e first night she came there was a crowd of girls
in her room. I heard them laughing and singing."

"They didn't come to _see her_," informed Marian scornfully. "It's
Judith Stearns that draws them. She's very popular at Wellington. Can't
see why, I'm sure. Anyway Jane Allen has pulled the wool over her eyes
until she thinks she has a wonderful roommate."

"Jane Allen hasn't so many friends," broke in Maizie. "Dorothy Martin,
Judith, Adrienne Dupree, Ethel Lacey, she's Adrienne's roommate, and
Norma Bennett. That's all. Lots of girls in the sophomore class don't
like her."

"Yes, and who's Norma Bennett," sneered Marian. "She used to be a
kitchen maid; now she's a third-rate actress. She's a pet of Adrienne's
and Jane Allen's. I think we ought to make a fuss about having her here
at the Hall. If we could get most of the girls to sign a petition asking
Mrs. Weatherbee to take it up it would be a good thing."

"But would she do it?" was Maizie's skeptical query.

"She might if we worked it cleverly," answered Marian. "Adrienne and her
crowd would probably go to President Blakesly. We'd have to work it in
such a way that Norma wouldn't let her. This Bennett girl is one of the
sensitive sort. False pride, you know. Beggars are usually like that.
Of course, I don't say positively that we can do it. We'll have to wait
and see. Some good chance may come."

"It would be a splendid way to get even with Jane Allen and Adrienne
Dupree, too," approved Maizie. "They would have spasms if their darling
Norma had to leave Madison Hall and they couldn't help themselves."

"I think it would be rather hard on this Norma," declared Elsie bluntly.

She had pricked up her ears at the word "actress." Unbeknown to anyone
save herself she was desperately stage struck. The idea of having a real
actress at the Hall was decidedly alluring.

"You don't know what you're talking about," angrily rebuked Marian.
"It's hard on the girls of really good families to have to countenance
such a person. I've lived at Madison Hall a year longer than you have.
Just remember that."

"What we ought to do is to get as many girls as we can on our side,"
suggested crafty Maizie. "There are forty-eight girls at the Hall, most
of them sophs. Last year we let them alone, because they weren't of our
class. This year we'll have to make a fuss over them. Lunch them and
take them to ride in our cars and all that. It will be a bore, but it
will pay in the end. On