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THE REFORMATION OF MARY HOG AN 199 



The work with the weeds was finished Thanksgiving week. 

 What her school would do the rest of the year she did not know. 

 She only knew that her father's idea had been well founded, for 

 through it she had gained a hold on her school, that was little 

 short of miraculous and that, too, with the much despised weeds. 

 Could she hold them without further work with nature? Well, 

 at any rate, tonight she would pause to be thankful for her suc- 

 cess. She startled her mother by suddenly laughing out loud. 

 "What would some people whom she knew, think of her if they 

 could reahze the feeling of devout thanksgiving that was in her 

 heart because weeds grew in a vacant lot near her school." 



The next day Miss Lacy received a notice informing her that 

 it was customary to hold appropriate exercises in all the rooins the 

 afternoon before Thanksgiving. Appropriate exercises meant 

 recitations and songs, — -why she had been so busy keeping order 

 that she did not know who could sing and recite. To be sure, they 

 could sing together after a fashion but not well enough to go on a 

 prograim fit for guests. The thought of the program brought such 

 consternation that she forgot to call her class on time. It was little 

 wonder that Josephine Lacy was disturbed, for stories of the last 

 year's Thanksgiving exercises were still fresh in the minds of both 

 teachers and pupils in the building. They purposely had sung 

 out of key, talked out loud so as to drown out the speakers and 

 had even pelted the guests with paper wads. For some time 

 Miss Lacy gave herself up to unreasoning fear. When she grew 

 calmer, she thought out a plan. 



At recess she called Mary Hogan to the desk. She frankly 

 told the girl that she would like to have her help in picking out 

 pupils who were best fitted to appear on a program for Thanks- 

 giving. If she would think about it and talk it over with the 

 pupils, she. Miss Lacy, would be pleased. 



Flattered by the teacher's confidence and appeal for aid, Mary 

 Hogan soon had the whole school enthusiastic and ready to help. 

 With the aid of the girl. Miss Lacy appointed committees to 

 decorate the school and get uj^ the program. 



How busy everyone was that week and how ha|)py! In those 

 few days, Josephine Lacy became genuinely attached to her pii])ils 

 and she wondered why she ever thought them so terrible. vShe 

 was at school early and late ; when her mother remonstrated with 

 her for working so hard, she re|)lied that teaching was great fun. 



