d at a pert angle on her brown hair. She adjusted the seams
of the new hose and slipped into dark grey pumps which were a part of
the uniform. With deft fingers she centered the green tie of her
shirt-waist and stuck a fresh handkerchief in her left coat pocket.
Quick touches with the powder puff removed the shine from her nose and
she gave her hair a final pat just as the horn on one of the field's
cars blared outside.

"Stand still a minute," begged Sue. "I want to get a good look at you."

"There's no time for a dress rehearsal," smiled Jane, but she turned
around slowly so the others could see her in the complete outfit.

"You look grand," whispered Grace. "Every pilot on the line will be in
love with you before morning."

"I won't see every pilot," retorted Jane.

"Maybe not, but they'll hear about you," Grace insisted.

In the smoke-green uniform Jane was indeed an attractive figure. The
coat was cut smartly and there were fashionable box pleats in the
skirt. The beret, set at a jaunty angle, had only one ornament, a pair
of silver wings. Shoes and hose to match the suit completed the
ensemble.

Jane took a final glance in the mirror. What she saw there was pleasing
and she ran downstairs, the others following her closely.

"I'm off on my first trip," she called to Mrs. Murphy, who was reading
in the front room. "I'll be in Chicago tomorrow morning."

"A safe trip, bless you," called Mrs. Murphy, who had taken an
exceedingly motherly interest in the girls.

"Will you bring us back if we go to the field?" Alice asked the driver
of the airport car.

"Sorry, Miss, but I'm through in fifteen minutes. This is my last trip
to town."

"Just our luck," grumbled Alice. "You'll have to start off on your
first trip without an audience," she told Jane.

"I'd like to have you there, but maybe I won't be quite as nervous if I
am alone," admitted Jane. She entered the cab and the driver closed the
door.

Sue stuck her head through the lower window.

"When will you be back?" she asked.

"I haven't the slightest idea. Not until day after tomorrow at the
earliest."

The cab lurched ahead and with the good-byes of her friends ringing in
her ears Jane started for the field and her first assignment.

Chapter Eleven

An Unexpected Delay

The airport was ablaze with light when the car pulled up at the
administration building, which meant that Mrs. Van Verity Vanness'
special plane was about to land.