iza Bell had 'set fire to her aunt's carded
rolls.' Asked if she meant to do it she said, 'not altogether.' She just
tried a little end to see how it would burn and the whole bundle blazed
up in a jiffy. Emerson Gillis had spent ten cents for candy when he
should have put it in his missionary box. Annetta Bell's worst crime was
'eating some blueberries that grew in the graveyard.' Willie White had
'slid down the sheephouse roof a lot of times with his Sunday trousers
on.' 'But I was punished for it 'cause I had to wear patched pants to
Sunday School all summer, and when you're punished for a thing you don't
have to repent of it,' declared Willie.

"I wish you could see some of their compositions . . . so much do I wish
it that I'll send you copies of some written recently. Last week I told
the fourth class I wanted them to write me letters about anything they
pleased, adding by way of suggestion that they might tell me of some
place they had visited or some interesting thing or person they had
seen. They were to write the letters on real note paper, seal them in an
envelope, and address them to me, all without any assistance from other
people. Last Friday morning I found a pile of letters on my desk and
that evening I realized afresh that teaching has its pleasures as well
as its pains. Those compositions would atone for much. Here is Ned
Clay's, address, spelling, and grammar as originally penned.

"'Miss teacher ShiRley

Green gabels.

p.e. Island can

birds

"'Dear teacher I think I will write you a composition about birds. birds
is very useful animals. my cat catches birds. His name is William but pa
calls him tom. he is oll striped and he got one of his ears froz of
last winter. only for that he would be a good-looking cat. My unkle
has adopted a cat. it come to his house one day and woudent go away and
unkle says it has forgot more than most people ever knowed. he lets it
sleep on his rocking chare and my aunt says he thinks more of it than he
does of his children. that is not right. we ought to be kind to cats
and give them new milk but we ought not be better to them than to our
children. this is oll I can think of so no more at present from

edward blake ClaY.'"

"St. Clair Donnell's is, as usual, short and to the point. St. Clair
never wastes words. I do not think he chose his subject or added the
postscript out of malice aforethought. It is just that he has not a
great deal of tact or imagination