FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Miriam smiled involuntarily, Grace looked surprised, Elfreda
indifferent, and Anne amused. The word "woman" seemed absurdly out of
place from the lips of this girl who looked as though she had just been
promoted to long dresses.
"Oh, yes, I know I look not more than eighteen," quickly remarked
Kathleen West, noticing Miriam's smile. "But I'm not. I'm twenty-two
years old, and I've been on a newspaper for four years. Why, that's the
way I earned my money to come here. I'll tell you about it some other
time. It's too long a story for now. Besides, I'm hungry. At what time
are we to be fed and are the meals good? I have no illusions regarding
boarding houses."
"The meals are excellent," replied Anne. "You must have dinner with us.
Then we will see about securing a room for you. I think you will be able
to get in here. This used to be considered a freshman house, but all
those who were freshmen with us have stayed on, and if last year's
freshmen stay, too, then Wayne Hall will be full and--"
"I won't get in," finished the young woman calmly.
"Come into the house now and meet Mrs. Elwood," invited Grace. "Then you
can learn your fate."
"Yes, I can just make room for you," Mrs. Elwood was saying a few
minutes later. "Miss Evans is not coming back, and Miss Acker is going
to Livingstone Hall. Her two particular friends are there. Miss Dean
wishes to room alone this year, so that disposes of the vacancy left by
Miss Acker. But the half of the room Miss Evans had is not occupied. It
is on the second floor at the east end of the hall."
"Then I'll take it," returned Kathleen promptly, "and move in at once. I
may not stay here long, but at least I'll be happy while I stay. But if
I should survive all these exams, there will be cause for rejoicing and
I'll give a frolic that you will all remember, or my name's not Kathleen
West. Is there any one who would love to help me upstairs with my
things?"
"Well, what do you think of her?" asked Elfreda abruptly. Having helped
Kathleen to her room with her luggage they had left her to herself and
were now in their own room. Miriam stood looking out the window, her
hands behind her back. At Elfreda's question she turned, looked
thoughtfully at her roommate, then said slowly: "I don't know. I haven't
decided. She's friendly and enthusiastic and hard and indifferent all in
the same moment. I think her work has made her so. I believe she has
hidden her inner self away so deep that she has forgotten what the real
Kathleen is like."
"I believe so, too, Miriam," agreed Elfreda. "I could see that you
weren't favorably impressed with her. I could see--"
"You see entirely too much," laughed Miriam. "I haven't even formed an
opinion of Miss West yet. I wonder how long she has known Mabel Ashe?
Not very long, I'll wager."
An hour later Grace appeared in the door, waving a letter. "Here's
Mabel's letter!" she cried. "Come into my room, and we will read it."
"The letter was not far behind the telegram," remarked Anne, as she
closed the door of their room and seated herself on the couch beside
Miriam.
"Do hurry, Grace, and read us what Mabel has to offer on the subject of
Kathleen Mavourneen--West, I mean," corrected Elfreda with a giggle.
Grace unfolded the letter and began to read:
"MY DEAR GRACE:--
"Please forgive me for neglecting you so shamefully, but I am now
wrestling with a real job on a real newspaper and am so occupied
with trying to keep it that I haven't had time to think of anything
else. Father is deeply disgusted with my journalistic efforts. He
wished me to go to Europe this summer, but the light of ambition
burns too vividly to be quenched even by my beloved Europe. When
next I go abroad it will be with my own hard-earned wages.
"I haven't done anything startling yet; I have been chronicling
faithfully the doings of society. As most of the elect are out of
town, my news gathering has not been in the nature of a harvest.
However, I am still striving, still hoping for the day when I shall
leave society far behind and sally forth on the trail of a big
story.
"But, I am diverging from one of the chief purposes of this letter.
It is to introduce to you Kathleen West, an ambitious and
particularly clever young woman, who is a 'star' reporter on this
paper. It seems that she and I have changed ambitions. I sigh for
journalistic fame, and she sighs for college. She has done more
than sigh. She has been saving her money for ever so long,
determined to take unto herself a college education. I admire her
spirit and have praised Overton so warmly--how could I help
it?--that she has decided to cast her lot there. Hence my telegram,
also this letter. Please be as nice with her as you know how to be,
for I am sure she will prove herself a credit to Overton.
"I shall hope to see you some time during the fall. I am going to
try to get a day or two off and run down to see you. Tell Anne the
Press is greater than the Stage, and tell Elfreda and Miriam that I
am collecting the autographs of famous people and that theirs would
be greatly appreciated, particularly if attached to letters. I must
bring this epistle to an abrupt close, and go out on the trail of
an engagement, the rumor of which was whispered to me last night.
With love to you and the girls.
"MABEL.
"P. S. Frances sails for home next week."
"What a nice letter," commented Elfreda. "It is just like her, isn't
it!"
"Yes," replied Grace slowly. "Girls, do you suppose Mabel and Miss West
are really friends?"
"Not as we are," replied Miriam, with a positive shake of her head.
"Elfreda and I were talking of that very thing while you were in your
room. Elfreda said she didn't believe that Mabel had known Miss West
long."
"What is the matter with us?" asked Grace, a trifle impatiently. "Here
we are prowling about the bush, trying to conceal under polite inquiry
the fact that we don't quite approve of Miss West. We would actually
like to dig up something to criticize."
"There is nothing like absolute freedom of speech, is there?" said
Elfreda, with a short laugh.
"It is true, though," said Grace stoutly. "It isn't fair, either. She
has done nothing to deserve it. Besides, Mabel likes her."
"Mabel doesn't say in her letter that she likes her," reminded Anne.
"She says Miss West is clever and that she admires her spirit."
"You, too, Anne?" said Grace reproachfully.
"I don't like her," declared Elfreda belligerently. "If it weren't for
Mabel's letter I'd leave her strictly to her own devices."
"We ought to be ashamed of ourselves!" exclaimed Grace. "We have met
Miss West with smiles, and here we are discussing her behind her back."
"I didn't meet her with smiles," contradicted Elfreda. "I was as sober
as a judge all the time we stood talking to her. She is too flippant to
suit me. She doesn't take college very seriously. I could see that."
"There goes the dinner bell!" exclaimed Grace, with sudden irrelevance
to the subject of the newspaper girl. "Let us stop gossiping and go to
dinner."
At dinner Grace was not sorry to note that Kathleen West had been placed
at the end of the table farthest from her. Through the meal she found
her eyes straying often toward the erect little figure of the newcomer,
who, exhibiting not a particle of reserve, chatted with the girls
nearest to her with the utmost unconcern. "I suppose her newspaper
training has made her self-possessed and not afraid of strangers,"
reflected Grace. But she could not refrain from secretly wondering a
little just how strong a friendship existed between Kathleen West and
Mabel.