cannot be explored.â
âOf course,â Woodend agreed.
âVery well, then. Pearl is an exceptional pupil, both in terms of her sporting prowess and her academic excellence. We expect her to do very well indeed. In fact, a place at either Oxford or Cambridge is certainly not out of the question.â
But the look of distaste was definitely back on the headmistressâs face, Woodend thought, and whatever she might
say
, Dr Jenkins clearly didnât like the fact that a black girl from the slums was doing better than many of her white middle-class pupils.
So if she didnât like it, why did she tolerate it? Why was Pearl even
in
the school?
There was a sudden loud mechanical roar from below, and looking out of the window, Woodend saw that a digger was attacking the tarmac in the corner of the playground.
âTrouble with your drains?â he asked.
Dr Jenkins shot him a disdainful look, as if it was bad taste on his part to even mention drains at all â as if he was expected to believe that the pupils and staff at this fine school didnât have the ordinary, nasty, bodily functions which
required
drains.
âWe are in the process of laying the foundations for our new science block,â she said. âIt will be an unpleasant disruption to the scholarly life we are used to here, but there is no choice in the matter, for though we excel in the classics, we must also move with the times.â
Woodend wondered if he should applaud the carefully balanced statement, but decided that even someone as self-absorbed as Dr Jenkins might see it for the sarcasm it was.
âIs Pearl good at science?â he asked.
âAs Iâve already indicated to you, Pearl is good at everything,â the headmistress said.
And the distaste was back on her face again.
âYou mentioned sport, earlier. Does she play hockey?â
âYes, she is a very strong player indeed,â Dr Jenkins said, forcing the words through her teeth.
And one who was not afraid to get hurt playing the game, Woodend thought.
âHow strong?â he asked. âIs she the best player youâve got?â
âAll things are relative, but I suppose, in a way, she is.â
âSo sheâll be captain of the team, then?â
âNo, not the captain,â Dr Jenkins admitted. âThere is another girl who is more suited to that particular role.â
So that was at least one small triumph that the bigoted Dr Jenkins had been able to deny her.
The sound of the digger outside stopped as abruptly as it had begun, and Dr Jenkins breathed a sigh of relief.
âI donât see why they couldnât just use men with pickaxes, instead of all that noisy machinery,â she said. âBut I suppose they simply canât get the labour any more. Working men donât seem to want to do any actual
work
, these days, do they?â
There speaks a woman whoâs never wielded a pickaxe in her life, Woodend thought.
He took out his cigarettes, then, seeing the glare in Dr Jenkinsâs eyes, slipped them back in his pocket again.
âWhat I find quite surprisinâ, given her humble background, is that Pearlâs a pupil at this school at all,â he said.
âIn educational matters, it is talent, not background, which should always prevail,â Dr Jenkins said, though with perhaps not as much conviction as she would have liked.
âYes, Iâm sure talent is very important,â Woodend agreed âBut, when allâs said anâ done, the education still has to be
paid for
, doesnât it? Anâ I donât see how Pearlâs mother could possibly afford the fees that you must have to charge. Thatâs why I was wonderinâ if youâd given her some kind of scholarship.â
âIâm afraid I couldnât possibly comment on that,â Dr Jenkins said stonily.
âWhy not?â Woodend wondered. âIf she
is
on a scholarship, itâs
âOf course,â Woodend agreed.
âVery well, then. Pearl is an exceptional pupil, both in terms of her sporting prowess and her academic excellence. We expect her to do very well indeed. In fact, a place at either Oxford or Cambridge is certainly not out of the question.â
But the look of distaste was definitely back on the headmistressâs face, Woodend thought, and whatever she might
say
, Dr Jenkins clearly didnât like the fact that a black girl from the slums was doing better than many of her white middle-class pupils.
So if she didnât like it, why did she tolerate it? Why was Pearl even
in
the school?
There was a sudden loud mechanical roar from below, and looking out of the window, Woodend saw that a digger was attacking the tarmac in the corner of the playground.
âTrouble with your drains?â he asked.
Dr Jenkins shot him a disdainful look, as if it was bad taste on his part to even mention drains at all â as if he was expected to believe that the pupils and staff at this fine school didnât have the ordinary, nasty, bodily functions which
required
drains.
âWe are in the process of laying the foundations for our new science block,â she said. âIt will be an unpleasant disruption to the scholarly life we are used to here, but there is no choice in the matter, for though we excel in the classics, we must also move with the times.â
Woodend wondered if he should applaud the carefully balanced statement, but decided that even someone as self-absorbed as Dr Jenkins might see it for the sarcasm it was.
âIs Pearl good at science?â he asked.
âAs Iâve already indicated to you, Pearl is good at everything,â the headmistress said.
And the distaste was back on her face again.
âYou mentioned sport, earlier. Does she play hockey?â
âYes, she is a very strong player indeed,â Dr Jenkins said, forcing the words through her teeth.
And one who was not afraid to get hurt playing the game, Woodend thought.
âHow strong?â he asked. âIs she the best player youâve got?â
âAll things are relative, but I suppose, in a way, she is.â
âSo sheâll be captain of the team, then?â
âNo, not the captain,â Dr Jenkins admitted. âThere is another girl who is more suited to that particular role.â
So that was at least one small triumph that the bigoted Dr Jenkins had been able to deny her.
The sound of the digger outside stopped as abruptly as it had begun, and Dr Jenkins breathed a sigh of relief.
âI donât see why they couldnât just use men with pickaxes, instead of all that noisy machinery,â she said. âBut I suppose they simply canât get the labour any more. Working men donât seem to want to do any actual
work
, these days, do they?â
There speaks a woman whoâs never wielded a pickaxe in her life, Woodend thought.
He took out his cigarettes, then, seeing the glare in Dr Jenkinsâs eyes, slipped them back in his pocket again.
âWhat I find quite surprisinâ, given her humble background, is that Pearlâs a pupil at this school at all,â he said.
âIn educational matters, it is talent, not background, which should always prevail,â Dr Jenkins said, though with perhaps not as much conviction as she would have liked.
âYes, Iâm sure talent is very important,â Woodend agreed âBut, when allâs said anâ done, the education still has to be
paid for
, doesnât it? Anâ I donât see how Pearlâs mother could possibly afford the fees that you must have to charge. Thatâs why I was wonderinâ if youâd given her some kind of scholarship.â
âIâm afraid I couldnât possibly comment on that,â Dr Jenkins said stonily.
âWhy not?â Woodend wondered. âIf she
is
on a scholarship, itâs
Similar Books
