“Yes, Miss Partland,” replied Dolly, and then it suddenly came to her, that this was the result of Tod’s joke! “Were you ill this morning?” she asked.
“No, not in the slightest. It is a sudden attack of some sort. Perhaps I shall die!”
“Oh, no. You’ll be all right in an hour or so. What sort of pain do you feel, Miss Partland?”
“Not any definite pain. But queer all over, as if some illness were impending.”
I do believe, thought Dolly to herself, that it’s all the fault of those horrid boys, telling her she looked ill! And then she suddenly remembered that she herself had told Miss Partland so, too, and very emphatically. But she had told her in earnest, while the others had been carrying out their jest.
However, her comment was just the same as theirs, and doubtless helped to produce this effect. She wondered what to do. At first, she thought she would tell the whole story, and let the boys and girls take the consequences of their ill-timed joke. Then, she feared it might so enrage Miss Partland to know of it, that it would make her worse.
She decided not to tell at present, anyway, and she helped the teacher on with her hat and coat, and went with her to the door.
“Tell Mr. Macintosh I am quite ill,” she said as she went away. And Dolly went to the Principal’s room to do her bidding.
“Did Miss Partland say what the trouble was?” asked the surprised man. “Is she subject to these attacks?”
“She didn’t say, Mr. Macintosh, and I have never known her to be ill before. I think she will be all right, to-morrow.”