Dorothy's Tour Part 17

"Good-bye, my little girl," whispered Jim, kissing a stray lock of Dorothy's hair as he swung off the car.

The car gave one jerk and then started out. The girls waved good-bye from the car windows till they could no longer see the ones they were leaving behind.

It would take the remainder of the afternoon to reach Washington, and there they were to meet one or two more members of the company, and to learn of the final plans for the whole trip.

CHAPTER XII.

IN WASHINGTON.

The train ride pa.s.sed quickly enough, and just gave Aunt Betty time for a rest. Between intervals of reading, Dorothy told Ruth of all the previous day's happenings, and before they knew it they had arrived in Washington.

Mr. Dauntrey came to Dorothy and volunteered to take care of their baggage. Aunt Betty had packed the suit cases for all three of them, so she gave him these, saying, "If you will have these in the hotel bus, Mr. Dauntrey, I will be obliged. We shall not get our trunk up to the hotel till late this evening, I heard Mr. Ludlow say."

"What hotel do we stop at, Mr. Dauntrey?" inquired Ruth.

"At the Willard, Miss Boothington," he answered, politely adding, "I will come back for your suit cases and tend to you in just a few seconds if you will wait in the car for me."

"Thank you," the girl answered, going back into the car to gather her things together. "There, that is all, I guess, a bag, a hat box and one suit case. I can manage to exist with that much for a few days."

"Come along. Just follow me," cried Mr. Ludlow, just loud enough for all to hear him. "This way. I want to get you all taken care of and over to the hotel as quickly as possible. I have made reservations and I hope everything will be ready at once for us."

"Come Ruth," sang out Dorothy, as she and Aunt Betty and Alfaretta made their way after Mr. Ludlow. "Come or you will be left behind."

"I promised I'd wait here for Mr. Dauntrey," answered Ruth. "He is coming back for me. My luggage is all here, and I can't manage it."

"Very well, we will wait for you in the stage," answered Dorothy, and linking her arm in Alfaretta's, followed close after Mrs. Calvert, who was walking just in front with Mr. Ludlow.

"There's Mr. Dauntrey," whispered Alfaretta. "He's with that little dancer, Miss Winters."

"So he is," whispered Dorothy, "I hope he has not forgotten Ruth. Mr.

Ludlow usually attends to Ruth himself; I wonder why he has not thought of her?"

"Maybe he is provoked at her," answered Alfy, very softly so as the couple just in front would not hear them. "He looked at her real cross like, at the Pennsylvania station to-day. She was standing, talking very earnestly with Mr. Dauntrey, and Mr. Ludlow called to her twice and she never heard him."

"Maybe that's why. But see, there he goes back. I guess he has gone after Ruth now," replied Dorothy.

"Here we are. Now all get in. We must hurry," announced Mr. Ludlow.

"Are we all here? Let me see--Mrs. Calvert, Dorothy, Alfaretta, Miss Winters, Miss Robbia and Mr. Carleton," as the pianist came in sight carrying two suit cases, "but where is Ruth? Ruth and Mr. Dauntrey, where are they?"

"Mr. Dauntrey has just gone back after Ruth. She was gathering her luggage together as I left the car. Mr. Dauntrey said he would hurry back and get her if she would wait," answered Dorothy.

Just then Ruth and Mr. Dauntrey came in sight. The girl held his arm and was looking up into his face, chatting pleasantly, while in back a porter, very much laden down with Ruth's belongings, trailed along after them.

The occupants of the bus caught just then a sentence spoken by a pa.s.sing couple. "See the little bride and groom here on their honeymoon." At these words Mr. Ludlow frowned deeply and looked very cross indeed. He spoke not a word to Ruth as she was handed into the bus by Mr. Dauntrey, but quickly got in and shut the door behind him.

In a few minutes they had reached the hotel. Mr. Ludlow registered for the party and then the keys were supplied for the rooms a.s.signed to them. Mrs. Calvert and the girls went quickly upstairs and dressed for dinner. The evening meal is always quite a function in Washington. The people for the most part dress in evening clothes. The hotels are almost always crowded with the government people, senators, representatives and officers of various degrees.

Mrs. Calvert went down first and sent a card to Jim telling him of their safe arrival, then the girls joined her.

Mr. Ludlow had arranged for a dinner party. They found some of the company waiting in the lounging room. Soon they were all a.s.sembled and Mr. Ludlow and Mrs. Calvert led them into the brilliant dining room where they all had a very gay dinner.

Mr. Ludlow suggested that they visit the Library of Congress, as the evening was a very favorable hour for such a visit. At that time the beautiful interior decorations were seen to great advantage under the brilliant illumination.

"Come, let us get our wraps," said Mrs. Calvert. "The building closes about ten and there is much of interest to be seen there."

"Very well," answered Dorothy. "Do you want your black wrap? I will get it. You sit here."

"Yes, dear. The black one," answered Aunt Betty, seating herself and waiting for Dorothy to return.

"Come Alfy," called Dorothy, and the girls quickly disappeared down the long, brilliantly lighted corridor which was crowded with guests.

They were gone but a few moments and returned with their wraps securely fastened and carrying Aunt Betty's.

"Let me help you into it," said a cheery voice behind them. Turning, they saw, much to their surprise, Mr. Dauntrey.

"Come with me. I have already secured a taxi, and it will just hold four. The others can follow."

He took Mrs. Calvert's arm and gallantly helped her into the taxicab, then Dorothy, and then Alfaretta, each with the same niceness of manner. He then quickly got in himself, taking the one vacant seat beside Dorothy. He closed the door and off they started.

The entrances to the library are in the front, facing the Capitol. A grand staircase leads up to the doorways of the central pavilion, giving access to the main floor. Up this staircase the quartette slowly climbed.

"Just look!" exclaimed Dorothy, when they had reached the top. "Just look around. See all the lights of the Capitol over there. Isn't it all very beautiful?"

"And look down at the fountain!" cried Alfy. "See how the sea-creatures are blowing water from their mouths, and in the centre 'Apollo.'"

"No, if I may correct you, that is Neptune," said Mr. Dauntrey. "I have a guide book here. It is freely placed at your disposal, ladies."

"I think every one that visits the Capitol should have a guide book,"

said Aunt Betty. "It adds immeasurably to one's pleasure. I have an old one at the hotel, and I have been looking it over. I read it through the last time I was here, not so many years ago. I do not recall the publisher's name."

"The one I have here is Rand, McNally Company's," said Mr. Dauntrey.

"And so was mine, I remember now, and it was fine, too," replied Aunt Betty.

"Although that is not Apollo," said Mr. Dauntrey, "your mention of the name reminds me of a western politician who once visited here. He had great wealth, but little education, and when someone in his presence spoke of a statue of Apollo, he said, 'Oh, yes, I have one on my parlor mantle. On one end I have Apollo, and on the other, Appolinaris.'"

"An amusing anecdote, and I don't doubt a real one," said Aunt Betty, laughing with the others, "but isn't that a wonderful old fountain?

See the beautiful effects produced by the water as it is thrown in cross lines from all those miniature turtles, sea serpents and what not, that are supposed to populate ocean and stream."

They stepped up the last tread and entered a long corridor, stretching along the front and forming an exaggerated vestibule. They gazed between piers of Italian marble supporting arches, an entrancing vista. In heavy brackets they noted pairs of figures, advanced somewhat from the walls, "Minerva in War," armed with sword and torch, and "Minerva in Peace," equipped with scroll and globe.

Before these, greatly admiring them, the girls stood, and Mrs. Calvert said, "Dorothy, those are the most admired ornaments in the whole building, but you can see them again as you pa.s.s out. Come, let's go inside."

"Yes, if you enjoy great art, Miss Dorothy," spoke up Mr. Dauntrey, "I will be pleased to personally conduct you through the Art Museum. Art, too, is my one hobby. To be happy I must always have the beautiful, always the beautiful."

Pa.s.sing on through the screen of arches, they entered the main hall, in the centre of which ran a magnificent stairway leading to the second floor and rotunda gallery.