第12章

NextdaywordwassentaroundthatschoolwastobeginthecomingMonday；soSaturdayafternoonthepeoplewhohadchildrenlargeenoughtogosentthebiggestofthemtocleantheschoolhouse。

May，Leon，andIwenttodoourshare。Justwhentherewereaboutabushelofnutshells，andwitheredapplecores，andinkypaperonthefloor，theblackboardhalfcleaned，andashestraileddeepbetweenthestoveandthewindowBillyWilsonwasthrowingthemfrom，someoneshouted：“TherecomesMr。StantonwithHer。“

Allofusdroppedeverythingandrantothesouthwindows。I

tellyouIwasproudofourbigwhiteteamasitcameprancingdownthehill，andthegleamingpatentleathertrimmings，andthebrasssidelampsshininginthesun。Fathersatverystraight，drivingratherfast，asifhewouldasliefgetitoverwith，andinsteadofridingonthebackseat，wheremotheralwayssat，theteacherwasinfrontbesidehim，andsheseemedtobetalkingconstantly。Welookedateachotherandgroanedwhenfatherstoppedatthehitchingpostandgotout。Ifwehadtriedtoseewhatadreadfulmusswecouldmake，thingscouldhavelookednoworse。Ithinkfathertoldhertowaitinthecarriage，butweheardhercry：“OhMr。Stanton，letmeseethedearchildrenI’mtoteach，andwhereI’mtowork。“

Hoppedistheword。Shehoppedfromthecarriageandcamehoppingafterfather。Shewasastallasaclothespropandscarcelyasfat。Thereweregrayhairscomingonhertemples。

Herfacewassallowandwrinkled，andshehadfaded，pale-blueeyes。Herdresswaslikemymotherhadwornseveralyearsbefore，instyle，andofstiffgraystuff。Shemademefeelthatnoonewantedherathome，andprobablythatwasthereasonshehadcomesofaraway。

Everyonestooddumb。MotheralwayswenttomeetpeopleandMaywasoldenoughtoknowit。Shewent，butshelookedexactlyasshedoeswhenthewaferburstsandthequininegetsinhermouth，andshedoesn’tdarespititout，becauseitcostsfivedollarsabottle，andit’sgoingtodohergood。FatherintroducedMayandsomeoftheolderchildren，andMayhelpedhimwiththeothers，andthenhetoldusto“diginandworkliketroopers，“andhewouldtakeMissPollardonhome。

“Ohdoletmeremainandhelpthedearchildren！“shecried。

“Wecanfinish！“weansweredinfullchorus。

“Howlovelyofyou！“shechirped。

Chirpmakesyouthinkofabird；andinspeechandmannerMissAmeliaPollardwasthemostbirdlikeofanyhumanbeingIeverhaveseen。Shehoppedfromthesteptothewalk，turnedtous，herheadononeside，playfulnessintheairaroundher，andshookherfingeratus。

“Beextremelyparticularthatyouleavethingsimmaculateattheconsummationofyourlabour，“shesaid。“`RememberthatcleanlinessisnexttoGodliness！’“

“Twotermsofthat！“gaspedLeon，sinkingonthestovehearth。

“BeholdJobmourningasclosetheashesashecan。“

BillyWilsonhadthetoplidoff，sohereacheddownandgotabighandfulofashesandsiftedthemoverLeon。Butit’snofuntodoanythinglikethattohim；heonlysankinamoredejectedheap，andmoaned：“SendforBildadandZophartocomfortme，andmoreashes，please。“

“Whydoesthelittlefeathereddeartouchearthatall？Whydoesn’tshefly？“demandedSilasShaw。

“I’mgoingtogetahundredwadsreadyforMonday，“saidJimmyHood。“Wecanshootthemwhenweplease。“

“Bettencentsyoucan’thither，“saidBillyWilson。“Thereain’tenoughofherforadecentmark。“

“Let’squitandgohome，“proposedLeon。“ThiswilllookworsethanitdoesnowbyMondaynight。“

Theneveryonebegantalkingatonce。SuddenlyMayseizedthepokerandbeganpoundingonthetopofthestovefororder。

“Wemustcleanthisup，“shesaid。“Wemightaswellfinish。

Maybeyou’llshootwadsanddowhatyouplease，andmaybeyouwon’t。Hereyeswentaroundlikeacatthatsmellsmice。Ifshecanspellthelanguagesheuses，sheisthebestwe’veeverhad。“

Thatmadeusblink，andIneverforgotit。Manytimesafterwardwhilelisteningtopeopletalk，Iwonderediftheycouldspellthewordstheyused。

“Well，comeon，then！“saidLeon。HeseizedthebroomandhandedittoBillyWilson，quotingashedidso，“Work，work，myboy，benotafraid“；andhetoldSilasShawashegavehimthemop，to“Looklabourboldlyintheface！“butheneverdidathinghimself，excepttokeepeveryonelaughing。

Sowecleanedupaswellaswecould，andLeonstruttedlikeBobby，becausehelockedthedoorandcarriedthekey。WhenwereachedhomeIwassorryIhadn’tgonewithfather，soIcouldhaveseenmother，Sally，Candace，andLaddiewhenfirsttheymetthenewteacher。Theshockshowedyet！MissAmeliahadtakenoffhersmotherywoollendressandputonablackcalico，butitwasn’tanymorecheerful。Shedidn’tknowwhattodo，andyoucouldseeplainlythatnooneknewwhattodowithher，sotheyunitedinsendingmetoshowhertheplace。Iaskedherwhatshewouldlikemosttosee，andshesaideverythingwassocharmingshecouldn’tdecide。Ithoughtifshehadnomorechoicethanthat，oneplacewoulddoaswellasanother，soIstartedfortheorchard。Quickaswegotthere，Iknewwhattodo。Iledherstraighttoourbestclingpeachtree，toldhertoclimbonthefencesoshecouldreacheasily，andeatallshechose。Wedidn’tdareshakethetree，becausethepigsranontheothersideofthefence，andtheychankedupeverypeachthatfellthere。Thosepeachesweretoogoodtofeedevenfather’sfinestBerkshires。

BythetimeMissAmeliahadeatennineorten，shewassohappytothinkshewasthere，shequittiltingherheadandusingbigwords。Ofcourseshecouldn’tknowhowIlovedtohearthem，andmaybeshethoughtIwouldn’tknowwhattheymeant，andthattheywouldbewastedonme。IfshehadunderstoodhowmuchspellinganddefiningI’dheardinmylife，Iguessshemighthavetalkedupasbigasshecould，andstillI’dhavegotmostofit。Whenshereachedtheplacewheresheatemoreslowly，shebegantotalk。Shemusthaveaskedmemostahundredquestions。Whatallournameswere，howoldwewere，ifourgirlshadlotsofbeaus，andifthereweremanymenintheneighbourhood，anddozensofthingsmymotherneveraskedanyone。Shealwaysinquiredifpeoplewerewell，iftheircropsweregrowing，howmuchfruittheyhad，andhowneartheirquiltswerefinished。

ItoldherallaboutSallyandthewedding，becausenoonecaredwhoknewit，afterIhadbeenpoundedtomince-meatfortelling。

SheaskedifShelleyhadanybeaus，andIsaidtherewasn’tanyonewhocamelikePeter，buteverymanintheneighbourhoodwantedtobeherbeau。ThensheaskedaboutLaddie，andIwastakingnorisks，soIsaid：“Ionlyseehimathome。Idon’tknowwherehegoeswhenhe’saway。You’llhavetoaskhim。“

“Oh，Ineverwoulddare，“shesaid。“Buthemust。Heissohandsome！Thegirlswouldjustcompelhimtogotoseethem。“

“Notifhedidn’twanttogo，“Isaid。

“Youmustnever，nevertellhimIsaidso，butIdothinkheisthehandsomestmanIeversaw。“

“SodoI，“Isaid，“anditwouldn’tmakeanydifferenceifItoldhim。“

“Thendoyoumeanyou’regoingtotellhimmyfoolishremark？“

shegiggled。

“Nouse，“Isaid。“Heknowsitnow。Everytimehepartshishairheseeshowgoodlookingheis。Hedoesn’tcare。Hesaystheonlythingthatcountswithamanistobebig，strong，manly，andwelleducated。“

“Ishewelleducated？“

“Yes，Ithinkso，asfarashe’sgone，“Ianswered。“Ofcoursehewillgoonbeingeducatedeverydayofhislife，sameasfather。Hesaysitisallrotabout`finishing’youreducation。

Youneverdo。Youlearnmoreimportantthingseachday，andbythetimeyouareoldenoughtodie，youhavealmostenoughsensetoknowhowtolivecomfortably。Pity，isn’tit？“

“Yes，“saidMissAmelia，“it’sanawfulpity，butit’sthetruth。

Isyourmotherbeingeducatedtoo？“

“Wholefamily，“Isaid。“Welearnallthetime，mothermostofany，becausefatheralwayslooksoutforher。Yousee，ittakessomuchofhertimetomanagethehouse，andsew，andknit，anddarn，thatshecan’tstudysomuchastheothers；sofatherreadsallthebookstoher，andtellsherabouteverythinghefindsout，andsodoallofus。Justaskherifyouthinkshedoesn’tknowthings。“

“Iwouldn’tknowwhattoask，“saidMissAmelia。

“Askhowlongittooktomakethisworld，whoinventedprinting，whereEnglishwasfirstspoken，whyGreeleychangedhispolitics，howtomakebluebellperfumery，cutoutadress，orcureababyofworms。Justaskher！“

MissAmeliathrewapeachstonethroughafencecrackandhitapig。Itwasaprettyneatshot。

“Idon’tneedaskanyofthat，“shesaidscornfully。“Iknowallofitnow。“

“Allright！Whatisbestforworms？“Iasked。

“Jayne’svermifuge，“saidMissAmelia。

“Wrong！“Icried。“That’sapatentmedicine。Teamadefrommalefernrootisbest，becausethere’snomorphineinit！“

ThesupperbellrangandIwasgladofit。Peachesarenotveryfillingafterall，forIcouldn’tseebutthatMissAmeliaateasmuchasanyofus。Forafewminuteseveryonewasslowinspeaking，thenmotheraskedaboutcleaningtheschoolhouse，Laddiehadsomethingtoexplaintofatheraboutcornmould，Sallyandthedressmakertalkedaboutpipings——notabird——anewwaytofoldgoodstomaketrimmings，andsooneverythingwasgoingonthesameasifthenewteacherwerenotthere。Inoticedthatshekeptherheadstraight，andwasnotnearlysoglib-tonguedandbirdlikebeforemotherandSallyasshehadbeenattheschoolhouse。Maybethatwaswhyfathertoldmotherthatnightthatthenewteacherwouldbearacquaintance。

SundaywaslikeeveryotherSabbath，exceptthatIfeltsosadalldayIcouldhavecried，butIwasnotgoingtodoit。SeemedasifInevercouldputonshoes，andsomanyclothesMondaymorning，quitelikechurch，andbeshutinaroomforhours，totrytolearnwhatwasinbooks，whentheworldwasrunningoverwiththingstofindoutwhereyoucouldhaveyourfeetinwater，leavesinyourhair，andlittlelivingcreaturesinyourhands。

IntheafternoonMissAmeliaaskedLaddietotakeherforawalktoseethecreek，andthebarn，andhecouldn’tescape。

Isupposeourbarnwasexactlylikehundredsofothers。Itwasbuiltagainstanembankmentsothatononesideyoucoulddriverightonthethreshingfloorwithbigloadsofgrain。Onthesunnysideinthelowerpartwerethesheeppens，cattlestalls，andhorsemangers。Itwasalwayshalfburstingwithoverflowinggrainbinsandhayloftsinthefall；theswallowstwitteredundertheroofuntiltimetogosouthforwinter，astheysailedfromtheventilatorstotheirnestsplasteredagainsttheraftersoreaves。Thebigswingingdoorsfrontandbackcouldbeopenedtoletthewindblowthroughinastrongdraft。Fromtheeastdoorsyoucouldseeformilesacrossthecountry。

Isaidourbarnwaslikeothers，butitwasnot。Therewasnotanotherlikeitinthewholeworld。Father，theboys，andthehiredmenalwayskeptitcleanedandinpropershapeeveryday。

Theupperfloorwasasneatassomewomen’shouses。Itwasswept，thesunshonein，thewindsdriftedthrough，theodoursofdryinghayandgrainwereheavy，andfromthetopofthenaturallittlehillagainstwhichitstoodyoucouldseeformilesinalldirections。

ThebarnwasourgreatplayhouseonSundays。Itwascleanthere，wewerewherewecouldbecalledwhenwanted，andwelikedtoclimbtheladderstothetopofthehaymows，walkthebeamstothegranaries，andjumptothehay。OnedayMaycamedownonasnakethathadbeenbroughtinwithaload。Icanhearheryellnow，anditmadehersofranticshe’sbeenkillingthemeversince。Itwasonlyaharmlesslittlegartersnake，butshewassosurprised。

MissAmeliaheldherheadverymuchononesideallthetimeshewalkedwithLaddie，andshewassobirdlikeLeonslippedhimabrickandtoldhimtohaveherholdittokeepherdown。Seemedasifshemightflyanyminute。Shethoughtourbarnwasthenicestsheeverhadseenandthecleanest。WhenLaddieopenedthedoorsontheeastside，andshecouldseethebig，red，yellow，andgreenapplesthickasleavesonthetreesintheorchard，thelane，thewoodspasture，andthemeadowwithscatteringtrees，tworunningsprings，andthemeetingofthecreeks，shesaiditwastheloveliestsightsheeversaw——Imeanbeheld。Laddielikedthat，sohetoldheraboutthebeautifultown，andthelake，andtheWabashRiver，thatourcreekemptiedinto，andhowpeoplecamefromotherstatesandbigcitiesandstayedallsummertofish，row，swim，andhavegoodtimes。

Sheaskedhimtotakehertothemeadow，butheexcusedhimself，becausehehadanengagement。Soshestoodinthedoor，andwatchedhimsaddleFlosandstarttothehousetodressinhisridingclothes。Afterthatshedidn’tcareathingaboutthemeadow，sowewentback。

Ourhouselookedasifwehadaparty。Wewerealldressedinourbest，andeveryonewasoutintheyard，garden，ororchard。

PeterandSallywereunderthebigpearmainappletreeatthefootoftheorchard，Shelleyandahalfdozenbeauswereeverywhere。MayhadherspellingbookinonehandandwasinmybigcatalpatalkingtoBillyStevens，whowasgoingtobeherbeauassoonasmothersaidshewasoldenough。Fatherwasreadingawonderfulnewbooktomotherandsomeoftheneighbours。Leonwasperfectlyhappybecausenoonewantedhim，sohecouldteaseallofthembysayingthingstheydidn’tliketohear。WhenLaddiecameoutandmounted，Leonaskedhimwherehewasgoing，andLaddiesaidhehadn’tfullydecided：hemightridetoElizabeth’s，andnotcomebackuntilMondaymorning。

“Youthinkyou’reprettyslick，“saidLeon。“Butifwecouldseenorthtothecrossroadwecouldwatchyouturnwest，andgopastPryorstoshowyourselfoff，ortrytofindthePrincessontheroadwalkingorriding。IknowsomethingI’msavingtotellnexttimeyougetsmart，Mr。Laddie。“

LaddieseemedannoyedandnoonewasquickertoseeitthanLeon。

Instantlyhejumpedonthehorseblock，pulleddownhisfacelongashecould，stretchedhishandstowardLaddie，andmakinghisvoiceallwaveryandtremulous，hebeganrecitingfrom“Lochiel’sWarning，“intonesofagonizingpleading：

“Laddie，Laddie，bewareoftheday！

For，darkanddespairing，mysight，Imayseal，ButmancannotcoverwhatGodwouldreveal；

’Tisthesunsetoflifegivesmemysticallore，Andcomingeventscasttheirshadowsbefore。“

Thatscaredme。IbeggedLeontotell，buthewouldn’tsayawordmore。HewentandtalkedtoMissAmeliaasfriendlyasyouplease，andaskedhertotakeawalkintheorchardandgetsomepeaches，andshewentflying。HegotherallshecouldcarryandguidedhertoPeterandSally，introducedhertoPeter，andthenslippedawayandlefther。ThenheandSallycouldn’ttalkabouttheirwedding，andPetercouldn’tsqueezeherhand，andshecouldn’tfixhistie，anditwasawful。Shelleyandherboysalmostlaughedthemselvessickoverit，andthenshecried，“Totherescue！“andstarted，sotheyfollowed。TheycapturedMissAmeliaandbroughtherback，andleftherwithfatherandthewonderfulbook，butI’msureshelikedtheorchardbetter。

ItookGraceGreenwoodundermyarm，Hezekiahonmyshoulder，andwithBobbyatmyheelswentaway。Ididn’twantmyhairpulled，ortobeteasedthatday。Therewassuchahardnessaroundmyheart，andsuchalumpinmythroat，thatIdidn’tcarewhathappenedtomeoneminute，andthenextIknewI’dslapanyonewhoteasedme，ifIweresenttobedforit。AsIwentdownthelanePetercalledtometocomeandseehim，butIknewexactlyhowhelooked，anddidn’tproposetomakeup。TherewasnotanysenseinSallyclawingmeallover，whenIonlytriedtohelpmotherandLucyfindoutwhattheywantedtoknowsobadly。I