ediately he was afraid that
every one was watching him. Ray Cowles bawled to them, as he passed in
the waltz, "Watch out for that Carl, Gert. He's a regular badix."

Carl's scalp tickled, but he tried to be very offhand in remarking:
"You must have gotten that dress in New York, didn't you? Why haven't
you ever told me about New York? You've hardly told me anything at
all."

"Well, I like that! And you never been near me to give me a chance!"

"I guess I was kind of scared you wouldn't care much for Joralemon,
after New York."

"Why, Carl, you mustn't say that to me!"

"I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, Gertie, honestly I didn't. I was
just joking. I didn't think you'd take me seriously."

"As though I could forget my old friends, even in New York!"

"I didn't think that. Straight. Please tell me about New York. That's
the place, all right. Jiminy! wouldn't I like to go there!"

"I wish you could have been there, Carl. We had such fun in my school.
There weren't any boys in it, but we----"

"No boys in it? Why, how's that?"

"Why, it was just for girls."

"I see," he said, fatuously, completely satisfied.

"We did have the best times, Carl. I _must_ tell you about one awfully
naughty thing Carrie--she was my chum in school--and I did. There was
a stock company on Twenty-third Street, and we were all crazy about
the actors, especially Clements Devereaux, and one afternoon Carrie
told the principal she had a headache, and I asked if I could go home
with her and read her the assignments for next day (they called the
lessons 'assignments' there), and they thought I was such a meek
little country mouse that I wouldn't ever fib, and so they let us go,
and what do you think we did? She had tickets for 'The Two Orphans' at
the stock company. (You've never seen 'The Two Orphans,' have you?
It's perfectly splendid. I used to weep my eyes out over it.) And
afterward we went and waited outside, right near the stage entrance,
and what do you think? The leading man, Clements Devereaux, went
right by us as near as I am to you. Oh, _Carl_, I wish you could have
seen him! Maybe he wasn't the handsomest thing! He had the blackest,
curliest hair, and he wore a thumb ring."

"I don't think much of all these hamfatters," growled Carl. "Actors
always go broke and have to walk back to Chicago. Don't you think it
'd be better to be a civil engineer or something like that, instead of
having to slick up your hair and carry a c