Page:Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery.pdf/236

 the contest in Shrewsbury and Aunt Laura took Ilse because Dr. Burnley wouldn’t and Ilse won it. Aunt Laura told Dr. Burnley when he was here one day that he ought to give Ilse a good education. He said “I’m not going to waste money educating any she-thing.” And he looked black as a thunder cloud. Oh, I wish Dr. Burnley would love Ilse. I’m so glad loved, Father.

“Dear Father: We had our school examination today. It was a great occasion. Almost everybody was there except Dr. Burnley and Aunt Elizabeth. All the girls wore their best dresses but me. I knew Ilse had nothing to wear but her shabby old last winter’s plaid that is too short for her, so to keep her from feeling bad, I put on my old brown dress, too. Aunt Elizabeth did not want to let me do it at first because New Moon Murrays should be well dressed but when I explained about Ilse she looked at Aunt Laura and then said I might.

“Rhoda Stuart made fun of Ilse and me but I heaped coals of fire on her head. (That is what is called a figure of speech.) She got stuck in her recitation. She had left the book home and nobody else knew the piece but me. At first I looked at her triumphantly. But then a queer feeling came into me and I thought “What would I feel like if I was stuck before a big crowd of people like this? And besides the honour of the school is at stake,” so I whispered it to her because I was quite close. She got through the rest all right. The strange thing is, dear Father, that now I don’t feel any more as if I hated her. I feel quite kindly to her and it is much nicer. It is uncomfortable to hate people.

“Christmas is over. It was pretty nice. I never saw so many good things cooked all at once. Uncle Wallace