but I must have order." She looked straight at the young Pole.

He scraped his feet and smirked at her, at the same time flipping a bean
from between his thumb and finger. It struck the stove with a sharp ring
that brought the Swede boy to his feet. His hand was raised to attract
her attention. She nodded.

The Swede boy lowered his arm very slowly, looking about him with an air
of deprecation. "Ay doan know," he said in a low voice, "eef yo theenk
like me. Bote she"--he pointed to the little girl--"komes, takes th'
skole, lairns us. We bay gote to pay hair back." He shifted till he
stood over the young Pole. "So eef somebodey no bay gote," he added,
with a threatening note in his voice, _"ay make hame_." Then he sank to
his seat again, having for the second time in that school-room saved her
from bitter humiliation.

The next morning the school-house withstood its last throe. At ten
o'clock, in the midst of a reading-lesson, there entered the young
Pole's father. His ox-gad was in his hand; he did not remove his hat,
but strode forward to the teacher's desk, sputtering broken English.
When he came near, he shook his empty fist so close to the little girl
that she caught the scent of hay on it, for he had been throwing down
feed to his cattle.

"No touch my flesh unt blut," he cried savagely; "no touch my flesh unt
blut."

A half-recumbent figure in the rear, whose pale eyes rested upon her,
gave the little girl courage. "No one has been touched," she replied.
"But if the school is made noisy by a pupil, then that pupil will be
punished, or will leave."

The Pole raised his gad with a grunt of rage. "Eh?" he shouted, cursing
in his own tongue. He nourished his arms and stamped up and down wildly.
Of a sudden he saw the Swede boy, who had come forward and halted beside
the table. His gaze fell before the pale, half-shut eyes, his voice
lowered, and he ceased to swing his whip and swear. Then he hedged
adroitly, speaking in broken English again and giving quick looks at the
Swede boy's huge, red hands, that hung, clenched and twitching, on
either side of his stalwart person.

"I hav-v no trouble wid you," he said to the little girl, his manner
changing to one of apology, "bud I lick my boy mineself," and he moved
down the aisle and disappeared through the door.

His son gazed after him in amazement and disgust, gave a sniff of
contempt, and replied to the triumphant look on the little girl's face
by extracting h