discover what an honor Captain Lewis had bestowed upon her. Too many new and exciting things were happening just then for her to appreciate the full significance of the invitation.

Captain Lewis introduced her to Lieutenant Hauser who was rather short and stocky and had a ready smile. She gave Nancy the comfortable feeling that there was really no difference in their positions, even though Miss Hauser was already a first lieutenant.

“Your roommate is Mabel Larsen,” explained Miss Hauser. “She got in yesterday and already knows enough to show you the ropes.”

They went down a long, narrow hall. A moment later Miss Hauser opened the door of a neat little room with two beds, attractive cretonne drapes and comfortable chairs and floor lamps.

An exclamation of delight escaped Nancy, “Oh, I thought we’d be sleeping on army cots in tents!”

“You’ll get plenty of that later. Better enjoy these comforts while you have them,” Lieutenant Hauser warned her. “Mabel’s out on the obstacle course right now. You’ll have a chance to do some unpacking and clean up before she comes in.”

Miss Hauser pointed out a list of rules tacked on the door, told Nancy where the dining room was and left her to her own devices. An hour later when Nancy came back from a hearty breakfast with Captain Lewis she found Mabel Larsen stretched on her bed.

Mabel merely lifted her head when Nancy came in, and greeted her casually. “Oh, hello! You’re the latest shavetail, I suppose?”

“I’m Nancy Dale, and they tell me you’re Mabel Larsen.”

“Glad you came. Sorry I can’t be very formal just now, but I’m all in—got only fifteen minutes to get my wind back.” She groaned softly. “Gosh, but my legs ache!”

“What’s wrong? Are you ill?”

“Oh, nothing that won’t be worse tomorrow! Just wait till you try those hurdles!” Mabel turned over cautiously and groaned again. “I might’ve been pounded by Japs from the way these shanks feel.”

Nancy laughed in spite of herself. “You must’ve been neglecting your daily dozen before you came here.”

“I’ve never been one of those exercise addicts,” stated Mabel. “I’ve always gotten enough floor work in the wards without this one, two, three business.” Mabel reached for a bottle of rubbing alcohol and began to massage her rather plump legs.

“Wait, let me do it,” said Nancy.

Mabel lay back on the bed and gave herself up to the enjoyment of the soothing touch of Nancy’s hands.

“You oughter been a masseuse,” she sighed. Then after a moment she asked, “Why were you so late? We thought you were coming on that early train.”

“There was a wreck,” said Nancy, reluctant to recall her trying experience.

Mabel sat up suddenly. “You mean the train you were on?”

Nancy nodded and gave her a hasty sketch of what had happened, and their work with the injured.

“Well, if I’m not the daughter of a sloth!” burst forth Mabel. “Here I am letting you give me an alcohol rub when you’ve already been working like a trooper for hours!”

“Oh, I got a bit of sleep coming over in the car, but Miss Lewis suggested that I go to bed again till lunch time. I had breakfast with her just now.”

“Not Captain Mary Lewis?” asked Mabel.

Nancy nodded as she began to take off her clothes.

“Well, aren’t you the lucky bloke!” exclaimed Mabel. “Hobnobbing with the majors and captains on the very day of your arrival.”

“It just happened that way.”

“Think of the chance you had to prove to ’em right off the bat what stuff you’re made of. Some people do have all the luck.”

Nancy didn’t know just what to make of this talkative roommate, but she was too tired to care just then. She found her rumpled pajamas in the zipper bag and got them out. In the meantime Mabel was painfully putting on her uniform to report to class.

“They’ll probably give you a bunch of this gear this afternoon,” Mabel said. “I never had so many new duds all at one time as they issued to me yesterday.”

“Miss Hauser said I’d get my uniforms this afternoon, and be given my schedule, too. After that experience this morning I’m rather glad I don’t have to get down to business till tomorrow.”

Nancy crawled into bed and was thankful to find it very comfortable. She watched her new friend straighten her tie and set her new visor cap at a rakish angle on her reddish curls.

“Boy, do I feel swell in this uniform,” boasted Mabel. “It sure boosts your morale to feel you’re really one of the bunch at last. I’ve been raring to get in for months.”

“So have I,” Nancy told her. “But I only graduated last month.”

“Shake, sister! You’re a gal after my own heart. I just finished, too.” The irrepressible Mabel seized Nancy’s hand that lay on the spread. “I believe we’re gonner hit it off fine.”

“We’ll make a team to whip the Japs,” Nancy said, entering into the spirit of her banter.

“Say, that’s swell! So you want to go down under, too?”

“You bet! My brother’s flying a bomber there.”

“I’ve got a sweety out there, too. Yeah, we’ll make a team—the long and short, the chestnut curls and the strawberry-blond mop, your common sense and my nonsense.”

Then they were both laughing and the ice was completely broken.

Mabel glanced at her watch and bounded toward the door. “Be seeing you later,” she called back.

Nancy felt as though a whirlwind had just passed, and she settled into her pillow with a sigh of relief. She felt certain she was going to like her new roommate. Though most of her remarks were flippant, she showed that there was the right sort of stuff underneath.

After a couple of hours’ sleep and a shower, Nancy felt ready to tackle her new life. She spent the rest of the afternoon being fitted for her clothes. She was surprised to know the old blue uniforms were no longer issued, and that she would wear olive drab for dress.

“They found the Japs wearing blue sometimes in the Pacific area. It proved confusing,” Lieutenant Hauser told her. “White uniforms are not customarily worn, either, by nurses at the front—too easily spotted from the air. All these changes are the result of practical experience.”

When Nancy went out to supper with her new friend, Mabel remarked, “Leisure’s a scarce commodity round here. We put in eight hours of hard work every day, counting all the classes, ward work, drills and stuff. Six days a week, too, sister!”

“I’m used to that,” Nancy told her.

Nancy’s real initiation came the next morning when they were routed out before daylight for half an hour of calisthenics. Mabel stuck close to give her a prod or hint against doing things wrong. That morning Nancy also noticed Tini Hoffman for the first time. Unlike her nickname Tini was of a large build, and she seemed not to have the slightest sense of rhythm or coordination. She was constantly getting out of step and throwing the line off.

“All right