wonderful thing happened!

Jane stood in our midst!

Oh, Jane, you were a miracle to me, but I must go on writing about it
all calmly for the sake of the Five!

I made a mad rush from my rocker to throw myself into her arms, but she
stopped me with one glance of her cold, official eye that quelled me,
and stood attention before Aunt Augusta.

"Madam President," she said in her grandest parliamentary voice, "it was
by accident that I interrupted the proceedings of what I take to be an
official meeting. Have I your permission to withdraw? I am Miss Shelby's
guest, Miss Mathers, and I can easily await her greetings until the
adjournment of this body."

Oh, Jane, and my arms just hungry for you!

"Madam," answered Aunt Augusta, in her grandest manner and a voice so
filled with cordiality that I hardly knew it, "it is the pleasure of the
chair to interrupt proceedings and to welcome you. Evelina, introduce us
all!"

It was all just glorious! I never saw anybody get a more lovely ovation
than Jane did from my friends, for they had all heard about her, read
with awe clippings I showed them about her speeches and--were about
ready for her.

Sallie kissed her on both cheeks, Mamie laid the baby in her arms with a
devout expression, and Nell clung to her with the rapture of the newly
proselyted in her face. Aunt Martha made her welcome in her dearest
manner and Caroline beamed on her with the return of a lot of the fire
and spirit of the youth that hanging on the doled-out affections of Lee
Greenfield had starved in her.

And it was characteristic of Jane and her methods that it took much less
time than it takes me to write it, for her to get all the greetings over
with, explain that she had sent me a letter telling me that she was
coming that must have gone astray, get everybody named and ticketed in
her mind, and get us all back to business.

Aunt Augusta explained the situation to her with so much feeling and
eloquence that she swept us all off our feet, and when she was ready to
put the question again to us as to our willingness to embark on our
defiance of our fellow-townsmen, the answer of enthusiastic acquiescence
was ready for her.

"Of course, as none of you have any official municipal status, the
invitation will have to be given informally, in a social way, to the
Commission through Miss Shelby's friend, Mr. Richard Hall," said Jane,
when Aunt Augusta had called on her to give us her opinion of the
situat