Oscar | Page 7

geography lesson?" continued the master.
"No, sir."
"Why do you not study it, then'"
"I don't feel like studying," replied Oscar.
"Very well," said the teacher, quite pleasantly; "if you don't feel like it,
you need n't study. You may come here."
Oscar stepped out to the platform on which the teacher's desk was
placed.
"There," continued the master, pointing to a blackboard facing the
school, "you may stand there and look at that board just as long as you
please. But you must not look at anything else, and I would advise you
not to let me catch your eyes turning either to the right or the left. Now
mind and keep your eyes on the board, and when you feel like studying
let me know."
Oscar took the position pointed out to him, with his back towards the
boys, and with his face so near the blackboard, that he could see
nothing else without turning his head--an operation that would be sure
to attract the attention of the master. At first he thought it would be
good fun to stand there, and for awhile the novelty of the thing did
amuse him a little. When he began to grow weary, he contrived to
interest himself by tracing out the faint chalk-marks of long-forgotten
problems, that had not been entirely obliterated from the blackboard.
This afforded employment for his mind for a time; but by-and-bye he
began to grow tired and uneasy. His eyes longed to see something else,
and his legs were weary of standing so long in one position. He
wondered, too, whether the boys were looking at him, and whether they

smiled at his strange employment. At last, after doing penance about an
hour, his exhaustion got the better of his stubbornness, and on
informing the master that he thought ho could study now, he was
permitted to take his seat.
After returning to his desk, Oscar had but little time to finish learning
his geography lesson, before the class was called out to recite. As was
too often the case, he was but half prepared. The subject of the lesson
was New York State. Several of the questions put to Oscar were
answered wrong, either wholly or in part. When asked what great lakes
bordered on New York, he replied:
"Lake Erie and Lake Superior."
When the question was given to another, and correctly answered, Oscar
exclaimed:
"That's what I meant--Erie and Ontario; but I was n't thinking what I
said."
This was somewhat of a habit with Oscar. When he "missed" a question,
he was very apt to say, after the next boy had answered it, "I knew,
only I could n't think," or, "I was just going to say so."
Another question put to him was, whether the water of the great New
York lakes was fresh or salt. Oscar replied that it was salt. It is but
justice to add, how ever, that nothing was said in the lesson of the day,
on this point, although the question had occurred in a previous lesson.
Noticing that several of the boys laughed at Oscar's blunder, the teacher
remarked:
"That was a very foolish answer, Oscar, but you are not the first nor the
wisest person that has made the same mistake. When the British went
to war with us, in 1812, it is said that all their war vessels intended to
navigate the lakes, were furnished with tanks and casks for carrying a
full supply of freshwater; and I have been told that an apparatus is still
in existence in one of the Canadian navy yards, which the English
government sent over, some years ago, for distilling fresh water from

Lake Erie. But an American school-boy of your age ought to know
better than this, if an English lord of the admiralty does not. These
great lakes are among the remarkable features of our own country, and
every American child should know something about them. I should
suppose," continued the teacher, "that a boy who could afford to look
steadily at nothing for an hour, might take a little pains to inform
himself about so common a matter as this, so as not to appear so
ridiculous, when a simple question is asked him."
Before the lesson was concluded, Oscar made still another mistake.
There was an allusion in the lesson to the great fire of 1885, by which
an immense amount of property in New York city was destroyed.
When the teacher asked him how many buildings were said to have
been consumed, he replied:
"Three hundred and fifty--five hundred and thirty--no, three hundred
and fifty."
"Which number do you mean?" inquired the master.
"I aint sure which it is," replied Oscar, after a moment's hesitation; "it's
one or the other, I don't know