The Garden Party and Other Stories

ared the cab with the Sheridan girls and their brother. She sat back in her own little corner of it, and the bolster on which her hand reste

l before, Leila? But, my child, how

en miles,” said Leila softly, ge

ng loop of amber, Laura’s little dark head, pushing above her white fur like a flower through snow. She would remember for ever. It even gave her a pang to see her cousin Laurie throw away the wi

said. “The third and th

le, she couldn’t have helped crying because she was an only child, and no brother had ever said “Twig?” to her; no sister

them and cabs behind. The road was bright on either side with moving fan-like lights, and on the p

eila; you’ll get

et’s make a dash f

ked “Ladies.” Here the crowd was so great there was hardly space to take off their things; the noise was deafening. Two benches on either side were stacked high with wraps.

t; it was dancing already. When the door opened again and there came a

andkerchiefs down the fronts of their bodices, smoothing marble-white gloves.

cried a voice. “How most extraordinary!

ere’s a darling,” c

ton. I’ve torn simply miles and m

s. Leila’s fingers shook as she took one out of the basket. She wanted to ask some one, “Am I meant to have one too?” but she had just time to read: “Waltz 3. ‘Two, Two in a Canoe

y; she forgot how in the middle of dressing she had sat down on the bed with one shoe off and one shoe on and begged her mother to ring up her cousins and say she couldn’t go after all. And the rush of longing she had had to be sitting on the veranda of their forsaken up-country home, listening to the baby owls crying “More po

the other, and the chaperones in dark dresses, smiling rather foolishly, w

e to her. Find her partners; she’s under my win

he girls. A tall, fair man flew up to Meg, seized her programme, scribbled something; Meg passed him on to Leila. “May I have the pleasure?” He ducked and smiled. There came a dark man wearing an eyeglass, then cousin Laurie with a friend, and Laura with a little freckled fellow whose tie was crooked. Then quite an old man — fat, with a big bald patch on his head — took her programme and murmured, “Let me see, let me see!” And he was a long time comparing his programme, which looked black with names, w

ll — with calico texts on the walls, the poor terrified little woman in a brown velvet toque with rabbit’s ears thumping the cold piano, Miss Eccles poking the girls’ feet with her long white wand — and this was so tremendous that Leila was sure if

m; she hadn’t to die after all. Some one’s hand pressed her wais

n’t it?” drawled a fain

t beautifully sli

id it again. And there was a tiny pause before the vo

ith girls and men, Leila decided. Girls banged into each other, and stampe

wers no longer; they were pin

me again. It sounded tired. Leila wondered wheth

my first danc

tle gasping laugh. “Oh

most fervent. It was such a relief to be able to tell somebody. “

wall. Leila tucked her pink satin feet under and fanned herself, while she blis

eila?” asked Jose, no

tainly her partner did not say very much. He coughed, tucked his handkerchief away, pulled down his waistcoat, took a minute thread

t her partners were not more interested. For it was thrilling. Her first ball! She was only at the beginning of everything. It seemed to her that she had never known what the night was l

w cold the frosted spoon was, iced too! And when they came back to the hall there was the fat man waiting for her by the door. It gave her quite a shock again to see how old he was; he ought to have been on the stag

r, and they moved away so gently, it was more like walking than dancing. But

id you

zed faintly as he steered her past an awkward couple. “You see

d Leila. Twelve year

aid the fat man gloomily. Leila looked at hi

ous to be still going

arms will have turned into little short fat ones, and you’ll beat time with such a different kind of fan — a black bony one.” The fat man seemed to shudder. “And you’ll smile away like the poor old dears up there, and point to your daughter, and tell the elderly lady next to you how some dreadful man tried to kiss her

Was this first ball only the beginning of her last ball, after all? At that the music seemed to change; it sounded sad, sad;

in a breathless voice. The

ned against the wall, tapping with her foot, pulling up her gloves and trying to smile. But deep

fat man, “you mustn’t take

tossing her small dark head

But Leila didn’t want to dance any more. She wanted to be home, or sitting on the veranda listening to th

d into the middle; very haughtily she put her hand on his sleeve. But in one minute, in one turn, her feet glided, glided. The lights, the azaleas, the dresses, the pink faces, the velvet chairs,