"Papa, which is my desk ?" "They are exactly alike," he said.

"I thought of having yours made a trifle lower than the others, but concluded to give you a foot-rest instead, as you will soon grow tall enough to want it the height it now is.

Max and Lulu, shall we give your little sister the first choice, as she is the youngest ?" "Yes, indeed, papa! yes, indeed!" they both answered with hearty good will, Max adding, "And Lu must have the next, if you please, papa." That matter being speedily settled, the next question was when school was to begin.

They were all three asking it.
"You may have your choice--we will put it to vote--whether we will begin to-morrow morning, or not till Monday," replied their father; "to-morrow, you will remember, is Thursday: we will begin school regularly at nine o'clock each morning; and it is to last four hours, not including five or ten minutes at the end of every hour for rest." "That'll be ever so nice!" was Lulu's comment.
"That's so," said Max.

"I see you are not going to be hard on a fellow, papa." "Wait till you are sure," said his father: "there's to be no idling, no half attention to study, in those hours; you are to give your whole minds to your lessons, and I shall be very strict in exacting perfect recitations." "Do you mean, sir, that we are to repeat the answers in the book, word for word ?" "No, not at all.