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8For reasons unfathomable to the most experienced prophets in MaycombCounty, autumn turned to winter that year. We had two weeks of the coldestweather since 1885, Atticus said. Mr. Avery said it was written on the RosettaStone that when children disobeyed their parents, smoked cigarettes and madewar on each other, the seasons would change: Jem and I were burdened with theguilt of contributing to the aberrations of nature, thereby causing unhappiness toour neighbors and discomfort to ourselves.Old Mrs. Radley died that winter, but her death caused hardly a ripple—theneighborhood seldom saw her, except when she watered her cannas. Jem and Idecided that Boo had got her at last, but when Atticus returned from the Radleyhouse he said she died of natural causes, to our disappointment.“Ask him,” Jem whispered.“You ask him, you’re the oldest.”“That’s why you oughta ask him.”“Atticus,” I said, “did you see Mr. Arthur?”Atticus looked sternly around his newspaper at me: “I did not.”Jem restrained me from further questions. He said Atticus was still touchousabout us and the Radleys and it wouldn’t do to push him any. Jem had a notionthat Atticus thought our activities that night last summer were not solelyconfined to strip poker. Jem had no firm basis for his ideas, he said it was merelya twitch.Next morning I awoke, looked out the window and nearly died of fright. Myscreams brought Atticus from his bathroom half-shaven.“The world’s endin‘, Atticus! Please do something—!” I dragged him to thewindow and pointed.“No it’s not,” he said. “It’s snowing.”Jem asked Atticus would it keep up. Jem had never seen snow either, but heknew what it was. Atticus said he didn’t know any more about snow than Jemdid. “I think, though, if it’s watery like that, it’ll turn to rain.”
The telephone rang and Atticus left the breakfast table to answer it. “That wasEula May,” he said when he returned. “I quote—‘As it has not snowed inMaycomb County since 1885, there will be no school today.’”Eula May was Maycomb’s leading telephone operator. She was entrusted withissuing public announcements, wedding invitations, setting off the fire siren, andgiving first-aid instructions when Dr. Reynolds was away.When Atticus finally called us to order and bade us look at our plates insteadof out the windows, Jem asked, “How do you make a snowman?”“I haven’t the slightest idea,” said Atticus. “I don’t want you all to bedisappointed, but I doubt if there’ll be enough snow for a snowball, even.”Calpurnia came in and said she thought it was sticking. When we ran to theback yard, it was covered with a feeble layer of soggy snow.“We shouldn’t walk about in it,” said Jem. “Look, every step you take’swasting it.”I looked back at my mushy footprints. Jem said if we waited until it snowedsome more we could scrape it all up for a snowman. I stuck out my tongue andcaught a fat flake. It burned.“Jem, it’s hot!”“No it ain’t, it’s so cold it burns. Now don’t eat it, Scout, you’re wasting it.Let it come down.”“But I want to walk in it.”“I know what, we can go walk over at Miss Maudie’s.”Jem hopped across the front yard. I followed in his tracks. When we were onthe sidewalk in front of Miss Maudie’s, Mr. Avery accosted us. He had a pinkface and a big stomach below his belt.“See what you’ve done?” he said. “Hasn’t snowed in Maycomb sinceAppomattox. It’s bad children like you makes the seasons change.”I wondered if Mr. Avery knew how hopefully we had watched last summerfor him to repeat his performance, and reflected that if this was our reward, therewas something to say for sin. I did not wonder where Mr. Avery gathered hismeteorological statistics: they came straight from the Rosetta Stone.“Jem Finch, you Jem Finch!”“Miss Maudie’s callin‘ you, Jem.”“You all stay in the middle of the yard. There’s some thrift buried under the
- Page 15 and 16: Maycomb Tribune to paste in his scr
- Page 17 and 18: Jem said if Dill wanted to get hims
- Page 19 and 20: 2Dill left us early in September, t
- Page 21 and 22: from here and try to undo the damag
- Page 23 and 24: I turned around and saw most of the
- Page 25 and 26: again, becoming cold sober only whe
- Page 27 and 28: “Reckon I have,” said Walter.
- Page 29 and 30: gently, “You mean him, ma’am? Y
- Page 31 and 32: Ain’t no snot-nosed slut of a sch
- Page 33 and 34: Maycomb’s ways in one day, and we
- Page 35 and 36: 4The remainder of my schooldays wer
- Page 37 and 38: the hundredth time to the knot-hole
- Page 39 and 40: the dreary face of the Radley Place
- Page 41 and 42: “Boo Radley.”Jem’s head at ti
- Page 43 and 44: “I don’t know. Atticus didn’t
- Page 45 and 46: blasts from beneath with a poisonou
- Page 47 and 48: My confidence in pulpit Gospel less
- Page 49 and 50: stick on the window sill, at least.
- Page 51 and 52: Dill said, “We thought he might e
- Page 53 and 54: go for a walk.”He sounded fishy t
- Page 55 and 56: the step squeaked. He stood still,
- Page 57 and 58: “Jem, Scout,” said Atticus, “
- Page 59 and 60: waited for his light to go on, stra
- Page 61 and 62: you’re gonna do lest they live in
- Page 63 and 64: “Don’t know. I’ll show it to
- Page 65: “Why no, son, I don’t think so.
- Page 69 and 70: another load, and another until he
- Page 71 and 72: By then he did not have to tell me.
- Page 73 and 74: not enough. I pulled free of it and
- Page 75 and 76: “Grieving, child? Why, I hated th
- Page 77 and 78: 9“You can just take that back, bo
- Page 79 and 80: under his chin. He put his arms aro
- Page 81 and 82: says she’s been cussing fluently
- Page 83 and 84: in it? It’ll drive him nuts.”Ta
- Page 85 and 86: “He is not!” I roared. “I don
- Page 87 and 88: Uncle Jack said if I talked like th
- Page 89 and 90: her.”Atticus chuckled. “She ear
- Page 91 and 92: 10Atticus was feeble: he was nearly
- Page 93 and 94: “Well nothing. Nothing—it seems
- Page 95 and 96: Calpurnia stared, then grabbed us b
- Page 97 and 98: Mr. Tate turned around. “He’s f
- Page 99 and 100: crazy. I’d hate to see Harry John
- Page 101 and 102: 11When we were small, Jem and I con
- Page 103 and 104: the reform school before next week,
- Page 105 and 106: “Jem,” he said, “are you resp
- Page 107 and 108: The following Monday afternoon Jem
- Page 109 and 110: lot.”“She can’t help that. Wh
- Page 111 and 112: Jem’s chin would come up, and he
- Page 113 and 114: PART TWO
- Page 115 and 116: write.The fact that I had a permane
8
For reasons unfathomable to the most experienced prophets in Maycomb
County, autumn turned to winter that year. We had two weeks of the coldest
weather since 1885, Atticus said. Mr. Avery said it was written on the Rosetta
Stone that when children disobeyed their parents, smoked cigarettes and made
war on each other, the seasons would change: Jem and I were burdened with the
guilt of contributing to the aberrations of nature, thereby causing unhappiness to
our neighbors and discomfort to ourselves.
Old Mrs. Radley died that winter, but her death caused hardly a ripple—the
neighborhood seldom saw her, except when she watered her cannas. Jem and I
decided that Boo had got her at last, but when Atticus returned from the Radley
house he said she died of natural causes, to our disappointment.
“Ask him,” Jem whispered.
“You ask him, you’re the oldest.”
“That’s why you oughta ask him.”
“Atticus,” I said, “did you see Mr. Arthur?”
Atticus looked sternly around his newspaper at me: “I did not.”
Jem restrained me from further questions. He said Atticus was still touchous
about us and the Radleys and it wouldn’t do to push him any. Jem had a notion
that Atticus thought our activities that night last summer were not solely
confined to strip poker. Jem had no firm basis for his ideas, he said it was merely
a twitch.
Next morning I awoke, looked out the window and nearly died of fright. My
screams brought Atticus from his bathroom half-shaven.
“The world’s endin‘, Atticus! Please do something—!” I dragged him to the
window and pointed.
“No it’s not,” he said. “It’s snowing.”
Jem asked Atticus would it keep up. Jem had never seen snow either, but he
knew what it was. Atticus said he didn’t know any more about snow than Jem
did. “I think, though, if it’s watery like that, it’ll turn to rain.”
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