sigh so broken-heartedly at her heels.”

The young man laughed softly to himself. “Maybe! But this ‘Tom’ seems to feel assured of a ‘look’ from her.”

Now it was Dorothy’s turn to pinch Eleanor, and she did so with great gusto. Eleanor winced but dared not express herself in any other manner, just then. She was too keen on the trail of learning what she could, to signify any sense of having felt that pinch.

“Oh—Tom! He is an old family friend, you know. He was Polly’s brother’s college-chum for four years while both boys studied at the University of Chicago. I am from Chicago, and I knew those boys when they used to come to my home with my brother, who also attended the engineering classes. There was a fourth boy—Paul Stewart, who was from Denver. Anne Stewart was his sister and she married John Brewster, this Spring. So you see, we are all old friends together. I suppose the whole family crowd will come out on the yacht, tonight.”

Dorothy listened in sheer amazement, as Eleanor spoke with all the assurance possible. But Dorothy was not aware of Eleanor’s lifelong training in the home of a social leader of Chicago’s exclusive set. That such a home-training made a girl precocious and subtle, was not strange, and Eleanor had had fourteen years of such a life before she went to Pebbly Pit and met Polly. Habits so well-engrounded are not easily broken, or forgotten.

“Then the sender ought to have sent his message to one of the adults of the party. Even I misjudged the matter, because I thought this ‘Tom’ must be a faithful admirer of Miss Polly’s to get through to visit the steamer tonight,” explained the operator.

“But he isn’t coming alone—didn’t you stop to consider that?” asked Eleanor, eagerly. “Seeing that most of the friends are Polly’s personal ones, the wire was sent to her, you know.”

“I see.”

“The only thing that hurt me, was that no one sent me a message. Tom is as dear to me as to Polly, and I wonder he did not wire me.”

“Perhaps this Tom thought you would have scores of eager messages the moment your beaus knew you were near enough to get them,” laughed the young officer.

“Well, they didn’t! But I want you to do something for me—will you?” asked Eleanor, quite unexpectedly.

“I will if I can,” agreed the officer.

“Write off a fake message for me and sign some make-believe name to it, so I can hold my head up with Polly. She will never let me rest if she thinks she got a line, and I didn’t!”

“Oh, that is easy to do. As long as we know it will never come out, and that I wrote a line to you, it will be a good joke.”

“All right!” laughed Eleanor, delightedly. “Now write:——” She stopped suddenly, then thought for a moment before she said: “Why not copy the exact words sent to Polly, but sign another name?”

“I’ll write one, as much like the original as possible without actually duplicating that information,” chuckled the officer.

Then he took up a slip of paper and wrote: “Miss Eleanor Maynard. We will join you this evening, on steamer. Yacht will arrive about eight.” He looked up laughingly and asked: “Now what name shall we sign to this?”

“Oh—let me see! Sign ‘Paul.’ I know he is in New York, now, so I am not taking chances of making a mistake,” laughed Eleanor.

The name “Paul” was added to the message and the paper placed in an envelope. This was addressed to Eleanor Maynard and her stateroom number written down upon it. Then it was handed to the gratified girl.

The young man was thanked with unwarranted warmth, and the two girls hastened away.

Eleanor and Dorothy did not join their friends at once, after leaving the wireless room. Eleanor explained wisely: “We must promenade along the deck and let them see us reading and talking over the message, you know, to make them believe we just got it from the boy.”

So this little act was carried out, and when the two girls felt sure that Polly and her companions had noticed them reading the wireless message, Eleanor whispered: “Now we can stroll over and join them. Leave it to me.”

Just before she joined her friends, Eleanor thrust the paper into her sweater pocket, and seemed not to remember it. But Nancy spoke of it, immediately.

“I see you received a billet-doux, too. Is there any reason why I should not say to you exactly what you said to Polly, when she got hers?” laughed the young lady.

“Oh, not at all! I am not so bashful about my affair,” retorted Eleanor, taking the paper from her pocket and handing it to Nancy. “You may read it aloud, if you choose.”

So Nancy read, and the fact that the words conveyed the same information as Polly’s had done, but the sender had signed himself “Paul,” made Polly feel relieved. Then she said:

“It is evident that someone secured a yacht to carry our friends out to see us this evening. My message said about the same thing, so now, you see, it was ridiculous in Eleanor to tease about it being a love-note. Had she been sensible I would have read it aloud to all, but because of her silliness, I made up my mind to keep her guessing.”

Nancy and Ruth laughed, but Eleanor and Dorothy exchanged glances with each other. Then Nancy said anxiously: “We ought to start and dress most fetchingly for tonight, if everyone you know is coming out.”

Before anyone could reply to this suggestion, Mr. Fabian was seen hurrying across the deck to join them. “Girls, our old friend Dalken has a yacht, I hear, and he has invited everyone we know to come out here this evening to welcome us home. We are to be ready to return with him, as he has secured the necessary bill-of-health for us. Now get down to your rooms quickly and pack.”

“Oh—aren’t we going to remain to the dance?” asked Eleanor, with disappointment in her tones.

“You can do as you please about that, but we will go back on the yacht when she returns to the city.”

In the bustle of packing the stateroom trunks, and then dressing for the evening, the girls forgot about the wireless messages. Then during the dinner that was like a party affair because of the passengers’ exuberant spirits at being so near home again, Mr. Fabian smiled approvingly at the five young girls in his charge. They looked so charming in their Paris gowns, and their youthful forms and faces expressed such joy and pleasure in living, that he felt gratified to think the old friends would see them as he did that evening.

Shortly after leaving the dining-salon, the attention of the Fabian party was drawn to a graceful white yacht that sailed swiftly down the Bay and soon came alongside the steamer. The spotless looking sailors instantly lowered the boat and a party of young people got in. The Fabian group leaned over the rail of the steamer and watched breathlessly as the boat was rowed across the intervening space and, finally, was made fast to the steamer.

“Poll, did you recognize your future Fate?” giggled Eleanor, nudging her companion, knowingly.

“I saw yours!” retorted Polly. “And now I comprehend why you can speak of nothing else than beaus and Fate! You are so obsessed by your own dreams that you think everyone you know must be dreaming the same stuff!”

Polly turned quickly and hurried to the spot where the visitors were