rn is very good friends with Carrie Poole, they say.
Why, Ruth! can _that_ be the reason why we haven't been invited?"

"_What's_ the reason?"

"'Cause Trix is good friends with Carrie? Trix's mother is some relation
to Mrs. Poole. That Trix girl is so mean I _know_ she'll just work us
out of any invitation to the party."

Agnes' eyes flashed and it looked as though a storm was coming. But Ruth
remained tranquil.

"There will be other parties," the older girl said. "It won't kill us to
miss this one."

"Speak for yourself!" complained Agnes. "It just kill us with some of
the girls. The Pooles are very select. If we are left out of Carrie's
party, we'll be left out of the best of everything that goes on this
winter."

Ruth would not admit to Agnes just how badly she felt about the fact
that they were seemingly overlooked by Carrie Poole in the distribution
of the latter's favors. The party was to be on the Friday night of the
week immediately preceding Christmas.

There had been no snow of any consequence as yet, but plenty of cold
weather. Milton Pond was safely frozen over and the Corner House girls
were there almost every afternoon. Tess was learning to skate and Ruth
and Agnes took turns drawing Dot about the pond on her sled.

Neale O'Neil had several furnaces to attend to now, and he always looked
after the removal of the ashes to the curbline, and did other dirty
work, immediately after school. But as soon as his work was finished he,
too, hurried to the pond.

Neale was a favorite with the girls--and without putting forth any
special effort on his part to be so. He was of a retiring disposition,
and aside from his acquaintanceship with some of the boys of his grade
and his friendship with the Corner House girls, Neale O'Neil did not
appear to care much for youthful society.

For one thing, Neale felt his position keenly. He was the oldest scholar
in his class. Miss Shipman considered him her brightest pupil, but the
fact remained that he really should have been well advanced in high
school. Ruth Kenway was only a year older than Neale.

His size, his good looks, and his graceful skating, attracted the
attention of the older girls who sought the Milton Pond for recreation.

"There's that Neale O'Neil," said Carrie Poole, to some friends, on this
particular afternoon, when she saw the boy putting on his skates. "Don't
any of you girls know him? I want him at my party."

"He's dreadfully offish," com