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CHAPTER VIII DOROTHY’S WORRIES
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It did look strange. Dorothy had gone out before any of her companions were about, and now, after being away two hours she was found returning in the company of a young man.

It might have been different if Tavia, and the girls who had met Mr. Armstrong on the train, had chosen to go toward the depot1 instead of seeking Dorothy in the opposite direction; but when Jean Faval met her, there were with Jean three of the new girls, and of course, they neither knew Dorothy nor her companion.

Small things grow quickly when they have plenty of room, and Dorothy’s escapade, being the one thing worth talking of at Glenwood, soon amounted to a sensational2 story, fanned by the gossips and nurtured3 by her rival in the school.

What girl has gone through school without some such similar experience? And does it not always occur at the most unexpected times?

Are there always, and everywhere, “school rivals?”

63 Mr. Armstrong said good-bye to Dorothy at the tanbark path that led to Glenwood Hall. Excited over her strange experience, Dorothy had no thought of what others might wonder! Where had she been? Why did she leave the grounds so early? What was Dorothy worrying about?

“See here, Doro,” Tavia confronted her, as together they prepared for breakfast—late at that. “What ails5 you? You promised to tell me to-day.”

“What ailed6 me, Tavia, does not exactly ail4 me now. I have just learned how some girls have to make a living.”

Saying this Dorothy sank back, rather unlike herself, for the morning had been warm, and her duties anything but refreshing7.

“Dorothy, tell me, what is it?” demanded Tavia.

“You look at me as if I were a criminal,” replied the blonde Dalton girl. “I can never be coerced,” she finished.

“Dorothy, you are so unlike yourself. And you have no idea how much trouble that Jean Faval can make,” insisted Tavia, with more spirit than she usually showed.

Dorothy stopped in her hair-fixing. “Tavia,” she said, emphatically, “I have friends enough here,” and she glanced at the school-girl picture-lined wall, “and I am not afraid of Jean Faval.”

64 Dorothy was always pretty, sometimes splendid, and again tragic—Tavia decided8 she was one in all at that moment.

“Good!” declared her champion. “Don’t worry, Dorothy, but if you could just tell me——”

Dorothy stopped and looked into the glass without seeing anything.

She was worried, but since she had tried to run a lunch room, and had discovered how hard some girls, as young as herself, had to work, the thought that some day she too, might have to do something to earn money, did not seem so appalling9. Should she tell Tavia?

“I am waiting, Doro,” Tavia said. “Now confess.”

“It’s really nothing so very serious, dear,” she replied, “but you know father is getting old and—he has put all his money into the Marsall Investment Company, of New York. Just before I left home father heard—that the money may be—lost!”

“All your money?”

“Yes, isn’t that dreadful? Of course, if it is lost we could never live with Aunt Winnie. We would be too proud, although she and the boys have always been so lovely to us. Yet to have no home makes it different.”

“But, Dorothy, I can’t believe that will happen. Your father has always been so wise,” and Tavia65 smoothed the ribbon on Dorothy’s light hair. “If it should happen——”

“If it should, I would certainly go to work,” Dorothy declared, firmly. “I should never let Joe leave school, and stay on here myself. Besides, Joe could not do very much,” she sighed. “I am so afraid for father—afraid the crash would——”

“Now, Doro, it is not like you to plan trouble,” Tavia interrupted, “so let us forget it. I am afraid you will have some queer eyes made at you when you go down to breakfast,” Tavia finished.

“It certainly was rather an unfortunate start for the first morning,” Dorothy agreed. “But, Tavia, I wish you could have seen me. If Mr. Armstrong had not just come along then, I would have run away, and left the whole place to those greedy men. I could not have stood it five minutes longer.”

“It must have been funny. I’ll have to take my lunch down there some early morning. Maybe another nice Mr. Armstrong might come along. But say, Doro, did you hear about the hall table candy?”

“No; what happened to it?”

“It seems that Jean got it mixed up in her satchel10 with some hair tonic11 that leaked from a bottle. She says she left it on the table, because66 there was no scrap12 basket there—in the hall, and she didn’t know where to put it. When I took the hair tonic-soaked candy away Jean declares she thought one of the maids had thrown it out, as you could easily smell the hair tonic. I didn’t smell it, neither did Ned, but there was quite a time about it, as Jean got worried when she thought it over. That was why she came out the second time. But then they were gone—perhaps some of the girls took them. You never heard so much talk over a little spill of hair tonic.”

“Did Jean ask Mrs. Pangborn about it?”

“Of course, and Mrs. Pangborn was more frightened than Jean, for she said the stuff might have a poison in it. Now everyone is waiting to see who will drop dead,” and Tavia laughed as if such an occurrence would be very funny.

“Let’s hurry. We will get the second table now, and it’s such a beautiful day to be out,” Dorothy said. “I feel better, really, for having told you about my worries. Perhaps I will get a letter with good news.”

“I hope so. But let me tell you something. If we really need money I’ll advertise the little dog. Jake says he’s a thoroughbred.”

“He may be some child’s pet, and you ought to advertise him, anyhow,” Dorothy said. “There are Cologne and Edna. They have finished.”

67 They stopped at the door of the breakfast room.

“Oh you little runaway13!” exclaimed Cologne to Dorothy. “We thought you were on your honeymoon14 by this time.”

“That was a neat trick,” Edna added jokingly, “to go out before daylight, and come back with such a yarn15! You ought to hear what the girls are saying about you!”

“Let’s eat, at any rate,” Tavia suggested. “I’m starved!”

“Didn’t happen to see anyone taken sick yet; did you?” asked Edna. “I hope the medicine fell into the other camp. You know Jean is already organizing.”

As Tavia and Dorothy entered the room Jean Faval and several girls passed out. Some of them said good morning, and some of them did not. But Jean was heard to remark something about “cooks and classes.”

“She means the lunch wagon,” Dorothy whispered to Tavia.

“She’s mean enough to mean anything,” replied Tavia. “I can’t see why she has such a grudge16 against you, Doro.”

“Never mind. We can get our club together and then our rivals may club by themselves,” said Dorothy.

68 As they finished breakfast, a waitress handed Dorothy a note.

“Mrs. Pangborn wants to see me,” said Dorothy, rising.

Then Tavia’s hope, that the morning’s gossip had escaped the ears of the school principal, vanished.

“Don’t mind if she asks queer questions,” Tavia remarked, as Dorothy left. “You know those new girls have to be kept busy.”

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 depot Rwax2     
n.仓库,储藏处;公共汽车站;火车站
参考例句:
  • The depot is only a few blocks from here.公共汽车站离这儿只有几个街区。
  • They leased the building as a depot.他们租用这栋大楼作仓库。
2 sensational Szrwi     
adj.使人感动的,非常好的,轰动的,耸人听闻的
参考例句:
  • Papers of this kind are full of sensational news reports.这类报纸满是耸人听闻的新闻报道。
  • Their performance was sensational.他们的演出妙极了。
3 nurtured 2f8e1ba68cd5024daf2db19178217055     
养育( nurture的过去式和过去分词 ); 培育; 滋长; 助长
参考例句:
  • She is looking fondly at the plants he had nurtured. 她深情地看着他培育的植物。
  • Any latter-day Einstein would still be spotted and nurtured. 任何一个未来的爱因斯坦都会被发现并受到培养。
4 ail lVAze     
v.生病,折磨,苦恼
参考例句:
  • It may provide answers to some of the problems that ail America.这一点可能解答困扰美国的某些问题。
  • Seek your sauce where you get your ail.心痛还须心药治。
5 ails c1d673fb92864db40e1d98aae003f6db     
v.生病( ail的第三人称单数 );感到不舒服;处境困难;境况不佳
参考例句:
  • He will not concede what anything ails his business. 他不允许任何事情来干扰他的工作。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Measles ails the little girl. 麻疹折磨着这个小女孩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 ailed 50a34636157e2b6a2de665d07aaa43c4     
v.生病( ail的过去式和过去分词 );感到不舒服;处境困难;境况不佳
参考例句:
  • Never in his life had Robin ailed before. 罗宾过去从未生过病。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I wasn't in form, that's what ailed me.\" 我的竞技状态不佳,我输就输在这一点上。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
7 refreshing HkozPQ     
adj.使精神振作的,使人清爽的,使人喜欢的
参考例句:
  • I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
  • The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼,特别解乏提神。
8 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
9 appalling iNwz9     
adj.骇人听闻的,令人震惊的,可怕的
参考例句:
  • The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
  • Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。
10 satchel dYVxO     
n.(皮或帆布的)书包
参考例句:
  • The school boy opened the door and flung his satchel in.那个男学生打开门,把他的书包甩了进去。
  • She opened her satchel and took out her father's gloves.打开书箱,取出了她父亲的手套来。
11 tonic tnYwt     
n./adj.滋补品,补药,强身的,健体的
参考例句:
  • It will be marketed as a tonic for the elderly.这将作为老年人滋补品在市场上销售。
  • Sea air is Nature's best tonic for mind and body.海上的空气是大自然赋予的对人们身心的最佳补品。
12 scrap JDFzf     
n.碎片;废料;v.废弃,报废
参考例句:
  • A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
  • Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。
13 runaway jD4y5     
n.逃走的人,逃亡,亡命者;adj.逃亡的,逃走的
参考例句:
  • The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
  • He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。
14 honeymoon ucnxc     
n.蜜月(假期);vi.度蜜月
参考例句:
  • While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
  • The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。
15 yarn LMpzM     
n.纱,纱线,纺线;奇闻漫谈,旅行轶事
参考例句:
  • I stopped to have a yarn with him.我停下来跟他聊天。
  • The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。
16 grudge hedzG     
n.不满,怨恨,妒嫉;vt.勉强给,不情愿做
参考例句:
  • I grudge paying so much for such inferior goods.我不愿花这么多钱买次品。
  • I do not grudge him his success.我不嫉妒他的成功。


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