or Molly felt any regrets over the election. They had
all they could do to attend to the _Commune_, go to society meetings and
keep up their studies.

That very day, too, there came a letter for Molly that added to her
labors. Judy brought it up from the office below. She looked at her
friend curiously, as Molly glanced at the address written in a rather
large, scrawly masculine hand. In a corner of the envelope was printed
the name of a New York newspaper.

"Corresponding already?" Judy asked. "You lose no time, Molly, darling."

Molly was so much occupied in tearing open the envelope that she did not
notice the strained tone in Judy's voice.

"I'm so excited," she exclaimed, drawing out the letter. "This will
decide my fate."

"Are you ready, Judy?" called Adele Windsor, opening the door and
walking in, in her usual unceremonious fashion. Her quick glance took in
the envelope Molly had flung on the table in her haste to read the note.
"Oh, these southern girls," she remarked, raising her eyebrows and
blinking at Judy.

Molly looked up quickly. It was certainly no affair of Adele's and still
she felt like making an explanation.

"This is a business letter," she said quickly, the blood rushing into
her face.

"Do business letters make one blush?" Adele said teasingly.

Molly could not tell why Adele irritated her so profoundly. She was
ashamed afterward of what she called her unreasonable behavior.
Certainly she did not appear very well in the passage of arms that now
followed.

"It's none of your business at any rate," she exclaimed hotly, "and I'm
not blushing."

After this outburst, she turned and walked into her room. Her face was
crimson and she knew she would have wept if she had stayed another
minute, and so have been further disgraced.

"Really, Molly, don't you think you are rather hard on poor Adele?" she
heard Judy's voice saying. But not a word of apology would she make to
Adele Windsor, whose high nasal tones now came to her through the half
closed door.

"Never mind, I don't care, Judy. She can't help it. Didn't you ever hear
about the temper that goes with red heads?"

Molly paid for her outburst of temper by having a headache all the
afternoon and an achey lump in her chest--indigestion, no doubt.

She stretched herself on her little bed, her haven of refuge in time of
trouble and the safe confidante unto whose soft bosom she poured her
secrets and hopes. At last, calmed and remorsefu