rought over to the nicest
people in America, in the _Mayflower_, which they all talk so much
about; for certainly _some_ of the people in her must have been cooks
or in the steerage; there are too many descendants for the first class
passengers alone. After considering for a minute I said in rather an
embarrassed way that I wasn't "quite sure yet whether I would be
either."

"You must be one or the other, you know, or you'll be like the bat in
the fable who was neither bird nor beast, and so was out of all the fun
on both sides. I may be prejudiced, but I advise you to be a cadets'
lady. And you'd better decide now on account of to-night."

"To-night?" I repeated, puzzled.

"Yes, on account of making out your card. Say, Lady Betty, if you _are_
going in with us, can I make out your card?"

Then arose a clamour. It appeared that they all wanted to make out the
card--whatever it was. I asked if I couldn't have one from each, but it
appeared that you couldn't do that. My cadet had spoken first, so he
said that he would do it; but the others could give me bell-buttons and
chevrons, and decorate fans for me instead.

"Do you like hops, Lady Betty?" enquired a perfect pet of a cadet, who
looked like a cherub in uniform.

"Hops?" I wondered why he should ask me such an irrelevant question,
but I answered as intelligently as I could. "I don't know much about
them. I think they're graceful, but I don't like the smell."

He looked petrified. "The _smell_?"

"Yes. It makes one sleepy."

"I guess we won't give you much chance to be sleepy to-night," said he,
"at our hop."

Then I understood. But what a funny thing to call a ball; a "hop!"

They explained, too, when they saw how stupid I was, that you were an
"officers' lady" if you danced with them, and walked with them, and
flirted with them, and didn't bother with cadets; or vice versa. Then I
decided at once that I would be a cadets' lady, though I was sorry I
had only one night to be it in. They were sorry, too, and showed their
sorrow in so many nice ways that I enjoyed myself immensely, and quite
saw how nice it must feel to be out, if you are a success. They wanted
to draw lots for which cadet should take me to Flirtation Walk, but I
said I had to go with Mr. Parker.

He must have been listening from a distance, (though he ought to have
been talking with a pretty girl who had no hat,) for he came up to me
at once, and announced that it was time to go now. He r