"Why, there's a difficulty about a recess," said Forester. "I shall have it on my mind every day, to tell you when it is time for the recess, and when it is time to come in."
"O no," replied Marco, "I can find out when it is time for the recess. Let it be always at ten o'clock, and I can look at the watch."
Marco referred to a watch belonging to Forester's father, which was kept hung up over the mantel-piece in their little study.
"I think it probable you would find out when it was time for the recess to begin," said Forester, "but you would not be so careful about the end of it. You would get engaged in play, and would forget how the time was passing, and I should have to go out and call you in."
"Couldn't you have a little bell?" said Marco.
"But I don't wish to have any thing of that kind to do," said Forester, "I am going to instruct you half an hour every morning, beginning at nine o'clock, and I want to have it all so arranged, that after that, I shall be left entirely to myself, so that I can go on with my studies, as well as you with yours. If we can do this successfully, then, when noon comes, I shall feel that I have done my morning's work well, and you and I can go off in the afternoon on all sorts of expeditions. But if I have to spend the whole morning in attending to you, then I must stay at home and attend to my own studies in the afternoon."
"Well," said Marco, "I think I can find out when to come in."
"We'll try it one or two mornings, but I have no idea that you will succeed. However, we can give up the plan if we find that you stay out too long. You may have five minutes' recess every day, at eleven o'clock. On the whole it shall be ten minutes. And this shall be the plan of your studies for the morning. At nine o'clock, I shall give you instruction for half an hour. Then you may study arithmetic for one hour; then write half an hour; then have a recess for ten minutes: then read for the rest of the last hour. That will bring it to twelve o'clock."
"But I can't study arithmetic, alone," said Marco.
"Yes," said Forester, "I shall show you how, in the first half-hour when I am giving you my instructions. Now, are you willing really to try to carry this system into effect, pleasantly and prosperously?"