Part 28 (1/2)
”School just ain't no fun, this year. The new teacher don't never whip a soul! Does he, Mierd?”
”No.”
”Not even the Bailey boys?”
”No,” Mierd told Walker, ”they don't seem so bad no more.”
”You mean those big rascals haven't set fire to the schoolhouse this year?”
”No. First day of school they hid a dead rat in the teacher's desk, but since then they ain't done nothing. And you know what?”
”What?”
”Mister Shepherd won't ever make Bud, the oldest one, read.
He's been in the third reader ever since I can remember, but every morning when it's time for the little kids in the third reader to go up front to the recitation bench, the teacher will say, 'Bud, looks to me like the fire's half out. Would you mind tending to the heater?' So Bud goes out behind the schoolhouse to the woodpile and brings in a turn of wood and pokes up the fire.”
”Yeah, but you know what I found out just yesterday?” Wiley asked. ”Wallace Goode told me that every Sat.u.r.day morning Mister Shepherd rides over to the Bailey house and goes hunting with them boys. And Wallace says he's learning all three of 'em how to read plum good, while he walks through the woods with 'em!
”And I bet can't none of y'all guess how Mister Shepherd punishes you if you don't get up your piece to say for Friday!
Now, Mierd, don't you tell!”
”You've got my curiosity aroused, Wiley. What does he do?”
”Bess, he makes you learn a whole chapter outta the Bible, by heart!”
”I'll have to remember about this next summer when I start teaching. I sort of dread the Friday programs, especially when the parents will be coming.”
”Have you got you a school already, Bess?”
”She sure has,” Papa told Walker. ”Come June, Bess is gonna get her high school diploma in one hand and her teaching certificate in the other! And the folks over around Ellen School want her to teach their three-month summer term.”
”Gee, that's good! How much are you gonna make?”
”I'll get fifty dollars a month, but of course that won't all be profit. I'll have to pay out at least ten a month for room and board.”
”Oh, well, you'll still have plenty left. How 'bout making me a little loan?”
Mama started pa.s.sing around the pies and cakes. All the laughing and talking died down for a few minutes as we raked the bones and sc.r.a.ps to one side of our plates to make room for the sweets.
Dorris was the first one to start talking again.
”Clyde, your girl up and got married!”
”Which one? You know I had me several when I left here!”
”I'm talking about Lucille.”
”Oh, Lucille! Yeah, Mama wrote me about her and Ollie Goode jumping the broom. Too bad. You can tell I'm plain heartbroken, can't you?”
”Ah, I tell y'all, the Goodes had an infare to end all infares!”