“Mother is sending me some clothes for Commencement. They ought to be here in a day or two.”
The next mail brought Betty’s invitation from Donald Hilton. The other girls, too, were invited by different ones. Lilian, Hilary, Eloise, Helen, Juliet, Pauline and others were planning for a happy evening. Isabel had had a fine time at the ice carnival with a young cadet as full of life and fun as she, and was quite overwhelmed at receiving her formal invitation from him. “My sakes, Cathalina, how do you make up a reply? I suppose you have to answer ’em.”
Cathalina showed her her own reply to Captain Van Horne, which Isabel duly copied, as closely as possible. “Wouldn’t it be funny if I should forget and write in ‘Captain Van Horne’ and sign your name?”
“Indeed it wouldn’t be funny at all! You’re not to make any such mistake, Miss Hunt. Let me look over your note before you send it, then.”
“All right, Cathie; I was going to ask you to anyway.”
CHAPTER XIX.
ACADEMY GRADUATES.
“A pretty sight,” said Juliet, as she looked out of a Lakeview Suite window at the front campus, all aglow with lights that cast yellow beams across the well-trimmed grass. A certain portion had been wired for electric lights, which would be left until after Commencement; elsewhere, Japanese lanterns were hung around. The fountain sparkled, and near by, the brilliantly lighted candy booth was an attractive place. Freshman academy girls were not permitted to have engagements with the military youths, but served refreshments, sold candy, and had great fun on the side. Many of the younger boys, who came in groups, not having invited any particular girl, hung around the booths, offering, their services to carry ice cream, buying as much candy as they could carry, or took ice cream and cake several times in order to converse with the fair waitresses.
At Juliet’s remark, Lilian and Eloise started to hum, “Can I Forget That Night in June,” sung by their mothers, grandmothers and perhaps their great-grandmothers in bygone days! After helping in various ways about the decorations and the candy, the girls had dressed early and were visiting before it should be time to go downstairs.
“There come the first lot of them,” said Hilary, who was sitting in the window seat with Juliet. One of the Greycliff Village motor buses was dashing in at the entrance of the drive and the much admired uniforms could be seen inside.
“How do we do this time?” asked Cathalina.