ace Wolfe swung herself up to the lowest
branch, and motioned Peggy to follow; Peggy was a good climber, too;
more slowly, but with equal agility, she gained the branch; then softly,
slowly, both girls crept along, inward and upward, till a thick screen
of leaves hid them completely from sight.

Two ladies came around the turn, and paused a moment at the gate,--Miss
Russell and Miss Cortlandt. They stood directly under the chestnut-tree;
Peggy could have dropped a nut down exactly on the crown of Miss
Russell's bonnet; she never knew how near Grace came to doing so, nor
how hard it was to refrain for her, Peggy's, sake.

"I hope not!" said Miss Russell. "I do most earnestly hope not."

"I am afraid there is little doubt of it!" replied Miss Cortlandt. "Miss
Pugsley seemed quite positive; I know she means to bring it up at
Faculty Meeting to-morrow night."

Miss Russell sighed. "Then it will not be done in the wisest manner!"
she said. "I can say this to you, Emily, for you understand her as well
as I do. I had hoped," she continued, "that the whole business would be
over when Wilhelmina Lightwood--well, I suppose she will always be
'Billy,' even to me--when Billy went away. I put Peggy Montfort there,
because she seemed such an honest, steady, sensible kind of girl. I
thought I could trust Peggy Montfort."

"I think you can!" said Miss Cortlandt. "I don't believe Peggy has had
any share in the flittings. But I do think it might perhaps have been
better to tell her all about it, and put her on her guard. Being a new
girl, she might not feel at liberty to stop the older ones when they
came; and she could not tell of it. You see, Miss Russell, it is such a
little time since I was a 'girl' myself, that I haven't got away from
their point of view yet."

"I hope you never will, my dear!" said Miss Russell, warmly. "It is when
I get too far away from that point of view myself that I make mistakes.
Yes, I ought to have put the child on her guard; I'll do so to-morrow."

She looked over toward the school, and sighed again.

"Broad is the way that leadeth to destruction!" she said. "It was Grace
who gave it the name, of course. Poor Grace!"

"Poor Grace!" echoed Miss Cortlandt; and then the two passed on.

They were two very silent girls who crossed the lawn five minutes later.
Grace Wolfe held her head high, and walked with her usual airy grace;
her face was grave, but perhaps no graver than usual. Still, she did not