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On Christmas morning (or rather the Sat. before each of us found some little token under our plate. A very pretty ribbon for the necks was given to each of the teachers, and something comical besides. Miss Wood had a sweet potato in the form of a vase with a sprig of rice stuck up in it - accompanied by the lines copied on the other side of this. You see she is partial to sweet potato and rice, while Miss Hillard who is very fond of the other kind had a card with a puzzle on which was to be deciphered. The independent Irishman departed with a bag of excellent potato. I have been laughed at and scolded a great deal because I study so much, so a little Elementary Arithmetic (Emersons, like John Eddies) was sticking out from under my plate with these funny lines. We call each other pet names often. Mine is Evitt - little Jennie

   break in text -- see below

first gave it me because she could not well pronounce my name. Miss Wood we call Woodsy and Miss Duncan is Duckey. You see our names are brought in these rimes. Daisy is the name of the woman who washes for us, Pinkney, of our cook, Dart, Townsend and Mishow the boys who form a part of the family and who do the sweeping dusting fire kindling bell ringing, gate locking and unclear jobs at school - marketry table waiting wood splitting stove blacking &c. for the family

  written upside-down in break noted above:

"Evitt, - lest you get lazy or sick We give you another arithmetic When that you've learned, if more you seek We'll send you a book that's full of Greek