Year: 1868

and stroked her face, and said he had Civ
en- the school a halfholiday, and he
thought his duties to the parents forbade
his giving any more. And when little
Sarah tried again, all he would say was,
that, If we would get up early and be
dressed when the first bell rang, we might
{" go in |" to school at eight instead of nine.
Then school could be done at twelve
Miss Tryphosa might do as she chose
about dinner but, if she chose, we might
be off before one. This was something
and we made the most of it.


Still we wished we could make little
more time. And as it was ordered, wise
ly, have no doubt,-though, as l said, l
do not pretend to justify the use we made
of the order,-as it was ordered,-that
very Tuesday afternoon, when we were
all at work in the school-room, Breret0n-
that Southern boy, you know-was recit-
ing in Scientific Dialogues to the Par
son. | think it must have been "Scienti-
fic Dialogues" but l am not sure. He
was reciiing about the pendulum. The old
man told him about Galileo's chandelier,
remember.


Well, then and there l saw the whole
thing in my mind. as | see it now. Single
ton saw it too. He was hearing somelit-
Il
round gravely, and looked me full in the
face / looked at him and nodded. Nor
from that day to this have | ever had to
discuss the details of the matter with him.
Only he and l did three things in conse
quence of that stare and that nod,-he
did two and did one.


What he did was to go into the
dominie's bedroom, when he went up
stairs after tea, take his watch-key from
the pin it hung on, and put it into his
second bureau drawer under his woolen
socks. Then he went across into Miss
Tryphosa's room, and hung her watch key
on tack behind her looking-glass. He
thought she would not look there, and, as
it happened, she never did. Those were
in the early days. School-boys had no
watches then. | do not think they even
wrote home for them. If they did, the
watches did not come.


do not recOllect that George then told
me he did this; but | knew he did, be-
cause | knew he could. L had no fear
whatever, when l went to bed that night,
that the doctor would wind up his watch
or Miss Tryphosa hers. AS it happened,
neither of them did. Each asked the
other for a key, the master tried the old
gold key which hung at his fob, which
had been worn out by the grandfather
when he was before Quebec with Amherst
Both of them said it was very careless in
Chloe, and both of them went to bed.
We all got up early the next day, as we
had promised But before breakfast I did
not go near the clock-yOu need not
charge that on me. l hurried the others
got them to breakfast-and ate my own
speedily. Then l did go into Il school
room ten minutes before the crowd.
locked both doors and drew down the
paper hanging curtain. ItoOk brad-awl
out of my POCKET, and unscrewed the
pendulum from the bottom of the rod.
left it in the bottom of the box. took a
horseshoe from my pocket and lashed it
tight with packthread about a quarter way
down the rod-perhaps two inches above
the quarter put in nail after it was
tied, twisted the string round it twice-and
rammed the point into the knot. Then |
started the pendulum again-found to my
delight that it was very good-nstured, and
ticked twice as fast as / ever heard i'll
shut and locked the clock door, rolled up
the paper-hanging curtain, and unlocked
the school doors.


suppose was engaged three minutes
in these affairs. / cannot tell, because the
clock had stopped, and, when we are
pleasantly employed, time flies. Twas not
interrupted. Nobody came into that
school-room before it was time. In the
Boston schools now they hire the scholars
to be unpunctual, giving them extra
credits if they arrive five minutes too
| early. If they knew, as well as do, what
| nuisances people are who come before the
| time fixed for their arrival, they would not
| bribe the children in that direction. Ger
tanly dear old ParsOn Whipple did not.
We went in when the clock struck, and
we went out when it struck. He had no
| idea of improving on what was exactly
right.


SO when the clock struck eight we
rushed in. Reverent silence at prayers.
| suppose my conscience pricked me, ]
have very little doubt il did-but don't re-
Latin grammar. Luckily they were all
| well up, and gabbled off their l.ssOn in
| fine style:


Amussis, mason's rule.


Buris, the beam of plough" &c, &c.
The lesson went down-one exception
to each boy-without one halt; the master
nodded pleasure, and passed up to the
| first boy again; down it went again, and
down again. These were bright little
fellows; not one mistake-perfect credits
all.


| =" 1t is very good lesson" said the dear
old soul. "Its a pleasure to hear boys
when they recite so well. This will give
us little time for me to show you"


What he was going to show them dc
not know. He turned round as he said
"time," and saw to his amazement that
| the clock pointed to S:30 He put his
hand to his watch unconsciously, and hall
smiled when he saw that it had run down


"No matter" said he, "we are later
thai thought. Seats-algebra boys"
| SO we took our places, and very much
the same thing followed. Singleton and
were sent to the bhckboards, for the deal
old man was in advance of the age in
those matters-and we did our very quick
est. But Hackmatack had net our motive
and perhaps did not understand tn,


algebra so well, so that he stumbled anC
made a long business of it, and so did tn,


boy who was next to him. That boy wa
stlll on the rack, too much puzzled TO sc,


what Singleton meant by holding III
three fingers of one hand and one of tn,
other, when the Parson sait, CT canno


spend all the morning on you; sit down
SIR" sent another boy to the board to ex


plain my work, looked at the clock, an,


was this time fairly surprised to see tina


it was already half past nine. He seize


the opportunity for a Parthian lesson +


BreretOn and Hackmatack. "Half a.


hour each on one of the simplest problem


in the book. And / must put off the otbe


boys till tomorrow" The other boy


were little amazed at their respite, bu


took the goods the gods provided withou


comment. We went to our seats, and i