her voice
purposely when she came to the end.

"Now, mind, I don't approve of this joke with the mice," she said.
"But I do think it would be more plucky if your girls, after starting
all the trouble and making themselves as hateful as they possibly
could, had kept quiet when the tables were turned. When they worried
us, we didn't go over to make a complaint about them. I must say I am
disappointed in those of your girls whom I happen to know, like Gladys
Cooper. I thought she was a lady."

There was a furious cry from the darkness beyond the porch, and the
next instant Gladys herself was in front of Eleanor, with tears of rage
in her eyes.

"You shan't say I'm not a lady," she cried. "I don't care if you are
Miss Mercer! We don't want your horrid charity girls up here, and we
tried to make them understand it--"

"Stop!" said Eleanor, sternly. "Listen to me, Gladys! I like your
mother, and I'm sorry to see you acting in such a way. What do you
mean by charity girls?"

"They haven't got the money to come up here," stammered Gladys.

"It hasn't been given to them, if you mean that," said Eleanor. "We
don't believe in idle, useless girls in the Camp Fire. And every girl
here, even those like Dolly Ransom, who could have got the money at
home very easily, have earned all their expenses for this vacation,
except two who didn't have time, and are here as my guests. Don't talk
about charity. They have a better right to be here than you have. Now
go away, and if you don't want to have unpleasant things happen to you,
don't do unpleasant things to other people."

Quite cowed by the sudden anger in Eleanor's voice, Gladys didn't
hesitate. And Miss Brown, before she left the porch, looked wistfully
at Eleanor.

"I wish I had your courage, my dear," she whispered. "That served
Gladys right, but if I spoke so to her, I should lose my position."

"Well, I suppose it wasn't a nice thing to do," said Dolly, as she and
Bessie prepared for bed that night. "But I really do think we won't
have any more trouble. I think Gladys and the rest of them have
learned a lesson."

"I hope so, Dolly," said Bessie. "I wouldn't have done it myself, but
I really am beginning to think that maybe it was the best thing that
could have happened. Thunderstorms clear the air sometimes; perhaps
this will have the same effect."

It was well after midnight when the girls were awakened by loud
knocking below.

"Oh, that's some