Jessie was a plump,
lively young woman of twelve, with less, perhaps, of her sister's
delicate beauty; but the lack was more than made good by her
perfect unconsciousness of self, and her frank, winning manner,
which led Polly to forget her formal greeting, and seize her hand,
saying impulsively,--
"I'm so glad you've come to live here!"
Jessie laughed, showing a pair of deep dimples in her dark skin,
as she answered, with a cordiality equal to Polly's own,--
"And I'm so glad Molly has such nice friends,"
That settled the matter between them, and, arm in arm, they
strolled out to the tennis court, chatting like old friends, while
Molly and Alan followed with Katharine, who looked about her
indifferently, nodding slightly, from time to time, in answer to
some question.
"I do think these old houses are splendid," Jessie was saying
eagerly. "I never saw one before. Out in Omaha we call a house old
that has been built twenty years."
"Haven't you ever been East before?" asked Polly, with a feeling
of pity for any girl who had never known the delights of life in
an old New England town.
"Never since I was a year old, so I don't remember much about it,"
answered Jessie.
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