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16 - Ranch Girls at Rainbow Lodge by Margaret Vandercook · Ranch Girls at Rainbow Lodge

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  Speaker 1: At LibriVox dot org. The Ranch Girls at Rainbow Lodge
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  Speaker 1: by Margaret van der Cook, chapter sixteen. When Greek needs Greek,
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  Speaker 1: there is not the least harm in it, Cousin Ruth.
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  Speaker 1: It is only that you don't understand our Western customs.
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  Speaker 1: Jack announced sweetly. She was standing in front of the
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  Speaker 1: living room fire with her hands clasped behind her. Her
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  Speaker 1: head was up in the air, showing the firm line
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  Speaker 1: of her chin and the mutinous expression of her eyes,
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  Speaker 1: which were half closed. It was after tea at Rainbow Lodge,
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  Speaker 1: and except for Jack and Cousin Ruth, the scene would
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  Speaker 1: have been a peaceful and beautiful one. Jeanne was playing
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  Speaker 1: softly on a new piano, which had lately been installed
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  Speaker 1: at the lodge, for, among other things, the new governess
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  Speaker 1: was giving the ranch girls music lessons. Jeanne, who had
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  Speaker 1: studied before and had a good deal of talent, was
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  Speaker 1: rarely away from the piano when she was in the house.
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  Speaker 1: Freeda leaned against her cousin watching her play, while Olive
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  Speaker 1: had a book in her lap pretending to read. Cousin
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  Speaker 1: Ruth sat by the library table with a basket of
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  Speaker 1: mending beside her and a very uncompromising expression on her face.
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  Speaker 1: She was pale to night, although she looked in better
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  Speaker 1: health and younger than she had when she first arrived
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  Speaker 1: at Rainbow Ranch three weeks before. I am sorry to
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  Speaker 1: dipper with you, Jack, Ruth returned firmly. But it would
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  Speaker 1: be very difficult to convince me that a round up
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  Speaker 1: is any place for a young girl. If it is
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  Speaker 1: a Western custom for girls to attend them, then I
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  Speaker 1: think the custom is shocking. In any case, I am
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  Speaker 1: certainly not willing for you to go. Jack's eyes flashed defiantly.
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  Speaker 1: For three weeks there had been a kind of arm
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  Speaker 1: neutrality between Jacqueline Ralston and her new cousin. Jack considered
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  Speaker 1: that she had been very patient with cousin Ruth's bossing.
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  Speaker 1: Ruth believed that she had been very forbearing with Jack's
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  Speaker 1: Jack had given up her beloved custom of riding over
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  Speaker 1: the ranch every morning to spend three poky hours in
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  Speaker 1: the schoolroom with the other girls, but she did not
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  Speaker 1: intend to be interfered with any further in her plans
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  Speaker 1: for running their ranch. I am sorry, cousin Ruth, Jack argued,
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  Speaker 1: still keeping her temper under control. In anything else, I
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  Speaker 1: should be quite willing to give up to your judgment.
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  Speaker 1: But you see, I happen to know about our wyoming
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  Speaker 1: round ups, and you don't. They are not nearly so
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  Speaker 1: wild and bloodthirsty as you imagine. I shall not go
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  Speaker 1: near the place where they are hurting the cattle. Though
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  Speaker 1: lots of times women drive over to the round ups
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  Speaker 1: and stay on the outskirts of things just to see
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  Speaker 1: the cowboys and horses pass by. It's simply great for
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  Speaker 1: a moment. Jack's eyes sparkled, but then she tried to
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  Speaker 1: appear more serious. Besides, Cousin, Ruth, it happens to be
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  Speaker 1: a matter of business for me to attend the round
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  Speaker 1: at This fall is the last one until spring, and
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  Speaker 1: as I told you, it will be only a small one.
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  Speaker 1: But lots of our cattle have been disappearing for months,
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  Speaker 1: and I want to consult with some of our neighboring
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  Speaker 1: ranchmen about it. Jean Bruce, do please stop making that noise,
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  Speaker 1: Jack demanded, her bad humor flashing out at Jean. Jean
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  Speaker 1: brought her music to an end with a loud crash,
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  Speaker 1: and then came over and sat down cross legged on
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  Speaker 1: a rug by the fire in front of Ruth. Don't
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  Speaker 1: waste your time arguing with Jack. Cousin Ruth Jean advised,
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  Speaker 1: when she says she ought to do a thing, she
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  Speaker 1: means she intends to do it. It is perfectly absurd
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  Speaker 1: for Jack to insist that she has any business at
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  Speaker 1: the round up, for she knows perfectly well that Jim
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  Speaker 1: can attend to everything. It is nobody in the world
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  Speaker 1: but old Dan Norton who is stealing our cattle, and
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  Speaker 1: it seems to me we had better not have any
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  Speaker 1: more trouble with him until more important affairs are settled.
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  Speaker 1: I entirely agree with you, Jean, said cousin Ruth severely. Jack,
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  Speaker 1: you are not old enough to decide such matters for yourself.
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  Speaker 1: Jack did not answer. She directed a single angry glance
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  Speaker 1: at Jean. But Jean was hard to quarrel with. She
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  Speaker 1: made the most irritating speeches and then looked as innocent
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  Speaker 1: as a lamb. Frida had stolen up to Jack and
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  Speaker 1: slipped her hand in her sisters. It frightened Freda terribly
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  Speaker 1: when people quarreled, and Jack saw that her little sister's
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  Speaker 1: eyes were full of tears. Jack walked over and sat
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  Speaker 1: down in a big chair, drawing a little Frida up
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  Speaker 1: in her lap, and there was an uncomfortable silence in
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  Speaker 1: the room until feet sounded along the hall and a
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  Speaker 1: knock came at the living room door. Why it's Jim,
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  Speaker 1: Jean exclaimed in surprise, scrambling to her feet. I wonder
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  Speaker 1: what brings him up to the ranch house to night.
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  Speaker 1: We have seen hardly anything of him since cousin Ruth arrived.
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  Speaker 1: Ruth and her had lower over her work. It was
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  Speaker 1: true she need not have feared mister Colter's influence with
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  Speaker 1: the ranch girls, for he had not been to the
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  Speaker 1: lodge except on business since she undertook to chaperone them.
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  Speaker 1: He was very polite to her, but he seemed afraid
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  Speaker 1: to speak in her presence. Ruth wondered if she seemed
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  Speaker 1: as much of an old maid to him as he
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  Speaker 1: had thought her at first. Jim, what's up? You are
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  Speaker 1: a swell tonight, Jean teased, Did you think we were
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  Speaker 1: giving a party? Jim did look different. He wore a
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  Speaker 1: stiff white shirt instead of a soft funnel one and
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  Speaker 1: could hardly turn his head in his starched linen collar.
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  Speaker 1: Frida flew to him with a little cry of welcome.
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  Speaker 1: What's the matter, baby, Jim demanded, noticing Freda's flushed cheeks.
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  Speaker 1: As he gazed slowly around the family group. He noticed
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  Speaker 1: Miss Jacklyn Ralston's haughty expression, and Miss Ruth drew some fear.
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  Speaker 1: One saw Olah's troubled face and Jean's mischievous one. I
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  Speaker 1: guess I had better be gone, Jim suggested, backing toward
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  Speaker 1: the door. Oh no, Jim, Jack insisted, carelessly. There is
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  Speaker 1: nothing the matter. Only cousin Ruth does not wish me
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  Speaker 1: to go to the round up with you in the morning.
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  Speaker 1: Will you please tell her that cowboys aren't all villains.
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  Speaker 1: Jim frowned. If your cousin don't want you to go, Jack,
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  Speaker 1: seems like you had better stay at home, he declared quietly.
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  Speaker 1: A little flush of triumphs spread over Ruth's face. This
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  Speaker 1: was her first trouble with any one of the ranch girls,
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  Speaker 1: and their friend had sided with her. She gave him
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  Speaker 1: a grateful glance, then closed her lips more firmly than
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  Speaker 1: ever with any one of the four girls save Jack.
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  Speaker 1: She would have tried persuasion instead of command, but it
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  Speaker 1: seemed to her perfectly useless to attempt to influence Jack.
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  Speaker 1: Jack shrugged her shoulders. I don't agree with you, Jim,
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  Speaker 1: she declared, obstinately. Jim brought his lips together with a
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  Speaker 1: snap and stared straight at the elder Miss Ralston. Look here, Jack,
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  Speaker 1: he said, wasn't it you who asked your cousin to
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  Speaker 1: come out here to live with you so as to
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  Speaker 1: have some one to tell you what was right? Now?
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  Speaker 1: It seems to me that you only want to hear
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  Speaker 1: her tell you what you happened to want to do.
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  Speaker 1: I wasn't at all certain that you ought to ride
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  Speaker 1: over to the round up with me. But I've been
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  Speaker 1: treating you like a boy so long. I can't somehow
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  Speaker 1: remember your girl stay at home and keep out of mischief,
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  Speaker 1: Jim laughed. Ruth smiled, thinking the battle was won. But
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  Speaker 1: Jack got up calmly and marched out of the room,
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  Speaker 1: and they heard a bedroom door close. I am afraid
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  Speaker 1: Jack is kind of hard headed, but you mustn't mind,
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  Speaker 1: Jim murmured apologetically. You see, she has always had things
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  Speaker 1: pretty much her own way. Oh, let's don't talk about Jack,
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  Speaker 1: GANI expostulated Jim. I have been telling cousin Ruth that
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  Speaker 1: it is perfectly absurd for her not to learn how
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  Speaker 1: to ride horseback, and that she might as well be
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  Speaker 1: buried alive as not to know how to ride out
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  Speaker 1: here on the ranch. The very idea we can't go
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  Speaker 1: to return missus Simpson's and the lovely Laura's call without
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  Speaker 1: hitching up our old mess wagon. For goodness sake, won't
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  Speaker 1: you teach cousin Ruth to ride? She won't be so
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  Speaker 1: scared with you, sure, Mike, Jim exclaimed hardily, and then
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  Speaker 1: turned to dark mahogany from embarrassment. He had intended to
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  Speaker 1: use only copy book language in his conversation with the
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  Speaker 1: new governess. Ruth was surprised Jim was a puzzle to her,
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  Speaker 1: but there was no doubt that he was very kind
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  Speaker 1: and very good looking. I shall be horribly stupid and nervous,
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  Speaker 1: mister Calter, Ruth protested, But if you are sure, you
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  Speaker 1: won't mind the trouble. Jim did not leave the ranch
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  Speaker 1: house until ten o'clock that evening. He managed to have
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  Speaker 1: five minutes alone with Ruth. After the girls said good night,
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  Speaker 1: Miss Drew, he whispered, will you be good enough not
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  Speaker 1: to let Olive go away from the ranch alone? I
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  Speaker 1: came up to the lodge to night not knowing whether
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  Speaker 1: or not I should tell the girls, but I have
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  Speaker 1: received threatening notices from the Indians lately. They say they
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  Speaker 1: are going to have the girl back with them at
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  Speaker 1: any cost. I don't believe they have any right to her.
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  Speaker 1: She is old enough to be a free agent. But
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  Speaker 1: the Indians are a queer, revengeful lot. They can bide
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  Speaker 1: their time and strike when you least expect it. In
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  Speaker 1: Chapter sixteen, read by Nancy Cochran Gergen Gilbert, Arizona, November second,
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  Speaker 1: two thousand, twenty one,