ce there with somewhat the feeling of a
novice entering a nunnery. She was not quite sure how she and Aunt
Harriet were going to get on. To her great relief, however, things
turned out better than she expected. Miss Beach received her with
unusual complacency, and the two settled down quite harmoniously
together. The fact was that Winona, a visitor with nothing to do, and
Winona a busy High School girl, were utterly different persons. It is
one thing to wander round somebody else's house and feel bored, and
quite another to hang up your hat, realize you are part and parcel of
the establishment, and occupy yourself with your own business. Once she
had fallen into the swing of work at school Winona began to appreciate
the orderliness of her aunt's arrangements. It had never seemed to
matter at home if the breakfast were late and she arrived at Miss
Harmon's when the clock had struck nine, but at "The High" it was an
affair of vital importance to be in her seat before call-over, and she
daily blessed the punctuality of Aunt Harriet's cook. It was also a
great boon to be able to prepare her lessons in quiet. Her family had
never realized the necessity of silence during study hours, and she had
been used to learn French vocabularies or translate her Latin exercises
to a distracting accompaniment of Ernie's trumpet, Dorrie's and Mamie's
quarrels, Godfrey's mouth organ, and Letty's strumming upon the piano.

"It would have been utterly impossible to do my prep. at home!" she
thought sometimes. "I'd no idea what work was like before I came to
Seaton 'High'! It would do those youngsters good to have a drilling! I
wish they could have been in the Preparatory. No, I don't! Because then
I should have had them here, and it would have been good-by to all
peace. On the whole things are much better as they are."

Miss Beach was so extremely busy with her own multifarious occupations
that she had not time to see very much of her great-niece. She made
every arrangement for her comfort, however, and caused the piano to be
moved into the dining-room for the convenience of her practicing. She
had always had a tender spot for Winona, whom she regarded as the one
hopeful character in a family of noodles. She talked to her at meal
times about a variety of subjects, some of them within her intelligence,
but others completely--so far--above her head. She even tried to draw
her out upon school matters. This, however, was a dead failure. Winona,