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CHAPTER X.

"Do good for good's own sake, looking not to worthiness nor love."-Proverbial Philosophy.

THE next morning the two other girls came, and with her small school of six, Millicent set earnestly to work. In the course of the morning Mrs. Ponsonby arrived, and was soon quite satisfied that Millicent knew what she was doing, and would carry on the school as she wished. On the blackboard was written the subject of instruction for the day: it was on Dress. The girls had each slates, and were to write on them the answers to the questions Millicent gave out. The question she first asked was the material of which their frocks were made.

They all wrote, Cotton.

"Well, then, I daresay you will be very much astonished when I tell you that your frocks all grew." The children looked at each other and laughed. "That sounds very funny, doesn't it?" continued

Millicent. "But it is quite true. Now tell me the difference between linen and cotton.”

The answer to this varied,-some wrote, "One is white, the other coloured." Others,-" Cotton is cheaper than linen." One girl, who had a duller and more stupid look than any of them, wrote, "There ain't no difference."

"None of these answers will do," said Millicent, "and yours, Maria, is bad grammar as well. Copy what I write on the board.

"Cotton is a plant growing in both the Old World and the New, but the largest quantity is grown in the United States. The fibres are picked and spun into long threads, and then woven into the material you wear. Cotton thread, such as you sew with, is made by two yarns of equal quality being twisted together.'

"Write that first," said Millicent, "and I will then tell you about linen."

As soon as they had done this she wrote on the board,

"Linen is the fibre of a plant called Flax; the fibre is spun into yarn or thread, and made into the material we use." "

When the children had written this, Millicent, after explaining to them the meaning of the words, "fibre," "yarn," &c., proceeded to questions on Flannel, and told them the flannel they wore once

kept the sheep warm; which caused another laugh from the children.

"You laughed when I told you your dresses once grew," said Millicent; "but, you sce, I was not far wrong: the stuff that made them grew. Now copy what I write:

"Flannel is made from the wool of sheep; there are two kinds of wool,-short and long, and the two stuffs called woollen and worsted are so called according to the wool used.'"

After they had written this, they had to set down all the different kinds of materials they could remember made from wool, and seemed much amused by the number of articles of clothing the sheep provided for them.

"Now there is something besides clothing that we get from wool,-something which is a great comfort to us in the winter; try all, and think of it; and, remember, before we finish school this morning, I shall expect you to write out the answers I have told you, from memory; those who don't will have to be kept in after school to write it.” This produced rather blank looks, but Millicent continued,

"This is not for a punishment, recollect, but to remind you that you must be attentive, and try to recollect what you are taught; for if you do not,

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you are only wasting your own time and your parents" money by coming here. Now, all try and think what other useful and comfortable article is made of wool." Millicent waited a little while, but no slates were

shown up.

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"Come," she said, can none of you tell me? You have all got one, at the very least, in your houses, I should think; something warm and valuable in winter, but that you are very glad to put aside in the summer?"

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'Fire," suggested the stupid-looking girl aforesaid. This, of course, elicited a hearty laugh from the others.

"Gently, gently!" said Millicent; "you must not laugh at one another's mistakes, you may all make equally silly ones. But now, Maria, if you had stopped really to think, you would not have said anything so silly; how can fire be made of wool? Now look at the board,

"Blankets are made of wool; the best come from Witney, in Oxfordshire.""

When they had written this, Millicent desired them to clean their slates, and write what had been told them about cotton, linen, and wool; this, with the corrections which had to be made in the spelling, occupied them until a quarter to twelve, when the slates were put away, the grace said, and the girls dismissed. When they were

all gone, Mrs. Ponsonby, who had been a quiet but most interested spectator of the scene, told Millicent that she was quite satisfied with her method, but she should have thought the questions too easy.

"But, you see, they did not know them, ma'am ; as I perfect them in such simple things as these, I shall go on more deeply into the subject, when I shall use some of the nice books you have provided me with; but at present they want to be taught to think and to answer in their own words, and from their own ideas. Yesterday I asked Maria what milk was for, and she said to be thrown away."

"Is it possible? I scarcely believed in such ignorance: then your lesson was on Food yesterday."

"Yes, ma'am; and as they seemed very ignorant on that subject, I thought I would have it again tomorrow; and in the afternoon I cross-question them on what they have learnt in the morning, and by that means I hope to make them recollect it."

"Well, then, if you have fresh girls next week, they will have lost all this."

"No, ma'am; I shall give the same questions to them, and make these girls write the answers on the board as I did for them."

"Oh, yes, I see! And what did you say is your subject for to-morrow?"

"Food again; and the next day, Cookery; and

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