woe warm bitter days of January and February, keeping reasonubly/was a matter of extreme difficulty -- almost an impossibility. The clothing of that era, though heavy and bulky, was somewhat deficient in insulating properties. The stove that stood near the center of the Little Room -- designated by some wag as the "central heating facility" -- though dependable and efficient most of the time, occasionally developed a temperamental streak -- usually on an exceptionally cold day. For no ascertainable reason, and after a satisfactory earlier performance, it would sputter, smolder, belch smokem and threaten to go out. It always resumed normal behavior about closing time in the afternoon. During very cold days we were permitted to leave our seats in relays and huddle close to the stove for brief thawing- out periods. On zero nights our ink-bottles used to freeze; in the morning, we arrayed them on the stove top to melt the ice. Now and then, by accident or design, someone would fail to remove a cork -- an omission discovered when it blew out and sent a blast of inky steam ceilingward. R@égardless of the temperature, we weren't allowdd to dawdle; the class enjoyed few leisure moments. The day began with the Third Reader group being called to the floor to demons trate their knowledge, or their lack of it, of the subject matter assigned them yesterday for preparation: reading, spelling, and word definitions. All lessons were prepared at home; there were no study periods during school hours. At the end of the quiz, the class returned to their seats to deal with their "sums" -- g term that described various stages of arithmetic. The lower grades in their turn were called up for an assessment of their progress, Afternoons were devoted to geography, history, a smattering of science for the upper grades, and a eontinuation of arithmetic. ' In an unusually short time, I went through the primers and arrived at the First Reader class where I found myself in the company of pupils a

year or two older than I. In the class were: Jennie Darrach, Elsie Brown,