've heard what Fannie Mears and Nina Edmonds have done
now?" remarked Sarah one noon period when the fair was a scant week
off.

"No, what?" asked Rosemary who avoided Nina's name whenever
possible.

"Why they've taken three dozen needle-books that have to have the
flannel leaves tied in them with ribbon," explained Sarah. "See,
Shirley has four to do. Fannie and Nina promised Miss Carlson
they'd do them, and now they've handed them all out in the primary
grades. They wanted me to do six, but I wouldn't."

Sarah was engrossed with the gold fish which had already arrived and
were housed in the natural history room in the high school building.
She visited them several times daily and in his heart Mr. Martin,
the biology teacher feared she would kill them with kindness before
the fair opened.

"Shirley doesn't mind tying the leaves in, do you dear?" asked
Rosemary cheerfully.

"Not much," replied Shirley, "only I wanted to cut the ribbons for
my flower bouquets yesterday afternoon, and Fannie wouldn't lend me
the scissors."

"I'll help you do it this afternoon," promised Rosemary, who had
planned to assemble the recipes for her cake icings and see what
supplies were lacking that she would need.

"If that fancy-work table ever gets enough things, the rest of us
may be able to pay a little attention to our own tables," she said
to herself.

But that afternoon Shirley came crying to Rosemary to say that she
had lost the four little needle-books.

"I've looked everywhere," the child insisted. "All over everywhere,
Rosemary. And they're all gone."

"That means I'll have to make four," said poor Rosemary. "Don't cry,
Shirley, Sister will see that you have four needle-books to turn in.
Though I don't see how you could lose them," she added wearily.

"I'll bet Fannie Mears took those books," declared Sarah when she
heard of the loss. "It would be just like her. She thinks it's smart
to get four extra books."

Rosemary protested weakly at this idea. In her heart of hearts, she
thought Fannie quite capable of such an act, but she had loyally
resolved to try and follow Hugh's advice.

"But I can't help wishing he knew Fannie," said Rosemary to herself.

She made the needle-books and helped Shirley measure and cut the
ribbon for her bouquets. Sarah's "soup ladle" proved to be a net and
that small girl "experimented" with the netting so earnestly that
she required a new net to be inserted practically every day. Of