6 STORIES FROM DAUDET

he was going away, that I.should never
see him again, made me forget the
punishments and the raps with the
ruler.

Poor man!

It was in honour of this last class
that he had put on his Sunday clothes,
and now I understood why the elders
of the village had come and seated
themselves in the schoolroom. That
meant that they were grieved not to
have come oftener to the school. It
was a sort of way of thanking our
master for his forty years of good
service, and of showing their respect
for their country that was being taken
from them.

I had come as far as this in my
reflections when I heard my name
called. It was my turn to repeat.
What would I not have given to have
been able to say right through that
famous rule of the participles, quite
loud and very clear, without a stumble;
but I bungled at the first word, and