The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-02-08
Little UnIucky Stars.
By Irene Harrington Wright.



with round, staring eyes, and glowing
cheeks, and held her breath while
Freddie Jones, aged thirteen, recited
Paul Revere's Ride" She thought
it wonderful. She was oblivious to
Freddie's scarlet face and shifting
glance; she did not know that he
skipped round dozen of the lines,
and that his teacher, her hand over
her eyes, was blushing for the STAN
mering boy she had coaxed and scold.
ed and struggled with until he knew
this same piece wrong side out" as
he himself expressed it, Nora heard
only the thrilling story of that gal
liant ride, drinking in every word with
bated breath and shining eyes. To
her boy who could recite a piece
like that was a hero himself. and
when Freddie, red and sulky with
the chagrin of failure descended from
the platform and went to his seat she
could not understand why he looked
so crestfallen.
BY the time paul Revere" had
been followed by "Casabianca, spar
tacus to the Gladiators" and "The
Charge of the Light Brigade" her lit
tie soul was in trance of exalted
patriotism and sublime self-sacrifice.
But, alas! There were still those
little unlucky stars All too soon
for Nora-the exercises came to an
end, and, after final song, the classes
began to dispense for their respective
rooms.
Now, the assembly hall was on the
side of the building devoted to the
boys classrooms, and the little girls
had to pass down a long corridor
lined with rooms filled with noisy
boys before they could reach their
own rooms.
This corridor was next to Miss Di-
kerr the haunting terror of Nora's
school life. Once when Miss Spar
row had left her handkerchief in the
assembly hall she had chosen Nora
to bring it to her, thinking that her
devoted little admirer would delight
| in the choice. And so she did, but
Miss Sparrow had no idea of the dread
which took possession of the child as,
with teeth and hands tightly clenched,
| she skinned, like a frightened mouse,
past the many open doors and back
But to-day she stepped out into the
dreaded corridor with fearless I'M
concern. Were not the deeds of great
heroes seething in her brain? She
walked along with the other girls
of her class, with bowed head and
thoughtful frown
But something was wrong in the
van of marching girls. Someone was
/ struggling or out of line or, worst of
all fates, talking Miss Diker, her
glmlet eyes popping out Of her head,
broke in upon the line and stopped
the march.
Now that the sound of shutting
feet was no longer heard, Nora could
distinctly hear the gay march which
Miss Sparrow was playing for those
who had not yet left the assembly
hall Her quick ear caught the strain
of "The Light Brigade" and, forget.
ting everything else, she threw back
her little freckled face and softly
hummied the air, swaying her head
with its bobbing curls from side to
side, and keeping time with her feet.
All unconscious of everything
around her, she went on enjoying this
fitting sequel to her exciting morn
ing. But suddenly a black shadow
fell across her and woke her rudely
from her happy dreams. Miss Diker
was glowering down upon her.
what have we here?" that lady
was saying. 81 thought all the little
boys had been left behind I must
have been mistaken. Come, little
boy" and she grasped the child by
the arm and plucked her out of the
line
Nora was too dazed to cry-too
frightened even to try to conjecture
her fate Thoughts of Miss Diker's
long, grim Office, swept across her
mind, and she shuddered
Miss Diker, however, was not steer
ing for the Office. Still holding Nora
by the arm, she strobe back along the
corridor, to the largest room Of boys
and pushed open the door with a -four
ish.
Fifty pairs Of boyish eyes gazed at