youths who monopolize our piazza every
Wednesday and Saturday afternoon?"

"Two of them help occasionally."

Katherine winked meaningly at the rest of the Mountain Day party. "We'll
be there," she said, "though it goes against my conscience to receive
calls from such untruthful young gentlemen."

The next Saturday afternoon Betty and Katherine established themselves
ostentatiously on the front piazza to await the arrival of Mary's
callers, Rachel had gone to play basket-ball, and Roberta had refused to
conspire against Mary's peace of mind, particularly since the plot might
involve having to talk to a man. Promptly at three o'clock two gentlemen
arrived.

"Miss Brooks is that sorry, but she had to go out," announced the maid
in tones plainly audible to the two eavesdroppers. "Would you please to
come back at four?"

Katherine and Betty exchanged disappointed glances. "Checked again.
She's too much for us," murmured Katherine. "Shall we wait?"

"And is Miss Wales in--Miss Betty Wales?" pursued the spokesman, after a
slight pause.

The maid looked severely at the occupants of the piazza. "Yes, sor, you
can see that yoursilf," she said and abruptly withdrew.

The man laughed and came quickly toward Betty, who had risen to meet
him. "I'm John Parsons," he said. "I roomed with your brother at
Andover. He told me you were here and asked me to call. Didn't he write
to you too? Miss Brooks promised to present me, but as she isn't in----"

"Oh, yes, Will wrote, and I'm very glad to meet you, Mr. Parsons," Betty
broke in. "Only I didn't know you were--I mean I didn't know that Miss
Brooks's caller was you. Miss Kittredge, Mr. Parsons. Wasn't your friend
going to wait?"

"Bob," called Mr. Parsons after the retreating figure of his companion,
"come back and hear about the runaway. You're wanted."

It was fully half-past four when Messrs. Parsons and Hughes,
remembering that they had another engagement, left their escorts by
request at the gymnasium and returned from a pleasant walk through
Paradise and the campus to Meriden Place, where a rather frigid
reception awaited them. Betty and Katherine, having watched the finish
of the basket-ball game, followed them, and spent the time before
dinner in painting a poster which they hung conspicuously on Mary's
door. On it a green dragon, recently adopted as freshman class animal,
charged the sophomores' purple cow and waved a long and very curly
tail in triumph. Underneath w