92 WHEAT AND WOMAN 



the date was at the time of full moon I said that 

 I would drive over, in spite of the fact that it would 

 be my last night at the farm. 



" Why don't you," encouraged Hilaria, " I don't 

 suppose it will be particularly entertaining, but as 

 you like that kind of thing it will break the monotony. 

 And the drive will be delightful." 



On November 13 Hilaria left for England. 

 For the first and only time in Canada I felt a 

 breath of the ghost of solitude. By way of protest, 

 I invited all the little Mazey children to tea 

 on one day, and on the next I walked over to 

 Springbrook where a kind and friendly neighbour 

 had promised to take me to call on the village 

 schoolmaster that I might see the children at work. 



There were about thirty of them in all — boys 

 and girls together, and this, my first glimpse of 

 co-education, seemed as delightful and desirable 

 as George Meredith's dream of it. There are but 

 few married labourers in Canada, nearly every man 

 works for himself. The pupils were mainly the 

 children of the farmers of the neighbourhood — 

 men of substance, growing anything between 

 two thousand and fourteen thousand bushels of 

 wheat a year. Probably the greater number of the 

 small band had been born in the typical shack, 

 but many of them at the time of my visit were 

 located in imposing villa residences wherein is to 

 be found the altar of a bathroom. I listened to 

 some reading, a little recitation, and then a selection 

 of copybooks and some writing matter was placed 

 before me. 



It was in passing from one copybook to another 

 that I caught sight of the familiar face of Sam 



