although marjorie felt elated at the girls’ evident desire to go on with the troop, she was too clever to be deceived by queenie’s enthusiasm, too far-seeing to expect miracles from her repentance. queenie herself was sincere in her promise, there was no doubt about that; but the others would probably be only half-hearted. she realized that a tremendous amount of work lay before her.

she resolved, therefore, to make a fresh start. mr. richards had told her to let him hear from her; she meant to accept his offer. calling him upon the telephone, she asked him whether he could spare an evening from his already busy program to talk the matter over and advise her. his answer was cordiality itself; he would be delighted to give her his only free evening that week—which happened to be wednesday.

marjorie hesitated a moment; wednesday was john’s night, and she knew that he was not in sympathy with her work for this troop, and might resent her excuse. nevertheless, the opportunity was too worth-while to turn down, so she thanked mr. richards for his kindness and planned to see him at eight o’clock.

as usual, however, lily took john’s part.

“i’m afraid this mr. richards is becoming interested in you, marj,” she remarked. “and that simply won’t do. it isn’t fair to john——”

“nonsense, lil! he has something else to think about! you’re getting as bad as my girls—thinking every man you see has matrimonial intentions. but mr. richards is just unselfishly interested in scouting, and glad to offer a helping hand to a beginner like me.”

“we’ll see,” muttered lily, significantly. “i believe i’ll be on hand wednesday night, since i’ve been made lieutenant of the troop. we’ll watch whether he is pleased with my presence or not.”

“i’ll be delighted to have you, lil, honestly—though not for that reason. two heads are always better than one, and three than two—we may be able to draw up a very interesting program for those girls——but why do you think that i oughtn’t to see any other man but john? you know we’re not engaged——”

“no, but it’s high time you were!”

“maybe he hasn’t asked me!”

“maybe he has!”

marjorie blushed faintly; she never could deceive anyone successfully. but she felt that it would not be fair to john to tell anyone, not even lily. so instead she turned the discussion to the other girl.

“lil, when are you going to tell me about your engagement?”

it was lily’s turn to blush.

“how do you know that there’s anything to tell?”

“because i just do. and—you know you can trust me!”

lily smiled contentedly; she could count upon marjorie to keep her secret. and it would be such a satisfaction to share her happiness with her chum.

“well, so long as you have guessed it, i’ll tell you, if you promise not to breathe to any of the others. dick and i are going to announce it at christmas time. mother is planning a luncheon for me.”

marjorie put her arms around lily and kissed her joyfully. her happiness meant almost as much to her as her own.

“dick roberts is the luckiest man in the world!” she exclaimed, with sincerity. “and,” she added, “it certainly will be fun to have a wedding. nothing exciting has happened in our old senior patrol since mae van horn’s wedding—and our trip to the coast.”

“don’t forget doris’s baby!” lily reminded her.

“oh, yes, of course—and ethel has been doing wonderful things, too, with that teaching job of hers. and i really think daisy’s in line for a fellowship, next year.”

“so you see we really have been pretty much alive,” lily concluded.

“everybody but alice, and florence—and me!” sighed the other.

“i won’t agree about the last one,” objected her room-mate, her eyes filled with admiration. “you’re always doing marvellous things.”

“i’m afraid not, lil!” an unsatisfied look crept over her face. at present marjorie’s powers did not stand high in her own estimation.

“the trouble with me is, i can’t get my scouts’ point of view,” she remarked, harping back to the old subject. “i can’t seem to realize that they aren’t our dear old senior patrol, who got a thrill out of anything connected with scouting. in one way they know so much more than we ever did—they’re so experienced—but in another they’re ignorant and blind, and deaf besides. one thing i learned at the hike—they are bored to death with nature. i might just as well cross hiking and camping off of my program.”

“until later, perhaps,” amended lily. “but it all has to be very gradual. in the meantime, we’ve got to find something else to interest them, and keep tests in the back-ground. then maybe when they get out with other scouts, they’ll catch the fever.” marjorie’s eyes brightened; it meant so much to have some help in this weighty problem.

“can you think of anything that they would be interested in?”

“how about basket-ball?”

“the very thing! that’s exciting enough. and if we played around, and visited other teams——”

“let’s talk it over with mr. richards on wednesday. maybe he’ll have something even better to suggest.”

as the intervening days passed, marjorie found herself banking more and more upon this interview. she even made little notes in her book, anxious not to forget anything, or to waste too much of the man’s valuable time.

yet when the hour came, and she and lily walked down to the reception-room, she was conscious of a strange little feeling of loneliness. this was john’s night, and she was not to see him, might even not see him on saturday, and she missed him more than she had expected. suddenly she wondered whether she were not being foolish to allow such an uncertain undertaking to usurp her time and monopolize her interest. was she right in putting john aside for this new fancy, john, who had meant so much to her all the years of her school life?

she aroused herself sharply from her reverie to answer a question which lily was asking her, and managed to stammer some sort of reply. in another moment they recognized their visitor, entering the wide door-way, and advanced, smiling, to greet him.

lily was agreeably surprised by mr. richards’ charming manner and appearance, and immediately took a liking to him. they shook hands cordially, and sat down by the fire-place.

“i have decided to keep the troop,” marjorie announced, at the outset. “but i’m not sure what i shall do with them. so that’s where we need your advice—i say ‘we,’ for miss andrews has promised to be my lieutenant.”

“you have recovered from your disappointment over the hike?” he asked. “what decided you in favor of the troop?”

“the patrol leader. she came out to see me sunday morning, and apologized. she was so frank, so sincere, that i couldn’t help but forgive her.”

mr. richards nodded, reminiscently.

“i remember her. she seemed like an exceptionally fine girl to me——. i think, miss wilkinson, it would be worth-while going on with the work for her sake alone. if i am not mistaken, that girl will amount to something.”

“if she weren’t so flighty!” sighed lily. “you simply can’t depend on her. she does the wildest things, on impulse.”

“remember,” advised the scout-master, “that she is very young. once she develops poise——”

“i am glad to hear you say that, mr. richards,” put in marjorie. “and if you don’t mind, i’ll tell her, for your regard would count for a good deal in her eyes——. now tell me how i could keep a hold on these girls, granted that i once have obtained it!”

“look at life from their point of view, first of all. evidently amusement is their aim—but their pleasures are not yours.”

“what, for instance, do you think their pleasures might be—except dancing and getting motor rides?”

mr. richards was silent for a moment, trying to adapt his own experiences with boys of that type to girls.

“i always start boys with some sort of athletics, then work them into the gang spirit of scouting, and last of all interest them in something serious.”

“just what i suggested!” cried lily. “how about basket-ball?”

“fine! if you could get a floor, and a coach.”

“yes, the settlement has a floor, and—and—” a sudden inspiration struck her—“my brother jack would coach us!”

“that’s the idea,” agreed mr. richards. “they’d do more for a man than for a woman.”

marjorie was started now; her brain was working with its old-time rapidity. somehow when jack entered into the scheme and lily, everything became clearer. vaguely she wished that she might win john over to this new cause.

“and then—and then,” she cried, “start a girl scout league, and admit only scouts in good standing—and—and make our troop win the championship!” her eyes fairly shone with fire. “then on to something serious!”

“you have it, miss wilkinson! go ahead, and you’ll win!”

at last marjorie believed that she would.