Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1871-10-13

marked Betsy Short, with a glggle
He just likes to wander round alone.
/ see him a-comin' out the sugar camp
just now. He's been there half an
hour" And Betsey giggled again
For Betsy Short could gigglc on slight
er provocation than any other girl on
Flat Creek.
When Ralph Hartsook, with the
! quiet. dOgged tread that he was culti-
waiting, walked INTO the school-rOom,
/ he took great care not to see the trap
/ set for him. But he carelessly stepped
! over the board that had been SO nice
! ly adjusted The boys who were
| Hanks confidants in the plot were
/ very busy over their states, and took
pains not to show their disappoiGt-
ment.
The morning session wore on with
out incident. Ralph several times
caught two people looking at him. One
was Mirandy. Her weak and watery
eyes stole loving giances over the top
of her spelling-bOok, which she would
not study. Her loOFs always made
Ralph's spirits sink to forty below ze-
70. and CONCEAL.
Out on one of the hacklpss little
benches that sat i'm the middle OF the
school-room vas little Sbocky, who
also cast many love-glances at the
young master, glances as grateful to
his heart as Mirandy's ogling- he was
tempted to call il ogring-was hateful.
Look at Shocky," giggled Betsey
Short, behind her slate. " He looks
as if he was a-gOin' to eat the master
up, body aud soul"
l. - &,
had never studied Drew on the I'm
materiality and Immortality Of the
Human Soul" or she would not have
spoken of Raiph's as if it were some
thing TO be swallowed like an oyster.
And so the forenoon wore on as
usual, and those who had laid the trap
had forgotten it themselves. The
morning session was drawing to a close
The fire in the great Old fireplace had
burnt low. The flames, which seemed
TO Shocky to he angels, had disappear
ed and now the bright Goals, which
had played the part OF men and wO-
men and houses in ShOcky's fancy,
had taken on a white and downy Gov
erIng Ct ashes, and the great half
burnt backlog lay there smoldering
like giant asleep in n snOw-drift.
Shocky ionged TO wake him up.
AS for Henry Banta, he was too
much bothered to get he answer To a
sun" he was doing, to remember
anything about his trap. In Iact, he
had quite forgotten that half an hour
ago in tie all-absorbing employment
OF drawing ugly pictures on his slate
and codxing Betsey Short 10 giggle by
showing them silly across the school
room. Once or twice Ralph had been
attracted to Betsey's extraordinary fits
of gIgglipE, and had come 20 near t.
catching Hank that the boy thought
1t best not to run any farther risk of
the beech switches, four or five feet
long. laid MP hchmd the master in
sight OF the school as pr0phylactic.
Hence his application just now To his
sum IN long division, and hence hi,
puzzled look, Tor. idier that he vas.
his suns y did NOT solve themselves
easily. As usual in such cases, he
came up IN front OF the masters des X
to have tie difficulty explained. He
had To wait a minute until Ralph cot
through with showing Betsey short,
who had been seized with Il studying
fit, and who could hardly give any at
tcmtIun To the teachers explanations,
she did want to gi2gie =" much! Not
ut anything in particular, but just at
things ~ genera.
While Ralph was " doingn Bctsey's
sum tor her. he was solving much
more difficult question. \ plan had
flashed upon him, but the punishment
seemed severe one. He gave ii up
once or twice. bat he remembered how
turbulent the Flat Creek elements
were; ; and had he not iniy resolve 10
be aS uni eieHtiug aS Euli-uOg? lie
fortified himself 10y remembering
again the aforementioned remark OF
Bud, Ef Bull wuust takes a-holt,
heaven and Narth can't make hlm let
90" And 80 he resolved t. give Hank
and the whole school one good lesson.
Just step round behind me, Henry,
and you can see how l do this" said
Ralph.
Hank was entirely Off his guard, and
with his eyes fixed up-n the slate on
the teachers desk, he sidled upon the
broad loose board, misplaced by his
own hand, and ia an instant the other
end OF the board rose nj i'm the m ddle
of the school-roum, almost striking
Shocky in the face, while Henry Ban
Ia brought up or down in the ice-cold
water beneath the schOOl-hOuse.
why, Henry" cried Ralph, jump
ing to his feej with weIl-leigned sur
prise How i,d this happen?" and
he helped the dripping fellow out and
seated him 10y the fire.
Bctsey ShoIt giggled.
Shocky was SO tICkled that lie could
hardly keep his seat.
The boys that were in the plot look
ed very serious indeed. And little
silly.
Ralph made some remarks by way
of improving the occasion. He spoke
strongly of the utter meanne-s OF the
one who could play SO heartless tr ok
on schoolmate. He said that il was
as much thieViug To get your fun at
the expense of another as to steal his
money. And while he talked all eyes
were turned on Hank All except the
eyes of MTandy Means They looked
simperingly at Ralph. All the rest
looked at Hank, The fire had made
his face very red. Shocky noticed that.
Betsy Short noticed it, and glE2ied.-
The master wound up with aIi appro-
pirate quotation from Scripture. lie
said that the person who displaced
that board had ncltcr not lee emcour-
aged b. the sGccoss-he sad s8cct s.
with AN cmphasis-of the present eX-
pertinent To attempt another ulck OF
the kind. For il was set down in the
Bible that if man dug a pit for the
feet Of another he would he very likely
to fail i'm il himself. Which made all
the pupils look solemn. Except Bet
sey Short. She giCgled. And Shocky
wanted 10. And Nirandy east an eN-
piring look at Ralph. And II the
teacher was not love-sick, he certainly
was sick of Miraudy'S love.
When school was dismissed Ralph
gave Hank every caution That ne
could about taking cold, and even lent
him his overcOat, very. much agalnS.
Hanks will. Then the master walked
out i'm a quiet and subdued way 70
speDd the noon recess in the woods,
while Shocky watched his retreaung
footsteps with loving aumirailon.-
And the pupils not in the secret can
vassed the question Of who moved the
board. Bill Means said he'd bet Hans
IA DatSU Short OH IN