Finding that she must speak it, Marjorie blushed a little, but said in a clear voice, “Yew!”
Such a shout of laughter as went up from everybody! Mr. Abercrombie laughed until he was red in the face, and his huge form shook from side to side.
Of course, Midget was terribly embarrassed, and wished she could sink through the door, but Miss Merington took her hand and smiled at her sweetly, as she whispered, “Be plucky! Smile, yourself, you haven’t said anything wrong!”
So Marjorie stopped trembling, and smiled a little; then she saw King and Flip fairly choking with glee, and she realized that her answer was wrong after all.
“I’m more than sorry,” said Mr. Abercrombie, after the fun had subsided a little, “that I can’t accept that answer! But I have to go by the card, and another answer is given here. So I shall have to pass the question, but I assure you, little orange girl, that I greatly prefer your answer to the one here given. Miss Merington, can you guess it?”
“Tulip tree,” said Miss Merington, and Marjorie opened her eyes wide.
“I never heard of that tree,” she said.
“Then you were very clever to guess as you did,” declared Mr. Abercrombie. “Technically, you score your third error, and Miss Merington wins the prize; but in my unofficial capacity, I hold that you guessed correctly, and I shall beg the honor of bestowing upon you a prize also.”
The old-time courtliness of Mr. Abercrombie’s manner was quite a balm to Marjorie’s disturbed spirit, and she turned to congratulate her captain on winning the beautiful prize.
It was a fine edition of Browning’s Poems, and it pleased Miss Merington very much.