St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1900-02-17
SCHOOL GIRLS FOLLY


q good excuse for staying.
The excuses we offered were not always
Of the best. and cannot say that they were
always truthful, but our teachers were
loath to accuse any of us Of falsehood, and
usually accepted our statements without
questioning them in any way, which may
not have been best for u. 50
Well, some of us get excused nearly every
hour 90 to the washroon, where we gen-s
orally find friends from other classes, and
have nice chat; and if we know the teach
er in whose room we belong to be forgetful
or careless about timing us, as we call it, we
stay more than five minutes, sometimes 10
or 20.
That YOU may understand what | am 60
ing to tell you, win explain something
about the school building.
On the first floor there is long corridor,
from which recitation rooms and the girls
washroom open. At each end of the cor
ridor there is a stairway leading to cor,
ridor above, similar to the first with the
drawine-rooms and other recitation rooms
opening from it. -
Well, one hour several weeks ago, when
was in the drawing room, was excused
from drawing and went down tossthe wash
room. On entering / saw Jennie there.
"Oh. Jennie!" I exclaimed, I'm awfully
glad To find you here! "ss aa8 aB
I know "awfully" is very inelegant.
waas5n but n do use it sometimes, and so
shs nae Of trying to hide it!
I'll ND I am Just as glad to have you come,
she replied, "for I'm In Prof. Smith s room;
reciting Latin, and haven't my lesson, and
so am going to stay out 20 minutes or half
an hour He'll never know the difference,
What pleasure to have you awhile to keep
me company! s.4a
I'm pretty sure Jennie said old insteao
OF professor, but won't tell.
And so we went to window at the fur
ther end of the room, and, standing with
our backs toward the door, talked first sot
one thing and then another RI.
We heard some one enter the room and
90 into the adjoining cloakroom, but, sup
posing it to be girl and nothing more,
we paid no attention to her and went on
talking.
Soon said:
."Really, + must go! I must have been
here ten minutes, and if l stay any longer
I'm afraid I'll get demerited, for you know
Miss Taylor is rather strict about our stay
ing out"
"But T must ] answered, "for have
FIVE or six demerits this month already, and
if / get any more where will be in my
class"
You see we are graded every month, ana
demerits subtract from our average.
"Well," said my friend, stay longer and
tell her your hair was SO rough you had to
take it down, and then couldn't get it up
for long time stayed out 20 minutes
once when I was in her room and gave that
explanation, and she never said word.
II won't tell her thai" / replied, decided
". ssfor it's not true. and must go now, 20
good-by'' ~,
"If you will co." said Jennie, I'll go on
mn with YOU and come down the other stairs
and come in here again.
And so we started. i
When we were part wy upstairs she
whispered:
"There's Miss Taylor!"
/ looked down and saw her going along
the corridor toward the opposite fight OF
stairs. .. .yt .s,
"Well," said I, not understanding why
Jennie should be so startled, Il suppose she
has been in Miss Browns room to see about
something"
ri seems strange, but it never entered my
head that she could have been IN the cloak
room.
We reached the dra wing-room before Miss
TAYLOR did, and Jennie went on across the
corridor to go down the other flight OF stairs,
while ! went into the room.
/ was just thinking it took Miss Taylor
good while to get TO the room, and was rather
dreading her coming, for fear she would
S1,,+ 81 1sNl lnnH M
entered.
AS she passed me on her way to her desk
she amazed me by smiling and making some
pleasant remark to me Il didn't understand
what she said), instead Of giving me the
seolding half expected.
Dignified Miss Taylor speaking to me in
thgt way! / couldn't understand it, But 1
was not long kept in ignorance.
AT noon, chen we had half an hours re-
cess, Jennie came hurrying into my room.
excIaiming:
'Ah, Mary, Pm in an awful scrapel"
fYou see, she says lawful" too.)
.eWhy, what?" asked. WI
.4Oh!" she said, "afte- left You, at the
drawing room. when got to the head OF the
stairs to go down | met Miss Taylor, and
what should she do Int stop me. and in her
IHOSL lHu{SlidHt dHu uiBBilSu IlihIn nAA1-
"And 20 you are the young lady who is try
ing to get my girls to deceive me- And you
did it opcc yourself! suspected at the time
you weren't telling me the truth, but never
like to doubt young lady 8 wordl r.
"And SO she was in the cloakroom and
heard it ALI" | said. 'That explains her
pleasantness to me-"
"Oh, yes" replied Jennie, ignoring my
last sentence. HAnd what shall / do, Mary!
! never told teacher story before, and
now Miss Taylor will never believe word
] say again. Ought TO apologize? hate
to. dreadfu1ly." ~
Poor Jennie! pitied her, though knew
she deserved it all.
"Well." said |, at length, 81 don 4 see what
eise you can do. Oh, Jennie, don't you feel
awfnlly mean?"
4 think do" she groaned. @sna i tel
you TIL never tell another story.
should say she had better not.
And so, after much hesitation and be-
moaning on Jennie's part, we went to the
drawing-room and fossnd Miss Taylor, 10
whom Jennie humbly apologized and asked
forgiveness.
At first Miss Taylor remarked:
.Now, Miss Jennie. if hadn't overheard
You you would never have thought any
thing about the matter again.
But Jennie was sure she would have done
so, and 50 Miss Taylor forgave Ter, and, to
all appearance, forgot it, for ever since she