Go and
sit down."
I sat down, and the life was all out of me. Tears in the first
place had a great mind to come, and would put themselves
between me and the figures in the multiplication table. I
governed them back after a while. But I could not study to
purpose. I was tired and down-spirited; I had not energy left
to spring to my task and accomplish it. Over and over again I
tried to put the changes of the numbers in my head; it seemed
like writing them in sand. My memory would not take hold of
them; could not keep them; with all my trying I grew only more
and more stupefied and fagged, and less capable of doing what
I had to do. So dinner came, and Miss Pinshon said I might get
myself ready for dinner and after dinner come back again to my
lesson. The lesson must be finished before anything else was
done.
I had no appetite. Preston was in a fume of vexation, partly
roused by my looks, partly by hearing that I was not yet free.
He was enraged beyond prudent speaking, but Miss Pinshon never
troubled herself about his words; and when the first and
second courses were removed, told me I might go to my work.
Pages:
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81