Chapter Fifteen. School Days

389 18 8
                                    

Chapter Fifteen

School Days 

School traditionally started on the Tuesday after Labour Day, but Mary arranged to meet with the teacher, Mr. McLeod.B.A., the week before. She had been introduced to him at church. He was a short, dark haired Scot with an impenetrable accent that made his pronouncements virtually unintelligible to his students. He was young, single, and lived in lodgings in Knowlton so they had arranged to meet at his place of work, Tibbits Hill Pioneer School. Meg and all her brothers had attended this school. 

It was just over a mile from the farm to the school so Mary walked, with Bill and Betty reluctantly in tow. The school, as its name suggested, nestled atop a small hill. It was a grey stone walled structure with a grey slate roof and ominously barred windows. The similarity to a jail was not lost on Betty. 

They climbed up the three steps leading to a metal studded double door. It was unlocked. Mary turned the handle and pushed. Dust bearing sunbeams passing through the three East-facing windows revealed the interior. There were two rows of desks and a central aisle leading up to a huge desk on which hung a broad leather strap and a lengthy cane. Behind the desk sat Mr. McLeod. He had obviously dressed for the occasion, wearing what turned out to be his only suit and a fashionable cravat. He rose from his chair as they entered, and came down the aisle to greet them. 

"Good morning to you." He extended his hand in greeting. "You must be the Bensons. Welcome to Tibbits Hill School." Mary shook the dominie's hand and turned to the children. 

"Good morning sir," said Bill and Betty, just as she had instructed them. 

"That's nice to see. Two polite clean kept children. And what might be your name young fella."  

"Bill, sir and it's going to be my sixth birthday on the 16th September."  

"That's good to know. I'll have to remember that." He didn't. 

"And you, young lassie." 

"My name is Betty sir." 

"And how old be you?" 

"Nine sir." 

"So are you looking forward to being back in school then?" 

"I've never been to school, sir." 

The teacher could not hide his shocked reaction. "So young gals don't go to school in England?" 

Mary realizing that this gave every indication of being a prolonged discussion asked the young man if he could suggest something to keep Bill and Betty occupied.  

"Now children, come over here and have a ken at our library whilst me and your mother have a chat." 

"She's not my mother. She's my sister," yelled Betty. 

"I'm so sorry," said the teacher as he turned to Mary." I didn't realise." 

"No need to apologise sir. I'm quite used to it." 

The teacher guided the children to a table at the back of the room on which were stacked the few books that constituted the school library. There was a set of ancient encyclopaedias, a set of Brownie books, donated by the local author Palmer Cox, and a few dog-eared copies of children's classics. 

Mary and the teacher took up seats facing each other in two of the larger desks situated in the back row. 

"Neither Bill nor Betty have ever been to school. Bill wasn't old enough and we thought school would be too dangerous for Betty." 

End of the LineWhere stories live. Discover now