Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1915-07-16
THE KINDLY DEEDS SOCIETY.
By James NJ. Hubbard

By James M. Hubbard.
The Kindly Deeds Society was holding
a meeting one Saturday afternoon at
Molly's house and the principal thing
talked about was what they could do.
Suddenly Carry Blake said, Boys and
girls why can't we do something for
teacher. She's been awful good to us
and am sure we could find something |
nice to do for her. | tell you what I'll |
do. I'll be one of six girls who'll stay |
after school and help her set the room
to rights, I'll do it Mondays" "And
on Tuesdays" exclaimed Molly. And
on Wednesdays, "said another and the
rest Of the days were eagerly taken by
others. "And what are we boys going
to do?" asked Philip. Il know one thing
I'll do. I'll be one of six boys to fix up
the school yard, Monday'll be my day. "
"And Tuesday'll be mine" called
another, and the six days We're provided
for. "Now think the thing that would
please the teacher most" said
Dick, would be for us to study our
lessons harder and try to obey the
rules better. Don't you think SOL"
There was such evident consent in all
the faces that he added, Lets all Of
us who are willing to do this hold up
our hands and say, I promise to study
harder and be more obedient - And
every boy and girl held up their hands
and repeated the words. About this
time the teacher had got out of spirits
and was depressed 1t was her first
school and she had hoped to make sue
cess of it, for she liked the work and
most of the children very much. But
the last time the superintendent came,
few days before, he told her
that he didn't quite like the looks
of things. The children were not
as orderly as they ought to be, and they
didn't recte up to the average. He was
afraid that he couldn t give her an APP
pointment for neXt,term. Naturally she
became very down least or she needed
the money, and school teaching was the
only way for her to earn any she could
think Of She acknowledged to herself
that she had been too indulgent to the
children, because she liked them so
much On the Monday after the meet
ing of the Kindly Deeds Society she felt
particularly tired, and just before school
was over she noticed that the floor was
unusually dirty. 1t had rained that
morning and the children had not been
careful to wipe their feet on the mat
and so had tracked in a good deal OF
mud. Things looked generally untidy.
Her courage almost gave out as she
thought of the work she would have tC
do when school was over and the chill
dren gone, for the man who looked out
for the building would not come til
Saturday. Oh. to have to sweep anc
! dust, when the one thing she wanted t,
do was to get out-of-doors and sit under
: tree and rest. When school cl sec
: and the room was empty, she got W
from her seat and went to the close
for broom. But to her establishment
at that instant Carry rushed in anC
running to the closet seized the broom
, and said, Teacher, won't you pleas,
: 90 out and sit on the porch I'm going
2 to sweep out the school room. Whel
] | m done, you can come in and see i
= its all right. The tired girl, for sh
really wasn't much more than a girl
being only last-year's graduate of tn
5 high school, did as she was told and sa
, on the porch and listened to Carry
, sweet voice, for she sang as she swept
Y AS she sat there really resting, VIII
should come around the corner of tn
schoo-house but Philip with a baske
e in his hand into which he was putin,
every rubbishy thing he found in tn
T. yard. When he saw her, he nodded t
n her smiling, but kept at his work say
ing nothing. And so day after day thi
t went on, and the teacher wondere
e what it was that had induced the chill
e dren to do these things. A change ha
e come over them, for they behaved niue
f better in school. There was very littl
o whispering even among the youngest
Y and the lessons We're learned better
e and more interest was shown in tn
n studies Then almost every mornin
+ she found something nice on her desk
e some flowers Or a little piece of cake O
e candy neatly done up in paper with
. ribbon tied around it. Her birthda
X came a little before the close of tn
. term. 1t was the first time she ha
e spent it away from home. and sh
- walked that morning feeling rathe
;, miserable, for she was far away fror
l. the dear ones who would have give
: her such loving greetings. But here n
lypoNrr nd tba dow x1rO,1lH l.