Year: 1879

hard set Now there is Tom
Strong,' said they, I'VE may as veil
tell you at the start that you had
better let him alone; get along
with him the best way you can.
When you cannot stand it with
him any longer, let rs know and
we will send him home. The boy
cannot be taught anything. We
have had conscientious, painstak-
ing teachers, who declared that
it was impossible to teach him
to count, spell, or write his own
name even.'


4 found this lad to be tall and
thin, blue and pinched, with hard
ly life enough to do anything in
school but make grotesque faces
for the amusement Of the children.
I put all end to that at once by
making rule that any scholar
who laughed at Tom Strong's
faces should sit with the dirty,
ragged unkempt boy, and take les
sons from him as q facial contor-
ZIONIST, while the rest of the school
looked on.


1T did seem as ifthe poor follow
could not be made to remember
anything ; but [ said to myself,
He is not an idiot, and he shall be
Taught to read and spoil easy
words at first, and to write his
name He had been laundering
along in an advanced reader, with
a class of live bright boys of his
own age and size. Not wishing to
humiliate the lad by putting him
into the infant class where be
really belonged, l had him read
by himself from my pretty, red
morocco-bound Bible, beginning
with the Sermon on the Mount,
and taking up the parallels in good
time.


I set him easy copies in writ
ing. His indolent and rebellious
conduct over this part of my labor
with him attracted the attention
of one of the older girls, who said
to me one day at recess, i don't
suppose Tom Strong has strength
enough to learn to write or to ap-
ply himself to any thing. His
folks are very poor and shiftless,
and they never have any meat
to cat, nor any good, nutritious
food. He never brings any din
ner or lunch to eat at noon. and
never runs and plays with the
boys. He is not strong enough,
teacher


That gave me the clew to the
secret of the strange, wisttul, hum
CRY look in the poor boys eyes. |
lay awake and thought about it all
that night, and in the morning re-
solved to act. After breakfast [
went down to the kitchen and
made Mrs. Rugg give me two or
three generous slices of roast beef
and bread, some doughnuts and
cheese, wrapped up in paper.


Going early to the school-house,
l found Tom, there, as usual, the
first scholar to be on hand always,
he lived the furthest off.
Calling him to me and giving him
tho lunch, l said, Ifyou will try
to do as well as you can this term,
and be a good, studious boy, | will
bring you nice lunch every day.
He looked at me wonderingly, at
the same time involuntarily reach
ing out his long, skinny hands for
the coveted package.


4 be awful hungry; school,
marin, he said,' 'and seein' there
haint none er the childruns roun'
ter larf at me, I'll take it sure
enough, an eat it now. [ haint
never had sich or great hunk er
meat or cheese aforel 10 mer life, land
he straightway fell to deVouring
the food like a starved dog. Afterit
had all disappeared, even to the
last crumb, he gave little grunt
Of satisfaction, and looked up at
me as if his appetite had only been
sharpened and that further in
stallment of food would not come
amiss.


That night l made bargain
with Mrs. Rugg. Tom Strong
was to come to her kitchen every
noon for hearty, wholesome, hot
meat dinner, and I was to
pay for it. L was in straItened
circumstances myself, besides