Verse after verse flowed on, smoothly, triumphantly. The whole hall was shaking with unrestrained laughter. The president's color came back to cheeks and lips. Beth had saved the day; she was doing better than Ada Willing could have done, for she was an inimitable actress, and in her song she rapidly personified sophomores, juniors and seniors, as well as professors, in a manner that was perfectly unmistakable. The applause was so generous and long-continued, that Beth was forced to repeat some portions several times. When the curtain went down shortly after that, for the last time, Beth was surrounded by rapturous classmates who were ready to fall on her neck or carry her around the grounds, for thus saving their reputation. "Come and meet my mother, will you not--you and Miss Alden?" Margaret Hamilton said after she had tried in a somewhat tremulous tone to thank Beth for her ready wit. "I would like to have you both meet her." "I did not know that she was here," Dolly said in surprise. "I thought your home was in the West." "We did live in Chicago until recently. Now we have no home exactly. Mother and I are all there are in the family, and she will board here in town so as to be near me. She might as well, there is no reason why we should be separated by several hundred miles now." With much silent bewilderment, Beth and Dolly followed Miss Hamilton to one corner of the room, where they found Mrs. Hamilton engaged in conversation with Professor Newton. "Thank you so much for looking after Mother a little, Professor Newton," Margaret said gratefully. "I was in such haste that I did not have time to introduce her to anyone else before our entertainment," and then she presented Beth and Dolly. The girls scrutinized her closely. She was dressed in black, but with a certain quiet style that convinced Dolly that Margaret had supervised the making of the gown. The face was not handsome, but it was good-natured, and denoted a large amount of practical common sense. The girls sat down on either side of her. They had their own reasons for wanting to know more of their class president's mother. She was evidently brimming over with pride and love for Margaret. In the course of their conversation it became very evident that she knew nothing of "society's small talk," or of the subjects that college girls often bring up naturally in connection with their studies. Nevertheless, she could talk well and interestingly on many commonplace themes, especially when her subject of conversation related more or less closely to her daughter. Her grammar was good, and her language quite as choice as one usually meets with in a casual acquaintance. Dolly and Beth, watching their classmate closely, noticed with secret relief that she introduced her mother to all the members of the faculty, as well as to Miss Dunbar and to the most exclusive girls of the class. She did it with a quiet, unassuming dignity which her two close critics could not but admire.