The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-06-01
NERV EPRAfLEY.
BY LoUIsA THOMAS.


This is q sketch of girl Not modern
miss with romantic notions and . rich
father but plain, unpretentiOus, every
day, calico-day, calicO-aproned girl. Her
name was MinervA-Minerva Spratley. In
her a b years they called her Nerva
and now, grown to girlhood, she was known
as Nerv.
Nerv was an only child, aud her mother
died the day she was born. Old Caleb
Spratley, Nerv's father, waa . carpenter
He had lived unmarried until he was thirty
five years old, and at the time Of his wed
ding was the possessOr Of neat story and
a-half frame house, bought with the saw
\ ings from his wages during the preceding
twelve years. Here Nerv was born and
here the family, consisting Of Nsrv and her
father and q childless step-mother, was re-
siding seventeen years afterwArd Across
the street, almost opposite Spratley's, stood
the district schoo!-hOuse, . small, unpaint-
ed wooden building.
Since his second marriage Caleb Spratley,
on some account, had been gradually going
to the dogs. Shabby, shiftless, and
/ physically shattered, LArxville had come
to regard him ~ n man whose earthly &C
count was fully made up and waiting only
for the final footing Mrs.. Spratley the
second was a crcss, precise, hard featured,
shrill voiced woman, who had a thorough
aversion TO fine clothes, and an inherited
and unreascning faith in ,he doctrine Of in
fant damnation.
Nerv had attained the height and stout
ness Of woman, and wAs wearing long
dresses and . tucking comb She was a
pretty girl. and more than ordinarily intel
iectual. She attended the school opposite
her fathers house, and stood at the head Of
all her classes The schOolmaster was n
pale, quiet, conscientious young man, about
twenty-five or twenty three years Of age,
and was teaching his FIRST school He
boarded at Spratley's, and was in high re-
gard with Mrs. Spratley No. 2. In fact he
was much respected by al the people Of
Larxville.
By common consent, he was standing ref
cree in village disputes-snd there were
many Of thcm-touching matters of history,
Of e geography, and Of statistics. He had the
election returns at his tongues end, and
could always tell how Pennsylvania voted
at any given election-the latter being q
highly useful and important bit Of knowl-
edge, since in those days ''as Pennsylvania
went 40 went the Union" He knew. too.
the dates of al the battles Of the Revolu.
tion. he was eonvernant with the bound
aries capitaL and population Of ali the
States. and he could read aloud the two
column editorials in q New York paper
without making the least mistake.
A rare young man in that region Of rail
making and corn raising innocence Of book
learning. He computed interest on all the
promissory notes thcreabouts; and taught
the amazed tillers Of the soil how to meas
ure grain in the bulk. He initiated the
three stOrekeepers Of the town into the
mysteries of double-entry bookkeeping.
He wrote all the notices Of public sales and
ali the petitions for the laying out Of new
wagon roads or the changing Of old ones ;
likewise, numerous letters apprising friends
back Of the Wabssh-another world that
was, Almost-Of births, deaths and mar
riageA-
Il was but natural that the SchoolmAster
should take lively interest in Nerv
Spratley. She was his aptest pupil, and
had, beside, CHEEKY, sparkling manner
that made her pleasant TO look ut and talk
with.
Gradually, however, Nerv began to grow
personally unpopular In the school. The
scholars saw, or fAncied they saw (which
was all the same), that abe was inclined to
put ON airs, - they called it, and TO take
70 hersef more than warrantable credit for
progress made, mainly through what they
really believed 10 be facility emanating
from some higher than human power. So,
shutting their eyes 70 her undeniAble su-
periOrity in the scale, they commenced to
snub and belittls her on other Dcores--tO
criticise her dress and social standing to
tasinI her indirectly with the sin that beaet