In fact, he was a little
displeased to find that Forester would not answer him.
He thought
that, it was an unforeseen emergency, which Forester ought to have
considered an exception to his rule. But he was obliged to decide the
question for himself, and he concluded to go out for his pencil. It
took him some time to find it in the grass, and after he had found it,
he stopped for some time longer, to watch some ants which were passing
in and out, at the entrance to their nest, each one bringing up a
grain of sand in his forceps. When Marco came in, he found that his
hour for arithmetic was so nearly expired, that he should not have
time to finish another sum, if he should begin it; so he put his
arithmetical apparatus away, and took out his writing-book.
Marco went through the whole forenoon pretty much in the same way. He
spent a large part of his time in looking out of the window and about
the room. He went out at the time for the recess, but he stayed out
twenty minutes instead of ten. He was astonished, when he came in, to
see how rapidly the time had passed. He then took down a volume of the
Encyclopedia, and read until twelve o'clock, and then, leaving the
volume of the Encyclopedia and his writing-book on his desk, he told
Forester that the study hours were over, and went away.
The next morning, at nine, Forester asked him how he had got along the
day before. Marco had the frankness to admit that he did not get along
very well.
"Still," said Forester, "I am well satisfied on the whole. You did
very well for a first experiment. In the first place, you did really
make some effort to carry out my plan. You kept the reckoning of the
hours, and changed your studies at the appointed time. You did not
speak to me more than three or four times, and then you acquiesced
pretty good-naturedly in my refusing to help you. To-day you will do
better, I have no doubt, and to-morrow better still. And thus, in the
course of a week, I have great confidence that you will learn to study
for three hours by yourself, to good advantage."
"Two hours and a half it is," said Marco.
"Yes," said Forester.
It resulted as Forester predicted. Marco, finding that Forester was
disposed to be pleased with and to commend his efforts, made greater
efforts every day, and, in the course of a week, he began to be a
very respectable student. In the afternoon he used to ramble about,
sometimes with Forester, and sometimes alone. He was very fond of
fishing, and Forester used to allow him to go to certain parts of the
river, where the water was not deep, alone, trusting to his word that
he would confine himself strictly to the prescribed bounds.
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