Betty had not violated a promise in telling Alice Waite and Tom Alison about Georgia. The joke was really getting too good to keep, and Madeline had suggested that, as Georgia had not much longer to live, her friends and promoters should let the cat out of the bag by inches, being careful, however, to keep Dr. Eaton in the dark until the very last minute. So probably half the ten o'clock class in English Essayists had heard about Georgia, and nudged their neighbors excitedly when, one morning in late December, Dr. Eaton announced that he wished to see Miss Ames for a moment at the close of the hour.