The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1878-06-22
ARTHUR'S LESSON IN GRAMMAR.


1t was one of those long, warm, sum-
mer days, when even the sun seems to
| float lazily in the heavens, and the very
odor of the flowers to lay dreary spell
upon the senses, which appears to lull
the schoolboy's languid faculties to
sleep, past all his power to rouse them.
| The school-house stood in the edge of
the great woods, and Arthur Middleton
glanced from his open grammar, where
formidable array of moods and lenses
lay spread before him in dry, distaste-
full forms, through the open window to
the cool, inviting woods beyond.
"What's the use of moods and ten
ses, anyway" was his mental query.
Il hate them, | despise them, and /
think the man that got them up might
better have been splitting rails But
there's no help for boys; they must do
just what older people tell them, or suf-
fer the consequences. Just look at that
squirrel! Oh, why wasn't | a squirrel!
I'd go away into the deep, cool woods
and climb to the very tops of the high
est trees, out of the reach of boys and
dogs, and he rocked to sleep by the
swaying branches. Oh, these hateful
verbs. | can never, never learn themm
The cool breezes rustled the leaves
with an inviting sound, the deep, dark
shadows lay temptingly near, and even
the voice of the cooling dove seemed to
whisper of the brock murmuring deep
in the shadowy dell, with the rock bass
lurking in hidden hooks among the
water crosses.
The teachers attention was directed
to another part of the room, and, when
she returned, the grammar lay idly
upon the desk, and Arthur had passed
silently through the open door and dis
appeared in the green woods beyond.
How deliciously cool the shadows
were! and the boy paused beside the
trunk of a massive oak, as soon as he
was fairly beyond recall, to enjoy the
contrast with the sultry room which he
had left.
Il wish l could stay here forever"
he soliloquized, turning into the path
that led to the creek, and following its
windings among the trees until he
reached the stream.
He took a hook and line from his
pocket and began to decOy the fish from
IllCIl HdullGS. GNcI anu dlIOD IL SIlIlllO
fish darted from among the water
crosses and played slyly around the
bait, but whether they suspected that
Arthur was playing truant, or whether
the bait was not to their taste, leave
to the imagination of the boys who may
read this story.
The murmur of the brook did not
seem so musical as it always had done,
and after a while Arthur concluded
there was no real fun in fishing all
alone, especially when the fish won't
bite worth a cent, and he replaced the
hook and line in his pocket, crossed the
creek, and strolled listlessly through
the woods. At length he came to an over
grown clearing, where he found patch
of delicious blackberries.
"Oh, how nicer he exclaimed, as he
began to line his hat with leaves. "rll
take some home to sister Hattie; how
pleased the little creature will be-"
But suddenly he paused, as he was
about to drop a handful of the ripe,
juicy fruit into the hat, and disap-
pointed look crept into his face.
&C can't take them home," he said;
:" they will ask me where | got them,
and | will not dare to tell.'
He replaced the hat upon his head,
and began slowly to eat the berries
himself, but he did not relish them as
he usually did, and they were so plenti-
full that he finally concluded to fill the
hat anyway and eat them after while.
Then he went back into the woods
and threw himself upon the ground to
rest, and enjoy the escape from the
warm, dusty school-room, but the
leaves seemed to have an unpleasant
sound as they rustled in the breeze,
quite unlike the soothing lullaby
which he used to fancy that they
sung, when he had been there before.
He looked at the berries, so ripe and
tempting, and kept thinking how much
the little three-years-old sister would
like them if he only dared give them
to her, when she came out to meet him
on his return.
81 can't take them,n he said with a
sigh. Father would say: MY son |
would be glad of your help in the field;
l need your help all the time, but do
the work myself in order to give you
an opportunity for acquiring an educa-
ton; now do you think you are doing
right to run away from school, and idle
away the time given for another pur-
pose, while l am working to earn
money for your food and clothingT
And when offered to stay at home and
work in the garden, mother said; No,
Arthur, should like your help very
much, but an education is to be priced
above everything except honor, and |
would rather do the work myself than
have you miss single lesson It's
plain enough can't take the berries
home, and | can't eat them; l wish l
hadn't picked them; would have been
just as well off studying that detestable
old grammer as gathering berries that
cannot eat, and dare not give to any
one else. 1t certainly wasn't right to
run away from my lessons, when father
and mother worked so hard to give me
chance to go to school; but it was the
} hateful old verbs that did it, and now
| don't know what to do. This is the
longest afternoon that l ever knew"