aine steeled her heart and looked away.

"The word of a monitress is sufficient. I have been obliged to strike
your name off the Guilds Register, Monica. For this term, at any rate,
you won't have the privilege of belonging to any of the societies. I
want you juniors to understand once and for all that you can't break
rules and tell untruths. If you'd only confess!"

[Illustration: LORRAINE]

"I can't confess what I've not done!"

"But it's been proved against you, so it's no use persisting in denying
it. I----"

"Stop a moment, Lorraine!" cried Claudia, bursting suddenly into the
room. "It's quite a mistake! It wasn't Monica, after all! I ran
downstairs and caught those juniors as they came out. I watched their
backs, and Irene Holt has just the same blue serge and buttons as
Monica, and the same coloured hair ribbon. They aren't alike in front,
but their back views are absolute twins. I took Irene by the shoulders,
and told her I _knew_ she was guilty, and letting the blame fall on
Monica, and she threw up the sponge at once, literally howled, and
acknowledged it was she who had been in the gym. I told her to go and
wait in her own form room, and she's sitting there, boo-hooing for all
she's worth."

"Irene! The little sneak! I'm awfully sorry, Monica!" apologized Vivien.

Lorraine's face cleared like sunlight bursting through a cloud. Her
relief at the turn events had taken was intense.

"Shall I bring up the wretched kid?" asked Claudia.

"Oh, do please forgive her!" pleaded Monica. "She's such a scared
rabbit! She never knows what she's saying!"

"Well, I call that sporting of you!" said Vivien, smacking Monica
heartily on the back. "I vote we just say no more about the whole
business. Let Irene scoot off and mop her eyes at home. She's been
punished enough, I dare say."

"Right you are!" agreed the others readily.

"I'll tell her she may go, then," said Claudia. "Lorraine, for goodness'
sake take a penknife and scratch out that score you made through
Monica's name in the Guilds Register. I told you to wait, but you were
in such a precious hurry to execute vengeance."

"I'll be only too glad to restore the honour of the family," smiled
Lorraine.

CHAPTER VI

The Sea-nymphs' Grotto

To make amends to Monica for having doubted her word, Lorraine took her
on Saturday afternoon to see the Castletons. They found all the younger
members of that interesting family amusing themselves in the gar