The school of Flavius

Quintus walks to school slowly and often stops, but Horatia proceeds quickly; she arrives at school first and greets the girls who remain near the door; she makes long conversation with Iulia, a very pretty girl. Quintus sees a friend on the road, named Gaius; he calls him. Gaius is hurrying to school but when he hears Quintus, he stops and says, ‘What are you doing, Quintus? You come to school late. I hurry.’ Quintus answers: 'we are not late, Gaius’ He orders Gaius to remain. He remains but he is nervous. And so Quintus and Gaius proceed slowly to school.

The other children now are present. The teacher goes out the door orders them to enter and to sit; the boys wish to play, the girls to work. When the teacher sees neither Quintus nor Gaius, he is angry and shouts: ‘Why are Quintus and Gaius not present? Why do they come late?’ At last Quintus and Gaius enter and greet the teacher. But he shouts: ‘Why do you come late? You are bad boys.’ He orders them to sit quickly.

All day the children sit and listen to the teacher; all day the teacher shouts and teaches the letters. The children write the letters on tablets; the teacher observes the tabets and corrects the letters.

Decimus, a large and foolish boy, learns the letters with difficulty. The teacher orders him to bring his tablet to him. He looks at the tablet. He says, ‘Decimus, you are an ass; you write the letters incorrectly.’ Decimus says, ‘you are wrong teacher, I am not an ass. I write the letters correctly. Look! He writes the letters again. But Flavius says, ‘Decimus, you are impudent, and an ass. The letters you write are not correct.

All day the children toil. At last, Iulia says, ‘Teacher, we work hard. We write the letters well; we are weary. And so you should send us home.’

Flavius looks at them kindly. ‘Yes,’ he says, ‘ you work hard children. And so I order you to go home. The others happily hurry home, but Flavius orders Decimus to remain at school. ‘ You, Decimus,’ he says ‘you must again write the letters. And so Decimus sat miserably in school while the others play on the road.


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