At the next station another addition was made to the party, a tall girl with delightful hair, dark and wavy and bobbed, an active-looking figure and eyebrows that were noticeable for their straightness. A remarkable girl—and she certainly had a remarkable name, unless it was a nickname. Paddy was obliging enough to whisper to the new girl:
"That's Salome Hope, the head prefect of my house, Sheerston's; frightfully clever at lessons and a triple colour—hockey, cricket and tennis. There isn't a girl to touch her in the school."
The whisper was a very audible one, like all Paddy's whispers. Salome heard it quite plainly, and looked across at Kitty with a laugh.
"One of the school celebrities, in fact. Paddy is too, though she refrains from mentioning it. Are you a new girl?"
"Yes," answered Eileen. "Kitty Despard, from Australia. They've put her into Carslake's. Isn't it a shame!"
"Well, Carslake's is in need of seniors, it seems," said Salome.
"Is it true that Doreen has left?"
"Yes, unfortunately. It puts the house into an unprecedented position, having to descend to the Upper Fifth for a head prefect."
"Quite unprecedented. Fortunately it'll only be for a term. But surely there are only a few seniors of any sort in Carslake's now?"
"Let me see. Margaret, Sonia and Bertha in the Lower Fifth; Duane, Hilary and France in the Upper—that's all."