own, and flew, all
dripping with ink, down the aisle, out of the door, and bouncing
downstairs like an India-rubber ball.

Delia Guest and one or two of the other girls screamed. Miss Cardrew
flung out some books and papers from the desk. It was too late; they
were dripping, and drenched, and black. The teacher quietly wiped some
spots of ink from her pretty blue merino, and there was an awful
silence.

"Girls," said Miss Cardrew then, in her grave, stern way, "who did
this?"

Nobody answered.

"Who put that cat in my desk?" repeated Miss Cardrew.

It was perfectly still. Gypsy's cheeks were scarlet. Joy was looking
carelessly about the room, scanning the faces of the girls, as if she
were trying to find out who was the guilty one.

"It is highly probable that the cat tied herself into an apron, opened
the desk and shut the cover down on herself," said Miss Cardrew; "we
will look into this matter. Delia Guest, did you put her in?"

"No'm--he, he! I guess I--ha, ha!--didn't," said Delia.

"Next!"--and down the first row went Miss Cardrew, asking the same
question of every girl, and the second row, and the third. Gypsy sat on
the end of the fourth settee.

"Gypsy Breynton, did you put the kitten in my desk?"

"No'm, I didn't," said Gypsy; which was true enough. It was Joy who did
that part of it.

"Did you have anything to do with the matter, Gypsy?" Perhaps Miss
Cardrew remembered that Gypsy had had something to do with a few other
similar matters since she had been in school.

"Yes'm," said honest Gypsy, with crimson face and hanging head, "I did."

"What did you do?"

"I put on the apron and the tippet, and--I gave her the biscuit.
I--thought she'd keep still till prayers were over," said Gypsy,
faintly.

"But you did not put her in the desk?"

"No'm."

"And you know who did?"

"Yes'm."

Miss Cardrew never asked her scholars to tell of each other's
wrong-doings. If she had, it would have made no difference to Gypsy. She
had shut up her lips tight and not another word would she have said for
anybody. She had told the truth about herself, but she was under no
obligations to bring Joy into trouble. Joy might do as she liked.

"Gypsy Breynton will lose her recesses for a week and stay an hour after
school tonight," said Miss Cardrew. "Joy, did you put the kitten in my
desk?"

"No, ma'am," said Joy, boldly.

"Nor have anything to do with it?"

"No, ma'am," said Joy, without the slightest cha