Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-08-29
In School.

III SCHOOL,
"Are you doing your best at school,
Elsie ?" asked her mother.
well. I don't believe I exactly am,
mamma" said the gill, half laughing,
half soberly. "You see, there are so
many girls there"
"Yes; but they all go there to study,
don't they?"
"I-suppose So" said Elsie, slowly,
as if there might be some doubt in the
matter. "But Lulu Grant and Annie
Hill do so many funny thir gs behind
their desks, can't help laughing when
see, them"
"But if you were busy with your
studies, you would rot see them"
No, but like 10 look. And then
sometimes, we have to write notes tc
each other about going to the woods,
or going to see each other after school,
And sometimes we pass round candy,
when the teacher isn't looking, and
eat it."
Cant that all be done out of
school?"
"Yes, of course, mamma; but all the
girls do it,"
"Are you sure of that?"
"Well, I mean almost all. Hattie
Grey never does. She and Mary Hen
derson and few of the other girl s
study away just as if they were big
girls. I threw bit of candy at Hat
tie the other day, but she wouldn't
raise her head, and it rolled out of her
lap and fell on the floor. Miss Roy
saw it, and she asked aboutit and gave
me o bad mark"
II wish you were more like Hattie,
my daughter"
"Oh, mamma. I'm going to study hard
| when I am older"
eff you do not begin forming habits
of faithful industry while you are a
child, you may be very sure they will
never come to you when You are older"
"Well, mamma" said Elsie, fret
fully, "I'm sure I should do better if
you would send me to Miss Cars
school, She always gives prizes, and
the girls there study like everything to
try to get them"
Il am sending you to what l think
the best place for you, Elsie" said her
mother, soberly. "You are sent there
to learn what will be of use to you for
your whole life. If you do we'll what
you are expected to do, you will grow
into wise woman, able to do whatever
duties the Lord may send you. But if
you spend the best part of your life in
tritiing you will be worth very little
Tell me, dear, do you think that some
small prize, OF even the qualification of
winning it, would be equal to the pleas
ure you ought to take in feeling that
you are doing your best, that you are
pleasing God and your father and
mother?"
"No, mamma, I really DON'T" SAID
Elsie, kissing her, "and I'm going to
try to do better"
She really did mean it, and for day
or two kept her eyes resolutely on her
book, in spite of notes thrown by Lulu
Grant and tempting bunch of grapes
held up by Annie Hill. But she found,
as so many Of us do, that bad habit
once formed is not easily rooted out,
and the foolish little lassie quieted her
conscience by saying to herself;
"It is almost the end of this term.
Next term TN going to begin right and
keep it up"
Do you think she ever asked herself
if duty ever belongs to one time more
than to another?
II see some visitors going into the
recitation-room," said Lulu, Fastening
into the entry just as the first bel
rang for the afternoon session. "Deal
me, I'm glad I don't have to recite the
first thing. Don't keep me, girls;
want to study my geography"
"Oh, I have to recite history the
first thing!" exclaimed Elsie, in great
'lismay.
"And so have l." said Annie.
"And I haven't looked at mine, F." sale
Elsie, "Where is my book? OH
took it home last night and forgot il
this morning"
Annie bad flung down her history ir
comical despair. Elsie seized it and
began studying it with all her might
Annie came to look over with her, and
as the second bell rang they went tc
their desks striving in the few moments
before the class-bell rang to glance
over the neglected lesson. Elsie was
fond Of history and was familiar with
the incident which formed the princi
pal part of the lesson. eff nobody was
to be there know could get through
it after fashion," she whispered tc
Annie, "but it always upsets me to re
cite before strangers"
. 1t was not strangers who were tt
listen to her recitation. That woult
have been bad enough, but how in
fnitely worse to find herself, with he
unprepared lesson, face to face will
her mother and some one else-Aun
Laura, who had come for few days
visit, who had always taken such pleas
ant interest in all her school affairs
who had even suggested that she nigh
send her own little daughter to sta,
with Elsie and go to school with her, |
most delightful thing to think Of, o
Elsie had no sister of her own. How
despairingly she tried to recall tn