No Tick.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4378, 15 January 1883, Page 2

No Tick.

A country school-master who found it difficult to make his pupils observe the difference between a comma and a full point, adopted- a^plan-of his own, which he flattered would make th&riproficient in the art of punctuation; thus, in* reading, whea.they came to a cpnima f t|idy,iKere to say tick, and read on; to'a colon or semi* colon, tick, tick; and when a full point, tick, tick, tick. It happened that the dominie received notice th%fc the minister was to pay a visit of examination to his school? itad?- as/tie was naturally desirous that the pupils should shew to the best ad vaffiSgtftiefeaW them ah< extra'drill'the day Jte/ora. tbe. examination. " Now,'' said Mi addressing his I""when you read before tbe minister to-morrow, leave out the ticks; but you must think Of them as you go along for the sake of elocution.'', , Next day came<th*m*«aiter* and the master'hoped with smiles and bows that the training of his scholars would meet with his approval. It uofdrtunately happened that the first boy called up by the- minister had been: absent-the day before, and the master bad forgotten to give him any instruction s~ ins the "tick business. The minister asked the boy to read a chapter in the Old Testament, which he ppinted r out. The boy complied, and in his bestiusoent bega'n'toYeafi— " And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying tick, speak unto the children of Israel saying tick, tick, and thus shalt thou say unto them tick", tick, tick. This sally iv* his own style .aqted.likea shower batti on the poor dominie; rthle the minister and his friends almost dje£of4auf(b,te*<- - j