The short winter afternoon was fast coming to an end. For a few days before Christmas most of the schools were obliged to let the pupils go home at half-past four instead of five, unless there was gas in the building or it was a specially bright, sunny day. It was almost half-past four now, and the teacher said, “You may put away your books.” The children put some of them into their desks, and fastened the others together in a strap to carry home. Then they waited for the bell to strike.
Now was coming the event to which Ella had so looked forward, the marching out in single file with her arms down at her sides and one girl walking in front of her and another behind her. But she was disappointed, for the teacher said,
“Ella, if you will wait a few minutes after school closes, I will give you the list of the books that you will need.”
When Ella went for her hat and coat, the children were all gone, and she had to walk home alone. She went by way of the bookstore, however, and it almost made up for her disappointment to be able to hand the slip of paper to the clerk and say with an air of being perfectly at ease—she had practiced her speech in a whisper all the way down the street—
“Will you please give me the books on this list? They are for the Second Room in the grammar school.”
The clerk smiled. Evidently he had seen little new scholars before, and Ella went home with a written arithmetic and a mental arithmetic, an atlas and a little book of geographical questions, a spelling book, a Fifth Reader, a writing book, a red penholder, an impishly sharp little steel pen marked Gillott 303, just like the ones that she had used at the seminary. It was a heavy load, but the glory of it lessened the weight. She hurried up the street, eager to tell of her day’s experiences, and happy to think that, even if she had not marched out in the line, she was at least, and at last, within the circle.
CHAPTER XII
“FOOSLE” REMAINS
In the morning, when Ella reached the head of the stairs on the second floor, there stood the principal. The little girl looked up at him in a friendly fashion and he said “Good morning,” and added, rather to his surprise, for he seldom talked with the children,
“Do you like our school?”
“Oh, I do! I do!” she exclaimed with enthusiasm. “I think it is just splendid.”