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By Root 349 0

flutter among the girls. A tall, fair man flew up to Meg, seized her programme, scribbled something; Meg passed him on to Leila. ‘May I have the pleasure?’ He ducked and smiled. There came a dark man wearing an eyeglass, then cousin Laurie with a friend, and Laura with a little freckled fellow whose tie was crooked. Then quite an old man – fat, with a big bale: patch on his head – took her programme and murmured, ‘Lei me see, let me see!’ And he was a long time comparing his programme, which looked black with names, to hers. It seemed to give him so much trouble that Leila was ashamed. ‘Oh, please don’t bother,’ she sad eagerly. But instead of replying the fat man wrote something, glanced at her again. ‘Do I remember this bright little face?’ he said softly ‘Is it known to me of yore?’ At that moment the band began playing; the fat man disappeared. He was tossed away on a great wave of music that came flying over the gleaming floor, breaking the groups up into couples, scattering them, sending them spinning…

Leila had lea med to dance at boarding school. Every Saturday afternoon the boarders were hurried off to a little corrugated iron mission hall where Miss Eccles (of London) held her ‘select’ classes. But the difference between that dusty-smelling hall – with calico texts on the walls, the poor terrified little woman in a brown velvet toque with rabbit’s ears thumping the cold piano, Miss Eccles poking the girls’ feet with her long white wand – and this was so tremendous that Leila was sure if her partner didn’t come and she had to listen to that marvellous music and to watch the others sliding, gliding over the golden floor, she would die at least, or faint, or lift her arms and fly out of one of those dark windows that showed the stars.

‘Ours, I think – ‘ Someone bowed, smiled, and offered her his arm; she hadn’t to die after all. Someone’s hand pressed her waist, and she floated away like a flower that is tossed into a pool.

‘Quite a good floor, isn’t it?’ drawled a faint voice close to her ear.

‘I think it’s most beautifully slipper’, said Leila.

‘Pardon!’ The faint voice sounded surprised. Leila said it again. And there was a tiny pause before the voice echoed, ‘Oh, quite!’ and she was swung round again.

He steered so beautifully. That was the great difference between dancing with girls and men, Leila decided. Girls banged into each other, and stamped on each other’s feet; the girl who was gentleman always clutched you so.

The azaleas were separate flowers no longer; they were pink and white flags streaming by.

‘Were you at the Bells’ last week?’ the voice came again. It sounded tired. Leila wondered whether she ought to ask him if he would like to stop.

‘No, this is my first dance,’ said she.

Her partner gave a little gasping laugh. ‘Oh, I say,’ he protested.

‘Yes, it is really the first dance I’ve ever been to.’ Leila was most fervent. It was such a relief to be able to tell somebody. ‘You see, I’ve lived in the country all my life up till now…’

At that moment the music stopped, and they went to sit on two chairs against the wall. Leila tucked her pink satin feet under and tanned herself, while she blissfully watched the other couples passing ant! disappearing through the swing doors.

‘Enjoying yourself, Leila?’ asked Jose, nodding her golden head.

Laura passed and gave her the faintest little wink; it made Leila wonder for a moment whether she was quite grown up after all. Certainly her partner did not say very much. He coughed, tucked his handkerchief away, pulled down his waistcoat, took a minute thread off his sleeve. But it didn’t matter. Almost immediately the band started, and her second partner seemed to spring from the ceiling.

‘Floor’s not bad,’ said the new voice. Did one always begin with the floor? And then, ‘Were you at the Neaves’ on Tuesday?’ And again Leila explained. Perhaps it was a little strange that her partners were not more interested. For I was thrilling. Her first ball! She was only at the beginning of everything. It seemed to her that she had never known what the night