cleared away
before she told the girls to pull the ribbons.

When the boxes came in view there was a scream of delight.

Nimble-fingered Kitty was the first to open hers, and the rest were not
long following suit, revealing to the enraptured gaze quaint and oddly
designed gold rings, the monogram of the We Are Sevens forming a seal.

There was a rush for Blue Bonnet's side of the table, where that young
person was deluged with caresses and many expressions of gratitude.

"It's Uncle Cliff--he did it," Blue Bonnet managed to say when she could
extricate herself. "That is, he suggested it--gave me the money--and I
had them made at Tiffany's."

There was a chorus of praise for Uncle Cliff, which must have made his
ears ring to the point of deafness, even in far-off Texas.

Amanda made a suggestion.

"Let's go up-stairs in the clubroom and organize a Sorority. W. A. S.
looks kind of Greeky in a monogram. We can have rings instead of pins
for our insignia."

The idea met with instant favor. There was another rush for the stairs,
and a few moments later the Club members were comfortably settled in
their quarters with Amanda in the Chair.

Amanda was not quite clear as to the manner of procedure, but she
gracefully waved a tack hammer found on the window-sill, in lieu of a
gavel, and demanded order.

When quiet at last descended upon the disturbed and noisy assemblage,
Blue Bonnet asked if she might have the floor. She looked appealingly at
the Chair.

Debby rose to a point of order.

"We've got to elect officers," she said. "Amanda hasn't been elected. I
move that Blue Bonnet Ashe be our chairman."

This Was the very opportunity Blue Bonnet wanted for her announcement.
She made Debby a profound bow, pushing Amanda out of the way
unceremoniously.

"I thank you all for this very great honor," she began, clearing her
throat in the most professional manner. She had once attended a woman's
club with Miss Clyde in Boston. "But owing to my absence from the city
the coming winter I--"

There was a roar of protest from the Club members, en masse.

"I shall be leaving you about the first of January--"

This announcement prevented the further order of business. Cries of
"What for? Where to? For how long?" assailed Blue Bonnet.

She made her plans and prospects clear to them.

At first the girls seemed stunned. Joy turned to lamentation. There
arose a chorus of wails, plaintive and doleful. They kept it up for som