eet Miss Hobart," she cried, "so that you
may condole with her. She is to room with me this semester."

"Why this semester?" rejoined a tall girl in the group as she came forward
extending her hand. "Why not the year?"

"She may not survive," said Miss Wilson. "If she's able to stand me one
semester, then she'll be compelled to stay the year out."

"I am Anna Cresswell," continued the tall girl to Elizabeth. "Mary
Wilson's introductions leave much to be desired. She rarely sees fit to
mention the names of the people she introduces."

Miss Stoner and Miss Kean came up at this juncture. They had changed their
traveling dresses, and were wearing light challis. They were introduced to
Elizabeth, but neither made mention that they had seen each other in the
car or had come up in the carriage together. Landis was most demonstrative
in greeting Miss Wilson, chiding her for not writing during vacation, and
declaring that they must make up for lost time by spending a great many
leisure hours together now. Miss Wilson laughed merrily. She had been busy
all summer, she said, and had written only to her own people. Elizabeth
noticed that she expressed no desire to mortgage her future leisure hours
by any promises.

"You busy?" exclaimed Landis. "Now, what were you doing--reading novels,
dressing and driving about?"

"I should scarcely be content with such a summer, Landis. No; I played
nurse-girl to Mrs. Gleason's large family. I was busy, too. The place was
no sinecure, I assure you."

"Mrs. Gleason--from Gleasonton?" exclaimed Min. "Why, I thought she had no
children."

"She hasn't--but she adopts them annually. During July and August we had a
dozen babies at their home. We went for them in the morning and took them
back at night, and I gave each one of them a bath every day." This last
was said triumphantly.

"I've heard she was rather--eccentric!" said Landis.

"Don't you know her?" asked Elizabeth.

"No; I do not--not personally," was the response, "but we have mutual
friends."

Miss Wilson would have quitted Miss Stoner and Miss Kean here, but was
prevented by Landis telling her experience that day in the train, how a
woman, a total stranger, had taken her to task for throwing away her
lunch.

"She was a common-looking person," she added. "One could see she belonged
to the middle class, and I suppose had been compelled to practice economy,
so that my throwing a sandwich away seemed recklessly extravagant."