"Oh dear me! I'm just toasted and fried," declared Alexia. "I never
_was_ so hot in all my life."

"You shouldn' have run so, Alexia," said Polly reproachfully, patting
the arm still in its sling. "Oh, how could you!"

"Well, did you suppose I was going to see you all sprinting off and
having such fun, and not try it too? No, indeed; that's asking too much,
Polly."

Then she threw herself at full length on the grass, and gazed at her
meditatively.

"Well, we mustn't have the second race, Philena," said Polly; "because
if Alexia runs again, it surely will hurt her."

"_Ow!_" exclaimed Alexia, flouncing up so suddenly that she nearly
overthrew Amy Garrett, who was sitting next, and who violently protested
against such treatment, "now I won't keep you back, Polly. Oh dear me!
it can't hurt me a single bit. I'm all ready to take off this horrible
old thing, you know I am, only Dr. Fisher thought--"

"He thought it would be safer to keep it on till after the picnic,"
Polly was guilty of interrupting. "You know he said so, Alexia. No, we
won't run again, girls," Polly brought up quite decidedly.

"Polly, you shall; I won't run--I really won't; I'll shut my eyes," and
Alexia squinted up her pale eyes till her face was drawn up in a knot.
"I'll turn my back, I'll do anything if you'll only race; _please_ try
it again, Polly."

So Polly, seeing that Alexia really wished it, dropped a kiss on each of
the closed eyes. "Put your hand over them, and untwist your face from
that funny knot," she laughed. "Come on, girls," and the race began.

Alexia twisted and wriggled, as the pattering feet and quick breath of
the girls when they neared her resting place, plunged her in dreadful
distress not to look. "Oh dear--um! if I could just see once; um--_um_!
I know Polly will win; oh dear! She _must_."

But she didn't. It was Cathie Harrison, the new girl; that is, new to
them, as they hadn't drawn her into their set, but a few weeks. She was
a tall, thin girl, who got over the ground amazingly, to touch the green
wicket gate certainly three seconds before Polly Pepper came flying up.

"You did that just splendidly, Cathie," cried Polly breathlessly. "Oh
dear me, that _was_ a race!"

"Goodness me!" cried Alexia, her eyes flying open, "my face never'll get
out of that knot in all this world. My! I feel as if my jaws were all
tied up. Well, Polly, this time you beat for sure," she added
confidently, as the girls came running up