“I for one never noticed that she was a single bit humorous,” began Mary indignantly.
Katherine pinched her arm vigorously. “Don’t! What’s the use?” she whispered.
“Nor I, but I suppose Miss Eastman knows that she can be funny,” answered Betty confidently, as she hurried off to congratulate Eleanor.
She was invited to the supper to be given at Cuyler’s that night in Eleanor’s honor, and went home blissfully unconscious that half the class was talking itself hoarse over Jean Eastman’s bad taste in appointing a notorious “cutter” and “flunker” to represent them on so important an occasion, just because she happened to be the best dressed and prettiest girl in the Hill crowd.
The next afternoon most of the girls were at gym or the library, and Betty, who was still necessarily excused from her daily exercise, was working away on her Latin, when some one knocked imperatively on her door. It was Jean Eastman.
“Good-afternoon, Miss Wales,” she said hurriedly. “Will you lend me a pencil and paper? Eleanor has such a habit of keeping her desk locked, and I want to leave her a note.”
She scribbled rapidly for a moment, frowned as she read through what she had written, and looked doubtfully from it to Betty. Then she rose to go. “Will you call her attention to this, please?” she said. “It’s very important. And, Miss Wales,–if she should consult you, do advise her to resign quietly and leave it to me to smooth things over.”
“Resign?” repeated Betty vaguely.
“Yes,” said Jean. “You see–well, I might as well tell you now, that I’ve said so much. The faculty object to her taking the debate. Perhaps you know that she’s very much in their black books but I didn’t. And I never dreamed that they would think it any of their business who was our debater, but I assure you they do. At least half a dozen of them have spoken to me about her poor work and her cutting. They say that she is just as much ineligible for this as she would be for the musical clubs or the basket-ball team. Now what I want is for Eleanor to write a sweet little note of resignation to-night, so that I can appoint some one else bright and early in the morning.”
Betty’s eyes grew big with anxiety. “But won’t the girls guess the reason?” she cried. “Think how proud Eleanor is, Miss Eastman. It would hurt her terribly if any one found out that she had been conditioned. You shouldn’t have told me–indeed you shouldn’t!”