BEGINNING SCHOOL.
The school-room was very cheerful and pleasant. There were windows on
both sides of the room, and all the space between the windows was
covered with blackboards or maps.
Ruby began to feel really happy when she sat down on a bench with the
new scholars, waiting to be examined by Miss Chapman and assigned to a
class. She loved study, and was always happy during school-hours, and
generally very good, too, for she was too busy to get into mischief,
and too anxious to have a good report to wilfully break any rules. "I
wonder if you are as far advanced as I am," whispered Maude, as she sat
down beside Ruby.
It was on the tip of Ruby's tongue to tell her that she had been at the
head of her class for a long time at home, but she remembered in time
to check herself that it was not at all probable that whispering was
allowed here more than in any other school, and that she might break a
rule the very first thing if she should answer.
One by one Miss Chapman called the girls up to the desk where she sat,
and questioned them about their studies and the books they had used,
and Miss Ketchum, at her side, wrote down the answers in a little book.
Then the girls were assigned a seat, and Miss Ketchum took their books
to them, and showed them what the lesson would be.
Ruby was very much pleased when she found that she was to be in the
class with girls who were, most of them, larger than herself, and as
she was not at all shy, she could answer all the questions Miss Chapman
asked her, very fluently, so that the teacher had a very good idea of
what the little girl really knew.
Some of the new scholars were so shy that they could scarcely answer,
and Miss Chapman knew that it would take two or three days to find out
how far advanced they were.
Very much to Maude's surprise, she was put in a class below Ruby. She
was not at all pleased with this, for it was a great mortification to
her pride to find that the little country girl whom she had looked down
upon was beyond her in her studies.
Maude had never attended school regularly, but had stayed at home
whenever she could beg consent from her mother, and very often she had
won it by teasing when there was really no reason at all why she should
not have been at her desk. Even when she had attended school it had
never occurred to her that it was for her own benefit that her teachers
tried to have her learn her lessons. She had shirked them as much as
possible, and as no teacher has time to waste over a little girl who
will not study when there are so many willing to learn, she had managed
to get along with very little study, and so, of course, had learned but
little.
She was ashamed to see what small girls were in the class with her, and
she made up her mind that she would study so hard that she would soon
be promoted into the class in which Ruby had been put.
It took until recess time to arrange all the classes, and then the bell
rang, and the scholars were free to go out upon the lawn for a
half-hour. A basket of rosy-cheeked apples was passed about, and all
the children were very ready for one. Some day-scholars attended this
school, and Ruby thought, rather wistfully, how nice it would be if
she, too, were going home when school should be out.
Maude did not care about being with Ruby during recess time, for she
was afraid that Ruby would remember her speech early that morning, and
remind her that she instead of Maude was the farthest advanced in her
studies. Ruby was becoming acquainted with some of her new classmates,
and was finding this first morning of school life very pleasant.
The rest of the morning seemed longer than the first part had done, and
Ruby as well as most of the others were very glad when the noon
intermission came. The day-scholars took out their lunch-baskets, and
prepared to eat their lunches, and the bell rang for the
boarding-scholars to go up to their rooms and get ready for dinner.
As each little girl reached the door, she stopped, turned around and
made a courtesy to Miss Chapman who was sitting opposite the door.
Ruby watched the girls as they went out one by one. She was quite sure
that she could never make a courtesy, and as each girl passed out, her
turn to go came nearer and nearer.
What should she do? If her Aunt Emma had only been there, Ruby might
have asked her to let her stay in the school-room, for she felt as if
she would a great deal rather go without her dinner than try to make a
courtesy when she did n't know how, with all those girls looking at
her. What if she should tumble down in trying to make it? It seemed
very likely that she would, the very first time she had ever tried to
do such a thing. The very thought of such an accident made Ruby's face
grow redder than ever. Only three more girls and then Miss Chapman's
eyes would be fixed upon her, and it would be time for her to get up
and go out. Now only two more girls, and then the last one had gone,
and Ruby knew that she must go.
She walked over to the door, feeling as shy as Ruthy had ever felt, and
stood there a moment. How could she ever try to courtesy with all
those girls looking at her?
She hesitated so long that all the girls looked up to see why she did
not go out.
Ruby stood in the door one moment longer, and then she turned and ran
down the passage-way as fast as she could go, feeling as if now she
must surely go home, for she had disgraced herself forever.
She had come out of the room without courtesying, or even saying
good-morning as all the other girls had done, and then her running away
had of course made all the girls laugh at her.
What would Miss Chapman do to her? Would she give her bad marks, or
put her at the foot of her class, or keep her in after school?
Anything would be bad enough, but the worst of all to proud little Ruby
was the thought that she had failed in doing something which all the
other scholars seemed to have done so easily.
She sobbed aloud as she ran down the passage-way with her hands clasped
tightly over her face, and as she turned the corner to go into the
house, she ran straight into somebody's arms.
She uncovered her face and looked up as a familiar voice said, "Why,
Ruby, where are you going so fast? I was just coming to look for you.
But are you crying? Why, what is the matter?"
But Ruby was crying so hard that Aunt Emma could not understand what
she said. She could only make out that it was something about
courtesying, so she led Ruby up to her room, and quieted her down a
little, and would not let her talk about her trouble until her hair was
brushed and her face washed.
"I might have taught you how to courtesy before school-time this
morning if I had only thought of it in time," Aunt Emma said. "But now
you must n't cry about it any more, Ruby. Of course it would have been
better if you had tried to do as the other girls did, but now all you
can do is to tell Miss Chapman that you are sorry and that you will not
do so any more, and you must not fret any more about it. I will show
you now, and then you will courtesy as nicely as any one else, before
you have to do it again."
"But, Aunt Emma, what made the girls do it?" asked Ruby. "If the first
girl had not done it none of the others would have had to, would they?
And I don't think it is one bit nice, and I don't see what they want to
do it for. And oh, Aunt Emma, you ought to have seen how beautifully
Maude courtesied. She did it the very best of all the girls, and I
don't see how she knew about it, for I am sure she never did it before."
"I will tell you why the girls do it," Aunt Emma answered. "It is one
of the rules of the school that when a scholar goes out of a room where
there is a teacher, she must courtesy to the teacher as she leaves the
room. That is intended as a mark of respect. Yesterday school had not
begun, and so no attention was paid to it, but to-day everything is
going on as usual as nearly as possible. It happened to be one of the
old scholars who went out of the room first to-day, and so she knew
about it. If it had been a new scholar Miss Chapman would have spoken
to her about it. But remember, Ruby, even in the afternoon, if you are
in the sitting-room with a teacher, to courtesy when you leave the
room. It will not be at all hard after I show you how, and I would not
like you to forget it."
"Oh, dear," groaned Ruby. "I never heard of anything so funny. Must I
go and courtesy to you every time I go out of this room, Aunt Emma?
Why, it will take all my time courtesying."
Aunt Emma laughed.
"Well, I think you may be excused from that when we are alone in the
room together," she answered. "If I am in charge of the girls
downstairs or in the school-room, then you must of course do just as
you would if any other teacher was there, but up here I will excuse
you, as I suppose it would seem like a good deal to you to remember a
courtesy every time you went in or out of the room. Now I will show
you. Look here;" and Aunt Emma courtesied.
Ruby was very much pleased to find that it was very easy to draw one
foot behind the other and make a courtesy, and she was quite proud of
her new accomplishment when she had practised it a few times.
"And now, Ruby dear," said Aunt Emma, looking at her watch, "there is
just time before dinner for you to go and tell Miss Chapman you are
sorry that you left the school-room in that way. She will not scold
you, I am sure, so you need not be afraid to go and speak to her. She
is in her own room at the end of the hall, and you had better go at
once so as to have time before the bell rings."
"And then I will make a beautiful courtesy when I come out of her room,
shall I?" asked Ruby, quite ready to go, since she would have a chance
to show how nicely she could courtesy now.
Aunt Emma smiled.
"Yes," she answered.
Tap, tap, tap, went Ruby at Miss Chapman's door, and when she heard the
teacher call, "Come in," she opened the door and walked in quite
bravely.
Miss Chapman was sitting in her large chair by the window looking over
some books.
She held out her hand to Ruby.
"Well, my dear," she said kindly.
"Please ma'am, I came to tell you that I am very sorry I ran out of
school without courtesying," said Ruby, rather shyly, looking at the
beautiful white hair while she was speaking, and wondering if when she
herself grew to be an old lady she would ever have such beautiful
fluffy hair, and if she should wear a little white cap.
"Why did you do so, Ruby?" asked Miss Chapman.
Ruby hung her head.
"I did not know how to courtesy," she answered presently. "And I was
afraid I should fall down if I tried, it looked so hard, and I was
afraid the girls would laugh at me if I tried and tumbled over; and it
was so dreadful to have them all looking at me, and then know that I
could n't do it, that I just could n't help running. But I know how
now. Aunt Emma taught me, and I won't ever forget it now. Please
excuse me for this morning."
"Yes," Miss Chapman answered. "I can quite understand how it happened
this morning, and I am glad you will never do so again. I hope you are
going to be a good little girl, Ruby, and progress nicely in your
studies. You have had a good teacher and have been well taught, and
know how to apply yourself, so I shall hope that you will stand well in
your classes."
Ruby hardly knew what to say, so she blushed with pleasure, and did not
answer.
"Now you can go," said Miss Chapman, and so Ruby walked over to the
door, opened it, and turned around and stood exactly in the middle of
the doorway. Then drawing back her foot, she made a very careful and
deep courtesy, and gravely closed the door after her and ran back to
Aunt Emma.
"Aunt Emma, there is something I have been thinking about," she said
after she had told her aunt how kindly Miss Chapman had spoken to her.
"This morning I almost got real mad at Maude, for she asked me in such
a superior sort of way if I sposed we should be in the same class. 'Do
you spose you are as far advanced as I am, Ruby?' she said, just as if
she thought I was ever so much behind her. I was going to tell her I
guessed I was just as smart as she was, but then I remembered it was
school and I did n't, for I knew I must n't talk, but you would 't
believe with what little girls she is. I am way ahead of her. Well, I
did think I would just remind her of what she said, but I guess maybe I
had n't better; for she certainly could courtesy when I didn't know the
first thing about it, and so that sort of makes us even. She did n't
see me run away, but then if she heard some one else say something
about it, she would know, and I should n't feel very nice if she should
tell me that anyway she knew something that I could n't do without
being showed how. Don't you think I had n't better say anything about
being ahead of her?"
"I am sure you had better not," said Aunt Emma, promptly; "but it is
not because of the courtesying, Ruby, it is because it is not a kind
thing to boast, or to remind any one else of their failings. You know
you would not like it yourself, and that ought to be reason enough for
your never doing it to any one else. What is the Golden Rule?"
"Do unto others as you would they should do unto you," repeated Ruby,
promptly.
"Yes; and that means that you should never, never do to any one else
anything that you would not like to have done to yourself," Aunt Emma
said.
Just then the dinner-bell rang.
"I know what I will do," exclaimed Ruby, cheerfully. "I will go to
Maude's room and go down to dinner with her, for I just spect she feels
sort of lonesome. I saw her once at recess, and she was all by
herself, and had n't any one to play with. I will stay with her till
she gets a little more acquainted, and that will be paying attention to
the Golden Rule; for if I was all by myself here, and had n't got you,
Aunt Emma, I am sure I would be glad if Maude would stay with me;" and
Ruby ran off to find her little friend, feeling as happy as if she had
not had such a burst of tears but half an hour ago.