Mary Lee the Red Cross Girl Part 25

"Yes, indeed, but don't eat so slow. Remember we have to wash our dishes and clear up our own tents before we can do what we like."

"That's so," said Mary Lee, "see, some of the girls are through already."

As each girl finished, she gathered up her own dishes, walked to the end of the big table and washed and rinsed them in the big pans, placed there for that purpose.

After breakfast the tents were put in order, and when everything was ready the guardian inspected them all, to see which tent should be awarded first honors for the day.

The Guardian was about to select the tent in which Letty's cousin Edna slept when she discovered a hair pin sticking up between the boards in front of the tent.

"My, isn't she a strict Campfire Guardian?" whispered Edith to Letty.

"I should say so! Weren't we lucky to have Aunt Madge for our Guardian?" said Letty, "instead of one like her?"

Cousin Edna came up just then to tell the girls that she wanted them to come over and meet her friend Josephine.

"She's the dearest little French girl. Her father was killed two years ago over in France. Immediately afterwards she and her mother came to this country to raise funds for the French Red Cross. The mother can't think of anything but the war. She's a regular fanatic on the subject.

She gives lectures around at the houses of the 'four hundred' and has made no end of big money for the good cause."

"But how did the daughter get to be a Campfire Girl?" asked Edith.

"The Guardian of our camp met her several times at lectures and felt sorry for her. She seemed to be growing melancholy from so much war talk. She never went anywhere except with her mother, so our Guardian took her under her wing, asked her to join our camp and now she's the favorite everywhere. She's getting her color back and is almost jolly at times."

"I suppose she can tell blood-curdling stories about the war scenes she saw before coming to this country."

"Yes, indeed; but we try to get her mind off the war because it has such a depressing effect on her. But she can tell you the most fascinating things about 'gay Paree' before the war. Her father was a member of President Poincaire's cabinet before he enlisted, and she used to attend all the state b.a.l.l.s at the Elysee Palace."

"How thrilling!" exclaimed Letty. "Do introduce us."

"Isn't she a perfect darling?" whispered Edith to Mary Lee, after the introduction was over.

The girls then pa.s.sed a delightful hour, playing their ukuleles and telling stories.

At eleven o'clock all went down to the beach for a swim. What fun they had diving from the spring board and learning the "Australian Crawl."

After dinner they had rest-hour till 2:30. They had to keep pretty quiet, so our three "hikers," Cousin Edna and the French girl decided to sit outside their tent and read.

"But whatever shall we read?" asked Letty.

"We have some books here," said Cousin Edna, rummaging around in an empty soap box, which stood on end, and took the place of a wash-stand in the tent.

"How are these t.i.tles: 'Woodland Nymphs,' 'Oh Jerry, Be Careful,' 'Mr.

Ripling Sees it Too,' 'The Baby and the Bachelor'?"

"That's the one," cried all the girls in chorus as the last t.i.tle was called out.

The book proved to be an interesting one. In fact, it made them laugh so, that it was not long before the Guardian came to hush them up and to remind them that it was "rest hour."

"Are we going to have our beach supper tonight?" asked Cousin Edna.

"Yes, and if you like," replied the Guardian, "we can take our blankets and sleep all night on the beach."

"Lovely," cried all the girls at once. "Let's get ready at once, shall we?"

Soon the picnic basket was packed and off they started to a pretty point two miles down the sandy beach.

The first thing they did upon arriving was to gather enough wood to make a fire.

Then they hunted up a large clean-looking stone and put it in the fire to heat.

While this was heating some of the girls gathered long blades of strong gra.s.s and wove two mats the size of the top of the stone.

As soon as the stone was heated, they pulled it out of the fire and dug a big hole in the sand in which they placed it. Around and over it they put hot ashes. They had brought a supply of nice fresh fish already cleaned and seasoned. These they placed between the gra.s.s mats and then covered the mats over with more ashes.

"Do you mean to say that the fish will cook like that?" asked Mary Lee.

"Indeed they will," said Cousin Edna, "and they will be so delicious you will wish you could have them cooked like that all the time."

"How long will it take to cook them that way?" asked Letty.

"About an hour," replied Cousin Edna. "In the meantime, we can all gather wood for our big fire tonight. We are going to roast corn and toast marshmallows this evening."

"We have a lot of wood already," said Letty. "See the big pile over there!"

"Bless you, child, that's nothing. We have to have enough to keep the fire going all night."

"All night?" exclaimed Edith. "Whoever has to sit up and tend it all night? I'd certainly hate that job."

"Oh, no one has to tend the fire _all_ night. A number of us are chosen and each one has to keep watch an hour at a time," explained Cousin Edna.

"It must be hard to sit up a whole hour; I'm sure I'd go off to sleep," said Letty.

"You can doze if you like, but you have to keep one eye on the fire.

You see, it gets very chilly on the beach before morning and the fire helps a lot. Besides, it keeps away the mosquitoes."

What a delicious beach supper they had and what a delightful evening they pa.s.sed afterwards, telling stories, etc.

When nine o'clock came each girl put on her sweater and rolled herself in her blanket.

"Here's where I sleep," said Letty, throwing herself down on the beach and piling sand into a heap for a pillow.

"Good idea," said Edith, "let's all make pillows out of sand."

The night on the beach proved to be a delightful one, to all but one of the girls. She woke up next morning with a stiff neck from sleeping in a cramped position, and could not go in bathing.

Thanks, however, to Mary Lee's training under Dr. Payson, and her Red Cross first aid lessons, she knew just how to ma.s.sage the girl's neck and thus relieved the pain in a short time.

After bathing, the girls all walked back to camp, where the cook had prepared a good substantial breakfast for them. They then pa.s.sed the day quietly as it was Sunday. Late that afternoon, Letty, Mary Lee and Edith said good-bye and started on their homeward journey.

"Wasn't it a delightful trip?" said Mary Lee, as they finally reached the railroad station.