After supper, everyone settled in the great room. Joe got the checkers game out and gave it to Laura and Mary who set up to play a game. Cat decided to ask Ben about something that had been on her mind since Monday night. "Pa, can I ask you something? It's important."
"Of course you can Sweetheart. What's on your mind?"
"Not here, outside."
"It's much too cold to sit outside and talk. Why don't we go upstairs to your room and talk there? I like going into your room to look at the pictures of your parents. That reminds me. I need to look in the attic because I think there are more pictures up there."
"Cat," said Adam.
"Yes?"
"When you and Pa finish talking, please go into my room and bring my guitar downstairs. Since we have company, we may as well do some singing."
"Ok."
"Have you been playing those chords I taught you?"
"Yes. I played them this morning before breakfast and just before I did my homework."
"Very good. Keep doing that and you'll have them memorized and your fingers will stop hurting in no time at all."
Ben and Cat sat on her bed. He hugged her and asked, "What's on your mind Kitten?"
"When we were reading Little Women Monday night, I found out that Mary and Laura's Ma and Pa don't have much money. I want to give them some but the only money I have is my Christmas money and the money I'm saving for Uncle Matt's birthday present. Can I please take some money out of the bank tomorrow?"
"I am very proud of you for wanting to help your friends, but you may not take any money out of the bank."
"Why not? They need it more than I do."
"I understand, but just giving someone money like that is called charity. When you give someone charity like that, it makes them feel like you think that they can't take care of themselves or their family."
"But I want to help them."
Ben hugged her again and kissed the top of her head. "I know you do Sweetheart and we are helping them. As part of their Christmas gifts, we are keeping their hayloft full and making sure they have enough grain for their horses. By not having to buy food for his horses and cow, Charles will have more money to spend on seed for his fields and to replace broken equipment. Once the weather is warm enough, we are going to make their barn and house bigger. If you remember, Adam drew plans to add another bedroom to their house and make the kitchen bigger. Also, when you gave Ginger to Mary and Laura, you made it so that their father doesn't have to go to town twice a day to take the girls to and from school. That will give him more time to work on his farm after the snow melts and right now, it's giving him more time to spend with Caroline and Carrie. Hop Sing said something about making a larger vegetable garden for them too. When you give someone something important as part of a Christmas gift, it doesn't make them feel bad. Now, we have company downstairs so why don't you get Adam's guitar and we'll spend some time with our guest before you girls need to go to bed."
Cat took Adam's guitar downstairs and everybody sang for quite a while. Ben looked at the clock and said, "Girls, it's time for bed. Hoss will be up to read with you shortly." He laughed at the chorus of "AWWWWWWWWW" that came from the girls. "I know you want to stay up longer, but you have school in the morning and need a good night's sleep. Say goodnight and go upstairs."
Once the girls were upstairs, Susan asked, "Why does Hoss need to read with the girls?"
"That's something I started when Adam was very young," replied Ben. "I read to him at first and once he learned to read, we read the books together. I would read a page and then he would. We would read a chapter a night while we were traveling west. I did the same thing with Hoss and Joe and now I'm doing it with Cat. Adam, Joe, and I have each read a book with her and Hoss decided he wanted to read Little Women with her, Laura, and Mary."
"What a wonderful thing to do with your children. I wish more parents would do that. Then maybe more of my students would be more interested in reading than they are now."
"That's true, however don't forget that unlike in Philadelphia, many people here can barely read and write. There may not have been any schools where they grew up or they were needed to help their parents on their farm, including working in the fields and taking care of younger siblings. Some of the children in your classroom are the first in their families to attend school."
"I wasn't aware of that. Thank you for telling me."
"You're welcome, but I'm surprised your brother didn't tell you when you accepted the teaching position."
"John probably assumed I knew about that. Or he didn't tell me because he didn't want me to turn the teaching job down, something I wouldn't have done. I love teaching and the fact that someone from a family is finally able to attend school motivates me to do the best job I can."
Ben went upstairs to check on the girls a little while after Hoss finished reading with them. Finding all three of them asleep, he went back downstairs and said, "Now that the girls are asleep, Susan, please tell us why you drove out here tonight. I know it wasn't just to tell me something you could have told the girls tomorrow."
"I needed to get away from Margaret's incessant whining about how unfair it is that the boys are being punished for their actions. Apparently destroying school property and the things they said about you and Cat only warrant a good scolding, not punishment. I don't know what my nephews did today, but Margaret is extremely upset that you are buying your feed from Carson City instead of from John. She's afraid you're going to tell all of the other ranchers to buy their feed in Carson City also and that they'll lose the store. She also complained about how embarrassed she was when she had to go to the jail with Sheriff Coffee and John to see the boys he has locked up. She just doesn't seem to understand that if she and John don't start disciplining the boys now, they're going to end up in the Virginia City jail, in prison, or dead. I told her that as much as I love my nephews, I was tired of them disrespecting me. I also told her that if I wasn't getting married at the end of the current school term, I would move into the teacher's house because I don't want to be around them any more than necessary. You can imagine her reaction when I said that."
"I made the decision to buy my feed from Carson City last night and the boys' actions today convinced me I was doing the right thing. John and Margaret brought the boys out here this morning to apologize for what they said yesterday. However, instead of making a proper apology, both of them had their hands behind their backs with their fingers crossed. I have raised three children and am now raising my sister's daughter. I know what it means to children when they have their fingers crossed behind their backs. I told Margaret that I would not be buying from them until she starts disciplining the boys and teaching them right from wrong, they will not be getting any business from the Ponderosa. That being said, I will not tell the other ranchers not to buy from your brother. Unless someone asks, I don't intend telling anyone that I am not buying from John.
When the girls came home from school today, I asked Mary and Laura if Jackson and Seth used to misbehave when Abigail Meyers, she was Abigail Jones then, was the teacher. Mary said that Abigail kept the boys separated and when they misbehaved, one of them had to sit with the first year students and the other had to sit next to her desk. They were teased by the older boys whenever that happened. I don't know if that will work for you or not, but you may want to try it when they return to school next week."
"I am not surprised by my nephews' actions. Margaret thinks you should ignore their rudeness and still buy your feed from them. Personally, I'm glad you are buying it from Carson City. Your actions may just make her realize that the boys aren't perfect and need to be taught right from wrong. Thank you for telling me what Abigail Meyers did with the boys. I will try it and see if it makes a difference. I do know that John used his belt on them yesterday and again today. One of them is working in the store while the other is doing chores at home. They will be switching off every day and are on restriction until they have earned enough money to repay John for what they have cost him. Each boy has to earn half of what they owe their father and he's paying them ten cents a day on the days they work in the store, so it's going to be a long time before they have any freedom. If other ranchers decide not to buy from John until he straightens the boys out, they may be fifteen before they're off restriction."
Abel decided to change the subject. "I am glad you decided to come out here tonight because you saved me a trip to town to talk with you tomorrow. I have decided to move her permanently and will be returning to Boston in the spring to dispose of my belongings that neither Adam nor I want and to close up my house. I want to take Cat with me and that means she'll be out of school for at least a month. This could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for her. Besides showing her around Boston, I plan on taking her to Lexington, Concord, Philadelphia, Washington, and Cambridge of course to see where Adam went to school. Time permitting, I would also like to take her to Williamsburg and Yorktown. I wanted to ask you if you would permit her to be out of school that long. Of course Adam and I would help her with her lessons so she wouldn't fall behind and you may want to assign her a project to do about her travels. I realize I am asking a lot and don't expect you to make a decision now. I'm not even sure if you need the school board's permission for her to be out of school for that length of time. I plan to leave the last week of February so that we'll be back before Easter."
"That is a wonderful thing to want to do for Cat. You're right. That could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for her and I wouldn't want to deny her that chance. What is your opinion Ben?"
"I think it's a wonderful opportunity and since Adam and Abel would be helping Cat with her school work, although I'll miss her terribly, I have no objection to her going. I would recommend talking to Gerald Miller to see if that something the school board would need to approve. If it is, I will tell them what I just told you but abstain from voting. I don't want my vote to influence the other members' votes."
"I will go and talk to Mr. Miller after school tomorrow and let you know what he says. If he and/or the school board approve of Cat being gone that long, I'll think of an extra project for her to do. I may have her do a presentation on the places she visits. Now, if there's someplace I can work, I have papers to grade before I go to bed."
"Since there's a school board meeting tomorrow night, which may be the last one before spring, talking with Gerald tomorrow will be perfect timing. If he says the board needs to discuss it, you may want to attend the meeting and express your opinion. You're more than welcome to use my desk or the dining table, whichever you prefer. Did you decide if you want to sleep in the downstairs bedroom or one upstairs?"
"Thank you for the offer of using your desk. An upstairs bedroom will be just fine."
"It's my pleasure. Adam, Hoss, Joe, would one of you please carry Susan's things upstairs and put an extra blanket in the room? Would the other two please bring in some logs and get a fire started in that room? We can't have our guest sleeping in a cold bedroom. While you're at it, please check the fire in Cat's room. It was low when I checked on the girls."
Susan sat at Ben's desk grading papers. When she got to Cat and Laura's spelling papers she sighed and started mumbling. "Ah girls...fourth graders...I had hoped..."
Ben heard her and walked over to his desk. "Is there a problem with Catherine and Laura's work?"
"It's their spelling paper. Like most fourth grade students, they're having problems with the i before e rule. I had hoped that I would have one fourth grade class that didn't have that problem, but it just wasn't meant to be. Now that Seth and Jackson won't be there to disrupt things, I'll go over it with the girls again tomorrow. Their spelling test isn't until Friday so they have tomorrow to get it right. I'm sure that with a little review, they'll do fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Relax Ben. They just got their spelling words Monday and made some common mistakes on today's assignment. We'll go over the rule again tomorrow and they'll be fine. You know how confusing the i before e rule is. I've been teaching for several years and still make mistakes. I don't expect perfection from my students, but I do expect them to do the best they can. Both girls have excellent grades and the mistakes they made on today's work aren't going to hurt them at all. It won't even hurt them if they fail the test on Friday, which they won't."
"How is Cat doing with her arithmetic?"
"She's continuing to improve. She and Laura are learning how to multiply fractions this week & both of them have caught onto the process already. I don't anticipate any problems when they start dividing fractions. Multiplying and dividing mixed numbers may prove challenging, but I'll worry about that when the time comes. I wasn't planning to send out grades for a few more weeks, but since the almanac says to expect a blizzard any day now, I'll send them out on Friday and give the students on the outlying farms and ranches eight weeks work in case they get snowed in and can't get to town.
I'm sure that Mr. Miller won't have a problem with Cat going to Boston so besides the eight weeks work in the event she can't get to school after a blizzard, I'll write out her work until Easter and give it to you on Sunday. I just thought of something. It might be best if you talked to Mr. Miller about Cat going to Boston. I'll act surprised if he brings it up at the meeting and that way if John tells Margaret, she can't say I'm giving preferential treatment to somebody else's child over her two. We both know that's exactly what she would do if I bring it up. If I'm asked, I will say that I think it would be a wonderful opportunity for any child and since Adam and your father-in-law will be helping Cat with her lessons, I have no objection to her missing that much school."
"You're right of course. When I suggested that you talk to Gerald, I didn't even think about how Margaret would react. I'll talk to him tomorrow morning when I go and buy the new readers for the girls. Now I had better let you finish your work so you can get a good night's sleep."
While Ben was talking to Susan, Hoss and Joe each brought an arm load of wood into the house. "Adam, what room did you put Miss Susan's things in?"
"I gave her the bedroom next to Grandfather's."
"Thanks. We'll have a fire going in there in no time at all."
Susan finished grading papers, put everything back in its bag, and joined the family in the great room for a cup of coffee before going to bed.
Abel had been listening to the conversation and asked, "Benjamin, why is it necessary for you to make two trips to town tomorrow? The girls are nine and eleven and quite capable of buying their own school books. You can talk to Mr. Miller about Catherine missing school so I can take her to Boston with me before your meeting tomorrow night. I am positive that if I ask Laura and Mary, they will tell me that their father just gives them money for school books and supplies when the girls need them."
"Grandfather's right," said Hoss. "Ya promised the family to quit bein' so overprotective of little sister when they was here for Christmas, but school ain't been back in for four days an' yore already startin' again. Ifn ya don't quit, me and Adam and Joe are gonna take her back to Dodge. Then the only time we'll ever git see her is ifn we go to Dodge or Rip's fort when she's there."
"Do you remember what Cat told Andy?" asked Joe. "She said that she doesn't think you and Adam love her or want her here. Now Adam's been working on his relationship with her and it's gotten a lot better, but if you don't stop being so overprotective, we're going to lose her. What are you going to do when we wake up one morning to find Cat gone and a blizzard outside? Blizzards can last for days and you know as well as we do it isn't safe to be out in one. That's why we have the ropes tied all around the yard, so we can still take care of the animals and get meat from the smokehouse while one is happening. Cat may know how to get to Rip's fort, but how is she going to find it with all of the landmarks she learned buried under more than six feet of snow, assuming she survives the blizzard? Hoss is the best tracker I know and I don't even think he could find her trail after a blizzard."
Ben looked at Adam and asked, "Aren't you going to add anything to the conversation?"
"No. I think Grandfather and my brothers have said everything that needs to be said. I'm just glad I'm not the one who will need to send telegrams to the rest of the family if we lose Cat to a blizzard."
"Alright. All of you have convinced me. I'm being overprotective again. I'll give the girls money for their new readers before they leave for school in the morning."
"You might want to ask them if they need new tablets, pencils and slate pencils too," suggested Adam. "It's been a while since Cat asked for any."
"That is an excellent idea. Thank you son. If I don't remember to ask them, please remind me at breakfast."
"I am tired," said Susan. "You have no idea how much energy it takes to teach school. I would greatly appreciate it if someone would show me to my room. I would like to do some reading before going to bed."
"Of course," said Adam. "I'll be more than happy to do that." He took her upstairs and showed her where everyone's room was, including her own. "If you need anything during the night, feel free to knock on any of our doors and we'll be more than happy to help you. I'll fill your pitcher and bring it back after you've had time to change."
When Adam returned with the pitcher full of water, Susan said, "I was surprised to learn that your father is being so overprotective of Catherine. Has he been that way ever since he adopted her?"
"No he hasn't. It started one day when he, Joe, and Cat were returning from town with a buckboard full of supplies. Cat was driving the wagon and Joe was sitting next to her when a rabbit spooked the horses. She couldn't stop them and became frightened."
"I can imagine how frightened she must have been. Did she ever get the horses stopped?"
"Joe helped her stop them. She didn't want to drive the wagon anymore, but Joe told her that if she didn't, she'd always be afraid to drive anything, including the buggy. Cat drove the buckboard home with no more problems but after that, Pa was afraid she would get hurt if he wasn't right next to her. So he started being overprotective and not wanting to let her do anything. Grandfather has been keeping on him to stop being so overprotective. So have Hoss, Joe, and myself, as well as the Ingalls, Kings, Devlins, Martins and Longs. While the family was here for Christmas, Cat's uncles told Pa straight out that if he didn't stop his nonsense as they called it, they were going to nullify the adoption and she would never set foot on the Ponderosa again."
"I can imagine how Catherine has been reacting to your father being overprotective and hope the family can make your father realize that he will end up hurting your sister by continuing to do so. He can't keep her from ever getting hurt. She could be pecked by a chicken while gathering eggs or drop a frying pan on her foot while helping Hop Sing in the kitchen. Accidents happen and people get hurt. That is a part of life and nobody can do anything about it. Now what happened between you and Cat to break your relationship?"
"I've done several things that I'm not proud of. It's getting late and you have a school full of children to teach tomorrow, so I'll let you get some sleep and tell you about what I've done another day. Maybe I'll escort you back to town in the morning and tell you then. Goodnight Susan. Remember, if you need anything during the night, feel free to knock on any of our doors."
"You're not putting me off. Come in here, sit down and tell me what you did to break your relationship with your sister. It's not that late and I don't have to read before going to sleep."
Adam sighed. He really did not want to discuss how poorly he had treated his little sister but Susan would not take no for an answer. He walked into the room, pulled the chair out from under the dressing table, sat down, and asked, "What do you want to know?"
"I want to know how you have managed to break your relationship with your sister in less than four months. Catherine is a very sweet girl who is struggling with adapting to having a family and you and your father are making things harder for her. I know he's being overprotective and that's part of the problem, but I need to know what you have done. I can't help fix things if I don't know how they got broken."
"In a way it started when Cat was almost five." He told Susan the story of what happened when he and Hoss went to Arizona to go with Rip to take Cat back to Dodge.
"So you decided that even though she promised the Indian boy not to run off, you couldn't trust her to keep her word and kept following her all around the fort, which I'm sure isn't very large or she wouldn't have wandered off to begin with. I'm not surprised that she kicked you. I would have also. How was her behavior on the trip to Dodge? Did she keep her word?"
"She did her best, but when something interesting caught her eye, she would try and investigate it. The last straw for all three of us was when she tried playing with some wolf pups. So I picked her up, put her on my horse and made her ride behind me the rest of the way to Dodge."
"That was understandable. She was four and wanted to investigate everything but as an adult, it was your responsibility to keep her safe, which you did. That was five years ago. What have you done since your father adopted Catherine?"
Adam told Susan about everything else he had done, including saying he was going to take the money Matt and Rip had given Cat to send them telegrams, telling her every day after school that she had to do her chores and homework, going through her room to make sure she didn't have anything he didn't think she should have, how he treated her after finding her in town looking under the saloon door with Tommy and Billy, and trying to find out what she was doing after school at Gerald Miller's shop.
"You really have broken your relationship, haven't you? It can be fixed, but it's going to take time and a lot of hard work on your part. Did you even pay attention when Cat told you that the boys had threatened to burn down the Ponderosa along with her friends' farms and ranches while everyone was sleeping?"
"I remember her saying something about they had threatened to do something bad, but I decided she was just saying that to keep from being punished."
"I see. Why did you punish her instead of bringing her home to your father?"
"Because he let Joe get away with murder when he was a boy and I was bound and determined to keep Cat from getting away with the same things too."
"But did Joe really get away with murder or were you just imagining it? How old was he when you went away to college?"
"He had just turned six."
"So he was ten when you returned home, but you were expecting him to still be six, weren't you? Your youngest brother was doing things that ten year old boys do, but you were acting like he was only six and thought he shouldn't be doing them, didn't you?"
"I'm not sure what you're getting at."
"What kind of childhood did you have?"
"I didn't have one. Pa left Boston with me when I was an infant and we spent most of my childhood traveling west in a wagon. Pa married Hoss' mother when I was five and he was born when I was six. Inger was killed in an Indian attack when Hoss was only a few months old, so I had to look after him while Pa was driving the wagon. I was eight when we settled here and I had to watch Hoss while Pa got the ranch going and worked it. I was ten when he married Marie and since he had her to watch Hoss, I had to help with the ranch."
"I see. I think I know what your problem with your two youngest siblings is. You're probably going to get angry when I tell you, but if you think about it long and hard, I think you'll agree that I am right. Your problem is that you were jealous that Joe had a childhood where he could go off and spend time fishing and playing with friends, because your childhood was spent traveling west in a wagon, taking care of Hoss, and then helping your father with the ranch. You also have the same problem with Cat. If you didn't, you would have listened to her when she said that William and Thomas threatened to do something bad if she didn't go into town and look under the saloon doors with them. Think about it. Your sister grew up in Dodge and lived with her uncle in the Marshall's office. Dodge is a big town and I'm sure Matt is kept busy. How many opportunities did she have to look under saloon doors at night? If Catherine didn't do it then, when she could walk to a saloon, why would she ride to Virginia City in the middle of the night and risk severe punishment to look under saloon doors? Here's something else to think about. You may not have had the childhood that Joe did and Cat has, but you accomplished something many people only dream about. A young man with very little formal education was admitted to Harvard University and graduated at the top of his class. Now, I really would like to read for a little bit before going to sleep. Goodnight Adam. Think about what I said and tell me if you think I'm right when I see you at church on Sunday."
Adam said goodnight to Susan, checked on the girls, and walked back downstairs. He noticed that his brothers were no longer in the room and assumed they had gone to bed.
"Did you and Susan have a nice talk? You were up there for quite a while." asked Ben.
"Yes we did. If she wasn't getting married in the spring, I would want to get to know her better. She seems to know me better than I do myself. She said some things that I need to spend time thinking about. When I see her in church on Sunday, I'm supposed to tell her if she was right or not."
"Then I highly recommend you do that thinking," said Abel. "You've got a long ride to and from Carson City tomorrow, so you should be able to do some thinking then."
"You're right. The ride to and from Carson City will give me a lot of time to think. I'm going to do some reading before going to bed. Goodnight. I'll see you in the morning."
Just then, Cat came downstairs wearing her hat, coat, mittens, and slippers. "Where are you going Squirt?" asked Adam.
"I have to get some wood. It's cold in my room. The fire is out and there's no wood for it."
"I'm sorry there's no wood for your fire, however it is much too cold for you to go outside in your nightgown and slippers. Give me a minute to get my coat and gloves and I'll get the wood for you. Besides that, my arms are longer than yours so I can carry more wood and you can get back to sleep sooner. Why don't you stand here and open the door for me once I get the wood? Then I'll be able to carry enough to keep that fire going long after you've left for school in the morning."
"Ok. I'll open the door for you."
"Thank you. I'll be right back." When Adam returned with the wood, Cat let him in and he said, "Why don't you go, sit by the fireplace for a few minutes while I get the fire restarted in your room? Then you'll be nice and warm when you go back to bed."
Cat sat by the fireplace and Hop Sing brought her a cup of hot cocoa. "Hot cocoa keep you warm and help you go to sleep faster."
"Thank you Hop Sing. I love your hot cocoa. It's almost as good as your chocolate cake."
"Missy Cat welcome. Now I take hot cocoa upstails to Missy Mary and Missy Laura."
When Adam and Hop Sing returned to the great room, Cat was almost asleep by the fireplace. Adam picked her up and said, "Come on Squirt. Let's get you back to bed."
"Not sleepy. Gonna stay up all night."
"Of course you are. And I am going to jump my horse over the moon the next time it is full. You need to go back to bed. You have school in the morning."
"Not going to school ever again. Already know everything."
"I'll let you and Pa argue that one out in the morning. Right now, you need to go back to bed. You're half asleep now and will probably be sound asleep before your head hits your pillow." He carried her up to her room and as he had predicted, Cat was asleep before he got her into bed.
Once Adam had carried Cat upstairs, Ben, Abel, and Hop Sing laughed about Cat's attempts to keep from going back to bed and to school. "She doesn't quit, does she?" laughed Abel.
"No she doesn't," answered Ben. "But at least she's consistent. If she tries to say she already knows everything and doesn't have to go to school tomorrow morning, I think I'll give her the arithmetic problems I gave Joe when he was fifteen."
"Missy Cat might say paper is foolishment and throw paper in fire," said Hop Sing. "I lemember Little Joe tlying to do same thing."
"Don't be that cruel early in the morning. Just give her the choice of going to school or staying home and working all day. I'm sure the barn needs to be cleaned and I know that Hop Sing can find enough work to keep Cat busy for a long time."
"Hop Sing always have mole than enough wolk to do. Floors need swept and scrubbed. Rugs need beating. Silver need polishing. Laundry need washing. Whole house need dusting. Enough work to keep Missy Cat busy for long time."
"Abel Stoddard, you old pirate! Where did you learn to be so devious?" asked Ben.
"My parents did that with me and my siblings and Margaret and I used to do that with Elizabeth when she didn't want to go to school. It worked every time. My brothers, sisters and I didn't want to do all of the chores our parents said needed doing and neither did Elizabeth. Attending school won out over doing hated chores every time. It saved a lot of arguing and being punished for being disrespectful."
Adam returned to the great room still wearing his coat and gloves. "Well, my brothers made sure they had wood for the fireplace in their rooms, but they didn't think about the rest of the family. Besides Susan's room, the only other rooms that had wood in them were theirs. The fires are out in the others so I've got to bring in some wood and get the rooms warmed up before any of us can go to bed."
"Give me a minute to get my coat and gloves and I'll help you," said Abel. When Adam started to argue he said, "Don't argue with me Adam. I am perfectly capable of carrying some logs. Who do you think carries the wood into my house in Boston, the tooth fairy?"
"Well no, but I figured you had someone doing it for you. Besides that, you're a guest and don't need to help bring in firewood."
"I may be a guest right now Grandson, but I am also family and will help when I need to. Now are you going to stand there arguing with me or are you going to let me get my coat and gloves?"
"Go ahead and get your coat and gloves. I'll wait and we can bring the firewood in together."
"I thought you'd see things my way. I'll be back in a few minutes."