ellow
tinge, and, with a delighted editor egging her on, it was hard for her
to suppress her latent love for "local color." The paper, however, had a
wide circulation among the faculty, which circumstance tended to have a
chastening effect.

The day following Patty's bride-with-the-mumps contretemps with Lucille
happened to be Friday, and she was painfully engaged in her weekly
molding of public opinion. It had been a barren week, and there was
nothing to write about.

She reviewed at length a set of French encyclopedias which had been
given to the library, and spoke with enthusiasm of a remarkable
collection of jaw-bones of the prehistoric cow which had been presented
to the department of paleontology. She gave in full the list of the
seventeen girls who had been honored with scholarships, laboriously
writing out their full names, with "Miss" attached to each, and the name
of the town and the State in its unabbreviated length. And still it only
mounted up to ten pages, and it took eighteen of Patty's writing to make
a column.

She strolled down to examine the bulletin-board again, and discovered a
new notice which she had overlooked before:

Friday, January 17. Professor James Harkner Wallis
of the Lick Observatory will lecture in the
auditorium, at eight o'clock, upon "Theories of
the Sidereal System."

Patty regarded the notice without emotion. It did not look capable of
expansion, and she did not feel the remotest interest in the sidereal
system. The brief account of the lecturer, however, which was appended
to the notice, stated that Professor Wallis was one of the best known of
living astronomers, and that he had conducted important original
investigations.

"If I knew anything about astronomy," she thought desperately, "I might
be able to spread him out over two pages."

An acquaintance of Patty's strolled up to the bulletin-board.

"Did you ever hear of that man?" asked Patty, pointing to the notice.

"Never; but I'm not an astronomer."

"I'm not, either," said Patty. "I wonder who he is?" she added
wistfully. "It seems he's very famous, and I'd really like to know
something about him."

The girl opened her eyes in some surprise at this thirst for gratuitous
information; it did not accord with Patty's reputation: and ever after,
when it was affirmed in her presence that Patty Wyatt was brilliant but
superficial, she stoutly maintained that Patty was deeper t