435

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

"TAKE RICKIE! HE BEAT TOO, AS MUCH AS I." _Frontispiece_

AND SHE TOLD THEM THE WHOLE STORY AS
FAST AS SHE COULD 100

JUST THEN SOMETHING SKIMMED OUT FROM
THE CORNER 155

"I NEVER DID REGARD PICNICS AS PLEASANT
AFFAIRS," GASPED MISS ANSTICE 206

"SEE, JOEL, I'M ALL FIXED UP NICE," LAUGHED
PHRONSIE FROM HER PERCH 286

"OH, I DO HOPE I SHALL DRAW THE RIGHT
ONE, JASPER." 307

"AND SO WE HAD A LITTLE ENTERTAINMENT,
AND SOLD THE TICKETS, AND HERE IS OUR GIFT!" 337

THERE STOOD THE LITTLE VASE, PRESENTING
AS BRAVE AN APPEARANCE AS IN ITS FIRST PERFECTION 412

_Five Little Peppers at School_

I HARD TIMES FOR JOEL

"Come on, Pepper." One of the boys rushed down the dormitory hall,
giving a bang on Joel's door as he passed.

"All right," said Joel a bit crossly, "I'm coming."

"Last bell," came back on the wind.

Joel threw his tennis racket on the bed, and scowled. Just then a flaxen
head peeped in, and two big eyes stared at him.

"Ugh!"--Joel took one look--"off with you, Jenkins." Jenkins withdrew at
once.

Joel jumped up and slammed the door hard, whirled around in vexation,
sprang over and thrust the tennis racket under the bed, seized a
dog-eared book, and plunged off, taking the precaution, despite his
hurry, to shut the door fast behind him.

Jenkins stole out of his room three doors beyond, and as the hall was
almost deserted about this hour, so many boys being in recitation, he
had nothing to do but tiptoe down to Joel's room and go softly in.

"Hullo!" A voice behind made him skip.

"Oh, Berry,"--it was a tone of relief,--"it's you."

"Um," said Berry, "what's up now, Jenk?" He tossed back his head, while
a smile of delight ran all over his face.

"Hush--come here." Jenk had him now within Joel's room and the door
shut. "We'll have fun with the beggar now."

"Who--Dave?"

"Dave? No. Who wants to haul him over?" cried Jenk in scorn. "You are a
flat, Berry, if you think that."

"Well, you are a flat, if you think to tackle Joe," declared Berry with
the air and tone of one who knows. "Better let him alone, after what you
got last term."

"Well, I ain't going to let him