at once introduced the topic which was uppermost in her mind, by the
inquiry:

"Oscar, what is the trouble between you and Willie Davenport?"

"Why," replied Oscar, "he 's been telling stories about me."

"Do you mean false stories?"

"Yes--no--not exactly false, but it was n't true, neither."

"It must have been a singular story, to have been either false nor
true. And as it appears there was but one story, I should like to know
what it was."

"He told Ralph I had to stand up and look at a blackboard an hour."

"Was that false?"

"Yes," said Oscar, for in replying to his mother, of late, he had
usually omitted the "ma'am" (madam) which no well-bred boy will fail to
place after the yes or no addressed to a mother; "yes, it was a lie,
for I need n't have stood there five minutes, if I had n't wanted to."

"Did you stand before the blackboard because you wanted to, or was it
intended as a punishment for not attending to your lesson!"

"Why, I suppose it was meant for a punishment, but the master told me I
might go to my seat, whenever I wanted to study."