"Jerry--it's perfect! Come and look." Gyp, shivering in her pajamas1, was standing2 with her small nose flattened3 against Jerry's cold window. Downstairs a clock had just chimed seven.
Jerry sprang from her bed with one bound. She peeped over Gyp's shoulder. A thaw4 the day before had made the girls very anxious, but now a sparkling crust covered the snow and the early sun struck coldly across the housetops.
This was the day of the Lincoln Midwinter Frolic.
"Bring your clothes into my room and we'll dress in front of the fire. Uh-h-h, isn't it cold? But won't it be fun? Don't you wish it was ten o'clock now? It's going to be the very best part of the whole holiday!"
Jerry thought so, too, when, a few hours later, she and Gyp joined a large group of the Lincoln girls and boys at the trolley5 station. A special car, attached to the regular interurban trolley, was to take them and their sleds and skis--and lunch--out to Haskin's Hill where the Midwinter School Frolic was always held.
Jerry had not caught a glimpse of the country since arriving with Uncle Johnny at the Westley home. As the car sped along she sat quiet amid the merry uproar6 of her companions, but her eyes were very bright; these wide, open stretches of fields, with the little clusters of buildings and the hills just beyond, made her think of home.
The founders7 of Lincoln School had wanted to thoroughly8 establish the principle of co-education. "These young people," one of them had said, "will have to live and work and play in a world made up of both men and women; let them learn, now, to work and play together." The records of the school showed that they worked well together and one had only to give the briefest glance at the merry horde9 that swarmed10 over Haskin's Hill on that holiday morning to know that they played well together, too.
"It's most like Kettle," cried Jerry, excitedly, for at Haskin's station, where the picnickers left the trolley, the hills pressed about so close that they, indeed, seemed to Jerry like her beloved mountains. "But how horrid11 to call a lovely place like this Haskin's!"
"It's named after a funny little hermit12 who lived for years and years--they say he was 'most one hundred and fifty when he died--in the little cabin at the foot of the hill where we coast. He used to write poetry about the wind and the trees and he'd wander around and sit in his door playing a violin and singing the verses he'd written."
"Then his name could be any old thing," declared Jerry, delighted at the picture Gyp had drawn13, "if he did such lovely things! Let's us call it the Singing Hill."
The scent14 of pine on the frosty air and the knowledge that her new sweater and tam-o'shanter were quite as pretty as the prettiest there, transformed Jerry into a new Jerry. She felt, too, that out here in the open she was in her element; a familiarity with these sports that had been her winter pastime since she was a tiny youngster gave her an assurance that added to her gay spirits.
Thanks to long hours of play with Jimmy Chubb she could steer15 the bob-sled with a steadier hand than any of the others; Barbara Lee, looking more like a schoolgirl than ever in a jaunty16 red scarf and cap, declared she'd trust her precious bones to no one but Jerry!
The morning passed on swift wings; only the pangs17 of hunger persuaded the girls and boys to leave their fun. They gathered in front of the picturesque18 old cabin about a great bonfire over which two of the older boys were grilling19 beefsteak for sandwiches. And from a huge steaming kettle came a delicious odor of soup.
"Imagine Isobel saying she's too old for all this fun," exclaimed Gyp as she stood in the "chow line" with her mess tin ready in her hand. "Why, a lot of these girls and boys are older than she is! The trouble with Isobel is"--and her voice was edged with scornful pity--"she's afraid of mussing her hair!"
Skiing was a comparatively new sport among the Lincoln boys and girls. Only a few of the boys had become even fairly skillful at it, yet there had been much talk of forming a team to defeat Lincoln's arch-enemy--the South High. While the young people ate their lunch their conversation turned to this.
"We haven't anyone that can touch Eric Hansen, though--he learned how to ski, I guess, in the cradle," declared Dana King, frowning thoughtfully at the long hill that stretched upward from where they were grouped.
During the morning Ginny Cox had borrowed Graham Westley's skis and had, after many tumbles, succeeded in one thrilling descent. She declared now to the others, between huge mouthfuls of sandwich, that it was the most exciting thing she'd ever done--and Ginny, they all knew, had done many! Jerry, next to her, had agreed, quietly, that skiing was--very exciting. Ginny's head was a bit turned by that one moment of victory when she had stood flushed--and upright--at the foot of the hill, trying to appear indifferent as the boys showered laughing congratulations upon her for her feat20, so, now, she turned amused eyes upon Jerry.
"Can you ski?" There was a ring of derision in her voice. Jerry nodded. "Then I dare you to try it from the very top!"
The face of Haskin's Hill was divided by a road that wound across it. Because of the steep descent of the upper part and because the level stretch of the road made a jump too high for anyone's liking21, only one or two of the boys had attempted to ski from the very top, and they had met with humiliating disaster.
Jerry looked up to the top of the hill. Ginny's tone fired her. She was conscious, too, that Ginny's dare had been followed by a hush--the others were waiting for her answer.
"If someone will lend me their skis----" She tried to make her tone careless.
"Jerry Travis, you never would!"
"Take Dana King's skis. They're the best."
"The very top----" commanded Ginny.
"May I use your skis, Dana?"
"Let her use your skis, King."
"Jerry, don't----" implored22 Gyp.
Jerry put down her plate and cup. Miss Lee was in the little cabin, so she did not know what was happening. The girls and boys pressed about Jerry, watching her with laughing eyes. Not one of them believed that she had the nerve to accept Ginny Cox's "dare."
But when, very calmly, she shouldered Dana King's skis and started off up the hill alone, their amusement changed to wonder and again to alarm. Jerry looked very small as she climbed on past the level made by the road.
"Oh, she'll fall before she even gets to the jump--that part's awfully23 steep," consoled one boy, speaking the fear that was in each heart.
"If she kills herself you'll be her murderer," cried Gyp passionately25 to Ginny Cox.
Ginny was wishing very much that she hadn't made that silly, boastful dare--trying to make someone else do what she was afraid to try herself! She was very fond of Jerry. The red faded from her face; she clenched26 her hands tightly together.
Tibby commenced to cry hysterically27. One of the older girls declared they ought to call Jerry back. The boys shouted, but Jerry, catching28 the sound faintly, only waved her hand in answer.
At the top of the hill Jerry turned and looked down the long stretch. She had skied over many of the trails of Kettle, but none of them had had "jumps" as difficult as this. Quite undaunted, however, she told herself that she needed only to "keep her head." She adjusted her skis, then tried the weight of her pole, carefully, to learn its balance. She began to move forward slowly, her eyes fixed30 on the narrow tracks before her, her knees bent31 ever so little, her slim body tilted32 forward. Only for one fleeting33 moment did she see the group below, standing immovable, transfixed by their concern--then their faces blurred34. The sharp wind against her face, the lightning speed sent a thrill through every fibre of Jerry's being; her mind was intensely alert to only one thing--that moment when she must make the jump! It came--instinctively she balanced herself for the leap, her back straightened, her arms lifted, her head went up--as though she was a bird in flight she curved twenty feet through the air ... her skis struck the snow-crusted tracks, her body doubled, tilted forward ... then, amid the unforgettable shouts of the boys and girls she slid easily, gracefully35, on down the trail.
Ginny Cox was the first to reach her. She threw her arms about her and almost strangled her in a passionate24 hug.
"You wonder! Oh, if anything had happened to you----"
The boys were loud and generous in their praise.
"Now we've found someone that can put it all over Hansen," shouted one of them. "Let's challenge South High right off!"
"Who'd ever believe a little kid like you could do it," exclaimed Dana King with laughable frankness, but he stared at Jerry with such open admiration36 that any sting was quite taken from his words.
Jerry could not know, of course, that, all in a moment, she had become a "person" in Lincoln School. Uncle Johnny, that afternoon in the Westley library, had said very truly that it was usually some unexpected little thing that set a style or made a leader. He had not, of course, foreseen this episode of Haskin's Hill, but he had known that Jerry had determination with her sunniness and a faith in herself that could never be daunted29.
"Come on, fellows, let's us try it. We can't let little Miss Travis beat us," challenged one of the boys.
There was general assent37 to this. Half a dozen picked up their skis. But Jerry lifted an authoritative38 hand--Jerry, who, until this moment, had been like a little mouse among them all!
"Oh, boys, don't try it. Unless you can ski very well, a jump like that's awfully dangerous. I've skied all my life and I've jumped, too, but never any jump as high as that and--and I was a little scared--too!" And, because Jerry was a "person" now, they listened. She had spoken with appealing modesty39, too, not at all with the arrogance40 that comes often with success and can never be tolerated by fellow-students.
"Miss Travis is right, fellows," broke in Dana King. "Let's learn to ski a little better before we try that jump. This very minute we'll begin practice for the everlasting41 defeat of South High! You can use my skis, Jerry. Come on, Ginny--the All-Lincoln Ski Team!" He led the way up the hill followed by a number of the boys and Ginny Cox and Jerry--Jerry with a glow on her cheeks that did not come entirely42 from the wintry air; she "belonged" now, she was not just a humble43 student, struggling along the obscure paths--she was one of those elected ones, like Ginny and Dana King, to whom is given the precious privilege of guarding the laurels44 of the school at Highacres!
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pajamas
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| n.睡衣裤 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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thaw
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| v.（使）融化，（使）变得友善；n.融化，缓和 | |
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trolley
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| n.手推车，台车；无轨电车；有轨电车 | |
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uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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founders
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| n.创始人( founder的名词复数 ) | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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horde
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| n.群众，一大群 | |
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swarmed
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| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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horrid
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| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
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hermit
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| n.隐士，修道者；隐居 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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jaunty
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| adj．愉快的，满足的；adv.心满意足地，洋洋得意地；n.心满意足；洋洋得意 | |
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pangs
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| 突然的剧痛( pang的名词复数 )； 悲痛 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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grilling
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| v.烧烤( grill的现在分词 )；拷问，盘问 | |
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feat
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| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
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liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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implored
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| 恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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passionately
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| ad.热烈地，激烈地 | |
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clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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hysterically
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| ad. 歇斯底里地 | |
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catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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daunted
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| 使（某人）气馁，威吓( daunt的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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tilted
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| v. 倾斜的 | |
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fleeting
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| adj.短暂的，飞逝的 | |
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blurred
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| v.（使）变模糊( blur的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）难以区分；模模糊糊；迷离 | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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authoritative
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| adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的 | |
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modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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arrogance
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| n.傲慢，自大 | |
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everlasting
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| adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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laurels
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| n.桂冠，荣誉 | |
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