The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-01-23
BOOK TWO
Which Is the Story of the Prin-
cipaI Witness.
CHAPTER VIII.
In Which Meet Other Great Men.

with all my treasures in ii to the VII
iage where l was to go to school and
live with the family Of Mr.. Michael
Hacket, the schoolmaster.
! remember the sad excitement Of
that ride to the village and all the
words Of advice and counse! spoken
by my aunt.
l remember looking In vain for Sally
as we passed the Dunkelbergs'. l re-
member my growing loneliness as the
day wore on and how Aunt Deel stood
silently %buttoning my coat, with tears
rolling down her cheeks while I
leaned back upon the gate in front of
the Hacket house, on Ashery lane, try
ing to act like a man and rather
ashamed of my poor success. Uncle
Peabody stood surveying the sky in
silence with his back toward us. He
turned and nervously blew out his
breath. His lips trembled a little as
he said:
81 dunno but what it's goin' to
rain"
| watched them as they walked to
the tavern sheds, both looking down
at the ground and going rather I'M
steadily. Oh, the look of that beloved
pair as they walked away from me =
the look of their leaning heads! Their
silence and the sound of their foot
steps are, somehow, a part of the pic
ture which has hung all these years
in my memory.
Sally Dunkelberg and her mother
came along and said that they were
glad / had come to school. 1 could
not talk to them, and seeing my trouble
they went on, Sally waving her hand
TO me as they turned the corner below.
I felt ashamed of myself. Suddenly I
heard the door open behind me and the
voice of Mr.. Hacket:
Bart" he called, "I've a friend
here who has something to say to you.
Come in"
I turned and went into the house.
"Away with sadness-laddie buck !"
he exclaimed as he took his violin from
Its case while / sat wiping my eyes.
"Away with Sadness! She often raps
at my door, and while I try not to be
rude, l always pretend to be very
busy. Just a light word o. recognition
by way O. common p%oliteness! Then
laugh, If We can an do it quickly, lad,
an she will pass on"
The last words were spoken in q
whisper, with one hand on my breast.
He turned the strings and played
the FISHERS HOrnpipe." What q romp
Of merry music filled the housel I
had never heard the like and was soon
smiling at him as he played. His bow
and fingers flew in the wild frOlic of
the "Devil's Dream" 1t led me out
of my sadness into a world all new to
me.
"Now, God bless your soul, boy !" he
exclaimed, by and by, as he put down
his instrument. ave shall have a good
time together-that we will. Not q
stroke O. work this day! Come, 1 have
a guide here that will take us down
to the land O. the fairies"
Then with his microscope he showed
me into the wonder world Of l~ittleness
Of which I had no knowledge.
"The microscope is like the art o. the
teacher" he said. "Tve known a good
teacher to take a brain no bigger than
a fiy's foot an make II visible to the
naked eye"
One of the children, Of which there
were -four in the Hacket home, called
us to supper. Mrs. Hacket, a stout
woman with a red and kindly face, sat
Mt n end Of the table, and between
them were the children-Mary. a pref.
ty daughter of seventeen years; Mag.
gle, a six-year-Old; Ruth, a delicate
cir, of seven, and John. a noisy, red.
faced hoy of five. The chairs were OF
plain wood-Iike the kitchen chairs OF
today. In the middle Of the table was
an empty one-painted green. Before
he sat down Mr.. Hacket put his hand
on the back of this chair and said:
"A merry heart to you. Michael
Henry"
/ wondered Mt the meaning of this
but dared not to ask. The oldest
daughter acted as a kind of moderator
with the others.
"Mary Is the constable of this house
with power to arrest and hale into
court for undue haste or rebellion G.
iwnolitpnesS." Mr.. Hackrt explained.
II believe that Sally Dunkelberg I.
your friend" he said to me presently
"Yes, SIR" 1 answered.
"A fine slip of a girl that and a borr
scholar. l saw you look at her al
the Persian looks at the rising sun.
/ blushed and Mary aud her mother
and the boy John looked at me ant
laughed.
"Puer ~pulcherrime I" Mr.. Hackef
exclaimed with a kindly smile.
Uncle Peabody would have called Il
q "stOut snag." The schoolmaster ha(
hauled 1t out of his brain very deity
and chucked 1t down before me In Q
kind Of challenge.
"What does that mean?" I asked.
"You shall know In a week. my son.
he answered. II shall put you into
the Latin class Wednesday morning
and God help you to like 1t as well as
you like Sally"