9 Experiments

CHAPTER 9 Experiments On a warm June day, Meg came home and excitedly announced: "The Kings are off to the seashore tomorrow. I'm free! Three whole months of vacation!" Jo had collapsed on the sofa, Beth took off her dusty boots, and Amy made lemonade for everyone. Then Jo said, "Aunt March went to Plumfield today. I was so afraid she'd ask me to go with her. The very minute she

was in the carriage, I ran all the way home." Beth cuddled Jo's feet. "Poor Jo. She came running in like bears were after her!" "Aunt March is a regular samphire, isn't she?" Amy asked, sipping her lemonade. Jo sighed, "She means vampire, but it's too hot to worry about wrong words today." Amy changed the subject. "What will you do on your vacation?" Meg thought for a second. "I'm going to lie in bed and do nothing!" she answered. "I've been getting up early all winter taking care of other people. This summer I'm going to be as lazy as I want." "I'm going to read and read and read!" said Jo, "and spend time with Laurie." Amy chimed in, "Let's forget about lessons, Bethy, and play all the time." Beth replied, "That sounds like fun, if Mother says it's okay. There are new songs I

want to learn. And my dolls all need new clothes." Marmee was quietly sewing in her corner. Meg asked, "Oh, Mother, may we?" Mrs. March replied, "You may try it for a week. I think by Saturday you'll find that all play and no work is as bad as all work and no play." Meg sighed, "Oh, no! I'm sure it will be absolutely lovely." Jo raised her glass: "A toast—fun forever and no work!" They happily drank their lemonade and spent the rest of the day lying about the house.

The next day, nothing went as expected. No chores were done, and each sister had her own fun. But they weren't exactly pleased. Jo read until her eyes hurt so much that she quarreled with Laurie. After an attempt to sketch outdoors, Amy got stuck in the rain and ruined her dress. Meg went shopping only to find that the material didn't wash well. Beth took everything out of the

closet to build a new home for her dolls, but she got so tired she left it halfway through. At dinnertime they agreed that, despite the fun, the day seemed too long without some work to keep their idle hands busy. By Friday, all four girls felt out of sorts. No one would admit that the experiment was failing. Mrs. March decided to have a bit of fun. She gave Hannah the day off, so when the girls got up on Saturday morning they found a cold kitchen with no breakfast. And Marmee was nowhere to be found. "What's going on?" Jo exclaimed. Meg ran upstairs. When she came back, she explained, "Mother's tired. She's going to rest today. We have to get along as best we can." "Okay," Jo said. "I'm aching for something to do—I mean for a bit of excitement." It was a relief to have some work. The

younger girls set the table as Jo and Meg made breakfast. Meg brought a tray up to Marmee. It contained bitter tea, soggy biscuits, and a burned omelet. Once Meg left, Marmee had a good laugh. "Poor souls," she thought. "They'll have a hard time, but it'll be good for them." Everyone complained about the awful breakfast. For the next meal, Jo decided to do the cooking. Meg reluctantly agreed after making such a mess of things. Jo invited Laurie for lunch to make up for their quarrel. With perfect faith in her abilities, she chose a menu and made a shopping list. There was only one problem. She had no idea how to cook. Meg said she'd help if necessary, even though she didn't know how to make much more than a loaf of bread. With Marmee going out for lunch, Jo