"Are you sure you won't lose anything?" asked Miss Smith.
"Sure," promised Marian. "You go to school early as you used to do and I'll bring your letters when I come."
Usually the postmaster gave Marian something to carry to Miss Smith, and all went well until a few days before school closed. Elizabeth Gray called for Marian that morning and together they went to the post-office where they waited on tiptoe for the postmaster to distribute the mail. There was one letter for Miss Smith, a thin, insignificant looking letter.
"That's nothing but an old advertisement," declared Elizabeth; "it wasn't worth waiting for."
"I guess you're right," agreed Marian, "see what it says in the corner. What's a seminary, anyway? Do you know?—'Young Ladies' Seminary.' Some kind of a new fashioned place to buy hats, may be, come on."
"Yes, let's get started before the Prior kids and the Perkinses catch up with us. I can't bear that Tommy Perkins."
"We could play De Soto if we had a crowd," suggested Marian. "You and I could be the head leaders and the Priors and the Perkins could be common soldiers."
"How do you play De Soto?" asked Elizabeth. "I never heard of it."
"You've heard of De Soto, the man that discovered the Mississippi River, I hope."