“When will he start for home?” asked Ruth.

“As soon as he can get away,” answered Mrs. Hamilton.  “And that reminds me that I must see if I can do anything for Mrs. Hall to help matters along.  I can sympathize with the poor grandfather’s desire to get the baby to her grandmother as soon as possible.”

Left to themselves the girls looked at each other blankly.

“So that’s the end of the club baby,” sighed Betty.

“Why, no, she can be our German member,” said Ruth decidedly.

CHAPTER XV

PETER PAN

It was Saturday morning, and Ruth sat down at her desk to write her regular letter to her father.  She laid out her paper, fitted a fresh pen into the silver holder, and then looked at the calendar.  As she found the date her eyes grew very thoughtful.

“Six months to a day,” she murmured.  “How fast the time has gone.”  Then she began her letter.

“Glenloch, March 17th.

“Darling father: 

“I wonder if you remember that just six months ago to-day you and I were celebrating your birthday together, and that I was heartbroken when you told me what was going to happen to us.  Nothing could have made me believe then that I could be so happy now, or that the time could possibly seem so short.  I wonder if you would think I’ve changed any.  I’m an inch taller than I was when you saw me last, and I weigh ten pounds more, so I’ve accomplished something in six months.  I don’t believe you’ve grown an inch; at least not an up and down inch.

“I just wish you could taste some of my cooking.  If I went out as cook now, I shouldn’t have to feed the family on birthday cake, for I can make perfectly scrumptious little baking-powder biscuit, and my salad dressing is a joy forever.  I can do other things, of course, but these are my specialties.  Oh, and I can make a maple fudge that just melts in your mouth.  I sent a box of it to Uncle Jerry, and he wrote back right off that I could consider myself engaged as cook whenever he set up housekeeping.

“I read almost every bit of your German letter myself, though I had to get Aunt Mary to help me out once or twice.  It made me want to study all the harder to see how quickly she read it.  It’s ten times easier now to work hard on French and German, because I hope that I shall need to use them before very long.  Oh, Popsy, won’t it be joyful when I can come over to you!!!!  It would take more than four hundred exclamation points to express my feelings, so you must please imagine the rest of them.

“I don’t want to make you too proud of your daughter, but I must just tell you that I got an A in French history last month.  We have a dandy history teacher who makes everything interesting, and then I keep thinking that I must know all about these things before I go abroad, and that helps lots.

“More than anything I love the Gym.  I just wish you could see Miss Burton; she’s the dearest, sweetest teacher I ever had, and so pretty that I want to look at her all the time.  She’s a splendid teacher, too, and the girls are all wild over the lessons and over her.