Winona of the Camp Fire Part 33

"So I will when I get it," said Winona serenely. "Now will you please brace those end-poles thoroughly, and nail cross-pieces on them about a foot from the top?"

"It's easy to tell people how to do things," said Tom; but he was clever at carpentering, and had it done in a very short time.

Then Winona took the copper wire she had bought, and strung it from end to end of the cross-pieces, till the effect was something like that of a half-done cat's cradle. Then she stood off and looked at her work, walking round and round it, as a kitten looks at a mirror.

"That wire ought to bear about twenty pounds, don't you think?" she asked.

"I don't see why not," said Tom, sitting down on the gra.s.s to watch her.

"Now I'll begin, then," she said. "Thank you for making the foundation."

She took up the copper wire again, and strung more lines of it from end to end of the canoe, and one around the gunwale. She laced still more up and down in irregular points, up and down the side-wires, till the effect was that of an irregularly pointed fence, or crown, as high as the end pieces in some parts, and low enough, at the ends, to show the people seated in it.

"Looks like a cross-section of Alps," said Tom critically. "Are you going to be the Blue Alsatian Mountains?"

"There are two cla.s.ses of people who should never see a thing half-done," answered his sister, standing off again to get the effect.

"Thank you," said Tom.

"Doesn't it look like anything else at all?" she asked, abandoning her superior att.i.tude, and throwing herself on his mercy.

"Well, something like a fever-chart," said he.

Winona said no more-there didn't seem to be any use. She picked up her ball of red tinsel, and began to wind it around and within, and across, every point of the "fever-chart," till there was a solid network. It was not a bad imitation of a springing fire.

"Now do you see?" she said. "That's a big, red blaze coming out of the canoe, and when we've lighted the Greek fire inside it ought to look real enough to burn you."

"Not bad," admitted Tom. "But I don't see its connection with a black bonnet and forty jack-o'-lanterns."

"You will by-and-bye," said his sister, going on with her work. It went very smoothly after that, except that Puppums _would_ jump inside, and then looked at her in a wronged way because the canoe did not float off.

After the tinsel was on nothing remained to do but to wrap the end-pieces with black muslin, so they would not show at night, and to cover the canoe with the same material. The lanterns did not need to be hung till the last moment.

The night of the carnival Camp Karonya, very much excited, sailed down the river in all the glory of its fleet, about six. The Indian village was a great success as far as looks went. Whether it would be as handsome a float as the ones it would have to compete with n.o.body could tell yet. As a canoe takes less time to engineer than a float, and also as the boys hadn't come yet, Winona stayed behind a little while. At about seven Tom and Billy came up the river in another of the Scouts'

canoes. Winona, in her witch costume, with her lanterns, was waiting for them by the decorated canoe.

Billy was most gorgeous. He had hired a red Mephisto costume, evidently from a real costumer-horns, hoofs and all. His full grandeur didn't show till he sprang out on the gra.s.s, because he had modestly shrouded himself in a raincoat, and his mask was in its pocket. But he snapped the mask on, tossed the coat off, and struck an att.i.tude, before he helped Tom to lay the canoe in the water.

"You certainly are grand and gorgeous, Billy," said Winona. "All you need is a spotlight running round after you to look just like the man in the opera."

"I feel like a freak," admitted Billy. "Got everything, Winona? We'd better be starting."

Winona veiled her own splendors with an evening wrap of Mrs. Bryan's which had, fortunately, been brought along, and stepped in. Tom trailed behind.

"I believe I'm frightened," said Winona. "What about you, Billy?"

"There's nothing to be afraid of," he said. "We can't very well upset, tied to a string of other craft, and maybe we'll get a fourth prize-if they only have four entries in the canoe cla.s.s."

"We'll get one anyway!" declared Winona proudly, throwing her head back and forgetting to be nervous.

They were early at the dock. The Camp float was moored quite a little way from the place where they had to be, but they could see each other, and called across. After that Winona did not feel so lonely. The boys helped her to light and tie on the lanterns, all so realistically like skulls, and when she saw how very ghostly they looked she felt that she hadn't lived in vain.

"Have you the skeleton, Billy?" she demanded anxiously of Mephisto, who was wrestling with a bundle in the back canoe.

"Here it is," he said, finally producing it. "I had rather a time getting old Hiraoka to rent it, but an auctioneer will do anything for enough yen."

As he spoke he unwrapped a neat, papier-mache skeleton of nearly life-size, which was of j.a.panese origin, and which, as he said, he had rented from the j.a.panese store of Mr. Tashima Hiraoka for this night only.

"Billy!" said Winona remorsefully, "how much did you pay for Mr. Bones?"

"No time to worry about that now," said Billy. "Where do you want him put?"

Winona saw that he was right, and put off insisting on paying for the skeleton till time should be less precious than now. They swung it above the tinsel flames, on wire loops prepared for it, so that it turned gently, as if roasting. Tom looked on in respectful admiration.

"Here's the last thing," said Billy, producing the mysterious bundle that had excited Louise so the day they were shopping for decorations.

"Those are Billy's idea," said Winona, pulling the objects out as she spoke. "They just put the finishing touch on, don't they, Tom?"

"I should say they did!" said Tom appreciatively. They were twenty small red demons rather like Billy, and the same number of tiny skeletons, all with waggle-some hands and feet.

"Blessed forever be j.a.panese stores!" said Winona. "Just hang them around carelessly, boys, as if they were hovering over the fire, you know. Billy, do you think you can make the demons look pleased and the skeletons unhappy?"

"You never know what you can do till you try," said Billy with his usual poise. He pulled some wire out of the back canoe, which, like the Mother's Bag in the Swiss Family Robinson, seemed to have everything in the world in it. The boys set to work with such a will that the last demon was wriggling naturally as life, and there was ten minutes yet to spare, when they were done.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Billy helped Winona in, felt for the matches, and got in himself. Tom pushed them off from sh.o.r.e. It was all done with the solemnity of a funeral procession. Winona looked at the boys' excited faces, and laughed.

"We're not being rowed off to execution," she explained, though she felt a little excited herself. "I'm perfectly calm-O-oh! Gracious! What's that?"

"That" was a long, unearthly wail which seemed to come from the inside of the canoe itself. It increased and quavered and howled and died down again.

"Oh, that's us," said Billy placidly. "Tom and I borrowed Boots Morris's father's Gabriel horn and fastened it into the canoe this afternoon.

Forgot to tell you. Don't you like it?"

"Lovely!" gasped Winona. "Only-only it was a little sudden, the first time. I thought Mr. Bones was expressing his feelings."

"It adds to the effect all right," said Billy proudly.

"It certainly does!" said Winona. "Yes, we have a tow-rope, marshal. Tie us on, please."

"Well, you do look like you came from somewhere else!" said the marshal-he was the dock owner by day-as he fastened the "Ship o' the Fiend" into line. "I don't want anything more like D. T.'s than you be!"

"That's what I call a delicate compliment," said Billy, lifting his mask so he could grin with freedom.