In the corridor that evening as the girls were talking over the plans for the party, one of the maids appeared with a covered tray.

"From the Seniors," she explained, handing it to Lois. "For Miss Polly, Miss Betty, Miss Angela, Miss Connie, and you."

"Food!" exclaimed Betty. "Why, the Seniors aren't such ungrateful wretches as I thought them."

"Indeed they are not; they've the best cla.s.s in the school," protested Lois.

"With one exception," Polly corrected, "the Freshmen."

And after a subdued cheer they started in to make short work of the tray's contents.

CHAPTER XIV

THE FRESHMEN ENTERTAIN

Friday arrived, clear and sunshiny, with just enough chill in the air to make sweaters comfortable.

The Freshmen cla.s.s were so excited that they found it impossible to pay any attention in cla.s.ses. The teachers, for the most part, understood and forgave, except the Spartan, who was, of course, more trying than usual.

After the last bell the Freshmen met in one of the cla.s.srooms to decide about the last details. Although they had no cla.s.s officers, it was almost always Lois who acted as president at all their meetings. Such was the case today.

"Everybody stop talking for one second," she commanded, swinging herself to the top of the desk. "The first thing to think about is food," she continued, as the girls dropped into chairs, and there was a lull in the conversation.

Betty jumped up, announcing emphatically:

"You may count me out on that; no more squashed lemons for little Betty."

"There's not much to get ready," Polly remarked. "There's the rolls and bacon-they're ordered-and the ginger pop, the potato chips, and the apples and bananas are here. There's really nothing to make but the Boston brown bread sandwiches. Who'll make them?" And she looked questioningly at the two Dorothys.

"We will," volunteered one of them. "What goes in between-cream cheese and grape jelly?"

"Yes," answered Betty, "and for goodness' sake, Dot, don't get original and put anything else in on your own hook."

"Betty, do be serious for once," pleaded Lois. "There's loads to be done. Have you finished the song, Angela?"

"Yes, and I say we wait until we've finished supper and are all sitting around the fire before we sing it to them," suggested Angela.

Everybody agreed that that was a good idea.

"It's to the tune of 'There is a Tavern Near the Town,' isn't it?" asked Roberta Andrews. "I haven't learned the words yet."

"Oh," Lois interrupted, jumping down from the desk, "we forgot all about the straw for the wagon. Berta, will you and Ruth see to that? MacDonald said we could have as much as we wanted if we'd go to the stable and get it."

"All right, that will be a lark," agreed Berta. "Come on, Ruth, we'd better get right at it now." And the two girls, after parting instructions from Lois, left for the stable.

"If we are going to make those sandwiches," began Dot Mead, "we'd better go, too."

"Righto!" agreed her twin in name, and together they started for the kitchen.

"And now what are you going to do with me, Ruler of the Universe?"

inquired Connie.

Lois looked at her for a minute and then replied:

"I think you and Angela might go out and cut sticks to broil the bacon on."

"Cut their fingers off, you mean. Certainly not," exploded Betty. "They may find the sticks, but I will do the whittling."

And taking Connie and Angela each by an arm, Betty escorted them out of the room.

When Lois and Polly were left alone, they hugged each other joyously.

"And now for the express-room," Polly whispered mysteriously.

At five o'clock the big farm wagon, filled with hay and drawn by two big gray horses, was waiting in the driveway under the Bridge of Sighs.

"Everything in?" shouted Angela. "Steamer rugs and food?"

"Yes, all in," answered Betty, who was patting the horses' noses.

Polly and Lois were standing just around the corner of the house and out of sight of the other girls.

"Now's the time to get it in," whispered the latter. She used the same mysterious tone of voice in which Polly had spoken of the express-room earlier in the day.

A few minutes later, under the hurry and excitement of starting, they smuggled a large box, unnoticed, under the driver's seat.

"Safe and sound, and n.o.body saw," Lois whispered softly. "Every one in?"

she called out. "All aboard."

The Seniors were each seated beside a Freshman, Louise Preston was between Lois and Polly. Miss Stuart and Miss Porter, who were chaperoning the party, sat beside the driver, where all good chaperons ought to sit.

As the barge rolled out of the school grounds, the girls sang the favorite Seddon Hall song, which ended in the words:

"It's the only school in the wide, wide world."

At first, things were a little dull. There was a big distance between the oldest and youngest cla.s.ses of the upper school, but after a while the Seniors forgot their dignity and the Freshmen their respect.

When Flat Rock, a huge boulder with a table top, overlooking a small lake, was reached, everybody was in the best of spirits, and they piled out and helped unload.

Polly and Lois, as before, captured the mysterious box and managed to hide it in the bushes. A camp fire, under Miss Stuart's direction, was soon blazing, and the girls were seated on rugs and pillows, toasting bacon.

Now every one knows that a bacon bat is loads of fun to talk about before it happens, and to remember afterwards, but the actual eating of the bacon, which is always burned long before it is cooked, is not so much fun in itself.

This bacon bat was like every other. When the bacon was all gone, and a good deal of it had been surrept.i.tiously thrown away, every one looked around for something to really eat. The sandwiches were not very satisfying, and it was too soon to offer the bananas.