The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-08-07

20 as the answer; and so on. Finally
only i. 2. 8. 4, 5. s, Z, 8. Q, o. If he
knew that the answer should be IL. he
would write 1t 90, that is. 8 and 8. If
his answer was II. he would write 1t
30. or %, that 2 and 0. See?
1T took me another hour to show
him how to write the numbers so
that he would not make a mistake
with them. I cudgeled my brain for
ways to show him. At last thought
OF number of matches tied up into
bundles of ten. one hundred, and one
thousand. I showed him how the
fellow who invented the method of
writing numbers found that it would
be impossible to have different char
acter for each number, so he hit upon
the plan of making the figures do
double, triple. quadruple, work, and
SO on. First we wrote the figure l
and placed one match under It. Then
we wrote 2 and placed two matches
under 1t; and SO on up to 10. Then we
tied ten matches together, put the fig
ure above 1t and beside 1t to
show that there We're no units left
over. We went through this on up
to 100, then on to 1000, until he got
the idea that we went up by tens. He
looked up at me and said: ooh. see!n
and little Mamie LETTERS caught me
around the neck and said: II see II,
tool 1t was after o'clock when we
rang the bell for the other boys and
girls. L believe that boy understood
He was curious to understands; he
wanted to know; 1 was in sympathy,
and that time l really knew that he
was trying to find out and taught it
To ,t,,,i ha Int do No.
stick. a little later 1 showed little
] Florence Rector how to solve her
problems in fractions. The recitation
] was more than three hours long, but
we landed with our idea safely har-
| pooned.
l have always felt that If could
| have made every day like those two
days my teaching would have been
worth while. On those two occasions
1 caught the child mind when it was
ripe for something, when 1t was
yearning to know and striving to see
and l knew how to deliver the goods.
| If had been as competent in other
| studies as 1 was In arithmetic. perhaps
could have done better I needed
the scholarship as a means. not as
an end. but l needed it none the less
a third reason for lack of interest
was that other fields looked moro
promising IL seemed TO me that DuSl-
ness men had more leisure, less worry,
and more money than possibly would
ever have II continued to teach.
indianapolis business men used to
come to the old Reservoir to shoot
wild ducks and wild geese in the
winter and spring. They would tell
tales OF city life, of the money they
made. and tho ease with which they
made it. They dressed better than
did. and that was thorn In my side
They did not have to buy books and
magazines to keep up with the times,
or so 1t seemed to me on the outside.
This matter Of dress makes more
slaves of the teachers and of other
people than you imagine. 1t has to be
outgrown. and very few overcome 1t.
It's Just like getting the measles and
never geeting over them. In the cities
/ saw the business men and women
going to the theatres once or twice
week. That looked like the blissfuI
life to me. AS teacher, I could go
to the city only once or twice year.
The trip to the theatre was a ravish-
ing treat, and felt that could never
tire of 1t. I yearned for the city life.
The paved streets were better than
muddy roads; the bathrooms, all fur
nace-heated. were better than a wash