do.”

Nathalie's cheeks had lost their pink bloom; her face stiffened as she retorted coolly, ”Well, just as you please, I see I have made a mistake.” She nerved herself. ”I thought kindliness was one of the laws of the organization, and it seemed to me that our pleasure was to take a secondary place when we had an opportunity to do a kind act. If you had seen the poor mother sobbing-”

”Oh, fiddle!” e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Lillie, ”those colored people are all emotion; their sobs don't count for much. I agree with Jessie that the townspeople should send out a search party, and I for one refuse to give up the hike. Who's on my side?” she ended abruptly, turning and facing the group.

”I!” and ”I!” shouted several voices at once in answer.

Nathalie backed towards the edge of the veranda. ”I seem to be in the minority,” she said with a.s.sumed indifference, although her heart was beating in double-quick time, for something had whispered, ”They are very rude, I would resign immediately.” But this suggestion was bravely silenced by the thought, ”No, I will not be as small as that, I will show I do not care.”

”There must be some one who thinks as I do,” she ended resolutely, wis.h.i.+ng that she could run from this affront to her sensitiveness.

”I am with you, Nathalie!” suddenly cried Helen, walking towards her friend and putting her arm around her.

Grace looked at the bevy of girls who had bunched together, then at the faces of her two friends. In a faint voice she a.s.serted lamely, ”And I, Nathalie, I didn't stop to think-”

”And, Nathalie, you can count me on your side!” broke in a voice at this moment. The girls, alert at the prospect of a division in the group, turned quickly to see Mrs. Morrow place herself by the side of Nathalie, taking her hand as she did so and giving it a cordial squeeze.

Nathalie's color came racing back and her heart leaped with joy. Ah, then she had not been too officious, after all! She turned to see the girls standing in embarra.s.sed silence with shamed eyes and uncertain mien. But Lillie, who was generally the spokesman of the group when Helen was on the opposite side, cried somewhat pertly, ”Why, Mrs.

Morrow, do you think it is our place to go and hunt for that colored child? I should think it was the duty of the townspeople to look after those things.”

”That is not the question,” replied the Director coldly. ”As Nathalie said, kindliness is one of the basic laws of the organization. We should be poor Pioneers indeed if we saw a man drowning and then stood and argued as to whether it was our place to save him or not. Nathalie, I commend you not only for your kind suggestion, but for having the real pioneer courage in maintaining what you believed to be right. You have shown yourself a true Blue Robin and I am proud of you. Now, girls, we will put it to a vote. Those of you who want to go on the hike, up with their hands.” Not a hand was raised.

Mrs. Morrow's face brightened as she cried laughingly, ”Now who wants to join a search-party with Nathalie as captain, and see if they can find little Rosebud?”

Every hand flew up, and there was a general cry of, ”I do! I do!”

”Well, girls,” said Mrs. Morrow kindly, as her eyes traveled from face to face, ”I see you have repented of the error of your way. Let Nathalie's example inspire you!”