e a good teacher this winter; for I
want to make a start in Algebra," Kate continued. "I suppose you are
nicely along in your studies. They must have better schools at
Philadelphia than we do, away back here in the country."

It appeared, however, that whatever advantages I might have had in this
respect, I was yet not as far advanced in Arithmetic as Kate; nor yet in
any other branch. I had barely reached Compound Interest, while Kate had
finished her Practical Arithmetic the previous winter.

"I could do all the examples in it when school was done last winter,"
she said. "I reviewed it once this summer, under Miss Emmons; I think
like as not I might trip on some of them now. But I know that Theodora
can do them all. She is a little older than I am; and she is a real good
scholar, though I don't think that she is quite so good as Addison. He
is different, somehow; he knows lots about everything and can talk real
interesting with the teachers, in the classes. I know he is hoping we
will have a good teacher, so he can finish up all his common school
studies. You tell him that we are going to have Sam Lurvy, and see what
he thinks about it.

"But it will be a long time before school begins," Kate continued,
"nearly two months. We only have about nineteen weeks of school in a
year here."

By this time we had reached the meadow where the bridge spanned the
meadow brook.

"Go easy on the bridge and look off the lower end of it," Kate advised.
"We may see a big trout."

We did so and saw several trout, swimming away, but not very large ones.

"Well, I guess I shall go up the meadow and across the fields home,"
remarked Kate. "It is nearer for me; and it is a little nearer for you;
but perhaps you would rather go by the road, seeing it is Sunday."

"I had rather go with you up the meadow," I said, but I felt somewhat
abashed; and it seemed to me very bold to take such a long walk through
meadow, pasture and fields, with a girl, alone, of about my own age, and
not a cousin.

We proceeded up the meadow, following the meanderings of the brook, past
numerous bush clumps. At length, we drew near a large bend where the
brook looked to be both wide and deep. "This is the best trout hole on
the meadow," Kate told me in a low tone. "Just wait a moment and keep
back out of sight, while I catch a grasshopper." She hunted about in the
dry grass, alternately stealing forward on tip-toe, then making a quick
dash and pressing her