Part 9 (1/2)
”No, I won't ever tell _any_body Now let me”
”Oh, _you_ don't want to see!”
”Now that you treat me so, I _will_ see” And she put her s to resist in earnest but letting his hand slip by degrees till these words were revealed: ”_I love you_”
”Oh, you bad thing!” And she hit his hand a smart rap, but reddened and looked pleased, nevertheless
Just at this juncture the boy felt a slow, fateful grip closing on his ear, and a steady lifting impulse In that wise he was borne across the house and deposited in his own seat, under a peppering fire of giggles fro a fefula word But although Toled, his heart was jubilant
As the school quieted down Tom made an honest effort to study, but the turreat In turn he took his place in the reading class and raphy class and turned lakes into mountains, mountains into rivers, and rivers into continents, till chaos was coot ”turned down,” by a succession of ht up at the foot and yielded up the pewter medal which he had ith ostentation for months
CHAPTER VII
THE harder Tom tried to fasten his mind on his book, the h and a yawn, he gave it up It seemed to him that the noon recess would never come The air was utterly dead
There was not a breath stirring It was the sleepiest of sleepy days
The drowsingscholars soothed the soul like the spell that is in thesunshi+ne, Cardiff Hill lifted its soft green sides through a shi+ veil of heat, tinted with the purple of distance; a few birds floated on lazy wing high in the air; no other living thing was visible but some cows, and they were asleep To of interest to do to pass the dreary time
His hand wandered into his pocket and his face lit up with a glow of gratitude that was prayer, though he did not know it Then furtively the percussion-cap box ca flat desk The creature probably gloith a gratitude that amounted to prayer, too, at this moment, but it was premature: for when he started thankfully to travel off, Tom turned him aside with a pin and made him take a new direction
To just as Toratefully interested in this entertainment in an instant This bosom friend was Joe Harper The two boys were sworn friends all the week, and embattled enean to assist in exercising the prisoner
The sport grew in interestwith each other, and neither getting the fullest benefit of the tick So he put Joe's slate on the desk and drew a line down the middle of it fro as he is on your side you can stir hiet onas I can keep hio ahead; start him up”
The tick escaped from Tom, presently, and crossed the equator Joe harassed hiain This change of base occurred often While one boy orrying the tick with absorbing interest, the other would look on with interest as strong, the two heads bowed together over the slate, and the two souls dead to all things else At last luck seemed to settle and abide with Joe The tick tried this, that, and the other course, and got as excited and as anxious as the boys theain just as he would have victory in his very grasp, so to speak, and Toin, Joe's pin would deftly head hier The te So he reached out and lent a hand with his pin Joe was angry in a moment Said he:
”Tom, you let him alone”
”I only just want to stir him up a little, Joe”
”No, sir, it ain't fair; you just let hi to stir him much”
”Let him alone, I tell you”
”I won't!”
”You shall--he's on my side of the line”
”Look here, Joe Harper, whose is that tick?”