never ate in
the Dare Hall dining-room.

Meantime, Jennie Stone had several mysterious sessions with certain of
the girls who felt quite as she did regarding the usurpation of Dr.
McCurdy's sister-in-law of the spare room. Had Ruth not been so busy in
other directions she would have realized that a plot of some kind was in
process of formation, for Helen was in it, as well.

Jennie Stone had made a friend of Clara Mayberry on the floor above. In
fact, a number of the girls on the lower corridor affected by the
presence of Mrs. Jaynes, were in and out of Clara's room all day long.
None of these girls remained long at a time--not more than half an hour;
but another visitor always appeared before the first left, right through
the day, from breakfast call till "lights out." And after retiring hour
there began to be seen figures stealing through the corridors and on the
stairway between the two floors. That is, there would have been seen
such ghostly marauders had there been anybody to watch.

Mrs. Jaynes crossly complained to Mrs. Ebbetts that she was kept awake
all night long--and all day, for that matter! But as she never put her
head out of her room after the lights were lowered in the corridors, she
did not discover the soft-footed spectres of the night.

"But," she complained to Mrs. Ebbetts, "it is the noisiest room I ever
was in. Such a squeaking you never heard! And all the time, day and
night."

"I do not understand that at all," said the puzzled housekeeper.

"I'd like to know how the girl who had that room before I took it, stood
that awful squeaking noise," said the visitor.

"Why, Mrs. Jaynes," said the housekeeper, "no girl slept there. It was a
sitting-room."

"Even so, I cannot understand how anybody could endure the noise. If I
believed in such things I should declare the room was haunted."

"Indeed, Madam!" gasped the housekeeper. "I do not understand it."

"Well, I cannot endure it. I shall tell my sister that I cannot remain
here at Ardmore unless she finds me other lodgings. That awful _squeak,
squeak, squeak_ continues day and night. It is unbearable."

In the end, Dr. McCurdy found lodgings for his sister-in-law in
Greenburg. The girls of Ruth's corridor were delighted, and that night
held a regular orgy in the recovered sitting-room.

"Thank goodness!" sighed Jennie Stone, "no more up and down all night
for us, either. We may sleep in peace, as well as occupy the room in
peace."

"Wh