Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1886-03-26

! mothers heart was at rest also
Shes done wonders wi EN- -wonders
doubt not but it II go through as it's begun.
Her face is a picture to look on. Bless her "
Isabella was saying, behind her placid smile
"Eb, but she's won her guiueas out o. u.s."
thought old Dagetty, ungrudgingly, land
won 'em WE'LL"
II don't see why everybody is 80 afraid Of
Sandy Bruce, thought Little b u. He looks
as kind aud ss pleased as my own father.
don't believe he'll ask any o. his bothern'
| questions"
What Sandy Bruce thought, it would be
hard TO tell nearer the truth, probably, to
say that his head was in too much of a whirl
to think anything. Certain it ia that he did
not ask any botherin' questions, but sat lean
ing forward on his stout oakeu staff, held
| firmly between his knees, and did not move
| for the next hour, his eyes resting alternately
on the school and on the young teacher, who,
now that her frat fright was over, was CON
Quoting her entertainment with the compos-
ure and dignity of an experienced instructor.
The exercises we're simple e-declamations,
reading of selected compositions, examina-
tions OF the principal classes. At short in
tervals came songs to break the monotony.
The first one after the opening chorus was
Banks and Braes Of Bonnie Doom" At the
first bars of this, Sandy Bruce could not
keep silence, but broke into a low accom-.
paniment in deep bass voice, unframed but
sweet.
"Ah," thought Little Bel "what II he say
to the last one, l wonder p
When the time came she found out. II
she had chosen the arrangement Of her mu-
sic with full knowledge of Sandy Bruce's
preferences, and with the express determine
ton to rouse him to a climax of enthusiasm,
she could not have done better.
When the end Of the simple program of
recitatlons and exhibitions had been reached,
she came forward to the edge Of the plat
form her cheeks were deep pink now, and
her eyes shone with excitement-and said,
turning to the trustees and spectators,
1--WE have finished now all we have to
show for our years work, aud we will close
our entertainment by singing, Scots wha hae
wi Wallace bled. "
Gay, ay that wi wei" shouted Sandy
Bruce, again leaping to his feet, and as the
first Of the grand chords of that grand old
tune rang out full and loud under Little Bells
firm touch, be strobe forward to the piano,
and with kindly nod to her, struck in with
the full force of his deep bass, like violon-
cello notes, gathering up all the others and
fusng them into a peang strain. 1t was
electrifying Everybody sang. Old voices
that had not sung for quarter Of century or
more joined in. 1t was furor. Dalgetty
swung his tartan cap Sandy his hat hand
kerchiefs were waved stats rang on the
floor. The children, half frightened in spite
Of their pleasure, were quieter than their
elders.
"Eh, but it was good fun to see the old
folks gone crazy for once" said Archie Nc.
Leod, in recounting the scene. Now if
they'd get that way oftener, they'd not be so
hard down on us youngsters"
At the conclusion of the song the first
thing Little Bel heard was Dalgetty's piping
voice behind her.
And guineas it is, Miss Mcdonald. Yeve
won it fair an' square! Guiueas it is :"
"Eh what? Guineas? What ist ye're
sayin' ? asked Sandy Bruce, his eyes steady
glowing Ike Goals, gazing at Little Bel
The supplement, sir, answered Little
Bel, lifting her eyes roguishly to his. Mr.
Dalgetty thought l was too young for the
school, an he'd promise me no supplement
till he saw if I'd be equal to T."
This was the sly Bells little revenge on DAl-
getty, who began confusedly TO explain that
it was not he any more than the other trus-
tees, and he only wished that they had all
been here to see, as he had seen, how finely
the school had been managed but nobody
heard what he said, for above all the hum
ming and buzzing aud laughing there came
up from the centre of the school-room reit-
Grated call of "Sirs Trustees! Mr.. Trus-
tee Board ~
1t was Archie Mcleod, standing up on the
backs Of two seats, waving white paper,
and trying franticsily to make himself heard
The face of man galloping for life and
death, coming up at the last second with
reprieve for one about to be shot, could
hardly be fuller of intense anxiety than was
Archle's as he waved his paper aud shouted.
Little Bel gaz ID bewilderingly at him.
This was not down on her program of the ex-
ercises. What could it beI
As soon as partial silence enabled him to
speak, Archie proceeded to read petition,
setting forth to the respected board of trus-
tees, that the undersigned boys and girls of
the Wssan Bridge school did hereby unsni-
mously request that they might have no 9TH
er teacher than Miss Mcdonald "ss long as
shs lived"
This last clause had been the cause of bit
ter disputing between Archie and Sandy,
Sandy insisting upon having it in, Archie in
sisting that it was absurd, because they would
not go to school as long as Miss Mcdonald
lived "But there's the little ones, and the
babies that II be CROWN up" retorted San
dy IAN there'l never be another like her
l say, as long as she lives '" and as long as
she lives it was and when Archie, with an
unnecessary emphasis, delivered this closing
clouse of the petition, it was received with
roar of laughter from the platform, which
made him flush angrily, and say, with vi
cious punch in Sandy's ribs, There; told
ye it spoiled it a. They're fit to die over
it an sms' blame to 'em, ye siy!'
But he was reassured when he heard San
dy Bruce's voice overtopping the tumult
with, "a vary sensible request, my lad, an
for one, am O. yer way o thinkin'."
In which speech was a deeper Significance
than anybody at the time dreamed. Ia that
hurly -burly and hilarious confusion no one
had time to weigh words or note meanings
but there were some who recalled it few
months later, when they were hidden to a
wedding at the house of John NcDonald-a
wedding at which Sandy Bruce was groom,
and Little Bel the brightest, most winsome of
brides.
1t was an odd way that Sandy went to work
to win her his ways had been odd all his life
80 odd that it had long ago been accepted in
the minds OF the Charlottetown people that
he would never find woman to wed him
only now and then an unusually perspicacious
person OWNED that the reason of his bachel-
orhOod was not at all that women did not
wish to wed him, spite of his odd ways, but
that he himself found no woman exactly to
his taste.
True it was that Sandy Bruce, aged forty,
had never yet desired any woman for his
wife till he looked into the face of Little Bel
in the Wissan Bridge school house. And
equally true was it that before the last strains
of "Scots wha hae wi Wallace bled" had
died away on that memorable afternoon of
her exhibition of her school, he had deter
mined that his wife she should be.
This was the way he took to win her. No
one can deny that it was odd,
There was some talk between him and his
temporary colleague on the school board, old
Dalgetty as they drove home together be-
hind the brisk Norwegian ponies, and the re-
suit of this conversation was that the next
morning early-in fact, before Little Bel was
dressed, so late had she been INDUCED, for
once, in sleeping, after her hard labors in
the exhibition the day before-the Norwegian
ponies were iingling their bells at John Nc
Donald's door; and John himself might have
been seen with a seriously puzzled face lis
tening to words earnestly spoken by Sandy,
as he shook of the snow and blanketed the
ponies.
As the talk progressed, John glanced up
involuntarily at Little Bells window. Gould
it be that he sighed? At any rate, there was
no regret in his heart as he shook Sandy's
hand warmly, and said, "Ye've my free con.
sent to try but | doubt she's not easy won.
| She's her head now, an her ain way but
she's good lass, an sweet one"
"An l need no man to tell me that, said
the dauntless Sandy as he gave back the
hearty hand grip OF his friend IAN she'll