Mary Baldwin College - Bluestocking Yearbook (Staunton, VA)

Page 22 text:

14 The A 71711 1 a! of July 27th. -I have not had a chance to write any in my diary for two days, on account of callers, so I determined to slip off before breakfast this morning and come down here to the lake where I could be all by myself for awhile. This is the first time that I have been on the lake, for there is a certain young cou- ple here, Miss Browne and M r. Smith, who seem to think that the boat was built for them alone. They take possession of it as soon as breakfast is over, row away back under the laurel and ferns that border the lake, and there remain, completely hidden from view, till time for dinner. In the afternoon the same thing is repeated. I am ahead of them this morning, though, and I have a great notion to do without my breakfast and stay here all morning just to spite them. As- to breakfast, I don ' t know but that I had just as soon do without it anyway, as to eat on a table that somebody has been sleeping on. Last night we were awakened by a terrible pounding and thumping and the sound of smothered cries and groans, and thinking that robbers must be murdering poor Brother who sleeps on a cot in the dining room, Mother seized the broom and I the pitcher of water (the best implements of warfare we could find on the the spur of the moment), and we both rushed wildly to the res- cue. Without waiting to see which was uppermost, I dashed the water upon the struggling mass we found in the middle of the floor, and Mother plied her broomstick vigorously. But finding that the uproar only increased under our attack, and thinking that maybe the wicked wretch had repented of his evil purpose and was begging for mercy, we desisted for a mo- ment, and found to our amazement, that no one was there ex- cept my poor brother whose cot had closed up and fallen over with him; there he lay almost smothered by the bed-clothes and completely at the mercy of his would-be defenders. With some difficulty we extricated him from his trying position, and the poor boy decided, that rather than risk the repetition of this accident, he would in the future sleep on the table. The table, by the way, consists of an old door snpported by two barrels, so I guess we can turn it over and dine off it without scruples. July 2 8th. -Here I am, back in the boat again, and I did not have to go before breakfast, either. My manoeuvres yester- day morning had a magic effect. As I was writing away, I

Page 21 text:

The Mary Baldwin Seminary. ?t han ds on the graves of her two noblest sons, George Washing- ton and Robert Lee. Margarkt Lane. CAMPING-OUT ADVENTURES. July iist.- Ve are all so worn out with the hot weather that we have decided to go to the mountains for awhile to re- cuperate. Just at the foot of a spur of the Blue Ridge there is a tiny little glen, which is the favorite resort of the people of this neighborhood; and we think that a fortnight ' s stay there might do us all a world of good. We are to go the day after to-morrow. I, for one, am quite impatient to start, for I have heard such wonderful stories of the beauty of Fern Glen, that I am filled with curiosity to see it. July 24th. -Here we are at Fern Glen. We arrived yester- day, and I must say that for once, reality equaled anticipation. As we came in sight of our destination, after a drive of ten miles over a rough mountain road, we all clapped our hands with delight at the prospect before us. To the right lay the little glen, nestling in among the mountains that surround it on three sides, and to the left a beautiful lake, whose clear waters sparkled in the sunshine, as here and there a stray beam made its way in through the branches of the overhanging trees. The • glen is bordered on each side by a row of white-washed cabins. The green sward lying between these is smooth, beautiful and as soft as velvet. At one end of the lawn is a pavilion where the young people congregate in the morning to dance, and the old folks to look on and chat. As I passed by this morning I noticed some boys and girls playing cards in one corner, a young man smoking in another, while in a third a young lady and gentleman were evidently engaged in a very sentimental con- versation, blissfully unconscious of the fact that a red-headed boy was crouching on the ground behind them eagerly drinking in every word they .said. This place seems to be a perfect hot-bed for sentiment, and no wonder, there are so many romantic little nooks round about. It is impossible to take a walk without in- terrupting half a dozen tete-a-tetes.

Page 23 text:

Thf Mary Bald ' cin Snnhiar) ' . I ; suddenly felt that I was no longer alone, and looking up I dis- covered that I was the recipient of the most withering glances cast from the dark eyes of Miss Browne as she stood beside Mr. Smith on the bank. Under this fire of silent scorn I felt all my boa.sted courage vatiishaway, and stepping ashore I humbly begged to be allowed to resign my usurped property. But my advances were met by a cold refusal from the irate Miss Browne who haughtily replied that she and James (I did not know it had come to that — but probably it was only to show her supe- riority to me who had no James) would take a walk on the mountain. They nuist have found a very charming .spot, for they have been going back ever since, much to the delight of all who love the boat. I was so crestfallen at the rebuff I had received that I could enjo} ' the boat no longer, so went back to the cottage, where I found breakfast just ready. As we all sat with bowed heads while Mother asked the blessing, we were .suddenly startled from our devotions by a loud scream, and look- ing up, saw Mother standing in the middle of the floor dripping with water from head to foot, while the table presented the ap- pearance of having passed through a deluge. At first we thought the place must be bewitched, but from the commotion without we soon learned that our roof had been on fire, and, but for the timely assi.stance of our neighbors, the house would have burned down over our heads. Just at first poor Mother could not appreciate the neighbors ' kindness to the fulle-st ex- tent, for having been seated right before the open window, the back of her neck had received the full benefit of a bucket of water intended for the roof. I notice that Mother has since changed her seat, and that my little brother keeps one eye on the ceiling (or rather the roof, as we don ' t boa.st ceilings) and the other on the window wdiile grace is being said. The boys are fully persuaded that these mountains are in- fested with wild animals of various kinds, especially with bears. Last night a dozen young urchins .sat around a camp-fire ' till midnight, listening to the blood-curdling stories of some old hunters who were relating their adventures and hair-breadth escapes for the benefit of the company. Before going to bed, my little brother determined that he would no longer risk life and limb by sleeping unarmed in a shed-room which has one