now when it became noised abroad that the new teacher wanted above all things to purchase a piano, and that to that end she was getting up a wonderful shakespeare play in which the scholars were to act upon a stage set with tree boughs after the manner of some new kind of players, the whole community round about began to be excited.
mrs. tanner talked much about it. was not bud to be a prominent character? mr. tanner talked about it everywhere he went. the mothers and fathers and sisters talked about it, and the work of preparing the play went on.
margaret had discovered that one of the men at the bunk-house played a flute, and she was working hard to teach him and fiddling boss and croaker to play a portion of the elfin dance to accompany the players. the work of making costumes and training the actors became more and more strenuous, and in this gardley proved a fine assistant. he undertook to train some of the older boys for their parts, and did it so well that he was presently in the forefront of the battle of preparation and working almost as hard as margaret herself.
the beauty of the whole thing was that every boy in the school adored him, even jed and timothy, and life took on a different aspect to them in company with this high-born college-bred, eastern young man who yet could ride and shoot with the daringest among the westerners.
far and wide went forth the fame of the play that was to be. the news of it reached to the fort and the ranches, and brought offers of assistance and costumes and orders for tickets. margaret purchased a small duplicator and set her school to printing tickets and selling them, and before the play was half ready to be acted tickets enough were sold for two performances, and people were planning to come from fifty miles around. the young teacher began to quake at the thought of her big audience and her poor little amateur players; and yet for children they were doing wonderfully well, and were growing quite shakespearian in their manner of conversation.
"what say you, sweet amanda?" would be a form of frequent address to that stolid maiden amanda bounds; and jed, instead of shouting for "delicate" at recess, as in former times, would say, "my good timothy, i swear to thee by cupid's strongest bow; by his best arrow with the golden head"—until all the school-yard rang with classic phrases; and the whole country round was being addressed in phrases of another century by the younger members of their households.
then rosa rogers's father one day stopped at the tanners' and left a contribution with the teacher of fifty dollars toward the new piano; and after that it was rumored that the teacher said the piano could be sent for in time to be used at the play. then other contributions of smaller amounts came in, and before the date of the play had been set there was money enough to make a first payment on the piano. that day the english exercise for the whole school was to compose the letter to the eastern piano firm where the piano was to be purchased, ordering it to be sent on at once. weeks before this margaret had sent for a number of piano catalogues beautifully illustrated, showing by cuts how the whole instruments were made, with full illustrations of the factories where they were manufactured, and she had discussed the selection with the scholars, showing them what points were to be considered in selecting a good piano. at last the order was sent out, the actual selection itself to be made by a musical friend of margaret's in new york, and the school waited in anxious suspense to hear that it had started on its way.
the piano arrived at last, three weeks before the time set for the play, which was coming on finely now and seemed to the eager scholars quite ready for public performance. not so to margaret and gardley, as daily they pruned, trained, and patiently went over and over again each part, drawing all the while nearer to the ideal they had set. it could not be done perfectly, of course, and when they had done all they could there would yet be many crudities; but margaret's hope was to bring out the meaning of the play and give both audience and performers the true idea of what shakespeare meant when he wrote it.
the arrival of the piano was naturally a great event in the school. for three days in succession the entire school marched in procession down to the incoming eastern train to see if their expected treasure had arrived, and when at last it was lifted from the freight-car and set upon the station platform the school stood awe-struck and silent, with half-bowed heads and bated breath, as though at the arrival of some great and honorable guest.
they attended it on the roadside as it was carted by the biggest wagon in town to the school-house door; they stood in silent rows while the great box was peeled off and the instrument taken out and carried into the school-room; then they filed in soulfully and took their accustomed seats without being told, touching shyly the shining case as they passed. by common consent they waited to hear its voice for the first time. margaret took the little key from the envelope tied to the frame, unlocked the cover, and, sitting down, began to play. the rough men who had brought it stood in awesome adoration around the platform; the silence that spread over that room would have done honor to paderewski or josef hoffman.
margaret played and played, and they could not hear enough. they would have stayed all night listening, perhaps, so wonderful was it to them. and then the teacher called each one and let him or her touch a few chords, just to say they had played on it. after which she locked the instrument and sent them all home. that was the only afternoon during that term that the play was forgotten for a while.
after the arrival of the piano the play went forward with great strides, for now margaret accompanied some of the parts with the music, and the flute and violin were also practised in their elfin dance with much better effect. it was about this time that archie forsythe discovered the rehearsals and offered his assistance, and, although it was declined, he frequently managed to ride over about rehearsal time, finding ways to make himself useful in spite of margaret's polite refusals. margaret always felt annoyed when he came, because rosa rogers instantly became another creature on his arrival, and because gardley simply froze into a polite statue, never speaking except when spoken to. as for forsythe, his attitude toward gardley was that of a contemptuous master toward a slave, and yet he took care to cover it always with a form of courtesy, so that margaret could say or do nothing to show her displeasure, except to be grave and dignified. at such times rosa rogers's eyes would be upon her with a gleam of hatred, and the teacher felt that the scholar was taking advantage of the situation. altogether it was a trying time for margaret when forsythe came to the school-house. also, he discovered to them that he played the violin, and offered to assist in the orchestral parts. margaret really could think of no reason to decline this offer, but she was sadly upset by the whole thing. his manner to her was too pronounced, and she felt continually uncomfortable under it, what with rosa rogers's jealous eyes upon her and gardley's eyes turned haughtily away.
she planned a number of special rehearsals in the evenings, when it was difficult for forsythe to get there, and managed in this way to avoid his presence; but the whole matter became a source of much vexation, and margaret even shed a few tears wearily into her pillow one night when things had gone particularly hard and forsythe had hurt the feelings of fiddling boss with his insolent directions about playing. she could not say or do anything much in the matter, because the temples had been very kind in helping to get the piano, and mr. temple seemed to think he was doing the greatest possible kindness to her in letting forsythe off duty so much to help with the play. the matter became more and more of a distress to margaret, and the sabbath was the only day of real delight.
the first sunday after the arrival of the piano was a great day. everybody in the neighborhood turned out to the sunday-afternoon class and vesper service, which had been growing more and more in popularity, until now the school-room was crowded. every man from the bunk-house came regularly, often including pop wallis, who had not yet recovered fully from the effect of his wife's new bonnet and fluffy arrangement of hair, but treated her like a lady visitor and deferred to her absolutely when he was at home. he wasn't quite sure even yet but he had strayed by mistake into the outermost courts of heaven and ought to get shooed out. he always looked at the rose-wreathed curtains with a mingling of pride and awe.
margaret had put several hymns on the blackboard in clear, bold printing, and the singing that day was wonderful. not the least part of the service was her own playing over of the hymns before the singing began, which was listened to with reverence as if it had been the music of an angel playing on a heavenly harp.
gardley always came to the sunday services, and helped her with the singing, and often they two sang duets together.
the service was not always of set form. usually margaret taught a short bible lesson, beginning with the general outline of the bible, its books, their form, substance, authors, etc.—all very brief and exceedingly simple, putting a wide space of music between this and the vesper service, into which she wove songs, bits of poems, passages from the bible, and often a story which she told dramatically, illustrating the scripture read.
but the very sunday before the play, just the time margaret had looked forward to as being her rest from all the perplexities of the week, a company from the fort, including the temples, arrived at the school-house right in the midst of the bible lesson.
the ladies were daintily dressed, and settled their frills and ribbons amusedly as they watched the embarrassed young teacher trying to forget that there was company present. they were in a distinct sense "company," for they had the air, as they entered, of having come to look on and be amused, not to partake in the worship with the rest.
margaret found herself trembling inwardly as she saw the supercilious smile on the lips of mrs. temple and the amused stares of the other ladies of the party. they did not take any notice of the other people present any more than if they had been so many puppets set up to show off the teacher; their air of superiority was offensive. not until rosa rogers entered with her father, a little later, did they condescend to bow in recognition, and then with that pretty little atmosphere as if they would say, "oh, you've come, too, to be amused."
gardley was sitting up in front, listening to her talk, and she thought he had not noticed the strangers. suddenly it came to her to try to keep her nerve and let him see that they were nothing to her; and with a strong effort and a swift prayer for help she called for a hymn. she sat coolly down at the piano, touching the keys with a tender chord or two and beginning to sing almost at once. she had sent home for some old hymn-books from the christian endeavor society in her father's church, so the congregation were supplied with the notes and words now, and everybody took part eagerly, even the people from the fort condescendingly joining in.
but gardley was too much alive to every expression on that vivid face of margaret's to miss knowing that she was annoyed and upset. he did not need to turn and look back to immediately discover the cause. he was a young person of keen intuition. it suddenly gave him great satisfaction to see that look of consternation on margaret's face. it settled for him a question he had been in great and anxious doubt about, and his soul was lifted up with peace within him. when, presently, according to arrangement, he rose to sing a duet with margaret, no one could have possibly told by so much as the lifting of an eyelash that he knew there was an enemy of his in the back of the room. he sang, as did margaret, to the immediate audience in front of him, those admiring children and adoring men in the forefront who felt the school-house had become for them the gate of heaven for the time being; and he sang with marvelous feeling and sympathy, letting out his voice at its best.
"really," said mrs. temple, in a loud whisper to the wife of one of the officers, "that young man has a fine voice, and he isn't bad-looking, either. i think he'd be worth cultivating. we must have him up and try him out."
but when she repeated this remark in another stage whisper to forsythe he frowned haughtily.
the one glimpse margaret caught of forsythe during that afternoon's service was when he was smiling meaningly at rosa rogers; and she had to resolutely put the memory of their look from her mind or the story which she was about to tell would have fled.
it was the hunger in jasper kemp's eyes that finally anchored margaret's thoughts and helped her to forget the company at the back of the room. she told her story, and she told it wonderfully and with power, interpreting it now and then for the row of men who sat in the center of the room drinking in her every word; and when the simple service was concluded with another song, in which gardley's voice rang forth with peculiar tenderness and strength, the men filed forth silently, solemnly, with bowed heads and thoughtful eyes. but the company from the fort flowed up around margaret like flood-tide let loose and gushed upon her.
"oh, my dear!" said mrs. temple. "how beautifully you do it! and such attention as they give you! no wonder you are willing to forego all other amusements to stay here and preach! but it was perfectly sweet the way you made them listen and the way you told that story. i don't see how you do it. i'd be scared to death!"
they babbled about her awhile, much to her annoyance, for there were several people to whom she had wanted to speak, who drew away and disappeared when the new-comers took possession of her. at last, however, they mounted and rode away, to her great relief. forsythe, it is true, tried to make her go home with them; tried to escort her to the tanners'; tried to remain in the school-house with her awhile when she told him she had something to do there; but she would not let him, and he rode away half sulky at the last, a look of injured pride upon his face.
margaret went to the door finally, and looked down the road. he was gone, and she was alone. a shade of sadness came over her face. she was sorry that gardley had not waited. she had wanted to tell him how much she liked his singing, what a pleasure it was to sing with him, and how glad she was that he came up to her need so well with the strangers there and helped to make it easy. but gardley had melted away as soon as the service was over, and had probably gone home with the rest of the men. it was disappointing, for she had come to consider their little time together on sunday as a very pleasant hour, this few minutes after the service when they would talk about real living and the vital things of existence. but he was gone!
she turned, and there he was, quite near the door, coming toward her. her face lighted up with a joy that was unmistakable, and his own smile in answer was a revelation of his deeper self.
"oh, i'm so glad you are not gone!" she said, eagerly. "i wanted to tell you—" and then she stopped, and the color flooded her face rosily, for she saw in his eyes how glad he was and forgot to finish her sentence.
he came up gravely, after all, and, standing just a minute so beside the door, took both her hands in both his. it was only for a second that he stood so, looking down into her eyes. i doubt if either of them knew till afterward that they had been holding hands. it seemed the right and natural thing to do, and meant so much to each of them. both were glad beyond their own understanding over that moment and its tenderness.
it was all very decorous, and over in a second, but it meant much to remember afterward, that look and hand-clasp.
"i wanted to tell you," he said, tenderly, "how much that story did for me. it was wonderful, and it helped me to decide something i have been perplexed over—"
"oh, i am glad!" she said, half breathlessly.
so, talking in low, broken sentences, they went back to the piano and tried over several songs for the next sunday, lingering together, just happy to be there with each other, and not half knowing the significance of it all. as the purple lights on the school-room wall grew long and rose-edged, they walked slowly to the tanner house and said good night.
there was a beauty about the young man as he stood for a moment looking down upon the girl in parting, the kind of beauty there is in any strong, wild thing made tame and tender for a great love by a great uplift. gardley had that look of self-surrender, and power made subservient to right, that crowns a man with strength and more than physical beauty. in his fine face there glowed high purpose, and deep devotion to the one who had taught it to him. margaret, looking up at him, felt her heart go out with that great love, half maiden, half divine, that comes to some favored women even here on earth, and she watched him down the road toward the mountain in the evening light and marveled how her trust had grown since first she met him; marveled and reflected that she had not told her mother and father much about him yet. it was growing time to do so; yes—it was growing time! her cheeks grew pink in the darkness and she turned and fled to her room.
that was the last time she saw him before the play.
