Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1871-08-01

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The scholars To alters TIC careful to have
clean hands, so as not to sile their books,
noticed you looked al my hands as tho
ii made you sick to see 'em. All the
scholars looked right at me when YOU
did. and my face burned, and they stared
at me 50; And heard Libby Arnold
whisper to Julia F:ink, DO see how red
his face is, | should think he'd he
ashamed! It's loo bad To have such n
boy come tn oui school = knew then
how things would so with me. this win
ter. held my book before my nce
AMI tried la study. but couldn't.
thought that this was mighty hard
world Tor some folks To live in, and that
il was leclle harder for me thnn any,
body else. My hands looked dirty, TO be
sure. but had done the best | could TO
get 'em clean. don't b'ieve there is q
scholar that could keep their hands look
in any cleaner than mine, if they had to
handle 50 many things. that would stain
'em up, ~ have to; and had to do all
the barn chores all winter, without n
spcck OF II mitten on. alters have to
wash me in II hollow stone out by the
well, if it's rs cold ms Greenland. And
aint allowed 10 have n drop of warm wa
ter, nor bit OF soap. neither. Old Dun.
bars vile says it won't do for paupers to
be too pertiklar She wonders how they
should 'cumula,c SO much property, If
they spent rs much time rs do, in wash.
in EN-. reckon, too, any scholar
there is here. would like to set down
to a stove. Moons. aud warm their feet, if
they hadn't had no stockin's on all winter.
and no other chance To come near fire.
They say such great dirty clown rs /,
ought 10 keep out OF the way and let the
rest have chance at the stove. I've
never hindcrcd the rest from comm. |
alters go round the back si,le OF the stove,
ms far out OF the way rs can git
II don't believe u word of his stuff
| don't believe but what he has got
stockings on. TJulia Frink whispered TO
the girl beside her.
Ben glanced at her Indignantly, and she
knew that he had overheard her. He
stepped nastily to the teachers desk, and
drew out from beneath it. the only chair
there WAS in The school-room. Julia
shrunk back behind the scholars beside
her, rs though she feared he was going
to strike her with II. Mr.. Wilct looked
ut him in silence, rs if dumb with aston
ishment. Ben placed the chair in the
middle of the room, and putting the toe
oil one of his hard stiff boots under the
lowest round, and placing the toe OF tho
other boot against the heel, he carefully
drew out his foot. 1t evidently hurt him,
for he WINGED as he did it.
There, Now what do you think about
my havin' Stockn's on ?" he said, holding
his poor laccratcd foot toward Julia
''Did tell the truth or not? Eve got Il
StocEin on each toe, haven't i? Don't
you wish YOU had some like 'cm ? There's
plenty more of the same kind in mother
Dunhar'S raS-bag. May he ! could sly
some out ior you. That's the way had
In get mine She says I'm quite too
lavish with papcr.rag and she wants 10
know how she can trade with tin ped.
dlers. il waste her rags So"
His toes were done up in strips of old
calico. which were stiff with blood. His
teet had been touched with frost. one cold
Saturday. while he was telling trees in
the woods, and his hard boots had chafed
them ill they were raw.
Ben paused moment. but Mr.. Willet
did moi speak. He seemed disposed TO
let Ben 90 on and say all he had to say,
and So he went on. lie turned to Libby
Arnold and said:
"How would you like to have the
scholars pint their fingers at you and say.
"Shame! shame! great baby hanging
'roun' the stove, if Your feet were like
mine Don't you think the cold would
make such toes as them ache, some P"
Elizabeth began TO cry. IL don't want
to hurt your leelin's." he said, land I'm
sorry throwed the snow ball at you,
and | know Ough'nt 10 swOre SO, nor
said | wished your father and mother was
dead. ha'nt got nothin' agin' 'em in
world. But ! thought if they was dead
you wouldn't feel like settn' all the schol-
ars to pokin' fun at me. My father died
fore could remember much about him,
but folks say that he was good man !;
and | guess he was good scholar, if l
amt, fol he used to keep school. He
had what folks call old. fashioned con-
sumption; and he WAS sick so long, what
little property he had, was most all used
up fore he died. Mother hadn't no re-
lation lvin' in the world, less twas one
brother. and she didn't know where he
was, if Ire was livin'. She never see q
well day alter father died. Shc used to
work too hard cause she hated so bad TO
90 to the poor-house, and that made her
worse. but she had to come tot at last.
| was eight years old when she died.
The s'eclmen bound me out TO old Dun
bars till was eighteen, SO I've got two
years more to stay there. / promised
my mother I'd do the best could for the
folks wherever was put; and that I'd
try to he patient, il things didn't alters
..-lt 4 L. 4