The story of my life ; or, The sunshine and shadow of seventy years / by Mary A. Livermore ... with hitherto unrecorded incidents and recollections of three years' experience as an army nurse in the great Civil War, and reminiscences of twenty-five years' experiences on the lecture platform ... to which is added six of her most popular lectures ... with portraits and one hundred and twenty engravings from designs by eminent artists ...

I AM SUMMONED TO MY TEACHER'9S DESK. 0

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re-writing them, and then copying them carefully into
my blank book. II have no doubt that my composition,
while in nowise remarkable, was unlike most of those of
my companions.
All the compositions were returned to their authors after
correction, except mine, - and I was summoned to the master's desk.
"11From what book did you copy your composition? " was
his courteous salute.
"I1 understood that we were to write original compositions," was my reply.
"11That was the requirement, but you haven't complied
with it, it appears."
There was no rejoinder. Nothing stung, me like an unjust accusation or an invasion of my rights, and I was too
angry to speak in my defense.
"I am going to offer a reward to any member of the
school who will discover the book or magazine from which
you have copied this composition, and some of them will
find it."
"I1 will persuade my father to double your reward when
they produce it," was my answer
"11Has your father seen this?"
"44Yes, and he helped me write it"; and I told bun
what assistance my father had rendered me.
The school was called to order, and my case stated, as if
I were a convicted plagiarist. "Now, I will read this comnposition to the school, that they may see how improbable is
Miss Rice's statement that she wrote it herself." And he
read it admirably, for he was a good reader.