to keep from laughing, for they knew, before it was read, what it was
about. The schoolmaster had to bite his lips to keep from smiling a
little, too.

Clara did not call any names. But she wrote such a composition about
"_My Pretty Kitten_" that anybody could see it was meant for
Caroline. The selfish girl saw it, as well as the rest, and before
school was out, she burst into tears, she felt so badly. But the
composition did her good. She improved wonderfully after that.




X.

"I DON'T KNOW."


How difficult it is for many people to say these words. They don't
like to own that they are ignorant of anything. They want to make you
think that they know everything. When you ask them a hard question,
instead of saying right out, plumply and honestly, "I don't know,"
they will try to trump up some answer that will not expose their
ignorance. And oh, what wretched work they sometimes make with their
answers. They make perfect fools of themselves.

People never appear well, among those of good sense, who attempt to
pass themselves off as knowing more than they do. It is not to be
expected that any one person can know everything; and why should you,
or anybody else, be ashamed to own that you can't tell all about this