When Scout's teacher tells Scout to hold out her hand, Scout believes that she is going to spit in it as a way of sealing oral contracts, although she wonders what kind of bargain they have made.
To Scout's dismay, Miss Caroline, who is unfamiliar with local customs because she is from Winston County in Northern Alabama, strikes Scout on the the inside of her hand several times; afterwards, she makes Scout stand in a corner. When the class realizes that their new teacher has "whipped" Scout, they break out into laughter. Then, when Miss Caroline threatens to do the same to the class, they resume their laughter, only stopping when Miss Blount from across the hall comes over with her hands on her hips. She complains that there is too much noise:
"Miss Caroline, the sixth grade cannot concentrate on the pyramids for all this racket!"
Despite her having been punished, Scout feels a little sorry for her pretty teacher, who is such a stranger to Maycomb.
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