HERE’S A JIG-SAW

Northern Advocate, 14 December 1937, Page 2

HERE’S A JIG-SAW

“I suppose it is her name?” queried the first voice. “It isn’t assumed, is it? —as you read in books, you know,” the speaker ended vaguely. “I rn sure,Miss Curtis didn’t call hexMary,” said Joan thoughtfully. “It sounded a longer name somehow. I know! Let’s get back early this afternoon and look in the class register and see! ’

Belinda listened in alarm. As soon as they had gone, she sped homewards, planning as sne went. She would get back before they did and hide the register for a time —till school began, at any rate. 4

The meal seemed terribly long. Aunt Jemima would keep asking her questions and insisted on Belinda sitting

down for ten minutes afterwards. Sue ran her hardest all the way to school, hurried along the corridor, and flung the classroom door open. Three girls standing by Miss Rayford’s desk lifted startled heads guiltily. One of them held the desk-lid. half open with one hand, and in the other was the classregister. The girl was Joan.

For a moment no one moved. Then Belinda sprang forward and grasped ihc; regisier. a fierce tussle took place, but three against one proved too much for Belinda. Joan recaptured the register, while the others held their captive firmly. There was a tense silence as Joan hastily turned the pages and ran her finger down the list. She stopped—and stared at Belinda in wonder —Belinda, with hanging head and crimson face. “Well.” she said slowly, “I don’t see anything to bo ashamed of in a name

‘ like that. Whatever made you call yourself Mary?” I Belinda looked at her in astonish- ! ment.

“What is her name?” clamoured the other two. Joan picked up the register once more.

“Jacynth Mary Norris,” she said slowly, “and there’s a small pencil note at the side —Be-Be-something or other.” Belinda stared at Joan, stretched out her hand for the registei’, then whispered: “Jacynth Mary Norm —Belinda.”

Suddenly she whirled away from them and sped down the long corridor to Miss Curtis’s room. She burst in, and was about to speak, but pulled up short 'as she saw the fox-bidding figure of her Aunt Jemima seated near the window.

“Really. Ja —Belinda,” exclaimed Miss Curtis, “your rudeness —.” She stopped short as she saw the register. “How did you get that register. Belinda?” she asked very quietly.

Belinda bu-.nc.cl and stammered. The girls had suspected her of not using hexown name and she had scrambled to get the x-egister from them —Belinda tailed, ofi’ miserably. “I see,” said Miss Curtis, who glanced at Aunt Jemima, who nodded in return.

"Sit down, Belinda.” said Miss Curtis. "I have something to tell you. When your aunt took you in to her home as a baby after the death of your parents, she decided to call you Belinda, in preference to your own Cristian name —Jacynth—which she thought too flighty a name for a girl, although it was your mother’s name. Since then

yc-u have always been called Belinda. This morning your real name had, of course, to be entered in school books, but your aunt has asked as a special favour that you should continue to be called Belinda. That, of course, is now impossible, as your real name is known to some of the others.” She turned to Aunt Jemima.

“Well, it can’t be helped,” said Aunt Jemima. "I can only trust that Belinda’s sensible upbringing will outweigh any influence the flighty name of Jacynth may have upon her.”

Miss Curtis suppressed a smile. Out in the corridor Jacynth danc'd a little dance for sheer joy- “ Jacynth—not Belinda,” she kept saying to herself, then ran to her classroom. She returned the register to Miss Rayford, mumbling something about Miss Curtis, then slipped into her place. She was several times addressed as Jacynth during the afternoon, to the great mystification of the rest of the class. Mary, then Belinda, now Jacynth —they gave it up and resigned themselves to wait until the afternoon break for an explanation. “Well,” said Joan, later, as Jacynth, now the centre of a breathlessly interested group, finished her explanations, “if that doesn't beat everything. You silly duffer, nobody would like you any the less for being called Belinda!” “Still,” she added, “I’m glad you did change your name, or we should never have found out the real one. And now, what about a game of netball? Like to try a game, Mary—Jacynth, I mean?” she asked with a smile. —Copied.