“Oh, I know,” she explained while Judith pondered.  “Miss Gifford is keeping them home to prevent them gabbing.  That’s darling of her.  She wants to give me—­the newly discovered spook sleuth—­a decent chance.  Are you coming over with me tonight, Judy?”

“Cables couldn’t hold me back.  Dinksy, you bribed me into staying home last night but I’ll never again ‘list’ to your blarney.  But it wasn’t goblins I believe; however, we’ll decide that when we trap ’em.  Your benign influence has worked well thus far.  I promised to help a freshie with some Latin prose and she never came to collect.  Now I suppose I have to spoil my pretty hands with basket ball.  Don’t you wonder how it was we used to love that unladylike game?” Judith assumed a most sedate attitude, but did not succeed in hiding a forlorn rent in her skirt even with a very broad palm plastered over it.

“’Ye strangers on my native sill tread lightly for I love it still,’” quoted Jane.  “Seems to me you take about as much pleasure in the big game as you ever did, Judy.  But let’s away!  We need it.  I’m all stiffened up with—­”

“Your night of terror,” finished Judith.  “I don’t wonder.  Anyone might be sore and achey from running that Bingham Fire Brigade.  I would love to have seen Dozia at the spigot,” and Judith went through some fire antics.  “Come along, Jane; we’ll give the recruits a try-out,” she decided the next moment, “but don’t ask me to put them through the paces again tomorrow, for that’s to be an afternoon off, if I can arrange it.”

“Oh,” said Jane tritely.

“Yes, oh,” repeated Judith most impressively and with a grimace that supplied more than mere punctuation.

Jane laughed and pushed the big girl ahead of her with sudden playful force.

“Choo-choo! the fire is out and we’re going home,” she laughed.  “This is just about the speed of the little red hose cart.”

“Wait a minute!” called Judith, halting so suddenly she almost threw Jane.  “I would rather be the driver if you don’t mind.”

“Young ladies!” protested one of the faculty, Miss Roberts, she who taught English and looked the part.  “Is not that rather boisterous for indoor play?”

The culprits choked an appropriate reply and resumed the usual “indoor” behavior.

“One thing I hate knowledge for,” remarked Jane, “it makes one so inhuman.”

“Yes, doesn’t it?  We may break our precious necks in the gym and be buried with military honors but we ‘dassent’ skin a shin anywhere else.  System, of course,” witheringly from Dozia.

“Quick!” exclaimed Jane.  “There are Nettie and Janet heading this way.  They’ll want me to tell the whole of last night’s experience over again.  Let’s get at practice and preclude the recitation.  I feel like singing the story to the tune of the ’Night Before Christmas,’ it’s getting so monotonous.”  “You have no appreciation for thrills, Jane Alien,”