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Love, or fear, or necessity, however, had proved an able school-mistress, and completely supplied all her deficiencies. What Jeanie least liked in the tone of the letter, was a smothered degree of egotism.
Others have recently followed in her steps. Every woman is, I maintain, by virtue of her sex, a teacher. There are now, or there sometime may be, minds subjected to her influence, over whose destinies, for weal or for wo, she will exert a fearful sway. Is it certain she will never be school-mistress, or mother, or guide and guardian to another?
If they want to be complimentary they say, `You don't look like a school-mistress. You did yourself, not two minutes ago. But really and truly they are just natural, everyday girls, wanting to have a good time in their leisure hours like other girls. You can't think how happy I was to come here to-night and have the chance of putting on pretty things again."
The boy thought he must have been, and was consoled. "Well, you began it," he said. "I oughtn't to have done so," she replied with humility; "and I won't any more. There!" she said, "I'm not going to open my bag now. You can take away the trunk when you want, Thomas." "Yes, ma'am," said the boy. The idea of a school-mistress was perhaps beginning to awe him a little.
The school-mistress was anxious that each should carry his and her tin mug, so as to give as little trouble as possible; but this was resolutely declined, much to the children's satisfaction, who had their walk with free hands, and their tea out of teacups and saucers, like anybody else. It was a fine day, and all went well. The children enjoyed themselves, and behaved admirably into the bargain.
"Just so," interrupted the young painter; "she got her way, I know. But with respect to the younger lady, Mrs. Charles Carew, what was she like, and what did people say of her?" "Well, not much good, I reckon. What could they say of a school-mistress who marries her pupil?" "A school-mistress, was she?" said Yorke, in a strange husky voice. "We never heard that in London."
All this had happened in the holidays, but when they were over school opened as before, and with additional scholars; for sympathy was wide and warm with the school-mistress. Strangely enough, both partners in the firm which had prosecuted Mr. Wood were dead. Their successors offered him employment, but he could not face the old associations.
His sight was slightly blurred. Slowly he groped for the door and closed it cautiously. "What are you talking about?" he choked, though he knew perfectly well. Georgie had thrown herself back in the leather chair by his desk and had opened her gold mesh-bag. "About five thousand dollars," she replied with the careful enunciation of a New England school-mistress. "What five thousand dollars?"
This suggestion she left with them for consideration, engaging to come to a decision at the next visit. At the next visit she found that the tears of joy with which they had welcomed the proposition were not feigned. The women had already chosen a school-mistress from among themselves.
If the object was to create a class of rural school-mistresses who would take social rank with the curate, he thought it a mistake; a school-mistress ought not to be above drinking her cup of tea in a tidy cottage with the parents of her pupils: he should prefer a capable young woman in a clean holland apron with pockets, and no gloves, to any poor young lady of genteel tastes who would expect to associate on equal terms with his wife and daughters.
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