were
playing one evening in Martha Sinclair's room; and Janet Armour took
this row of puppies from the mantelpiece and set it on the floor, and
told us to look at it. Then she kicked it over with her foot, and told
us it was a word of three syllables, all three and the whole word given
at once. See if you can guess, Hildegarde? You give it up? Well, it is
too silly to guess. 'Kick-a-row,' do you see? Cicero, Gertrude, my lamb.
I explain on account of your tender years."

"She must be a silly girl," said Gertrude. "We wouldn't put up with such
a poor charade as that here, would we, Hilda?"

"There are different kinds of brains," said Bell, laughing. "Janet
Armour leads the whole college in mathematics, and is head of the
basket-ball team. So you see, dear, talents vary. Well, Hildegarde, I am
afraid there is nothing else that would do; unless you would like this
cologne-bottle doll? She is a superior doll."

"Very," said Hildegarde. "And you know Kitty would be enchanted with
her. No, Bell, I shall take nothing else, and I am ever so much obliged
for all these nice things. Now you must come over with me and help me
fasten up the box. You, too, dear Gertrude."

The three raced across the lawn and through the hedge, and were soon in
Hildegarde's room. Bell looked round her with a sigh, half admiration,
half regret.

"Hilda, there is no room but this!" she said. "How do you make it
so--so--well, your own portrait in a way? If I were to be shown into
this room in the furthest corner of the Soudan I should say, 'And is
Hildegarde in, or shall I wait for her?'"

Hildegarde laughed, and looked about her, her eyes resting lovingly on
this or the other treasure of picture or book.

"Dear room!" she said. "I am glad you like it, for I love it very much.
And if it looks like me--"

"You must be pretty good-looking!" cried Gertrude. "Is that what you
were going to say, Hilda?"

"No, you absurd child, it was not. But--well, girls, of course it is
different when people have two or three places, in town and country, and
move about as you do, to and from school and college, and all that. But
this, you see, is my home, my only home and abiding-place; and so my own
things grow to be very real to me, and very much a part of my life. I
suppose that is it. I know--you will understand what I mean,
Bell--whenever I go out of this room, it seems as if one part of me
stayed here, and was ready to greet me when I came back. But that is