Page:Angela Brazil--the leader of the lower school.djvu/165

Rh Encouraged by the conciliatory attitude of the Seniors, she ventured to propose a scheme suggested by her foreign experience.

"Why shouldn't we turn the tea-room into a café chantant?" she said. "We should get far more money in that way than if people only went in for refreshments. Charge them an admission, and then tea extra. They'll stay far longer, and take more things, if music and singing are going on all the time. It's really better than a separate concert, too, because you can't always get people to go to the concerts, but hardly anyone can resist tea at four o'clock."

After talking it over, the Seniors were graciously pleased to adopt Gipsy's idea, and began to draw up a programme for the café chantant. Their struggle of the past had taught them a lesson in fair play, and they therefore proposed to admit a certain number of Juniors as performers, instead of, as formerly, keeping the whole thing in their own hands.

"I've put you down for two solos, Gipsy Latimer," said Helen Roper magnanimously. "What would you like to sing?"

Gipsy thought for a moment before she replied:

"I wonder if it would be possible to borrow a banjo? I used to play one out in America, and I know some very pretty Creole songs, and one or two Spanish ones."

"My brother has a banjo that he'd lend, I'm sure," said Lena Morris.

"Good! We'll rig you out as a Spanish gipsy," agreed Helen. "There are lots of things in our