e flood like one born for success. She mazed
the whole school world by a meteoric display of unsuspected capacities.
Herself she amazed most of all; she felt as if she were making the
acquaintance of a stranger, an increasingly fascinating kind of
stranger. How wonderful to find herself perusing over a "meeting"
from the teacher's desk in the Latin room, or over a "programme" in the
auditorium, with calm and superior dignity!

Missy, aflame with a new fire, was not content with the old hackneyed
variety of "programme." It was she who conceived the idea of giving the
first minstrel show ever presented upon the auditorium boards. It is a
tribute to Missy's persuasiveness when at white heat that the faculty
permitted the show to go beyond its first rehearsal. The rehearsals
Missy personally conducted, with Raymond aiding as her first
lieutenant-and he would not have played second fiddle like that to
another girl in the class-he said so. She herself chose the cast,
contrived the "scenery"; and she and Raymond together wrote the dialogue
and lyrics. It was wonderful how they could do things together! Missy
felt she never could get into such a glow and find such lovely rhymes
popping right up in her mind if she were working alone. And Raymond said
the same. It was very strange. It was as if a mystic bond fired them
both with new talents-Missy looked on mixed metaphors as objectionable
only to Professor Sutton.

Her reputation-and Raymond's-soared, soared. Her literary talent placed
her on a much higher plane than if she were merely "smart"-made her in
the most perfect sense "prominent."

After the minstrel triumph it was no surprise when, at class elections,
Melissa Merriam became president of the Juniors. A few months before
Missy would have been overwhelmed at the turn of things, but now she
casually mounted her new height, with assurance supreme. It was as
though always had the name of Melissa Merriam been a force. Raymond said
no one else had a look-in.

At the end of the term prominence brought its reward: Missy failed in
Geometry and was conditioned in Latin. Father looked grave over her
report card.

"This is pretty bad, isn't it?" he asked.

Missy fidgeted. It gave her a guilty feeling to bring that expression to
her indulgent father's face.

"I'm sorry, father. I know I'm not smart, but-" She hesitated.

Father took off his glasses and thoughtfully regarded her.

"I wasn't complaining of your not being 'sm