"And do you refuse to leave?"
"As an invited guest and a cadet of this academy I most decidedly do."
And the whole room heard him, too.
Wright returned to his classmates; a brief consultation was held, ending in his stepping across the room and speaking to the leader of the band. The music stopped abruptly.
The hop was over for the night.
Three heartily delighted plebes escorted three heartily delighted damsels home that night. And wild indeed was the hilarity of them and of the Banded Seven.
"Victory! Victory!" was the cry. "We danced and we have conquered!"
CHAPTER XVIII.
A STRANGE ANNOUNCEMENT.
"Hey, fellows! What do you think? Mark Mallory's in disgrace."