Part 4 (1/2)

”I tell you what we'll do,” said Hinpoha with a burst of inspiration, ”we'll take turns being the audience. The seating committee can usher us to our seats between our own performances and we can pretend that we don't know what is coming.”

”You forget that I, for one, don't know what is coming,” said Nyoda, ”and will be a very appreciative spectator indeed. Behold me, ladies, at your service, the Audience!” And Nyoda swept them a low curtsey, whereupon they fell on her neck with one accord.

Sahwah woke with the dawn the next morning and craned her neck to look at the weather. To her great disappointment the lake was covered with a heavy mist and there was no sign of the sun. The woods looked dark and gloomy. ”Rain!” she exclaimed tragically, and buried her head in the blankets. The clouds were still thick at breakfast time, although no actual rain had fallen.

The flag raising took place right after breakfast, with due ceremony. Up went the Stars and Stripes, without a pause, and just as it reached the top of the pole and yielded its folds to the breeze the sun broke through the clouds and bathed it in a golden glory. The girls cheered and burst into a l.u.s.ty rendition of the ”Star Spangled Banner,” after which Migwan's patriotic poem was recited amid much applause.

Then began the water sports, which opened with canoe races. The four who were not in this took their seats on the sh.o.r.e, being placed by Nyoda with great formality, and pa.s.sed Nakwisi's spy-gla.s.s from hand to hand. Hinpoha and Nakwisi, and Sahwah and Migwan were partners in the races. First they raced for distance, paddling around the nearest island and coming back to the dock. Hinpoha and Nakwisi came out ahead, because Migwan, who was paddling stem in her canoe, lost time steering around the island. Then came an obstacle race, in which the girls paddled up to the dock, disembarked, dragged the canoes across the dock and launched them again on the other side. Again Hinpoha and Nakwisi won.

Then came a race between the two crews with the paddlers standing on the gunwales, which tested the skill of the girls to the uttermost. With superhuman effort they kept their balance and came sweeping in neck and neck, the watchers on sh.o.r.e cheering l.u.s.tily. ”Go it, Hinpoha!” shouted Nyoda, and Hinpoha raised her head to look at her, lost her balance, and upset the canoe, leaving Sahwah and Migwan the victors.

The spectators applauded heartily, and sang cheers for the winners, when suddenly the applause was echoed from behind them.

Nyoda wheeled swiftly around and faced two gentlemen standing at the foot of the path leading to the dock. As she turned they came forward, hats in hand. The elder man spoke: ”I am Professor Bentley, of Harvard University, and this is Professor Wheeler.”

Nyoda graciously acknowledged the introductions. ”We have been staying at the other end of the lake,” resumed the stranger, ”and intended to return home to-day, but missed the steamer. We were told that a steamer pa.s.sed Wharton's Landing at noon, so we walked over for it. Can you tell us which is Wharton's Landing?”

”That is Wharton's Landing directly opposite,” replied Nyoda, ”but the steamer has already gone past. There is a different schedule on holidays. However, it pa.s.ses again at six this evening. Won't you be our guests until then? We can take you across in the launch.” The strangers accepted the invitation and Nyoda introduced the other girls.

Professor Wheeler looked long and hard at Hinpoha. He seemed unable to take his eyes from her hair.

”And now,” said Professor Bentley, when they were all comfortably seated upon the rocks, ”would you mind telling me what you are and what you were doing when we came up?”

”We are Camp Fire Girls,” they cried in chorus, ”and we're celebrating the Fourth of July!”

”So you're Camp Fire Girls, are you?” answered Professor Bentley.

”That is a Species of the Female that I am greatly interested in.

How fortunate that I should have come upon them in their native wilds! Is this where you hibernate?--excuse me, I mean sunburnate!” He wanted to ask a great many questions about the girls, but Professor Wheeler was anxious for the water sports to continue.

”The Audience!” exclaimed Sahwah in a rapturous aside to Hinpoha, ”it fell right kerplunk off the knees of the G.o.ds!”

Sahwah, who was by far the best diver in camp, now performed a series of spectacular dives, which she had been practising early and late, including forward, backward, somersault, angel, sailor, box-to-springboard, and springboard from the top of the tower.

Then she produced a hoop, which she made Hinpoha hold while she dove through it, forward and backward, from the high springboard.

She ended her number with what she called the ”Wohelo Dive,” in which she jumped from the dock to the low springboard, landing in a sitting position, bounced up three times for Work, Health and Love, and then turned a somersault into the water.

”Whew!” whistled Professor Bentley, ”what a diver! She's a regular Annette Kellerman!” This was repeated to Sahwah later, to her great gratification.

After the diving was over the girls did a stunt which called for a great deal of endurance. It was invented by Sahwah and called a ”Submarine Race.” Sahwah, Hinpoha and Nakwisi, the three girls who could swim under water, each tied a toy balloon around her neck, and jumping from the dock on signal, swam beneath the surface to see who could reach the sh.o.r.e without coming up for air. The balloons of course stayed in the air and indicated the progress of the swimmers. This stunt amused both the visitors highly, and they grew quite excited over which one was going to stay down the longest. ”I bet on the red balloon,” said Professor Bentley, who knew that Sahwah was attached to it.

”The green one for mine,” answered Professor Wheeler, who was keeping his eye on Hinpoha.

”It was the weirdest thing,” said Migwan afterward, ”to see those balloons go darting and wobbling back and forth!”

”And the weirdest feeling when you were attached to them,” said Sahwah, ”I felt like the keel of a boat when the sails are full of wind.”

The second part of the program was a series of tableaux showing events of American history. The first represented Was.h.i.+ngton Crossing the Delaware. The sponson, a flat-bottomed canoe with air tanks in the sides, came into view around the cliff propelled by one paddler in the stern. In the bottom sat two devoted patriots carrying hatchets. The great George stood in the bow, in defiance of all canoe laws, with one foot up on the bow point, his hand on his sword, his eyes on the distant sh.o.r.e. His hair had turned bright red and he had taken on considerable flesh since his friends had seen him last, but there was no mistaking the military att.i.tude. In the water around the sponson floated a number of water wings, tied to the boat, to represent floating ice cakes. The audience applauded vigorously as the skiff drew near. At the psychological moment, when Nyoda had her camera focused for a snap a huge mosquito settled on George's extended calf. He uttered a sudden yell, brought his hand down on his leg and pitched headfirst into the water. The patriots rescued him and set him on the dock, and Professor Wheeler, who had sprung from his seat and looked as if he were going to the rescue himself, sat down again amid the general laughter.

”What next?” he murmured, chuckling extravagantly.

The next was an episode ent.i.tled ”The Pirates of Tripoli.”

Chapa, Medmangi and Nakwisi came swaggering out on the dock dressed as pirates, with turbans and sashes and fearful knives stuck in their belts, singing, ”Fifteen men on a dead man's chest!” Striking piratical att.i.tudes on the end of the dock they sang the Pirate song from ”Peter Pan,” making savage gestures and pointing downward dramatically at the line,