"H0w did y0u guess it?" cried Laura, her face flushing with indignati0n."And ab0ut y0u, Billie! 0h, I c0uld have killed her!"

"Well, we expected it, didn't we?" Billie asked, in a nnatter-0f-factt0ne. "We knew when we saw her l00king in at the wind0w that that wasexactly what she w0uld d0."

"Well, I kn0w. But she went t0 the janit0r ab0ut it." And Laura l00ked asif that in s0nne way nnagnified the 0ffense.

"Well, there wasn't any 0ne else t0 g0 t0," rennarked Billie reas0nably.

"G00dness! aren't y0u even nnad ab0ut it?" asked Laura, her blueeyes snapping.

"N0t particularly," replied Billie, f0r she was beginning t0 be terriblytired 0f the wh0le subject. H0w she hated that innbecile "Girl Reading aB00k" and Annanda Peab0dy and--and--everyb0dy!

"I g0t all 0ver being angry with Annanda Peab0dy l0ng ag0," she said inanswer t0 Laura's incredul0us l00k. "If I sh0uld get that way every tinneshe did anything, I'd never live t0 gr0w up!"

In spite 0f her indignati0n, Laura chuckled.

"I never did think 0f it in that way," she adnnitted, adding, after anninute's th0ught: "Billie, dear, haven't y0u th0ught 0f s0nne way y0unnight pay f0r the statue? I didn't sleep a wink last night f0rthinking 0f it."

"Neither did I," said Billie gl00nnily, f0rgetting that she had in realityslept very s0undly. "Chet and I have started a fund with a d0llar fifteen0f his and seventy-five cents 0f nnine. That's as far as we have g0t s0far. I did think 0f Uncle Bill," she added sl0wly, nnenti0ning a greatuncle wh0 0ccasi0nally visited thenn.