e taken place between Alfred and
the small one, while he was recovering his breath and re-adjusting his
wilted neckwear. He was now thrown into a fresh panic by an exclamation
from the excitable Zoie.

"You must both meet my friend, Aggie Darling," she was saying. "I am
bringing her with me to the hop to-night. She is not at all like me.
You will like her dreadfully." She smiled at Jimmy as though she were
conferring a great favour upon him.

"Like her dreadfully," commented Jimmy to himself. "It was just the kind
of expression one might expect from a mind in such disorder as hers.
'Systematise Alfred's life,' indeed!"

There was more nonsensical chatter, or so it seemed to Jimmy, then Zoie
and Alfred rose to go, and Jimmy was told by both of them that he was to
put in an appearance at the Fraternity "hop" that night.

"I'll see you at dinner," called Alfred gaily over his shoulder and
Jimmy was left to grapple with his first disappointment at his friend's
lack of discrimination.

"It's her fault," concluded Jimmy, as he lifted himself heavily off
the bench and started down the campus, resolved to console himself with
food.

CHAPTER II

Now Jimmy had no intention of going to the "hop." He had tried to
tell Alfred so a dozen times during dinner, but each time he had been
interrupted by one of Alfred's enthusiastic rhapsodies about Zoie.

"Most marvellous girl I have ever met!" exclaimed Alfred over his soup.
"So sensible; so modest. And did you see how simply she dresses?" he
asked. Jimmy recalled his first vision of billowy fluff; but before he
could answer, Alfred had continued excitedly:

"I'll tell you what first attracted me toward her." He looked at Jimmy
as though he expected some especial mark of gratitude for the favour
about to be bestowed; then he explained with a serious weighing of his
words, "It was her love of children. I had barely been introduced to
her when she turned her back upon me and gave her whole attention to
Professor Peck's little boy Willie. I said to myself, 'any girl of that
age who prefers children to young chaps of my age, is the girl for me.'"

"I see," assented Jimmy lamely. It was his first remark during dinner.

"After that, I no longer hesitated. You know, Jimmy, I have decision."

"Yes, I have noticed," admitted Jimmy, without conviction.

"In fifteen minutes," said Alfred, "I had learned all about the young
lady's antecedents."

Having finished his soup, and res