Mary Jane Her Visit by Clara Ingram Judson

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Then they went upstairs and got out fresh bedding, and Mary Jane
herself put out the fresh towels in the guest bathroom. And by that
time it was six o'clock--time for bread and milk. Everybody went to
bed early so as to be up and feeling fine in the morning.

Next morning Mary Jane helped Grandmother with the morning work; then
she put on her pink gingham dress and got out her biggest pink plaid
hair ribbon for Grandmother to tie. And in no time at all, they were
off to the station.

When the train stopped and left a pretty lady and a rosy-cheeked little
boy of about Mary Jane's age on the tiny platform, Mary Jane suddenly
felt very shy. She had never played with little boys, except Junior,
and he was so much younger she didn't count him, and she didn't quite
know how to talk to a little boy cousin she had never seen before. But
she needn't have worried about what to say because the grown folks
talked all the time and the two children on the front seat beside
Grandfather Hodges, simply sat and looked at each other all the way
home!

But after Grandfather had helped them out, by their own doorstep, Mary
Jane seemed to feel that something must be said so she remarked, "Would
you like to see my mice?"

"I thought girls were afraid of mice," replied John.

"Well, I'm not," said Mary Jane scornfully. "Come on see 'em." And
she started for the barn.

Strange to relate, they hadn't got half way across the barn yard before
the big pig, the same one that had so frightened Mary Jane on her first
day, ran out of his pen in the barn and made straight for them.
Grandfather had been in a hurry both times he went for the train and
had forgotten to lock him up, most likely. John, who wasn't any more
used to creatures than Mary Jane had been, screamed and screamed at the
top of his voice.

Mary Jane looked at him scornfully and, forgetting all about how she
herself had felt when _she_ first came, said, "He won't hurt you! I'll
send him away!" And without a thought of fear, she waved her arms
around as she had seen Grandfather do on that first day. Mrs. Pig
stopped short as she had for Grandfather, and Mary Jane, delighted with
the success she seemed to be having, waved and shouted till
Grandfather, hearing the commotion, came running to see what the matter
could be.

"Well! Well! Well!" he exclaimed when he reached the barn gate and
saw what had happened. "Say I couldn't make a farmer's girl out of
you, Mary Jane! I'm proud of you! Isn't she a good one, John?"

John, his eyes round with fear for himself and with admiration for his
new little cousin, nodded "Yes."

After that Grandfather stayed around near where they were and helped
Mary Jane show John the little pigs, Brindle Bess the cow, and then the
baby mice (who soon wouldn't be babies any more, by the way) up in the
loft. And of course they went across the road to see the lamb that by
now was well acquainted with Mary Jane; and they played with Bob who
came frisking to meet them. And last of all they showed John the brand
new baby ducks.

"I'd have liked the rabbits best," said John when they had told him
about the pets that were found and lost so soon the day before.
"Couldn't we get them back again?"

"Maybe we could, maybe we could," said Grandfather thoughtfully. "We
hadn't tried. Maybe that foolish mother took them back to where we got
them. 'Twould be just like her. Let's go see."

So with a child on each side of him (just the very thing he liked best
too), Grandfather and his guests went back through the cornfield and
the pasture lot to where the rabbit nest had been.

"Well," said Grandfather as he bent over the rubbish where the nest had
been, "for a boy who had just come onto a farm, you're a pretty good
guesser, my son. Look here!" He pulled back the rubbish, just as he
had done the day before, and there, before their eyes were the rabbits,
five of them, just as soft and just as warm and comfortable as though
they had never taken a journey in their lives.

[Illustration: "There, before their eyes were the rabbits, five of
them."]

"Didn't they like our house we made for them?" asked Mary Jane.

"'Pears not," said Grandfather. "What do you want to do about it,
children?"

"I've always wanted some rabbits in a box," said John, "and I never did
have any. I want to feed 'em and watch 'em, you know."

"Yes, I know," agreed Grandfather, but that was all he said.

Mary Jane thought of saying that the box already had a family in it,
her family of ducks, but she thought maybe that wouldn't be polite, and
anyway, likely as not there were more boxes, so she just kept still,
very still.

And while they were all three standing there, wondering, Mary Jane
looked up and over in the hedge, she spied the mother rabbit standing
partly on her hind feet and looking at them as _hard_!

"Look!" cried Mary Jane, "there's their mother!"

The sound of a voice startled the little mother and she ran away,
lipity, lipity, lip; lipity, lipity, lip; such a funny little run! till
she reached the shelter of a log. There she waited--they could see the
tip, white of her tail through the leaves.

"She's waiting to see what happens to her babies!" exclaimed Mary Jane,
and suddenly she made up her mind about rabbit pets. "Let's leave them
here, John," she said quickly. "Their mother's lonesome if they go up
to the house. Let's leave them here and I'll give you half of my
ducks."

"All right," agreed John, "but may I come and see them sometimes,
Grandfather?"

"As often as you like. You just let me know and we'll come twice a
day," said Grandfather, "and you'll have most as much fun with the
ducks, I'll wager. Now let's see if we can't hunt up some dinner."
And they turned to the house.

Such a big day as Mary Jane and John did have! They played and they
hunted eggs and they rode on the cow; yes, that can be done, didn't you
ever try it? And they fed the chickens, and by night time they were so
sleepy and tired they hardly noticed their supper.

But after supper Grandfather sat down to look at his paper. And as he
spread it out before him he suddenly chuckled to himself.

"The very thing!" he said, "the very thing! Why didn't I think of that
before?" Then he looked over at the droopy-eyed little folks sitting
on the window seat. "But I suppose you wouldn't care to go?"

"Go where?" exclaimed both children in a breath. "Where, Grandfather?"

"What you talking about, Father?" asked Grandmother.

Instead of answering, Grandfather passed his paper over to her and
pointed to where he had been reading.

Grandmother laughed and nodded. "Yes, if you want to," she said, "but
they'd better be going to bed in a hurry if they're going to do all
that to-morrow!"

"Tell us! Tell us!" cried Mary Jane eagerly.

"Not a word," laughed Grandfather.

"Not a word," insisted Grandmother. "You wouldn't sleep a wink. You
just stop thinking about what it is and go to sleep. Father, you take
John up and I'll go with Mary Jane."

So without finding out the least thing, for Grandmother wouldn't even
answer a question, not one, Mary Jane went off to bed--and to sleep.

GRANDFATHER'S TREAT

It didn't take long to call those children the next morning, you may be
sure of that. Just one word and they were up and dressing and more
eager than ever to know what Grandfather was planning to do.

"Now will you tell us?" asked John as he ran into the living-room where
Grandfather was sitting.

"Not a word till you've eaten your breakfast," replied Grandfather
laughingly.

"Not even a hint?" exclaimed Mary Jane as she hurried in, buttoning her
play dress as she came, just in time to hear what her Grandfather said.

"Not even a hint," repeated Grandfather, "not till each of you has
eaten your bowl of oatmeal and as much other breakfast as Grandmother
says you should."

"Come on, then, John," said Mary Jane practically; "let's eat quick!"
And she lead the way into the dining-room, where Grandmother had the
breakfast served and ready to eat.

Never did bowls of oatmeal disappear so rapidly as did those! And when
the children had eaten a baked apple, an egg and a piece of toast
apiece, Grandmother declared that they had done their full duty and
could hear the surprise.

"But I'm not through myself!" exclaimed Grandfather in mock surprise.
"Did you put your breakfast on your chairs? You couldn't have eaten it
_this_ soon!" And he pretended to hunt around under the table for the
breakfast.

"You know we didn't hide it, Grandfather!" cried Mary Jane; she had
been there long enough to get used to Grandfather's teasing so she
wasn't puzzled by it as John was. "Now you'll have to tell us, won't
he, Grandmother?"

Grandmother nodded and Grandfather got up from his chair and went to
the dining-room closet. He rummaged on the shelf a minute and then
brought out a big roll of paper. "There!" he exclaimed as he laid it
in front of the children, "you may unroll that and see if you can tell
what it is? Better lay it on the floor so you don't tip the cream
pitcher over."

The children set the roll on the floor; then Mary Jane held the rolled
up part while John pulled it open. They didn't have it half unrolled
before both children exclaimed, "A circus! It's a circus.
Grandfather! Are we going to a circus?"

"Shouldn't wonder a bit," said Grandfather indifferently as he took
another piece of toast; "shouldn't wonder a bit. That is, of course,"
he added with marked politeness, "unless you don't care to go."

"You _know_ we care to go," laughed Mary Jane and she jumped up and
gave him a big bear hug. "You know we just want to go the mostest of
anything in the world, we do!"

"Then we'll go!" said Grandfather and he stopped his teasing and told
them all about his plans. "We'll start about nine o'clock so we'll
have plenty of time because we have to drive about fifteen miles and
get our lunch and--"

"And see the parade," interrupted John.

"Oh, yes, we see the parade before lunch, you're right," laughed
Grandfather. "I see there's going to be nothing skipped in this day.
Then we want to see all the animals and get good seats and everything."

"Then we'd better start right now," suggested Mary Jane.

"Dear me, no, not for two hours yet!" exclaimed Grandfather. "That's
the reason I got you that poster. See? It's all rolled up again. Now
I'll help you unroll it so you can look at it while you wait for the
time to start."

Grandmother helped too, and the big poster picture was unrolled and a
chair set on each end of it to hold it open. Then Mary Jane and John
could walk around and see it well. It was a picture of the parade and
showed camels and lions in cages and elephants and clowns and pretty
ladies and everything and of course it was most interesting to look at.
But it wasn't so interesting that the children forgot to look at the
clock--indeed, no! They watched and watched and watched and finally
the clock said, "Eight!"

"Now then," said Mary Jane, "that's all I'm going to look. Let's roll
it up and get ready. Maybe we can help Grandmother."

They found a good many interesting things to do. Grandmother had
decided that they had better take their lunch with them and eat it in
the car because the town where the circus was to be was small and there
might be no good place for them to eat.

John got the lunch box from the storeroom and Mary Jane helped wrap
sandwiches and chicken and cake in oiled paper; and by quarter of nine
everything was ready.

"Fifteen minutes to wash hands and faces and change your clothes,"
exclaimed Grandmother as she heard Grandfather bring the car up to the
house. "Can you do it?"

"'Deed yes," said Mary Jane, scampering on ahead up the stairs. "I can
wash myself and you just look at the cracks. And I can put my own
dress and shoes on. I can do lots!"

"I should say you can!" exclaimed Grandmother admiringly. "You do all
you can then, dear, and I'll help John."

At one minute to nine they were all at the door ready to climb into the
car and be off.

"Did you give them their spending money?" asked Grandmother as she
helped stow the lunch into the car.

"Not yet," answered Grandfather. "I'll give it to them when they get
there."

"Listen to the man!" exclaimed Grandmother in disgust, "and make them
miss half the fun of carrying their own money. Wait a minute!" She
hurried into the house and came back in a minute with two little black
purses in her hand. "There now, children," she said as she handed a
purse to each child, "you can carry your own money. Here's two nickels
for you, Mary Jane, and two nickels for you, John. Don't lose them!"

"We won't," said Mary Jane and she clutched hers tightly in her hand,
"and may we buy anything we want?"

"Anything you want--anything!" Grandmother assured her.

"We'll be home at six," called Grandfather as he started the car and
they whisked down the drive and away.

Such a jolly drive as that was! They talked about the circus they were
to see and how they would spend their money. And whether the lion
would roar and what they should buy. And if the lady could really
truly do everything on her horse that the picture said she could and
how much ice cream cones would cost. You see Grandmother had been
right--half the fun of spending money was the holding the money
beforehand and planning how it was to be spent.

Arriving at the village where the circus was, Grandfather drove them by
the great white tents--how wonderful and mysterious they did seem
too!--and then he found a good place to leave the car and they walked
to the main street where, from the second story of an office building,
they saw the parade go by.

When the sound of the calliope was growing fainter in the distance and
the children were certain sure that every bit of the parade had gone
by, John looked away from the window and asked, "Can we go to the
circus just as soon as we eat our lunch?"

"Yes, I should think we could," answered Grandfather.

"Then let's eat right now!" said John eagerly.

"Not such a bad idea," laughed Grandfather as he looked at his watch.
"Then we'll have plenty of time."

They thanked the kind gentleman in whose office they had been and
walked to the car to eat their lunch. It was a good thing Grandfather
had left the car out of sight of the circus tent, for it was hard
enough to think about eating as it was! Had the tents been in sight it
would have been harder still. But on this quiet street and with the
wonderful parade to talk about they did full justice to Grandmother's
good meal. And when they had finished, even to the tempting little
apple pies, one for each person, they started for the circus.

If you've been to a circus yourself, you know something of the sights
they saw and of the sounds they heard. If you haven't better get
_your_ grandfather (or your father, if your grandfather isn't handy) to
take you to see one, for all the interesting things Mary Jane and John
heard and saw couldn't be put into one chapter--not even if it was a
double long one! They saw curious animals, munching away at their
dinner as though they had lived right there in that spot all their
lives instead of seven hours. They saw crawling snakes and marvelous
birds and the elephants that swayed their trunks backward and forward,
backward and forward, as though they were doing morning exercises. And
the ponies! The prettiest little ponies! Mary Jane didn't know there
_were_ such pretty ponies in all the world. She liked them the best of
anything she saw. John liked the monkeys, and Mary Jane and he fed
them peanuts that Grandfather bought and they felt so very important
because the keeper said that the sign, "Don't feed these animals,"
needn't bother them!

Then they went into the big tent and found their seats--just in time
they were too, for the clowns came running in at that very minute and
kept the children, and the grown folks, too, in an uproar of laughter.
After the circus really began, it seemed to Mary Jane that she must be
in a dream. It didn't seem as though all those jumping, racing, men
and horses and elephants and all, _could_ be real! She had to pinch
herself hard to be sure she was awake.

Right in the middle a man came around with ice cream cones and John
bought one.

"May I buy one too, Grandfather?" asked Mary Jane.

"Just as you like," said Grandfather. "It's your money." And for the
first time she remembered the purse with the two nickels that she had
all the time held tightly clutched in her hand! She bought the cone
and ate it as she watched the circus--calmly indifferent to the fact
that it was leaking onto her pretty pink dress. You simply can't
notice _everything_ at a circus!

Finally the great show was over. The last of the Cinderella parade
slipped behind the curtains and folks began to hurry home. Grandfather
took hold of each child and together they climbed over the seats till
they reached the safe ground.

"Shall we look at the animals again?" he asked.

"We might try," said Mary Jane doubtfully, "but my looking don't see!"

"Poor child," said Grandfather as he suddenly realized how tired the
little girl must be. "I expect your 'lookers' are tired enough to go
home." He picked her up and set her on his shoulder and then, grasping
John's hand firmly, he made his way out of the crowd.

"But I can't go home _yet_!" exclaimed John, when he saw they were
leaving the grounds. "I haven't spent all my money!"

"Well, we can't go home with any money left, that's a sure thing!"
laughed Grandfather. "What do you want to get?"

"Another ice cream cone," said John, as he spied a man going by with a
tray.

"All right," said Grandfather, "do you want one too, Pussy?"

"No, I know what I want, but it isn't here yet," said Mary Jane.

"Where is it?" asked Grandfather.

"At the gate," replied Mary Jane. "I saw it when we came in and I want
to buy it for my grandmother 'cause she couldn't come."

"That's a good idea," said Grandfather. "You tell me when we come to
it."

Mary Jane pointed out the stand where balloons were sold, and with
grandfather's help picked out a fine big red one to take to Grandmother.

Of the drive home Mary Jane remembered not a thing. She had seen and
heard so much that she just sat and listened while Grandfather and John
talked about everything. She almost went to sleep twice--almost but
not quite, because she had to stay awake to hold Grandmother's balloon
and keep it from blowing out of the car.

Grandmother was watching for them when they drove into the yard and was
delighted with her balloon, said she felt exactly as though she had
been to the circus herself.

She tied it to the big glass water pitcher so they could see it all the
while they were eating their supper and she thanked Mary Jane many
times, for thinking to bring it to her.

"I know what I'm going to do first thing in the morning," said John, as
he and Mary Jane climbed upstairs to bed. "I'm going to get out that
picture and see if they did everything it said."

"Well, I know they did," said Mary Jane positively, "and they did more
too, because they did all the noise; I heard 'em!"

LEARNING TO COOK

John stayed a whole week at Grandfather's and every one of the seven
days, he and Mary Jane had a beautiful time. They fed chickens for
Grandmother and gathered eggs; they visited the rabbits, carrying with
them tit-bits of lettuce so they could the easier make friends with the
little creatures; they played with the lamb and watched Mary Jane's
ducks and rode in the car with Grandfather and altogether had a
wonderful time. But the thing that both Mary Jane and John liked the
best--well, anyway, _almost_ the best of all, was playing circus in the
barn.

They pretended that the downstairs was the animal tent and that Brindle
Bess was the elephant--"she waves her hind tail just like he did his
front tail, so that's almost the same," John said--and that the hogs
were lions and little pigs, tigers. And they pretended that the loft
was the performers' tent and that they were the circus folk. Mary Jane
learned to turn a summerset in the hay and she tried to walk a rope but
that didn't work very well because the rope came down; evidently it
wasn't tied tightly. John stood on his head and did tumbling and was
learning to throw three bottles at one time. They tried to do the
elephant-eating-his-dinner act with Brindle Bess but she didn't seem to
understand (maybe because she hadn't been to the circus herself) and
tipped the table over and broke two dishes so they had to give that up.

But finally Cousin Margaret came to take John home and Mary Jane was
left without a playfellow.

"No use moping around, Mary Jane," said Grandmother briskly as she saw
Mary Jane sitting dolefully and idly on the back steps an hour after
John had gone. "Find something to do as you did before John came and
you'll feel happier."

"But everything I know to do, needs two to do it," complained Mary
Jane. "I don't know any children's things for just one!"

"Listen to the child!" laughed Grandmother, "when she played the whole
day long, all by herself and as happy as could be! Well, then, dear,"
she added kindly, "if you don't know a children's thing to do, how
about a grown folks' thing?"

"Oh, Grandmother!" exclaimed the little girl happily, "is there a
grown-up folks' thing I can do?"

"I shouldn't wonder," said Grandmother, smiling mysteriously. "I
shouldn't wonder a bit."

"But I don't want to sew," said Mary Jane, suddenly wondering if her
grandmother might be thinking of that, "I don't feel sew-ish."

"No, it's not sewing," replied Grandmother. "I haven't time for sewing
this morning because I'm going to make strawberry jam."

"Then what is it?" asked Mary Jane and she pressed her face up against
the screen door in her effort to look inside at her grandmother's work.

"You come in and wash your hands and face--wash them good with soap,"
said Grandmother, "then bring me one of Grandfather's big handkerchiefs
and I'll tell you what it is."

That puzzled Mary Jane and she immediately forgot all about John and
her lonesomeness. She hurried to the bathroom and washed her hands and
face the very best she knew how. Then she reached into Grandfather's
drawer and picked out a handkerchief and took it down to Grandmother.

"Now get me five pins from my basket," said Grandmother.

Mary Jane got the pins in a jiffy and then Grandmother stopped her work
and began to unfold and refold the handkerchief.

"What--" began Mary Jane as she watched Grandmother's hands busy
folding, "what's it going to be?"

"A cap," replied Grandmother, smiling, "a cap for the cook who's going
to get our dinner"; and she set the cap squarely on Mary Jane's head!

"Me? Get dinner? Me? By myself?" exclaimed Mary Jane, "but I don't
know how!"

"Oh, yes, you do," laughed Grandmother, "and what you don't know how,
you can learn. Do you know what potatoes look like?"

"Why, of course," replied Mary Jane and she giggled at such a funny
question for potatoes were her favorite vegetable. "I've seen 'em at
home and I've seen 'em in your cellar."

"Sure enough!" said Grandmother, nodding approvingly, "then you'll know
what to do. Take that pan over there," and she pointed to the table,
"and go into the cellar and pick out six nice smooth potatoes."

Mary Jane did as she was told and she thought it was lots of fun too,
to hunt over the bin as she had seen Grandmother do and pick out
potatoes that just suited her.

"Now then," said Grandmother when Mary Jane brought up the potatoes,
"take that scrubbing brush over there and scrub them clean. Then open
the oven door with this holder and lay the potatoes on the shelf to
bake."

"Just like I scrub my hands?" asked Mary Jane.

"Just the same," answered Grandmother, "only you don't use soap."

"How about some baked apples?" asked Grandmother as the oven door was
shut on the potatoes; and Mary Jane noticed that she said it just as
though Mary Jane could do anything or cook anything a body might want.

"They're good, _I_ think," replied Mary Jane.

"So do I," said Grandmother, "and we'll have some. Your Grandfather
opened the last box just this morning. You pick out three, Mary Jane,
and bring me the apple corer from the drawer and the flat brown bowl
from the pantry."

By that time, Mary Jane felt as important as any cook in the land. She
washed the apples. Grandmother hadn't said to do that, but Mary Jane
was sure it should be done. Then she took the bowl and the corer over
to where Grandmother was working with her strawberries.

"Hold the apple so," said Grandmother, showing just how an apple should
be cored, "and turn the corer so--see if you can do the next, Mary
Jane."

Mary Jane could. Not as quickly as Grandmother had done it, of course,
but she did it just the same and set it into the bowl as Grandmother
had done.

"Now comes the fun part," said Grandmother; "your mother used to love
to fix apples I remember."

"Did she do 'em just like me?" asked Mary Jane.

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