THE WAY TO MANAGE BENNIE.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XI, Issue 50, 16 December 1893, Page 527

THE WAY TO MANAGE BENNIE.

Mame Shortledge has a fever, and her mother has sent Bennie over here to Aunt Ann’s for fear he’ll catch it. Aunt Ann is going to keep him till Mame gets well if it “takes two months, she says, because she is sorry for Mrs Shortledge. He sleeps in the trundle-bed in Aunt Ann’s room, and he looks so nice in his night-gown. When he first came, Marian and I curled his hair and showed him pictures, and played with him all the time we were not in school. But after a day or two we got tired, and there were so many other things we wanted to do we couldn’t be bothered with Bennie. So when he came hanging around with his picture book we’d say, ‘ Oh, run away, Bennie ! We can’t stop to show pictures now. By and by we will.' Then in a minute or two he’d come again, and say : ‘lt is bimeby now, Jamarian !’ That’s the way he mixes our names up, because he hears Aunt Ann say ‘ Jane and Marian,’ when she speaks to us. Well, of course we couldn t slop to show him pictures ■when we had all our lessons to learn, and worsted work to do; and besides, I am learning to crochet. So when he kept teasing us, we’d say : • Oh, do get out of our way, Ben ! Don’t you see we’re busy’’ And once or twice we gave him a little push. It didn't hurt him a bit, but he went in a corner and cried, aud Aunt Ann said we ought to have more patience. I felt sorry myself when I heard him sobbing : ‘ I want my mamma I I want my mamma !’ For we had heard that very day that Mame was worse, and her mother was all tired out, but she couldn't leave her a minute. . So then I told Bennie I would show him ten pictures if he would let me alone afterwards, and Marian said she would give him a lozenge if he would let her alone, and so we got as much as an hour to do our own work in peace. Bennie

went and sat down by himself in his little chair ; and he looked so forlorn I had half a mind to go and play with him, but I just turned away and wouldn't notice him, and got all the red done in the book mark I was working before dark. After supper he cried again to go home. Aunt Maria had one of her headaches, but she took him in her lap and got him to sleep, and Marian and I had a chance to do our sums. When we went upstairs to bed we agreed that it was really trying to have a child like that in the house. *lt mixes up your duties so,' said Marian. ‘lt makes you feel as if you did wrong to learn your lessons and mend your stockings. I know Aunt Ann actually frowned at us when we were ciphering !' I smiled under the bedclothes, for Marian never does mend her stockings till the very last minute before she puts them on, but I agreed with her that it was too bad to be made to feel selfish when we are doing the things we ought to do. The next morning one of the girls in school lent us a splendid book to read, but she said we must finish it that same day, for she could not let us keep it any longer. So we thought we would read all we could at noon to get a start. As we turned into our yards, there was Bennie watching for us at the window. He laughed and clapped his hands when he saw us, and we could hear him call : * Jamarian ! Jamarian !’ ‘ There, now !’ said Marian. •He won’t let us read one word. Let’s go up garret and stay till dinner is ready.’ So when we went in we just laid our books and slates on the table in the front entry, and slipped up stairs instead of going into the sitting room. We found a nice place up in the west garret by the window, and there we sat side by side, reading as fast as we could, for nearly half an hour. It was a fairy-book. ' I wish I could be a faiiy,’ said Marian. * I could make so many people happy. Either a fairy or a missionary. I thought it was very noble in Marian to want to do so much good, and when Aunt Ann called us to dinner we went down with our arms around each other, and felt pleasant toward everybody. But the minute we opened the sitting-room door, Bennie ran to meet us, exclaiming joyously : ‘ See my pretty horses ! I drawed ’em all myself. Look, Jamarian !’ We looked down. It was my slate ! He had got it from the entry table, and rubbed out all my sums that I worked so hard over the evening before, and that I was keeping on my slate for that afternoon’s recitation. I was so provoked I could have shaken him. * You naughty, naughty boy,’ I cried. ‘ Now you’ve spoiled my lesson, and I shall lose my perfect card, and I do think it’s too mean !’ A cloud came over his bright little face, and his lip quivered. I didn't care if he did cry. I thought he ought to after doing such a thing as that. I expected Aunt Ann would scold him, but she didn’t; she only looked sad. There was no time to spare. Marian and I ate our dinner, and went off to school as quick as we could. Before the bell rang I stepped up to the teacher and told her how Bsnnie Shortledge had rubbed out my sums, and asked her to excuse my lesson. She was a great deal nicer than I thought she would be. * Certainly 1 will excuse you, Jane,’ she said, pleasantly, ‘ and you shall have your merits just the same. Poor little Bennie ! I suppose he doesn't know what to do with himself awav from bis mother. lam so glad he is with you and your aunts, you can nrake him so happy.’ I sat down at my desk, thinking to myself that folks didn’t know what a trouble Bennie was ; but all the afternoon I kept remembering how glad bis little face looked through the pane when he saw us comiug home, and how timid and sorrowful he was after 1 scolded him. When school was out, and Marian and I went home, there was Bennie watching again, but he didn’t call out to us. We clapped our hands and laughed, and then he laughed, too, and met us at the door. Something had come over us both, so that we did not want to push him away. We got the fairy book and finished it, and we let him see all the pictures. Then we wanted to do our sums for next day, and I thought to myself : *Oh dear, now we shall have a time !’ But Marian said : ‘Bennie, want to do sums, too? There’s an old slate in the closet, and I’ll give you a pencil.’ And then, don’t you think, that little mite drew up his little chair and sat down just as sober, and made little marks and lines all over his slate till we had finished every one of our sums, and he thought he was ciphering just as much as we were. Then he trotted up to Aunt Ann for her to see, and she looked as pleased as could be. Well, just that little thing, that seemed like an accident, has been the greatest help to Marian and me. We haven't had a bit of trouble with Bennie since, and we love him better every day. I wish he was my little brother. When he wants to hang around us, we let him. When we are writing compositions, we give him some paper to scribble on, too. When we study our spelling, we give him a word to spell now and then, lie spells like this : 'Bld, cat 1’ And when we work with our worsteds, we let him have a needle threaded and a bit of canvas, and he is just as busy as we are. He isn't any trouble at all, now we have found out how to manage him ; and wlieu he thinks lie has done something pretty well, his voice sounds so sweet, as he calls out : * Look ! Look, Jamarian !'

M. L. B. Branch.