Page:The plastic age, (IA plasticage00mark).pdf/266

244 “Cynthia!” four of the boys shouted. “So he name ’s Cynthia. That’s—”

But Hugh was half-way up-stairs, embarrasse and delighted.

The girls arrived on Thursday, the train whic brought most of them reaching Haydensville earl in the afternoon. Hugh paced up and down th station, trying to keep up a pretense of a converse tion with two or three others. He gave the wron reply twice and then decided to say nothing mort He listened with his whole body for the first whistl of the train, and so great was the chatter of the hur dreds of waiting youths that he never heard it. Sue denly the engine rounded a curve, and a minut later She train stopped before the station. Immt diately the boys began to mill around the platforr like cattle about to stampede, standing on thei toes to look over the heads of their comrades, shov ing, shouting, dancing in their impatience.

Girls began to descend the steps of the cars. Th stampede broke. A youth would see “his girl” an< start through the crowd for her. Dozens spotte their girls at the same time and tried to run throug the crowd. They bumped into one another, laughe joyously, bumped into somebody else, and finall reached the girl.

When Hugh eventually saw Cynthia standing on car platform near him, he shouted to her and hel< his hand high in greeting. She saw him and wave*