Grace Harlowe's Sophomore Year at High School Read online

GRACE HARLOWE'S SOPHOMORE YEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL

  or

  The Record of the Girl Chums in Work and Athletics

  by

  JESSIE GRAHAM FLOWER, A.M.

  Author of Grace Harlowe's Plebe Year at High School, Grace Harlowe'sJunior Year at High School, Grace Harlowe's Senior Year at High School,etc.

  Illustrated

  PhiladelphiaHenry Altemus Company

  1911

  "The Sophomores Will Not Submit to Such Impositions."

  _Frontispiece--High School Girls No. 2._]

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER

  I. A DECLARATION OF WAR

  II. THE WAY OF THE TRANSGRESSOR

  III. A GENEROUS APPEAL

  IV. AN UNFORTUNATE AVIATOR

  V. ON THE EVE OF BATTLE

  VI. THE DEEPEST POSSIBLE DISGRACE

  VII. GATHERING CLOUDS

  VIII. THE PRICE OF FRIENDSHIP

  IX. AN UNSUCCESSFUL INTERVIEW

  X. THE SOPHOMORE BALL

  XI. A LION AT LAST

  XII. THE WAYS OF SCHOOLGIRLS

  XIII. A SKATING PARTY

  XIV. A BRAVE RESCUE

  XV. A BELATED REPENTANCE

  XVI. AN OUNCE OF LOYALTY

  XVII. BURYING THE HATCHET

  XVIII. AT THE ELEVENTH HOUR

  XIX. THE GREAT GAME

  XX. A PIECE OF NEWS

  XXI. ANNE AND GRACE COMPARE NOTES

  XXII. A RESCUE AND A REFORM

  XXIII. GRACE MEETS A DISTINGUISHED CHARACTER

  XXIV. COMMENCEMENT

  CHAPTER I

  A DECLARATION OF WAR

  "Anne, you will never learn to do a side vault that way. Let me show you,"exclaimed Grace Harlowe.

  The gymnasium was full of High School girls, and a very busy andinteresting picture they made, running, leaping, vaulting, passing themedicine ball and practising on the rings.

  In one corner a class was in progress, the physical culture instructorcalling out her orders like an officer on parade.

  The four girl chums had grown somewhat taller than when last seen. A richsummer-vacation tan had browned their faces and Nora O'Malley's tip-tiltedIrish nose was dotted with freckles. All four were dressed in gymnasiumsuits of dark blue and across the front of each blouse in letters ofsky-blue were the initials "O.H.S.S." which stood for "Oakdale HighSchool Sophomore." They were rather proud of these initials, perhapsbecause the lettering was still too recent to have lost its novelty.

  "Never mind," replied Anne Pierson; "I don't believe I shall ever learn,it, but, thank goodness, vaulting isn't entirely necessary to humanhappiness."

  "Thank goodness it isn't," observed Jessica, who never really enjoyedgymnasium work.

  "It is to mine," protested Grace, glowing with exercise and enthusiasm."If I couldn't do every one of these stunts I should certainly lie awakeat night grieving over it."

  She gave a joyous laugh as she vaulted over the wooden horse as easily andgracefully as an acrobat.

  "I'd much rather dance," replied Anne. "Ever since Mrs. Gray's Christmasparty I've wanted to learn."

  "Why Anne," replied Grace, "I had forgotten that you don't dance. I'llgive you a lesson at once. But you must first learn to waltz, then allother dancing will be easy."

  "Just watch me while I show you the step," Grace continued.

  "Now, you try it while I count for you."

  "One, two, three. One, two, three. That's right. Just keep on practising,until you are sure of yourself; then if Jessica will play for us, I'llwaltz with you."

  "With pleasure," said Jessica, "Anne must learn to waltz. Her education indancing mustn't be neglected another minute."

  Anne patiently practised the step while Jessica played a very slow waltzon the piano and Grace counted for Anne. Then the two girls dancedtogether, and under Grace's guidance Anne found waltzing wasn't half ashard as she had imagined it would be.

  By this time the gymnasium was almost empty. The class in physical culturehad been dismissed, and the girls belonging to it had withdrawn to thelocker rooms to dress and go home. The four girl chums were practicallyalone.

  "I do wish the rest of the basketball team would put in an appearance,"said Grace, as she and Anne stopped to rest. "We need every minute we canget for practice. The opening game is so very near, and it's reallydifficult to get the gymnasium now, for the juniors seem to consider ittheir especial possession. One would think they had leased it for theseason."

  "They are awfully mean, I think," said Nora O'Malley. "They weren't at allnice to us last year when we were freshmen and they were sophomores. Eventhe dignity of being juniors doesn't seem to improve them any. They arejust as hateful as ever."

  "Most of the juniors are really nice girls, but it is due to Julia Crosbythat they behave so badly," said Jessica Bright thoughtfully, "She leadsthem, into all kinds of mischief. She is a born trouble-maker."

  "She is one of the rudest girls I have ever known," remarked Nora withemphasis. "How Miriam Nesbit can tolerate her is more than I can see."

  "Well," said Grace, "it is hardly a case of toleration. Miriam seemsreally fond of her."

  "Hush!" said Anne, who had been silently listening to the conversation."Here comes the rest of the team, and Miriam is with them."

  Readers of the preceding volume of this series, "GRACE HARLOWE'S PLEBEYEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL," need no introduction to Grace Harlowe and her girlchums. In that volume was narrated the race for the freshman prize, sogenerously offered each year by Mrs. Gray, sponsor of the freshman class,and the efforts of Miriam Nesbit aided by the disagreeable teacher ofalgebra, Miss Leece, to ruin the career of Anne Pierson, the brightestpupil of Oakdale High School. Through the loyalty and cleverness of Graceand her friends, the plot was brought to light and Anne was vindicated.

  Many and varied were the experiences which fell to the lot of the HighSchool girls. The encounter with an impostor, masquerading as Mrs. Gray'snephew, Tom Gray, the escape from wolves in Upton Woods, and Mrs. Gray'sChristmas ball proved exciting additions to the routine of school work.

  The contest between Grace and Miriam Nesbit for the basketball captaincy,resulting in Grace's subsequent election, was also one of the interestingfeatures of the freshman year.

  The beginning of the sophomore year found Miriam Nesbit in a mostunpleasant frame of mind toward Grace and her friends. The loss of thebasketball captaincy had been a severe blow to Miriam's pride, and shecould not forgive Grace her popularity.

  As she walked across the gymnasium followed by the other members of theteam, her face wore a sullen expression which deepened as her eyes restedupon Grace, and she nodded very stiffly to the young captain. Grace, fullyaware of the coldness of Miriam's salutation, returned it as courteouslyas though Miriam had been one of her particular friends. Long before thisGrace had made up her mind to treat Miriam as though nothing disagreeablehad ever happened. There was no use in holding a grudge.

  "If Miriam once realizes that we are willing to overlook some thingswhich happened last year," Grace had confided to Anne, "perhaps her betterself will come to the surface. I am sure she has a better self, only shehas never given it a chance to develop."

  Anne did not feel quite so positive as to the existence of Miriam's betterself, but agreed with Grace because she adored her.

  The entire team having assembled, Grace lost no time in assigning theplayers to their various positions.

  "Miriam will you play one of the forwards?" she asked.

  "Who is going to play center?" queried Miriam ignoring Grace's question.

  "Why the girls have asked me to play," replied Grace.


  "If I cannot play center," announced Miriam shrugging her shoulders, "Ishall play nothing."

  A sudden silence fell upon the group of girls, who, amazed at Miriam'srudeness, awaited Grace's answer.

  Stifling her desire to retort sharply, Grace said? "Why Miriam, I didn'tknow you felt that way about it. Certainly you may play center if you wishto. I am sure I don't wish to seem selfish."

  This was too much for Nora O'Malley, who deeply resented Miriam's attitudetoward Grace.

  "We want our captain for center," she said. "Don't we, girls?"

  "Yes," chorused the girls.

  It was a humiliating moment for proud Miriam. Grace realized this and feltequally embarrassed at their outspoken preference.

  Then Miriam said with a contemptuous laugh, "Really, Miss Harlowe, Icongratulate you upon your loyal support. It is a good thing to havefriends at court. However, it is immaterial to me what position I play,for I am not particularly enthusiastic over basketball. The juniors aresure to win at any rate."

  A flush mounted to Grace's cheeks at Miriam's insulting words. Controllingher anger, she said quietly:

  "Very well, I will play center." Then she rapidly named the other players.

  This last formality having been disposed of, the team lined up forpractice. Soon the game was at its height. Miriam in the excitement of theplay, forgot her recently avowed indifference toward basketball and wentto work with all the skill and activity she possessed.

  The basketball team, during its infancy in the freshman class had givensplendid promise of future fame. Grace felt proud of her players as shestopped for a moment to watch their agile movements and spirited work.Surely, the juniors would have to look out for their laurels this year.Her blood quickened at thought, of the coming contests which were to takeplace during the course of the winter between the two class teams. Therewere to be three games that season, and the sophomores had made up theirminds to win all of them. What if the junior team were a famous one, andhad won victory after victory the year before over all other class teams?The sophomores resolved to be famous, too.

  In fact, all of Grace's hopes were centered on the coming season. Napoleonhimself could not have been more eager for victory.

  "We must just make up our minds to work, girls," she exhorted her friends."I would rather beat those juniors than take a trip to Europe."

  Nor was she alone in her desire. The other girls were just as eager tooverthrow the victorious juniors. It was evident, so strong was thefeeling in the class, that something more than a sense of sport hadstirred them to this degree of rivalry.

  The former freshman class had many scores against the present juniors. Assophomores, the winter before, they had never missed an opportunity toannoy and irritate the freshmen in a hundred disagreeable ways. "TheBlack Monks of Asia" still rankled in their memories. Moreover, was notJulia Crosby, the junior captain? She was the same mischievous sophomorewho had created so much havoc at the Christmas ball. She was alwaysplaying unkind practical jokes on other people. It is true, she was anintimate and close friend of Miriam Nesbit, but they all were aware thatMiriam was a law unto herself, and none of them had ever attempted toexplain certain doings of hers in connection with Julia Crosby and herfriends during the freshman year.

  Grace's mind was busy with these thoughts when the door of the gymnasiumopened noisily. There was a whoop followed by cries and calls and inrushed the junior players, most of them dressed in gymnasium suits.

  Julia Crosby, at their head, had come with so much force, that she nowslid halfway across the room, landing right in the midst of thesophomores.

  "I beg your pardon," said Grace, who had been almost knocked down by theencounter, "I suppose you did not notice us. But you see, now, that we arein the midst of practising. The gym. is ours for the afternoon."

  Julia Crosby looked at her insolently and laughed.

  How irritating that laugh had always been to the rival class of youngergirls. It had a dozen different shades of meaning in it--a nasty,condescending contemptuous laugh, Grace thought, and such qualities had noright to be put in a laugh at all, since laughing is meant to showpleasure and nothing else. But Julia Crosby always laughed at the wrongtime; especially when there was nothing at which to laugh.

  "Who said the gym. was yours for the afternoon?" she asked.

  "Miss Thompson said so," answered Grace. "I asked her, this morning, andshe gave us permission, as she did to you last Monday, when the boys wereall out at the football grounds."

  "Have you a written permission?" asked Julia Crosby, laughing again, sodisagreeably that hot-headed Nora was obliged to turn away to keep fromsaying something unworthy of herself.

  "No," answered Grace, endeavoring to be calm under these tryingcircumstances, but her voice trembling nevertheless with anger. "No, Ihave no written permission and you had none last Monday. You know as wellas I do that the boys principal is willing to lend us the gym. as often aswe like during football season, when it is not much in use; and that MissThompson tries to divide the time as evenly as possible among the girls."

  "I don't know anything about that, Miss Harlowe," said Julia Crosby. "ButI do know that you and your team will have to give up the gymnasium atonce, because our team is in a hurry to begin practising."

  Then a great chattering arose. Every sophomore there except Miriam Nesbitraised a protesting voice. Grace held up her hand for silence, thensummoning all her dignity she turned to Julia Crosby.

  "Miss Crosby," she said, "you have evidently made a mistake. We have hadpermission to use the gymnasium this afternoon, which I feel sure you havenot had. It was neither polite nor kind to break in upon us as you did,and the least you can do is to go away quietly without interrupting usfurther."

  "Really, Miss Harlowe," said Julia Crosby, and again her tantalizing laughrang out, "you are entirely too hasty in your supposition. As it happens,I have the best right in the world to bring my team to the gym. thisafternoon. So, little folks," looking from one sophomore to another in away that was fairly maddening, "run away and play somewhere else."

  "Miss Crosby," cried Grace, now thoroughly angry, "I insist on knowingfrom whom you received permission. It was not granted by Miss Thompson."

  "Oh, I did not stop at Miss Thompson's. I went to a higher authority. Mr.Cole, the boys' principal, gave me a written permission. Here it is. Doyou care to read it?" and Julia thrust the offending paper before Grace'seyes.

  This was the last straw. Grace dashed the paper to the floor, and turnedwith flashing eyes to her tormentor.

  "Miss Crosby," she said, "if Professor Cole had known that Miss Thompsonhad given me permission to use the gymnasium, he would never have givenyou this paper. You obtained it by a trick, which is your usual method ofgaining your ends. But I want you to understand that the sophomore classwill not tamely submit to such impositions. We evened our score with youas freshmen, and we shall do it again this year as sophomores.Furthermore, we mean to win every basketball game of the series, for weshould consider being beaten by the juniors the deepest possible disgrace.I regret that we have agreed to play against an unworthy foe."

  With her head held high, Grace walked from the gymnasium, followed by theother members of her team, who were too indignant to notice that Miriamhad remained behind.