The High School concert in aid of the school library was an annual event in Shrewsbury, coming off in early April, before it was necessary to settle down to hard study for spring examinations. This year it was at first intended to have the usual programme of music and readings with a short dialogue. Emily was asked to take part in the latter and agreed, after securing Aunt Ruth’s very grudging consent, which would probably never have been secured if Miss Aylmer had not come in person to plead for it. Miss Aylmer was a granddaughter of Senator Aylmer and Aunt Ruth yielded to family what she would have yielded to nothing else. Then Miss Aylmer suggested cutting out most of the music and all of the readings and having a short play instead. This found favour in the eyes of the students and the change was made forthwith. Emily was cast for a part that suited her, so she became keenly interested in the matter and enjoyed the practises, which were held in the school building two evenings of the week under the chaperonage of Miss Aylmer.
The play created quite a stir in Shrewsbury. Nothing so ambitious had been undertaken by the High School students before: it became known that many of the Queen’s Academy students were coming up from Charlottetown on the evening train to see it. This drove the performers half wild. The Queen’s students were old hands at putting on plays. Of course they came to criticise. It became a fixed obsession with each member of the cast to make the play as good as any of the Queen’s Academy plays had been, and every nerve was strained to that end. Kate Errol’s sister, who was a graduate of a school of oratory, coached them, and when the evening of the performance arrived there was burning excite-
