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okay!’ said Mat.
    â€˜Listen,’ said Marguerite, trying to sound calm and cheerful, ‘how about tomorrow I have a little chat over the phone with Head Office and I’ll get back to you? Meanwhile, you could both sit over there on that bench and watch.’
    â€˜That’s all I want to do, anyway,’ said Bill, wishing he could vanish like a magician’s trick. ‘This is Mat’s idea, not mine.’
    At that point, a tall girl came up to Marguerite saying, ‘I reckon this is a Trucker’s knot, but the others don’t.’
    â€˜Let’s put it this way, Annabelle,’ said Marguerite lightly, ‘it sort of looks like a Trucker’s knot, but it wouldn’t save a life. I’ll come and join your group.’ Marguerite smiled again at Mat and Bill, ‘You really are welcome to stay and see what sort of things we do.’
    Mat didn’t want to just watch. To Bill’s relief, she chose to go, but she told Marguerite that she’d be waiting to hear from her.
    Marguerite’s phone call came two nights later. Bill was over at the Grubs’ place helping Mat with some maths homework. Tom answered the phone. ‘Marguerite Bell! Bella! Bella!’ he cried. ‘No wonder Bill wants to join Guides.’ Bill felt hot with anger, betrayed by a man of his own sex. You could hear Tom flirting away with Marguerite, and then he handed the phone to Mat. Bill noticed that Mat was being polite but cold.
    â€˜Hell’s bells!’ exploded Mat when she got off the phone.
    â€˜What’s up, Matty? Is Bill not enough of a girl for Guides?’ laughed Tom who was in the same room. Ofcourse, all the Grubs and Pam O’Connell knew about Mat’s scheme. She’d had to tell them to get that lift on the Monday to Guides.
    â€˜Head Office says that the organisation’s name isn’t just Guides, it’s Girl Guides. Unless you’re a girl, you can’t join. It’s some sort of legal fact. I reckon we’d have to go to court to get Bill in.’
    â€˜Politics!’ said Tom trying to sound serious. ‘You’re getting a taste of real life, you two! The idea of a legal fight just makes people give up.’
    â€˜They’re wrong about me,’ said Mat. ‘I don’t give up.’
    â€˜Please, Mat. Just leave it,’ begged Bill.
    â€˜I’ve told you before, this isn’t about just you and me!’ said Mat, turning on Bill with fury in her eyes. ‘This is about equal opportunity.’
    Bill lifted his hands up protectively, ‘Alright. But I also don’t think this fight is worth it.’
    â€˜What about a petition?’ suggested Tom.
    â€˜Not fast enough. I want action now,’ said Mat. ‘In fact, I’ve just had an idea.’
    Bill’s heart dropped.

HILLS POST – Wednesday, 22 September.
    Local Boy Mis-Guided?
    A furor has erupted over an equal rights issue previously ignored. Eleven-year-old schoolboy Bill O’Connell wants to join the Girl Guides. Hitherto denied opportunities to enjoy bush craft and camping, Bill is unable to attend Scouts because the local troupe has amalgamated with the Mt. Ewart troop – a one-hour drive from his own locality. As the official name of the Guiding movement is ‘Girl Guides’, Bill O’Connell is not eligible to join.
    When reporters tried to interview Bill O’Connell, he would only say, ‘No comment’. However, close friend, nine-year-old Matilda Grub, praised Bill O’Connell’s determined stance and said, ‘I’m supporting Bill in his fight for equal treatment and equal opportunities. How come girls can join Scouts, but boys can’t join Guides?’
    State Secretary for the Equal Opportunities Board, Martin Brown, told this newspaper, ‘The case is an unprecedented one and promises to create much healthy discussion and debate.’
    In the meantime, opinion is