The Heart's Kingdom

First Mikey, with huge white cambric stork wings, hopped upon the stage

of sward and deposited the brown-wrapped Suckling in a hollow log in the

center, and departed flapping. After that the ceremonial developed

itself into the education that was to flow down upon her defenseless

head at the waving of the wand of Minerva, who was Charlotte with a

tinsel star of wisdom resting rampantly upon her brow. And it came down

upon the Suckling with a vengeance. A whole troop of young letters of

the alphabet, led by small Susan with the large red A upon her fat back,

danced around the Suckling's helplessness and finally backed up to the

audience to spell the word "Reading." Next in hopped a flock of numerals

led by the indefatigable Mikey, which backed up and presented themselves

from one to ten to thus imply the hated science of "Arithmetic."

The Suckling slept on amid delighted gurgles from her mother and

Harriet. She slept through a presentation of the script letters of

"Writing" and was still unconscious when "Geography" in crepe paper,

with flags of all nations, grouped around her. She only awoke when, all

by himself, sturdily, with his head in the air and fairly radiant with

beauty and courage, the Stray marched upon the scene, rolled into a

white roll of paper and girt about with a broad red ribbon sealed upon

his back to represent "Diploma." Silently and intent upon his duty he

walked straight to the Suckling in her log crib, bent over her, crooned

to her reassuringly a second, lifted her in his white arms and backed

off behind a tall laurel bush with her nodding in delight over his

shoulder. The boy was so beautiful and the little scene so tender that

the entire audience caught its breath at its--audacity. A gauntlet had

been thrown into the faces of both the Town and Settlement and they both

understood.

They sat perfectly still with astonishment while the performers were

being massed in the schoolhouse by the young teacher for their final

march out to the steps for the hymn singing with the beloved "Minister,"

which was to conclude the ceremonials.

And while the audience sat awaiting the further presentations to be

made them by their offspring, Mr. Goodloe came out the door and halfway

down the steps. Then suddenly he stopped and looked out over the valley

with such an expression on his face that with one accord his audience

rose and looked with him. And as it looked a groan came that was a

chorus melted into one voice of terror, while all of them stood helpless

with amazement. While we had all been sitting in the curious sweltering

heat, watching with pride a future for our children being foretold for

them by themselves, death had reared itself behind Old Harpeth, coiled

itself into a huge black spiral of thunder and lightning and was driving

down the valley upon Goodloets with a velocity that defied the eyes to

follow. For a long second every man and woman stood rooted to his

foothold on the earth and watched the tornado strike the edge of the

Settlement, smash down the saddlery as if it were a house of cards, and

churn the little tannery into the river. Then as it grasped the roof of

the Last Chance and began twisting it with a roar that grew in volume

every instant, Gregory Goodloe suddenly raised his hand and spoke in a

perfectly calm voice that rang out above the groan of the tortured

shanties of the Settlement which were crashing down against each other.