human
Well, what have you to propose to me, Francie, a secretaryship to the President, or to write the best-selling book of the year?
gpt
The book is the nearer guess, said Frances.
human
I tried to think of what you could do best, and it was a puzzle. You are such a Jack-of-all-trades----
gpt
And we know what he amounts to, interrupted Rob.
human
You might as well finish the proverb.
gpt
No such thing, declared Frances.
human
But you didn't seem to have any marked vocation, till suddenly it flashed upon me that you had done one thing wonderfully ever since you could talk, and I knew I'd hit it. Do you know what it is?
gpt
I had a talent for getting into scrapes, and you used to pull me out, but I never supposed the talent had market value. If you've discovered it has, you've pulled me out of another scrape with flying colors,
human
You could tell stories,
gpt
France, I was always truthful,
human
Now, don't be silly; you know what I mean, retorted Frances.
gpt
Don't you remember how you used to amuse all the rest of us children telling stories by the yard? And do you realize how children love to be with you? You have a regular fringe of small fry at your heels whenever you appear abroad.
human
Well, I admit the Pied Piper qualities, and I remember telling stories, but I fail to see what you're getting at, ma'am,
gpt
You're to tell your stories for money! cried Frances, triumphantly.
human
You're to have a class of all the nice girls and boys in Fayre--and some will come from Thruston--and you are to entertain them by telling them stories for an hour and a half twice a week. You won't charge much--maybe only five dollars for twenty recitals, but that, if you had twenty children, would be a hundred dollars in ten weeks, and it would be just fun--no trouble at all to you to do it.
gpt
You have thought out details, Frances, said Mrs. Grey.
human
You make me feel as though it were not only possible, but an accomplished fact.
gpt
It is possible, Mrs. Grey, said Frances.
human
Mamma knows a lady in town who did it there, and it was a great success. She thinks Rob is sure of being even more successful, because she is so young the children will enjoy more being with her.
gpt
And what kind of stories am I to tell, Frances? Any kind that keeps them quiet? Fayre is not like New York, where there are lots of people with wealth, but no place nor time to amuse their children. People here won't care about having their children entertained,
human
Oh, I forgot that part, said Frances, eagerly.
gpt
No, of course, it couldn't be any kind of story. You are to tell them a set of Grecian Mythology stories, for instance; then a Round Table set, then a Crusading set, then, maybe a Shakespeare set, and stories of Rome, Greece, Egypt--goodness! There's no end to the series you can get up! Now wait! she added, as Rob started to speak.
human
You know when we were little you read all these things, and loved them; we thought them dry, and nothing would have induced us to read them for ourselves. But when you told us about them we were like so many young robins, when the big bird chops up food too solid for them--we were all agape for more, and you had the faculty of making us see the beauty, and not missing a point. It was enthusiasm and magnetism, mamma says. Well, you have those gifts just as much now.
gpt
I'll try to believe in my talents,
human
You'd better. Mamma told me to lay the plan before you all, and, if you approve, to say she will guarantee Rob a class of not less than twenty to begin with, and she will find the children for her. Will you try it, Rob?
gpt
How good your mother is; how kind you both are!
human
Oh, France always was clear, unadulterated splendidness, said Rob, getting up to hug the one girl friend she had ever really loved.
gpt
How can I help but try it, when it is all done for me? Of course, I'll be only too glad to try it, Francie, and I'll do my best.
human
I couldn't possibly fail to approve, approve gladly and gratefully,
gpt
I think it's a beautiful plan--an inspiration, Frances, said Wythie.
human
And I know Rob can do it like no one else; she does such things with her face and voice that she always makes one see what she sees.
gpt
I should hate to fail, after your mother had done so much to launch me,
human
Then, if I succeed, I might enlarge my field, have classes in neighboring towns, and by and by in Hartford and New Haven, and--why not?--New York, cried Rob, airily.
gpt
Then if the bricquette machine did turn out badly I could support the family.
human
Rob, Rob, I thought you had no doubt of the invention!