Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1904-01-09

III
brother Ephe Dodge. and yet the
never called Ephe poor, whatev,
worse name they might call him. Whe
Ephe was of ut show in the yilIas
APE was Following the pillow, driving
straight furrOw, though you would M
nave thought it to see the way his nos
pointed.
| In winter, when Ephe was takip
the girls to singing school or spellin
| pee or some other fOolishness-Out iii
after D o'clock at night, like as not
| Abe was hanging over the fire. hold
ing book so the light would shine
hrst on one page and then on the othe,
ana he turning the book, and readin,
hrst with one eye and then with tn
other.
Ihere, the murders out. Abe couldn'
read with both eyes at once. II Alb,
looked straight ahead he couldn't Sc,
the iurrow-nor anything else, for tina
matter His best friend couldn't sa,
put what Abe Dodge was the cross
eyedest cuss that ever was. Why. il
you wanted to see Abe, you'd stand in
front OF him, but If you wanted Abe
to see you, you'd have to stand behind
him, or pretty near it, Homely? Well
II you mean downright "humbIy,' -
that's what ha WAS
When one eye was in use the other
was out of sight. all except the white
OF IT. The girls used to say he had to
wake up in the night to rest his face,
1t was so "humbly" In school YOU
ought to have seen him look at his
copyDook. He had to cant his head
clear over and cock his chin up till it
pointed out of the window and down
the road. You'd really ought to have
seen him; you'd have died. Head of
MS class, too, right along; just as near
TO the head as Ephe was to the foot.
and that's saying a good deal. But TO
see MIN at his desk. He looked for MI
the world like week old chicken peek.
In at tumblebug. And him a grown
man, too, for he stayed to school win.
ters so long as there was ANYTHING
more the teacher could teach him. You
see. there wasn't anything to draw him
away, no. girl would look Mt him
lucky, too, seem the way he looked.
wen, one term there was a new
teaeher come-regular high.up girl.
down from Chicago. As bad luck
would have it, Abe wasn't at school the
nrst week-hadnt got through his fall
wUrh. 30 she got to know all the
!. lei - 1+.os ayful tic',Sert
sond,a narently made with some blup
schoiars, ANA -. -. "u ~
with her-everybody always was that
knowed her. The first day she came in
and saw Abe ut his desk. she thought
he was squintin' for FUN, ,nt,-sho I'm
and laughed right out. Some of the
scholars laughed too. at first; but most
OF 'em. to do 'em justice, was leetle
took back; young as they was, and
cruel by nature. young folks is most
usually cruel-don't seem to know no
better.)
Well, right I'm the middle of the hush.
Abe gathered up his books and upped
and walked outdoors. lookin' right
ahead of him, and consequently seem
the handsome young teacher unbe-
known to her.
She was the worst cut up you ever
did see; but what could she do or say?
Go and tell him she thought lie was
maxim up face for fun? The girls
do say that come nOOn-spell, when she
found out about it. she cried-just fair
~ cried. Then she tried to be awful
nice to Abe's Ornery brother. Ephe, and
Ephe, he was tickled most to death:
but that didn't do Abe any g0Od-Ephe
was just Ornery enough to take care
that Abe shouldn't get any comfort
out Of it. They do say she sent mes.
sages to Abe, and Ephe never delivered
'em, or else twisted 'em so as to make
things worse and worse. Mebbe so.
mebbe not-Ephe was Ornery enough
for 1t.
Course the schoolma' am she was
boardin' round, and pretty soon it come
time to so to OF man Dodges and she
went; but no Abe could she ever see
He kept away. and as to meals. he
never set by, but took bite off by
himself when he could get chance
cCourse his mother favored him, being
he was so cussed unlucky.) Then when
the folks was all TO bed. he'd come in
and poke up the fire and peep into his
book, but first one side and then the
other, same as ever
Now what does schoolma am do but
come down one night when she thought
he was abed and asleep. and catch him
unawares. Abe knowed it was her,
quick as he heard the rustic of her
dress, but there wasn't 10 help for it.
SO he just turned his head away and
covered his cross-eyes with his hands
and she pitched in. What she said !
don't know. but Abe never said word:
only told her lie didn't blame her. not
a mite: he knew she couldn't help it
no more than he could. Then she asked
him to come back to school, and he
answered to please excuse him. After
O bit she asked him II he wouldn't come
back to oblige her. and he said he cal.
culated he was obligin' her more by
stayin' away.
Well. come to that. she didn't know
what to do, so, womanlike, she upped
and cried; and then she said he hurt
her feelings. And the upshoOt OF il
was he said he'd come back, and they
shook hands on il.
Well. Abe kept his word and took up
schoolin' MS if nothing had happened:
and such schoolin' as there was that
winter. I don't believe any regular
academy had more learnin' and teachin'
that winter than that district school
did. Seemed as il all the scholars had
turned over a new leaf. Even wild.
ornery, no account Ephe Dodge couldn't
help but get ahead some-but then he
was crazy to get the schoo!ma'am;
and she never paid no attention TO him.
Just went with Abe.
Abe was teachin' her mathematics.
seeing that was the one thing where
he knowed more than she did-Outside
OF the farming. Folks used to say