下载辰思小说免费APP
BensurveyedMissFrost,whomhesawforthefirsttime,withapproval,notunmingledwithsurprise.Shewasnottheaveragetypeofteacher.Benratherexpectedtomeetanelderlyfemale,tallandwillowyinform,andwearinglongringlets.SuchhadbeenMissJerushaColebrook,whohadwieldedtheferuletheyearbefore.
"Areyoutheschoolteacher?"askedBendubiously,astheyleftthehotel.
Mabelsmiled."Isuppose,"saidshe,"thatdependsonwhetherIpasstheexamination."
"I
guessyou\'llpass,"saidBen.
"Whatmakesyouthinkso?"askedMabel,amused.
"Youlookasifyouknowalot,"answeredBenbluntly.
"I
hopeappearanceswon\'tprovedeceptive,"saidMabel."Areyoutobeoneofmyscholars?"
"Yes,"repliedBen"Youlookbrightandquick."
"DoI?"saidBen."Youcan\'talwaystellbylooks,"headded,parodyingherownwords.
"Don\'tyouliketostudy?"Mabelinquired.
"Well,Idon\'thankerafterit.Thefactis,"saidBeninaburstofconfidence,"I\'maprettyhardcase."
"Yousaysobecauseyouaremodest."
"No,Idon\'t;thelastteachersaidso.Why,shecouldn\'tdonothingwithme."
"Youbegintoalarmme,"saidMabel."Aretheremanyhardcasesamongthescholars?"
"I\'mabouttheworst,"saidBencandidly.
"I\'mgladtohearthat."
"Why?"askedBen,puzzled.
"Because,"
saidMabel,"Idon\'texpecttohaveanytroublewithyou."
"Youdon\'t?"saidBen,surprised.
"No,Ilikeyourface.Youmaybemischievous,butIamsureyouarenotbad."
Benwasratherpleasedwiththecompliment.Boyashewas,hewasnotinsensibletothegraceandbeautyofthenewteacher,andhefeltathrillofpleasureatwordswhichwouldscarcelyhaveaffectedhimiftheyhadproceededfromJerushaColebrook.
"Doyoufeelinterestedinstudy?"Mabelcontinued.
"Notmuch,"Benadmitted.
"Youdon\'twanttogrowupignorant,doyou?"
"OfcourseIwanttoknowsomething,"saidBen.
"IfyouimproveyourtimeyoumaysometimebechairmanoftheSchoolCommittee,likeyourfather."
Benchuckled."Thatdon\'ttakemuchlarnin\',"hesaid.
"Doesn\'tit?Ishouldthinkitwouldrequireagoodscholar."
Benlaughedagain."Perhapsyouthinkmyfatherknowsagooddeal?"hesaidinterrogatively.
Benseemedonthebrinkofadangerousconfidence,andMabelfeltembarrassed.
"Certainly,"saidshe.
"Hedon\'t,"saidBen."Don\'tyouevertell,andI\'lltellyousomething.Hegottheministertowriteoutthequestionsheaskstheteachers."
"I
supposetheministerwasmoreusedtoit,"saidMabel,feelingobligedtoproffersomeexplanation.
"Thatain\'tit,"saidBen."Dadneverwenttoschoolafterhewastwelve.Icouldcipherhimoutofhisboots,andheain\'tmuchonspelling,either.Theotherdayhespelledstraights-t-r-a-t-e."
"Youmustn\'ttellmeallthis,"saidMabelgravely."Yourfatherwouldn\'tlikeit."
"Youwon\'ttellhim?"saidBenapprehensively,forheknewthathisfatherwouldresenttheseindiscreetrevelations.
"No,certainlynot.Whendoesschoolcommence,Ben?"
"Tomorrowmorning.Isay,MissFrost,Ihopeyou\'llgiveagoodlongrecess."
"Howlonghaveyougenerallyhad?"
"Well,MissColebrookonlygaveusfiveminutes.Shewasaregularoldpoke,andgotalongsoslowthatshecutusshortonrecesstomakeitup."
"Howlongdoyouthinkyououghttohave?"askedMabel.
"Halfanhour\'dbeaboutright,"saidBen.
"Don\'tyouthinkanhourwouldbebetter?"askedMabel,smiling.
"Maybethatwouldbetoolong,"Benadmitted.
"SoIthink.OntheotherhandIconsiderfiveminutestooshort.Iwillconsultyourfatheraboutthat."
"Here\'sourhouse,"saidBensuddenly."Dad\'sinsidewaitingforyou."
SquireHadleyreceivedMabelwithanimpressiveairofofficialdignity.Hefelthisimportanceonsuchoccasions."Iamgladtoseeyou,MissFrost,"hesaid.
"Arethereanyotherteacherstobeexamined?"askedMabel,findingherselfalone.
"Theothershaveallbeenexamined.Weheldageneralexaminationaweekago.Youneednotfeelnervous,MissFrost.Ishallgiveyouplentyoftime."
"Youareveryconsiderate,SquireHadley,"saidMabel.
"I
willfirstexamineyouinarithmetic.Arithmetic,"heretheSquireclearedhisthroat,"is,asyouareaware,thescienceofnumbers.Weregarditasofprimary——yes,primaryimportance."
"Itiscertainlyveryimportant."
"I
will——ahem——askyouafewquestions,andthengiveyousomesumstocipherout.Whatisafraction,MissFrost?"
SquireHadleyleanedbackinhischair,andfixedhiseyesprudentlyonthatpageofthearithmeticwhichcontainedtheanswertothequestionhehadasked.Mabelansweredcorrectly.
"YouhavethecorrectideasaidtheSquirepatronizingly,"thoughyouain\'tquitegotthephraseologyofthebook."
"Definitionsvaryindifferentarithmetics,"saidMabel.
"I
supposetheydo,"saidtheSquire,towhomthiswasnews.Tohimarithmeticwasarithmetic,andithadneveroccurredtohimthattherewasmorethanonewayofexpressingthesamething.
Slenderaswashisownstockofscholarship,SquireHadleyknewenoughtoperceive,beforegoingveryfarintothetextbook,thatthenewschoolteacherwaswellupinrudimentarymathematics.Whenhecametogeography,however,hemadeanawkwarddiscovery.Hehadlostthelistofquestionswhichtheministerhadpreparedforhim.Searchwasunavailing,andtheSquirewasflustered.
"I
havelostmylistofquestionsingeography,"hesaid,hesitatingly.
"Youmightthinkofafewquestionstoaskme,"suggestedMabel.
"SoIcan,"saidtheSquire,whofeltthathemustkeepupappearances."WhereisChina?"
"InAsia,"answeredMabel,ratherastonishedatthesimplecharacterofthequestion.
"Quiteright,"saidtheSquire,inatonewhichseemedtoindicatesurprisethathisquestionhadbeencorrectlyanswered."WhereistheLakeofGibraltar?"
"I
supposeyoumeantheStraitsofGibraltar?"
"Tobesure,"saidtheSquireratheruneasily."Iwas——ahem!
thinkingofanotherquestion."
Mabelansweredcorrectly.
"WhereistheRiverAmazon?"
"InSouthAmerica."
SquireHadleyhadanimpressionthattheAmazonwasnotinSouthAmerica,buthewastoouncertaintoquestionthecorrectnessofMabel\'sanswer.
"WhereisthecityofNewYorksituated?"heasked.
Mabelanswered.
"Andnow,"saidtheSquire,withtheairofonewhowasaskingaposer,"canyoutellmewhereLakeErieislocated?"
Eventhisdidnotovertasktheknowledgeoftheapplicant.
"Whichisfarthernorth,NewYorkorBoston?"nextaskedtheeruditeSquire.
"Boston,"saidMabel.
"Verywell,"saidtheSquireapprovingly."Iseeyouarewellupingeography.Iamquitesatisfiedthatyouarecompetenttoteachourgrammarschool.Iwillwriteyouacertificateaccordingly."
ThistheSquiredid;andMabelfeltthatshewasonestepnearertheresponsibleofficewhichshehadelectedtofill.
"Schoolwillbegintomorrowatnine,"saidtheSquire."Iwillcallroundandgotoschoolwithyou,andintroduceyoutothescholars.I\'llhavetoseeaboutaboardingplaceforyou."
"Thankyou,"saidMabel,"butIwon\'ttroubleyoutodothat.I
willstayatthehotelforaweek,tillIamalittlebetteracquainted.DuringthattimeImayhearofsomeplacethatIshalllike."
SquireHadleywassurprisedatthisdisplayofindependence.
"I
apprehend,"heobjected,"thatyouwillfindthepriceatthehoteltoohighforyou.Weonlypaysevendollarsaweek,andyouwouldhavetopayallofthatforboard."
"Itwillbeforonlyoneweek,SquireHadley,"saidMabel,"andIshouldpreferit."
"Justasyousay,"saidtheSquire,notaltogethersatisfied.
"Youwillbethefirstteacherthateverboardedatthehotel.Youwouldn\'thavetopaymore\'nthreedollarsataprivatehouse."
"Ofcoursethatisaconsideration,"saidMabelguardedly.
AsshelefttheSquire\'shouseandemergedintotheroadsheheardstepsbehindher.
Turning,shesawBenHadley.
"I
say,MissFrost,wasyouexaminedingeography?"heasked.
"Yes,Ben."
"Diddadaskyouquestionsoffapaper?"
"No;hecouldn\'tfindthepaper."
I
thoughtso,"saidBengrinning.
"Doyouknowwhatbecameofit?"askedMabel,withsuddensuspicion.
"MaybeIdoandmaybeIdon\'t,"answeredBen,noncommittally.
"Whatsortofquestionsdiddadaskyou?"
"Waittillschoolopens,"answeredMabel,smiling;"Iwillaskyousomeofthemthere."
"Didhereallyandtrulyexamineyouingeographyoutofhisownhead?"askedBen.
"Yes,Ben;hedidn\'tevenopenabook."
"Goodfordad!"saidBen."Ididn\'tthinkhecoulddoit."
"Itisquitepossiblethatyourfatherknowsmorethanyougivehimcreditfor,"saidMabel.
"Guesshemusthaverememberedsomeofthequestions,"thoughtBen.
InthecourseofthedaythelistofgeographicalquestionsfounditswaybacktoSquireHadley\'sdesk.
"StrangeIoverlookedit,"hesaid.
PerhapsBenmighthavegivenhimsomeinformationonthesubject.
Chapter3
TheGranvilleschoolhousewasnotfarfromthecenterofthevillage.Itwaswhollywithoutarchitecturalornament.ThepeopleofGranville,itmustbeadmitted,wereseverelypractical,andwerenotwillingtospendadollarintheinterestofbeauty.
Theirmoneywastheresultofhardlabor,andfrugalitywasnottobewonderedat.Inacommercialcommunityarchitecturereceivesmoreattention.
Theschoolhousewastwostoriesinheight,andcontainedtwoschools.Theprimaryschool,forchildrenundereight,waskeptinthelowerroom.Thegrammarschool,formoreadvancedscholars,whichMabelFrosthadundertakentoteach,occupiedtheupperportionofthebuilding.
AsMabelapproachedtheschoolhouse,escortedbySquireHadley,shenoticed,afewrodsinadvance,atall,slenderwoman,withlongringletsfallingoverapairofnarrowshoulders.
"Thatladyisyourcolleague,MissFrost,"saidtheSquire.
"Mycolleague?"repeatedMabel,inatoneofinquiry.
"Yes;shekeepstheprimaryschool."
"Indeed!Thenthereisanotherschoolbesidesmine!"
"Tobesure.MissClarissaBassettteachestheyoungestchildren."
"Isshe——doesshelivehere?"
"Yes;shehastaughtthesameschoolforfifteenyears.Allyourscholarsbeganwithher."
"Thensheisn\'taveryyounglady?"
"Clarissa,"repliedtheSquire,withthatfamiliaritywhichiscommoninsmallvillages,"mustbethirtyfive,thoughsheonlyownsuptotwentyfive,"addedhe,chuckling."Mightspilehermatrimonialprospectsifsheconfessedherrealage."
"Fifteenyearsateacher!"saidMabelenthusiastically."MissBassettoughttofeelproudofsuchatermofservice.Howmuchgoodshehasdone!"
"Well,Idunno,"saidSquireHadley,whosepracticalmindconceivedofnoothermotiveforteachingthantheemolumenttobederivedfromit.
"Clarissawantedtoteachthegrammarschool——thesamethatyou\'reagoin\'toteach;butwedidn\'tthinkshewasqualifiedtoteachadvancedscholars."
"Andyoupreferredmebeforeateacheroffifteenyears\'experience!"
saidMabel,withunaffectedhumility."Iamafraid,SquireHadley,youwillfindthatyouhavemadeamistake."
"YouareabetterscholarthanClarissa,MissFrost.Sheknowsenoughtoteachthelittleones,but——"
"Shehasfifteenyears\'experience,andIhavenone,"interruptedMabel.
"Youwouldn\'tbewillingtochangeschoolswithher?"suggestedtheSquire,withmildsatire.
"Yes,Iwould,"saidMabelpromptly.
"Shedon\'tgetbutsixdollarsaweek——adollarlessthanyou."
"I
don\'tcareforthat."
"Thedeestrictwouldn\'tbesatisfied,"saidtheSquire,inadecidedtone.Mabelwasanenigmatohim."Theywouldn\'tbewillingtohaveClarissateachtheolderpupils,"herepeated.
Bythistimetheyhadreachedtheschoolhouse.Sometwentypupilswereoutside,mostofthemMabel\'sfuturescholars.MissBassetthadpausedintheentry,andawaitedthearrivalofSquireHadleyandherfellowteacher.Shehadathinface,andthatprimexpressionregardedasthetypicalcharacteristicofanoldmaid.Ithadbeenherlottoseethecompanionsofherearlydayssailoff,oneafteranother,onthematrimonialsea,whileshehadbeenleftneglectedontheshore.
Shehadevenseensomeofherpupils——merechits,asshecalledthem——
marry,whiletheirteacher,withallherexperienceoflife,wasunappropriated.
"MissFrost,"saidSquireHadley,withawaveofhishandtowardClarissa,"letmemakeyouacquaintedwithMissBassett,whohaskeptourprimaryschoolforfifteenyearswithgeneralacceptanceandsuccess."
"Yououghttoberegardedasapublicbenefactor,MissBassett,"saidMabelcordially.
"I
wasveryyoungwhenIcommencedteaching,"saidMissBassett,ratheruneasyattheallusiontohertermofservice.
"I
amabeginner,"saidMabel.Ishallbegladtohaveanexperiencedteachersoneartome,towhomIcanreferincasesofdifficulty."
Clarissa,whohadbeenprejudicedagainstMabel,because,althoughsomuchyounger,shehadbeenplacedovertheother\'shead,wasflatteredbythisacknowledgmentofinferiority.
"I
shallbeverygladtogiveyouanyhelpinmypower,MissFrost,"shesaid."Youwillexcusemenow;Imustgoinandlookaftermyyoungpupils."
MissFrostfollowedSquireHadleyupstairstothesceneofherfuturelabors.
Theroomitselfwasanaveragecountryschoolroom.Ithadaccommodationsforaboutfiftyscholars.Thedesks,ontheboys\'side,werecoveredwithinkspotsofallshapesandsizes,andfurtherdecoratedwithanextensiveseriesofjackknifecarvings.Mabel\'sneatnesswasratheroffendedbythesethings,whichshetookininherfirstgeneralsurvey.Itwasnotmuchlikeanyschoolthatshehadeverattended;butaprivateacademyforgirlsdiffersessentiallyfromacountryschoolroomforbothsexes.
"I
seemostofthescholarsarehere,"saidSquireHadley.
Mabellookedaroundtheroom.Betweenfortyandfiftyscholars,varyinginagefromeighttosixteen,wereseatedatthedesks.Atherentrance,theyhadtakenseatspreviouslyselected.Forthemostpartshelikedtheirappearance.
Severallookedmischievous,buteventheywerebrighteyedandgoodnatured.
Alleyeswerefixeduponher.Shefeltthatshewasbeingcriticallyweighedinthebalancebythesecountryboysandgirls.
"I
wonderwhataretheirimpressionsofme,"shethought."Iwonderiftheysuspectmyinexperience!"
Thechildrendidnotpronouncejudgmentatonce.Theirfirstimpressionswerefavorable.Theyweresurprisedbythesightofsoattractiveateacher.Mabeldidnotlooklikeaschoolmistress——certainlynotlikeClarissaBassett.BenHadleyhadtoldhisfriendssomethingofher,andhadevenspokeninenthusiasticterms.
"She\'sasprettyasapicture,"hehadtoldthem."Ibetshewon\'tbeanoldmaid."
Theboys,inparticular,hadtheircuriosityexcitedtoseeherandjudgeforthemselves.NowthattheysawhertheyfullycoincidedwithBen\'sopinion.TheywerestillregardingtheirnewteacherwhenSquireHadleybrokethesilence.
"Scholars,"hesaid,clearinghisthroat,andassumingtheattitudeofanorator,"Ihavegreatpleasureinintroducingtoyouyournewteacher,MissFrost.IhaveexaminedMissFrost,"heproceeded,inatoneofimportance,"andIfindthatsheisthoroughlycompetenttoleadyouintheflowerypathsoflearning."(ThiswasafigureonwhichtheSquireratherpridedhimself.)"Shecomestoushighlyrecommended,andIhavenodoubtyouwillalllikeher.Aschairmanofthecommittee,"(heretheSquire\'sbreastexpandedwithofficialpride),"Ihavetriedtoobtainforyouteachersofthehighesttalent,withoutregardtoexpense."(HadtheSquireforgottenthatMabelwastoreceiveonlysevendollarsaweek?)"I
trust——thetowntrusts——thatyouwillappreciatewhatwearedoin\'foryou.
Wewantyoutoattendtoyourstudies,andworkhardtosecuretheblessin\'sofagoodeducation,whichisthebirthrightofeverycitizen.Iwillnowleaveyouinchargeofyourteacher,andIhopeyouwillstudytopleaseher."
TheSquiresatdown,anddrawinganampleredhandkerchieffromhispocketwipedhisbrowwithsomecomplacency.Hefeltthathisspeechwasasuccess.Hehadnotstumbled,ashesometimesdid.Hefeltthathehaddonecredittohisposition.
"NowImustgodowntoMissBassett\'sschool,"headded,risingtogo."Imustsayafewwordstoherscholars.MissFrost,Iwishyousuccessinyour——ahem!——veryresponsibletask."
"Thankyou,sir."
TheampleformoftheSquirevanishedthroughtheclosingdoor,andMabelwasleftfacetofacewithhernewresponsibilities.Foramomentshewasnervous.Sheknewlittleoftheroutineofacountryschool,andfeltlikeacivilianwhowithoutaparticleofmilitarytrainingfindshimselfsuddenlyincommandofaregiment.
"I
wonderwhatIoughttodofirst,"shethought,insomeperplexity.ShewouldhaveconsultedSquireHadleyonthispointhadshenothesitatedtorevealherutterlackofexperience.
WhileglancingabouttheroominanundecidedwayshedetectedBenHadleyslylypreparingtoinsertapinintotheanatomyoftheboynexthim.Thisgaveheranidea.
"BenHadley,pleasecometothedesk,"shesaidquietly.
Benstartedguiltily.Hedecidedthattheschoolteacherhadseenhim,andwasabouttocallhimtoaccount.Hisfaceworeahalfdefiantlookashemarcheduptothedesk,theobservedofallobservers.Allthescholarswereonthequivivetolearnthepolicyofthenewadministration.Thissummonsseemedratheraboldmove,forBenwasgenerallyregardedastheheadoftheopposition.Notfrommalice,butfromroguery,hegavesuccessiveteachersmoretroublethananyotherscholar.Hadthenewschoolmistressfoundthisout,andwassheabouttoarraigntherebelasherfirstactofpower?SuchwasBen\'ssuspicion,as,withhisheaderect,hemarcheduptotheteacher\'sdesk.
TohissurpriseMissFrostmethimwithafriendlysmile.
"Ben,"saidshepleasantly,"youareoneoftheoldestscholars,andtheonlyonewhomIknow.Areyouwillingtohelpmeorganizetheschool?"
Benwas,astonished.Thatsuchaproposalshouldbemadetohim,thearchrebel,wasmostunexpected.
"Guessshedon\'tknowme,"hethought.Butyethefeltflattered;
evidentlyhewasapersonofsomeconsequenceintheeyesofthenewteacher.
"I\'llhelpyouallIcan,MissFrost,"hesaidheartily.
"Thankyou,Ben,Ifeltsureyouwould,"saidMabel,withquietconfidence."Isupposethefirstthingwillbetotakethenamesofthescholars."
"Yes,MissFrost;andthenyousort\'emintoclasses."
"Tobesure.Howmanyclassesaretheregenerally?"
"Well,therearethreeclassesinreading,andtwoinarithmetic,andtwoingeography."
"ThatisjusttheinformationIwant.Now,Ben,Iwillaskyoutogoaboutwithme,andtellmethenamesofthescholars."
Butbeforeenteringuponthisformality,Mabel,forthefirsttimeinherlife,madeaspeech.
"Scholars,"shesaid,"Iamastrangertoyou,butIhopeyouwillcometoregardmeasyourfriend.Iamheretohelpyouacquireaneducation.
Iamsureyouallwishtolearn.Thereisagreatsatisfactioninknowledge,anditwillhelpyou,bothboysandgirls,tobecomeusefulmenandwomen,andacquityourselvescreditablyinanypositionswhichyoumaybecalledupontofill.Iamnotsowellacquaintedwiththemethodofcarryingonacountrygrammarschoolasmostofmypredecessors,havingmyselfbeeneducatedinthecity.Ihave,therefore,askedBenHadleytoassistmeinorganizingtheschool,andpreparingforwork."
Thescholarsreceivedtheannouncementwithsurprise.ItpresentedBentotheminanovelcharacter.Theywaitedwithinteresttoseehowhewouldacquithimselfinhisnewoffice.
BenaccompaniedMissFrostfromdesktodesk,andgreatlyfacilitatedhertaskbyhissuggestions.Atlengththenamesofallthescholarsweretaken.
"NowImustarrangetheclasses,"saidMabel,withincreasedconfidence."Haveyouanyadvicetogive,Ben?"
"You\'dbetteraskthefirstclasstocomeup,"suggestedheryoungassistant."Thenyou\'llknowexactlywhobelongtoit."
"Thatwillbethebestplan,"saidMabel;andshefollowedhisadvice.
Benlefthersideandtookhisplaceintheclass.Hescannedtheclass,andthensaid:"MissFrost,there\'soneboyherewhobelongsinthesecondclass."
AtthisrevelationaboystandingnextbutonetoBenshowedsignsofperturbation.
"Whoisit?"askedtheteacher.
"JohnCotton."
"Doyoubelongtothisclass,John?"
"I
oughtto;Iknowenough,"saidhesullenly.
"Todayyouwillobligemebytakingyourplaceinthesecondclass.InafewdaysIcandecidewhetheryouareabletogowiththisclass."
Johnretired,discontented,buthopeful.
