e evident sympathy with which Kitty regarded her, "I am always so
shabbily dressed; I wouldn't be a bit bad-looking if I had decent
clothes. I saved up all the summer to have my muslin dress nicely
washed for this occasion, but it's so thick and so clumsy and--oh,
dear! oh, dear! sometimes I hate myself, Kitty, and when I look at you
I hate myself more than ever."

"Why when you look at me? I am very sorry for you, Florence."

"Because you are so generous and so good, and I am just the other way.
But there, don't talk to me any more. I must rush off; I want to have
another look through those geography questions; there is no saying what
Sir John Wallis may question us about to-night, and if I don't get into
the lucky three who are to compete for the Scholarship, I believe I'll
go off my head."

Florence dashed away as she spoke and rushed into the school-room,
slamming the door behind her. Kitty stood for a moment looking after
her. As she did so Mary Bateman, the stolid-looking girl in the Upper
school, came slowly up.

"A penny for your thoughts, Kitty Sharston," she said.

"They are not worth even that," said Kitty. "Where are you going,
Mary?"

"Into the cherry orchard; we are all to pick cherries for to-night's
feast. By the way, will you be my partner in the minuet? You dance it
so beautifully."

Kitty hesitated, and a comical look came into her face.

"You know we are to open the proceedings by dancing the old-fashioned
minuet," continued Mary Bateman; "on the lawn, of course, with the
colored lamps lighting us up. I believe I can do fairly well if I have
you for my partner, for although you are awkward enough you dance
beautifully."

"I'll be your partner if you like," said Kitty, with a sigh, "but look
here, Mary, when is Mademoiselle Le Brun going into Hilchester?"

"I did not know she was going at all," replied Mary; "do you want her
to buy you anything'?"

"I am not quite sure, but I'd like to see her before she goes."

"Well, there she is, and there's the pony cart coming round. I expect
she has to buy a lot of things for Mrs. Clavering. Run up to her if
you want to give her a message, Kitty. Hullo, mademoiselle, will you
wait a minute for Kitty Sharston--she wants to say something to you?"

But Kitty stood still. There was a battle going on in her heart. She
had very little pocket-money, very little indeed, but when her father
was saying good-bye to her he had put two new half-