"That—"
"Irregular verbs, that—irregular verbs, that—"
"See here, Pupasse; you do not know that lesson any more than a cat does"—Madame Joubert's favorite comparison.
"Yes, I do, Madame Joubert! Yes, I do!"
"Silence!"
"But, Madame Joubert—"
"Will you be silent!"
"Yes, Madame Joubert; only—"
"Pupasse, one more word—and—" Madame Joubert was forgetting her comedy—"Listen, Pupasse, and obey! You go home and learn that lesson. When you know it, you can reënter your class. That is the punishment I have thought of to correct your 'want of attention.'"
That was the way Madame Joubert put it—"want of attention."