pleasant. She actually lookedacross at Helen and Tom and scowled at them. It had already begun tobe whispered about the room that the match was easily Julia's--thatshe was sure to win; and Mr. Semple, the chairman of the trustees, whosat on the platform with the teacher, looked very well satisfiedindeed.
But Miss Cramp had come down now to the final words in the speller--down to "zenith" and "zoology." And still there were three standing.Miss Cramp looked for a moment as though she would like to announcethe match a tie between the trio, for it was plain there would be hardfeelings engendered among some of the audience, as well as the pupils,if the match continued. Her custom had been, however, to go on to thebitter end--to spell down the very last one, and she could not easilymake a change in her method now.
A general sigh and whispering went around when she was seen to reachfor the academic dictionary which was always the foundation of thetower of books upon the northeast corner of Miss Cramp's desk. Sheopened the volume and shot out the word: "Aperse."
The girl standing between Ruth and Julia staggered along until theyreached "abstinence"; she put an "e" instead of an "i" in the middlesyllable, and went down. But the audience applauded her. Julia Semplebegan to hesitate now. The end was near. Perhaps she had never takenthe time to follow down the rows of words in the dictionary. At"acalycal" she stumbled, started twice, then stopped and asked to haveit repeated.
"'Acalycal,'" said Miss Cramp, steadily.
"'A c a l l y c a l,'" stammered Julia.
"Wrong," said Miss Cramp, dispassionately.
"Next. 'Acalycal'?"
Ruth spelled it with two 'l's' only and Miss Cramp looked up quickly.
"Right," she said. "You may step down, Julia. It has been our customto keep on until the winner is spelled down, too. Next word, Ruth:'acalycine.'"
But there was such a buzz of comment that Miss Cramp looked up again.Julia Semple had seemed half stunned for the moment. Then she wheeledon Ruth and said, in a sharp whisper:
"I saw that Cameron girl spell it for you! She's been helping you allthe time! Everybody knows she's patronizing and helping you. Why,you're wearing her old, cast-off clothes. You've got one of herdresses on now! Pauper!"
Ruth started back, her face turned red, then white, as though she hadbeen struck. The smarting tears started to her eyes, and blinded her.
"Julia! take your seat instantly!" said Miss Cramp, more sharply."Ruth! spell 'acalycine.'"
But Ruth could not open her lips. Had she done so she would have burstinto tears. And she could not have spelled the word right--nor anyother word right--at that moment. She merely shook her head andfollowed Julia to her seat, stumblingly, while a dead silence fellupon the room.
CHAPTER XX
UNCLE JABEZ IS MYSTERIOUS
Miss Cramp was in the habit of calling upon some trustee to speak atthe close of the exercises--usually Mr. Semple--and then there was alittle social time before the assemblage broke up. But the frown onthe chairman's face did not suggest that that gentleman had anythingvery jovial to say at the moment, and the teacher closed the exercisesherself in a few words that were not at all personal to the winner ofthe spelling-match.
When the stir of people moving about aroused Ruth, her only thoughtwas to get away from the schoolhouse. Perhaps not more than two dozenpeople had distinctly heard what Julia so cruelly said to her; but itseemed to the girl from the Red Mill as though everybody in thatthrong knew that she was a charity child--that, as Julia said, thevery frock she had on belonged to somebody else.
And to Helen! She had never for a moment suspected that Helen had beenthe donor of the three frocks. Of course everybody in the neighborhoodhad known all the time that she was wearing Helen's cast-off clothing.Everybody but Ruth herself would have recognized the dresses; she hadbeen in the neighborhood so short a time that, of course, she was notvery well acquainted with Helen's wardrobe.
At the moment she could not feel thankful to her chum. She could onlyremember Julia's cutting words, and feel the sting to her pride thatshe should have shown herself before all beholders the recipient ofher friend's alms.
Nobody spoke to her as she glided through the moving crowd and reachedthe door. Miss Cramp was delayed in getting to her; Helen and Tom didnot see her go, for they were across the room and farthest from thedoor. And so she reached the exit and slipped out.
The men and boys from outside thronged the tiny anteroom and thesteps. As she pushed through them one man said:
"Why, here's the smart leetle gal that took Semple's gal down a peg--eh? She'd oughter have a prize for that, that's what she ought!"
But Ruth could not reply to this, although she knew it was meantkindly. She went out into the darkness. There were many horses hitchedabout the schoolhouse, but she reached the clear road in safety andran toward the Red Mill.
The girl came to the mill and went quietly into the kitchen. She hadgot the best of her tears now, but Aunt Alviry's bright eyesdiscovered at once that she was unhappy. Uncle Jabez did not evenraise his eyes when she came in.
"What is the matter with my pretty leetle creetur?" whispered the oldwoman, creeping close to Ruth.
"Nothing is the matter now," returned Ruth, in the same low tone.
"Didn't you do well?" asked the old woman, wistfully.
"I won the spelling match," replied Ruth. "I stood up longer thananybody else."
"Is that so!" exclaimed Aunt Alvirah, with pride. "I told ye so,Ruthie. And ye beat that Semple gal?"
"She was the last one to fail before me," Ruth returned.
"Well, well! D'ye hear that, Jabez? Our Ruth won the spellin'-match."
The miller did not raise his head from his accounts; only grunted andnodded.
"But something went wrong wi' ye, deary?" persisted Aunt Alvirah,watching Ruth's face closely.
"Oh, Auntie! why didn't you tell me that Helen gave me the frocks?"
"Deary, deary, me!" ejaculated Aunt Alvirah. "How did you know?"
"Julia Semple told me--she told me before everybody!" gasped Ruth,fighting hard to keep back the tears. "She called me a pauper! Shecalled it out before them all, and said that I wore Helen's cast-offclothes!"
"The mean thing!" said Aunt Alvirah, with more sharpness then sheusually expressed. "Isn't that jest like the Semples? They're all thatway. Got mad with you because you beat her at spelling; eh?"
"Yes. But she has known it right along, of course."
"Deary me!" said Aunt Alvirah. "Nobody supposed them frocks would bereckernized--least of all Helen. She meant it kindly, Ruthie. It waskindly meant."
"I wish I'd worn my old black dress to rags!" cried Ruth, who was toohurt to be sensible or just. "I suppose Helen meant it kindly. And youdid what you thought was right, Auntie. But all the girls have turnedup their noses at me--"
"Let 'em stay turned up--what do you care?" suddenly growled UncleJabez.
For the moment Ruth had forgotten his presence and she and AuntAlvirah had been talking more loudly. They both fell suddenly silentand stared at him.
"Are ye too proud to wear dresses that's give to ye?" demanded UncleJabez. "Ye ain't too proud to take food and shelter from me. And I'm apoorer man than Macy Cameron an' less able to give."
The tone and the words were both cruel--or seemed to be to Ruth'smind. But she said, bravely:
"People know that you're my uncle--"
"I was yer mother's uncle; that's all. The relationship ain't much,"declared Uncle Jabez.
"Jabez," said the little old woman, solemnly, "you've been a goodfriend to me--ye've borne with me in sickness and in weakness. Yetook me from the a'mshouse when I didn't have a penny to my name andnobody else to turn to, it seemed. I've tried ter do for yefaithfully. But I ain't done my duty by you no more than this childhere has since she's come here to the Red Mill. You know that wellyourself, too. Don't blame the pretty leetle creetur for havin' thenateral vanity that all young things hez. Remember, Jabez, that it wasthrough you that she has had to accept clothing from outsiders."
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"Through me?" growled the miller, raising his countenance and scowlingat the brave old woman--for it took courage for Aunt Alvirah to speakto him in this way.
"Helen Cam'ron wouldn't have been called on to give Ruthie her frockswhich she only wore last year, and outgrew, if you hadn't lostRuthie's trunk. Ye know that, Jabez," urged Aunt Alvirah.
"I s'pose I'm never to hear the last of that!" stormed the miller.
"You are