Otto's patience forsook him as he started for the schoolroom. "I shouldn't care," he said, "if a cyclone came along and shattered the old house into a thousand pieces." There was no alternative, however; he must either take his turn at cleaning the schoolroom, or he must stay in at recess to-morrow. He had no sooner entered the room than he noticed, to his great surprise, that the work was done. Not a speck of dust was to be seen, and the windows had been opened wide, letting the air enter freely, so that the room seemed as fresh as out of doors.
Just at this moment the teacher entered hastily and looked in astonishment at the staring Otto. Then he noticed the clean room and said kindly, "You may be satisfied with your work to-night. I did not expect you to do so well, although you are always good at your lessons. Good night."
Now that Otto was convinced that what he saw was real, he seized his cap and, clearing the steps in two jumps, ran all the way up the hill. It did not occur to him to seek for an explanation of what had happened, until he told his mother about it when he reached home.
"You may be sure that no one did it for you by mistake," said his mother. "You must have some good friend who has willingly sacrificed himself for you. Perhaps you can think of some one who may have done it."
"I know who it was," said Miezi, who had been listening.
"Who?" asked Otto.
"Henry, because you gave him an apple about a year ago," said Miezi, emphatically.
"Yes, or William Tell, because I didn't take his away from him about a year ago; that would be just as sensible, you little Miezi," said Otto, as he playfully stroked her cheek. Just then he saw an opportunity to ride out to the hayfields, so the subject was dropped.
In the meantime Wiseli was tripping down the hill happier than she had been for many a day. She passed Joiner Andreas's house, but retraced her steps in order to get a good view of the carnation bed.
"It is a little late," she thought, "but I shall get home before the boys, anyway, for they are probably playing somewhere."