Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1878-07-25

lie is Lear sighted, excessively p'Sn
full, and densely ignorant of the ma
ture and habits of girls. Everybody
comedies that he is a good man, but
he has always been believed to be as
impervious to romance as is a rhln-
oceros in a travelling menagerle.
Last winter this remarkable man
was engaged to teach the Harlans,
vile district school. He did not
know a soul in the village, but the
School Trustees, knowing that he
Lad conducted the male department
of a Frankfort schoolWlth eminent
sue cess, engaged him at Il large sala-
nv. The HarlaGsvil,e scholars, in
c'uling the youth of both sexes,
were for the most part, orderly and
industrious. There was, however,
one gill in the school who was prob
ably the most mischievous and reck-
less of her SEX. There is no doubt
that Mss Alice, as she was general
ly called, was very pretty girl,
and no one claimed that she was
guilty of any serious crimes. Still,
she was never out of mischief, and
would plan and execute enterprises
from which the average boy would
shrink IN terror. When it is added
that she was fifteen years old, and
unusually large for her age, it will
be perceived that she was we'll adap-
ted to render the life of a sci ool
teacher unspeakably wretched.
When Miss Alice first saw the
new teacher she at once perceived
that he was admirably adapted to be
teased. His manifest bashfulness
and the innocent, unsophisticated
expression of his kindly, but far
from handsome, face stimulated hel
mischiev0us propensitics to the ut
most. She began her prosecution
without delay, and carried it on
with immense success. Time and
space would fail were it attempted
to catalogue the various devices by
which she plagued the patient teach
er. 1t was not long, hcwever, be-
lore he discovered that the demure
Miss Alice was at the bottom of all
the mischief in scheel, though she
was too astute to permit herself to
he detected in any overt act. One
of herfayorite methods of harassing
the good teacher was to pretend TO
an ardent admiration for him. She
would constantly go to his desk On
the pretext Of asking his help in her
lessons, and while he was laborously
explaining how this sum should be
done, or how that verb should be
parsed, she would stand by his side
gazing at him with an air of hope
SIS and passionate attachment
watch filled tie scholars with the
widest delight. Then, too, she
would constantly manage TO touch,
with apparent Inconsistencies, the
teachers hand or shoulder, Or would
lean over him so that her breath
would fan his sparse and delicate
hair. The uneasiness betrayed by
the innocent man in these circum-
stances was excessively ludicrous,
and delighted the naughty girl and
her felloH-pupils unspe4kably.
The day came, however, when
Miss Alice, grown careless by long
impunity, was detected in the act of
firing at another girl with a bean
shooter. This was crime for
which the inexplorable penalty was
"rulering," The teacher would
lave given much to avoid the neces-
sity of "rulering'' girl, but if he
suffered Miss Alice's offense to pass
without punishment lie knew that
lie would be accused of unfairness,
and that the discipline Of the school
would be destroyed. With heavy
heart lie called her up for punish
ment. and ordered her to hold out
her hand. She held it out smiling
" and unfinchingly, and when the
punishment was ended she deliber-
ately threw her arms around the
teachers neck and kissed him. II
always return a kiss for blow" she
exyl lined, as soon as the teacher re-
covered breath and consciousness
sfor mother always taught me to do
so.n Having said this, she went
calmly back TO her seat, and the
teacher, wishing that the earth
would open and hide him, tried to
c .lm his beating heart by studyirg G
history from spelling book held
upside down.
The cup of his misery was 10y no
means full. There was rule in
school that whoever climbed the
fAnce into the next yard and stole
apples from Deacon Watkins ap-
ple-tree should be fogged. The
teacher, in order to check the
growth of this terrible vice, had dis
,inctly announced that this rule
; would be lnexorable enforced, no