"On the whole," began Mrs. Marshall, "I have had some extremely satisfactory results from our literary contest, a very fair number of poems having been received. I regret that some of the contributors do not seem to have mastered even the elementary rules of metre, and their verses cannot be made to scan, but the average standard is higher than I had expected; and I have two here which I think are certainly deserving of praise, and of such equal merit that I have decided to divide the prize between them. They are 'The Ballad of Fair Fiona', by Catherine Winstanley, and 'When Celia Passes', by Philippa Seaton. As I am sure you will all wish to hear them, I shall read them aloud: "THE BALLAD OF FAIR FIONA "When the daylight gilds the sky, Fair Fiona sits and weeps; When the evening star is high, Lonely still her vigil keeps. "'Rise, Fiona sweet, arise! Don your robe of brightest hue. Tears are but for aged eyes, Love and pleasure wait for you!' "'Love for me has long been dead, Pleasure followed in his train; Bring the willow wreath instead, Leave me to my tears again.' "Knight and squire and dame are there Priests beside the altar wait, Frets and fumes the bridegroom fair. Wherefore is the bride so late? "Sought they far and sought they wide Where the river seeks the west; Floating on its flowing tide, Fair Fiona is at rest." "WHEN CELIA PASSES "When Celia passes through the grove And down the verdant alleys, The lily droops her envious head, The rose for jealous anger's red As in the shade she dallies. And when her dainty footsteps rove Over the meadow grasses, The flowers all weep in sheer despair To think they are not half so fair When Celia passes. "When Celia passes through the grove, Under the bay and laurel, The nightingale forgets to sing, And silent sits with quivering wing To hear her artless carol. When cherry blooms their treasure-trove Rain down in fragrant masses, My heart leaps high to think perchance I yet may catch one kindly glance When Celia passes." Cathy gripped my hand, and I gripped hers. We had each secretly hoped that the other would win the prize, so to share it between us was a satisfaction to us both. The girls clapped vigorously, and Janet started a cheer.