The Green Forest tribune., 1909-10-29

IulO, uHuCl still continued, there was a sort ol postgraduate club, small in US nulh- bers and snobbish in it's attltuue. This club was, as it were, the Inner circle of teacherdom, and from US SUI perior heights it's members could al- ford to turn up their pedagoglcai noses and stick out their pedagoglcai tongues at their less favored sisters It was known as the Society of Schol- astic Sociology, which hlgh-soundlns title was, however, perverted by en- vious outsiders into the Sour Splnster Social Miss Lucy and her FRIVOLOUS companions had been among these IT. reverent seoffers until the time came when Miss Lucy herself was invited to aspire to it's membership. She then took to speaking in rhetorical periods only, and to snubbing her former as sociates.
 The requirements for admission to this society were few but rigorous. The candidate wrote a thesis upon some problem of school life, and was then visited by committee of three who listened to the working out of the problem. With her usual cheerful coneeit, Miss Lucy had seorned the humber phases of her work, and had taken for her subject "A Teachers In f1uence Upon the Moral Tone Of Her Glass;" week before Thanksgiving she received notice that the commit tee of three would visit her.
 The next morning Miss Lucy, clothed in foolish confidence and her very best white shirt-waist, stood be- fore Class A, while in the back Of the room sat judicially the dread commit tee, made up of the principal, the su- pervisor and a visiting teacher-a long. thin, spectacled person whom Miss Lucy in her unregenerate days would have designated as one of the Sour Spinsters, but whom she now viewed with the reverence given to high priestess in the ranks of Schol- astic Sociology Miss Lucy had taken for her sub-topic Why We Give Thanks and, fortified by her new waist she swallowed the lump in her throat and began.
 "Children,'' she said, smilingly, "I want to talk to you little about holiday we are going to have soon. Who knows what it is? Hermann"
 "Holler eve" said Herman.
 "Oh, no, Herman, not Hallow eve" said Miss Lucy. Tt is Thanksgiving. And now who can tell me what Thanksgiving means? What do we do then? Sophie?"
 Miss Luzy," began Sophie Bauer schmidt, 'efery year we haf a party and my mother says he ain't nothing but guzzler'
 In these heart to heart talks with her class Miss Lucy allowed a cer- tain freedom of expression, but at the disclosure of this exchange of connubial compliments she looked shocked
 'Yes, Sophie, dear" she began, but the talkative Sophie was not so easily checked.
 And Miss Luzy," she continued my sisters got a beau, but my mother says he ain't nothing but a kissing-bug."
 At this Miss Lucy looked apprehen- sively at the committee. The prin- cipal' was shamelessly amused, but the supervisor, correct gentleman, looked pained, and the blush of out ragged modesty was rising upon the spinster cheek of the visiting teacher.
 That will do, Sophie,' said Miss Lucy, severely; you are not telling me what I asked you at all. Children, some of you can surely tell me what Thanksgiving means! Anna, what do we do then?"
 Anna Karenina, in her seat at the foot of the class, had been sitting in scornful silence that she always op- posed to these attempts of Miss Lucy to uplift her moral tone Even this obvious appeal did not affect her.
 "Nothun," she said, rudely.
 At these repeated refusals to re- spond to her questions suspicion was growing upon Miss Lucy that as a subject of scholastic sociological re- search Class A might be failure.
 
 flaming signals of distress, but she kept bravely on.
 "Oh, yes, Anna, surely you can think of something you do on Thanks giving"
 "Nothun," repeated Anna, blankly. Having thus spoken, she withdrew herself from further discussion by sulkily putting her head down on her desk.
 Just at this moment an inspiration seized Bum O'Reilly. His quick Irish tact had told him that there was some especial answer desired by Miss Lucy He remembered that she had always shown an interest in the numerous ad. ditions to his family
 We got a baby last Thanksgivun." ;" he volunteered, obligingly, "but we ain't goin' to git none this year"
 At this point Miss Lucy, without even daring to look at the committee hastily interrupted:
 Yes, yes, James," she said: "hut what is it you and all of us do every day, but more than ever on Thanks. giving day?"
 You should clean your teeth and wash yourself all over," said Josef Burcschy, whose weak mind was wan. dering back to the Cleanliness Talk of the day before.
 At last. We give thanks said the correct Marie Schaefer, the only mem. Der of Class A who ever knew any. thing.
 Thus having laboriously extracted the desired answer Mice I,o