pounced on him with 9 x 8. He answered, without drawing breath, 72.
Elizabeth Ann shuddered at his accuracy. Ellen, too, rose to the
occasion when she got 6 x 7, which Elizabeth Ann could sometimes
remember and sometimes not. And then, oh horrors! It was her turn again!
Her turn had never before come more than twice during a mental
arithmetic lesson. She was so startled by the swiftness with which the
question went around that she balked on 6 x 6, which she knew perfectly.
And before she could recover Ralph had answered and had rattled out a
108 in answer to 9 x 12; and then Ellen slapped down an 84 on top of 7 x
12. Good gracious! Who could have guessed, from the way they read, they
could do their tables like this! She herself missed on 7 x 7 and was
ready to cry. After this the teacher didn't call on her at all, but
showered questions down on the other two, who sent the answers back with
sickening speed.

After the lesson the teacher said, smiling, "Well, Betsy, you were right
about your arithmetic. I guess you'd better recite with Eliza for a
while. She's doing second-grade work. I shouldn't be surprised if, after
a good review with her, you'd be able to go on with the third-grade
work."

Elizabeth Ann fell back on the bench with her mouth open. She felt
really dizzy. What crazy things the teacher said! She felt as though she
was being pulled limb from limb.

"What's the matter?" asked the teacher, seeing her bewildered fact.

"Why--why," said Elizabeth Ann, "I don't know what I am at all. If I'm
second-grade arithmetic and seventh-grade reading and third-grade
spelling, what grade AM I?"