he _Courier_, biting his pencil
and using abbreviations in his notes with such freedom that the
list of gifts, when finally published, contained such startling
entries as: _Eliza and her Germ Garden_, and _The Victorious
Anthropology_.

"I felt as though I were in a dream half the time," sighed Polly, when
the crowd had dwindled to "the immediate mourners" as Max put it, and
these were sitting wearily at the messy little tables, dipping idle
spoons into the melted cream that had been with difficulty saved for
them. "I kept on smiling and explaining and telling people to go to
Catherine for cards and to Bertha to leave their gifts, and half the
time I didn't know what I was saying or who was talking to me. Bert came
up once and asked me to tell him which door he came in at, and I tried
to find out for him, before I tumbled--before I saw the point, I mean. I
never was so exhausted in all my life."

"Poor Algernon," said Tom. "You're just beginning your work. Every one
of those hundred and sixty-seven cards will be in to-morrow to draw out
a book. You ought to keep open for a week every day."

"Three times a week, with evenings, will be enough," replied A.
Swinburne, librarian. "There's a big job on those books that came in
to-night. How many were there finally, Bertha?"

"Ninety-six. About twenty are worth putting labels on," answered Bertha
cheerfully. "I'm a little inclined to think that that part of our plan
was a mistake."

"I don't believe it," said Dot. "There was one old duck who brought a
German primer, and he strutted around as though he owned the place. I'm
sure he'll use it constantly."

"He seemed to think he ought to have a card free, because he gave it,"
put in Catherine. "I remember him! He wasn't the only one, though. They
all--or a lot of them--seemed to think they ought to be able to draw any
number of books on one card, and they don't like the idea of fines at
all. I don't envy you, Algernon!"

"We ought to have called ourselves the Looking For Trouble Club,"
groaned Archie. "We haven't had a decent Boat Club picnic since we got
into this mess. And look at all this place to clean up to-morrow! I'm
about dead with work, already. I don't know about the rest of you."

The rest had strength enough for a chorus of hoots and jeers at "His
Laziness," who had adorned the scene of their labor for a few minutes
now and then, but for the most part had stayed strictly away.

"I've saved your lives, anywa