"Oh!" said Kitty, remembering the conversation in the train between
Eileen and Salome. So this was the girl they had been discussing so
freely! Somehow or other, though she had not seen her yet, Kitty was
quite sure she was not going to like her head prefect.
When breakfast was over, Miss Carslake announced that the Principal
wanted to see all the school prefects in her room that morning. "She
also wishes to see all the senior girls of the house," the mistress
added; "so those who are not prefects must also be ready after
chapel."
Of course there was a certain amount of excitement at this unusual
proceeding, and many reasons were suggested for it.
"Shall I have to go?" inquired Kitty.
"Oh, yes. Come along. You're sure to be in the Upper or Lower
Fifth, so you must look upon yourself as a senior."
Consequently, about ten o'clock, Kitty found herself with the six
other senior girls of her house in the sanctum of Miss St. Leger,
Principal of Easthampton College. She was very popular with her
girls, who were wont to declare that they could not imagine
Easthampton without her.
The seniors sat gravely on chairs in a little semicircle. Kitty,
through hearing them address one another, had already learned their
names, and surveyed them interestedly, for these were to be her
future companions. There was, first of all, the slight, fair Hilary,
insignificant in appearance but ready of tongue and decidedly shrewd
of brain. Then there were the Lower Fifth-formers sitting side by
side. Margaret Batt was liked by everybody; she was a nice, simple,
unaffected English girl, not brilliant in any way, but always ready
to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it. Sonia Edwards was a
pretty, golden-haired, smartly dressed girl, inclined to be vain and
rather empty-headed, though not ill-natured. Kitty rather sweepingly
described her to herself as a "fluffy-haired, dressed-up doll."
Bertha Salter was not very prepossessing in appearance. She had
straight, carroty hair, a sturdy but stockily-built figure, and a
rather heavy, sullen expression. Kitty fancied she looked rather
sly, then quickly reproved herself for an unkind thought about a
total stranger. The girl was very likely quite a decent sort. She
couldn't help her looks.
There remained the other two Upper Fifth-formers. The second of the
three prefects was the chestnut-haired girl who played the organ for
chapel services. She was not exactly pretty, but there was something
distinctive about her carriage and dress. Later, Kitty discovered
that Francesca Kent had a natural taste for art, and was firmly and
proudly convinced that she had what she called an "artistic
temperament," though in reality she had the sweetest of tempers. She
was quite a character in the school.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account