The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-03-24
ISSUE
II PAGES
Section z
ting up the way children will, when

knew she had children's books her
oh ldren never look at they're
most grown up now. She said,
why yes, of course, the school could
have them, and could have had them
years ago, only she didn know they
needed them. That's been the
trouble None OF us knew, day by
day, what was needed
Well, after that, il come out that
she hadn't mortal thing to give the
children to play witl, rainy days,
when they had to stay in So ! made
EN- some bean bags, and got Hiram
Willing to saw no es in a board to
make the board Those young ones
have actually played one set Of bags
to pieces, and I'm making EN- sec
ond set this minute And that made
me think about games, and ] tee
phoned around and got hold of a
checkerboard and Backgammon
board that folks weren't using And
] cut some big letters out Of the mag
azines and pasted them on pieces Of
cardboard and made them a set for
that spelling game Logomachy, they
call It, And | SIP iced some old rope
into rings, and made EN- a set Of
ring-toss. Oh lots Of things that
came into my mind when remember.
ed back when | was little girl. It's
been fun And what else? Oh yes, :"
Aunt Mari began to laugh, 81 found
out that nobody paid any more atten.
ton to the truant law than as If it
didn exist. You know what the law
is, that every child's got TO go to
school as long as he's of school age
Well. knowing that was the law I'd
never thought thing about it, Sup
posed of course they did Well not
a bit OF IL! Once began 10 take
notice Of what went on about schools,
/ found that there were families OF
children in this town, them that live
far back up In the holl0Ws, that
hadn't been to school regu ar never,
Miss Rice being a stranger IN town,
thought all she could do was to 20 to
the truant officer about it, But who
Is the truant officer in town? Well.
who but Jim Rathbone. my cousin
Jim and what does he care whether
the Burrit children 90 to school or
not? Less than nothing. Nor no
body else, till Mss Rice told me
about it. Why that big Burrit boy,
that's eleven now. is a nice bright
boy as ever was, and he cou dnt
hardly read the name of the town he
| lived In, last fall Well, Miss Rice
couldn't think Of anything to do about
getting the Burrits TO school except
to 20 to the proper officer about It.
And ne being Cousin Jim, that's all
the good It did
But ! could think OF something else.
you'd better be ieye ! went to Jim's
wife, and his daughter and called
up the family every morning at
breakfast time TO ask EN- If the Bur
rit children were going to school that
day And got all the neighbors
round here stirred up too, and they'd
telephone once or twice every day:
and the men.folks when they went TO
town and see Jim, they d holler out,
| When are the Burrit children comm
TO SCHOOL," We kind Of made a game
OF II. But 'twant no game for Jim.
tie was as mad as a hornet. You'd
think to hear him 80 on. that we were
all picking on him without cause. and
that II wasn't nothing to him whether
| the Burrits got any schooling or not.
Honestly | don't believe he'd ever
thought in his lie before what Il
meant to be a truant officer Rachel.
his wife, told me. that he got so he'd
swear like a trooper every time the
telephone rang
But land 'twant long before the
Burrits were in school all four OF
them, and nice young ones too
though they do look as wild as little
hawks, with never seeing anybody
2 before. Miss Rice and we take spec
; ial notice of them and she sends them
over here to get washed and combec
. when they come to school very bat
, YOU know their mother an
t more half.witted, for all she's so gooC
Z natured Miss Rice has made an ar
a rangement with their folks to keel
them down here nights when it's to,
n stormy to get back up there in tn,
hollow, and we're learning them al
!. sorts of decent ways, between us.
$ Well, Tor mercy sakes,' I exc aim
o ed, WIN YOU please tell me wher
n you put four children, as well as
d schoottoacher, over night?'
& Aunt Mari explained. Miss Ric
L and | sleep together, and we put tw
{. OF them in the other bed, and tn
), other two We send over to the perb
e inses g.. they've got an extra bee
Y and | tod Jen Perkins Id like t
# know what better use she could max
e OF her spare room than to help civ
lie some clldren in her own tow
It that never would get it any othe
It way"
IT Oh yes, | knew how Aunt Mar
lie would say that, With her old Jaw Sc
and her sharp eyes piercing. | unde
lie stand how Jen Perkins would nc
e have dared say no Yes. ! quite III
Il. derstand what it had meant for tn
1t school.teacher to have valiant Of
Id Aunt Mari adopt her and wit
1T her the school and education Of III
h. children IN her district. And a
though was shouting a "hurrah Il
lie Aunt Mari'!" in my heart, was ais
~ laughing inwardingly at the pictu,
at of the marshalling of public opiniC
h. In the matter of the truant office
he with Aunt Mart marching at Il
IN head
he She was laughing too, and now 81
h said, well, you ought to hear il
mp Rathbone swear he'll never he trua
a officer again. | rather think well &
es somebody elected next March meetil
that will expect to do something
We AT this moment the car came ba
he for me and ! had to leave, Aunt Ma