This happened to be the last day of Tregennis’s work at the new school buildings, and the following morning, with something of relief, he went out shrimping. He came home with two quarts and more of very fine shrimps, which Mrs. Tregennis boiled and took round for sale in the afternoon. When she returned, having disposed of all the plates of shrimps, she found that Tommy was home from school and was in a state of great excitement.
For the first time he had been allowed to write in ink! He had made only one quite little blot and one very small smudge!
“Miss Lavinia said ’twas brave an’ handsome, Mammy,” he told her. “She said to take it home, Mammy, ’cos ’twas so fine an’ lovely, so here ’t be for ee to see.”
“Tom and Sam dig in the sand. The ant can run on the sand. The sand is wet but the ant runs fast on the wet sand.”
Mrs. Tregennis and Tommy together read out the written words, and looked with pride at the “good” in red ink at the bottom of the page.
“This do be some fine, ma lovely,” said Mammy, appreciatively, and, going to the cupboard, she took her purse from the second shelf and gave Tommy a penny.
“There’s a penny and a saucer; run an’ get some cream for your tea, ma handsome, because your ink-writin’ do be that beautiful.”
Off Tommy ran to the one dairy in Draeth where cream can be bought by the penn’orth.
It was all so thrilling and exciting that Tommy quite forgot his manners, and on his return, rounding a corner, he ran up against Auntie Jessie, and Auntie Jessie had seen him lick his finger after sticking it well into the cream.