also a way of drugging the mind by driving the body at such an energy-consuming rate that the mind is too tired to think. Carmelita did this also. It seemed to her that she was always riding at tremendous speeds in either Lucy's or Rao-Singh's motor cars or getting in or out of them. She solicited subscriptions to the Fête all around the surrounding country and among the tradespeople of Hedgewood and neighboring towns. There were innumerable errands to do.
It soon developed that the other members of the committee on arrangements for the Annual Hedgewood Fair and Fête for the Benefit of the Wounded Veterans of the World War were quite willing to allow Carmelita's pretty shoulders to assume the major part of the preparations for the affair if she wished them to. The local post of the American Legion had been enlisted in the cause and contributed a little money from their slender treasury and promised brawny arms and willing hands when the time came for their use. There were also contributions from Mrs. Peabody and Mrs. Hurd and their set, and Carmelita, by polite bulldozing and her popularity, was able to extract a respectable amount from her own crowd.
Rao-Singh's idea for the grounds was decorations with an Oriental motif since he could
