p beside the
platform, there was Heavy Stone and The Fox with their hands out of the
windows, shouting to them. They had secured two seats facing each other,
and Ruth and Mercy joined them, while Tom and Helen took the seat
behind.

Such a chattering as there was! The fleshy girl and Mary Cox had not
seen Ruth and Helen and Mercy since they had all returned from the
Steeles' summer home at Sunrise Farm, and you may believe there was
plenty to talk about.

"Who else is here?" demanded Ruth, standing up to search the length of
the car for familiar faces.

"Look out, Miss!" cried Heavy, producing her first joke of the fall
term. "Remember Lot's wife!"

"Why so?" asked Helen.

"Goodness me! how ignorant you are--and you took chemistry last year,
too," declared Jennie Stone.

"I--don't--just--see," admitted Helen.

"You mean to say you don't know what two-fold chemical change Lot's wife
underwent?"

"Give it up!"

"Why," giggled Heavy, "first she turned to rubber, and then she turned
to salt!"

When the crowd had shown their appreciation, The Fox said:

"We're going to pick up an Infant at Maxwell. Heard about her?"

"No. Who is she?" asked Helen. "Not that Infants interest me much now.
We can let the juniors take them in hand. Remember, girls, we are
full-fledged seniors this year."

"You'll have an interest in this new girl," said Miss Cox, with
assurance.

"Why?"

"She is Nettie Parsons. You know her father is the big sugar man. He has
oodles of money!"

"Lot's of sugar, eh?" chuckled Heavy. "Hope she'll bring some to school
with her. I have a sweet tooth, I hope you know."

"A tooth! a whole set of sweet teeth, you mean!" cried Ruth.

"I only hope she is nice. I don't care how much money she has," said
Helen, smiling. "We won't hold her wealth up against her, if she's the
right sort."

"Oh, I'm not fooling," said The Fox, rather sharply, for she had a short
temper, "to match her red hair," as Heavy said. "She'll probably bring
trunks full of nice dresses to school and loads of jewelry----"

"Won't that be silly? For Mrs. Tellingham won't let her wear them."

"Only on state and date occasions," put in Mercy.

"At any rate, her folks have splendid things. Why! don't you remember
about her aunt losing that be-a-utiful necklace last spring?"

"Necklace?" repeated Ruth. "What sort of a necklace?"

"One of the finest pearl collars in the world, they say. Worth maybe
fifty thousand dollars. Won