Show 44 4 4 IF aw 1 her er country I 1 A flag day story by clarissa mackie mackle copyright by american aress amao atlon 1911 4 1 1 1 1 i i 11 miss 1 I leming adjusted I 1 tho the spectacles on her cain iio iii so und peered near sight edly nt at tho principal of the lakeland school there was a look of ot areedy expectancy in her tier little eye ey eyo e as she waited for his response W what at shall I 1 do about the tle matter mr I 1 reeman or do you want mias landh to make her own rules of course tle other teachers are a re making mal 1119 the usual preparation for the ob ferrance ser rance of tho the anniversary of the b birth irth of our glorious emblem of free dom 1 lou iou may that miss landis refuses to carry out tho the program I 1 have out ilu 1 I le asked at last yes what Is her teason why she says ita its asking too much of an englishwoman to celebrate cee brate the birth of a ling that brought defeat to her countrymen please ilease send miss landis to me and I 1 wll it talk with her after the assistant principal bad departed paul leaned back in bla his chair with a certain pleasurable expect expectancy avey in the coming interview the shy reserve of the youngest teacher had proved a great attraction for tho the grave young man and the occasional glimpses he had caught of her violet eyes un der the thick fringe of lashes had been bittersweet lessons in a study that had not been included la in the currick lum of his university the door opened and angela landia landis entered the little office lou ou seat sent tor for me mr freeman she inquired in her low lou vibrant voice turned hia his dark thoughtful face toward her it was almost stern in ita its self repression ies cs miss landis Is it true that you have refused to carry aut the I 1 hg day program assigned to your room I 1 she said do you not call all that insubordination be he asked qui quitty qu lUy tty is ifs ion lou knon the penila for that landis Land ls t the culprit shall bo be called before the board and if found guilty shill be dismissed ri rc turned the you yon agest teacher promptly quoting froia tho the rules 4 flint hung in each classroom paul s lips twitched td a little I 1 hope I 1 shill be si a ired that unpleasing uit duty landis can cant t ne compromise tb ui liter itter i blip too 1001 id out of thy the window at the tumbling 11 nud hr 1 a cloudet 1 1 with n comicki it mould be a I serious catastrophe it if she he should lose lit lur r position in the I 1 akol alel md ind school it bould iman the bri ailing up of ill the tit tin home she site and anti ho hr r vv itsou ed r hid anade in lit the lie new t countr and their removal to another tonn and the con sequent w aich the fould ill afford the color faded from front her tier chicks and a questioning glance came into the cies 01 IOU ol are troubled miss landh landis per haps I 1 mai be able to help you out suggested the principal in iiii 1 plen pleasant sant oke witt lie ile had lind reid in ill her tier face the problems that confronted her tell me what that you did last lart beir on the ath of june I 1 was not here then I 1 came at the same time you did mr lir at the opening of the fall term in sep the principal drew it sheet of paper front a anwer in his desk and studied the lonni ltd memoranda be lie bad had mide of the for hag d iy ay he ile looked and hai hi broun bron eis ets might caught hers bers with one of his ills rare smiles 1 I se s e that your class Is not called upon to perform many deeds of patriotism on the lith they are to assemble in lit the ball hall with the rest of the school and thre throe of your children aro are to recite poems about their your our flag ling miss I 1 andis except for joining in the ringing singing of patriotic songs they hive nothing else to do burely surely you cannot object to drilling them in cheso poems and the music instructor ill tike charge of the sing ing 1 miss I 1 arse se and stood before him tier red lips cur buning ing 1 I do to object to carrying out these in mr freeman but I 1 must submit because I 1 am afraid I 1 will 10 lose e my position lut but you don t know h how OW I 1 hato hate this country a i a turned flash ing elpi on listii in lit which all the gen tlene i ha he I 1 give place to contempt 1 I wish you bould tell me why you hate it he in calmly cannot understand she said bitterly I 1 I 1 was born and bred in angland enill fire yeara years ago I 1 had net er seen america then my mother again and she married an american whom I 1 detested lie ile talked of nothing save his tits country Its elze size in its superiority its wealth and he waved the american flag morning noon and 1 I night 11 he waa was a broker and his bu buil illness ness was in nw N iw w york so we came here and I 1 went to a finishing school where bere the girls laughed nt at my plain clothes and mocked my reent then my ray mothers husband lost everything ery thing he possessed and shortly after hie his failure died leaving ui us almost penniless lie ile had lost ray my mother a attic fortune tune us as well as his own alj 1 lewer went 1 to lo normal college and quail fled ed for a teacher and this is 1 my first position tion I 1 afford to lobe au it mr sir Ire freeman ewan and so I 1 dball do my best to drill my pupil in the patriotic lore of their country countr for that is what but I 1 am paid to do as miss I 1 has reminded me we I 1 laul aut I 1 reeman alc oi ned the door 1 I am sorry you fe fit fea A I 1 tat tu at nay ay miss landia but I 1 hope after aahl e aou a will learn to like we americana americans if there Is althin an thin thins I 1 can a do to make the day less bitter continued the principal tell me how to do it then t excuse acu me from wearing one of the little silk flags in my hair ane aa gown said sald the youngest teach promptly you are excused froni from doing anything so distasteful said paul a little sternly thank sou mr freeman lou IOU have hate bean more than kind breathed angela as she hurried down the cor 0 0 6 0 the other teachers st secretly betl smiled when they beard heard miss 1 landis conscientiously drilling her clasi class in the I 1 lag day orations mr freeman deserves credit for bringing her to task remarked fleming primly she waa was positively insolent to me I 1 ou may expect to see her treating her adopted country with respect hereafter on tho the morning of the alth of june the assembly hall of the lakeland La beland school was as tilled filled with proud parents and relative of the pupils the room was draped with tings great and ani small all and the platform was decorated with large bunches of daisies and snowballs balls behind the principals chair there hung against the wall mall a large flag made of ot flowers red and white geraniums and dark blue ageratum the teachers were gowned in white and inch tach one wore a tiny elk silk tag in her hair and on her breast that Is nil ave save angela landis she looked very lovely in her gown of white india muslin but her golden hair was quite unadorned she sat ant on the platform near miss ri fleming eming and she could not help overhearing that ladys caustic remarks to another teach er who sat in the row behind the music instructor was leading the assembled pupils in fie vie hearty singing of the star spangled banner a and unthinkingly angelas rich voice joined in the refrain 41 somehow her heart had lost it bitterness for the country of her adoption and the sight of the stars and strips seemed to bring back mo most at pleasingly her interview with the principal of ind school and when nhen she met him in corridors or on the wide ide stairs her tier soft glanco glance fell beneath the steady light in his brow n eyes she dreaded tb ahse se silent ilent meetings gg with ith their I 1 lent ent of sn sweet beet t emotion motion th tint it she could not define the ml had lad left the platform and nta was cou firring with some one in the audience mien hen he turned to retract lila uttus the teachers were ere forming in lint n join their clisse cliss cs 4 ngel i ans wn 4 conspicuous by her lick of and tho the hot color flam 1 it I into tier cheeka as slit realized zed the opt n insult she wis flinging ging at the am anis and stripes under whose krotec 1 aln stu lived and she nr dantly wished abe KUI hid lioi no been so foolish something thin w u is il opening her eyes to a broad cr er vision what she did not know she caught pauls piul a stern condemning glince and grew gren pale after awhile it was as all over an golas gelas carefully trained pupils carried on off nn an honor prize a silk flag to be huns hung behind the teacher teachers s desk and to miss flemings amazement angela gracefully grape fully received it in behalf of her class and proudly carried it when they marched back to their classrooms she was among the first to hasten borne bome and N when hen paul freeman sought her after the exercises were over ehe she was not to be found after fulper that night when the dusk dust wn was filling pilling softly over lakeland i when hen the scent of the locust blossoms was as and the whippoorwill thrilled from gloomy thickets paul freeman left his bo arding house and went down the quiet roid where the ched iio ile siw a it green shaded light in the cottage anti mrs itin ambler amblers s aristocratic out outlined against i dark lark background thin something white flitted across the room and cime into the shadowy porch and sit ait a it down town As the rate gate creaked under bis his touch the white hadow shadow arose and waited until ho he paused at the foot of tha the steps miss I 1 andis hf bo begin I 1 must thank you for oh ob no no she interrupted softly I 1 was thinking of you just now and wishing I 1 could sec eco you I 1 nm ao so sorry what a it little boast I 1 havo have been about the var ua but I 1 do feel differently next ting day iny her tier voice trembled a little for he had mounted the step and liken her tier hinds in his and press ed them to hia his lips with sudden pas alon then be nol ok her it in hia his arms unrest unresisting sting anceli Yn celi he eald said aly you re going to marry nn an Amer american lenn arent you ies es paid sald angela in a email voice nut but how car you want to marry me after I 1 refused to wear the th litolf flags it was go so conspicuous when all the ither were wen wearing ring them you should have insisted on ray my doing so lou IOU were wearing them you weft thena them every day dear lie bald said draw ing her closer the red of your lips I 1 the white of your brow and the blue of your eye eyes those are the color colors of my country our countr country 7 dear whisp na an n I 1 fila gela |