Rawlings Institute - Hits and Bits Yearbook (Charlottesville, VA)

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with a little frill of lace on top fevidently her head had been shavenj, which was amazingly becoming. I had never before admired a girl with a bald head, but the dainty cap, the dainty dress, the dainty gi1'l ! She was not a queenly beauty, but a model of' a sweet Virginia girl. She was deeply interested and seemed not to hear us. Guy suggested that I freshen my toilet before meeting the other members of the family. I-Ie took me into a sweet little chamber which was entered from the library. A shaded candle was burning in my room, the eur- tains to the bed and windows were of white, the wall-papering was of' green and gilt, a vase of large red roses was on the table and their bright faces seemed to murmur 4' NVeleome. XVhcn we returned to the library the girl was not there. Guy said, 4' W'onder where Dollie is. It was she whom you saw when we came in. She put those roses there and lit the candle, nobody told me so, but it looks like her work. She is a strange combina- tion. Never hears anything when she reads, a typical book- W0l'lH 3 still as lively as a cricket. By this time we had reached a rustic bench and began to chat of' old college days. Soon his mother, father, little sister and brother, and Dollie joined us. Of all the homes I have ever vis- ited it seems to me that Lydia was the most charming in every way. After tea, Guy and I went to call on some girls from Baltimore who were spending the summer in IV. YVe returned at about eleven o'clock. As we entered the lawn at Lydia we heard the strains of Intermezzo and a sweet voice, trembling with emo- tion, singing as if the song were the embodiment of' its sentiments, 4 '4Avc Maria, hear my cry ! The song was almost finished when we reached the casement and saw, seated at the piano in the moon- light, Dollie! I heard Guy mutter something about '40, why will she sing that thing ? - NVhen she saw us she smiled gaily and began to play our Frat. Two-Step, then our 4' Rowing Song, 44 Boola ! The W. V. A. Two-Step, and the 4' Virginia VValtz. The grandtather's clock in the hall struck one, and we retired. The next morning I heard some one in the room above me. I looked at my watch 5 it was not quite tive, so I went to sleep again. Dollie seemed to read and write most of the time 5 still she was the housekeeper, tbr her lllOtl1Gl',S health was frail 3 she taught the younger sister and brother, who were devoted to her, and she seemed glad to do all she could to add to my enjoyment at Lydia, but never could I induce her to go with me to the show, or even to take a walk unless Guy went with us. Her devotion to him was beautiful to see. Une evening as we came home we heard the same pitiful voice singing, 4' Only to see you, darling. Before we reached the house she was out on the lawn to meet us. I-Ier dress was of white, the neck just low enough to expose a delicate white throat. Every now and then, as her gentle breathing moved the frill of lace, I caught a glimpse of a dainty gold chain, which seemed to extend under her dress. She paused by a rustic bench and said : llow sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank I llere will we sit and let the sounds of music Creep in our ears : soft stillness and the night Heroine the touches of sweet ll2ll'l1l0l1y.H

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LYD I A. PON 1'CLlClllllg home from college for vacation my first - thought was always to make the few necessary prepara- tions tor starting to my grandthther's home, near S., in the dear Old Dominion. I, being the only grandchild, was the pet ot' the whole plantation. To be petted is one ot' the most delightful things in the world to a college boy who for nine months has had to tt look out for number one. How refreshing to stretch his listless length i' upon the coo,l, green turf, and day- dream, doze, or read tnot Calculus or Mechanics, but the volume of his ehoicej, or roam through the woods in search of' tiowers and rare birds l One evening I received an invitation from a friend ta college fraternity matej in NV. to spend ffhorse-show week with him. He was a fine fellow, one that we all loved, always in high spirits, always ready to help a brother out ot' a scrape, and always on top when exam. time came. i Naturally I was delighted, and made innnediate prepa1'ations for leaving. My grandparents regretted my leaving so soon, but, as my summer had been so quiet, they were glad for me to go where there was a chance ot' a little gayety before college reopened- NV. is situated in Piedmont, it is a town of about sixteen hun- dred inhabitants 5 its sidewalks are shaded and cool, and no one is in a hurry. I reached this ideal little Virginia town at about sunset. I was met at the station by my friend, Guy Dunnington, and it did me good to feel the old frat. grip and to note the expression of' genuine pleasure that animated his handsome face as he said, Park, my dear old man, how glad I am to see you I Ten minutes drive brought us to Lydia, the old family homestead. It was situated on a high hill at the edge of town. Standing on the lawn and looking toward the west, I saw the Blue Ridge, behind which the sun, which had left 'ta streak of glory in the sky, was sinking. Looking toward the north, I saw the Bull Run Mountains and the historic battle-fields, once so red with blood, now clothed in ve1'dure. Through a gap in the mountains the little town of Manassas could be seen as the last rays ot' sun- light touched the tin roots. In the east, far and dim, was the blue tide-water line, which, had I known nothing of geography, I should certainly have thought was the Atlantic. The lawn was large and level, densely shaded by ash, maple and aspens. The grass was closely cut, except in the southeaste1'n corner, where there was a terrace about ten feet high, covered with honeysuekle 5 a climbing rose and a wild grapevine had mingled over a stunted apple tree, and a mountain ivy had covered itself with pink and white blossoms. This corner of' the lawn was known to the inmates ot' Lydia as 'f Madison, getting its name from its rural aspect. The house was large and conveniently arranged, furnished more for eomfbrt than for beauty-large Morris chairs, old-fash- ioned sofas with an abundance of downy pillows, low tables and shaded lights. To the right of the reception hall was the library. At a desk, bending over a book, was a girl of about seventeen years of' age. Her dress was pure white, her eap also was white,

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lVe sat together and talked until very late. Dollie could dis- cuss almost any subject, criticise almost any book, and sing almost any song. She handled her guitar with ease and grace, and never before had I realized how sweet its music was. Every morning I heard the light footfhlls in the room above me, and quite naturally my curiosity rose very high. One morning I dressed hurriedly as soon as I heard the tbotfiills, and stationed myself at a crack in the door to peep into the library and recep- tion hall. Soon I saw Dollie with broom and dusterg her gingham apron covered her morning dress and her cap was without its usual frills. In a little while the front of the house was spotless and Dollie left, but before long she reappeared in a pretty pink morn- ing dress and white cap with little pink bows nestling in the lace. On one arm she carried a large covered basket, and on the other a basket of roses like the ones in my room. I watched her as she left, and determined to follow her. I kept at a safe distance, fbr I knew I was not doing exactly the proper thing, and if there was one person on earth in whose good graces I wished to dwell it was Dorothy Dunnington. She turned a corner at the court-house, and by the time I had done so she was out of sight. I gazed in all directions, but she was not to be seen. I returned to Lydia. All was quiet and I entered unobserved. A little while later I heard Dollie practicing. She always did so from six until seven, but I had never ventured in to hear her before, for she seemed always to want some one else present when we were together. When I entered she laughed and said: For once Mr. Lloyd Parkhurst, Jr., thought he should be industrious, so he chose this beautiful morning. I was not called from my morning slumbers by an aspiration for industry, but to hear your music and be near you. A bold stroke, but I did not often have an opportunity, so I thought I had better make the best of this one. Then I'll not weary you longer with my talking. She plunged into wave after wave of melody, now as soft and low and dim as the mist in the valley, new brilliant as the birds in the tree-tops. It was when her music was sad that she raised her sweet blue eyes and seemed unconscious of my presence, and her face wore an expression different from any I had ever seen there before. U Your music is divine, Miss Dunnington, but will you not go to the lawn and talk to me for a little while? I-Ier expression changed 5 for a moment she hesitated, but her quick brain soon framed an excuse. 4' That would be very delightful,,' came in her frank, child-like tone, ff but I have household duties to attend to and I must away. Already I have given you too much of my time. Boys are such rogues you have to watch them. If I, a big, good-for-nothing, college boy, was a rogue, what was the sly, elf-like Dollie? In the evening Guy and myself were in the library, reading, he rose and said : Park, I guess there are books enough here to amuse you until I return. I'll not be gone for long, but, you know, my engage- ment is rather urgent, and I am sure you do not mind my lack of ceremony.