Jonas on a Farm in Winter Part 12

CHAPTER VII.

A FIRE

The last of February drew nigh, which was the time fixed upon for Josey to go home. He had remained with his uncle much longer than his father had at first intended; but now they wanted him to return, before the roads broke up in the spring.

The evening before Josey was to go, the farmer was sitting by the fire, when Jonas came in from the barn.

"Jonas," said the farmer, "I have got to write a letter to my brother, to send by Josey to-morrow; why won't you take a sheet of paper and write for me, and I'll tell you what to say. You are rather handier with the pen than I am."

Jonas accordingly brought a sheet of paper and a pen and ink, and took his place at a table at the back side of the room, and the farmer dictated to him as follows:

"Dear Brother,

"I take this opportunity to inform you that we are all alive and well, and I hope that you may be the same. This will be handed to you by Josey, who leaves us to-morrow, according to your orders. We have been very glad to have him with us, though he hasn't had opportunity to learn much. However, I suppose he'll fetch up again in his learning, when he gets home. He has behaved pretty fair on the whole, as boys go.

He will make a smart man, I've no doubt, though he don't seem to take much to farming.

"We hope to have you, and your wife and children, come and pay us a visit this coming summer,--say in raspberry time, which will be just after haying."

"There," said the farmer, "now fold it up, and write my brother's name on the back, and to-morrow morning I'll look it over, and sign my name to it."

Jonas accordingly folded the letter up, and wrote upon the back, _Joseph Jones, Esq., Bristol._ When it was done, he laid it on the table.

Amos came and took it up. "Jonas," said he, "I wish I could write as well as that."

The farmer had a daughter whose name was Isabella. She was about eighteen years old. She was at this time spinning in a corner of the room, near a window. She came forward to look at the letter.

"Yes, Jonas," said she, "you write beautifully. I wish you'd teach me to write like that."

"Very well," said Jonas, "that I can do."

"How can you do it?" said Isabella.

"Why, we can have an evening school, these long evenings," replied Jonas. "You get through your spinning in time to have half an hour for school before bed-time."

"Half an hour wouldn't be enough," said Amos.

"O, yes," replied Jonas; "half an hour every day will amount to a great deal in three months."

"Yes," said the farmer, "that's a very good plan; you shall have an evening school, and Jonas shall teach you;--an excellent plan."

"What shall we study?" said Isabella.

"Whatever you want to learn," replied Jonas. "You say you want to learn to write; that will do for one thing."

"And I want to learn more arithmetic," said Amos.

"Very well," said Jonas. "We'll have an evening school, half an hour every evening, beginning at eight o'clock. Have you got any school-books in the house, Isabella?"

Isabella said there were some on a shelf up stairs.

"Well," said Jonas, "bring them to me, and I'll look over them, and form a plan."

Isabella brought Jonas the school-books, and he looked them over, but said nothing then about his plan. He reflected upon the subject until the next day, because he did not wish to propose any thing to them, until it was well matured.

The next evening, at eight o'clock, Isabella put up her spinning, and took a seat by the fire, to hear Jonas's plan. Amos sat by a table at the back side of the room. The farmer's wife was sitting upon the settle, knitting; and the farmer himself was asleep in his arm-chair, at the opposite corner.

"Now," said Jonas, "I like the plan of having an evening school, and I am willing to be either teacher or pupil; only, if I am teacher, I must _direct_, and you must both do as I say."

"No," said Isabella, "you mustn't direct entirely; we'll talk over the plans, all together, and then do as we all agree."

"No," said Jonas, "I have no idea of having all school-time spent in talking. I'm perfectly willing that either of you should be teacher, and I'll obey. I'll set copies, or do any thing else you please, only I won't have any responsibility about the arrangements. Or, if you wish, I'm willing to be teacher; but then, in that case, I must direct every thing, just as I think is best,--and you must do just as I say."

"Well," said Isabella, "what are your orders? We'll obey."

Amos and Oliver also agreed that they would obey his directions. Jonas then consented to take the station of teacher, and he proceeded to give his directions.

"I have been looking at the books," said he, "and I find we haven't got but one of each kind."

"Then we can't have any cla.s.ses in our school," said Oliver.

"Yes we can," said Jonas. "The first evening, Amos may take the arithmetic and the slate, and cipher, while Isabella writes, and Oliver studies a good long spelling lesson. Then, the second evening, Amos shall study the spelling lesson, and Isabella cipher, and Oliver write."

"But I don't want to cipher," said Isabella. "I don't like arithmetic; I never could understand it."

"You promised to obey my orders," said Jonas.

"Well," said Isabella, "I'll try; but I know I can't do the sums."

"Then, the third evening," said Jonas, "Isabella shall study the spelling lesson, Oliver the arithmetic, and Amos take the writing-book."

"What, ain't you going to have but one writing-book?"

"No," said Jonas; "one is enough; because you won't all write the same evening. So you can write one page, Oliver another, and Amos the third."

"No," said Isabella; "I don't like that. I want every scholar to have his own book."

"If you'll be the teacher," said Jonas, "you can have it so."

"But I want to have it so, and you be the teacher," said Isabella.

"No," said Jonas; "if I have the responsibility of teacher, I must have the power too."

"Well," said Isabella, "I suppose we had better submit."

"But what's the reason, Jonas," said Oliver, "that you ain't willing that we should all have writing-books of our own?"

"There are two or three reasons," said Jonas. "But it is very poor policy for a schoolmaster to spend his time in convincing his scholars that his regulations are good. He must make them obey, and let them see that the regulations turn out to be good in the end."