“The thing that Christy Mason has,” returned Bob promptly.
“Exactly,” said Madeline, “and that is just practice in being at the head of things,—nothing more. Christy isn’t much of a pusher, she isn’t particularly brilliant or particularly tactful; but she’s been on committees as regularly as clockwork all through her course, and she’s learned when to pull and when to push, and when to sit back and make the rest push. It’s a thing any one can learn, like French or bookkeeping or how to make sugar-cookies. I hate it myself, but I don’t believe it’s a difficult accomplishment.”
“Perhaps not,” protested Bob, “but it takes time, if it’s anything like French or cookies—I never tried the bookkeeping. We don’t want to make any experiments with our one and only commencement.”
“Why, I’m an experiment,” said Roberta hastily, as if she had just thought of it and felt impelled to speak.
“Yes, but you’re the exception that proves the rule,” said Nita Reese brusquely. Nita’s reputation for executive ability was second only to Christy’s and she was badly overworked, and tired and cross in consequence. “I don’t think I quite get your idea, Betty. Do you want K., for instance, to give up her part in the play to Leslie Penrose, who was told she could have it at first and cried for a whole day when she found there had been a mistake?”
“Come, Nita,” said Madeline lazily, but with a dangerous flash in her gray eyes. “That’s not the way to take our last chance to make more ‘Merry Hearts.’ Let Betty tell us exactly what she does mean.”
“Please do, Betty,” begged Nita, half ashamed already of her ill-tempered outburst.
“Of course I don’t want K. to give up her part,” began Betty with a grateful look at Madeline and a smile for Katherine. “I only thought that some of us are in so many things that we’re tired and rushed all the time, and not enjoying our last term half as much as we might.”
“My case exactly,” put in Nita repentantly.
“Whereas there are girls in the class who’ve never had anything to do here but study, and who would be perfectly delighted to be on some little unimportant commencement committee.”