I was not reproached for going into hiding at bedtime, and the next day I was allowed to take part in the Russian lesson.
Alas! there were not many lessons more.

Long before we had exhausted Reb' Isaiah's learning, my sister and I had to give up our teacher, because the family fortunes began to decline, and luxuries, such as schooling, had to be cut off.

Isaiah the Scribe taught us, in all, perhaps two terms, in which time we learned Yiddish and Russian, and a little arithmetic.

But little good we had from our ability to read, for there were no books in our house except prayer-books and other religious writings, mostly in Hebrew.

For our skill in writing we had as little use, as letter-writing was not an everyday exercise, and idle writing was not thought of.