Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1879-04-29
From the Chrlsn ~ ;isioH
THE PRIZE OF UPPER NINEVEH.
BY EILIorr MCCORMICK.

The school committee Of Upper Mn
eveh having accepted Miss Kate Revere as
teacher of the district school in preference
% the other candidate, Miss Fife Onder-
donk, was disposed TO fclicitate itself upon
It's choice For Miss Revere had gradu-
ated at Nassar the wear before, was thor
oushly informed. as the competitive ex-
animation had shown, on all subjects. and
was, besides, the daughter of one Of Mn
eych's most esteemed and wealthy citi-
zcns. Ethe Onicrlonk, on the other
hand, had grown up in Nineych, received
only a common school and academy edu-
cation. and was now the sole support Of
her widowed mother. Nobody denied
that Etie was a good and deserving girl.
and very intelligent, considering her op-
portunities: but then Miss Revere quail
hcations were of such high order that
there could really DC no comparison be-
tween the two And 80 Miss Kate got
the school to her satisfaction and that Of
the committee, except that certain
member had taken up Miss Onderdonk's
cause. and seemed altogether displeaSed
with the result. Indeed. he displayed, as
Kate thought, quite an unreasonable de-
gree Of temper over the matter; and this,
with Efhe Onderdonk's sad, and disap-
pointed face, almost took away Kate's
own elation, and gave her, as she waited
by the door for her ponies TO appear. an
uncomfortable sense of having done some
body wrong But this was only tran
sient feeling. No sooner did Kate find
herself entettaining it than she drove it
away, reproaching herself with an angry
little blush, for caring about Dr. Bar
rows opinions when every one knew how
deeply he was interested in EfRe Onder-
donk. The doctor had looked after the
Onderdonks ever since Ethe was a little
girl; and why he didn't marry Fife in
stead Of leaving her to teach school, was
question which annoyed Kate, though
she was angry with herself for being an
noyed.
bright young woman" remarked
Lawyer jenkins 10 the doctor when Kate
had driven off, and these two were left
alone in front of the little school house.
Tell YOU what, doctor, Nineveh has
drawn prize. Have to look out, or
Babylon Centre viii get her away from
US
The doctor shrugged his shoulders.
"If Babylon wants to start college
or theological seminary - he said, shell
do. Wen be having one in Nineveh be-
fore long" and then the lawyer was left
to wonder what Dr. Barrows meant.
Now while Miss Revere had somewhat
elevated notions in the matter of educa-
tion, she certainly had no intention Of
starting either a college or a theological
seminary. Her favolite theory was that
the children ought to be taught Greek and
Latin with their earliest years so as TO
learn the construction of the English Ian
guage. This theory she did propose to
develop in Upper Nineveh. Accordingly,
before the week was out the district
school was IN progress, Miss Revere IN
stalled upon its platform, and the Greek
and Latin classes, with another in But
Ter ; Analogy, were in successful opera
ton. All this seemed TO confirm DR..
Barrows in his forebodings, but the rest
of the committee were as firmly con-
vinced in their judgment. and with their
countenance Kate could afford to ignore
the doctor, and indulge her theories to
the very extreme. The committee, in its
turn. derived some moral support from
the fact that Ef6e Onderdonk had taken
a place in the Babylon envelope factory,