Patty Fairfield | Page 5

an elderly gentleman with white hair and beard, and it seemed
to Patty's vivid imagination that he looked like Noah, or some other of
the ancient patriarchs.
"That would be a great joke on the housekeeper," Patty answered,
feeling already well acquainted with the pleasant old gentleman, "and I
suppose she would have to get a new carpet."
"Or have a hard-wood floor laid in her room," he responded.
"Or live on a bare floor," said Miss Powers. "I think it would be a very
slack housekeeper who would let her carpets shake themselves, and she
would probably be too lazy or too poor to replace the ones that ran
away."
Mr. Noah, as Patty called the old man in her mind, laughed heartily at
this, and during the rest of the luncheon hour proved himself a genial
and entertaining companion.
The day passed quickly, and at bedtime Patty was quite tired enough to

welcome the thought of tucking herself away in one of those
queer-looking bunks that the porter was arranging.
"I'll sleep on the top shelf," she said, gleefully, "may I, Miss Powers?"
"I'll be very glad if you will, child,--I've no desire to climb up there.
Ugh, I don't think I can sleep anywhere on this bobbety-bobble train."
Then the porter brought a small step-ladder, and this delighted Patty
beyond measure.
"Ho!" said she, "now I'm 'Jack and the Beanstalk.' 'A-hitchet, a-hatchet,
a-up I go'!" and with two jumps and a spring she landed in the upper
berth.
"Now," she said to herself, "I know how Alice felt when she grew so
large that she filled up the whole room. Let me see, what did she do?
She put one arm out the window and one foot up the chimney. Well, I
can't do that, and I don't see any little cakes to eat, as she did, that will
make me grow smaller, so I s'pose I'll just have to scrounch around till
I'm ready for bed, and then slide in. I'm sure I shan't sleep, it's all so
noisy and exciting."
But when she finally straightened herself out on the coarse,
cinder-sprinkled linen of the Pullman, the chink-a-chunk of the train
changed to a lullaby, and in about two minutes Patty was sound asleep.
CHAPTER III
NEW FRIENDS
It was about four o'clock the next afternoon when the train came
puffing into the great train-shed in Jersey City.
It had passed through Elmbridge about an hour before, but being an
express train, it made no stop at such small places.
So Mr. St. Clair had arranged to meet Patty at Jersey City and take her

back home with him.
Patty recognized her uncle as soon as he entered the car, and ran to
greet him.
"Howdy, Uncle Robert," she said, in her pretty southern way, "are you
looking for me?"
"I am, if you're little Patty Fairfield. But you've grown so since I saw
you that I think I shall have to ask for your credentials."
Patty laughed, and answered: "My credentials are that I remember the
doll and the candy you brought me five years ago, and I just know
you're my Uncle Robert."
"I am indeed, and I've come to carry you off to a lot of other admiring
relatives."
Then Patty introduced Miss Powers, and after gathering up the various
wraps and bags they all left the train. Miss Powers was to cross the
ferry to New York, so Patty and Uncle Robert escorted her to the
ferry-boat and bade her good-bye, with many thanks for her kind care
of the little girl during the journey.
Then Uncle Robert said: "Now we'll go out to Elmbridge as quick as
we can skip, but first we must pick up Ethelyn, whom I left in the
waiting-room."
"Oh, is Ethelyn here?" cried Patty. "I am so glad, I'm just crazy to see
her."
Apparently Ethelyn was crazy too, for she flew at her cousin as soon as
she entered the door.
"You dear thing!" she exclaimed, "I'm so delighted to see you. Oh, how
pretty you are! We'll be awfully good chums, won't we?"
"I'm sure we shall," replied Patty, who was just a wee bit frightened by
this dashing young cousin.

Ethelyn was about Patty's age, but somewhat shorter and decidedly less
slender. Her yellow hair was not long, indeed it was cut evenly round
just above her shoulders, but it was crinkled and fluffed out until her
head had the contour of a yellow pumpkin.
A huge black hat with a wide rolling brim was perched on top of the
yellow mop, and ornamented with feathers and shining buckles.
Both the girls wore dark blue suits trimmed with fur, but Ethelyn's was
resplendent with wide lace-trimmed collars, and she wore clattering
bangles on her wrists, and