as told her."

"If Miss Leece knew it, she would certainly have told her," answered
Grace, leaning over so that Anne could not hear her; "but I feel sure
Miss Thompson has managed it somehow, although I kept hoping all day she
would send me a note or something. It may be she hated to tell me the
bad news."

Hippy Wingate and Reddy Brooks came down the aisle in immaculate attire.
David followed behind, pale and silent.

Did David suspect anything about his sister? Grace wondered. Certainly
he had directly or indirectly been the means of balking every one of
Miriam's schemes for injuring Anne. Perhaps Miriam had told him she was
to win the prize, and he was thinking of Anne's disappointment. All
three boys paused when they saw their friends of the Christmas house
party. Hippy leaned over to say:

"Hello, girls! Can you guess what has brought us here to-night, all
dressed up in our best?"

"Not unless it was to show off your clothes," replied Nora.

"To see Miss Anne Pierson win the freshman prize. Simply that, and
nothing more."

"But I don't expect to win it, Hippy," protested Anne.

"If you don't, you aren't the girl we took you for, then," replied
Hippy. "I heard from a young person in your class that you hadn't made a
mistake in six months."

"But just as many people think Miriam will win," said Anne. "Look at all
the people congratulating her already."

Surely enough Miriam's friends had rallied around her at the final test,
and numbers of girls and boys and grown people, too, were already
prophesying victory.

Just then the audience composed itself, for the exercises were about to
begin. Soft music was heard and the graduates filed out and took their
seats.

Immediately they were seated, Mrs. Gray, in a beautiful lavender silk
gown and a white lace bonnet trimmed with violets, swept down the aisle,
bowing and smiling right and left.

"Girls!" cried Grace delightedly, looking over her shoulder, "guess who
is with our precious little Mrs. Gray?"

"Tom Gray!" cried the others in unison, just as Tom Gray himself
appeared opposite them and waved his hat, regardless of the many eyes
fastened upon him, for Mrs. Gray was an important personage not only at
these annual assemblages, but in Oakdale itself, of which she had always
been a most generous and loyal citizen.

Mrs. Gray nodded cordially when she saw the girls, but shook her head
over Anne's pale, drawn little face.

As the ceremonies proceeded a