“You were laughing too much,” returned Hilary. “Isabel and I paid strict attention to business and won. Shake hands, Izzy.”
“You shake hands with the _defeated_, Hilary,” said Lilian, holding out her hand to Hilary, who pulled her to her feet, and hastened to hold out her other hand to Pauline. She scrambled to her feet without assistance, however.
Cathalina was still sitting on the ground embracing her knees, as the rest of the girls came toward her. “Anything the matter, Cathalina?” inquired Hilary.
“Oh, no; I was just laughing so hard I had to stop. And you ought to have seen yourselves and the way the horses looked at you. They ought to be used to such performances by this time.”
“I shall enter the result of this contest upon the sporting page of the _Greycliff Star_,” said Lilian. “Will you write it up, Cathalina? You saw it all.”
“I will. Prince won in the pasture, and I suppose you want him mentioned.”
On the day of the Collegiate Field Meet, almost the entire school was out to see the events. The ranks of the Faculty were invaded for judges. Patty West Norris and Miss Perin were among the popular ones. Music teachers and instructors, indeed, almost all the women teachers were present, including Miss Randolph and even Dr. Carver, who was daily becoming more human. She even had a favorite pupil among the seniors, one who had Ph.D. aspirations, in whom she was very much interested, and who returned great admiration for Dr. Carver’s attainments.
The girls were all in good spirits, the day was bright, cool but too cool, and the athletic grounds were in fine condition. There were little jokes and some fun, but this was more or less of a serious occasion, for success in the events might mean a good deal in the final athletic honors. The All-Around G’s, the class trophies, and the senior silver trophy to go to one girl for her entire school record,—all were worth striving for.
Most of the spectators were assembled, either in the seats or scattered about the field when the junior and senior teams came over from the gymnasium.
“Start up the new song, Lilian and Eloise,” said Juliet. “Here, get in front.”
There was some shifting, and Eloise and Lilian, as the “World-renowned senior songsters,” according to Isabel, took their places in front. They had collaborated on this newest of senior songs, and the singing seniors made an effective entrance on the athletic battlefield, eliciting great applause from the bleachers, where academy girls and such juniors and seniors as were not taking part in the contest, with the faculty not engaged as judges, were gathered. The tune was lively, and the girls made great effort to have the words clearly sung: