“Then you were in time to answer to your name, and didn’t get a bad mark. That was a comfort. Next!”
“I was ’most ready to fight Ned, because he said he was taller than I am, and he walked off and left me, and didn’t come near me all the rest of the day.”
“And so avoided having a quarrel with you, for I suppose he saw that if you stayed together you would be very apt to quarrel. I think that was sensible.”
“Yes, I know it was, now, and I’m very glad he did it, but it only made me more provoked, then. The next was, I had to do all my sums over twice, and some of them three times, and I missed a question, and lost my place in the mental arithmetic class—my place that I’ve kept all this term, next but one to the head, and ’most all the boys in the class are older than I am.”
“I have noticed that you were careless about your arithmetic lessons lately,” said his mother, “I think you have depended too much upon your natural quickness, and not enough upon study, and I hope that these two little defeats will be the cause of far greater victories.”
“Yes, mamma, I think they will. I didn’t think it was worth while to study that lesson much, but I know it is, now. Then I had a most ridiculous tumble, just as I was leaving the playground, and my books went flying again. I was glad there was nobody by but one of the little fellows, and he didn’t laugh a bit. He asked me if I was hurt, as if he’d been my grandfather, and helped me pick up my books, too; he’s a good little chap; so that’s the other end of that! Then they hadn’t any book straps left at the store, and Mr. Dutton couldn’t promise me one for certain till this afternoon, because he had to have it made at Skilley’s.”
“Then you will be sure of a good strong, well-made one, for all the work they do at Skilley’s seems to be well done. It was worth waiting, to have a better strap, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, mamma, such a little wait as that. I got it this afternoon, and it is a beauty—nearly twice as long as the old one, and with such a nice strong buckle. And he didn’t charge a bit more, either. Yes, I see it, now; I was looking through the wrong end of the spyglass, all yesterday. But how can anybody see a thing when he doesn’t see it, mamma? I couldn’t have seen everything this way yesterday, no matter how hard I might have tried.”