“No, I don’t either, Betty,” interposed Miss Kingston. “Miss Ayres couldn’t do a part like Shylock.”
“Then I don’t believe there is any one else who didn’t try before,” said Barbara. “We must just hope for the best, that’s all.”
Betty had opened the door preparatory to starting on her rounds when she happened to remember Roberta and her exaggerated disappointment over missing the last week’s trials.
“Barbara,” she began timidly, closing the door again, “I know some one who intended to try but she was sick with the grippe and couldn’t. It’s Roberta Lewis. She told me not to speak of her having wanted to try, but I don’t see why she shouldn’t have a chance now, do you? She couldn’t be worse than some of them.”
“She certainly couldn’t,” laughed Barbara.
“She did awfully well in that little girl play you had,” said Clara Ellis, condescending to show a little real interest in the question at issue. “Did you see it, Miss Kingston?”
Miss Kingston hadn’t seen “The Little Princess” and didn’t know Roberta; but she agreed that there was no reason why any girl who was willing to take it shouldn’t have a chance to show what she could do toward satisfying Mr. Masters.
“But it isn’t that I think she will do particularly well,” Betty explained, honestly. “Only I was sorry for her because she seemed to care such a lot. Shall I stop and ask her on my way?”
Barbara said yes and Betty hurried over to the Belden. Roberta was out, but a neat sign pinned to her door promised that she would be “Back in a few minutes,” so Betty scribbled a hasty note to explain matters and hurried off again. She had not much idea that Roberta would care to try for Shylock now, but she was glad she had thought of giving her the chance. Roberta was so quiet and self-contained and so seldom expressed a wish or a preference that it was worth while taking a little trouble to please her.
“Even if there isn’t much sense in what she wants,” thought Betty, as she tramped up Main Street.