"Texas! You're rather a long way from home, aren't you? Texas seems farther away to me than Paris. Great country that—Texas. Lots of cattle and Indians and—"
"I don't know about Indians. We have cattle—lots! And cowboys. Maybe you're thinking of cowboys?"
But cowboys were farthest from Mr. Williams' mind. Translated his thoughts ran something like this: "Mighty pretty girl, blooming as a rose. Wonder how many of us the chaperon's going to stand for. Plague take it, why didn't Stuart give me a show—needn't have tread on my heels this way."
But Stuart, at the door, stopping only a half moment for a lost overcoat—so he said—was being presented to the ladies. And in Stuart's wake came others. It was amazing how many things had been lost oh the campus; or in Billy Hemphill and Hammie McVickar's rooms.
Mrs. White began to feel nervous. She was in a quandary. She could hardly take her charges away before tea, neither could she ask the young men to leave. She finally decided to settle down comfortably and close her eyes to any irregularities. After all there could be no real harm.
With the utmost cordiality Billy and his room-mate insisted upon their friends remaining to tea, and the men needed but little urging. They made themselves generally agreeable, assisting in the entertaining; passing tea and sandwiches with ease and aplomb.
Mr. Williams kept the seat next to Blue Bonnet and Hammie McVickar dropped down on the other side of her.
"First visit here?" Mr. Williams asked, trying to successfully balance his ice-cream and cake on one knee.
"Yes—that is, it's the first time I've been inside one of the buildings. I came to a ball game last autumn."
"Then you must have a look round before you go."