Never Too Late Read Free Page B

them,” corrected Grace.
    â€œThank you, Miss Grace,” said Seffie. “Will it be allright if I write dem on dis paper, Miss Walker?” asked Seffie.
    â€œCertainly, Seffie. You write them and try to do the sum with the pencil while Grace does it in her mind. But you mustn’t say anything until Grace has a chance to say the answer. Then you can see if it is the same as what you have written down.”
    â€œYes’m.”
    â€œAll right, here are the numbers I want you to add together—sixteen plus three plus eight.”
    â€œThat’s easy,” laughed Grace, “that’s . . . let me see . . . it’s twenty-seven.”
    â€œVery good. Is that what you got, Seffie?”
    â€œI didn’t get nuthin’ yet.”
    â€œLet’s do another one. This time, Grace, give Seffie time to get her answer too.—Eleven . . . plus thirteen . . . plus ten.”
    It was silent a minute. Seffie wrote the three numbers on the paper and then began to add up the first columns as Miss Walker had taught her. When she had the sum completed she glanced up.
    â€œI think I got it,” she said.
    â€œHow about you, Grace,” said Miss Walker. “What is your answer?”
    â€œThirty-four.”
    â€œThat’s what I got too!” exclaimed Seffie.
    â€œVery good, girls. Let’s do a few more. Then I have a surprise for you.”
    â€œWhat surprise, Miss Walker?” asked Grace excitedly.
    â€œLet’s do our sums first, then I shall tell you.”
    Fifteen minutes later, the governess set aside the sheet of arithmetic problems.
    â€œNow for the surprise I promised. Your parents want you to begin learning another language, Grace.”
    â€œWhat language?”
    â€œThey said I could let you decide. Since there are only two languages other than English I know, you can choose either Latin or French.”
    â€œSay something in them so I know what they sound like.”
    â€œAll right . . . hmm, let me see . . . Salve—si vales optime valeo. Meum nomen est Marie Walker . And then . . . Enchanté de faire votre connaissance. Je m’appelle Marie Walker.”
    â€œWhich was which?” giggled Grace. “I liked the second one much better. It sounded soft and nice.”
    â€œThat was French.”
    â€œThen I want to learn to speak French.”
    â€œIt sounded like I used to hear people talk on the plantation where I come from before,” said Seffie.
    â€œThat was probably Cajun French,” said Miss Walker. “Many people in Louisiana speak it.”
    â€œWhat is that?” asked Grace.
    â€œIt is a dialect of French, brought here in the 1700s by the French Acadians when they were deported from their homeland, which is now a province of Canada.”
    â€œMay we begin today, Miss Walker?” said Grace excitedly. “I want to learn to say what you just said.”
    â€œIn a little while, Grace, my dear. But right now, you look a little pale. I think perhaps you should take a rest. Come, Seffie, help me get Miss Grace to her bed.”
    Unfortunately, the fever had taken a greater toll on Grace’s strength than the doctor had realized. Slowly its effects began to return. They had not progressed but two or three months with the new French lessons, which Seffie seemed to have more aptitude for than Grace, before lessons had to be suspended for two weeks.
    Seffie was told nothing except that Grace was sick and there would be no more lessons for a while. She was kept busy around the house doing other jobs. When Miss Walker returned and they resumed lessons, Grace looked thinner and more pale than before. She could hardly sit up in bed.
    This time the lessons lasted only a week and were discontinued again.
    Again Seffie was told nothing. But from the whispers and worried expressions and silences, the coming and going of the doctor, and the look of sadness on Mrs. Meisner’s face, she knew the