He always listened till he heard it drop, then he ran down and brought it back and pushed it through again.

He did this till he was tired, and then he brought the ball and laid it at Miss Laura's feet.
We both had been taught a number of tricks.

We could sneeze and cough, and be dead dogs, and say our prayers, and stand on our heads, and mount a ladder and say the alphabet,--this was the hardest of all, and it took Miss Laura a long time to teach us.

We never began till a book was laid before us.

Then we stared at it, and Miss Laura said, "Begin, Joe and Billy--say A." For A, we gave a little squeal.