. All that the school saw or thought of was the gentle love that
was always in the large gray eyes, the kind words that the firm lips
never failed to speak, and the steady, straightforward, honorable life
of the best scholar.

"If we can only get those two," said President Jenny Barton, "our club
is made."

"They are so good, they'll spoil the fun," said Mamie Smythe.

"For shame!" said Martha Dodd. "You don't suppose the daughter of a
missionary would join a club of which good girls could not be
members!"

"Or the cousin of so famous a man as Kane, the Arctic explorer," said
Sophy Kane.

"Don't dispute, girls; we seem to spend half our time wrangling," and
the president knocked, with what she made answer for the speaker's
gavel, noisily on the table. "I nominate our vice-president, Miss
Underwood, to inform these young ladies of their having been chosen,
and to report from them at our next meeting.

"Is the nomination accepted?"

"Ay! ay!" from the club.

In accordance with this request, Kate Underwood had interviewed Marion
and Dorothy secretly, and had received from both a positive refusal.

"I have no time for secret societies," said Dorothy with a
good-natured laugh. "I want twice as many hours for my studies. Thank
you, all the same, Kate."

"Secret society! what is that?" asked Marion. "What is it secret for?
What do you do in it that you don't want to have known? I don't like
the secret part of it. My father used to tell me about the secret
societies in Yale College, and they were full of boys' scrapes. He
nearly got turned out of college for his part in one of them; and if I
should get turned out from here, it would break his heart. No, thank
you, I'd better not."

So, sure that _no_ from them meant no, Kate had reported to the club,
and received permission to invite Susan Downer and Gladys Philbrick in
their places.

"Sue will come of course, and be glad to," the club said. "Really, on
the whole, she will be better than Dorothy, for Dorothy always wants
to toe the line."

Of Gladys, they by no means felt so sure. "She is, and she isn't,"
Lucy Snow said; "but she has lots of money, and that means splendid
spreads."

"But she won't--she won't"--Martha Dodd stopped.

"Won't what?" asked the president in a most dignified manner.

"Won't go through the corridors with her boots in her hands," said
Mamie with a rueful face, "and get dosed. She'd stamp right along
into Miss Ashton's room, and sa