"I am sure Annette is right," said Janet Graves; "I remember talking over that very thing with Mademoiselle last year. It is too bad, to charge the poor child with more mistakes than she makes. I will look back at some of my old books, and see what can find about it."
"Look at Delia's exercise, Emily, and see if he has corrected it there," said Annette. "Delia and myself are writing in the same place."
Unthinkingly Emily opened the carefully folded paper, and cast her eyes over it, but a single glance showed her that it was not an exercise at all, and she hastily refolded it, and turned away, saying that she must go and see how Delia was.
"Only just look at that one thing, Emily," persisted Annette; "because I really want to know whether it is right or not."
But Emily was already out of hearing.
"How queerly she acted!" said Almira Crosby. "What possible harm could it do Delia to have her exercise looked at?"
"I don't believe that was it," said Annette. "She was in a hurry, that was all. You are always imagining things, Almira."
"I keep my eyes and ears open," said Almira, significantly; "and that is more than some folks do. There are not many things going on in this house, that I do not see into."
"Especially when they are none of your business," said Belle. "We all know what a benevolent interest you take in other people's concerns, Almira. It is rather a pity you should not devote a little of your spare time to your own affairs, and so save yourself from disgrace now and then. I don't believe there has been one Friday since school commenced, that you have not been deficient in something."
"That is none of your business, any way," retorted Almira. "But as to Delia Mason, she is very close with her affairs. She thinks she can turn every one round her finger, as she does Emily, but she may find herself mistaken some day. You must allow that it was very curious in Emily to make such a fuss about showing a French exercise."