grubbing this summer."

Griffin pushed up her blouse sleeve, showing a remarkably thin arm.
"I'm your man, if you ever want a pal," she said to Judith. "I'm
trained down to the right weight now and ready for business."

Judith did not know whether she was being chaffed or not, so she
dexterously changed the subject.

"Doris Leighton's sister has the scarlet fever," she announced,
enjoying the stir that the name caused, "and Doris is nursing her. She
takes turns with the nurse, and Geraldine cries when she goes out of
the room."

"Phew, that doesn't sound like our fine lady of the stony heart!"
exclaimed Griffin. "Are you sure, kidlet?"

Judith nodded emphatically. "Mrs. Leighton told Miss Hillis over the
phone, and she told the class, as 'an example of sisterly devotion,'
she called it. I felt like telling her _what I knew_."

"Judith Kendall, you're a little monster!" cried Patricia, indignantly.
"Even if Doris did cheat, she's doing a noble thing now, and we ought
to be the last to blab, since Elinor got the prize. Doris had to pay
for her sins and she has human feelings, too."

"Pooh, she didn't have to pay much," said Judith with the callousness
of childhood. "She only gave back the prize and left the Academy."

"I'm glad to hear that she is making good now," said Margaret Howes
gravely. "I always felt there was a lot of good in Leighton under her
fluff."

"Perhaps it took hard rubs to bring it out," said Miss Jinny, pouring
another cup for Mr. Spicer. "We poor human critters are like that
sometimes. Good times spoil us. Maybe she's had it too easy, poor
girl."

"Souls have muscles, the same as bodies do, and they need exercise,"
agreed Bruce thoughtfully. "I know lots of fellows who are failures
through having too much money. It's a dangerous thing to let your soul
get seedy."

"Golly, that pretty nearly hits us all, doesn't it?" said Griffin
apprehensively. "I'm not so sure about myself, now you mention it.
Doris Leighton may be one ahead of me in this business. Fatty
degeneration of the soul is a new one to me."

They were all rather serious for a silent moment, and then Patricia
spoke. Her clear voice was rather low and timid, but her eyes were
shining.

"Let's phone to her and tell her that we all hope Geraldine will soon
be well," she said, looking at Elinor with loving confidence.

There was a murmur of assent and Elinor rose quickly.

"The very thing, Miss Pat," she agree