It was this that hurt Wiseli, for she could rarely go to school two days in succession, and so she was not able to keep up with the class. One day, when she failed to give a correct answer, the teacher said, "I did not expect that of you, Wiseli; you used to be a good scholar." How it shamed the child, and how she cried all the way home that night, no one but herself realized! It seemed to her that day that no one cared for her after all, and when she got into her little bed at night, she felt too miserable even to pray. But she could not sleep until she had repeated her usual prayer, although it was said almost hopelessly. This happened in July. The following morning Wiseli was standing at the table when the boys went off to school, and she was wondering whether or not she should be allowed to go. The aunt said nothing, and the uncle was not in the room. The aunt had a large washing on hand for that day. Would she be asked to carry it to the trough and help? Yes, she heard her aunt calling, and she was just about to answer when her uncle came in, saying, "Hurry, Wiseli, the boys have gone already. The hay is safe in the barn, and you shall go to school now. You may tell the teacher that you will not be kept out any more for a while, and explain to him that it was because we had so much work on our hands that you had to stay away." Wiseli felt as free as a bird that morning. She knew that she might go to school every day that week, and it was something worth living for. How beautiful the morning was! The birds warbled their care-free notes in the tree tops, the sunlight sparkled on the dewy grass, and the air was fragrant with the perfume of the wild flowers. Wiseli had no time to stop, but she noticed all this beauty as she ran along. That afternoon, just as the school children were about to rush out to their freedom, the teacher asked, "Whose turn is it to care for the schoolroom this week?" "It is Otto's; it is Otto's!" cried the children, and the next moment they were gone. "Otto," said the teacher sternly, "you didn't do your duty here last night. I will overlook it this time, but I want you to see that it does not happen again, or I shall be obliged to enforce the penalty upon you." Otto glanced around the room and saw the nutshells, apple parings, and bits of paper that he was supposed to clean up; then he looked at the children playing out of doors, and the first thing he knew he was among them. The teacher had already left the room. Later, when the children were all gone, Otto stood for a moment watching the golden glow of the evening sky and thought, "If I could only go home now! I would pick my cap full of cherries and take a ride out to the meadow with the hired man; now I have to go to that stuffy room and sweep and dust it."