re school begins, and what fun we'll
have," said Flossie, "and perhaps Arabella will invite her aunt to one
of our entertainments; if she does, I'm just sure Uncle Harry would go."

"Oh, come here this minute, every one of you," called a cheery voice,
and Nina Earl stepped through an opening in the hedge.

"Why, how surprised you look! I've been over to the stone cottage to
call for you, Nancy, and Aunt Charlotte said that you were with Dorothy,
so I ran across the lawn. I could hear you all talking, and I was wild
to tell you something."

"Oh, tell it, tell it, Nina!" cried Mollie.

Nina looked back through the opening in the hedge.

"She's just saying 'good-morning' to Aunt Charlotte," she said, "and let
me tell you something; she's been all over the stone cottage, looking
into this thing and peeping into that, till I'd think Aunt Charlotte
would be wild. It's Arabella's aunt, and she says she came to learn if
the house was a healthy one to be in, and to see if the plumbing was
all right."

Dorothy's sweet eyes suddenly flashed.

"Doesn't she think my papa would keep Aunt Charlotte's house as
comfortable as ours?" she said.

"Oh, 'tisn't that!" laughed Nina, "she said she felt obliged to find out
if the cottage was a healthy place for a private school to be in, before
she could say that Arabella might belong to the class! Did you ever hear
anything like that?"

"Well, what makes her let Arabella come to our school?" queried blunt
little Mollie; "she could go to the public school. I guess we wouldn't
mind."

"Mamma says we must be kind to Arabella," said Dorothy, "so I think we
mustn't speak like that." "I'll be kind to her when she comes," said
Mollie, "because your mamma wishes it, but _now_, before school begins,
I'm going to say that I just _wish_ Arabella was going to the other
school."

The others felt, as Mollie did, that the class would be quite as
pleasant if Arabella attended the public school, but they did not like
to say so.

* * * * *

The few days of waiting were past, and now the first day of school had
come. The door of the pretty stone cottage stood wide open, as if
assuring a welcome to the little pupils who would soon arrive, while the
sunlight streamed in across the hall, giving a cheery greeting.

On the rug sat Pompey, the cat, his fine coat sleek and glossy, and his
white bosom as pure as much washing could make it. His paws were snugly
tucked in,