'You mustn't speak, or we shall not be able to find out your temperature,' she said, and Angela put on a resigned air, and suffered in silence.
'Now,' continued the head-mistress, pleasantly, 'we can have a few minutes' conversation, while we are waiting to discover whether Angela has scarlet fever or not. To begin with, I want to ask you if you remembered, when you went out of bounds last Thursday, that you were abusing the trust I had placed in you? Recollect!--I do not keep policemen at every corner to spy over you when you are left to yourselves, but I do put you on your honour not to do anything you know I have forbidden. Did you think of this, Jean?'
'No, I didn't,' she blurted out. 'I forgot all about the bounds, at first, and I only thought you would like us to feed the poor, and it was such a grand opportunity. And then, afterwards----'
'Yes--afterwards?' said Miss Finlayson, encouragingly, as Jean hesitated.
'Afterwards, when I saw that woman look like she did, I never thought of you or anything,' she muttered with an effort; and she was very red indeed by the time she had finished.
Miss Finlayson took her hand and held it between her own, and then turned to Barbara.
'Was that your reason too, Babs?' she asked.
'No, it wasn't,' answered Babs, without hesitation. 'I did remember about going out of bounds directly we climbed over the gate; but I saw the other two had forgotten, so I didn't say anything.'
The thermometer nearly fell out of Angela's mouth from surprise at this amazing admission; and Jean felt compelled to say something in Barbara's defence.
'You see, the boy was crying so,' she interrupted anxiously; 'and I suppose Babs thought----'
'Hush!' said the head-mistress, softly; 'I want Babs to tell me what she thought.'
Barbara was almost as red as Jean by this time. 'I didn't think about the boy, or the poor, or anything,' she confessed; 'but I wanted to see whether the lane did lead to the enchanted grotto, where the beautiful princess----'
She paused, because she remembered just in time that nobody ever understood about those things. Miss Finlayson was watching her carefully.
'Oh no,' said Barbara; 'it was _horrible_ when it got round the corner.'
Miss Finlayson nodded, and smiled her own mysterious smile. Then she took the thermometer out of Angela's mouth.