it would be a
fine thing for the town, and he'd boost every way he could."

"Aren't people lovely?" sighed Catherine rapturously. "I believe even
Miss Ainsworth was more enthusiastic than she appeared to be. And we
haven't even mentioned it to the Boat Club yet."

"Or the Three R's. They are chiefly Boat Club fathers and mothers."

"We must see the school superintendent."

"The ministers will announce it in the churches."

"Yes, we must see them to-morrow. O dear, I am so tired! What time is it
anyway?"

Algernon drew a big watch from his pocket.

"Six-fifteen."

Catherine started up in horror.

"O! And I forgot all about helping with supper. What will mother think?"

Algernon watched her hasten away up the hill, and turned toward his own
home with some anxiety. He had to coax his mother to take an interest in
the new undertaking, and wished the operation over, but he squared his
shoulders and determined to do his best and do it that very evening.

Catherine, for her part, spent the evening discussing the plan with her
already sympathetic mother.

"It almost takes my breath away, Mother dear," she confided as they sat
on the porch in the dusk, watching the fireflies, "the way people fall
in with suggestions. It didn't occur to me before that _I_ could
start things going. But at college I had only to see that something
should be done, and then to say so; and it almost always was done. And I
was more surprised than anybody!"

Dr. Helen smiled, and put out her hand to stroke Catherine's head, which
rested on her knee.

"They were pretty good ideas, I judge."

"They were perfectly simple ones. Just little things like having the
mail-boxes assigned alphabetically, instead of by the numbers of the
rooms. It saved the mail girls a lot of work, and Miss Watkins was glad
of the suggestion. I helped Alice sort mail, you know,--she does it to
help pay her way. And then the little notices on the bulletin board were
always getting lost under the big ones, and I was on a Students'
committee and often had notices to post, and I got them to make a rule
that all notices should be written on a certain size sheet, and the
board looks much neater now. And then there weren't any door-blocks.
Aunt Clara told me that they had them at Vassar, little pads hanging
outside your door, with a pencil attached, and if you are out, your
callers leave their messages, you know. It seemed as though we needed
something like that, for s