ay.

Bessie became much worried; for many eyes were turned upon her, and some
of the pupils were laughing. She wanted to hide, but could not, and kept
wondering why a little mud should cause so much amusement. One girl,
Anna, tried secretly to pass her a wet handkerchief, but this Nora
quickly caught from her and hid. Poor Bessie was now ready to cry, and
again asked permission to wash her face; but her teacher answered, "No;
you must go to writing."

Bessie naturally had a high temper and was inclined to be stubborn when
she felt that she was being imposed upon; but she had always held her
temper in subjection, as she knew it to be wrong to give way to anger.
On this occasion, however, it seemed impossible to control herself. When
the teacher said, "Go to writing," Bessie obeyed; but she was so angry
that she hardly knew what she was doing. Suddenly she thought, "If I
daub a lot of ink on my face, perhaps she will let me wash"; and she
rubbed some on with her finger. But alas! this did not work as she had
expected. The teacher saw her put it on and concluded that she had put
the other on also; so she said, "Bessie, you may go and sit in my
chair." As she said this, all the stubbornness in Bessie's nature arose.
She did not move; and when the teacher said sternly, "Are you going to
obey?" she shook her head and caught hold of the seat. At this moment
Nora whispered, "If that were me, she'd make me go." The teacher heard
the words and looked first at Nora and then at Bessie. She hesitated for
a moment, then walked over to Bessie, took her by the shoulders and
jerked her from the seat, and then dragged her up to the chair and set
her down, telling her to study. "I have no book," retorted Bessie. The
teacher ordered one brought, and, leaving her, went to her other duties.

What a moment for Bessie! Too angry to study, she sat there thinking of
the dreadful scene she had created. Her heart burned with shame. Oh!
what could she do?

Anna, the girl who had tried to hand her the wet handkerchief, had
noticed all of Nora's actions and had determined to help Bessie, if
possible. On pretext of looking up a word in the dictionary, Anna went
forward, laid a wet rag where Bessie could reach it, and returned to her
seat. Bessie eagerly took the rag and rubbed her face. She was surprised
to see the different colors of ink appear upon it. How they came to be
there she did not know; but she did not think about them long, for
somethi