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Show I 87 She lowered her head and gripped the edges of Karl's desk until her knuckles whitened, as though she were wrestling with some private grief. The tension in the classroom mounted as the students watched her, wondering what was hurting her. Finally Eugene McNeary raised his hand to ask, "What's wrong with working in the mill, Miss Petrov? Nearly all the men in Canaan do." "Men, Eugene," she said, and although her voice wavered a bit, she was in control. "The mill jobs should be limited to men, grown men, not boys like you. Even for grown men, the work is dangerous. How many of you know a man who lost an arm or leg in the mill, or was badly burned, or even...killed?" Every hand went up. "You see? That's why I want you to stay in school, to get your high-school diplomas, at least. Then perhaps you can become further educated to do some other kind of work, rather than risking your lives in the steel mills as though there were no alternative." Karl closed his grammar book and leaned backward in his seat. Miss Petrov was the most beautiful, intelligent, and exciting woman he'd ever known, but she talked foolishness. What else was there for a man to do in Canaan, P.A., except go into the mill? |