,"
"Education is the chief defense of nations."

But none of these things made Tillie's genius to burn, and again her
eyes wandered to the window and gazed out into the blue sky; and after
a few moments she suddenly turned to her desk and rapidly wrote down
her "subject"--"Evening."

The mountain of the opening sentence being crossed, the rest went
smoothly enough, for Tillie wrote it from her heart.

"EVENING.

"I love to take my little sisters and brothers and go out, still, on a
hill-top when the sun is setting so red in the West, and the birds are
singing around us, and the cows are coming home to be milked, and the
men are returning from their day's work.

"I would love to play in the evening if I had the dare, when the
children are gay and everything around me is happy.

"I love to see the flowers closing their buds when the shades of
evening are come. The thought has come to me, still, that I hope the
closing of my life may come as quiet and peaceful as the closing of the
flowers in the evening.

"MATILDA MARIA GETZ."

Miss Margaret was just calling for Absalom's synonyms when Tillie
carried her composition to the desk, and Absalom was replying with his
customary half-defiant sullenness.

"My pop he sayed I ain't got need to waste my time gettin' learnt them
cinnamons. Pop he says what's the use learnin' TWO words where [which]
means the selfsame thing--one's enough."

Absalom's father was a school director and Absalom had grown
accustomed, under the rule of Miss Margaret's predecessors, to feel the
force of the fact in their care not to offend him.

"But your father is not the teacher here--I am," she cheerfully told
him. "So you may stay after school and do what I require."

Tillie felt a pang of uneasiness as she went back to her seat.
Absalom's father was very influential and, as all the township knew,
very spiteful. He could send Miss Margaret away, and he would do it, if
she offended his only child, Absalom. Tillie thought she could not bear
it at all if Miss Margaret were sent away. Poor Miss Margaret did not
seem to realize her own danger. Tillie felt tempted to warn her. It was
only this morning that the teacher had laughed at Absalom when he said
that the Declaration of Independence was "a treaty between the United
States and England,"--and had asked him, "Which country, do you think,
hurrahed the loudest, Absalom, when that treaty was signed?" And now
this afternoon she "as much as