"I should not have thought you would consider it worth while to attempt to deceive me with so palpable a falsehood, Dorothy Greenfield!" she said scornfully.
Dorothy turned all colours. For once her wits deserted her. She could not imagine how to explain the matter. The whole thing had happened so suddenly that there seemed no time to cudgel up a word in self-defence. A groan of indignation passed round the class, which Miss Tempest instantly suppressed.
"Well, what have you to say for yourself, Dorothy? Do you consider such conduct worthy of a girl who was nominated for the Wardenship?"
"Please, Miss Tempest, may I speak?" said a voice at the back; and Alison Clarke stood up, blushing scarlet, but determined to have her say.
"Do you know anything about this, Alison?"
"Yes; it's my fault. We changed exercise books. The one in Dorothy's book marked 'Fair' is really mine, and here is Dorothy's, marked 'Excellent', in my book. If you'll please look at it you'll see it's her own writing--she makes Greek e's, and I never do."
Miss Tempest frowned, but she nevertheless examined the exercise, which a row of eager hands passed up to her.
"Is this Dorothy Greenfield's writing, Miss Pitman?" she asked.
"It certainly has all the characteristics," admitted the Form mistress.
"Why were you writing in each other's book?" enquired Miss Tempest sharply.
Alison's scarlet face took an even deeper shade of crimson.
"Oh--just silliness!" she murmured. "But it seemed more honest each to take the mark we'd really gained. I couldn't give in 'Excellent' when I'd only had 'Fair'."
"Take care such a thing never happens again," said Miss Tempest, eyeing both the culprits, who at that moment would have given a great deal to have been a little less clever. "You will each put down 'Fair' in your reports."
"So I've lost my 'Excellent'," lamented Dorothy after school. "Miss Pitman will be rejoicing; I believe she 'twigged'."
"I'm almost certain she did, she was looking at you so keenly. Well, there's one good thing, it will show her that we think she favours."
"Oh, I don't know! No teacher likes to be accused of unfairness."
"I know one thing--I should have got into an uncommonly big scrape if you hadn't put in a word."