Book 7 21. SCHOOLTIME BEGINS AGAIN Little House On The Prairie By Laura Ingalls Wilder

school time begins again

afterward it seemed to laura that she

did nothing but study that whole summer

long

of course this was not true she brought

water from the well in the mornings

she milked and moved the picket pins and

taught the new calf to drink

she worked in the garden and in the

house and in haying time she tried down

the great loads of hay that paw drove

away to town

but the long hot sticky hours with

school books and slate

seemed to overshadow all else she didn’t

go to town

even for fourth of july carrie went with

paw and ma

but laura stayed at home to take care of

grace and study the constitution

letters came often from mary and every

week a long letter went to her in return

even grace was able to write little

letters as mo taught her

and these were always sent to mary with

the others

the hens were laying now ma saved the

best eggs for

setting and 24 chicks hatched

the smallest pulid eggs ma used in

cooking

and for one sunday dinner with the first

green peas and new potatoes

they ate fried chickens the other

cockroach marlette grow up

they would be larger to eat later on the

gophers came again

and kitty grew fat in the cornfield she

caught more gophers than she could eat

and at all hours of the day she could be

heard howling

proudly as she brought a fresh killed

one to lay at ma’s feet or lara’s or

carries or graces

she wanted to share her good food and

her puzzled look showed plainly that she

could not understand why the whole

family did not eat

gophers the blackbirds came again

though they were not so many this year

and kitty caught some of them

still they did damage enough again the

mellow fall weather came

and laura and carrie walked to school

there were more people in town now and

in all the country around

the school was so crowded that all the

seats were filled and in some of the

front seats three of the smaller pupils

sat

there was a new teacher mr owen a son of

the mr owen whose bay horses

had almost won the 4th of july race

laura liked and respected him very much

he was not very old but he was serious

and industrious and enterprising

from the first day he ruled with a firm

hand

every pupil was obedient and respectful

every lesson was thoroughly learned

on the third day of school mr owen

whipped willie olson

for some time laura did not quite know

what she thought about that whipping

willy was bright enough but he had never

learned his lessons

when he was called upon to recite he let

his mouth fall open and all the scents

went out of his eyes

he looked less than half witted he

hardly looked human

it made anyone turn sick to see him

he had begun doing this to tease miss

wilder

he seemed unable to collect his

scattered mind enough to understand

anything she said to him at recess he

would do this again to amuse the other

boys

when mr kluett taught he thought that

willie was a half wit

and required nothing of him the habit

had grown on willie

until now at any time he could be seen

mooning about with his mouth dropped

open and his eyes empty

laura really thought that willie’s mind

completely left him at these times

the first time that willie goggled at mr

owen was when his name was

asked for the school record mr owen was

startled and nellie spoke up

he’s my brother willie olson and he

can’t answer questions they confuse him

several times that day in the next laura

saw mr owen glance sharply at willy

willy was always drooling and staring

blankly

when he was called upon to recite laura

could not bear to see his idiot face

on the third day mr owen quietly said

come with me willy he had a pointer in

his hand

with the other hand firmly on willy’s

shoulder he took willie into the entry

and shut the door

he did not say anything from their seat

nearest to the door

ida and laura heard the swish and thud

of the pointer

everyone heard willie’s howls mr owen

came quietly in with willy

stop blubbering he said go to your seat

and study

i expect you to know and recite your

lessons

willie stopped blubbering and went to

his seat after that

one look from mr owen cleared some of

the idiot look from willy’s face

he seemed to be trying to think and to

act like other boys

laura often wondered whether he could

pull his mind together after he had let

it go to pieces so

but at least willie was trying he was

afraid not to try

laura and ida mary power and minnie and

nelly olsen

had kept their old seats they were all

tanned brown from the summer sun except

nellie

who was paler and more ladylike than

ever her clothes were so beautiful

though her mother did make them from

cast offs that laura grew dissatisfied

with her brown school dress and her blue

cashmere for best

she did not complain of course but she

wanted to

hoops had finally come in and ma bought

a sapphira

she let down the hem of the brown dress

and made it over so cleverly that it

could be worn over hoops perfectly well

and the full blue cashmere needed no

changing

still laura felt that all the other

girls were better dressed

mary power had a new school dress minnie

johnson had a new coat and new shoes

ida’s clothes came out of a missionary

barrel but ida was so sweet and merry

that she looked perfectly dear in

anything

when laura dressed for school it seemed

to her that the more she fussed with her

appearance the more dissatisfying it was

your corset is too loose ma tried to

help her one morning

pull the strings tighter and your figure

will be neater and i can’t think that a

lunatic fringe is the most becoming way

to do your hair it makes any girl’s ears

appear

larger to comb the hair up back of them

and to have that mat of bangs above the

forehead

ma was anxiously helpful but some sudden

thought made her laugh

softly to herself what is it martellus

laura and carrie begged

i was only thinking of the time your

aunt eliza and i combed our hair up off

our ears and went to school that way

the teacher called us up front and

shamed us before the whole school for

being so unladylike and bold as to let

our ears be seen

maul laughed softly again is that the

reason you always wear those soft wings

of hair down over your ears lara cried

maul looked a little surprised yes i

suppose it is she answered still

smiling on the way to school laura said

carrie do you know i’ve never once seen

ma’s ears

they’re probably pretty ears too said

carrie

you look like her and your ears are

little and pretty

well laura began then she stopped and

spun around and round for the strong

wind blowing against her always made the

wires of her hoop skirt creep slowly

upward under her skirts until they

bunched around her knees

then she must whirl around and around

until the wire shook loose and spiraled

down

to the bottom of her skirts where they

should be

as she and carrie hurried on she began

again

i think it was silly the way they

dressed when maura was a girl don’t you

trapped this wind she exclaimed as the

hoops began

creeping upward again quietly carrie

stood by while laura furled

i’m glad i’m not old enough to have to

wear hoops she said

they’d make me dizzy they are rather a

nuisance laura admitted

but they are stylish and when you’re my

age

you’ll want to be in style

living in town was so exciting that fall

that paul said there was no need of

literaries

there was church every sunday prayer

meeting every wednesday night

the ladies aid planned two sociables and

there was talk of a christmas tree

laura hoped there would be one for grace

had never seen a christmas tree

in november there was to be a week of

revival meetings at the church

and mr owen with the school board’s

approval was planning a school

exhibition

school would go on without interruption

until the school exhibition

just before christmas so the big boys

did not wait until winter

but came to school in november more

smaller pupils had to be crowded three

in a seat to make room for them

this school needs a larger building mr

owen said to laura and ida one day at

recess

i am hoping that the town can afford to

build one next summer

there really is a need for a graded

school even i am counting a great deal

upon the showing we make at the school

exhibition to acquaint the people with

the school and its needs

after that he told laura and ida that

their part in the exhibition would be to

recite the whole of american history

from memory oh do you think we can do it

laura

i’d have gasped when he had left them oh

yes laura answered you know we like

history

i’m glad you’ve got the longer part

anyway said ida

i’ve only got to remember from john

quincy adams to rutherford b

hayes but you’ve got all that about the

discoveries and the map and the battles

and the western reserve and the

constitution

my i don’t know how you ever can it’s

longer but we studied it more

and reviewed it often her said laura she

was glad to have that part

she thought it more interesting the

other girls were talking eagerly about

the revival meetings

everyone in town and from all the nearby

country would go to them

laura did not know why for she had never

been to a revival meeting

but when she said she should stay home

and study nellie exclaimed in horror

why people who don’t go to revival

meetings are

atheists the others did not say a word

in lara’s defense and ida’s brown eyes

pleaded anxiously when she said

you are coming aren’t you laura

the revival meetings would last a whole

week

and besides the daily lessons there was

the school exhibition to prepare for

monday night laura hurried home from

school to study till supper time

she thought about history while she

washed the dishes and then snatched a

little time with her books while paul

and mar were dressing

hurry laurel will be late it’s church

time now said ma

standing before the glass laura

hurriedly set her darling brown velvet

hat evenly on her bangs

and fluffed them out ma waited by the

door with carry and grace

par shut the stove’s draft and turn down

the lampwick

are you all ready he asked then he blew

out the lamp

by his lantern light they all went out

and he locked the door

not a window on main street was lighted

behind fuller’s hardware the last

lanterns were bobbing across the vacant

lots toward the brightly lighted church

and wagons buggies and blanketed horses

stood thick in the shadows around it

the church was crowded and hot from the

dazzling lamps in the coal heater

gray beard sat close around the pulpit

families were in the middle seats

and young men and boys filled the back

seats

lara saw everyone she knew and many

strangers as paul led the way up the

aisle

looking for a vacant place he stopped

next to the front seat

and ma with grace then carrie and laura

edged past

knees and sat down reverend brown

rose from his chair behind the pulpit

and gave out a hymn

number 154 mrs brown played the organ

and everyone stood up and sang there

were 99 that

safely lay in the shelter of

the fold but one was

out on the hills away far off from the

gates of gold

away on the mountains wild and bare

away from the tender shepherd’s care

if a revival meeting could be nothing

but singing laura would have loved it

though she felt that she should be

studying not wasting time and enjoyment

her voice rose clear and true as pause

as they sang

rejoice for the lord brings back

his own

then the long prayer began laura bent

her head and closed her eyes while rev

brown’s harsh voice sing-songed on and

on

it was a great relief to stand up at

last and sing again

this was a hymn with a dancing swing and

a throbbing beat

sowing the seed by the daylight fair

sewing the seed by the noonday glare

sowing the seed by the fading light

sowing the seed in the solemn night

oh what shall the harvest be

oh what shall the harvest be

reverend brown’s preaching went on with

the throbbing and swinging

his voice rose and fell thundered and

quivered

his bushy white eyebrows raised and

lowered

his fist thumped the pulpit repent ye

repent ye well yet there is time time to

be saved from damnation

he roared chilled ran up laura’s spine

and over her scalp

she seemed to feel something rising from

all those people something dark and

frightening

that grew and grew under that thrashing

voice

the words no longer made sense and they

were not sentences they were only

dreadful words

for one horrible instant lara imagined

that reverend brown was the devil

his eyes had fires in them come forward

come forward and be

saved come to salvation repent ye

sinners stand up stand up and sing

o lost lambs flee

from the wrath pull pull

for the shore his hands lifted them all

to their feet

his loud voice sang pull

for the shore sailor pool for

the shore come

come his voice roared through the storm

of singing in someone

a young man came stumbling up the aisle

heed not the stormy winds though

loudly they roar

bless you bless you my sinning brother

down

on your knees and god bless you are

there any more

any more reverend brown was shouting and

his voice

roared again into the song pull for the

shore

the first words of that hymn had made

laura want to laugh

she remembered the tall thin man and the

pudgy little one

so solemnly singing it and all the story

keepers popping from the torn screen

doors

now she felt that all the noise and

excitement was not touching her

she looked at pau and ma they were

quietly standing and quietly singing

while the dark wild

thing that she had felt was roaring all

around them like a blizzard

another young man and then an older

woman went forward and knelt

then church was over yet somehow not

over

people were pressing forward to crowd

around those three and wrestle for their

souls

in a low voice pause said to ma come

let’s go he carried grace down the aisle

toward the door

ma followed with carrie and behind her

laura followed close

in the back seats all the young men and

boys stood watching the people passing

by

laura’s dread of strangers came over her

and the open door ahead seemed a refuge

from their eyes

she did not notice a touch on her coat

sleeve until she heard a voice saying

may i see your home it was almanzo

wilder

laura was so surprised that she could

not say a word

she could not even nod or shake her head

she could not think

his hand stayed on her arm and he walked

beside her

through the door he protected her from

being jostled in the crowded entry

paw had just lighted the lantern he

lowered the chimney and looked up just

as ma

turned back and asked where’s laura they

both saw laura with almanzo wilder

beside her

and ma stood petrified come on caroline

said paw ma followed him and after one

wide-eyed stare

carrie did too the ground was

white with snow and it was cold but

there was no wind

and stars shone brightly in the sky

laura could not think of a word to say

she wished that mr wilder would say

something

a faint scent of cigar smoke came from

his thick cloth overcoat

it was pleasant but not as homelike as

the scent of paws pipe

it was a more dashing scent it made her

think of

cap and this young man daring that

dangerous trip to bring back the wheat

all this time she was trying to think of

something to say

to her a complete surprise she heard her

own voice

anyway there’s no blizzard no

this is a nice winter not much like the

hard winter said he

again there was silence except for the

crunch of their feet on the snow-covered

path

on main street dark groups hurried

homeward with lanterns that cast big

shadows

pau’s lantern went straight across the

street pau and ma

and carrie and grace went in and we’re

at home

laura and almanzo stood outside the

closed door

well good night he said as he made a

backward step and raised his

cap i’ll see you tomorrow night good

night

laura answered as she quickly opened the

door paul was holding the lantern up

while maul lighted the lamp and he was

saying

trust him anywhere and it’s only walking

home from church

but she’s only 15 said ma

then the door was shut laura was inside

the warm room

the lamp was lighted and everything was

right

well what did you think of the revival

meeting paul

asked and laura answered it isn’t much

like reverend alden’s quiet sermons

i like his better so do i

said paul then ma said it was past

bedtime

several times next day laura wondered

what young mr wilder had meant

by saying that he would see her that

night she did not know why he had walked

home with her

it was an odd thing for him to do for he

was a grown-up

he had been a homesteader for a few

years so he must be at least

23 years old and he was pau’s friend

more than hers

that night in church she did not mind

the sermon at all

she only wished she need not be there

when so many people all together grew so

excited

she was glad when paul said again let’s

go

almanzo wilder stood in the line of

young men near the door

and laura was embarrassed she saw now

that several young men were taking young

ladies home

she felt her cheeks flushing and she did

not know where to look

again he asked may i see you home

and this time she answered politely yes

she had thought what she would have said

last night so now she spoke about

minnesota

she had come from plum creek and he had

come from spring valley

but before that he had lived in new york

state near malone

laura thought she kept the conversation

going quite well until they reached the

door where she could say

good night every night that week he saw

her home from the revival meeting

she still could not understand why but

the week soon ended

so that again she could spend the

evenings and study

and she forgot to wonder about almanzo

and her dread of the school exhibition