Dear Teacher began with the words on the first page and went forward. Emmy Lou could tell the next word to come each time, for she knew her Second Reader by heart as far as the class had gone.
She stood up when her time came and spelled her word. Her word was “wrong.” She spelled it right.
Dear Teacher looked pleased. There was a time when Emmy Lou had been given to leaving off the introductory “w” as superfluous.
On the next round a little girl above Emmy Lou missed on “enough.” To her phonetic understanding, a u and two f’s were equivalent to an ough.
Emmy Lou spelled it right and went up one. The little girl went to her seat. She was no longer in the race. She was in tears.
Presently a little girl far up the line arose to spell.
“Right, to do right,” said Dear Teacher.
“W-r-i-t-e, right,” said the little girl promptly.
“R-i-t-e, right,” said the next little girl.
The third stood up with triumph preassured. In spelling, the complicated is the surest, reasoned this little girl.