ed the thought of the people I would have to meet.
But Hallie can be very persuading, and when I left her my resolution
had weakened considerably.

"Why not go?" I argued with myself on my way home. "I will have to
begin this sort of thing again sometime--that is, supposing I don't go
into the convent, and I am afraid father wouldn't like me to do that.
At least while I am making up my mind about it anything will be better
than brooding over this thing, which I can't help."

When I reached home I felt restless and the house seemed very small.
Rather diffidently I broached the subject of Estrella's ball to father;
but he was quite delighted.

"Excellent," he said, hurried off a boy to the Mendez house with word
that I was coming, sent out for flowers and made a lovely little fuss
about me. I tried to make myself look as pretty as possible in a pale
tulle, with little rosy wreaths upon it, and the high old
tortoise-shell comb, that had been mother's, in my hair. The
excitement gave me more color than I had had for weeks. I thought,
"Even if I am not happy, at least I can be excited."

[Illustration: I tried to make myself look as pretty as possible.]

Father looked so tired that when he left me at the Mendez house I asked
why need he come back for me, why not just send the carriage. He
wouldn't hear of that, and then Senora Mendez said why shouldn't I stay
at their house all night? So it was agreed, and Estrella, looking like
a little dancer, in a yellow gown sown [Transcriber's note: sewn?] with
twinkling spangles, came running and hurried me up-stairs to take off
my cloak.

The ball was a large one--one of those affairs that is so big it makes
you feel lost. I danced, danced madly; but a forlorn conviction kept
growing on me that I did not have that same joyful feeling that I could
dance on air which other parties had brought me. Every young man who
looked at me was not a possible sweetheart, yet more looked at me than
ever did before. I had a little crowd around me, and lots of pretty
things were said to me, and I was not so afraid to reply as I had been.
When Senor Mendez, Estrella's father, who is fat, but dances like
thistledown, took me for a turn around the room, "You are having quite
a success, eh, my child?" he said. "The young men are beginning to
wake up. You are coming out."

That was all very pleasing and my wits were never any too sharp at a
dance, being in a dreamy and delicious state of